The Tallest Mountain for the Man Who Would Cure the World

The Tallest Mountain For The Man Who Would Cure The World

In the past, intellectuals have tried to find the answer to one question--What is the true meaning of life? There are a variety of answers that come to this: some believe there is a higher purpose of doing good; others oppose any common purpose that is built into all humans; then there are others who believe people on this planet are to love one another. However, according to Paul Farmer, he believes that there is a meaningful direction of understanding what life is all about through a person's talents and skills. In the book Mountains Beyond Mountains, written by Tracey Kidder, Dr. Paul Farmer is followed through his travels on trying to cure the world. He has devoted his life to overwhelming challenges only to help others and change lives no matter the magnitude. According to Kidder, "that's when [Farmer] feels most alive... when [he's] helping people," (Kidder 295). Then again, life is a series of continuous peaks and troughs, almost like a mountain, a sequence of failures and successes, even in Farmer's. His greatest mountain that he had to climb over was the poverty and the inherent epidemics that came along.

Farmer's crusade in Mountains Beyond Mountains is to end infectious disease, especially in Haiti, and bring lifesaving medicines to those that have no access to it and most need it. His idea of a long defeat, however, came with the fact that "[he] worked eighteen years in Haiti, and everything has gotten worse...[they] haven't done enough yet in Haiti," (Kidder 205); he realizes that it may be impossible to change the fortunes of poor countries, but he refuses to quit and not try to win. Kidder explains that more fortunate people in the world seem to be blinded by their wealth and are not aware of the tragedies that go around those less fortunate. For instance, people known as the "WL," also known as the white liberals, seem to "think all the world's problem can be fixed without any cost to themselves. We don't believe that. There's a lot to be said for sacrifice, remorse, even pity. It's what separates us from roaches," (Kidder 40). The poor deserve decent health care and living conditions, and Farmer wants to preach to preach this out over to all the countries of the world.

There will always be mountains beyond mountains in which people try to overcome; however, obstacles will be faced along the way. At the end of the book, there is no certain outcome because there is still so much that needs to be done. Paul Farmer is a man who is more interested in trying to win over the long defeat, even though he wants to win. The man tries to eradicate the evil of poverty and illness among the poor and it is his trying that makes him great. There may be people who turn their backs on poverty and not see the horrible conditions some less fortunate