Independence

A principle that I personally live by is independence to the fullest extent. Independence is a simple value held true in the U.S. To be independent, is to follow your dreams, to fight for your rights to do what you please. I hold this value very close to my heart and chose to live everyday by it. Of course independence is limited by laws and what other values we hold as true. Our choices to do what makes us happy are all powered by holding our independence as a true value.

Doing what makes you feel liberated and happy will hold true no matter the circumstance. For example, in the book The Road by Cormac McCarthy, a father and son are living in a post-apocalyptic world in which very few values have been preserved. Most important to them is to refrain from succumbing to the cannibalism that seems to engulf them. Yet, independence is still respected.  Although under extreme circumstances, one may not see the evidence of independence thriving without society. People do as they please, and fight for the ability to live a free life.

To be independent is to be free and self-reliant. The man and his son are following their self-reliance, and are engaged in a daily battle to stay independent of other dominating people found along the road. Together they show that to be free of cannibalism, ravenous packs of murders, and starvation.