Buying My First Car Essay

A Bit of Memoir We rounded the corner and there it was, the stout, perfect looking black Jeep Cherokee that my dad and I had just driven and hour to look at. It looked like every other one that I had seen in pictures, but there was the feeling that this one could possibly be mine. The week before, I had been furiously searching Craigslist and Jeep Forum classifieds looking for a Jeep, particularly a Cherokee with low miles, little to no rust, and the right price, between the years 1997 and 1999. With the tight guidelines that I had for the car, it made it hard to find one. However, acquiring a Cherokee was only the first part; I had many plans once I had one of my own, plans to lift it and put some big mud tires on it, along with some other jeep essentials. My friend had his lifted Cherokee for a few months, and I had wanted one just like it for quite a while. After calling up multiple private sellers and used car dealerships, I had found one not far from me. A used car dealership had three Cherokees, all with low miles, and relatively fair prices. My dad and I decided to go check them out, with the hopes of being able to talk the salesman down a few hundred dollars. After driving a half hour or so, we arrive at the dealership, and there, parked in the front three spots were the jeeps. We made our way over and I was instantly checking them all out, making sure that I kept my cool. The salesman comes out, a big guy who looks like he could be on steroids, and he and my dad started talking. Instantly, like any used car salesman, he goes right into telling us about how awesome these Jeeps are, that they’re in perfect condition. We had narrowed down the three jeeps to one, and naturally we wanted to take it to a local mechanic. Most people would have no problem with this, but this guy did. After he refused to let us take it to our mechanic, we were turned off. In addition, he had given us a price on the phone, and then he told us a higher price when we were there talk ing face to face. At that point we were out of there. I was truly upset; I had mgotten my hopes up that I would be driving one of those Jeeps home. My dad told me not to be upset, and that we would find another one that same day. Still at the dealership, we were still sitting in our parked car; both of us on our iPhones looking up classifieds near our area. I find one that looks good, and it’s only a ferry ride away. This one was from a private seller and she had just listed it up that morning, so my dad called her up immediately. We told her we could come to see it that day, and she agreed. We raced to catch the next ferry, which we barely made. Driving off the ferry ramp, we headed to the address the lady gave us. We ended up in a somewhat rough neighborhood, but we decided we came too far to turn around because of some Mexicans with baggy shorts down to their ankles and flat brim hats. We finally got there, and there it is, sitting on the side of the road outside a small conventional house. The lady walked out her front door, and I was already looking under the jeep and checking it out. Everything is checking out, the miles were low, there were very little signs of rust, and I was getting excited. Eventually I was behind the wheel and out for a test drive. The engine ran a little rough, but it was nothing I couldn’t fix on my own. So my dad and I are sitting in the car on the other side of the block, and he asks me if I want it. I, of course, said yes, and we went back and worked a price out. Even though the lady only came down from her price a mere 50 dollars, we still ended up making the deal. Finally, my own car, and the exact one I wanted. I drove it all the way home with no plates, riding on the hopes that the police weren’t out that night. It was exciting to finally be driving the car that I would call mine. I was already imagining the I remember parking it on the ferry and looking at it from the upper deck of the parking garage. I got it home and everyone came out the front door of my house as I pulled down the driveway. It seemed as if my family was more excited about it then I was, which puzzled me. I felt proud of myself for finding the Jeep and being able to bring it home the exact same day. All the weeks of searching for a car had amounted to this one day, where it all happened in a matter of hours.

Family is Irrelevant: Disagree Essay

Family is something that no one gets to choose, and no one can change. The best thing to do is be flexible and be able to take what they say and change it for your better understan express their rebellion. In the novels, Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger we get to experience growing up though the eyes of Holden Caulfield a sixteen year old. Whether it means wearing a raccoon tailed hat or ordering a prostitute Holden enjoys drawing attention to himself. He comes from a very wealthy family that lives in New York City. Holden’s parents fit the perfect stereotypes of father and mother figures. His father is stern and expects a lot from Holden. His mother is carrying and loving. Holden has two siblings, DB, older brother who moved to Hollywood to pursue his dreams and younger sister Phoebe who is a brilliant sweet six year old. Holden also had another brother his name was Allie. Holden and his family miss him dearly but know that no matter what he cannot come back. Holden attend s a boarding school called Pencey. He has a pretty bad reputation about getting kicked out of schools and this is basically his last resort. â€Å"He knew I wasn’t coming back to Pencey. I forgot to tell you about that. They kicked me out.† Holden says sounding totally casual (4). Holden is a kid who most likely did not get much attention at home. Since his brother acted, his other brother died and his sister was a genius Holden was forgotten. He had no major standout aspect unlike his siblings. Although his family loved him they did not give him enough attention, well as much as he required. Holden lashed out and did tings to gain the attention of people, and probably his family. Although one is responsible for their actions Holden’s family, mostly parents pushed him and caused him to rebel in the only way he knew could get him the attention he wanted. When a teenager is pushed into something that they do not want to do, they most likely will not do it. They do not want to seem like they are uncool and follow the rules so they break them. My parents gave my a curfew this summer I had to be home by 12:30am and if I wasn’t then the next night I would not get to go out at all. As the summer began to wind down I became very confortable with my curfew, only getting in a few minutes late when I lost track of time. One night my friends and I had found this incredible bonfire on the beach. We could not pass up this adventure, so we went. At the beach all activity had to be done by 1am. I knew that night I would not be getting home on time and I did not care. So I texted my mom begging to have a sleepover and pleading to extend my curfew. She did not budge though, she wanted me home at 12:30. Once 12 rolled around I knew I was not going to be home in thirty minutes so I just decided not to care. I did not want to seem like my parents were holing me back so I just stayed. By 1:30 I was home. My parents were asleep and I had just come home from a great night. Although I was having a fun night I would not have broken my curfew if my mom had just extended it that one night. I told her that I was going to be home later then usual and she could have easily avoided that. I wanted to show that I was mature and could make my own decisions. My parents were not ready for that. I knew it was wrong to ignore my curfew th also the thing that will push you to the edge. Family is extremely relevant when it comes to teenage rebellion. Although friends may have a large influence on the decision teens make, most spend more time with their families therefore family will have a bigger impact on their decision. Though parents eyes, we will always be babies.

Modern Dance Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Modern Dance - Research Paper Example She did this through the gestures that she made using her body. Through her subject matter, Graham was found to have made numerous transformations in dancing. It is in the sense that most of her themes can be easily analyzed. It is as a result of these efforts that Martha graham was able to create revolutionary changes and making a lot of influence among the people who interacted and watched her dances. Therefore, it can be said that it is because of her immense attention and keenness to a number of actions that she was able to emulate and encompass in her dances to attain success. This paper will discuss her unique efforts and characters in relation to her dance and the influence that it has had in the modern dance society since its introduction. Martha Graham is recognmized as one of the greatest artists that ever existed during the 20th century. She created a language that was based on movement and the capacity of the human body to make varied expressions. This exemplary performance and element of influence has its roots from the time that she started to teach a group of dancers who had become interested in her creative works. Martha Graham had a great impact in the American society since she was a dancer who was extremely influential. She was also a teacher who additionally choreographed modern dance. Martha was able to give a new depth to dance and express her emotions in a forceful manner with the way that she came up with different creations (Kessel 42).Throughout the many decades and ages, she became widely known all over the world. She released her first debut in the early years of 1920’s. She gained more and more experienced as she progressed in her career. In addition, she also became wiser in the field of modern dances. By some people though, the style that was used by Martha Graham was considered to be controversial. Nonetheless, she worked her ways through become

A report evaluating the processes, methods and outcomes of a website Essay

A report evaluating the processes, methods and outcomes of a website created for Autistic people - Essay Example At present, there are very few websites for those with ASD. However, there are a lot of websites, books, journals and articles which target people who have to deal with ASD patients like teachers, parents employers etc. Objective To agree on the requirements of those with autism spectrum disorder and determine what elements must be present in a fully-functioning, educational website, the objectives to determine if the website is working are: Present the developmental requirements of autism patients. Autistic people develop at different rates and in different ways as opposed to those who do not suffer from ASD (National Autistic Society, 2010). To find out how those with ASD feel about the internet. Do they feel comfortable browsing website and talking in online chat rooms? How would Human-Computer Interaction or user interfaces will affect autistic people? Rationale As mentioned above there are currently a few, known websites that deal with autistic people directly. This made the res earch very hard as it would have been easier to look at other websites aimed directly to them and see how they have used human computer interface to design the look of the website. However, to find the information needed, research had to be done published materials of writers and professionals dealing with the autistic disease communication as well as evaluate websites that are already up and running. The research conducted was at first to list the basic activities a person does on a day to day basis and then to find out how ASD patients handle these situations. It will also try to seek out how the ASD individuals seek support from websites. The main purpose of this project is to make sure that people with ASD and related disorders can live together in a society where no one is isolated. The rest of this report will evaluate the research that was done, the methodology used to create the website, the results where the whole product will be evaluated and finally the conclusion. Resear ch Implementing the product was based on the research that had been carried out during the initial part of the project. The means of research included books, websites, journals and information from professionals within the field of autism. There were two parts of research done. The first part of the research was based on the behaviour, activity and general responses that ASD patients show. The second part of the research is about the way the website was going to be built; the design and how the website was going to be populated. ASD patient research To first process to learn about ASD patients was to ask major organisations within the UK for basic information such as the National Autistic Society and Autism UK. However, they could not provide the relevant information needed that directly was aimed at autistic people (Appendix A.1). To overcome this obstacle, research was carried out through books and interviews with notable people who deal with autistic people (Appendix A.2). At fir st it was hard researching, as it was something new, but after undertaking the Research Report, researching now was something familiar and quite enjoyable as a lot of time was used just on researching in the field of autism. Using this information, it was easy to apply to autistic people. The website now had information that is useful for the autistic

Write about Ashland university experience Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Write about Ashland university experience - Essay Example Because of all of these warnings and advices I had put together a set of goals and long-term plans that did not include much social interaction or personal joy. Ashland University, however, maintained none of these circumstances and these misconceptions are not supported by real university experience. Since attending Ashland, I have found a great deal of time to explore my personal interests. This is due largely to the method by which instructors teach courses. It is due also to flexible scheduling for class attendance available to the students. Much to my surprise, I was able to explore rewarding social experiences and even gala due to the give that educators provide related to homework and other projects. This is not at all to imply that Ashland provides inferior education, only that the university seems to understand that extra-curricular fun and growth is very important for student satisfaction and stress reduction. There is also a common belief among many individuals that have studied English as a second language that English is very easy to master. ESL students often show off their learning in the English language to tell others in society how well they have succeeded. When others in Saudi Arabia who have just begun English lessons ask about the difficulty or content, they are often dismissed and told not to be concerned about problems. These students believe that tutor instruction is not very important to the learning process and that it can be achieved alone through very light study. English, however, is recognized by many researchers as being one of the most difficult languages in the entire world. Without the assistance of educators at Ashland in teaching style and patience, I would still be struggling with the English language today. I found that many instructors see my difficulties with comprehension and are willing to point out errors in grammar. They also give better tips on how to use the language properly. Even while writing this essay, I am

Armenian Genocide Annotated Bibliography Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Armenian Genocide - Annotated Bibliography Example He tells how he was able to evade all the killing and the many times he meet with death. The film is entertaining and full of Turkish information on genocide which is ideal for watching to college students who are interested with information on Turkish political nature during the time. This is a well written and researched historical account of all whole series of persecutions and massacres that made up of the Armenian genocide. This is a non fiction book which is ideal for those people who like being informed and have the facts of the Turkish massacre. The author of the book is lecturer in twentieth-century history. He addresses the origins, developments and the aftermath of the Armenian genocide in a more wide range which is based on secondary and primary sources from the parties which were involved in the genocide. Particular interest is paid to the international context of ethnic polarization that was far culminated in the massive life and property destruction of 1912-1923 in Turkey, and obliteration of Armenian. Additionally, the book finds its interpretation of the Armenian genocide in the interaction with the Ottoman Empire in its period of terminal decline. Nevertheless, if finds out that the self-interested policies of the existing European imperial powers and the agenda of Armenian nationalists and beyond ottoman victory. The books is a good source of information of the twentieth century history in Europe and more specifically Armenia it can be used from high school studies all the way to college level The author of the book was a survivor of the Armenian genocide. According to him, Talaat who was a minister of interior and the main mastermind of the genocide fled fro turkey to seek refuge in Germany where he carried on and also laboured for pan-Turkism. Talaat was tried in absentia by Turkish authorities and was also

Nutrition and Performance Final Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Nutrition and Performance Final - Essay Example Combined with the intake of Vitamin D, the two minerals enhance the development of the bone marrow. The bone marrow forms the basic and primary ‘factory’ of bones. Sufficient intake of the above minerals and vitamins prevent, and, in most instances delay, such bone-related diseases like osteoporosis (Insel 635). Nutritionists and dieticians always drive home the point of practicing proper nutrient intake in young children. The development of the brain counts on the proper intake and balancing of fatty acids, more so the omega type (Nordqvist, blog). As such, the potential of the brain to take part in activities acquires a solid foundation. Further, the later capabilities of the brain get enhanced with the daily intake of the above fatty acids. Nutrition based on low intake of both cholesterol and low fats every day reduces the chances of attacks by heart diseases. It occurs as common knowledge that the high intake of fats fosters the development of heart-related diseases. What has remained in the background involves the tedious procedure the body undergoes in fat digestion and absorption. Therefore, the understanding of the effects of fats and cholesterol early in life, and the implementation of low-fat nutrition reduces heart-related diseases later in life. The make-up of carbohydrates consists of atoms of carbon, oxygen and hydrogen in specific quantities (Insel 146). The major classifications of carbohydrates include monosaccharaides, polysaccharides and disaccharides. The nutritional importance of a given saccharide depends on its complexity, which determines time taken for digestion and absorption. The required intake of carbohydrates per gram of food ingested lies at about four kilocalories. Carbohydrates break down to release energy for body use (Insel 147). They can also spike the level of blood sugar. The chemical combination of carbon, oxygen, hydrogen and nitrogen

Islamc business ethics and Christina Research Paper

Islamc business ethics and Christina - Research Paper Example Islamic and Christianity have caused an increase in business ethical arguments concerning relations of firms with globalization and secularization. Religion is considered as the benchmark of moral values. It addresses morality questions of what is right and wrong in business matters. The role of faith and religious beliefs on ethical business practices in a community has been questioned. The conventional teachings of Islam and Christianity on trade ethics correlated issues such as values, legal codes of behaviour on the control of a business, the workplace and wealth attainment and use highly affect a business management. Ethical and moral issues in businesses are raised in cases involving bribery, corruption, fraud and cheating. Religion is also critical in ethical matters dealing with discrimination, injustice and rights of employees, customers and stakeholders as well as other values in business (O’Brien and Scott, 35). Islam is the only major religion in the world that was founded by a businessperson. Islam has been known to have tranquillity toward the profession of the merchant. The Quran and the Bible are integral in providing ethical and moral guidance from the faith perspective about business management. In secular civilizations, legal analysis are footed upon modern and always transient values and standards; in the Islamic community, these ideals and principles are guided by the Shari’ah and reference to other previous judgements (O’Brien and Scott, 38). For instance, Islam has provided women with enduring and unalienable privileges and has never differentiated against minorities. The Islamic law analysis underpins highlights on equity and justice. The Quran contains some details pertaining to contract law. This shows the significance of contracts as the Quran gives few laws and little legal details. The law corresponds to the accepted

Financial Reporting and Accountability exam questions Essay

Financial Reporting and Accountability exam questions - Essay Example 6 Consolidations: Qualitative 7 Why do regulators require consolidations? 7 What is fair value and why is it an important concept in consolidation? 7 Why do regulators require inter-company profits to be removed from consolidations? 7 Corporate Governance 8 What is ‘the public interest’ and what is its relationship to accounting? 8 Do we need mandatory regulation of reporting? If so how should we regulate? Are there major problems? 8 IASB and due process – what are the stages of due process – why is convergence with the US important? 9 What is the ‘market for corporate takeovers’ and the ‘market for managers’ – and what impact have these on accounting disclosure? 10 Reporting Financial Statements Why is one of the elements of the financial statements useful to shareholders? Statement of the changes in position of equity for a company provides the movement of the holding position of the equity shareholders. This statement gen erally comprises of the net profits that can be attributed to the shareholders, the changes in the share capital reserves, the dividend that is paid to the shareholder, the effect of the accounting policy changes or the any kind of changes that has been done to correct any error in the previous period. This is an essential statement that needs to be disclosed to the shareholders because the factors that have an effect on the changes in the position can be known. This statement would be reflecting the nature of the changes that take place in the equity reserves which otherwise would not be available to the shareholders. For example the issue and redemption of the share capital can only be obtained from the statement of financial position. What is the purpose of one kind of disclosure e.g. discontinued activities, or expenses such as audit? Discontinued operations of an enterprise would entail those activities by which the company would be selling a component through any transaction o r demerger or would be disposing off the assets or liabilities of the organisation or abandoning any component of the business. It is important for a company to make the disclosures of the discontinued operations because it would help in assessing the cash flows of the enterprise, the capacity to generate earnings and to make proper segregation of the information about the discontinuing operations form that of the continuing operations. Organisations should cite the evidence of auditing process in the annual statements. Thus the fees that are paid for the auditing as well as the non auditing services need to be paid. On the other hand it is considered that the independence of the auditors is essential for a sound and fair auditing process. Hence by the payment of the fees the quality of auditing in the organisation is ensured. Earnings per Share Basic and diluted EPS Basic EPS is the earnings of the company that accrues to the shareholders of the organisation. Basic EPS is derived b y dividing the net profit of the company by the total amount of outstanding shares. The amount net profit is calculated after distribution of the dividends to the preference shareholders. This may be explained with the example of the following example. Suppose the Net Profit available for a company is $ 40000. And the number of equity shares outstanding is 2000. Then the EPS of the company would be $50. Diluted EPS on the other hand is the net profit of the company divided by the number of equ

Phineas Gage Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Phineas Gage - Research Paper Example , A Modern Phineas Gage, 2005). When prying the truth from fiction in the case of Phineas Gage, one must always go back to the facts of the individual’s life and try to extract general principles from one case. Although case studies are traditionally an unreliable sort of tool for making psychological conclusions, the Gage case provides an excellent example of the manipulation of one variable that could not be otherwise manipulated except by a terrible accident. Thus, understanding Gage’s biography is crucially important for drawing out principles. Psychologists are often quick to cite the Gage case but without a deep understanding. The hope in this essay is to discover what the variable manipulation in the case of Phineas Gage actually proves with respect to the history and field of neurophysiology and biopsychology. Phineas Gage’s relatively uneventful life as a young man in the northeast was punctuated at the age of 25, on September 13, 1848. At that time, Gag e was working as a supervisor for American railroad Rutland & Burlington, laying down tracks for the ever-expending network of trains moving across the United States. Just outside of Cavendish, Vermont, Gage was in charge of adding an explosive (composed of gunpowder, a fuse, and sand) to holes drilled into the rock. He would compact these materials using a large iron rod. However, possibly making an error late in the day on the 13th, Gage’s powder exploded and projected the iron rod through his head. The hole formed in his head was approximately 1.25 inches in diameter and 3.5 feet in length. Entering through one side of his face, it destroyed the backside of his left eye and left a hole in the top of his head (Harlow, 1848). Immediately following the incident, Gage reportedly talked and could stand upright, even though the bar had entered and exited his head, landing nearly 80 feet away. Gage’s health never worsened, even though he was left somewhat comatose in the w eeks following the accident. Eventually, however, Gage regained the ability to walk on his own, speak clearly, and complete everyday activities (Fleischman, 2002). By April 1849, nearly 7 months after his accident, Gage returned to Cavendish, Vermont. The doctors who had originally treated him noted the physical results of the trauma, including loss of vision in the eye that was damaged, scarring on the forehead, and partial paralysis of the left side of the face. Aside from these residual effects, Gage seemed normal in terms of his physical health and that he had recovered from his injuries, with no acute pain in his head. Nevertheless, the patient was psychologically affected. He exhibited childish behavior; his personality changed significantly according to his wife and his doctor began making a checklist of mental changes in the patient (Cuizon, 2009). For instance, before the accident, Gage was productive, responsible and â€Å"a great favorite† with the men, and his emp loyers believed him to be the most efficient and supervisor. After the accident, he was so ineffectual as a foreman that the company refused to give him his old job back. They remarked at he was â€Å"no longer Gage† (Cuizon, 2009). Gage would eventually die twelve years after his accident in May of 1860 in California. He suffered from convulsions of an unknown cause. After his death, Gage’s head was taken for scientific study and is still used for psychological

Example Proposal Essay Example for Free

Example Proposal Essay I have heard that Batangas City Council will be having a Scout Jamboree in the celebration of Scouting Month. In relation to this I would like to bring it to your notice that our Philip’s Sanctuary is an eco-recreation farm, perfect for team building activities, picnics, retreats, company outings, school field trips, parties and more! We have alternative forms of outdoor activities that stimulate the mind, body and spirit amidst a landscape of natural and man-made resources. Activities include team building games, orienteering, wall climbing, mountain trekking, outdoor skills training, outdoor cooking and jungle survival. It is home to nature lovers, and of adventure sports enthusiasts such as mountain bikers, hikers, trekkers, campers, mountaineers, and many more. Phillip’s Sanctuary boasts of obstacle courses that include the high ropes course, low ropes course, zip lines, hanging bridge, mud crawl, wall climbing, tight rope walk, river log balance, tarzan jump and many more. As a background Boy Scout of the Philippines vision of becoming the â€Å"leading provider of progressive outdoor based non-formal education for young Filipino males with the view of developing them to be morally straight, disciplined, concerned, self-reliant citizens in the best tradition of world scouting†, the BSP has set out to instill in Scouts and Scouters love of God, country, and fellowmen, prepare the youth for responsible leadership, and contribute to nation-building, according to the ideals, principles, and programs of Scouting. The BSP has promoted the ability of boys to do things for themselves and others, trained them in Scout craft, and taught them patriotism, courage, self-reliance. Participation in Boy Scouting means enjoying a lot of things together with other scouts. Scouting provides great adventure in outdoor learning. It designs activities that bring about the development of skills that will turn boys into dependable and self-reliant men. Lord Baden Powell, the founder of scouting said that â€Å"a scout is one who thoroughly trains himself in scout craft and places that training at the disposal of the community for public service.† The badges they wear are symbols, which say that they will continue to build and to keep friendship, give happiness to others with their daily good deeds, and live the ideals of the Scout Oath and Law. Scouts grow up to be upright and respectable citizens of the community and of the country. Philip Sanctuary can include facilitator in the package or you may bring your own facilitator. Attached in this letter are the package rates; day rates and the overnight rates. DAY RATES Day Package A: Day Tour no meals – P550.00/pax * Entrance fees and use of all common areas including swimming pool * Use of teambuilding facilities * Use of rafting/boating lagoon * Use of team challenge/low ropes course/obstacle course, hanging bridge * Use of all trails for biking, hiking, trekking * Day activity program * Facilitator’s Fee Day Package B: Day Tour with plated lunch and 2 snacks – P800.00/pax * All of package A inclusions plus plated lunch, AM Snack and PM Snack Day Package C: Day Tour with buffet lunch and 2 snacks – P950.00/pax * All of package A inclusions plus buffet lunch, AM Snack and PM Snack OVERNIGHT RATES Overnight Package A: Overnight Stay only – P800.00/pax * Entrance fees and use of all common areas including swimming pool * Overnight accommodations (dormitory style, no aircon) * Use of teambuilding facilities * Use of rafting/boating lagoon * Use of team challenge/low ropes course/obstacle course, hanging bridge * Use of all trails for biking, hiking, trekking * Day activity program * Facilitator’s Fee Overnight Package B: Overnight Stay with plated meals – P1,300.00/ * All of package A inclusions with plated lunch, dinner and breakfast and 2 snacks Overnight Package C: Overnight Stay with buffet meals – P1,700.00/pax * All of package A inclusions with buffet lunch, dinner and breakfast and 2 snacks In addition to our team building package, you may also be interested in the ff adventure bundles that you can do during your visit. Must be arranged and paid upon booking. Adventure Bundles Bundle A Basic Adventure P100/person -Round Trip Zipline -Use of mud slide Bundle B Advanced Adventure P200/person -Round Trip Zipline -Use of High Ropes Course Bundle C- Extreme Adventure P220/person -Round Trip Zipline -Use of High Ropes Course -Use of Mud Slide We hope that you will merit our proposal. We promise you an experience of learning, fun and adventure you won’t forget!

The Development Of Punk Rock

The Development Of Punk Rock Punk rock first appeared during the 70s in the Bowery district of New York, it was basically a bunch of amateur bands who wanted to make music. Studio executives didnt care much for rock at the time, unless it was something hugely popular like Peter Frampton, Black Sabbath or Led Zeppelin, instead they focused on the saccharine sounds of disco. Most bands were made up of normal blue collar kids didnt have access to a musical education and as such they chose to make it up as they went along. But just as it seemed rock music was about to disappear in the spandex and hair of glam rock or the pomp and ceremony of prog rock, Punk rock was born. It was more a philosophy of how to get out and do things. Bands like the Ramones and Talking Heads had to play in an almost abandoned music venue called CBGBs because no other place would accept them. The Ramones toured America and the UK in 1977 and in their wake bored kids everywhere wanted to emulate them bought whatever instruments they could find and started to make their own sounds. Most had no real education and no musical values but they had a drive to change musics place in society and created many enduring, sometimes political pieces of musical art as they went. The powerhouse behind punk rock back in the late 70s and early 80s was a basic ethos .it had to be fun, and stimulating, you didnt have to have money to invest or a lot of time to spare to become a punk rocker but this was a situation most found themselves in : pennyless and bored. Because everything was cheap, clubs, tapes, instruments, magazines, records it was easy to promote your new band and you didnt have to follow any conformist rules, or try to please anyone but yourself. Originators of the sound While it would be incredibly difficult to write about all of the punk bands of the era there are a few who stand out above all as originators of this new sound that was about to change the social conscious much more than the hippy movement of the 60s. Taking a lead from Alvin Lucier whose seminal piece I am sitting in a room introduced the world to the subtle harmonics of repetition and the use of room reverb to act upon a sound bringing the idea that sound, looped would eventually transpire to into a pure sound called white noise were Lou Reed and John Cale. They formed The Velvet Underground in 1965. Reed had previously worked as a songwriter for Pickwick records, while Cale studied the viola, classically, giving both a solid basis in the traditional rules of songwriting but what they added to that was a drive to break all those rules which gave birth to the early concept for the band, which was to try to sustain single notes for 2 hours at a time, which while artistically perfect it was a sound that was not going to sell a lot of records. 1966 saw the pop artist Andy Warhol take over as manager and together they recorded The Velvet underground and Nico which was released in 1967 to mediocre reviews but it did however include, among other great tracks, the now cult classic track I am waiting for my man , a song written from the point of view of a heroin addict travelling across Harlem to buy 26 dollars of heroin and highlighted Reeds blossoming knack for writing realist lyrics and served as a precursor to punks social and political commentary. New York New York was to become home to the first punk-rock scene, and was the epicentre from which punk rock spread to later, like London and Southern California. In New York punk didnt have the immediate impact that British punk had, but its influence is immeasurable. The initial kick start for New York punk came from the New York Dolls, whose trashy Stones like guitar riffs and cross-dressing glam image raised eyebrows amongst the establishment. The New York Dolls helped to open doors for a host of bands such as the Ramones, clad in jeans and leather and who took the catchy hooks from early 60s bubblegum-pop and the girl-group sound of Phil Spectors production techniques, but played them as loud and fast as possible. The sound was basic and stripped-down in comparison to the rock giants of the time while their attitude brought a sense of fun back to music, this stood out in contrast to the music of the 70s. The Ramones quickly became regulars at CBGBs playing there 74 times in their first year as a band. Although the Ramones still embody the sound that most people class as punk rock, the New York scene was very diverse, like minded people brought together by the dream of reinventing rock and roll music. Television broadened their songs into intricate guitar duels. Blondies girl group pop and Talking Heads odd art school guitar driven pop were some of the first ventures into what would eventually be called new wave, but their direction placed them in the punk camp at the time. By the early 80s, most of the original scene had died down, the original bands began to become the mainstream or fade away or just simply die due to the excesses that often followed success as drugs, specifically heroin, were prevalent on the scene. Detroit Detroit 1967 was a desolate place due to the decline in the citys once proud motor industry, in which a young Jim Osterberg heard The Velvet Underground and hated them at first but he later said that: once it had sunk in it- gave me hope . Bringing the chaos of the velvet underground to the garage sound of the suburbs with the intent of sounding unlike anything ever heard before the stooges had arrived and Iggy pop was born, arguably the most electric front man in the history of music whose contortions, self-mutilation, stage diving and penchants for encouraging stage invasions by the crowd (of which I was once part of) all served as a theatrical backdrop to the apocalyptic sound of the band. Their first album titled the stooges hit in 1968, produced by the velvet undergrounds John Cale, it introduced the world to Protopunk through the classic I wanna be your dog and the iconic no fun which plays out like an anthem to boredom and disassociated youth. The stooges only released 3 albums during their initial run, the self-titled debut, Fun House and finally raw power in 1973 which was produced by David Bowie and is considered to be one of the cornerstones of early punk. The stooges disbanded In 1974 due to pops ever increasing heroin addiction but a few decades later and following a hugely successful solo career in 2000, a clean and sober, 60 year Iggy pop took the original line up back on tour and released a new album the weirdness . The stooges were introduced into the rock and roll hall of fame in 2010 and continue to tour today, even after the death of founding member Ron Asheton. Los Angeles The Los Angeles punk scene was the last of Americas big punk cities to develop but it wasnt as diverse or as adventurous as New York or Detroit or even London. Of all the cities with a punk scene L.A. has proved to be the longest-lasting. Punk mutated from hardcore to alternative rock, then back to a more pop oriented sound in the 90s and continued to thrive on the east coast. L.A. punks played a hard and fast brand of punk; most L.A. punk was very thrashy, with an overall tougher attitude than the arty New York scene or the amateur sound of London or Detroit. Leaning toward more aggressive punk, the west coast became the base for punks change to hardcore, with Black Flag leading this new scene into the 80s. Another important band to rise up from the Bay area scene in san Francisco was the Dead Kennedys, whose political lyrics and attitude ensured that they became one of the defining bands of the hardcore scene. Inspired by British punk the highly political views of lead singer Jello Biafra the Dead Kennedys became known as the most dangerous band in music as they frequently agitated Christians and right wing politicians. Their most famous song California Uber Alles was an uncompromising attack on the then governor of California, the very right wing, Jerry Brown, who was recently voted back into office following the departure of Arnold Schwarzenegger. London While England wasnt the birthplace of punk it was the place where punk had the greatest influence. It was seen as music of rage and rebellion. British punk was inspired by pub rock and glam rock, but the main influences were the original New York punks like the Ramones and the Velvet Underground. In a country caught in an economic downturn, punk invaded the fabric of society in England and was feared by the media and the establishment. The first and most influential English punk band was the Sex Pistols, who hit in 1976 and made an impact by inspiring every punk band that followed them. Their guitar riffs set the stage for British punk as an entity, and their politics and behaviour got them demonized in the media and attacked on the streets but it turned them into heroes among their fans. The other main British punk band was the Clash, who were the most politically idealistic group of the scene and also the most musically diverse. They incorporated rock and roll and reggae into a new sound and are known to this day as The only band that ever mattered .The Buzzcocks wrote moody punk-pop and went on to write one of the defining songs of the era in Teenage Kicks a triumphant anthem to youthful pleasure. The Sex Pistols and the Clash both signed with major labels as the indie style distribution of records had not been fully conceived yet, however, their DIY way of doing things helped to create an independent scene around the UK. The first wave of British punk ended with the Sex Pistols breakup in January 1978, but the scene remained intact until about 1982. By that time, the original punks had expanded their sounds into a number of subgenres like pop-oriented new wave, the arty post-punk scene, hardcore, and early alternative rock much as it had done in America but in England it was done with more intensity and darkness, for proof of this you need to look no further than the back catalogue of Joy Division easily one of the most intense bands to ever grace a recording studio, owing thanks for this to Ian Curtis dark desolate lyrics and instrumentation that seemed to reverberate from the bowels of fears greatest fears. No Wave and Post Punk After the initial punk breakout of 1977, a number of bands were inspired by the DIY. spirit of punk. Instead of just copying the sound of the Sex Pistols, many of these bands adventured into making more experimental music, taking leads from a range of artists and styles, such as Roxy Music or David Bowie, disco, dub and Krautrock. The result was Post-Punk, a more adventurous and arty form of punk, it wasnt any less angry or political but it was more musically complex and diverse. The most popular bands like Joy Division or the Cure created dark, electro oriented sounds with realistic lyrics of a dark broody past and melancholy future while others had a lighter guitar-based musical approach but their lyrics and music often used traditional pop/rock song structures. Post-punk eventually developed into alternative rock in the 80s but this brief period still resounds today in the music of Interpol and A Place to Bury Strangers. No Wave was a short-lived, avant-garde offshoot of 70s punk.it was based almost entirely in New York between78-82. Like the post-punk movement that was primarily in Britain, no wave drew from the arty side of punk. When British post-punk was mostly cold and desolate, no wave was harsh and confrontational. Most no wave bands were fascinated by the noise that could be produced by an electric guitar feeding back into the speakers, making it an important part of their music. Melody was not important as most no wave bands concentrated on producing a noisy racket. The best known no wave album is the compilation No New York which features songs from the Contortions, Teenage Jesus, DNA and Mars. Because of the harshness of the sound none of the no wave performers ever really broke out to wider audiences the exception here was Sonic Youth who fused no waves distorted noise with desolate lyrics and became underground legends after adding more melodic structure to an already chaotic sound. The Ethos of Punk and DIY From the mid70s, punk had emerged as a social and cultural phenomenon. Giving a voice to the hopelessness of its young audience in a time of economic upheaval not unlike what we experience today. Punk music was full of political views, opposition and controversy as a response to the bloated egos and rambling solos of many of the rock bands of the 70s.In England punk music was the means for a social attack on the British monarchy and the starched white shirts of the conformist old guard government. Angered by the system English Punk groups influenced a whole generation to question authority and speak out against what they saw in society to be rotten. Punk groups became the force which influenced the young generations of musicians. Through punk rock music, young people found a way to express themselves. The d.i.y. ethic was mainly reflected in their clothing, hairstyle and artwork.to the early punks the polished production values of the mainstream music was something to be ridiculed and punk rock soon became something that anyone could do. People did not have to be perfectly presented or trendy in order to perform punk music. The important thing was to be able to get up on stage and play from a place within you that spoke only of truth and passion for the music. American punk groups were less controversial than those in England but they satisfied the need in America for abrasive and anti-mainstream music. The underground punk movement of the 70s in America produced groups that either evolved from punk or applied its DIY ethics to different form of music and in doing so secured punks legacy in the alternative rock and Indie scenes. The punk era was a turning point for independent labels and the DIY ethos. Indie music evolved in the garages of America and England, where young people were figuring out what they really could do with their guitars and electronic equipment and that was to inform the people of injustices and inequalities in society that had previously been abandoned to the wolves in the hopes that they would simply be forgotten about and the government could simply continue fooling the people into thinking that everything was perfectly well in the world and the government was in control of everybodys future. Without punks questioning authority there was nobody questioning authority on a global stage and when that happens society as a whole diminishes, governments got away with genocide of their people and hid behind the veil of democracy and freedom, allowing all kinds of atrocities to happen both within their home nations and on foreign ground. In the 21st century with governments bailing out banks and rekindling wars at the cost of human suffering I think the time is right for another wave of the punk movement to begin. After all it has been over 30 years since the original movement and in time people forget and become complacent, we as a society cannot allow this to happen. We have a voice and we should choose to use it to shout from the rooftops pointing out the mistakes of governments, big business and anyone who choose to subvert the progress of the human race by squashing the poor into submission so they can further line their pockets with money acquired through bloodshed and fear .

Drama Essays Shakespeares Tempest

Drama Essays Shakespeares Tempest The conflict and contrast between the utopian ideals and Elizabethan politics presented in Shakespeares The Tempest The play opens with a description of a terrifying and relentless storm that wrecks the ship belonging to the King of Naples, Alonso. The wreck drifts onto the shore of Properos island but the force of the sea is insuperable, and the boatswain appeals to the noblemen, crying out that they are hindering the others. He calls to Gonzalo, If you can command these elements to silence, and work the peace of the present, we will not hand a rope more. Antonio and Sebastian are also rebuked by the boatswain, and reminded of the inefficacy of their social status is nothing in such a critical situation, invoking their wrath, while simultaneously hinting at the bias of the play. We suspect the boatswain will be proven right, and that Shakespeare gently asks us to heed the rude wisdom of the common pragmatists, even or especially- the context of ostensibly decadent theatricality. Hence from the start we are presented with an intriguing balance of high romantic drama, opinionated political commentary, and fragile idealism. The shipwreck symbolises considerably more than what it appears to at first. It is no mere vehicle for the themes of the play to hitch a lift on, it is representative of an entire societys collapse into irretrievable disarray. Indeed, it may be representative of the doom faced by all faulty societies. As such it is a moral vehicle, carrying an apparently disparate group of frightened and confused figures to their ide ntical destiny. As Soji Iwasaki writes, A voyage is often a symbol of the progress of a mans life, and the sea is symbolic of Fortune; a shipwreck is a typical instance of bad fortune, while a ship sailing before a fair wind is an image of good fortune. Sometimes a ship at sea serves as a symbol of the Church, in which the whole congregation sails over the sea of ProvidenceIn The Tempest it is Goddess Fortune (1.2.178) that drives Alonsos ship towards the island of Prospero, where a tempest is caused by Prosperos magic. Prospero judges the ship to be full of sinfull soules, a reference to the political crimes of the characters on board. The King of Naples was guilty of usurping the Milanese dukedom, Antonio betrayed Prospero- his own brother, while Sebastian, Stephano and Trinculo are all intrinsically evil. In fact the only figure to escape judgement is Gonzalo, a harmless courtier. These figures will not find their arbitration in the next life, by some god-figure, though, as Shakespeare takes pains to emphasise. Prospero is the only figure with deific power, literary or figurative, in the play: his magical powers, clearly, serve a metaphorical purpose, symbolising the power of rhetoric and the force that lies behind absolute righteousness. Since Prospero has been wronged, Shakespeare seems to (fatalistically) say, he will vindicate himself using the power that comes from knowledge and wisdom- just synonyms for what is called magic in the play. Prospero knows how to rebuke and is wise enough to fin d forgiveness in his heart. As the ship will eventually return to Naples, the plays theme arguably evolves into dealing with the ruin and rebirth of a commonwealth. Between the first, highly symbolic tempest scene, and the final heraldic manoeuvre, the plays action all occurs on the island. Prospero reveals to Miranda the truth he has kept from her for twelve years, since her infancy. He tells her of his brother, her uncle, Antonios usurpation of his dukedom of Milan and the hardship they were forced to endure as a result. While Antonio behaved callously by acting on his jealous desire to take over his brothers dukedom, Prospero was partially to blame too, since he had been preoccupied with his private, obsessive studies of cultivation of the mind, neglecting all the state business (1.2.89-97) to which he admits he should have been more committed. By handing the state affairs over to Antonio and investing so much trust in him, Prospero unwittingly sewed seeds of ambition in his brother, instigating his own down fall. As Iwasaki describes it, Prospero committed a double offence: he forgot the balance between action and meditation that, as sovereign ruler, he should remember, and he also made a mistake in trusting the wrong person, a mistake which a ruler should never make. Ficino reports on the same problem. No reasonable being doubts that there are three kinds of life: the contemplative, the active, and the pleasurable (contemplativa, activa, voluptuosa). And three roads to felicity have been chosen by men: wisdom, power, and pleasure (sapientia, potentia, voluptas). Renaissance humanists aspired to a harmony of the three. Prospero chides himself for his youthful pursuit of the contemplative, where his preoccupation with esoteric learning came at the price, eventually, of his political power. Prospero may be paying some kind of price, but it is very difficult to read the Tempest as a cautionary text. Shakespeares attitude to power and wisdom is not so clear cut, there appears to be more than one kind of power and more than one kind of wisdom, after all, and although this is not recognised explicitly by the characters in the play (who operate on the Ficino model), Shakespeare wryly alludes to the holes in the world-view of his people. Shakespeare knows that there is power beyond and after usurpation, a power beyond the political and more powerful than any government- and it is a sort of wisdom. He represents it in the only way he can- symbolically- as magic. Prosperos power is also inextricable from his idealism, too. He has transposed his ownersh ip, the projected environment that has come to signify his sense of self, onto the Island. Thus his ideal society as an image has been projected onto a wild and natural, complicated, uncontrollable and antisocial, setting. In fact, wild and frightening imagery very often accompanies a commentary on a social naivety, and naivety about the limits and nature of power. The first scene, with the tempest and the useless noblemen, springs to mind immediately for reasons I have already explored, and the scene where Caliban is introduced makes the same point soon after, as he speaks bitterly and fearfully of Prospero, Enter CALIBAN with a burden of wood. A noise of thunder heard CALIBAN All the infections that the sun sucks up From bogs, fens, flats, on Prosper fall and make him By inch-meal a disease! His spirits hear me And yet I needs must curse. But theyll nor pinch, Fright me with urchinshows, pitch me i the mire, Nor lead me, like a firebrand, in the dark Out of my way, unless he bid em; In many ways Caliban embodies Shakespeares preoccupation with exposing the popular but inaccurate conceptions of what constitutes power, The play also fails to question Calibans position as a savage and slave, and seems to validate and legitimise it by his behaviour and his attempted rape of the sweet Miranda. In many ways the play acts out the treatment of indigenous people by Europeans. The values system of Caliban is silenced and simply seen as barbaric. He is costructed as the Other, different from Europeans and therefore naturally inferior (But thy vile race-/Though thou didst learn had that int which good/natures/Could not abide to be with; therefore wast thou/Deservedly confined into this rock). If we see Caliban as representative of the indigenous peoples dispossessed by European colonisers the previous quotations certainly shows how it is his race and nature that makes him inferior, even though the benevolent Whites tried so valiantly to make him human. Caliban is supremely ironical, then, since he is the least civilised but the most symbolically loaded: the most powerful on the level of reading (or viewing) a play- the only character who represents more information than his actions will ever reveal. Prospero, by contrast, finds himself judged and committed entirely by his actions, although his power actually lies in his psychological strength: his knowledge and wisdom. In fact, Caliban and Prospero, as characters, represent two sides of this play about politics and idealism. While Prospero is a meditator who is treated for his activity, Caliban is an activator and catalyst of discourse who is treated only as intellectually weak. Both characters are more active in their capacity as viewed figures than as real people within the universe of the play, however, underlining one of the many ways in which that this play is idealistic: its potential for bypassing narrative viewing and settling at an ideological operative level. Prospero onl y works when we suspend our assumptions about realism and begin hearing in his voice the tones of Shakespeare himself, when we cease assuming that this character should be literal and real not affecting a performance. Prospero and Caliban, like, perhaps most of the characters in The Tempest, exceed mimesis and function as narrators of their own lives. Their words, then, express their own ideals, and between the lines of the words they say we can be sensitive to the playwrights attitudes to the naivety that informed the politics and idealism of his own society, The Tempest is Shakespeares dramatization of his political ideas concerning the state and the prince. Prosperos island is a model of a commonwealth: Prospero is the king, his magic a symbol of his absolute power, Ariel the agent of his government, and Caliban all the subjects (1.2.341) Shakespeare makes much of the criminally large amount of trust Prosperos invested in his brother. As Iwasaki notes, Prospero was not an ideal prince in his trusting his brother nor in his neglect of a life of action; his loss of the dukedom was a result of his disqualification as a prince. He did not put realpolitik into practice. Alonso is another failure as a sovereign ruler. Having sent in marriage his daughter Claribel to a far-off country, he has now lost his only son and heir Ferdinand to his great sorrow. The political uneasiness of a kingdom with no prospect of its future succession is analogous to the actual situation of the Virgin Queens commonwealth, in which succession problems caused political unrest and governmental debates Theory aside, there are keen racial implications, entangled in the rhetoric of ostensible politically sensitive play. The Tempest has generally been read as a play about forgiveness and reconciliation, change and transformation, illusion and magic and the Prosperos usurpation. Such interpretations generally privilege the attitudes of noble, educated Europeans- in particularly those of Prospero. Such readings are in danger of nulling Calibans rights and silencing his appeal for freedom. A postcolonial reading leads to another reading entirely: The Tempest can then be appreciated as allegorical, referencing the exploitation of indigenous races, with Caliban as a single figure standing for the natives of the New World who were dispossessed and exploited by the European powers. Caliban voices the indignance of the natives who were widely treated as inferior and even sub-human because of their skin colour and their differing cultural traits- which lead to their social marginalisation as u ncivilised. Due to their widely accepted, aggressive branding as inferior creatures, the natives were exploited to benefit the economy, through their capture and subsequent use as slaves. Arguably, the manner of representing race in The Tempest suffers from being heavily and naively Eurocentric. Calibans physicality evidences his difference, which is arrogantly equated with inferiority, something even found in his name which is almost an anagram of cannibal. Yet I have argued that Shakespeare is conscious of his characterisation as separate from himself, and that, although they may sometimes speak with his voice they certainly have distinct voices of their own. Shakespeare takes pains to establish a partially artificial, in many ways almost pantomimical, universe where characters who react to each other naively or selfishly, are in fact being puppeteered by the playwright who has filled the gaps between every line of the play with invisible communications aimed directly at his audience. Hence Shakespeare does not see his savage as a cannibal, he has named him so to signal the way in which the other characters/puppets in his play perceive Caliban. At first sight, the Europeans, Stephano and Antonio, see Caliban as an anomaly that they might be able to sell in Europe as a spectacular freak, saleable for his Otherness: an alien that their perception has constructed. Their attitude is shocking in its narrow capitalist scope: Trinculo says Were I in England now as once I was and had but this fish painted, not a holiday-fool there would give a piece of silver and Antonio and Sebastian also see him as a marketable product that can be bought and sold, Very like. One of them Is a plain fish, and no doubt marketable Race is therefore a marker for one human-ness and anything other than European is constructed as naturally inferior, without rights and available to be exploited for economic purposes. In one writers opinion, Caliban is constructed as innately inferior and savage because of his race. This is articulated by the supposedly sweet and tender Miranda: But thy vile race -/Though thou didst learn had that int which good natures/Could not abide to be with ..'(31) In these lines Calibans race is seen as the reason for his barbaric behaviour it is his very nature that makes him savage and dangerous. In this the text constructs other non-European races as savage, less human, incapable of so-called civilisation all because of their race: this is a damning indictment of non-Europeans as it positions them as naturally inferior and unable to change their ways so that they will never be able to develop the fine sensitivity and refinement of Western civilisation. All the characters in the play speak and think politically and everyone is aware of the significance of the state as both a real, specific, place, and a general idea. Where some characters are idealists, others are have a grave ambitions to achieving power. Speaking for the idealists, Gonzalo details his dream in such detail it evokes a certain melancholy- only those so far from paradise can imagine its details with absolute precision, I th commonwealth I would by contraries Execute all things, for no kind of traffic Would I admit; no name of magistrate; Letters should not be known; riches, poverty, And use of service, none; contract, succession, Bourn, bound of land, tilth, vineyard, none No use of metal, corn, or wine, or oil; No occupation, all men idle, all, And women too, but innocent and pure; No sovereignty All things in common nature should produce Without sweat or endeavour. Treason, felony, Sword, pike, knife, gun, or need of any engine Would I not have, but nature should bring forth Of it own kind all foison, all abundance To feed my innocent people. (2.1.145-62) In the words of Alvin Kernan, For the old courtier Gonzalo, as for those who would later settle the many utopian communities of America, the new world offers the opportunity to recover the lost Eden where, freed of the weight of European society, human nature will be purified and the sins of the old world left behind. Gonzalos island country may excel[s] the golden age (166) in the sense that there is no property, unfair wealth, employment nor exploitation but Gonzalo describes a commonwealth controlled by contraries, that is- a nonsensical place of inverted logic. In fact, Gonzalos ideal principality is markedly similar to that other island government, Thomas Mores Utopia- an ideal place free from property, currency, or enclosure where gold and silver are hated. Stephen Greenblatt points out that Mores utopia is dense with contradiction: in Hythlodaeuss account freedoms are heralded, only to shrink in the course of the descriptionFor example, travelling is free and a citizen may go anywhere he likes in the country, but only with the Mayors permission, and a record of the date of return, and wherever the traveller goes he must work. Should he be caught breaking any of these rules, the traveller faces punishment as an illegal runaway and would be instantly sent home. Furthermore, if he continues to flount the rules, he risks being sent into slavery. The freedom and, subsequently, the Utopia, suddenly seems rather less ideal with these ominous qualifications. Gonzalos commonwealth contains similar contradictions, particularly, Had I plantation of this isle . . . And were the king ont . . . , I would by contraries / Execute all things . . . / No sovereignty. Gonzalo is thinking on his feet, dreaming, and like a dream his thoughts need follow no consistent logic. A kingdom with no sovereignty is obviously a contradiction, as Sebastian and Antonio are quick to point out. Gonzalos commonwealth is an abstraction, an impossible, in many ways a perfect example of the Utopia, the impossible, seductive, unrealisable dream- like the communist one of our times, a real place that nevertheless exists nowhere. Set in stark contrast to Gonzalos gentle innocence optimism stands the brash cynicism of Antonio and Sebastian. As Iwasaki writes, These are such people as are wickedly ambitious for higher status. One is a usurper, and the other once attempted usurpation. Their idea of a kingdom is not such a Utopia as Gonzalo imagines, where the people are all contented with their freedom and natural abundance, nor is it a holy kingdom ruled by an anointed king, the earthly heaven; the kingdom they conceive is a country owned by themselves, tyrants whose interest is solely in their own material felicity and wilful domination over the people. Stephano, a drunken servingman, also desires to be master of the island, and attempts to kill Prospero. It is because of the bottled spirit he owns that Caliban asks him to be his king. Stephanos wine is a physical correlative to his spiritual power; it is what Ariel is to Prospero. If Stephanos kingdom were to come into being, he and Trinculo, together with Caliban, might have a utopia of fools very much like Bruegels The Land of Cockaigne, where people can eat and drink as much as they l ike, yet they never have to work. The theoretical quality of Prosperos magic for which I have been arguing is backed up by his realism, the authorial voice, perhaps, finding a mouthpiece in this character. It is not Prosperos intention to transform his Island into a utopia. He lacks the naÃÆ'Â ¯ve optimism of Gonzalo, with his imagined new world and ideal plantation, where people are impossibly, illogically liberated from the social conventions of the Old World. Indeed Prospero is actively opposed to the illogical and knows intuitively that the wisest decisions can only be made through accommodation of all the facts of life, however unpalatable. Prospero values education to the point of snobbery, and when Ferdinand lands on the island, Prospero intends to marry Miranda to him, someone who, as the Prince of Naples, ought to have a proper education for a future king. Stunned with grief for his fathers death, Ferdinand is drawn by Ariels magical song to Prospero and his daughter. When the two youngsters meet they fall in love instantly, both mesmerised by the wonder of the others beauty, as she calls him spirit and he refers to her as goddess. Despite their passion, however, Prospero intervenes; he is adamant that Ferdinand should recieve a princely education, since he will eventually rule over both Naples and Milan. Prospero is emphatic that the new prince should have an awareness and appreciation of real politics that Prospero himself never had, and suffered for his ignorance of, thirteen years ago. So Prospero imparts trials upon Ferdinand, calling him a usurper for assuming his fathers kingdom while he is still alive, and accusing him of being a spy who intends to steal the island from Prospero: Thou dost here usurp The name thou owst not, and has put thyself Upon this island as a spy, to win it From me, the lord ont. (1.2.454-57) When Ferdinand draws his sword against Prospero, the old man entraps the youth by means of his magic, again, an obvious analogy for the power of superior wisdom. Ferdinand is humiliated, made to surrender and forced to carry logs. He is unaware of the effort, however, cherishing Mirandas love so much that he endures the slavish work with astonishing patience. Iwasaki compares Ferdinands education to the learning principle implied in Raphaels picture of The Dream of Scipio, In the left background of the picture is depicted a knight on horseback climbing the difficult passage to the tower of virtues on the top of a craggy mountain, the journey, of course, representing the trial a knight must undertake to achieve the knightly virtues, represented here by the book and the sword held by the lady in the foreground. Ferdinand, capable of a life of pleasure as a lover, is now encouraged, like Scipio, to go through a trial for his self-fashioning. Raphaels picture of Scipio was given by Thomaso Borgese of Siena to his son Sipione as a moral lesson, and like Thomaso, Prospero is a man whose educational ideal is Renaissance-humanistic. Through his slavery, as he subsists on plain food and water, Ferdinand tells Prospero that all his hardships are but light to me, Might I but through my prison once a day Behold this maid. All corners else o th earth Let liberty make use ofspace enough Have I in such a prison. (1.2.490-94) When Miranda sees Ferdinand labouring she yearns to take his place. Since the lovers devotion is characterised by their wish to serve each others physical labours, this slave labour itself comes to define the nature of their love. That is, they share a need to express their love through bearing the burden of the other, sparing the others body any pain. Their labour, then, in a kind of paradox, comes to signify the bliss of their mutual adoration- Shakespeare pits ethereal magic against physical work repeatedly in this play, and the message here seems to be that true love is best expressed through the essential of shared labour. The name Miranda, of course, has the meaning wonder and miraveglia (the principle of heroic wonder), comprising part of what Iwasaki calls the neoplatonic rhetoric of love: Admired Miranda! Indeed the top of admiration! Worth Whats dearest to the world! (3.1.37-39) Ferdinands love of Miranda seems appears to represent the affections female adoration according to the prescribed ritual of noble courting, but his feminine obsessiveness is levelled out and enhanced by the masculine force of his sweethearts devotion. Their love is emphatically built upon a systematic balance, a mechanism of reflection and reaction, eros and anteros, modern, complimentary, and more neoplatonic than conventionally courtly. Yet there remains in Shakespeares words a forceful, if unbiased, commentary on masculine dominance- particularly in the person of Prospero- that represents an ideology apt to Jacobean sexual politics. References Bacon, Francis. Essays [1625]. London: Oxford UP, 1937, 1962. Castiglione, Baldesar. Il Cortegiano [writ. 1518, pub. 1528]. C. S. Singleton, trans. The Book of the Courtier. Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1959. Corbett, Margery and Ronald Lightbown. The Comely Frontispiece: The Emblematic Title-page in England 1550-1660. London: Routledge Kegan Paul, 1979. Erasmus, Desiderius. The Education of a Christian Prince, trans. L. K. Born. New York: Norton, 1968. Freedberg, David. The Prints of Pieter Bruegel the Elder (Catalogue for the Exibition, organized by Bridgestone Museum of Art, Tokyo, January 7- Febrary 26, 1989). Tokyo: Tokyo Shimbun, 1989. Frye, Northrop. Introduction to The Tempest in William Shakespeare: The Complete Works, general ed. A. Harbage (New York: Viking P, 1977). Godyere, Henry. The Mirrovr of Maiestie (1618), facsimile reprint, ed. Henry Green and James Croston. Manchester: A. Brothers and London: Trubner, 1870. Greenblatt, Stephen. Renaissance Self-Fashioning. Chicago and London: U. of Chicago P, 1980, 1984. Hamilton, Donna B. Virgil and The Tempest: The Politics of Imitation. Columbus: Ohio State UP, 1990. James, King, VI and I. Political Writings, ed. Johann P. Sommerville. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1994. Kernan, Alvin. Shakespeare, the Kings Playwright: Theater in the Stuart Court, 1603-1613. New Haven and London: Yale UP, 1995. Knapp, Jeffrey. An Empire Nowhere: England, America, and Literature from Utopia to The Tempest. Berkeley: U of California P, 1992. Machiavelli, NiccolÃÆ'Â ². The Prince, trans. L. Ricci, rev. E. R. P. Vincent. London: Oxford UP, 1935, 1960. More, Thomas. Utopia (1518), trans. Robert M. Adams. New York: Norton, 1975. Nuttall, A.D. New Mimesis: Shakespeare and the Representation of Reality. London: Broadview PR, 2001. Orgel, Stephen, ed. The Tempest (Oxford Shakespeare series). Oxford: Clarendon P, 1987. Peacham, Henry. Minerva Britanna: or A Garden of Heroical Deuises (1612); facsimile reprint, ed. John Horden. Menston, Yorkshire: Scolar P, 1969, 1973. Puttenham, George. The Arte of English Poesie, eds. Willcock and Walker. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1936. Wind, Edgar. Pagan Mysteries in the Renaissance. Harmondsworth, Middlesex: Penguin Bks., 1967 Shakespeare, W. The Tempest 1.1.21-23

The Gifted and Talented Essay -- Essays Papers

The Gifted and Talented The term â€Å"gifted† can mean many things. Up until recently it was the word used to describe people with profoundly high intelligence. Now, adding the words â€Å"creative† and â€Å"talented†, the category of giftedness has been extended to include not only exceptionally intelligent people, but also people with extraordinary ability in other areas, not just with IQ tests (Drew, Egan, & Hardman, 2002). The identification and definition of giftedness have been controversial for many, many decades. Originally, IQ test scores were the only way of determining giftedness. An IQ test would be given and some number score, such as 12-, would be the point of cut-off (Cook, Elliott, Kratochwill, & Travers, 2000). More recently, intellectual giftedness is usually identified and defined by the specific school systems’ ideas and perspectives. There is no generally accepted definition of giftedness, but the Javits Gifted and Talented Education Act defines it as: â€Å"Children and youth with outstanding talent perform or show the potential for performing at remarkably high levels of accomplishment when compared with others of their age, experience, or environment. These children and youth exhibit high performance capability in intellectual, creative, and/or artistic areas, possess an unusual leadership capacity, or excel in specific academic fields. They require services or activities not ordinarily provided by the schools. Outstanding talents are present in children and youth from all cultural groups, across all economic strata, and in all areas of human endeavor† (Drew et al., 2002). It is obvious there is practically no limit on who can be gifted. The problems lie in the wide range of definitions and the acce... ...fted education. Retrieved March 4, 2004, from http://www.kidsource.com/kidsource/content4/ legal.rights.gifted.ed.html Magnet/center and special programs. (n.d). Retrieved March 4, 2004, from http:// www.mcps.k12.md.us/departments/eii/eiispecialprogramspage.html#The%20Program Parke, B. (n.d.). Challenging gifted students in the regular classroom. Retrieved March 1, 2004, from http://www.kidsource.com/kidsource/content/Challenging_gifted _kids.html Shaunessy, E. (2003). State policies regarding gifted education. Gifted Child Today Magazine, 26. Retrieved March 7, 2004, from http://search.epnet.com/direct.asp?an=10445176&db=f5h Winebrenner, S. (2003). Teaching strategies for twice-exceptional students [Electronic version]. Intervention in School and Clinic, 38. Retrieved March 4, 2004, from http://search.epnet.com/direct.asp?an=EJ659359&db=eric

Comparative Analysis of Australian Aboriginals, Torres Strait Islanders, and the First Nations of Canada :: Equality Health Human Development Essays

Comparative Analysis of Australian Aboriginals, Torres Strait Islanders, and the First Nations of Canada INTRODUCTION Equality in health implies that ideally everyone should have a fair opportunity to attain his or her full health potential and, more reasonably, that no one should be disadvantaged from achieving this potential. Based on this definition, the aim of policy for equity and health is not to eliminate all health differences so that everyone has the same level and quality of health, but rather to reduce or eliminate those which result from factors which are considered to be avoidable and unfair. To appreciate the importance of striving for equity in relation to health, it is necessary to be aware of just how extensive are the differences in health found in the world today. In every part of the region, and in every type of political and social system, differences in health have been noted between different social groups and between different geographical areas in the same country (Whitehead 2000). There is consistent evidence that inequalities in health result in disadvantaged groups having poorer survival chances, suffering a heavier burden of illness, and sharing a similar pattern of low quality of life The poor health of the Australian Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders is well known. Since the 1970s, mortality rates have been declining, but life expectancy has not changed and the gap between the Aboriginal population and the total Australian population has widened. This pattern contrasts with that of the Indigenous population of Canada where marked improvements in health have occurred. From that standpoint, this paper will discuss the important issues of health care inequalities that exist with the Aboriginals in Australia and compare them to those which subsist in the First Nations of Canada. POPULATION OF AUSTRALIA Australians have among the highest life expectancy in the world and most have ready access to comprehensive health care of high quality. In the 1995 National Health Survey, 83% of Australians aged 15 or over reported their overall health as excellent, very good or good (ABS 1997). The average life expectancy in 2000 was high for both men and women being 76 years and 82 years respectively. In terms of disability-adjusted life expectancy (DALE), Australia ranks in 2nd place after 191 countries (WHO 2000). In 1998, males at birth could expect to live for 63.3 years without experiencing major disability and women could live for 57.

As You Like It, The Passionate shepherd to His Love, and The Nymphs Re

Contrasting As You Like It, The Passionate shepherd to His Love, and The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd      Ã‚  Ã‚   The pastoral settings in Shakespeare's As You Like It, "The Passionate shepherd to His Love" by Christopher Marlowe, and "The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd" by Sir Walter Raleigh collectively portray contrasting ideas about nature. Marlowe idealizes pastoral life while Raleigh's companion piece shows its negative aspects. As You Like It explores both the positive and negative qualities. Pastoral settings conventionally carry the connotation of a nurturing and wholesome environment, similar to the philosophical ideas of the superiority of a natural man. In nature, there are different rules from society in which things work together for a common good. In As You Like It, Orlando, thinking that nature is savage, pulls his sword and demands food of the disposed duke. What Orlando finds is that nature is less savage than civilization. Duke Senior, who promises to give Orlando all that he has, describes the splendor and bounty of nature with "tongues in trees" and "books in the running brooks." The court comes to the pasture, seeking food, clothing, and shelter, and finds fulfillment there. A shepherd, who resembles the chivalric Duke Senior taking care of his flock, protects the animals in his care just as nature provides him with food, clothing, and shelter. A shepherd's wife must support and help take care of the shepherd. Marlowe's passionate shepherd tries to woo his love by promising the best "wool" from "our pretty lambs," beautiful fields in which to reflect, "beds of roses" to sleep on, "A cap of flowers, and a kirtle/ Embroidered all with leaves of myrtle." She will also have "Fair-lined slippers for the col... ... to the shepherd if she accepted his proposal. Even though Phebe settles for Silvius, when she finds out Ganymede is really a woman, her happiness is only bitter-sweet.    The pastoral scenes in As You Like It and in the companion poems by Marlowe and Raleigh show nature as a refuge with wonderful mysteries, a place of infectious love, and still a cruel, savage place. Nature is all of these things, an amalgam of mixed blessings, which in differing contexts may be both beneficial and deceptively vicious.       Works Cited    Marlowe, Christopher. "The Passionate shepherd to His Love." Various versions have been consulted.    Raleigh, Walter. "The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd." Various versions have been consulted.    Shakespeare, William. As You Like It. New York: Dover Publications. 1998. All quotations are from this text.   

Meaning of life †Existentialism Essay

? Throughout the story, Grendel is trying to find the meaning of life. He is trying to understand the purpose of living, and was looking for something to steer him in the right direction. In Chapter five, when Grendel finally meets the dragon, he finally believes that he has found the meaning of life. Grendel begins his life by being an existentialist. He was basically alone when he was young, and was left to figure out the world around him with no help. It was confusing to him, and that is how he developed the idea of existentialism. He believed that he alone existed. Existentialism stresses freedom of choice, and he had the power to do whatever he wanted to do, so it made sense. He eventually realizes that he does not control the world when he says, â€Å"I think, trying to suck in breath, and all that I do not see is useless, void. (Pg. 29)† After coming to this realization, Grendel looks for a different meaning to life. He then listens to the Shaper, who tells lies to make the Danes feel better about themselves and have a meaning to life. As much as he wants to believe the Shaper and live his life according to what he says, Grendel felt too ashamed believing in lies to do so. He decided that he would rather be an outcast if that was what it took to find the truth. He believed that he had found truth after talking to the dragon. The dragon is a nihilist. He sees no purpose in life. He claims to know everything, â€Å"the beginning, the present, and the end. (Pg. 62)† His basis behind nihilism is that everything eventually comes to an end, even himself. He thinks that there is no point in trying to better mankind because in the end it won’t matter. In the dragon’s mind, we are all fighting a lost cause, and there so there is no point in trying. He puts down humans, and especially the Shaper. He says that the shaper is just giving the Danes an illusion, and does not know any more than they do. The only important thing for the dragon is finding gold. The dragon tells all of this to Grendel, who is at first skeptical of what he is hearing. He began to take the dragon more seriously when the dragon says that humans needed him in order to think and scheme and that Grendel caused humans to have science and religion. This gave Grendel the identity that he had been looking for: â€Å"I was Grendel, Ruiner of Meadhalls, Wrecker of Kings. (Pg. 80)† Grendel became on board with nihilism. He now became â€Å"enraged† when he heard the Shaper tell his lies and felt like he was giving the Danes a purpose when he killed them, which only caused him to kill more. Grendel thought that he had found his purpose in life, although it ended up leading to his death. His belief in nihilism made him not stop killing, and also believe that he was important to the Danes. He believed that him killing Beowulf would be good for the Danes, and that is why he tried to kill him. Beowulf ended up killing Grendel. Had Grendel changed his views he would not have gotten killed by Beowulf and everyone would have been better off.

Nazism vs. Fascism Essay

R.Q.: To what extent were the German and Italian regimes under Hitler and Mussolini Totalitarian? i. Why? With this research I want to discover whether Hitler and Mussolini transformed Germany and Italy, respectively into Totalitarian regimes. In my discretion this played a major role when looking at traditions, respectability of countries and reputations of countries. Such â€Å"emotions† can also trigger wars, as we so in WWII. Initially, I feel that Dictatorships having absolute power over a country can cause many inconveniences for the citizens of it. Hence, I want to understand their motives and ambitions. Also, I figure that this is a very important time period in which milestones and new dimensions have been opened. Thirdly, I decided on this topic because I am a German citizen, who is naturally interested in the background and history of ones father country. ii. What? I am going to use a series of books written in different time periods by different writers from different countries. This shows a certain scope of viewpoints, which makes the answer to this question more objective. I am also going to use the Internet as one research option of my internal assessment. iii. I planned my essay. This can be seen in the appendix, 1) Essay Plan. This plan shows how I am going to attempt to accomplish my Task i. Define Nazism a. Nazism is the body of political and economic doctrines held and put into effect by the National Socialist German Workers’ Party in the Third Reich including the totalitarian principle of government, state control of all industries, predominance of groups assumed to be racially superior, and supremacy of the Fà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½hrer1. ii. Define Fascism a. Fascism is a political philosophy, movement, or regime (as that of the Fascisti) that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition2. iii. Define Totalitarian a. Totalitarian is defined as of or relating to centralized control by an autocratic leader or hierarchy. Of or relating to a political regime based on subordination of the individual to the state and strict control of all aspects of the life and productive capacity of the nation especially by coercive measures (as censorship and terrorism)3 iv. All these definitions above are essential in order to understand how totalitarianism is initially linked with Nazism and Fascism. These terms, Nazism Fascism and Totalitarianism have all got the subordination of the individual to the state and the control of mind etc. of the individual in common. The difference between them, however is that Totalitarian is purely a term describing a situation, a current state of something. Nazism and Fascism on the other hand, describe an ideology that developed over centuries and eventually ruled a country. When we are looking at these definitions, we discover, that both ideologies have a feature of totalitarianism innate. Therefore, initially we would say that they the states, Germany and Italy, both are totalitarian because the autocracy by which they are ruled is totalitarian. This must mean that the people believe in it because they elected this system of government, and hence the system must be totalitarian. This, however, is debatable. In the ongoing lines I will question the above statement by looking closer at the two ideologies and how they became elected. i. Discrimination of Minorities a. Germany i. Minorities, such as Jews, Blacks, Gypsies and women were discriminated widely. Anything not of Aryan derivation, was inferior. Women, for example, were expected to behave just like â€Å"K,K,K†-meaning Kinder, Kirche, Kà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½che. Translated, Children, Church, Kitchen. In other words, they were expected to have as many children as possible to expand the Aryan race, support the religion and cook well. Jews, of course, were treated the worst, i.e.: concentration camps. b. Italy i. Fascist Policy towards women was condescending. Women were not put equal to men. It was also anti-urban and anti-consumerist. There was birth control and additional taxes on unmarried. This, in a way, was similar to Nazi Germany, where there were incentives to bear as many children as possible. It aimed to promote the ‘superior’ race. Fascist policy was at the beginning not racially concerned. However, when relations with Germany improved, Mussolini adopted some anti-foreign steps. This aimed to give the people a feeling of superiority over other nations and should promote the will to fight for the cause of the nation. Employment conditions for female workers were restricted. They were excluded from several workplaces. ii. Church a. Germany i. Germany was almost entirely a Christian country. Hitler realised this and did not underestimate the power the church, as a single institution, could have on the peoples’ minds’. Therefore, he knew it would not be wise to attack the church during his campaigns. Hence, he made an agreement with the church, the Concordat, which granted the church religious freedom. This, however was only superficially. In reality, any member of the church speaking bad about Hitler or his party, NSDAP, was prosecuted or sent to a concentration camp. Even Church schools were influenced by Hitler; the bible was replaced by â€Å"Mein Kampf† and the cross by the swastika. b. Italy i. In Italy the church played a more important role than in Germany because of the Pope and the Vatican being situated in Italy. Hence, Mussolini tried, after 1922 when coming to power, to include the church as much as possible in the fascist state in order to stabilise and ensure power for his party, PNF. Catholicism was also seen as a possible threat to the emerging fascist state. Hence, a concordat was attempted to improve church-state relations. Catholicism was considered the religion of most Italians, which was so deeply rooted in Italian life that could directly endanger the position of the fascist might. iii. Education a. Germany i. Education in Germany was largely controlled by the Nazis. The main subjects were history, biology and physical education. All of course indoctrinated and altered to shine a good light on the Nazi party and its style of rule. Special schools were build for the â€Å"most talented†. This meant that from a very young age onwards, children in Germany were focused on the Nazi ideology, similar to the Youths, which I will talk about in the next paragraph. b. Italy i. Education was focused on Fascist ideas and ideology. Children were educated in physical education and military training. These are just examples to illustrate what Mussolini wanted to achieve. iv. Youths a. Germany i. Various youths’ existed in Nazi Germany, all aiming to control the mind of German children. Hitler once described his views concerning the purpose of youths:† When an opponent declares, ‘I will not come your side’, I calmly say: ‘Your child belongs to us already†¦In a short time, they will know nothing else but this community.† These programs existed for boys and girls. Boys camps were more physical, preparing for war. Girls’ camps were aiming to make them strong to bear many healthy children. b. Italy i. From 1929 onwards, Mussolini focused more intensely on the control of children in his regime. He wanted to control them by education, which he stated as a right of the leading body in a totalitarian state. The Ministry of Public Instructions was changed to the Ministry of National education (ONB) in 1929. This new organisation provided pre-military training, drill and gym. All measures to convey a more aggressive and disciplined way of live. This program was even integrated into the school curriculum. Recruitment was thus made very easy and numerous. The Fascists wanted to create an Italy were there were young courageous men willing to fight for the cause of the nation. Their motto was: â€Å"Believe, Obey, Fight†. This displays exactly what Mussolini was after. Especially during the great depression, Mussolini tried to give his people a cause to believe in. He created groups or fixed mass meeting so that the people would experience a way of unity. v. Propaganda a. Germany i. Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany was Goebbels. He was an able man, with enormous aims. Not only wanted he the people to accept the regime. He wanted them to capitulate to them, grasping the ideology. He, for the first time in history, effectively made use of the radio and press. He seized control over both. By 1932 less then 25% of the population owned a radio. Hence, he made provisions for producing cheap sets of wireless radios. He called it the ‘Volksempfà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½nger’, translated, ‘nation-receptionist’. The press seemed harder to control. The Nazi publisher-‘Eher Verlag’-bought many of the 4,700 existing newspapers. Goebbels held a daily press conference and eventually, the Editors Law, made the seizure of the press complete. Via the radio, the Aryan race was emphasized. Jewish music was not played. People were constantly bombed with Nazi propaganda, their ideology. b. Italy i. Mussolini wanted to create an image of the ‘new’ Italian. This image should be aggressive and patriotic. He also used heroic figurers from the wars to illustrate the alleged superiority of the Italian nation. vi. Police State a. Germany i. The party seemed to be well organized and structured. Hitler himself, however, rejected any document work. Now the question appears, how it was so sufficient? The answer is that a powerful force was acting behind the scenes. This force was the ‘army’. It consisted of the SS, short for â€Å"Schutz-Staffel†, the SA, short for â€Å"Sturm-Abteilung†, the Gestapo, known for its brutality and later the SD, â€Å"Sicherheitsdienst†, the party internal police force. All these acted in order to maintain or restore order. The SS was once created to be Hitler’s personal bodyguard. It evolved to be a unit with incredible power over, economic, political and social matters. It turned out to be an extremely useful tool for Hitler. b. Italy i. The military was also guaranteed a supreme status in Italy. However, the German army had become a political power whereas the Italian had not. After the death of Hindenburg, Hitler was able to benefit from an exclusive oath. Mussolini never had such an opportunity under the still existing Monarchy. The Italian Military acted with divided loyalties. The Italian army did not face any threats form party-army-type organizations, as opposed to the German SS and SA. vii. Power of the Leader a. Germany/Italy i. Both, ‘der Fà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½hrer’ and ‘il duce’, were charismatic and ambitious men. They had a set aim which they wanted to achieve no matter what the cost was. They managed to elate masses so that they would virtually believe anything they said. These are, among others, characteristics a strong Leader must have in order to be successful. Hitler was not only appointed chancellor but became President after Hindenburg’s death. He also appointed himself Chief-Commander of all armed forces. This gave him the mere control over many bodies. i. Weigh factors against each other a. Germany vs. Italy ii. Conclusion a. When looking back at my research and all the information I collected during it, I think it is fair to say that both ideologies and those implementing it, transformed the respective countries to a large extent into totalitarian regimes. Although, I would say that this phenomena did not occur in the conventional way. By definition, a totalitarian regime controls every aspect of life. When looking at the moment they came to power and the day they left, a great difference in many senses can be seen. Especially, when looking at how they controlled the peoples’ minds’. Propaganda, Force, Speeches, youths and discrimination are all factors, which increased their influence. This integrated so quickly into the respective countries roots, so that it was inevitable that people would eventually believe what they heard. They would also obey by it because they the how brutal their measures could be. Power conveyed and achieved by force was one feature in these regimes. The other means was propaganda. New technology, new innovations enabled them to convey their messages and slogans whenever they wanted. They could also reach every member of their â€Å"community†. They not only controlled adults. One of their ideas was to transform the young so that their ideology would be carried further with the next generation. 1 http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=Nazism 2 http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=fascism 3 http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=totalitarian

Me Against the Media

I stroll into my Critical Media Studies classroom, drinking an icy bottle of Pepsi and wearing a Nike baseball cap. A few of my students glance up from their cell phones and iPods long enough to notice me. â€Å"Um, nice hat,† someone comments. â€Å"Thank you,† I say. â€Å"Today’s class is proudly sponsored by Nike, a strong advocate of education. When it comes to education, Nike says, ‘Just do it! ’. † I take a swig of my Pepsi. â€Å"Can you guess who else is sponsoring our class today? The few students who have actually done the reading chuckle because they know that today’s class is about the pervasiveness of consumerism in popular culture and in the schools. Over the years, I’ve resorted to lots of gimmicks like these in my quest to teach students about consumerism. I try to make my students more aware of how the media naturalize consumerism through advertisements, product placement, and especially through advertiser-frie ndly programming. You might be surprised to hear that I find this to be the single most difficult topic to teach.I teach about many controversial media issues — ownership, violence, race and gender representation — and students contemplate these topics enthusiastically. But when it comes to consumerism, it’s a brick wall. Five minutes into any such discussion, I brace myself for the inevitable chorus of, â€Å"Oh, come on. It’s just a bunch of ads. † Corporations and advertising executives should rejoice, as this reticence of young people to think critically about the role of consumerism is money in their pockets.Advertisers have always coveted the 18-34 year old group—the legions of the so-called â€Å"Age of Acquisition† who have few established brand loyalties and lots of pocket change. Today’s Generation Y youth, born roughly between 1977 and 1997, are especially desirable because they are the children of Baby Boomers, and therefore represent a population explosion. Run the term â€Å"Generation Y† through a search engine, and you’ll find dozens of sites with information about how companies can take advantage of this marketing gold mine.Multinational corporations are deeply invested in the collective consumer choices of my students. When my students fail to show concern, these corporations become all the more powerful. So why is it that Generation Y is so uncritical of consumerism? I offer you this report from the trenches, from my college classroom in Fort Collins, Colorado, with my insight into how students view consumerism and why lack concern. I also discuss how I have addressed these attitudes. My hope is that media activists of all stripes can draw upon my experience.To demonstrate to my students how media content itself naturalizes consumerism, I used to show my students a clip from the movie Father of the Bride. In this clip, the father is horrified that his daughter wants him to spend about $130,000 on her wedding. He would prefer to have a simple wedding reception at the local Steak Pit, but the whole family rejects this idea. Even the adolescent son understands this is â€Å"unacceptable†; he comments, â€Å"I don’t think you want the word ‘pit’ on a wedding invitation. When he complains that his first car cost less than the wedding cake, the wedding coordinators bursts into laughter and says, â€Å"Welcome to the ‘90s. † After the daughter agrees to downsize the wedding, her father discovers her, asleep, reading a magazine article with tips on how to throw a budget wedding. Suddenly ashamed of himself, he agrees to fund the extravagant wedding. Dad learns his lesson, so to speak. Consumerism-fueled expectations may be outrageous, but they are necessary, and failure to adhere to these expectations is silly, miserly, and downright unloving.I quit showing this clip. It didn’t work. Oh, they got the point, tha t media content often promotes the agenda of advertisers. Unfortunately, the clip would inevitably lead to a version of the following discussion. A female student raises her hand shyly and says, â€Å"I understand why this is bad, but I want a big wedding. † A dozen ponytailed heads nod in harmony. â€Å"I mean, not as big as the one in the movie,† someone responds, â€Å"but you know, the flowers, the cake, the dress, the ring, all that stuff. I’ve daydreamed about my wedding since I was a little girl. † Me too,† the first student says, and frowns. â€Å"Does that make me a bad person? † Therein lies the trouble. The dreams, the memories, the rites of passage of Generation Y — all of these are intertwined intricately with consumerism. By placing wedding consumption under scrutiny, this student feels like she is being attacked personally, because her sentimental dream of a wedding is linked so closely to products. To this Generation Y student, the suggestion there is something wrong with consumerism is akin to the suggestion that there is something wrong with her.While all of us in the post-war Western world have grown up with the association between happiness and consumption, this association is all the more powerful with Generation Y. They have grown up with unlimited advertising and limited models of social consciousness or activism. Let’s look at the experiences of my students, a fairly typical U. S. American sample of Generation Y. Their happiest childhood memories are thoroughly linked to consumption. They were born in the 1980s under the Reagan administration, when two important trends in children’s television occurred.Reagan, ever the media deregulator, relaxed requirements for educational programming at the same time as he relaxed restrictions on adverting to children. This helped bring forth a new marketing strategy—which Tom Engelhardt has called the â€Å"Shortcake Strategy† — in which children’s television shows were created for the exclusive purpose of marketing large collections of children’s toys. The prized childhood memories of Generation Y are filled with these shows and toys: Strawberry Shortcake, He-Man, the Care Bears.Discussing the politics of this kind of marketing with students is even harder than discussing wedding excess. A student once wrote in my teacher evaluation, â€Å"Great class, but please don’t go hating on Strawberry Shortcake. † And then there was high school. This is the first generation that came of age in the era of rampant advertising in the schools, as well as Channel One, the news program piped into schools complete with advertisements. As a Generation Xer who graduated from high school in 1988, I recall very few ads in school. A relatively short time later, the hallways, lunchrooms, and sports facilities f cash-strapped schools frequently are sponsored by corporations. When I ask stud ents if this happened in their schools, they supply never-ending examples: stadiums dotted by Nike swooshes, lunchrooms filled with Pizza Hut and Chic Fil-A, a back-to-school party sponsored by Outback Steakhouse, even book covers sponsored by corporations. Then, of course, there’s the prom. Eschewed by some of my Gen X counterparts, the prom is back and bigger than ever, teaching future brides and grooms important lessons about gowns, limos, and flowers.Oh, and ask a Generation Y member which mall he or she grew up in, and you may well get an answer. In addition, many young people don’t take consumerism seriously because they feel that as individuals, it does not affect them. As media activists like Jean Kilbourne have argued, this illusion that advertising affects â€Å"everybody else but me† is nothing new, but I think this is even more the case with Generation Y. I find that young people have a hard time understanding media effects in any way other than thei r own experience.Students claim violence in the media doesn’t matter because they grew up playing Doom and they didn’t turn out violent. Or they claim that unrealistic images of women in the media do matter because they know a lot of girls with eating disorders. Young people don’t seem to have a language for understanding that the media doesn’t just affect us on an individual level — the media impact society politically, economically, and ideologically. A student might dismiss ads in his high school by saying they did not affect him.But nonetheless, the proliferation of ads in high schools have affected U. S. American culture as a whole — and that’s what young people do not seem to understand. Again, this individualistic way of looking at media effects isn’t entirely new, especially in an individualistic culture like the United States, where social scientists for years have been obsessed with trying to draw links between indivi dual behavior and the media. But Generation Y is a particularly individualistic cohort. The Me Generation is back.Just like in the 1970s, young people are frightened and disgusted with current events and have retreated away from politics, with their iPods, Playstations, and all the other isolating technology the consumer market can offer. But the 1970s were different because the 1960s didn’t die overnight. Me Generation or not, the language of activism was still spoken in the 1970s, and in fact many young people were involved in movements such as Women’s Liberation. To what activist language has Generation Y been exposed? It’s three years into their own Vietnam, and Generation Y isn’t exactly flooding the streets with protestors.Often students tell me that they find politics to be boring and irrelevant to their own experiences. In other words, it’s pretty hard to engage a group of young people in a discussion of the political implications of consum erism when they are not engaged in politics much at all. Consumerism is a personal choice, and most of my students cannot see beyond that. They shop at Wal-Mart because it’s cheap, and buy coffee at Starbucks because they like the mochas. Sweatshops? Globalization? It’s not so much that young people don’t care about these things (though many don’t).Rather, they haven’t been taught to think of consumerism as something that extends beyond their own enjoyable trip to the mall, or that their personal consumer decisions are political. To me, perhaps the most frustrating argument students make about consumerism is that it shouldn’t be a societal concern because â€Å"it’s the parents’ responsibility. † Parents are responsible for refusing to buy their kids $200 basketball shoes, for making sure they eat a healthy lunch in the cafeteria, and for instilling values that, according to my students, will somehow make their children immune to the effects of advertisements.This argument disturbs me in part because very few of my students are parents, and in part because they seem to show no compassion for kids who have parents unwilling or unable to be this active in their kids’ development. But most of all, this disturbs me because it places corporations off the hook for the effects they have on society. It doesn’t matter how or to whom a company markets their products; it only matters how parents raise their children. Once again, consumerism becomes the business of individual families, not society. So, what can media activists do?I think the first step is to find ways to appeal to members of this generation on the level of the individual. Young people might not care about plight of a Nike worker in Vietnam or a Wal-Mart worker in Houston. They may, however, be concerned with how credit card companies lure in college students, or how college bookstores jack up prices needlessly, or how car insuran ce companies charge young people exorbitant amounts. When I ask students to give examples of how corporations have screwed them over personally, the room fills up with raised hands.This is a good way to show young people that although consumerism has brought them happiness in their lives, it has also brought them problems. A second activist strategy of reaching Generation Y is to find examples of popular culture that promote consumption. Generation Y is all about popular culture. I’ve found that my students are amenable to discussions about how advertisers and media producers consciously create media content that â€Å"trains† young people to be consumers. Young people need to know that corporations see them as a market to manipulate, and often will respond to this argument, because who wants to be manipulated?The trick is to find popular culture texts they relate to that have a strong pro-consumerism bent. No, don’t show them Father of the Bride, but one thing I have shown with more success to my students is the â€Å"Pottery Barn† episode of Friends. In this episode, Rachel lies to her roommate Phoebe and tells her their new furniture is antique. Actually, it came from Pottery Barn, but Phoebe hates commercial furniture. Rachel is caught in her lie at when the two walk by Pottery Barn and see most of the furniture in the display window.But then Phoebe sees a lamp in the window and decides she must buy it. Phoebe learns her lesson. Commercial furniture is good. Another good source of pro-consumerism media is reality television, a favorite of students and chock filled with product placement. A third strategy is simply to get young people to talk to their parents about their experiences growing up and how people â€Å"back in the day† felt about corporate power and consumerism. These are the children of Baby Boomers, after all, so even if they haven’t been around activism, their parents have.One of my favorite assignmen ts is one in which I have students interview older family members about popular culture and their past experiences. Students love this assignment. So, there’s hope. When I wear my Nike hat to class, some of the students get it, and inevitably, a student stops by my office at the end of the semester and announces she has stopped going to Starbucks. But this is no easy task, and activists would be well advised to work on the issue of Generation Y and consumerism. The advertisers are certainly paying attention to Generation Y, and so should we.