Women's Rights. Kathy Peiss Book Cheap amusements Essay

Women's Rights. Kathy Peiss Book Cheap amusements - Essay Example Apart from being an important step towards the feminist movement, these indicators were also powerful and important with regards to the future of the Civil Rights movement within the United States and seeking to integrate all of society into what had previously been a club dominated by old, white men. One of the authors that best elaborates on this particular situation within American history is Kathy Peiss in her book, Cheap Amusements. As a function of this understanding of womanhood that Kathy Peiss puts forward in her book, this brief analysis will seek to answer the following questions: what changes around work and leisure occurred during the progressive Era, how did women’s embrace of style fashion romanced and mixed sex fun create new opportunities for independence for these women, and how did working class women’s embrace of those very same things also contribute to their being oppressed or discriminate against. Accordingly, by examining each of these determinan ts, it is the hope of this author that the analysis will be able to point to the greatest strengths and aspects of definitions that Peiss puts forward. Furthermore it is the hope of this author that through analysis of Peiss’ writing, the individual can gain a more clear and complete understanding of the means by which societal change and cultural change integrates itself within the modern era. One of the greatest changes that place during the Progressive Era was the integration of women into the workforce. Although many individuals might be led to believe that this did not take place until the Second World War, the fact of the matter is that the First World War offered a wealth of opportunities within the labor force provided by the vacancies left by men in the armed services. As a result of this change within the Progressive Era, the women within society were able to enjoy a great degree of liberalization with regards to both professional opportunity as well as cultural int egration that had previously not been realized. With regards to the realities that existed for women within society prior to this point, Peiss notes the following: â€Å"the working class woman discussed in the following pages typically were immigrants or daughters of immigrants, lived in†¦tenement districts, and labored for wages while unmarried† (Peiss 9). As a result of this rigid stratification that existed, women were utterly unable to penetrate the cultural constraints that previously defined their existence. As a result of the changes that were realized, not only were labor opportunities made available but also the style of fashion and clothing came to represent a more manly and boyish dynamic that had previously been unheard of. Accordingly, the most popular woman’s hairstyles became bobs whereas with regards to the style of clothing, flapper fashion came into existence; representing a unique and noticeable divergent from the Victorian era where full lengt h dresses were the norm. Whereas many people would seek to disregard fashion as indicative of any greater level of independence or feminism within the population, the fact of the matter is that the changes that were enjoyed an experienced during the Progressive Era had a noticeable impact on the level of freedom, culture, and social mobility that the women of that time were able to experience within society. Moreover, the changing norms of the time, alongside the differential that was experienced with regards to the degree that women and men could spend time together and mixed company without the horse societal judgments that it previously existed, allowed for a great liberalize ancient with

Enron Corporation Essay Example for Free

Enron Corporation Essay I  Ã‚   The Beginning When Enron Corporation declared a Chapter 11 bankruptcy in December 2001, it left the public especially its investors and stockholders reeling from such financial scandal and collapse.   Enron had allegedly overstated its profits by $586 million since 1997 in order to protect the firm’s balance sheet and practiced insider trading as well fraud and conspiracy. Enron had been the seventh largest company in the United States and had been one of the largest financial contributors to the Presidential elections, especially the Bush family. To the outside world, Enron portrayed a picture of success.   However, upon closure inspection on the inside, Enron was on the brink of collapse. When Enron’s stock price hit its highest at $90, the executives who allegedly knew of the offshore accounts of Enron started selling their respective shares and to encouraged the public to continue buying the said stocks.   However, the executives knew that the stock prices would not increase anymore but still reassured the public and its investors that the prices of stock would reach a high $130-140 per share. By August 2001, Enron’s stock prices had dropped from $90 to a measly $42. It became evident that the company had fraudulently induced and fooled the public, investors and stockholders to buying the company’s stocks and shares. Amidst all these, Enron founder and former chairman Kenneth Lay continued to reassure the public to remain calm, and asked the investors to buy the company’s shares as the company will regain its profits in the succeeding months. Nonetheless, in October of 2001, the stocks plunged to $15 but the investors saw this as an opportunity to buy Enron stocks at such low prices. But the truth about the company’s financial standing became public and the stock price finally hit rock bottom at $1 per share. II   Basis of the Charges Stockholders and investors gathered and instituted a class-action suit against Enron and its officers in order to recover the millions of investment they made on Enron as result of the false representation and fraud by the company. Enron top executives specifically its Chief Executive Officers, Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skilling were charged and convicted with the collapse of the energy giant. Kenneth Lay faced seven counts of fraud and conspiracy while Skilling faced 31 counts of fraud, conspiracy, insider trading and lying to auditors about Enron’s financial position. In 1987, Enron auditors found out a billion-dollar oil trading scandal in its New York offices.   Traders had been engaged in this kind of practice – falsifying transactions in order to boost their volume and profit thereby fattening their bonuses as well. Although CEO Kenneth Lay knew of this, he did not fire the traders nor contacted the authorities in order to cover up their problems. But this incident did not deter the traders and six months later, competitors began to grow suspicious because if word got out, Enron’s trading partners could have demanded that the company cover its positions with cash, which the company did not have (Fowler).   Thus, the traders were fired and charged but not until they were able to transfer million of dollars into their personal accounts.   Enron for its part was able to get away by bluffing the market and reported $85 million in loss but sources claim that the loss totalled to at least $135 million. CEO Jeffrey Skilling, who joined Enron in 1990, did not care much about the expenses incurred by the company as long as the margins looked good.   He was also more concerned with the revenues increases and widening profit margins instead of the cash flows which was practiced by his predecessor. So enamoured were the top executives in increasing business profit that when a deal failed or fell apart, more effort was placed into hiding the consequences instead of rectifying and owning up to the problem.   After taking over as chief operating officer, he renewed the almost non-existent post of chief financial officer and delegated many of the management responsibilities. In theory, Enron had mechanisms that would assess risk and accurately report financial numbers. These mechanisms required that deals should be strictly analyzed which included review by the legal department of the originating unit, the corporate legal department, chief risk officer and chief accounting officer.   However, due to the insidious practice of the company, auditors and accountants were bullied to over ride the system and departments were able to determine the total value of their proposals by manipulating the long-term price of whatever product was sold or bought.   The company also used a â€Å"mark-to-market† accounting system pushed by Skilling which allows a company to report as current revenue the total value of a deal over its projected lifetime (Fowler). This system made earning appear good which in turn pumped up the stock prices and increased the value of stocks which executives received as bonuses. III Trial As the stunned investors witnessed Enron’s stock prices plunged, the government began a massive crackdown on the executives who were responsible for the collapse of the company, and would end up in the conclusion of convincing and proving to the jury that Lay and Skilling, the two top executives of the company, where guilty of massive fraud and were thus guilty. Government prosecutors were at first overwhelmed with the girth of the corporate fraud.   Nevertheless, they began to take measures to respond to these kinds of crimes and a barrage of criminal and civil investigations and prosecutions began to surface.   Thus, in 2002, the Presidential Corporate Fraud Task Force filed criminal charges against more than 900 defendants, of which 60 are chief executive or president level and successfully prosecuted or convicted 500 of them. The case against Lay and Skilling were heard by US District Judge Sim Lake and lasted nearly four months while the jury deliberated for six days.   The defense counsel initially attempted to persuade the judge to move the trial away from Houston, Enron’s hometown as they were afraid that the jury might be influenced by anger due to the resulting loss of jobs and money and would see them as a way of revenge. Kenneth Lay faced seven counts of fraud and conspiracy fraud and conspiracy while Skilling on the other hand, faced 31 counts of fraud, conspiracy, insider trading and lying to auditors about Enron’s financial position.   Although both asserted their innocence of the charges against them, they were convicted for a total of 29 criminal counts as well as conspiracy to hide the failing health of the company by selling boosterich optimism to Wall Street and the public (MSNBC). Lay, who was convicted to 6 counts of conspiracy, securities and wire fraud in the corporate trial and 4 counts on separate personal banking trial, surrendered his passport and posted a $5 million bond secured by the family.   His sentence also carried a maximum penalty of 45 years in prison for the corporate trial while 120 years in personal trial respectively.   Ã‚  Skilling on the other hand, was convicted by 19 counts out of the 28 charged as well as one count of insider trading while being acquitted with the remaining charges. The charges against   these Enron top executives prospered as other executives turned the table and plead guilty in their respective charges in order to receive lower sentences than that prescribed.   Among the former employees who testified against Lay and Skilling was Ben Glisan who is now serving a 5-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to a charge of conspiracy.   According to Glisan, both Lay and Skilling knew that the company was in deep financial trouble but tried to hide it instead. Ultimately, the jury rejected Skilling’s defense that no fraud happened at Enron save for those committed by a number of executives skimming millions in secret side deals, while bad publicity and poor market confidence resulted in the collapse of the energy giant. III. Effects of the Enron Collapse As the jurors found that these once-wealthy and powerful executives repeatedly lied to cover up the real position of the company by covering up accounting and auditing failures which eventually led to its collapse in 2001, the left a devastating effect in the business world as well as the lives of the investors and shareholders.   The demise of Enron wiped out more than $60 billion in market value, almost $2.1 billion in retirement savings and costs more than 5,600 to lose their jobs. The anger of the public over the recent corporate scandals led to the passing of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which was designed to make company executives more accountable. Although public distrust for white-collar trial could not actually reverse the damage done to investor confidence, the Lay and Skilling trial however has become a start of a healing process for public-investor relations to be righted again. IV Timothy Belden Apart from the other key witnesses who were former Enron employees and who testified against the top two Enron officials, Timothy Belden particularly made the charges against Lay and Skilling stick, ending in their conviction.   Belden who was the first person to be charged in the manipulation of Western Energy markets, initially engaged in lengthy dance with federal officials over his plea and eventual cooperation in testifying against Lay and Skilling.   He pleaded guilty in 2002 to conspiracy and admitted that he gave false information to California’s electrical grid operators.   Belden is also said to be the â€Å"mastermind behind the strategies described† in memos that spelled out how Enron manipulated the California market (Schreiber). Beginning in the mid-nineties, California was among the first states to deregulate electricity.   The deregulation occurred just as when companies were leaving the state in numbers thereby creating a recession. The deregulation was supposed to reduce the ten percent of the tax payers’ bill while breaking the old methods of greedy companies.   As California deregulated the wholesale side of its energy markets, it also kept price caps in the retail side. It coincided with the State’s decision to bar utilities from signing long-term cheap fixed prices which forced them to into an unpredictable market.   Thus, the utilities were made to pay exorbitant prices but were not able to pass on to their consumers the prices they incurred.   Enron promised to deliver power more efficiently and build new plants that can run on cheaper fuels. Commencing in 1998 until 2001, Belden as well as other executives from Enron devised a fraudulent scheme in order to obtain increased revenue for Enron from wholesale electricity consumers and other market participants in the State of California. The schemes perpetrated by Belden and the other Enron executives required them to submit false information to the companies supplied by Enron and misrepresented the nature of electricity which the company was supposed to supply. Despite being paid to relieve congestion, the company however, did not do so and instead imported as well as exported electricity in order to receive higher prices from the companies they supply. Of particular interest in the course of the trial is a transcript of conversation between Belden and one of the operators of the power plant wherein the two discussed shutting down one of Reliant’s power plants in California to create a shortage in order for the prices to skyrocket. As the scheme worked, causing the power prices to arrive at high and unjust levels in California, it thereby became illegal under the Federal Energy Policy Act. In his testimony, he called California’s post-deregulation power market dysfunctional and said his company bought cheap electricity in the Northwest to sell in California at a profit (Baker). This practice created the appearance among consumers that there was shortage of electricity, thereby having the need to jack up the prices. Enron was able to pocket off almost $1 billion in a period of nine months in 2000 and 2001. Belden admitted however, that he only met with Lay and Skilling once during a colleague’s party.   But nevertheless, Belden’s testimony proved to be a very crucial one as it confirmed and proved that Lay and Skilling knew of what was happening in California but turned to hide it instead. As company vice-president and head of Enron’s West Coast trading operation, Belden supervised a staff of 120 that went from $50 million in earnings in 1999 to $800 million in 2001, while Californias power markets disintegrated into panic and sky-high prices. When one of Enron’s lawyers started investigating these â€Å"irregularities† as a response to the investigation conducted by the California Public Utility Commission. The lawyers found out of Enron’s tactic of using advantage of the energy crisis and revealed through a memo that Enron created false congestion lines, transferred energy in and out of state to avoid price caps and charged for services the company never actually provided (Swartz).   And yet, inspite of the information the lawyer gave to the top executives, and traders have been told to return the money made on improper trading, the executives at Enron still decided against it despite knowing that the practice was illegal.   For Belden and the other traders, sending the money back would mean that the other companies will know what Enron was doing.   Nevertheless, Belden and Enron continued on with the practice.   Skilling, on the other hand, fully knew well of the said practice by the company in 2001 as he was already tipped by one of the executives who learned of the previous investigation. During examination, Belden admitted to US District Judge Martin Jenkins that he did it because he was trying to maximize profit for Enron. Belden claimed that he was only following Enron’s instructions as he handled his trades (CBS News).   According to Belden’s counsel, Enron knew fully well of Belden’s action but was never disciplined nor sanctioned at all. In fact, Belden may have reaped bonus for such practice as revenues from his trading unit climbed from $50 million in 1999 to $500 million in 2000 to $800 million in 2001.     When he was charged with conspiracy, Belden after a long time of dealing and negotiating with the federal government, decided to turn against Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skilling, claiming that the two top executives knew of the practice he and other traders did as indicated by the internal company memos which described how Enron took power out of California at a time of rolling blackouts and shortages and how it sold out of state to elude price caps (CBS News).

Use Of Realism By Short Story Writers English Literature Essay

Use Of Realism By Short Story Writers English Literature Essay J.P Stern defined realism as being: no more, and no less, than an undertaking to look all the relevant facts in the face.  [1]  Literary realism is a trend that began in nineteenth century French literature. Realist authors such as Flaubert, Maupassant and Emile Zola depicted contemporary life and society, including everyday common duties in their stories. These writers sought to represent life without any type of exaggeration and attempted to write honestly about topics and themes. They preferred this style of writing to the romanticised literature that was more popular in the beginning of the nineteenth century. Romanticism was the opposite of realism and included more imaginative stories. However, their aim was to show the reality of their society and the life and sufferings of the working class.  [2]  Maupassant and Flaubert were key influential authors in this realist movement, and I will explore how both authors implemented the realist genre in their work and how their work differed from each other. One of Maupassants most popular realist stories was Boule de Suif, which was based on a real Rouen prostitute named Adrienne Legay during the Franco-Prussian war. The tale represents the sufferings of the working class and explores the morality and ethics of a divided society. Michael Lerner states how Maupassant manages to convert what is a simple episode from the realities of 1870 into something highly critical and symbolic. It is the more humble, low life realism desired by the Naturalists.  [3]  It is true to say that this tale gives a deep and powerful meaning to the reader in the subtlest ways through the use of symbolism and description, which I will be discussing in further detail later on. There are no major literary devices used by Maupassant. Instead he conveys the directness of the situation and gives a detailed description of the characters appearance and personality A good-natured fellow, though, inoffensive and obliging, he had devoted himself with incomparable enthusiasm to organising the defence of the town.  [4]  This information gives the reader a vision of the characters. Peter Brooks writes about the use of senses when reading a realist story: realist literature is attached to the visual, to looking at things, registering their presence in the world through sight.  [5]  Maupassant especially uses the sense of sight to involve the reader in the story and play on their relationship with the characters. The reader is able to picture the character more successfully and decide whether they like the character or not. Maupassant creates a hierarchy within the coach consisting of a democrat, a prostitute, two nuns, and the rest are of a socially high status. These respectable travellers look down upon the rest of the entourage. However, the differences between these classes are forgotten when they all accept to eat food from Boule de Suif. At this point they are all on an equal footing: mouths opened and shut without pause, swallowing, chewing and gulping ravenously.  [6]  The author shows the generosity of Boule de Suif as she selflessly gives up her food for the rest of the group. We begin to forget our preconceptions of the prostitute and realise that she does have certain moral guidelines. Her personality is further portrayed as a giving human when she makes the biggest decision in the story. All of the characters in the story plan to manipulate Boule de Suif into committing an immoral act of sleeping with the enemy: Boule de Suifà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ felt angry with all her neighbours, ashamed o f having given way to their pleas, and defiled by the kisses of the Prussian into whose arms they had hypocritically thrown her.  [7]  The respectable characters do not take the high moral ground and support her decision not to sleep with the Prussian, it is their selfishness and immorality that take over their reasoning and force her to go against her will. Not only do they want her to give up her food, they also want her to give up her body. Michael Lerner states that For Maupassant the simple Norman peasant who throws a stone or takes a shot at the enemy is far worthier of our admiration than any of these more sophisticated types, who would prefer to sacrifice their country just as they do Boule de Suif rather than abandon or harm their commercial interests and own well-being  [8]   This statement depicts Maupassants own personal view of his bourgeois characters and emphasises the horridness of the scandal they have committed. We are shown a realist view of bourgeois human nature as selfish, arrogant and corrupt. Although Boule de Suif is a prostitute of her own accord, she is faced with a difficult decision. At first she would give herself for the pleasure of other people, whereas now she is being forced to do so; and with the enemy. Maupassant conveys the consequences of her decision in a way that makes the reader sympathise with the prostitute rather than scold her. His choice of words when trying to portray Boule de Suifs feelings are an accurate depiction of a real, victimised emotion: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦she found herself choking with rage and indignationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.she opened her mouth to tell them what she thought of themà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦but her exasperation was so violent that she could not utter a word.  [9]  Her utilitarian sacrifice has saved her companions from the Prussians yet her personal relationship with the hypocrites has diminished. Michael Lerner states that: Maupassant relates the fate of both France and the naive but patriotic prostitute to the selfish attitude of the bourgeois.  [10]  Lerner makes a clever statement and suggests that Maupassant was making a strong social point through his story. The realism depicted in this scene is that of manipulation and emotion. We are given an example of a high class act and a low class act and how they both differ morally and ethically. This is thought to depict the nature of both classes at the time. Maupassant s use of imagery in the carriage after the prostitutes sacrifice is alarming: she felt overwhelmed by the contempt of these respectable boors who had first sacrificed her, and then cast her aside like an unclean object for which they had no further use.  [11]  We are given an insight into her emotions and we also feel the tension within the confined space of the moving vehicle. As the prostitutes emotions mirror as our own, that of disgust and anger, Maupassant has successfully portrayed his representation of humanity with the use of realist language. Richard Fusco states that Maupassant: wanted to startle readers into recognising the pretensions of society and those within themselves.  [12]  As the rest of the characters pretend to Boule de Suif that her actions will also be in her own interest, Richard Fusco is correct in making this statement, however, the author also startles us into realising that our actions can be more consequential than heroic. Boule de Sui fs position is not created on her own accord but through the manipulation of her socially respectable superiors. Michael Lerner comments on Maupassants realism as: fairly shallow; he went through the notions of it without fully committing himself.  [13]  This comment is very disagreeable as we can see Maupassant has used very intricate realistic techniques to convey the message of the story: everybody stayed in the kitchen, engaging in endless discussions and putting forward the unlikeliest theories.  [14]  The language gives an indication of many different emotions and shows pathos, strong character representation and clarity in his writing, of life at the time. Maupassant manages to successfully portray a realistic character in his story. Maupassant had studied under Flaubert for a number of years and it was through him that he met other literary geniuses such as Emile Zola and Ivan Turgenev. All of these influences contributed to Maupassants literary ideas and it is for this reason that his style mirrors Flauberts in many ways. I will be analysing Flauberts realist story A Simple Heart, which is set in the time and country of the author of nineteenth century France. Like Maupassant, the central figure is based on a real person whom Flaubert knew. One of the similarities that both these authors hold, according to Agnes Rutherford Riddell, was symbolism. Maupassant used Boule de Suif as a symbol for the proletariat whilst Flaubert used the name Fà ©licità © in A Simple Heart as a suggestion for both the peasant womans fatalistic acquiescence in circumstances and, by contrast, the real misery of her lot.  [15]  Such symbolism helps to portray a deeper message of the reality of the story. Flaubert also used vivid, descriptive language within his stories: her dresses hung in a row under a shelf containing three dolls, some hoops, a set of dolls furniture, and the wash-basin she had used.  [16]  Like Maupassant, Flaubert creates a realistic sense of the reader being involved in the novel. However the difference between the two; is Flauberts use of more intricate detailing of surroundings and vision. Riddell argues that: Maupassant appears to avoid this kind of mistake, perhaps through noticing its effect in his masters work. On the whole, however, description through the eyes of a personage is consistent in both writersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.  [17]  Both writers use description as a necessity in their work in order to give a more realistic account of their surroundings. Timothy Unwin is accurate in his belief that: It is a well-accepted fact that, in the nineteenth century, realist novelists were less interested in telling stories than they were in describing them.   [18]   In A Simple Heart, Flaubert uses the technique of an omniscient narrator to his advantage. The reader is able to view the protagonist externally and internally. Externally through the attitudes of other characters towards Fà ©licità ©: Madam Aubain told her to stop kissing them all the time and internally through Fà ©licità ©s thoughts, told to us by the narrator: which hurt her deeply.  [19]  This allows the reader to view things as she does. H. Meili Steele states that: the narrator has the ostensible traits of omniscience, such as the ability to move freely through space and time and to represent characters thoughts.  [20]  We can see that this is not the only advantage of an omniscient narrator. In terms of realist literature, the omniscient narrator acts as a device to give the reader more information on the characters and the setting. Thus resulting in a more pragmatic approach to the text. In A Simple Heart, the main character, Fà ©licità ©, is used as an instrument of symbolism for the uneducated and the poor. She is repeatedly exploited by those around her, even by the people she loves and she is always hunted by sadness and sorrow. When she is stranded by her lover à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦she hastened to her lover. In his place she found his friends. From him she learned that was never to see Thà ©odore again, we can see how concise and straight to the point the sentences are.  [21]  This abrupt structure makes the reader sense the shock and upset of the protagonist. These are the real feelings of the protagonist shown to us through concise sentence structure and normal, everyday language: I havent had any for six months!.  [22]  This is the main focus of Flauberts realist writing. Timothy Unwin states that: Flaubert the novelist steered clear of depicting contemporary literary life in detail.  [23]  This is correct in terms of dialogue between characters howe ver, we have established that Flaubert was very intricate in the detailing of setting that the characters were placed in. Flaubert remarks on the role of religion in the story, especially that of the Roman Catholic church in nineteenth century France. Fà ©licità © is devoted to the church and visits regularly yet her devotion is not based on its beliefs: As for dogma, she did not understand, did not even attempt to understand a word of it.  [24]  Flaubert seems to be mocking the church in this sentence, implying that religion is a sanctity for the weak and poor who acquire some type of higher entity to depend on for support. Mary Orr states that: Flaubert challenges the spiritual redundancy and irrelevance of Catholic theologyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦, this shows how we are given an indication of Flauberts own personal views towards the Catholic church through his writing.  [25]  He shows not only the common realist thought of the time, but his own thought. Raymond Giraud comments that we have more of an insight as to Flauberts character through his stories Flaubert reveals himself, positively or negati vely, directly or indirectly, in the characters he creates.  [26]  Flauberts presence in his literature is dominant and his thoughts represent the thoughts of many of the realist writers and thinkers. We have already recognised that Maupassants descriptions involve the readers senses, yet Flauberts descriptions also involve the senses, but of the characters rather than the readers. Timothy Unwin points out that: he watches and gathers information about the characters and the narrator less from what is said about them than from catching them looking.In Un Couer Simple the tall grass at the bottom of the stream which, we are told, is like the hair of dead bodies, explains what Fà ©licità © sees and thinks. Through her eyes we understand that she mistakenly assumes Victor died drowning (he died on a land of disease).  [27]   We can conclude from this quote that the author is using description from the characters point of view to give us more information about the characters state of mind. The fact that Fà ©licità © has made a mistake in her knowledge of Victors death shows us her naivety and overall, the simple-mindedness of the uneducated and poor class that Fà ©licità © represents. Maupassant and Flauberts use of realism tends to be quite similar. Yet, there are many points where one stands out more than the other. We can conclude that Maupassant was strong in his realist representation of bourgeois behaviour, his use of symbolism and giving an informative description of the setting in his story. Whilst Flaubert is more descriptive in not only the setting of the story, but of the characters views and thoughts. Peter Brooks emphasises that: Everything, as Flaubert understands it, depends on the detail, thus, giving the reader more information on the text and allowing them to relate to the story more.  [28]  Both however, do not fall into the trap of over dramatising their realist descriptions and keep it as authentic as possible. Peter Brooks also notes how: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦we might ask ourselves: Why do we take pleasure in imitations and reproductions of the things of our world?  [29]  It seems very commonsensical to write about what we see, yet we take the easy approach of literature and write about fictional beings and wonders. Writing is a type of escapism, which realism does not allow, but we can see from the works of these two geniuses that realist literature is just as good and more educational than any other type of imaginary literature. The verisimilitude is a device of entertainment and Timothy Unwin argues that: Everything and everyone, in Flauberts view, had unique qualities that it was the artists duty to seek out.  [30]  Realism puts more of an emphasis onto the small details of everyday living. Flaubert and Maupassant both understand this and equip this idea in their work. The use of le mot juste in realist literature is a handy tool to depict life and surroundings most accurately. Timothy Unwin points out that This formula was valid for Flaubert, but the principle of mot juste does not imply that there is just one way of telling all stories. Rather, it suggests that each story has a privileged way of being told, through which it appears at its most persuasive.  [31]   Unwins comment here raises an interesting point. As each story has a privileged way of being told, this means that it is difficult to assume that what we read is all a precise account of reality at the time. The writer implements their own views and judgements into their work, ultimately, making their stories biased. What we must bear in mind when reading realist literature, is that the story is all someones interpretation of reality and this is the main difference between the authors. The text is a depiction of the authors reality. Our interpretation of reality is likely to be more different.

Gangs of New York, A Film Analysis :: Film

Bill the Butcher was the ideal "bad guy" for a movie. He was a stubborn individual who would not change his ways of thinking for anyone. If you came off a boat and tried to settle in the United States you were automatically hated by Mr. Cutting. Bill was a tall man, very skinny, and he had long hair with a matching mustache. Bill and his party believed that the only rightful people to have jobs, families, and make money were people who were born in the U.S., not immigrants. Women and children are not even spared by Bill and his rugged party. They hatred for the immigrants was so strong that they would shout profanities at them or hurl rocks at them when they unloaded from the massive ships. At times they would beat an immigrant close to death just because they looked at them the wrong way. Cutting's father installed these beliefs into him, Bill's father was killed in a gang war with the immigrants and he would never live that down. The way the immigrants were treated by some of the townspeople made some of the immigrants become very poor. Shop keepers and other store owners would not hire immigrants mainly because they did not like them and secondly that they did not want to upset Bill and his gang. Immigrants would soon leave New York and look for an easier life but most remained behind and lived in the side streets to fend for food with the rats. This is where thievery came in. Since most of the immigrants were poor they had to learn to steal to survive. "Pick-Pocketing" became the most famous means to steal in the streets of New York. The immigrants who would come off of the boats had no idea what was in store for them as they unloaded their boat. The immigrants were friendly people for the most part, they were not looking for a fight in America just a new start to their life.

the civil War :: essays research papers

The civil war a war between the Northern states of our countryand the Southern states, started in April of 1861 and lasted until April of 1865, however the problems that started the war started amny years before that. The Northern part of the U.S became industrialized. That means built large factories and manufactured things like iron products and textiles or fabric. Northern states needed people to work in their factories and most of them came as immigrants from Europe. Nothern States were covered with forests, had very cold winters and rocky soil that was hard to farm so most farms there were small. In the North Many ppl lived in cities. The Southern states became agrarian. That means, that , beacuse the fertile soil in South and warm, mild climate there, people were able to grow grops on farms. Some farms people worked to do all teh jobs that took care of needs of people on the plantation. Most platations in teh South grew rice, indigo, sugarcae, tobacco, and cotton. There was conflict between the north and south because of slave labor. Both the north and the south wated the US government to spend money to imporve things like roads and build railroads in their states. Because the House of Rep. and the senate make the loaws of our country thast decide how maney from the government would be spent, it became very important whether the new states entering the union were slave states. Thats when he Missouri compromis came into effect. Southerners and notherners became more and mroe angry about slavery and how gov. maoney was being spent, ppl starting fighting int he states over these issues. Wehn Missouri wanted to join the union as a slave state, for example, the northern states insisted that a free state had to join at the same time. The state was maine and when the 2 states joined it was called the Missouri Compromise the Civil War Starts when a violent event took place t harper's Ferry, Virginia when a man named John Brown and his firneds took over a building full of guns that belonged to the US army. Jhohn Brown's plan was to give the rifles to slaes so they could start a revolution and win their freedom. Instead, the army surrounded the building where John Brown, 2 of his sons and 19 friends were and shot almost all of them.

Fyodor Dostoevsky, A Tortured Genius Essay -- Biography biographies bi

Dostoevsky biography as related to his works It is often remarkable to see the relation between events in an author?s life and that of his works. Many great authors have transcribed the pivotal moments of their existence onto paper for readers to enjoy, sympathize, or rage. Certainly, Fyodor (or Fedor) Dostoevsky, being no different than that of the very best of his profession, lived a life with experiences that influenced his writings a great deal. His masterpieces stand as ultimate manifestations of his tumultuous affair with pain, sorrow, anger, misery, for, each tells of dark worlds and conflicts with social status, money, or oneself. Overall, Dostoevsky?s past of living in constant torment with himself and his ideals transfers itself onto each page of his novel Crime and Punishment, indeed, difficult lessons he learned from his own mistakes jump out from the page at readers, as if he wants us also to learn something. Born in Moscow 1821 during the rule of tyrannical Russian tsars and slavery with the nicer terminology of serfdom, the young Dostoevsky witnessed first-hand the violent nature of an alcoholic. As son of a vicious army surgeon whose brutality after drinking led the family serfs to choke him to death one day by pouring whisky down his throat (Leatherbarrow 13), his aversion to and disgust of alcohol is easily understood. In an unexpected turn of events, Nicolas I liberated all serfs during Dostoevsky?s teenage years and as a result left him and his family on the edge of destitution. In the wake of emancipation, however, he matured into a fierce advocate for serf rights and even called for government subsidies to aid them in starting afresh (15). His campaign for better conditions for peasants and fi... ...ld when he died in 1881 (Leatherbarrow 30), Dostoevsky left the world a legacy of amazing works that probe into the depths of the human soul: The Double, The House of the Dead, Notes from the Underground, Crime and Punishment, The Idiot, The Possessed, The Brothers Karamazov, etc (31). Works Cited "Dostoevsky's Life and Career, 1859-1863." LESSON 8 Dostoevsky, Notes From Underground. Russian 5421, University of Minnesota. 28 Dec. 2007, . Knapp, Liza. Giants of Russian Literature: Turgenev, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, and Chekhov. Prince Frederick, MD: Modern Scholar, 2007. Leatherbarrow, William J. Fedor Dostoevsky. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1981. Leone, Bruno, Brenda Stalcup, Bonnie Szumski, and Tamara Johnson, eds. Fyodor Dostoevsky: a Literary Companion. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1998. 54-83.

A Case of Buddhism

Buddhism continues to exert a fundamental influence on the cultures of the world and also play a leading role in the contemporary affairs of the world. This paper draws on the understanding that the humanistic aspect of world encompasses problems that are said to be evil from the religious perspective and the fundamental objective of the religion amid these human problems is to provide solutions in relation to the absolute. As such, a manifold of worldly problems today; economic justice, insecurity and peace, human rights and protection of the environment call for the universal corporation of the human as well as religion in solving them.Towards obtaining solutions for these human problems, Buddhism as a religion build on their belief system to establish helpful ideas that touch on and are related to the absolute. Essentially, the relevant sphere of action focus on the pedestal of humans understanding that the world poses characteristics of humanity and in a collective sense, individ ual Buddhists as human beings face these problems within the nature as the physical environment.With this principle in focus, Buddhism effort to solve the problems for human by drawing from the divine provision and agency between the supernatural realms, the human beings as well as the natural environment that humans operate in. Introduction The central idea behind the problems in the world encompass the larger perspective of humanism and towards solving the resultant problems, Buddhism focuses on the stipulated divine agencies.Considered to be on of the world major religion, Buddhism adheres to religious tenets that typify it as a religion in addressing concerns that rise in the physical world. In so doing, Buddhism understands that a universal humanitarianism is an essential component towards solving global problems. As such, compassion is regarded among the pillars of world peace. Accordingly, Buddhism draws on its several doctrines and belief system to embrace the concept of abs olute set of values which in the very least serve as guiding absolute ethical principles.In addition, the position of the life after death, which is a post mortem kind of existence guides how Buddhism as a religion helps its members to understand the numerous human problem and strike a balance in approaching the very problems in a bid to solve them As a result, the question of evil is highly addressed in the attempt to understand the many human problems where the future of Buddhist in life after here contends the approach used in solving the human problems. Historical Overview of Buddhism The history of Buddhism spans the 5th century BCE to the present 21st century.Obviously, the birth of Gautama Siddhartha, famously referred to as Buddha, in Ancient India marked the beginning of Buddhism because, he grew up to evolve Buddhism into a religion that spread through central, Southern and East Asia. Warren (2007) asserts that the history of Buddhism is typified by the development of seve ral schism and religious movements such as Mahayana, Thervada and Vajravana traditions. Buddha founded Buddhism after asceticism and meditation which sparked him to establish a path of moderation that sought to move away from the extreme modes of life of self mortification and self indulgence.Scholars argue that after Buddha attained divine enlightenment when he was seated under the papal tree, he managed to leverage the ruler of the Magadha who was an emperor and made him accept Buddhism as his personal faith. This incidence allowed for the establishment of the numerous Buddhist Viharas that later spread through the entire Asia into well established Buddhism (Herman, 2003). Before his death, Buddha instructed his followers to embrace the doctrine and teachings of Dharma in order to avoid the problem of this world and attain supremacy in life after death.These instructions from Gautama laid the foundation for the absolute ethical and divine principle, that prescribes the present rul es of discipline and community living that characterizes Buddhism (Warren, 2007). On these tenets, Buddhism developed into a world’s religion that took great pains in addressing the problems of humans through transmitting the teachings of Buddha in the most accurate form. Koslowski (2001) agrees that the Buddhist follow the ideas and practices of Buddha; a concept that has developed from early Buddhism to the present Buddhism.Bearing in mind that the first followers of Buddha were as homeless as their teacher, they wandered all over receiving material gifts of food from lay people and ended up settling in the outskirts of cities and town to mainly teach the laity about the meditative way of life that Buddha taught. Accordingly, it becomes evident that the Buddhist community has for so many years regarded the teachings of Gautama as the enlightened teachings that should be used to seek divine intervention.Alexander (2008) outlines that the basic teachings of Buddha touched on the animate and inanimate phenomena that poses three features of being unsatisfactory, impermanent and lacking an abiding value. In light of this, these characteristics have been applied to the human sphere to evoke the picture of sufferings (dukkha), ageing and death (jar-maraa) as well as the absence of the soul (anatt) to illuminate the rationale for human problems and the hitherto solution that attribute to the absolute (Diederik, 1999).Problems for Humans in the World and the Solutions of Regarding the Absolute Realm To understand the problem of human within the context of Buddhism leads us to understanding the relation that exist between Buddhism and Humanism. According to Keown (2000), it is definite that humanism opposes the religious tenets of Buddhism and the important point in focus arises in light of understanding the way religion interprets problems that humans face in the world.Incorporated in the self infused belief systems of dharma, Buddhism holds on the concept of law and norm as opposed to the western religion that upholds the concept of God. In this contradictory framework, the contemporary society faces similar problems and Buddhism stick to the natural laws of compassion to address these universal problems. Minnich (2008) postulates that problems originating for the social, political, economic, cultural and technological paradigms, can succinctly be solved through a concise framework of values and beliefs which are considered absolute.With regard to this, these values invoke the supernatural forces in a more concise ways because they involve ethical rule that do not attract rational inquiry or rather are they completely relativistic. To illustrate, members of the Buddhism community employ moral approaches towards solving their problems in a criterion that is considered as more satisfying because, viewed from a cultural and ethical perspective, the Buddhist understand the role of applied ethics as an obligation that can help them to execut e the good for both the individual and the larger society(Warren, 2007).To reinforce this argument, the solutions to the human problems in the absolute sense the question of hereafter is well catered for and Buddhists are obligated to do good for the society and individuals so that they may be reborn in order to attain a state of holiness or purity. These supernatural elements make Buddhism to ignore the concept of God but still satisfy the condition of absolute thus addressing the contemporary problems of humans (Freeman, 2007). It is plausible to argue that the major problem of humans within the perspective of Buddhism is the nature of being evil which comes through the process of constant becoming.Pandey (2008) postulates that evil forms a perpetuation of illusions by aspects of humanity and doing what is unethical. As such, many humans face a manifold of problems due to their ignorance in perceiving that the devoid of self, is impermanent and thus leading to constant sufferings. Whether this is manifested through lack of peace, constant warfare, negative effects of technology on value systems and environmental challenge, it is imperative to note that the problems narrows down to what is inarguably referred to as ignorance in perceiving life through the three characteristics of importance, suffering and self indulgence.Essentially, the summation of these factor focus on suffering to be problem of human in the world and as Buddha proclaimed, life that exist in evil yields constant sufferings (Fasching, 2008). According to Warren (2007), the noble truth of suffering encompass the holistic life such that aspects of birth, sickness, aging death, sorrow, despair, associating with what is evil all amounts to problems of suffering which characteristically borders the angle of evil and lack of moral tenets as manifested in current worldly problems.Keown (2000) further agues that the defilement of the mind unquestionably combine with aspects of life to yield sufferi ng and within the angles of absolute solutions, Buddhism seeks to alleviate sufferings and enhance a value system that will not only reduce the instances of humans suffering but also being rewarded by rebirth. Significantly, problems such as greed (raga), aversion (dvesha) and ignorance (avidya) are all products of defiled mind.In addition, they are products of human desire to experience existence at a personal level and as selfishness and egoism is an illusory effect of desires and defiled minds, selfish human perpetuate the desire for personal existence and benefits; a actor that lead to constant suffering. Buddhism attempts to solve this fundamental problem by enforcing moral, ethical and value systems enshrined in the teachings and beliefs of the Buddha (Warren, 2007). Evaluation of Buddhism All the factors of our lives subsist in a complex of human mutual causality.As a conscience, our problems, succinctly perceived by the Buddhists as sufferings, are favored by the interplay o f delusion, aversion and perpetual craving that come up due to the lack of poor understanding of roles in the society (Warren, 2007). In essence, humans create a self bondage through forms of reifying as well as holding onto what is naturally transient and contingent. In light of this , Pandey (2008) primarily describes that the problems of human are endemic and so is suffering but the role of religion is to provide a platform that addresses the problems through a situation of eternal rewards that come after death.Essentially, although sufferings is endless, it can be stopped or rather reduced and towards achieving this solutions, Buddhism emphasis on the need to see the true nature as a phenomenon, which radically forms the human interdependence. Solutions packed for the human problems in the world can be achieved if human cleanse their perception through meditation and maintain purity of conscience through an acceptable moral conduct (Warren, 2007).This intuitive approach limits i ts practicality to the absoluteness of values and beliefs which yields a concrete interconnectedness of all things in life and irrespective of the problem or the nature of the problem, the doctrines of Buddhism offers clear ways of understanding deep complicated platform of various social economic, cultural, political and technological links that connects with the life of the human being and others. As a result, the reciprocities of thought and action as well as universe and self direct the individual to uphold meditation, correct moral conduct and purity of conscience (Diederik, 1999).Moreover, it invokes criticism that as the world and life correlate to the aspects of human consciousness and mentality and this distinctive feature attracts many humans to be endowed with the capacity to choose their destiny. Warren (2007) argues that it is on this conceptualization that human life is considered as a privilege that comes with no price and the practices of Buddhism emphasizes on medit ation which gives the individual an opportunity to understand his human existence and seize the opportunity to uphold the value system and make the society a better place for all.Significantly, the vision of Dharma enhances the fact the humans in the world can be always alive with consciousness, thus providing an inspiration that is powerful for the healing of lives in the world. In the arising world with numerous problems, the Buddhist system of belief helps humans to see important aspects of life such as the deep interconnectedness in the web of life as well as the distinctiveness of human beings together with the ability to choose.In light of this, it becomes clear that this approach of life and religious practice facilitates a process where human beings are relived of their human loneliness and arrogance (Warren, 2007). Conclusion From the forgoing discussion, it is evident that Buddhism continues to exert a fundamental influence on the cultures of the world and also play a lead ing role in the contemporary affairs of the world. A manifold of worldly problems today; economic justice, insecurity and peace, human rights and protection of the environment call for the universal corporation of the human as well as religion in solving them.Towards obtaining solutions for these human problems, Buddhism as a religion build on their theory and perspective to establish helpful ideas that touch on and are related to the absolute. The central idea behind the problem s in the world encompass the larger perspective of humanism and towards solving the resultant problems, Buddhism focuses on the stipulated divine agencies. Considered to be on of the world major religion, Buddhism adheres to religious tenets that typify it as a religion in addressing concerns that rise in the physical world.Evil forms a perpetuation of illusions by aspects of humanity and dong what is unethically not accepted. As such, many humans face a manifold of problems due to their ignorance in percei ving that the devoid of self, is impermanent and thus leading to constant sufferings. Buddhism seeks to alleviate sufferings and enhance a value system that will not only reduce the instance of humans suffering but also being rewarded by a rebirth. Reference Alexander, J (2008). Responding to Religious Absolutism. London: Routledge Diederik, V (1999). World Views and The Problem of Synthesis. Cambridge: CUP Fasching, D (2001). Comparative Religious Ethics.London: Blackwell Books Freeman, R (2007). The Search for Absolute Values in the Changing World: A Perspective of Buddhism. Oxford: OUP Herman, C (2003). Participatory Learning and Religious Education in Globalizing Society. London: Brill Press Keown, D (2000). Contemporary Buddhist Ethics. London: Routledge Koslowski, P (2001). Overcoming and Understanding Evil and Suffering in the World. New York: Springer Books Minnich, V (2008). Investigation of Self Human Environment. Texas: Global Books Pandey, C (2008). Ecological Perspectiv es in Buddhism. New York: Readworthy Press Warren, M (2007). Worlds Religion. Belmont CA: Wordsworth