Abdoulah 1

Lea Abdoulah

Ms. Yeaton

Pre-AP Period 2

29 April 2018

“Heart live by Being Wounded” - Oscar Wilde

“Wounds are the means through which we enter the hearts of other people. [Wounds] are

meant to teach us to become compassionate and wise” - Caroline Myss. It is part of life to be

emotionally hurt by others. It is natural for our hearts to be wounded as a result of hurtful words

or actions from someone we care for. Oscar Wilde put the tough truth into five words, “Hearts

live by being wounded.” Once the anger is gone or maybe a trace of grief is left, the wounded

heart can be set free, whether it is ready to fall in love again or it is ready to express compassion

towards someone or something in order to let our hearts live.

Coming together as a group can heal wounded hearts quickly and compassionately. On

March 24, 2018, “March for Our Lives” was not only a demonstration to transcend politics, but it

was a demonstration filled with thousands of wounded hearts which expressed compassion

towards those who have died from mass school shootings or mass shootings in general. Cameron

Kasky, an 11th grader, felt ignored by the lack of gun control and marched with thousands “‘as

students begging for [their] lives’” (Scanlan 2). These students took their wounds that resulted

from certain NRA actions, school shootings, and silence, and turned it into something positive.

Kasky is an example of a wounded heart who feels neglected but knows that there is something

that needs to be changed. Kasky and thousands of other students and adults got together and

lived through a little anger but mostly compassion in this event to turn that wound into
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something positive. There is always a message behind a wounded heart and on that day, March

24th, those students spoke that message by breaking the world silence. The wounded hearts were

able to live as a result of the students sending that message out into the world. This march will go

down in history just like some other historical events that represent wounded hearts letting go to

live.

Standing strong and sending a powerful message with a wounded heart can inspire others

to let their own hearts live. Sending out these messages to an audience is applied to the position

of a Civil Rights activist. Martin Luther King Jr., a Baptist minister and a civil rights activist,

gave the “I Have a Dream” speech on April 3rd, 1968. The day after, April 4th, King was

assassinated. This event sent shock waves traveling around the world. Wounded hearts were felt

by thousands, but the people who were hurt, took the wound and made a world difference. It is

okay to feel anger in the process of letting a wounded heart live, as “[Martin Luther King Jr’s]

assassination led to an outpouring of anger among black Americans, as well as a period of

national mourning that helped speed the way for an equal housing bill that would be the last

significant legislative achievement of the civil rights era” (history.com). King had so many

supporters that felt so much pain after he was killed. It is okay to experience this anger through

the process as long as that anger doesn’t consume every action made or feeling expressed. This

crowd all had wounded hearts but pursued through, feeling anger along with compassion and a

little love, resulting in an event that let all of the wounded hearts live.

Almost everyone obtains a wounded heart from falling out of love or from a broken heart.

It is extremely hard to not let anger or grief consume us in this situation. This is where

vulnerability and human connection is key, because “Whether we like it or not, it’s important to
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understand that human connection is one of the most crucial aspects of a happy and fulfilled life”

(Cohen Ph.D. 2). Being human comes with a desire to be loved and accepted, so when a

wounded heart takes that desire away and the ability to be vulnerable, we also lose the ability to

experience the joy that comes from relationships and human connection in general. A wounded

heart that stems from love can easily be freed to live if it is trained to be vulnerable towards

human connection. “Hearts live by being wounded” even if it takes some time or a change in

one’s mindset.

A wounded heart can be healed through the acts of expressing compassion and opening

up towards human connection. By Oscar Wilde once saying, “Hearts live by being wounded”,

humans who had or have a wounded heart are reminded to let the heart live to ultimately be a

free human with solid relationships and not only a free heart, but a more compassionate and wise

one.
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Work Cited

History.com Staff. “Martin Luther King, Jr. Assassination.” ​History.com​, A&E Television
Networks, 2010,
www.history.com/topics/black-history/martin-luther-king-jr-assassination.

“How to Find the Courage to Love Again After Being Hurt.” Psychology Today, Sussex
Publishers,
www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/your-emotional-meter/201710/how-find-the-courage
-love-again-after-being-hurt.

Scanlan, Quinn, and ABCNews. “Florida Shooting Survivors Announce 'March for Our Lives'.”
6abc Philadelphia, 18 Feb. 2018,
6abc.com/florida-shooting-survivors-announce-march-for-our-lives/3104044/.