Here is another assignment from G&C class. For this one she gave us a bunch of sayings and we had to write an argument about one of them saying why we felt the way we did about it.

When I hear the saying “he who hesitates gets lost,” a shiver of anger mixed with apprehension rushes through my mind. This saying sounds so absolutely definitive that my certainty of its falseness slightly scares me. Nevertheless, I feel confident that the opposite of this saying holds true and that “he who hesitates finds his way”. Sometimes it seems like common sense to hesitate while at other times opportunities come to light only because of hesitation. To turn to the negative side, the teen culture bears a sad example of what may happen when hesitation or prudence becomes forgotten. How many young people find themselves “lost” on account of thoughtlessness? Great literature, too, has spent many chapters devoted to this subject of prudence. Often the final thought a writer leaves its reader with points to the incredible importance of discretion.

Parents have the responsibility to teach their children the basic lessons of life. Many of these important lessons have to do with self-control and prudence. All children learn that they must hesitate before running across a street after a runaway ball. Furthermore, they learn not to hit or scream when angry and how instead to hesitate and use words. This simple virtue of prudence protects the individual from bodily harm throughout life. Prudence not only guides a person but also a whole nation. Since the September 11th terrorist attacks our country has displayed how hesitation bears so much importance. After the attacks President Bush did not rush into retaliation but chose to guide the wrath of our country away from immediate action and toward further intelligence on the matter. In this way we wisely went about the retaliation process.

Protecting not only bodily welfare, hesitation or prudence acts as a true guardian to the soul. For the teenage girl forethought can mean everything. Shopping for clothing can prove itself disastrous if she does not choose prudently because of the lack of modest clothing in stores. Movies and television provide entertainment but also bombard the soul with misleading and harmful messages. Without the use of prudence the soul can fall into this world of mixed and tempting images and become confused and lost. Dating, another pitfall for teenagers, can lead to devastating wounds if not controlled by forethought. Shakespeare examined the role of prudence in his play “Romeo and Juliet”. He shows how the passion of Romeo and Juliet becomes so great that it overcomes prudence and results in their deaths. In the epic of Kristen Lavransdatter by Sigred Undset the issue of prudence bears incredible weight. Kristen never recovers from her hasty actions during early adulthood which haunt her and many others for the rest of their lives.

Another proof of the importance of hesitation concerns assumptions. Sometimes one’s assumptions prove true, while at other times they lead to lost opportunity or even misdirection. For example, I can make the assumption that someone feels completely disinterested in me, which causes me to act shy and reserved making me appear disinterested. In truth this “disinterestedness” may turn out to only mean friendly shortsightedness on the part of this person. If only I had hesitated before making my assumptions I might have found the opportunity for friendship. Jane Austin understands this fault very well. One example appears in Pride and Prejudice when Elizabeth Bennet, hastily putting her trust in Mr. Wickam, becomes terribly misled. Charles Dickens wraps the story of Great Expectations in a shroud of mystery centered on Pip his main character. Pip makes two dramatic assumptions that nearly devastate him when proven false.

Hesitation, like a lantern in the darkness, leads many on their way. It encourages the lessons taught by our parents, the general guidelines for life, reminding us to pacify initial feelings so that our judgment has no bias. Along with this hesitation develops into forethought, which guards and protects the innocent from the many pitfalls on the road to and through adulthood. Finally, hesitation develops its own opportunities, which shower the user with unexpected blessings. All this definitively proves that “he who hesitates finds his way.” Not only though does he find his way, but he also finds the way of righteousness in this path of prudence. Though it may never seem the “cool” thing to do, I feel confident that when one acts with hesitation one receives the blessings of prudence.