Karma is a popular belief that most of the world's population has adopted for years; it's what drives most, if not all of human actions. It is the thought that words, and/or actions often determine what will come around. Judging by the fates of 'good' people, there is no certainty that the consequence of doing a good deed will produce either a good or bad outcome. Superstitious beliefs are also what drive the belief of karma, the notion that history will always repeat itself, one deed done a million times will always produce the same outcome. This paper will show that the outcome of karma is inevitable, which will be seen through the character of the protagonist. The effect of superstitious beliefs will also be a topic of discussion. The author highlights some of these effects through the text.
In this text the author establishes setting by the good use near vivid description. Firstly, the narrator creates the scene with proper vocabulary, giving readers a good sense of the surrounding. "Once there was a family with a highland name who lived beside the seathe steel wheel of a horse-drawn cart which was hauling kelpto be used as fertilizer" (MacLeod, As Birds Bring Forth the Sun, 172). The author uses language that gives the readers the idea that this was set in Scotland around the 1800s, before the industrial revolution. The story is told mostly through a third person limited narrative, and also through flashbacks to give readers an understanding of why the present is the way it is. The elements of this fictional tale propose that there is more than one theme. The themes of karma, superstition, compassion for animals and tragedy and well expressed throughout the story. Examples of expressions of these themes will be discussed. .
Karma does not always go the expected way; what goes around does not always come around. Contrary to the laws of karma, the animal farmer in this text gets unlucky when the forces of nature do not move in his favour.