Loyalty in “The Gift” by Rosario Ferre Essay

In general, loyalty is considered to be a state or a feeling of devotion and faithfulness that is oriented to a particular person, a group of people, cause, or country, etc. Even today professionals fail to come to an agreement upon the object of loyalty. Some are sure that it can be addressed only to human beings while others reject such boundaries. There is also an opinion that it is a primary virtue and the basic moral principle, on the basis of which all other principles occur (Kleinig, 2014). In this framework, “The Gift” by Rosario Ferré includes many examples of loyal adherence to friends and traditions.

Loyalty can be observed in different forms. Exclusionary one presupposes that there can be only one object of loyalty, and no other can be introduced. On the contrary, non-exclusionary loyalty allows expressing loyalty to other people or groups. In this way, multiple and single loyalty may exist, depending on the number of objects. When having different bases, loyalty can be constructed upon those facts that are static or those that can alter and deal with one’s personal choice (for example, a place of birth and a living place).

It is also possible to consider the strength of loyalty, as biological ties are often believed to be stronger than preferences. The scope of actions needed to support loyalty can also differ. Its legitimacy is often discussed in case of multiple loyalties when they conflict, and their scopes contradict. An attitudinal dimension of loyalty deals with the way one treats those people who share his/her loyalties or not (Loyalty, 2016).

Loyalty can also be misplaced when it is not accepted by its object (one’s loyalty is used to achieve personal goals or is betrayed). Disloyalty occurs when several loyalties contradict each other (one can be loyal only to the particular race or gender, which can be found in “The Gift”).

References

Kleinig, J. (2014). On loyalty and loyalties. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Loyalty. (2016).