Thank you!!
Do people have to be highly competitive in order to succeed?
True success is looking back at life and being content with what one has experienced; thus, being highly competitive is absolutely not a prerequisite for success. This is demonstrated by the actions and outcome of the character Hazel in the novel Watership Down, and the tragic fate of the titular character of the play Macbeth. The two provide antipodal reflections of competition, and what two distinctly different approaches and paradigms cause.
In Watership Down, Hazel’s very home and safety is threatened twofold: by humans wanting to build over his rabbit burrow, and by other rabbits who shun him for wanting to leave. He could easily fall into the trap of wanting to outcompete the other rabbits and prove himself to be right, but what would result then is the death of all the rabbits, including himself. Instead, he sees that the other rabbits are hopelessly entrenched in their hubris, and simply chooses to convince whom he can and escape. Hazel’s decision to note compete directly saved the lives of ten rabbits and made himself a hero, achieving undeniable success.
On the other hand, Macbeth in the tragedy Macbeth succumbs to this competitive spirit and arrogance. Following the witches’ prophecy that he will one day rule in King Duncan’s place, his desires get the better of him and he murders Duncan to fulfill the prophecy. He seems to have achieved success for a moment, but his paranoia and further competitiveness sets in, which leads him to kill his best friend, Banquo. He eventually loses everyone’s trust, and is killed to most people’s joy. Evidently, competitiveness did not give Macbeth lasting success nor even a happy ending.
It is therefore conclusive that high competitiveness is most definitely not a prerequisite for success, as proven by Hazel’s decision, and it is even seen that competitiveness may cause negative outcomes, as in Macbeth’s case. Thought he resulting fates and statuses of the two characters, high competitiveness is not required to succeed.
// It’s 327 words in all; do you think it’ll fit in the 2 pages?
(be critical)