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The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas Essay

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Music is mentioned throughout “The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas” multiple times. The narrator describes the city during “the Festival of Summer,” where it seems that music plays loudly 24/7. The type of music described is very a cheerful style, which is the opposite of what is going on underneath the city where the little malnourished boy lives in a tool closet for the wellness of the city. The people of the city who all know of the boy, dance to the music and use it to forget about the child suffering for them. The music that plays throughout the story, is a way of distraction for the people; they dance and run around enjoying the perfection of Omelas while the child suffers. Music is a big part of Omelas. Within the first few sentences describing Omelas, the narrator says, “In other streets the music beat faster, a shimmering gong and tambourine, and the people went dancing, the procession was a dance” (531). Everything about that description sounds cheerful and joyous. It is mentioned by the narrator, that the only thing Omelas does not have is guilt. This is partly because everyone who feels guilt leave, the other reason is because of how perfect the city is. How could one feel guilty when they just get to enjoy music and dance around to forget about …show more content…
They are able to block out any thought of the boy by doing things they enjoy to distract them. “Let tambourines be struck above the copulations, and the glory of desire be proclaimed upon the gongs, and (a not unimportant point) let the offspring of these delightful rituals be beloved and looked after by all” (533). This passage is written after talk of the orgies. Music is a part of seemingly everything the people do, and greatly helps to distract them. While these people may seem perfect, in some ways they are very selfish and uncaring. Majority of them are cheerful and carefree within their own

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