”To love is to suffer. To avoid suffering one must not love. But then one suffers from not loving. Therefore, to love is to suffer; not to love is to suffer; to suffer is to suffer. To be happy is to love. To be happy, then, is to suffer, but suffering makes one unhappy. Therefore, to be happy one must love or love to suffer or suffer from too much happiness”, Woody Allen. ”The Legacy” by Woolf and ”EPICAC” by Vonnegut greatly connect with the theme of Woody Allen’s quote, love is to suffer. Protagonists of both stories as well as necessarily creations felt something what radically changed their minds and perceiving of life. The strongest feelings which we call love and suffering.
EPICAC recently found out what love is, he learned it as a mathematical algorithm, he was deeply interested in this unknown feeling. He was just a computer that imperfectly executed scientific calculations. A pile of metal that was not designed not for any feelings, and no one even thought it would have the ability to compose romantic poems. The narrator being overwhelmed caused the discovery of the computer’s ability to have compassion. The narrator taught EPICAC what is love and its manifestations. As a result, the computer began to not only understand, but also independently feel something. Machine also wanted to love. As soon as EPICAC knew that he was invented for functions other than love, and he couldn’t love because he was made of metal and not placebo; EPICAC began experiencing other feelings, suffering, because of love sickness. In the story narrator says to EPICAC, ”Women can’t love machines, and that’s that”. Flame of love wasn’t meant to him that’s why he suffered, resulting in why the computer was burned. EPICAC ”died” physically, but in spirit he lived on through his 500 romantic poems to the woman who he loved. Love was not forbidden for Woolf’s character Angela Clandon. She was aware what infatuation is, after all like any other person in the world…