Sample+of+paragraph+requirements

One theme that can be found in the short story “The Weapon” by Fredric Brown is the idea of personal responsibility. The character, Dr. James Graham, feels no responsibility toward the potential harm his weapon could do. Graham says, “I’m a scientist, and only a scientist. Yes, it is public knowledge that I am working on a weapon, a rather ultimate one. But, for me personally, that is only a byproduct of the fact that I am advancing science. I have thought it through, and I have found that is my only concern.” He seems to have rationalized his work so that the side effects of his work are not his responsibility or concern. By giving his son a loaded weapon, the character Nieman, however, is proving that actions do have consequences, and we are responsible for the consequences of our actions. The author, Brown emphasizes the character Graham’s blindness to this by his thought, “//only a madman would give a loaded revolver to a retarded child.”// Clearly, then, Brown is pointing out Graham’s ignorance to his responsibility, and this is wrong.

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