What Is The Problem In The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas?

“The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” posits that

there can be no happiness without suffering

. Even in her imagined city of perfect happiness, LeGuin insists that one child must suffer extreme neglect and torture so the other citizens may experience joy.

What is the terrible paradox of Omelas?

In “The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas,” the terrible paradox that the people who observe

the suffering child must face is that they are willing to exchange the suffering of one child for the happiness of the rest of the town.

What is the conflict in The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas?

The conflict in this story is a philosophical one.

The conditions in the community of Omelas where smiles have become extinct

since the residents are always content are predicated upon the tribulations of one miserable child.

What does the suffering child in Omelas represent?

In “The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas,” the child symbolizes

the injustice upon which the town's happiness is based

. People in this town can only be happy because a small child is locked away in a basement and forced to live in squalor.

Why is the moral dilemma in the story compelling in The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas?

Guilt. This is the ultimate moral dilemma in Omelas, to choose between

the happiness of the whole

or the happiness of one, and the guilt of having to live with both decisions.

What is the terrible paradox must those who observe?

In “The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas,” the terrible paradox that the people who observe the suffering child must

face is that they are willing to exchange the suffering of one child for the happiness of the rest of the town.

Why does the narrator keep asking the readers if they believe him her?

Some people basic stuff. Why does the narrator keep asking the readers if they believe him/her (top/middle p. … The narrator keep asking of they they believe them

because it's a way of allegory and trying to get you to think about how it relates to your life

.

Are the citizens of Omelas truly happy?

Maybe you're familiar with Ursula Le Guin's short story, “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas.” It's about a sweet and peaceful city with lovely parks and delightful music.

The people in the city are genuinely happy

. They enjoy their handsome buildings and a “magnificent” farmers' market.

What is the function of the suffering child?

The suffering child in LeGuin's story “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” is the scapegoat for the misery of others, so

that the others are able to live in comfort and happiness

.

Why do the ones who walk away walk away instead of saving the child?

The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas walk away because

they do not want to be a party to the terrible crime of scapegoating the one wretched child

. … They want eternal peace, so they choose to sacrifice one of their children, whom they keep in a wretched state, locked up and abused.

Why does everyone have to be aware of the child's existence in Omelas?

The light cannot exist without the dark, and so everyone in Omelas must be aware of the

child's misery so that they can truly understand and appreciate their own happiness

.

Is The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas an allegory?

Allegory. “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” is considered an

allegory

, or a tale in which characters representing things or abstract ideas are used to convey a message or teach a lesson. This story has been called both a political allegory and a religious allegory.

What is the symbolism of the room where the child is kept?

The child symbolizes

the injustice and inhumanity that is present in society

. People in Omelas are able to live with the idea of the child in the basement because they are living a happy life and are not directly affected by the child.

What is Omelas a metaphor for?

In Le Guin's story, “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas,” the story itself as a parable is a metaphor . For,

the imaginary world of Omelas as an idyllic community

is an unstated comparison of the child as an underclass in capitalistic Western Societies or a third-world country that…

Is ignorance bliss Omelas?

The notion that happiness must correlate with simplicity or even ignorance (“ignorance is bliss”) does not apply to Omelas. … The narrator reveals that

Omelas is not perfect

. Therefore, it is not too good to be true.

How many words in the ones who walk away from Omelas?