Accepting Men
For many things, change is inevitable. According to an excerpt tittled “Accepting Men as They Are”, written by Albert Ellis, men are sex- orientated, selfish, and workaholics. Ellis believes that it is useless to try to change a man because that is how they are built. There is no point in changing because it simply cannot be done. That could be true, however, this passage was written in 1979, about three decades ago. The author had another perspective because he lived in a different generation. Men acted like they were superior, but it is now the 21st century; times has changed, and so have men.
Even though many people will say that men are all the same, men are capable of changing for the better. After all, we are all humans. Humans change for the better every day like going to rehab and fix their problems. Men that change for the better are shown throughout literature, history, and the media. There are many times where men were able to change completely, like the Grinch, Tiger Woods, and in the movie “Click” where Adam Sandler acted as Michael Newman who was portrayed as a workaholic.
In the passage, Ellis stated that “All men are selfish”, however in the popular childrens’ book, How the Grinch Stole Christmas? Grinch was able to change. Symbolic of men, the Grinch was selfish, bitter, and did not want to relate himself to any of the Whos. He wanted to take everyone’s joy away so he attempted to steal Christmas. Even though he takes all the decor, he was appalled that everyone still had the holiday spirit in them. Because of a young adolescent named Little Cindy Loo Who, he was able to change and return all the decorations and presents back to the village.
One of the peak points in the movie was when Little Cindy Loo Who was about to fall off a cliff because of his sleigh was too heavy to carrying all the Christmas decorations and presents. The Grinch’s heart grew bigger and bigger, and he did not care if he got hurt and tried to save the life of the child that saved his. The villagers were able to see that he transformed into a heartwarming man. They gave him a chance and at the end the Grinch was able to cut the ham. Due to his positive outlook he was able to become a new person and change into a better man.
Albert Ellis claims that men only want sex from a woman. However, some men are lustful to the extent where they were addicted to it, and even lost their whole family. In the last year, Tiger Woods was exposed to the media for having many mistresses and cheating on his wife. Not too long after this was made public, they got a divorce. Woods realized his obsession with sex, and checked into rehab. Even though this is one of the times where it was too late for the man to realize his addiction, he was able to admit that he had a problem.
He lost his wife, kids, and almost his career. Checking into sex rehab was one of the choices for him and was a big step, but he knew he had to change. He already lost his family, but he did not want to lose everything he had, including his career. This is to show that he is progressing into a better person. Some men become workaholics because they need it to support their family. In the movie “Click”, Adam Sandler plays a workaholic that tries to give the best to his family. By using a remote to fast forward time, he was able to fast forward to where he was promoted.
In doing so, he spent many nights working on projects that will prove to his boss that he is a trustworthy person that can handle bigger jobs. He could not wait any longer so he went to a mad scientist which fast forwarded time, and sent him to a different time in the future. Traveling through time saw how he would be in the future if he kept focusing on his work. He lost his wife and kids, and devoteds his whole life to his job. He realized that he missed all the good times with his wife and children, and was fortunately able to go back and realize his mistake.
He paid more attention to his wife and kids and was more romantic. He changed his outlook on life and was able to get back his old life. All men are different, but one thing in common is that they are able to change for worse and better. The only person you can change is yourself. Without saying more, no one should be able to change anyone because it must be the desire of the person wo needs to change. Change is still possible, but it is in only self-realization where it can only happen.
