Aristotle’s Definition Of Virtue

Nowadays, virtues are associated with refinement and nobility of one’s character. Aristotle believed that virtue is a function of the soul that guides every action of an individual. Thus, every action illuminates the discretion of an individual to act freely the chosen disposition. Since every human has a soul and virtue is its activity, can we classify every action as virtuous action? In Nicomachaen Ethics, Aristotle examined the inter-relations among the purpose of every human action, virtues, and vices in the achievement of happiness. Aristotle believed that the supreme good is the ultimate goal of every human endeavor. What then is the â€Å"good† for a man that can be possibly attained through his endeavors? It is happiness but relatively defined; vulgar men associated it with pleasure while people with refined character ascribed it to honor. While these things are pursued to achieve happiness in one’s self, but â€Å"good† should be pursued not only for happiness but for the â€Å"good† itself—as an end. The â€Å"good† brings happiness and is associated with function or activity. For instance, if you are a behest pianist then, you are good in playing piano for you are functioning well. The well-performance of your function creates happiness not only for yourself but also for the others, thus, giving you a unique identity. In the same line of reasoning, soul is an aspect of humans that differentiated them from the rest of the animals. Thus, man’s function concerns the soul. The rational component of the soul controls man’s impulses, thus, makes him virtuous. Therefore, â€Å"human good turns out to be an activity of the soul in accordance with virtue, and if there are more than one virtue, in accordance with the best and most complete. † As such, the nature of virtue then should be explored. Moral Virtues The product of teaching is the intellectual virtue while moral virtue resulted from the habit. Thus, it is never the case that moral virtue arises spontaneously on man’s being. Moral virtues are inculcated in man’s soul and perfected by habits. â€Å"For the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by doing them. For if all men are naturally born good or bad, adept or inept in certain skills, teachers have no sense at all. On the same ground, moral virtues can be learned or destroyed in one’s soul: by interacting with others we may become just or unjust; by experiencing perils we may become brave or coward; and other circumstances may impart hedonism, ill-temperance, or self-indulgence. Moreov er, by absorbing moral virtues at very young age, great difference will be made in one’s soul. Since it is through training, virtues are acquired; training then at very young age can mold virtuous personality. Conditions for the Conduct of Virtues Just and temperate actions are done by a man who has the sense of justice and temperance. â€Å"But if the acts that are in accordance with the virtues have themselves a certain character it does not follow that they are done justly or temperately. † Several conditions are necessary for the conduct of every virtuous action: knowledge of virtues; disposition for virtuous actions; and power to do virtuous actions. Hence, knowledge on virtues is not enough to become virtuous; rather, the disposition to put virtues into actions is a must. It is common sense to us, for example, that insufficient food and water taken into the body results to poor nutrition while a balanced diet ensures good health. â€Å"So too is it, then, in the case of temperance and courage and other virtues. † Avoidance of fears leads to timidity while extreme braveness endangers one’s life; absolute abstinence creates insensibility while hedonism shapes one’s indulgence. Since wrong doings are committed due to pleasure and noble character is avoided due to pain, pleasures and pain then are subjects of every virtue. The Doctrine of the Mean â€Å"Now neither virtues nor the vices are passions, because we are not called good or bad on the ground of our passions, but are so called on the ground of our virtues and our vices. † Passions, faculties, and states of character exist in the soul: passions are desires; faculties are abilities to perceive passions; and states of character are the choices to either put the passion in action or not. Feelings of pains and pleasures or passions, and the knowledge on good or bad are not virtues for virtues involve modes of choice. In addition, we naturally have faculties and desires. The man’s virtue then, involves the state of character that makes the realization of every desire that either good or bad. â€Å"For instance, both fear and confidence and appetite and anger and pity and in general pleasure and pain may be felt too much or too little, and in both cases not well; but to feel them at the right times, with reference to the right objects, towards the right people, with the right motive, and in the right way, is what is both intermediate and best, and this is the characteristic of virtue. The deficient and excess among the activities that give pleasure or pain is a vice while moral virtues lie in between of these deficiency and excessiveness, hence, the mean. However, the â€Å"mean† can not be found among actions which are entirely wrong such as crimes and envy. For the â€Å"mean† among entirely wrong actions is either its excess or deficiency, â€Å"but however, they are done they are entirely wrong; for in general there is neither a mean of excess and deficiency, nor excess and deficiency of a mean. Also, an extreme of a particular activity can be closer to its mean such as in the case of courage; courage is more of rashness than cowardice. This is so because of the things that are farther from its â€Å"mean† are its opposites. Moreover, Aristotle’s concept of the â€Å"mean† is not a strict doctrine; since the things and degree of happiness for each individual varies, so as the extent to which the â€Å"mean† for every case lies. It is only through the aid of our practical reason that we may determine the mean in a particular situation. Thus, virtue is a set of innate dispositions for the governance one’s action towards the attainment of happiness. Happiness then is not achieved unless one acted in accordance with his virtuous dispositions. Since actions are the concern of moral virtues, the attributes then of which should be examined. The Nature of Actions The nature of actions was classified by Aristotle as voluntary, nonvoluntary and involuntary. Involuntary actions are done against one’s disposition; voluntary actions are in accordance with the disposition; and nonvoluntary actions are accidentally done due to ignorance. Since virtue governs one’s disposition to act in accordance with the â€Å"mean,† the primary basis then of a virtuous action is the goodness of choice. For an action is always a product of premeditated choice of an individual for the attainment of one’s purpose, it is therefore voluntary. This also satisfies the conditions that Aristotle believed are necessary for virtue: knowledge, volition, and doing. On the other hand, if an individual was forced for a certain action, although seem involuntary, he is still responsible for that action for he has a choice for not doing. Meanwhile doing things because of ignorance is involuntary if at the end, one recognizes ignorance while failure to do so, makes it nonvoluntary. For instance, if a drunkard is addicted to liquor due to inability to discern virtuous things, the person then is guilty of ignorance and the action is nonvoluntary. If at some point of time, the person realized his ignorance, the action then becomes involuntary. With these, only ignorance can excuse an action to be called a vice but has limitation. If after realizing virtuous things, the person has continued to be a drunkard, then the action is voluntary and he is therefore vicious. Conclusion For Aristotle therefore, virtues are dispositions that acted in accordance with the doctrine of the mean towards the attainment of happiness. Happiness can not be achieved by merely just having or knowing virtues, rather by putting virtuous dispositions into actions. Thus, virtue is an active condition that makes one apt at choosing.

Meditation Worksheet

Directions: Locate two resources on the Internet that explain meditation techniques. Copy and paste the Web address into the top of the matrix. After reviewing the Web site, provide a brief summary for each source. Below your summary, list two interesting facts you learned from each site. Try the techniques you located in your Internet search. Provide a brief description of what happened in your experience. Summary of resource:Meditation is a form of stress management that will allow our mind to experience an oasis of peace and love within our heart and mind. Meditation gave me back control over my life so that no matter what was happening externally whether it was positive or negative I could still develop control over my thoughts and thus control the emotions and feeling in my mind. NO one can control eradicate adversity in life but you can master the way you respond in regards to your thinking processes. Take control now master your mind through one of the meditation techniques and you will forever be able to be the peaceful beacon in the eye of the storm of any adversity. The basis for attaining an experience in raja yoga meditation in to understand the self and the mind. The human mind is the most creative, powerful and wonderful â€Å"instrument† we possess. Using this energy called mind we have been able to search the deepest oceans, send humans to the moon and scan the molecular fabric of the building blocks of nature. But have we found our true self? We have become the most educated and civilized society in our history, but are we civil towards each other? The soul has three main faculties; the mind or consciousness, the intellect and the subconscious. by the Brahma Kumaris Raja Yoga meditation organization. Two interesting Facts: So what I have read and learned of meditation is it is a way to lift up all bad energy from one’s body and it is a way to lower ones stress level to a normal level. It is a way to make one’s mind a peaceful place and in hopes of treating others like they are human too. Not only that, but most meditations help heal the body as well. Meditation allows one’s mind to open up to a peaceful place and it allows the stress to flow right out and it does have the power to heal the mind and soul. This in turns makes you feel loving and peaceful to other around you. That is what I got out of reading the facts I found. So my understanding of this particular meditation is more focused on ones three main faculties the mind or consciousness, the intellect and the subconscious. This meditation helps the mind and the other one is more for your body and mind. What intrigues me the most about this Raja meditation is that it is ran by women. Did you know that Raja meditation is what we have discussed in our class? It talks about the brain in how it is the power of our bodies. It also talks about the conscious mind and they talk about how feelings and emotions form in accordance with the montage of thoughts flowing in the mind. Therefore our state of mind at any given moment is determined by the thoughts in our consciousness, and also with the feelings that we associate with those thoughts. What happened after you tried each technique?Well, I felt like a weight had been lifted off of my mind and body. I am able to think more clearly and see everything around me as an equal. I tried this after my daughter spit grape juice all over my floor and I found myself not being so angry about it, but now I look at it as that she is a one year old who does not know any better and I am not as mad as I was at the beginning. I like the Raja meditation because it deals with our minds. When I tried this technique I found myself in a nicer state of mind. I was able to think clearly and I was able to appreciate life a little more than I did before. I was able to focus better on my homework while drowning out the extra noise around me. With both techniques I was more pleasant to be around and I was less moody. 1.Do you think meditation leads to heightened sensation and perception? Explain why or why not. Oh yes I do think it does lead to heightened sensations because when you allow your mind to open up to a different place you can actually feel it. Say you do the first meditation that I have tried. It takes your mind to any place you want to go. So when you get there you can feel the warm breeze on your face and smell the ocean air. You are able to hear the waves crashing on the rocks and sand and hear the gulls flying around in the sky. You can actually see the blue skies and the few white puffy clouds. It is amazing where one’s mind can take you. 2.Have you considered integrating meditation into your own lifestyle? If so, list one strategy for fitting meditation into your schedule. If not, explain why. Yes I have once brought meditation in my life when I was in high school. I think I need to bring it back to my life now because it has been so stressful and depressing. I plan to put in when I get up and when I go to bed. If for some reason I need it during the day I will find a quiet place to meditate for 15 minutes then I will go back to what I was doing with an open mind. There really is no reason why I cannot put a little me time in the day. I think everyone should be able to at least do some meditation in their day. Who knows maybe it might make the world a better place if they meditate.

Of Mice and Men and Oliver Twist Essay

Of mice and men written by John Steinbeck is set in 1930 during the economic depression caused by the stock market crash of 1929. Unlike Oliver Twist, Of mice and men is set in USA, near the Salinas River, in the hot and beautiful state of California. On the other hand, Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist is set in the powerful and the majestic city of London, over-ruled with darkness and murky pollution brought about by what was the industrial revolution in 1870, when the novel was set. The Industrial revolution really puts the whole evil and darkness of London into a shadow which adds to the sinister acts that unveil themselves as the novel progresses. The two main characters of of mice and men are two migrant agricultural labourers, George Milton and Lennie Smalls. George, ‘Small and quick, dark of face, with restless eyes and sharp strong features. Every part of him †¦ defined : small, strong hands, slender arms and a thin bony face.’ The second part of an unlikely relationship between these two friends is Lennie, who is a ‘large man, shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes, with wide sloping shoulders.’ George is Lennies’ guardian, because of his ‘mental immaturity’ he is totally reliant on Georges leadership and commanding power, over of which he follows. In my opinion, without George, Lennie would either be dead or locked up in jail, as a result of him doing stupid acts. It is ironic that Lennies’ surname is Small, because of his huge size, ‘Bear’ like as the author describes. In the time of which of mice and men is set, there is lots of tension. Social classes, women, people who suffer from racism all suffer at the same expense during this period. Crooks is the only black man In this novel, and it is through him that we can see the position of blacks in America. Crooks, is crippled because he got kicked by a horse, he has his own little room, away from the rest of the ‘hands’. The other hands openly refer to Crooks as ‘Nigger’, this example directly amplifies the life and times of the Black Americans at this time. Women are also represented through Curleys’ wife. Curleys’ wife is one quarter of an unhappy marriage. The other three quarters of the marriage is Curley, the bosses sun, who has full power of his wife and tells her what to do constantly. Steinbeck deliberately doesn’t give Curleys’ wife a name, this representing the insignificance and illustrates ownership over women at this time. Curleys’ Wife doesn’t really love Curley, and didn’t really marry him because of love. She married him to prove a point to her mother, who destroyed the relationship she did have with the one she did love. She admitted, that marrying him was a Way Out. Curley’s wife is an ambitious, flirtatious, good looking, young women, who the ranch hands try to ignore and avoid. She is trapped in loneliness, in Curleys’ wrath, she is where she isn’t loved, and her only alternative is to make the most out of what she has got. ‘Ain’t I got a right to talk to nobody? Whatta they think I am, anyways? You’re a nice guy. I don’t know why I can’t talk to you – I ain’t doin’ no harm to you.’ Previous to the murder, in the barn. There, in my opinion, is a hierarchy at the ranch, and at the bottom lies Curleys’ wife and Crooks, two characters treated insignificantly and are discriminated due to their social classes, a women and a black. In California, the setting for this novel, the atmosphere and the surroundings is very harsh and tough for the workers. The attitude and behaviour of the workers in the novel reflect this well. For the workers, there was no cash benefit for the workers, so If they lose their job then they have to do without and mainly starve. The law, I learned is enforced well, but strangely enough, without any force as we never see any police during the novel. California is described extremely well, it is very interestingly described too, this appeals to the reader and gives the novel a very bright and happy start. The first few pages focus on the setting and commentate on all the happenings that go on, this builds a sense of reality. Steinbeck was born and raised in California, near Salinas, so he had an advantage when attempting to describe it as he can relate to it very well. Oliver Twist is almost exactly the opposite in comparison. It is a very dark novel. London at this time set the scene for the monstrosities that happened and the events that took place. You could almost guess what was to expect when reading the first few pages of Oliver Twist, but to do the same with Of mice and men would be completely different. Of Mice and Men starts on a high, very bright and colourful, but it changes contrasts and horrible happenings crowd the last few chapters of the novel. The two main characters in Oliver Twist are Oliver and Fagin. Oliver is a young orphan, brought into the then cruel world by an unknown mother. Fagin, is an ‘Un-human’ man, whose features are aged and ugly. He is a ring leader of a gang of thieves that rob the city of London of valuable possessions, such as money, watches and gold. The Artful Dodger is Fagins’ keen apprentice, willing to learn, who knows all the tricks of the trade, a master of theft and scams. Bill Sikes, Fagins’ second man, is a ruthless cut throat man, whose large size and aggressive attributes add to the murder later on in the novel. The two murderers, Lennie and Sikes have many similarities. Firstly Sikes and Lennie are two large and intimidating men, who’s leader is considerably smaller than them. Secondly, they both receive orders and are followers to their two leaders. Although Sikes doesn’t receive commands off Fagin to an extent where he cannot survive without him, like Lennie, one part of the story he does. This is the main event that leads up to the murder of Nancy. In the early hours of the morning, when all the human and civilised world is asleep, London is awake. Fagin is awake in his chair. Waiting. Sikes enters with the loot that he has stolen from peoples houses. Fagin starts to talk about Nancy, Sikes’ girlfriend. He goes on and explains that Nancy could be a leak and could tell on them to the police. Fagin, knowing that Sikes has the mordacity and the capability of murder, begins to perform reverse psychology. He knows that if he pulls the right strings that Sikes could do anything for him. Sikes quite easily falls into Fagins’ mastermind trap, as if he had been brainwashed or hypnotised, he is now going to commit Fagins’ murder for him. Sikes goes to where Nancy is sleeping and severely shouts and screams at her. This traumatises her, to the extent where she doesn’t know what is going on. This makes Nancy vulnerable, and this is where Sikes commits his brutal and sick attack on her. We can tell, just by reading these several lines of the story, the evil and cunningness of Sikes. He continuously beats Nancy to death with a wooden stick. Leaning up top the murder of Curleys’ wife, which was by far not as hellacious and as horrific as this, Lennie was minding his own business and was in the barn, calmly stroking one of Slims pups. Not knowing his own strength Lennie accidentally killed the pup. Lennie began to become sad and at the same time, angry. He repeatedly thought about George not letting him tend the rabbits, at the home of which the whole is dream is based around. â€Å"An’ he’ll say : â€Å"Now just for that you ain’t gunna tend no rabbits.† Lennie put the pup in the straw, and began to talk to himself, moaning the death of the pup. Curleys wife enters and begins to flirt with Lennie, who confesses to her liking for stroking nice things. She invites him to stroke her long soft hair, but as the stroking becomes harder, she panics; the harder he strokes the more she panics and then Lennie accidentally breaks her neck. He half-buries the body in the hay and runs off to the brush. As you can tell, both the two murders are of a totally different nature. In of mice and men, the murder was unexpected, and didn’t really fit into the surrounding story, On the other hand, In Oliver Twist, a murder was almost inevitable. Sikes’ was a premeditated murder, as he had thought it out and planned the whereabouts etc. Lennies was out of the blue, an accident neither him or anyone else could of prevented. The setting of the two murders, also are totally different. The murder of Curleys wife was in the barn, in the sunny and hot state of California. The murder of Nancy was in the grimy claustrophobic city of London. The descriptions in the stories of the murders, are again totally opposite. In Oliver Twist, Dickens almost runs a post-mortem on the body, and describes Sikes’ moves in detail after the murderer. In of mice and men, however, Steinbeck runs a bleak vague synopsis on the happenings.

The effects of coaching on nurse turnover Research Paper

The effects of coaching on nurse turnover - Research Paper Example The wide scope of data collection through triangulation will on the other hand ensure reliability of results and conclusion of the research. The hypothesis is important because it will facilitate evaluation of the research question to determine whether coaching that is offered to nurses has an impact on their probability of leaving the profession. The research issue, relationship between nurses’ turnover and coaching is on the other hand important because it will help in evaluating coaching as a possible solution to nurse mobility and shortage. The research therefore has a potential of presenting a solution to the crisis in the nursing profession. Research design This section discusses the research approach and designs to be adopted. It defines the proposed approach together with its associated advantages and disadvantages. It also offers an overview of the design to be adopted and a comparison with alternative designs besides describing the procedure for the research study. R esearch approach The research will apply quantitative approach in its methods. This is because the nature of data to be collected as well as the research question to be answered suits the quantitative approach. Quantitative research for example allows for test of hypothesis besides evaluation of quantifiable variables. Quantitative research approach has a number of advantages. It for example, when properly undertaken, guarantees reliability of the results and hence conclusions. This is because of its application of statistical tools in analysis to express the true features of the collected data. The analysis in quantitative approach is therefore free from manipulation based on the researcher’s attitudes and... The main aim of the study is the determination of existence of a significant relationship between coaching of nursing personnel and the turnover rate. In order to achieve this, the study intends to collect both primary and secondary data over participants’ perception on the two variables. While secondary data will be sought from existing publications, primary data will be obtained through designed questionnaires to be administered to sampled participants. The research will further use randomised design in sampling to minimize chances of biasness for reliability. Similarly, triangulation of data will be developed through selecting different cohorts of respondents that will include trainees, trainers, and different subsets of registered nurses. Data in the two variables will be collected in numeric scale with coaching being measured in terms of effectiveness and mobility being measured in terms of probability. The results will then be analyzed to evaluate existence of a relation ship to answer the research question. Based on the result, the study will recommend necessary measures towards finding a solution for the highly reported turnover rates.

How EICC Coroporte Social Responsibility Measureble and Sustainable Essay

How EICC Coroporte Social Responsibility Measureble and Sustainable - Essay Example Code of Conduct in EICC The Code of Conduct of people employed in companies under the umbrella of EICC came into form focusing mainly on three specific areas. Firstly it worked in helping create a safer and transparent work atmosphere in the companies. Secondly it enhanced the responsibility parameter of the people in regards to environment and society. Thirdly the Code of Conducts helps in motivating the people to develop on their business skills and thus enhance productivity. Companies desiring to adopt the Code of Conduct for EICC are required to firstly identify interest in the people and thereby raise commitment in them to follow such codes in their actions. Thus training of the staffs by the management body while keeping an eye on the changing guidelines in the EICC Codes of Conduct also constitutes an integral part of their actions (EICC, â€Å"EICC Code†). EICC Implementation and sustenance of CSR Principles in Western Digital (Thailand) Company Limited Western Digital is a California based company that works in the generation of products and services for those companies that work on the collection, management and employment of large amount of digital databases. The company earns expertise in the production of hard disks for easy storage and use of data. Thailand is considered as the company’s largest manufacturing center employing around 30,000 people committed to render quality in products and services (Western Digital, â€Å"Welcome to Western Digital†). Western Digital a continuing member of EICC vehemently supports the Code of Conduct guidelines laid down by the body in regards to the monitoring the actions of its supply chain groups in fulfilling economic, social and environmental goals (Western Digital, â€Å"Corporate Social Responsibility Report 2011†, 19). Preliminary Literature Review Relevancy and Scope of the EICC Codes of Conduct for Corporate Social Responsibility FIAS (2007) observes that the EICC Codes of Con duct in regards to the sector of Corporate Social Responsibility operates along parameters like employment conditions of the people pertaining to compensation schemes and other employment policies relating to discrimination and employment of children. Again the Codes of Conduct also focus on sustaining and enhancing the health and safety paradigms of the workplace. Along with focusing on enhancing the betterment of work conditions for the people the codes of conduct also laid stress on the meeting of environmental guidelines by the company. Finally the Codes of Conduct laid down by EICC tends to evaluate whether the management of the company has taken significant steps in training the people in effective understanding and fulfillment of the relevant guidelines. Herein the EICC Codes of Conduct tends to enhance the accountability of the management to fulfill the relevant guidelines by identifying the task holder groups. Moreover the Codes of Conduct also require auditing to be done o f the operational process of the enterprise in regards to the operational standards and guidelines as reflected and documented by EICC. Training rendered to the people for the adequate fulfillment of the EICC Codes of Conduct needs to draw potential feedbacks from the respondents so as to firstly assess the interest of the

Salvador Dali's Galarina Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Salvador Dali's Galarina - Research Paper Example The research paper "Salvador Dali's Galarina" investigates important painting of Salvador Dali's art, "Galarina". Salvador Dali is an artist who engaged in various activities including painting and film work. He is famous for his surrealist works that have striking and bizarre images. Galarina has featured in the Dali Theatre-Museum, Olga's Gallery among other areas. The image has been reproduced in large quantities and is available for sale in many exhibitions. Online, the image is also reproduced in many galleries including digilander.libero.it and Salvador-Dali.org. However, the original painting done by Salvador has been preserved in Catalonia, Spain, Teatre Museu Gala in Figueres. As formerly noted, Galarina was produced by Salvador Dali, a famous Spanish Catalan artist. The artist, born in Figueres had a talent in painting or drafting striking images associated with surrealism. Dali’s painting skills were influenced by prominent Renaissance painters. Dali’s passio n for excessive and gilded things abounds owing to his love and passion for luxury and oriental attire. Dali claims that his lineage can be traced to the Arabic world having specifically descended from the Moors. The artist was highly imaginative and had great interest in engaging his imagination in creating unusual images and in participating in grandiose behavior. As can be seen from the painting of Galarina, Dali is one who is eccentric and seeks to capture the attention of his audience. Gala Dalà ­, the woman featured in the painting was his wife.

The United States and the International Criminal Court Research Paper

The United States and the International Criminal Court - Research Paper Example It officially came into existence in July 2002. This also marked the day when the President also signed the American Service members’ Protection Act (ASPA) restricting the U.S. from giving assistance to the ICC. The international norms as well as institutions have a significant effect on the states and individuals. The ICC is the world’s first permanent judicial body with utmost jurisdiction to try those individuals who were accused of war crimes or for that matter, crime against humanity (Eisea 2002). A large part of the United States foreign policy is moving at a smooth pace. The situation in the United States and all over the world had begun to deteriorate as the crime rate started to increase. It is for this reason that the majority of the international states had decided to create an international court dealing with mass atrocities. This would not only help solve various criminal acts but also prohibit the severe violation of human rights all across the world. There have been instances in the past whereby the United States underwent a great challenge from the International Criminal Court. United Nations and many other democratic nations have openly welcomed and supported the ICC for its performance, although the United States initially voted against the Statute of the International Criminal Court the reason being that ICC may assert jurisdiction over the U.S. soldiers charged with crime which would be a result of legitimate uses of force (Eisea 2002). As late as in 2005 the U nited States decided not to block a sensitive Security Council resolution indicating the situation in Darfur region of Sudan to the ICC prosecutor. The ICC depends on the support as well as cooperation by the States and other international organization (Taft & Wald 2009). The International Criminal Court jurisdiction extends to the most heinous crimes committed at international level. It thus becomes important for two reasons. It offers an advanced means to revise the foreign policies through alternatives especially after World War II. It extends its reach by offering substantial hope and underscoring the significance of international law (Sewall & Kaysen 2000). Even if the ICC acts alone or with a national court, it can provide a model for fair and deliberate administration of justice. With all the qualities it is equipped with, it faces countless uncertainties with regard to how it enforces justice and defines the interest that justice will serve. United States however is not conc erned with these issues faces by the International Criminal Court. The main concerns that the United States shows towards the Court are objections in the legal framework on which the ICC is built. ICC must not be bound on all states irrespective of the war crimes each one of them have. Secondly the ICC’s definitions of crimes such as genocide, war crimes and those perpetrated against humanity are narrower than the international law. The Rome Statute was seriously flawed according

Is global warming caused by humans Research Paper

Is global warming caused by humans - Research Paper Example Today, it is not only the increase of temperature of the atmosphere but also ocean warming, ice caps and ice sheets melting, rise of sea level, and changes of biochemical cycles that take place because of climate change. That is why understanding of the causes of global warming is so important. There are two points of view on the character of global warming causes. Some of researchers claim it is natural causes that lead to climate change. However, the recent studies show that it is human-induced causes that are the main drivers of global warming. In the following research based on recent researches and statistical data, information on three main anthropogenic causes will be summarized, discussed and set against the natural factors with the aim to prove that it is humans who cause global warming of the atmosphere. The following research is important for it presents concise evidence of human involvement in global warming. These days, many scientists, researchers, environmentalists and, in fact, everybody who does care, express their concerns on the issue of the changes of climate on the Earth. More specifically, they argue that today the temperature of the planet tends to increase causing the global warming, which, in its turn, can lead to irreversible negative consequences for all the living beings which settle the planet. While the fact that global warming does take place has been proved in a great number of studies, its causes are still studied. Scientists, who work on the issue of climate change, agree that there are two causes of global warming, such as natural causes and human-induced ones. The latest researches show that the idea that natural causes are among the major ones that lead to climate change is irrelevant and that it is humans who are to blame for the irreversible warming of the Earths surface. Climate change is usually referred to as the change of weather patterns and trends over time. Overall, the atmosphere consists of

A research strategy for a topic of security risk analysis Essay

A research strategy for a topic of security risk analysis - Essay Example The researcher states that it is necessary to understand the importance of conducting quantitative research within the information security field to become familiar with the challenges one faces when addressing an issue in question. Besides, to have a clear picture of the challenges in quantitative research methods, a research strategy must be evaluated to determine the pros and cons related to sampling, validity, reliability, and bias during a study. In fact, the evaluation of each criterion within a hypothetical study will include the use of online survey research to collect data from participants without the need for additional investment in hardcopy materials and travel expenses. Therefore, to become familiar with the challenges of quantitative research using an online research methodology, the sampling, validity, reliability, and bias will be analyzed by selecting a strategy to conduct a hypothetical study on security risk management. This will determine the viability of the onl ine survey strategy in the information security field. The viability of the online survey methodology will depend on internal and external factors during the process of research management. Before selecting and implementing a research method during an information security study, it is necessary to understand the research question and then define the hypothesis to determine the direction of the research. The direction of the research will be determined by the topic under investigation, thus establishing a clear strategy to obtain the necessary data needed to complete the study. As disclosed by Cook and Cook (2008), the research design will be based on the research question, so that the study will be able to answer the main hypothesis. Then the data gathering must be elaborated on using quantitative research methods based on the variables illustrated in the hypothesis. Indeed, using quantitative research methods will allow the researcher to present the results of the data collected us ing statistical displays to make a correlation between the dependent and independent variables being studied. Before the selection of a research methodology, internal and external validity must be considered before adopting an instrument. Nevertheless, before making a final decision on the preferred instrument, well-defined research questions must be formulated. The research questions must be related to the main hypothesis to acquire the best results and to illustrate the importance of quantitative research within the topic being studied. The research questions must address the purpose of the data to be collected corresponding to all independent variables to understand the behavior of the dependent variable. For this reason, if a study titled â€Å"Security controls as a tool of security risk management in business revenue† will be conducted to understand the reliability of security controls in protecting business revenue, the research question will be â€Å"Are security con trols reliable in protecting the business revenue†. The dependent variable is business revenue and the independent variable is reliability of security controls. The research hypothesis is that security controls are reliable for protecting business revenue. This will give a direction to the research. Indeed, the development of an instrument and the implementation of a research method will be based on the research questions to be asked to the targeted population to acquire a

U.S. Secret Service Essay Example for Free

U.S. Secret Service Essay United States of America, have many service within the government to protect themselves, the people, or our president. The one service I we hear about but rarely know will be the, secret services. We rarely know anything about them just that they make good money and put there life in danger. The following I will be information you about: education required, qualifications, training, and salary of a member of secret services. Education required for them each position has different entry level qualifications and education requirements. It would depend on what they want to be and the position they want. Each position has different requirements and education levels. Members also have to have certain qualification. For example they must be a United States citizen, must pass a medical exam – vision, hearing, cardiovascular, mobility of extremities, pass a drug screening, must pass a report writing test , pass an extensive background investigation, must pass a polygraph examination, must pass an in-depth interview, must pass an entrance exam, must be able to obtain a Top Secret clearance and must be over age 21 years and under age 37 years. There is no expectation of any of these they are all must, if they do not pass one of these qualifications then they will not be eligible to work in secret services. If they pass all these they must get training which is three month training program at the, Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. The is only two training campuses one is in Artesia, New Mexico, and in Glynco, Georgia. After done with that training they go another three months for specialized instruction training, which is located in Laurel, Maryland at the James J. Rowley Training Center. After completing this process and being hired they would make, $43,200 to $73,354 per year, as starting officers. This information is report in 2009 by the, United States Secret Service. The United States Secret Service is something we hear about at time and know rarely about. I wanted to inform myself and learn things about how they get to their level and what they do. As I was reading I see that they have to work for their position, it is not given to them they have to put all there effort in their job. I saw their job is to protect the president and vice president, their families, former presidents, presidential candidates and other U.S. or foreign visiting political figures. They go under cover on criminal cases that relate to the nation’s financial security form credit card fraud, computer fraud, and bank fraud. Secret Services does two thing basically they do investigations and protect the people that are important to our society at the moment and after. As well they were founded in 1865 and are one of the most elite law enforcement organizations in the world. Their main headquartered is in Washington, D.C with 150 offices over the United State. They must stay untied in order to complete there job.

Atomic Force Microscope (AFM)

Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) Atomic force microscope (AFM) was invented by Gerd Binnig, Calvin F. Quate and Christopher Herber in 1986 [83]. AFM relies on interactive force to generate an image. Interactive force occurs between a tip and sample surface using the probe which is a micro-fabricated elastic cantilever with a sharp tip on the end. Cantilevers are generally made from silicon (Si) or silicon nitride (Si3N4) materials [85]. The deflection of the AFM cantilever can be obtained by using Hooke’s Law [86]; where ΔZ is the deflection of cantilever (Figure 34) which is determined by divided the acting force F with spring constant k. The optical detection system of the AFM detects the displacement of the cantilever. This system consists of a four-quadrant photodiode and a laser source. In simple terms, laser beam is focused on the back of the cantilever and reflected here and collected in a photodiode. Each section of the photodiode creates photocurrents. Through this optical detection system, the attractive or repulsive forces due to the tip bending or cantilever torsion due to the lateral component of tip-sample interaction can be examined. Whether the reference values in the photodiode sections are indicated as I01, I02, I03, I04 and I1, I2, I3, I4 are the current values, the variation of currents from different sections of the photodiode ΔIi = Ii – I0i can be characterized with ΔIZ = [(I1 + I2) (I3 + I4)] and ΔIL = [(I1 + I4) (I2 + I3)] for deflection and torsion of cantilever. In feedback mode, the ΔIZ value is used as an input signal and output signal adjusts the Z position of the scanner. The main purpose of the feedback system is to keep the tip-sample interval (ΔZ) constant. If ΔZ = constant mode is used, tip moves along the sample surface. Accordingly, Z = f(x,y) surface topography can be acquired with respect to applied voltage on the Z-electrode of the scanner (Figure 35). The interactive forces which are mentioned before can be explained by considering van der Waals forces [87]. Two atoms are located at a distance r from each other, the van der Waals potential energy of these two atoms is approximated by the exponential function which is known as Lennard-Jones potential [31]. where the first term describes the attraction of long distances due to dipole-dipole interaction and second term describes short range repulsion caused by the Pauli exclusion principle. The r0 parameter is the equilibrium distance between two atoms and the energy value in the minimum (Figure 36). Distance between the tip and the sample is dependent van der Waals force which can be seen in Figure 37. The main AFM scan modes are divided into three parts: contact mode, tapping (semi-contact) mode and non-contact mode. In our AFM measurements, always tapping mode is used for characterizing surface. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) was invented by Max Knoll in 1935 as a tool for surface characterization [79]. SEM is a type of electron microscope that creates images of a sample by using focused beam of electrons and gain information about surface structure and composition. The results of interaction between electron beams and the sample can be seen in Figure 38. The types of signals produced by a collision between sample and focused electron beam contain auger electrons, secondary electrons, back-scattered electrons and characteristic x-rays (Figure 38). Depth ranges of the interaction volumes are investigated with respect to various types of scattered electrons and x-rays. Auger electrons have ~ 1 nm, secondary electrons have ~ 100 nm, back-scattered electrons have ~ 1-2  µm and X-rays have ~ 5  µm depth ranges [89-91]. SEM utilizes vacuum conditions and uses electrons to form an image. All water must be removed from the sample because the water would vaporize in the vacuum. Metal, semi-metal and semiconductor samples are conductive and no preparation required before being used. All non-metals need to be made conductive by covering the sample with a thin layer of conductive material by using sputter coater. SEM consists of an electron gun which produces a beam of electrons. The electron beam follows a vertical path through the microscope, which is held in a vacuum. The beam travels through electromagnetic fields and lenses which focus the beam down toward the sample. When the beam hits the sample, electrons and X-rays are ejected from the sample. Detectors collect these X-rays, backscattered electrons and secondary electrons and then convert them into a signal that is sent to a screen. This produces the final image (Figure 39). For the topographic images, we use a secondary electron detector because; secondary electrons are closer to the sample surface. Backscattered electron detector gives knowledge due to the atomic contrast. Elements of higher atomic number give a brighter image (dark-bright contrast). For the unknown elements, x-ray detector (EDX) is used. This detector collects the x-rays which are scattered from the sample surface. Each element has a different x-ray diffractometers. The difference between XRD and EDX is that XRD for the crystal composition and uses the x-rays. However; EDX gives information for the elemental composition by using electrons. Differential Interference Contrast (DIC) or also known as Nomarski microscopy was invented by George Nomarski in 1960 [92]. DIC is a type of optical characterization technique which involves Wollaston (Nomarski) prisms for separating and recombined a polarized light. Polarized light is formed when light from lamp source is passed through a polarizer. Working principle of the DIC microscope is based on the polarized light source which is firstly divided into two rays (ordinary and extra-ordinary) by first condenser (Wollaston or Nomarski) prism [93]. These two rays are vibrating perpendicular with each other. These two rays reach the condenser and lengthen parallel to each other. Distance between these two parallel rays is slightly equal to the optical path difference. Perpendicular vibration between rays does not occur to interference. Later, two rays passed through the sample and wave lengths of these rays changes with respect to the sample properties such as thickness or refractive indices. Two parallel rays go into the objective and begin reunification. Second Wollaston or Nomarski prism is recombined two rays totally. Analyzer prevents the interference of the rays. The final image which can be seen with eyepieces has the three-dimensional appearance of the sample. This pseudo three-dimensional effect results from the shadow i mpact that involves the brighter and darker sides. Working principle of Nomarski microscope can be seen clearly in Figure 40. Reflected high energy electron diffraction (RHEED) is an in-situ characterization technique which gives knowledge about surface epitaxial changes during the growth. To understand RHEED geometry, some theoretical background of the electron diffraction and kinematic scattering will be given in this section. Theoretical explanations can be started with the relativistic electron energy relation in terms of momentum. For high energetic electrons (E 50 keV), relativistic effect should be taken into account [94]. Acceleration voltage, electron rest mass, electron momentum and speed of light are indicated with V0, m0, p and c0, respectively. If we rewrite this above equation leaving the momentum alone; Due to the wave-particle duality, a beam of electrons can be diffracted just like a beam of light or a matter wave. Louis de Broglie proposed particles to behave like a wave [95]. Therefore, electrons wave-particle property can be explained by; Equation 2 can be substitute into the equation 3, Definition of â€Å"c† is speed of light and accepted value is 3108 m/s. â€Å"h† is Planck’s constant and is equal to 4.1410-15 eV.s. Rest mass of electron is indicated with â€Å"m0† and it is equal to 0.51106 eV/c2. When these numeric values are substituted in the de Broglie relation, wave length equality becomes; If the energy value of the incident beam is equal to 30 keV, wavelength is equal to 0.07 Ã… according to the above equation. RHEED patterns, as seen on the phosphorescent screen, are the result of the constructive interference of the scattered wave. Constructive interference term is related to the Bragg condition which is explained by [96]; As can be seen in Figure 42; the incidence angle is equal to for elastic scattering process. Also in this figure, scattering or momentum transfer vector representation can be understood. Under the conditions of elastic scattering, incidence and scattered wave vectors are à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬Å¡kˈà ¢Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬Å¡=à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬Å¡kà ¢Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬Å¡= 2Ï€/ÃŽ » [98]. Diffraction maximum occurs when the Laue condition is satisfied and this condition is [97]; Order of diffraction is demonstrate by n. RHEED patterns on the phosphorescent screen are reflection of the surface atoms in reciprocal lattice space. If the real space basis vectors indicate as a, b and c, reciprocal basis vectors become a*, b* and c*. In addition, the relation between real and reciprocal space basis vectors is [31]; Translation vector is also indicated for reciprocal space as; h, k and l are miller indices. Laue condition under the constructive interference for certain miller indices is s = G [97]. The incident electron beam hit the crystal surface which is growing epitaxially at low angle of incidence and is reflected onto the phosphorescent screen to form RHEED patterns (Figure 43). RHEED patterns include spots, streaks, rings and lines. The intensity oscillation changes of the RHEED spots on the screen give information about growth parameters such as removal of oxides from epi-ready substrates surface, surface roughness of the grown layers and crystal quality of the layers [99]. When the incident beam electrons reach the epi-ready surface at the beginning of the growth, incident electrons get through minimum diffraction because of surface smoothness. Therefore, RHEED patterns have maximum intensity. When a layer nucleates on the surface, electrons get through maximum diffraction and this condition led to minimum intensity of the RHEED patterns. Calculation of the lattice constant for growth material from the RHEED images and the percentage of the error between the accepted and calculated value of the lattice parameters will be discussed in Chapter 4. Raman spectroscopy was discovered by C. V. Raman and K. S. Krishnan in 1928 [100]. In addition, C. V. Raman was awarded the Nobel Prize for discovery of Raman in 1930 [101]. Raman spectroscopy can be used for distribution of vibrational modes to generate like a chemical maps. It is possible to combine Raman spectroscopy with hardware system. The data signal collected by the detector and then sent to the hardware system for analysis. In order to investigate the effects of wet chemical etching procedures on especially Te, CdTe and GaAs vibration modes in this study, two dimensional (x, y) maps were recorded by Raman spectroscopy at room temperature. Raman measurements were performed by a confocal Raman system. Laser beam comes from the laser source and passes through the filters. Beam splitter deflects a portion of light onto the optical microscope. Light is passed through a proper objective and laser light is focused onto the sample. Sample stands on the XYZ stage. Laser light is scattered from the sample and follows a proper optical path to reach a detector. Computer system is used to analyze signals which are collected by detector (Figure 44).

A Study On Disability Social Problem Social Policy Essay

A Study On Disability Social Problem Social Policy Essay Disability excites interest because disability is seen as a social problem i.e. it is seen either in terms of personal tragedy or of blame. Social problems generate public concern and private misery and call for collective action to remedy this (Worsley, 1972). Disability has been theorised in a number of different ways, most of which locate the problem in the individual rather than the broader social, political, and economic influences. This has implications for the location of the blame for social problems, such that they become depoliticised. The rise in the idea of the politics of minority groups is well documented and implies that in the case of people with disabilities who are unable to work the Government should provide a whole range of services. Because most Governments are unwilling to commit themselves this far, disability is again defined as a social problem, and often the burden of care lies with the family (Moore, 2002). This paper will give an account of definitions of disability and the ways in which they impact on disabled people. There will be an exploration of the concept and history of the family and its contemporary diverse forms, and an examination of the ways in which the ideology of the family has problematised the concept of care. The paper will then assess how the family has been implicated in both solving and defining the problem of disability and to what extent the social problem that is disability is a matter of private concern for families. Models of Disability The medical model of health is the most powerful in western society, doctors introduced a curative model of health that concentrated on the body where the hospital became the space for such models were put into practice (Walsh et al, 2000). This model situates ill health in the individual and ignores the social circumstances that may give rise to ill health, furthermore it has impacted on government healthcare policy throughout the twentieth century. The situation is exacerbated by the medicalisation of many conditions making them into a problem that can only be addressed by experts, as Brisenden(1986) comments: The problem is that medical people tend to see all difficulties solely from the perspective of proposed treatments for a patient, without recognising that the individual has to weigh up whether this treatment fits into the overall economy of their life. In the past especially, doctors have been too willing to suggest medical treatment and hospitalisation, even when this would not necessarily improve the quality of life for the person concerned. Indeed, questions about the quality of life have sometimes been portrayed as something of an intrusion upon the purely medical equation. (Brisenden, 1986:176). The medical model leads to the treatment of people with disabilities as passive objects of medical attention. This is oppressive of disabled people and spreads to other social relationships, it sees disability as pathological i.e. rooted in a persons biology, and thus unchanging. Contained within this model is the perception of people with disabilities as problematic. Disability has also been theorized as a personal tragedy, resulting in individuals with a disability being seen as victims. This results in policy making whereby people with disabilities need compensating for their disability. This model also affects social relationships. The view of disability as personal tragedy individualises disability so that it becomes depoliticised and the disabled person must make his or her adjustments to that disability as best they can (Dalley, 1990). In locating disability within the individual society denies any responsibility to cater for the diversity of their needs (Oliver, 1990). The third way in which disability has been theorized is in the social model of disability. This model is becoming increasingly dominant in research on disability. Vassey (1992) has described it thus: redefining disability in terms of a disabling environment, repositioning disabled people as citizens with rights, and reconfiguring the responsibilities for creating, sustaining and overcoming disablism (Vassey, 1992:44).. Here the person is disabled because of the refusal of society to provide for example suitable access for the wheelchair user. This model stresses that a disabling society leads to the exclusion of people with disabilities. Oliver (1996) contends that this notion has been politically empowering for disabled people, and has allowed a previously contested notion to develop an agenda that has influenced policy making. Some people see disability as entirely a result of social structures and processes while others feel that society compounds the difficulties that disabled people encounter. Disability is not a universal category, people have different types and degrees of impairment, some can function well with technical aids while still others are, to a greater or lesser degree, dependent on the care of other people (Dalley, 1988). The Concept and History of the Family Parsons (1955) argued that the family is the primary place of socialization and serves to introduce and instill the norms and values of society. Parsons model was what is commonly known as the nuclear family, i.e. parents and children living together to provide the mutual love and support that individuals need to be productive members of society (Giddens, 2001). Murdock (1949 cited in Giddens, 2001) maintains that traditional concepts of the family are a universal phenomenon. Others criticise the nuclear model for being too narrow and for neglecting the fact that not all family members experience life in the same way (Abbott and Wallace, 1997). Whether the nuclear family is regarded as universal depends largely on how the family is defined, certainly it is no longer the norm in contemporary society. Gittins (1993) maintains that there are a wide variety of domestic relationships. Thus relationships may be universal but the forms they take can be infinitely variable. There are many single parent families, whether through death, divorce or choice, there are also second marriages that often result in reconstituted families. The nuclear model relates specifically to nineteenth and early twentieth century ideological views of the family (Giddens, 2001). The Family and Ideology Until the late seventeenth century there was little or no distinction between the public and the private sphere, families generally worked the land and they did this together. The rise of industrialization and the growth of the towns brought massive changes to what had constituted family life up until that time. Feminists argue that for centuries women have been the subordinate sex in society and this subordination is largely a result of the fact that they have been born women rather than men. This subordination increased with industrialisation and the separation between public and private spheres (Oakley 1982). The coming of the factory meant that the family was replaced as the unit of production. The growing dependence of children, Oakley (1982) states, led to womens increased dependence on men and their restriction to the private sphere. Throughout the nineteenth century there was a growing idealisation of the feminine. Women were regarded as both physically and emotionally weaker than men and unfit for the same roles. Victorian ideology said that women were created to help men and should thus remain at home. This primarily affected the middle classes but as the century progressed the working class were also influenced by this ideology, locking women into the housewife role (Oakley, 1982). Murdock (1949 in Giddens, 2001) argued that gender roles are the natural result of the biological differences between men and women. Mens superior strength and womens childbearing capabilities make the sexual division of labour the most sensible way of organising society. Delphy (1977) maintains that this results in sexual inequality. Gender differences are not innate but socially constructed to serve the interests of the socially dominant group. Delphy contends that women are a separate class because the categories of man and woman are political and economic, rather than eternal biological categories. Within the family particularly, women form a class who are exploited by men, as Delphy states: While the wage-labourer sells his labour power, the marrie woman gives hers away; exclusivity and non-payment are intimately connected. To supply unpaid labour within the framework of a universal and personal relationship (marriage) constructs primarily a relationship of slavery (Delpy, 1977:15). This relationship has been exploited by successive Governments and is implicit in many social policy initiatives. The Family and the Welfare State The post-war welfare state which promised universal welfare provision, was set up on the assumption of full employment and the notion that men would go out to work while women stayed home (Abbott and Wallace, 1997).. Moore (2002) maintains that this is an ideological view of the family and how it might function. In the late 1970s the Tories actively discouraged alternatives to the traditional family e.g. cohabitation and gay partnerships (Abbott and Wallace, 1997). Since the Thatcher Government public and policy debates on family life, parenting and health have centered around the idea of responsibility (Such and Walker 2004) Moore (2002) maintains that in the thinking of the seventies and also in Labours Third Way, family members have a duty to help each other as it is not the job of the state to look after them. The state takes over when no-one else is around to share the burden. The fact that the State has had to intervene, it is argued, is one of the reasons why the traditional family is on the decline. In a good society members should help each other without regard to personal benefit. The State should be there to provide a safety net when there is no other help available. New Labour advocate a mixed economy of welfare where welfare is provided in part by the state and partly by private companies operating for profit. The shift from public to private has received much publicity and contributed to social problems and to social exclusion. Previously highly subsidized, or universal, services have either become part of the private sector, or have been subject to means testing, some welfare provision has been handed over to voluntary organizations. This has increased the likelihood that welfare and caring are now a private rather than a public responsibility (Giddens, 2001). This tends to stigmatise further those who are forced to rely on benefits, e.g. the disabled and their carers, usually women. The State and Womens Caring Role Marxist feminists e.g. Walby (1990) argue that the gender ideology that has filtered down to the working classes has affected their solidarity as a class and this makes them more easily controllable by the Capitalist system. While Marxism gives an explanation of exploitation by the capitalist system it does not explain the inequalities between women and men. Delphy (1977) maintains that gender and sexual inequality should be the fundamental categories of feminist analysis. Marxism alone does not explain for example why women are seen as responsible for household tasks. Capitalism could still profit if men stayed at home. The Community Care Act of 1990 has imposed further responsibilities on women in the role of informal carers. Dalley (1988) argues that much Governments policy making has been based on ideologies of caring with the assumptions behind the idea of community care being based on outmoded notions of the family. In practice this notion of caring disadvantages women carers and also many disabled or older dependent relatives. Within such an ideology, the caring that women do in the home is considered to be a natural part of womens role within the family. Thus, her caring role become invisible and shouldering the burden increases the likelihood that women will themselves be in need of care (Graham, 1993). This is borne out by the increasing number of women who suffer from disabilities and mental health problems. Womens caring role is further undermined by the idea that any health care that matters is given by professionals. When this is accompanied by Government discourses of self-help, self-reliance and the responsibility of the family this adds to the social stigma that disabled people face. It focuses on the disability, not the person themselves, inevitably this places an added strain on families. The prevalence of the medical model of health and the ways in which families are kept under-informed regarding the disability of a family member, particularly a child, affects family relationships. Gregory (1991) maintains that when a person is diagnosed as diabled this affects the ways in which society and the family respond to and deal with that person. Families themselves can tend to see the disabled family member as sick and different. Gregory (1991) found that having a disabled family member also affected the way in which mothers viewed themselves because ideological images of motherhood focus on having an able child. Thus a woman may feel that she is somehow not a mother because of the ways in which society defines motherhood. Press reports on disabled children and their families usually present them in terms of sacrifice and heroism (Gregory, 1991). This can affect family members response to the disabled person, their forced reliance on the medical model, and the view of disability as a tragedy becomes universalized. This misses the individuals personal needs and circumstances. It seems that increasingly the social problem of disability is becoming a matter of private concern for the family. The NHS appears to take this view. While doctors may diagnose a physical or learning disability families are often left to cope without ei ther sufficient information or professional help. In a number of cases families have reported that hospitals have refused to admit non-emergency cases unless a parent or carer remains on site to provide additional support (http://www.cafamily.org.uk/rda-uk.html). A shortage of nursing staff and the increasing tendency to perform surgery on a day care basis means that many families are left with extra caring responsibilities once they take the disabled child or adult home. (http://www.cafamily.org.uk/rda-uk.html). Conclusion Back to: Example Essays Ideologies of the family and the medical model of disability exacerbate the social problems of disability. Discourses of family responsibility place a much greater burden on many people, particularly women who bear the burden of responsibility of care. Such discourses tend to make women who find it difficult to cope feel that they are a failure. This in turn reflects back on the disabled person who may feel that they are a burden. Clearly current policies and debates over partnership between the Government and families and family responsibility is moving closer to the view that disability is no longer a public concern but a private family one. Dalley (1988) argue that some form of institutional care e.g. supported living should replace care in the family. While there are support structures in place for people with disabilities, the extent to which informal carers have access to such facilities is very limited (Baldwin and Twigg, 1990).. Perhaps supported living arrangements along wit h family involvement in personal care would, arguably, take some strain off of the family and give more independence to the person with disabilities thus making the social problem of disability a shared public and private concern rather than simply a concern for the family. Bibliography Abbott, P. and Wallace, C. 1997. An Introduction to Sociology: Feminist Perspectives. London, Routledge. Baldwin, S and Twigg, J. 1991 Women and community care: Reflections on a debate in Maclean, M and Groves, D eds 1991 Womens Issues in Social Policy London, Routledge Crowe, G. and Hardey,M.1992. Diversity and ambiguity among lone-parent households in modern Britain. In Marsh, C. and Arber, S. (Eds.) 1992. Families and Households: Divisions and Change. London: Macmillan. Dalley, G. 1988 Ideologies of caring: Rethinking Community and Collectivism London, Macmillan Delphy, C 1977 The Main Enemy London, Womens Research and Resource Centre Giddens, A. 2001. (4th ed). Sociology. Cambridge, Polity Press. Gittens, D. 1993 The Family in Question: Changing households and familial ideologies London, Macmillan Graham, H. 1993 Hardship and Health in Womens Lives Hemel Hempstead, Harvester/Wheatsheaf Gregory, S. 1991 Challenging Motherhood: Mothers and their deaf children in Phoenix, A and Lloyd E, eds. 1991 Motherhood: Meaning Practices and Ideology London, Sage Moore, S. 2002 Social Welfare Alive 3rd ed. Cheltenham, Nelson Thornes Oakley, A 1982 Subject Woman London, Fontana Parsons, T. and Bales, R. 1955. Family, Socialisation, and Interaction Process. Glencoe, Illinois: Free Press Oliver, P. 1990 The Politics of Disablement Basingstoke, Macmillan Oliver, M 1996 Social Work with Disabled People Basingstoke Macmillan. Such, E. and Walker, R. 2004 Being responsible and responsible beings: childrens understanding of responsibility Children and Society 18 (3) Jun 2004, pp.231-242 Swain, J. Heyman, B and Gilmour, M 1998 Public Research, private concerns: Ethical issues in the use of open-ended interviews with people who have learning disabilities in Disability and Society 13 (1) pp. 21-36 Thomas, C. eds 2004 Disabling Barriers, Enabling Environments London, Sage Vasey, S. (1992) A response to Liz Crow, Coalition, September, 42-44 Walby, S. 1990 cited in Abbott, P. and Wallace, C. 1997. An Introduction to Sociology: Feminist Perspectives. London, Routledge. Walsh, M. Stephens, P. and Moore, S. 2000 Social Policy and Welfare. Cheltenham Worsley, P and Chatterton, M 1972 Problems of Modern Society: A Sociological Perspective Harmondsworth, Penguin More Free Social Policy Essays

Number One By Jill Nielson Essay -- essays research papers

"Number One!" by Jill Nelson is a story that Jill Nelson tells about her father and his beliefs. She speaks about a Sunday breakfast that her family had every Sunday. This breakfast was like there church every Sunday, and her father was the preacher. He always preached about being number one, and he represented number one by holding up his middle finger. Her father never told the family exactly what he meant by number one, and when she was old enough to have the courage to ask, her father had gone through too many stages to remember. This is a good learning story. As I was reading this, I put myself in Jill's place. I asked myself, what does her father mean by number one, and why does he use his middle finger to represent it? I had a few theories, but the one that made the mos...

The Women’s Army Corps of the Vietnam War :: Vietnam War Essays

The Women’s Army Corps of the Vietnam War We went to a foreign country in service of our country . . . we gave aid and encouragement to a whole segment of our brothers and sisters . . . we survived a war . . . we are noble . . . we are brave . . . we are adventurous . . . we are an active part of world history . . . we are interesting . . . we have lived such exciting lives . . . we have gone far beyond the boundaries allowed to most of our sisters . . . we did it together . . . and we still have each other. Patricia â€Å"Mama-san† Brimeyer, Army Service Clubs, Vietnam 1968.[1] Introduction Male soldiers have a distinct voice when they speak of war. Jonathan Shay, M.D., Ph.D., author of Achilles in Vietnam, can best explain the voice of a male soldier. Dr. Shay creates a system that explains how and why male soldiers react to war in the ways they do. Dr. Shay’s system is based on the story of Achilles in Homer’s epic The Iliad. The focus of the system is to compare the reactions of Achilles’ soldiers to war, with the American male soldiers’ reactions to the Vietnam War. Dr. Shay’s system is based on eleven stages:  ·Betrayal of â€Å"what’s right†  ·The shrinkage of the social and moral horizon  ·Grief at the death of a special comrade  ·Guilt and wrongful substitution  ·The berserk  ·Dishonoring the enemy  ·What Homer left out (other obvious similarities)  ·The soldiers’ luck and God’s will  ·Reclaiming the Iliad’s gods as a metaphor of social power  ·The breaking points of moral existence  ·Healing and tragedy During stage one, the betrayal of â€Å"what’s right†, the soldier’s moral world is violated by a commanding officer’s betrayal of the soldier’s moral order.[2] During the Vietnam War American soldiers experienced the betrayal of â€Å"what’s right† when those who held all of the power and responsibility broke the trust of the soldiers. Stage two, the shrinkage of the social and moral horizon, refers to the breaking of a soldier’s family, civilian, and military ties. The social bonds of a soldier are lost once war begins, sometimes culminating in the complete alienation of the soldier from any bonds, social or military. Grief at the death of a special comrade, stage three, is when a fellow soldier is killed and his fellow troop members are overwhelmed by the sadness his death. The Women’s Army Corps of the Vietnam War :: Vietnam War Essays The Women’s Army Corps of the Vietnam War We went to a foreign country in service of our country . . . we gave aid and encouragement to a whole segment of our brothers and sisters . . . we survived a war . . . we are noble . . . we are brave . . . we are adventurous . . . we are an active part of world history . . . we are interesting . . . we have lived such exciting lives . . . we have gone far beyond the boundaries allowed to most of our sisters . . . we did it together . . . and we still have each other. Patricia â€Å"Mama-san† Brimeyer, Army Service Clubs, Vietnam 1968.[1] Introduction Male soldiers have a distinct voice when they speak of war. Jonathan Shay, M.D., Ph.D., author of Achilles in Vietnam, can best explain the voice of a male soldier. Dr. Shay creates a system that explains how and why male soldiers react to war in the ways they do. Dr. Shay’s system is based on the story of Achilles in Homer’s epic The Iliad. The focus of the system is to compare the reactions of Achilles’ soldiers to war, with the American male soldiers’ reactions to the Vietnam War. Dr. Shay’s system is based on eleven stages:  ·Betrayal of â€Å"what’s right†  ·The shrinkage of the social and moral horizon  ·Grief at the death of a special comrade  ·Guilt and wrongful substitution  ·The berserk  ·Dishonoring the enemy  ·What Homer left out (other obvious similarities)  ·The soldiers’ luck and God’s will  ·Reclaiming the Iliad’s gods as a metaphor of social power  ·The breaking points of moral existence  ·Healing and tragedy During stage one, the betrayal of â€Å"what’s right†, the soldier’s moral world is violated by a commanding officer’s betrayal of the soldier’s moral order.[2] During the Vietnam War American soldiers experienced the betrayal of â€Å"what’s right† when those who held all of the power and responsibility broke the trust of the soldiers. Stage two, the shrinkage of the social and moral horizon, refers to the breaking of a soldier’s family, civilian, and military ties. The social bonds of a soldier are lost once war begins, sometimes culminating in the complete alienation of the soldier from any bonds, social or military. Grief at the death of a special comrade, stage three, is when a fellow soldier is killed and his fellow troop members are overwhelmed by the sadness his death.

Belonging

Belonging Essay The concept of belonging is essential in our lives as it brings about acceptance and connection to a person, group or place. Migrants often experience alienation and exclusion before experiencing acceptance and belonging into the new society. Peter skrzynecki portrays migration as a painful, soul searching experience, re forging a sense of personal and cultural identity which is evident in Migrant hostel. On the contrary Peter displays a perspective were the family feels stability and security at their address 10 Mary Street.The journey to belong often proves to be a great burden; the lack of social stability generates a sense of loss and insecurity leaving migrants struggling to adjust to their new cultural environment. This is established in the first stanza of Migrant hostel through the choice of words such as â€Å"sudden/wondering†, which illustrates uncertainty and doubtfulness of what is occurring around them, therefore living erratic and uncertain lives .The idea of not being in control of their lives is further emphasized in the first stanza with the use of the simile â€Å"we lived like birds of passage†, this creates a image of migratory birds and represents how the migrants are at a point of transaction in reality. Peter creates a picture of confinement and imprisonment via the symbol of a barrier â€Å"A barrier at the main gate†, represents obstacles to their dream of belonging and exclusion from mainstream Australia.The Migrants are shown as being powerless and their lives have been marked by disorientation, â€Å"unaware of the season/whose track we would follow†, highlights the whole migrant communities uncertainty as â€Å"we† is inclusive of all migrants and shows that all migrants experience similar hardship. The irony of the concluding lines â€Å"that had only begun or were dying†, accentuates the burden of uncertainty in their lives instead of surviving in their new homeland and exp erience a new sense of belonging their lives remain in limbo.However, people eventually experience belonging which is evident in 10 Mary Street as it is a stark contrast to Migrant hostel as there is insecurity while there is a feeling of security in 10 Mary Street due to the family’s long term connection to their home and Australia itself. The repetition of â€Å"nineteen years† reinforces how long term residency establishes a place of belonging. Peter also repeats ‘eight years† in St Patrick’s as Peter is pointing out how peoples sense of belonging is strengthened over a long period of time.Furthermore, the simile â€Å"like a well-oiled lock†, symbolizes security and highlights how the family is experiencing security at their family home. The poem also highlights how the family’s strong affinity with the garden represents settlement and permanency in Australia. The simile like â€Å"adopted children† emphasizes the parent†™s great care and love for their garden and symbolizes their belonging to their new homeland. The act of Peter ravaging the garden represents how the garden provides the family with food and sustenance.The garden is a representation of their new homeland as Australia also provides them with work, opportunity and a good life. The house is described as part of the family through the personification â€Å"the house stands† this portrays the house as another member of the family as it shows belonging and relation to the house. The metaphor â€Å"Inheritors of a key that’ll open no house†, highlights the poets appreciation of his family and their home, the experience is cherished however when the house is pulled down, he believes he will never be able to experience such warmth when he moves on in life.In conclusion, it is evident that a person will establish a connection with a place or person with time, however will go through hardships and feelings of unfamiliari ty before finding security and belonging to their new homeland. Migrant hostel emphasizes how life’s adversities can hamper peoples sense of belonging, while 10 Mary Street portrays how people adapt to their new homeland to become â€Å"citizens of the soil† and experience stability and security. Belonging Belonging can be a possible path to an individual’s self-actualisation. A sense of identity can be identified by belonging or not belonging to a particular group or place. A person can portray different values of belonging through different situations and settings, like in Shakespeare’s period and the period in ‘Fight Club’. Maslow’s Hierarchy of belonging suggests that belonging is one of the basic needs of human existence. All humans aspire to belong but only a few are able to transcend this basic human need and become self-actualised individuals who rise beyond their social expectations and go against the conventions that define them.This is portrayed through the characters in ‘As You like It’ that flee to the Forest of Arden but eventually return because that is where they truly belong. As well as ‘Tyler’ in Fight Club. Belonging is a possible path to one’s individual self-actualisation, which can be identified vi a various mediums as witnessed through David Fincher’s Fight Club and Shakespeare’s As You Like It. Maslow’s hierarchy extrapolates the basic fundamentals of belonging suggesting that belonging is ones fundamental need of human existence.This notion is illustrated through Tyler Durden in Fight Club as well as characters in â€Å"As You Like It† where individuals strive to transcend the basic human necessity of belonging and become self-actualised individuals who rise beyond their social expectations and defy conventions defining them. Fight club demonstrates the aspects of belonging through the relationship between the narrator and his alter ego, Tyler Durden. It is a commentary on our ‘lost’ generation. The relationship shows the changes the narrator undergoes throughout the film.The Fight Club has an appeal to the lost generation. The narrator with the help of Tyler Durden founded Fight Club as a way of venting aggression physically through fighting other men. It begins with him fighting Tyler (although he is actually fighting himself) but soon other men want to join and have fights of their own. The men of our generation have been raised to avoid fighting, but suddenly they realize along with the main character, â€Å"I just don’t want to die without a few scars. Fight Club is an expression of modern dysfunctionality of modern context that have so alienated the individuals into ‘nameless’ and ‘androgynous’ emasculated male figures. General society has adopted this aspect just the same as society has adopted the consumer identity. Tyler Durden says â€Å"We are byproducts of the lifestyle obsession. Murder, crime, poverty, these things don’t concern me. What concerns me is celebrity magazines, television with 500 channels, some guy’s name on my underwear, Rogain, Viagra, Olestra, Martha Stewart. Tyler describes a life style that is defined by things you don’t nee d. From here we run into the consumer identity. The consumer identity is the understanding that you are what you buy; you exist to express yourself in material possessions. The goal is to simply look impressive not be impressive, so you can appear to have more money than you really do. In a society that claims the consumer identity, the ultimate sacrifice would be to put your projected reputation on the line. In modern society, this is too risky for many people and that is the main reason why fights are avoided.However, by embracing the idea that you aren’t what you own, you are only what your hands are capable of, you can free yourself of everything you have tried to appear as with every punch you give or take. The fighting is a metaphor for feeling, not promoting physical combat. The narrator states â€Å"fight club isn’t about winning or losing. It was about words, when the fight was over, nothing was solved, but nothing mattered. Afterwards we all felt saved†. The concept of belonging not only deals with acceptance, but also rejection and alienation. This concept can influence our belonging to a place or group.This is explored through Shakespeare’s play â€Å"as you like it†. Throughout the novel, ‘as you like it’ explores the idea of belonging to place. The title itself gives the play to the audience, implying belongs to those viewing it. Throughout the novel, we can clearly detect the characters desires to belong as dictated by the social religious hierarchy of the renaissance drawn out by the church and king in the form of the chain of being. According to Shakespeare text and his context, everyone has their rightful place. If one place is altered or disturbed, there is chaos and anarchy.Hence, ‘As You like It’ is a reaffirmation of the chain of being where Duke seniors dukedom has been altered by his younger brother Frederick, and this causes the chaos that leads to many of the characters flee ing to the place they belong to into the forest. In As You like It, the traditions of society push characters to play certain roles. Rosalind, the protagonist, has no control over society and gender expectations presented to her. Even though she is the most interesting, intelligent and active character in the novel, she is confined into the expected female role.This suppresses her personality to be expected to fit into and belong at the court. Her attempts at conformity lead her to initially feel fear at seeking out the Forest of Arden because such a place would be dangerous for a woman. She overcomes this by transcending gender boundaries choosing to disguise herself as a man. While she is a man, she is able to explore her true personality and identity. Is she had not used the role of Ganymede in the forest; she may have been left in a similar role to Celia who is unable to shake her constraints of femininity.Ultimately, the different values of belonging in different situatuations is seen in both texts through Tyler in Fight Club where he creates a place for people who have the same daily routine to break free from this and to vent their anger by fighting. This fighting is a metaphor for freedom, Freedom from their daily lives and the idea of the consumer identity. This form of freedom and belonging is also seen in ‘As You Like it’ where Rosalind breaks the female stereotype of not being strong enough to protect herself in the forest of Arden, where she runs away to. Belonging Belonging Essay The concept of belonging is essential in our lives as it brings about acceptance and connection to a person, group or place. Migrants often experience alienation and exclusion before experiencing acceptance and belonging into the new society. Peter skrzynecki portrays migration as a painful, soul searching experience, re forging a sense of personal and cultural identity which is evident in Migrant hostel. On the contrary Peter displays a perspective were the family feels stability and security at their address 10 Mary Street.The journey to belong often proves to be a great burden; the lack of social stability generates a sense of loss and insecurity leaving migrants struggling to adjust to their new cultural environment. This is established in the first stanza of Migrant hostel through the choice of words such as â€Å"sudden/wondering†, which illustrates uncertainty and doubtfulness of what is occurring around them, therefore living erratic and uncertain lives .The idea of not being in control of their lives is further emphasized in the first stanza with the use of the simile â€Å"we lived like birds of passage†, this creates a image of migratory birds and represents how the migrants are at a point of transaction in reality. Peter creates a picture of confinement and imprisonment via the symbol of a barrier â€Å"A barrier at the main gate†, represents obstacles to their dream of belonging and exclusion from mainstream Australia.The Migrants are shown as being powerless and their lives have been marked by disorientation, â€Å"unaware of the season/whose track we would follow†, highlights the whole migrant communities uncertainty as â€Å"we† is inclusive of all migrants and shows that all migrants experience similar hardship. The irony of the concluding lines â€Å"that had only begun or were dying†, accentuates the burden of uncertainty in their lives instead of surviving in their new homeland and exp erience a new sense of belonging their lives remain in limbo.However, people eventually experience belonging which is evident in 10 Mary Street as it is a stark contrast to Migrant hostel as there is insecurity while there is a feeling of security in 10 Mary Street due to the family’s long term connection to their home and Australia itself. The repetition of â€Å"nineteen years† reinforces how long term residency establishes a place of belonging. Peter also repeats ‘eight years† in St Patrick’s as Peter is pointing out how peoples sense of belonging is strengthened over a long period of time.Furthermore, the simile â€Å"like a well-oiled lock†, symbolizes security and highlights how the family is experiencing security at their family home. The poem also highlights how the family’s strong affinity with the garden represents settlement and permanency in Australia. The simile like â€Å"adopted children† emphasizes the parent†™s great care and love for their garden and symbolizes their belonging to their new homeland. The act of Peter ravaging the garden represents how the garden provides the family with food and sustenance.The garden is a representation of their new homeland as Australia also provides them with work, opportunity and a good life. The house is described as part of the family through the personification â€Å"the house stands† this portrays the house as another member of the family as it shows belonging and relation to the house. The metaphor â€Å"Inheritors of a key that’ll open no house†, highlights the poets appreciation of his family and their home, the experience is cherished however when the house is pulled down, he believes he will never be able to experience such warmth when he moves on in life.In conclusion, it is evident that a person will establish a connection with a place or person with time, however will go through hardships and feelings of unfamiliari ty before finding security and belonging to their new homeland. Migrant hostel emphasizes how life’s adversities can hamper peoples sense of belonging, while 10 Mary Street portrays how people adapt to their new homeland to become â€Å"citizens of the soil† and experience stability and security.

Baroque Art and Music

Both Baroque art and music evoke strong emotions in the people they are intended to touch. The subjects, while not inevitably overtly religious, primarily deal with religious subject matter. Many of the paintings of this era brought religious figures into what were then familiar settings, such as placing a Madonna figure into a crumbling Roman city street. Others, however, used the dramatic effects of chiaroscuro shading and broadly painted gestures and expressions to create images that have transfixed viewers for centuries.So, too, have the strains set down by Baroque composers held the imaginations of listeners over the centuries. Few people, even those who claim to be unfamiliar with â€Å"classical† music would fail to recognize the â€Å"Hallelujah Chorus† from Handel’s Messiah or the lilting notes of Vivaldi’s â€Å"Spring Concerto† from the Four Seasons, even if they could not name the pieces. This paper will be used to briefly discuss and co mpare some of the dramatic effects used in Baroque art and in Baroque music. Baroque ArtThe art of the Baroque period was naturalistic; that is, the people portrayed in the paintings and statuary were sometimes portrayed with human flaws. But it was also at this time that light and shading was used to create the focus of the piece by casting many of the supporting figures into relative darkness and bathing the primary figure in light. This effect, chiaroscuro shading, was perfected by Caravaggio and was often adopted by other Baroque artists, as well as other, later artists (author, date, p. 162).This kind of art was not used to focus only on beautiful or noble images; Artemisia Gentileschi depicts the Old Testament story of Judith and Holofernes in all of its brutality using chiaroscuro shading to horrific effect (author, date, p. 164). All the same, dramatic shading was not the only artistic development of the Baroque period; art during this period took on a never before seen sens uality, even in artwork with a religious theme (author, date, p. 165). Baroque Music Like Baroque art, Baroque music was both dramatic and groundbreaking.However, unlike Baroque art that was growing more complex, the music of that period was becoming simplified and giving its religious themes a â€Å"wider and more universal appeal† (author, date, p. 183). Stories from the Bible were performed in a vocal style known as the â€Å"oratorio,† (author, date, p. 185), of which Handel’s famous Messiah is one. Although Johann Sebastian Bach is perhaps more famous for his development of the complex musical fugue, he also composed vocal scores using the chorale prelude and the cantata to bring the Gospels to life in a musical form (author, date).Musical innovation was not confined to religious themes, however. The opera was born in during the Baroque period, drawing largely on Greek tragedies set to new music, since the original Greek music had been lost. Monteverdi was an innovator in this new musical art form, fully exploring the musical form of â€Å"monody† or â€Å"recitative. † Monody was, and is, an extended vocal line supported by instrumentation (author, date, p. 184). Antonio Vivaldi used a similar theme in his music, creating a single and elaborate musical line that extended itself â€Å"luxuriously† through a given piece (author, date, p.187). While Baroque art was often heavy, the music composed by Vivaldi and others like him was often light, carried by string instruments. Conclusion Both art and music experienced transformative innovations during the Baroque period. Although religious themes continued to take the central focus, artistic forms became more accessible to more people during this time. The Baroque period brought music and artistic forms into the world that are still popular today.

Indian Thought in Emerson Thoreau and Whitman Essay

VEDANTA philosophy was one of several thought currents from abroad that reached New England in the early decades of the 19th century and contributed to the thinking of Emerson and Thoreau. Emerson’s interest in the sacred writings of the East probably began: . ring his Harvard days and continued throughout his life. He knew Laws of Manu, Vishnupurana, the Bhagvad- Gita, and Katha Upanishad: There are numerous references to these scriptures in his Journals and Essays. Thoreau, too, was introduced to Oriental writing while still at Harvard. His initial contact was with an essay on Oriental poetry by Sir William Jones; in 1841, at the age of 24, he began an intensive study of Hindu religious books. In the January 1843 issue of The Dial, Thoreau published selected passages from Laws of Manu. From a French version of the Sanskrit Harivansa, he translated a story, â€Å"The Transmigration Seven Brahmans,† and in The Dial of January 1844, he published excerpts from Buddhist scriptures under the title â€Å"The Preaching of Buddha. † Emerson, Thoreau, and other Transcendentalists, interested in the concept of â€Å"selfhood,† found in Hindu scripture a well-elaborated doctrine of Self. Hindu scripture tells us that the central core of one’s self (antaratman) is identifiable with the cosmic whole (Brahman). The Upanishad state: â€Å"The self within you, the resplendent, immortal person is internal self of all things and is the universal Brahman. † Concepts similar to this cardinal doctrine of Vedanta appear in the writings of the Transcendentalists. But there are many ideological similarities among Oriental literature, the neo-Platonic doctrines, Christian mysticism, and the philosophy of the German Idealists such as Kant and Schelling. And, since the Transcendentalists were acquainted with all of these writings, it is not always possible to identify specific influences. Nevertheless, the striking parallels between Transcendentalist writing and Oriental thought make it clear that there was a spiritual kinship. In â€Å"Plato; or, the Philosopher,† Emerson writes that â€Å"the conception of fundamental Unity† – the â€Å"ecstasy† of losing â€Å"all being in one Being† – finds its highest expression â€Å"chiefly in the Indian Scriptures, in the Vedas, the Bhagavat Geeta, and the Vishnu Purana. † In this essay, Emerson quotes Krishna speaking to a sage:†Ã¢â‚¬ËœYou are fit to apprehend that you are not distinct from me†¦. That which I am, thou art, and that also is this world, with its gods and heroes and mankind. Men contemplate distinctions because they are stupefied with ignorance. ‘ ‘†¦. What is the great end of all, you shall now learn from me. It is soul, – one in all bodies, pervading, uniform, perfect, preeminent over nature, exempt from birth, growth and decay, omnipresent, made up of true knowledge, independent, unconnected with unrealities, with name, species and the rest, in time past, present and to come. The knowledge that this spirit, which is essentially one, is in one’s own and in all other bodies, is the wisdom of one who knows the unity of things. ‘† In formulating his own concept of the Over-Soul, Emerson might well be quoting Krishna once again: â€Å"We live in succession, in division, in parts, in particles. Meantime within man is the soul of the whole; the wise silence; the universal beauty, to which every part and particle is equally related; the eternal ONE. And this deep power in which we exist and whose beatitude is all accessible to us, is not only self-sufficing and perfect in every hour, but in the act of seeing and the thing seen, the seer and the spectacle, the subject and the object, are one. We see the world piece by piece, as the sun, the moon, the animal, the tree; but the whole, of which these are shining parts, is the soul. Only by the vision of that Wisdom can the horoscope of the ages be read†¦. † Some of Emerson’s poetry resembles Vedanta literature in form as well as in content. A striking example is the poem â€Å"Brahma. † This is â€Å"Brahma† in its entirety: If the red slayer think he slays, Or if the lain think he is slain, They know not well the subtle ways I keep, and pass, and turn again. Far or forgot to me is near; Shadow and sunlight are the same; The vanished gods to me appear; And one to me are shame and fame. They reckon ill who leave me out; When me they fly, I am the wings; I am the doubter and the doubt, And I the hymn the Brahmin sings. The strong gods pine for my abode, And pine in vain the sacred Seven, But thou, meek lover of the good! Find me, and turn thy back on heaven. The first stanza is essentially an adaptation of these lines from the Katha Upanishad: If the slayer think I slay, if the lain think I am slain, then both of them do not know well. If (the soul) does not slay, nor is it slain. The second and the third stanzas echo the following lines of the Gita: I am the ritual action, I am the sacrifice, I am the ancestral oblation, I am the sacred hymn, I am also the melted butter, I am the fire and I am the offering. I am immorality and also death. I am being as well as non-being. In some respects, Henry David Thoreau was even more than Emerson attracted to Oriental thought and philosophy. For while Emerson found the Hindu doctrines of soul congenial to his own ideas about man’s relationship to the universe, Thoreau found in Hindu scriptures a way of life with which he felt a profound affinity. When Thoreau began his intensive study of Hindu scriptures, he wrote in his Journal, â€Å"I cannot read a sentence in the book of the Hindoos without being elevated upon the table-land of the Ghauts†¦. The impression which those sublime sentences made on me last night has awakened me before any cockcrowing†¦. The simple life herein described confers on us a degree of freedom even in perusal†¦ wants so easily and gracefully satisfied that they seem like a more refined pleasure and repleteness. † Later, in his first book he said: â€Å"Any moral philosophy is exceedingly rare. This of Manu addresses our privacy more than most. It is a more private and familiar, and at the same time a more public and universal work, than is spoken in parlour or pulpit nowadays. As our domestic fowls are said to have their original in the wild pheasant of India, so our domestic thoughts have their prototypes in the thoughts of her philosophers. Most books belong to the house and street only, and in the fields their leaves feel very thin†¦. But this, as it proceeds from, so it addresses, what is deepest and most abiding in man. It belongs to the noontide of the day, the midsummer of the year, and after the snows have melted, and the waters evaporated in the spring, still its truth speaks freshly to our experience†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬  Thoreau sought throughout his life to live a life of meaning – a life in which he would understand the truths of his own nature, his relationship with other men and his relationship with Nature and with the Universe. In the Bhagavad-Gita Thoreau found clues for his quest which he transposed into his Journals: â€Å"The man who, having abandoned all lusts of the flesh, walketh without inordinate desires, unassuming, and free from pride, obtaineth happiness. † â€Å"The wise man†¦. seeketh for that which is homogeneous to his own nature. † We know too that Thoreau’s reading led him to an interest in Yoga. He wrote in a letter to a friend: â€Å"Free in this world as the birds in the air, disengaged from every kind of chains, those who have practiced the yoga gather in Brahma the certain fruit of their works†¦ The yogi, absorbed in contemplation, contributes in his degree to creation†¦. Divine forms traverse him†¦. and, united to the nature which is proper to him, he goes, he acts as animating original matter†¦. To some extent, and at rare interval, even I am a yogi. † And in Walden, Thoreau describes a state of mind that has a close resemblance to the experience of the yogi. It is similar also to the transcendental Self of the Upanishads which as Sakshi or spectator merely looks on without participating in the pageant of the world. â€Å"By a conscious effort of the mind we can stand aloof from the actions and their consequences; and all things, good and bad, go by us like a torrent. We are not wholly involved in Nature†¦ I may be either the driftwood in the stream, or Indra in the sky looking down on it†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ [I] am sensible of a certain doubleness by which I can stand as remote from myself as from another. However intense my experience, I am conscious of the presence and criticism of a part of me, which, as it were is not a part of me, but spectator, sharing no experience, but taking note of it; and that is no more I than it is you. When the play†¦ of life is over, the spectator goes his way. † When Walt Whitman published Leaver of Grass in 1855, he was almost universally condemned for the formlessness of his poems and the grandiosity of his heretic philosophy. But Emerson made it a point to write a letter to the author: â€Å"I am very happy in reading it†¦. It meets the demand I am always making of what seemed the sterile and stingy Nature, as if too much handiwork or too much lymph in the temperament were making our Western wits fat and mean. I give you joy of your free and brave thought. I have great joy in it. I find incomparable things said incomparably well. † The ideas that Emerson referred to as â€Å"incomparable things said incomparably well† Thoreau was later to characterize as â€Å"wonderfully like the Orientals. † For the long opening poem of Leave of Grass – â€Å"Song of Myself† – contains Whitman’s exultant concept of â€Å"myself† in which he expressess the essence of Vedantic mysticism. Mysticism, as it is understood by the Vedantist and as it finds expression in â€Å"Song of Myself† is a way of embracing the other, the objective world, in an inclusive conception of Selfhood. It is a way of finding the World in the Self and as the Self. Like the â€Å"Cosmic Form† described in the Gita and the Dynamic Self of the Upanishads, Whitman’s â€Å"Self† sweeps through the Cosmos and embraces it: What is a man anyhow? What am I? and what axe you? In all people I see myself, none more and not one a barleycorn less And the good on bad I say of myself I say of them. And I know I am solid and sound, To me the converging objects of the universe perpetually flow, All are written to me, and I must get what the writing means. And 1 know I am death less. † The critic Malcolm Cowley points out that Whitman’s mysticism has its counterpart in modern Indian writing too. Sri Ramakrishna writes, â€Å"The Divine Mother revealed to me in the Kali temple that it was She who had become everything. She showed me that everything was full of Consciousness [Divinity], the Image of Consciousness, the altar was Consciousness, the water-vessels were Consciousness, the door sill was Consciousness, the marble floor was Consciousness†¦. I saw a wicked man in front of the Kali temple; but in him I saw the power of the Divine Mother vibrating. † Earlier in the 19th Century, Whitman had written: I hear and behold God in every object†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ I see something of God each hour of the twenty-four, and each moment then, In the faces of men and women I see God, and in my own face in the glass; I find letters from God chopped in the street, and everyone is signed by God’s name. ’ While there are innumerable points of similarity in thought and experience between Whitman and Oriental scripture, in some respects Whitman goes against the mainstream of Indian Philosophy. â€Å"Unlike most of the Indian sages, for example, he was not a thoroughgoing idealist. He did not believe that the whole world of the senses, of desires, of birth and death, was only maya, illusion, nor did he hold that it was a sort of purgatory; instead he praised the world as real and joyful. He did not despise the body, but proclaimed that it was as miraculous as the soul. He was too good a citizen of the nineteenth century to surrender his faith in material progress as the necessary counterpart of spiritual progress. Although he yearned for ecstatic union with the soul or Oversoul, he did not try to achieve it by subjugating the senses, as advised by yogis and Buddhists alike; on the contrary, he thought the ‘merge’ could also be achieved by a total surrender to the senses. † Thoreau, Emerson, Whitman – they were all good citizens of the nineteenth century and of the West. In the bulk of their work, all three writers built on native American material and embodied American attitudes, especially the concepts of individualism and self-reliance. Perhaps the most fitting commentary on their relationship to Indian literature was made by Gandhi after reading Emerson’s Essays: â€Å"The essays to my mind contain the teaching of Indian wisdom in a Western ‘guru’. It is interesting to see our own sometimes differently fashioned. † ****** ****** ******