Particular audience Essay Example for Free

Particular audience Essay It is confidence building to remember that all experts were at one time students and entry-level members in their career fields. With this in mind it will help to alleviate some of the stress and anxiety you might feel when you first make contact with them. There are many possible avenues to locating and interviewing an expert. However, there are key tactics that can be utilized in order to increase your chances of landing your first choice. This brief essay will outline a plan of action in order to increase the odds of finding success with your expert interview. To begin, make a list of possible experts relevant to your subject. Some of the best ways to find these experts are in calendar of events in newspapers, magazines and on television. By keeping your options open you can rest assured that if for some reason one of the experts does not wish to participate, you will at least have back-up options. The next key, after locating your expert and establishing a method of contact – whether online of offline – is to establish your credibility. Tell them or send them a link to where they can find examples of your work, or of the institution that you represent. This will show them that you are legitimate and that your will reach a particular audience. Once you have established a working relationship you need to set a date and time. Remember that you are asking for their time, so be as flexible and accommodating as possible without compromising your deadline. When the interview comes, be prepared. Have your recording equipment ready and make sure you have done your research so that you can ask insightful questions. The more prepared you are, the more relaxed you will be. At the conclusion, let them know you will send them a copy of the interview for their records and thank them for their time.

Understanding What Is The Sustainable Development Politics Essay

Understanding What Is The Sustainable Development Politics Essay Sustainable development has been defined in many ways, but the most frequently quoted definition is from Our Common Future, also known as the Brundtland Report:[1] Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It contains within it two key concepts: the concept of needs, in particular the essential needs of the worlds poor, to which overriding priority should be given; and the idea of limitations imposed by the state of technology and social organization on the environments ability to meet present and future needs. All definitions of sustainable development require that we see the world as a system-a system that connects space; and a system that connects time. When you think of the world as a system over space, you grow to understand that air pollution from North America affects air quality in Asia, and that pesticides sprayed in Argentina could harm fish stocks off the coast of Australia. And when you think of the world as a system over time, you start to realize that the decisions our grandparents made about how to farm the land continue to affect agricultural practice today; and the economic policies we endorse today will have an impact on urban poverty when our children are adults. We also understand that quality of life is a system, too. Its good to be physically healthy, but what if you are poor and dont have access to education? Its good to have a secure income, but what if the air in your part of the world is unclean? And its good to have freedom of religious expression, but what if you cant feed your family? The concept of sustainable development is rooted is this sort of systems thinking. It helps us understand ourselves and our world. The problems we face are complex and serious-and we cant address them in the same way we created them. But we can address them. This paper introduces two axioms that capture the idea of sustainable development, and characterizes the welfare criterion that they imply. The axioms require that neither the present nor the future should play a dictatorial role in societys choices over time. At the 1992 United Nations Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, sustainable development emerged as one of the most urgent subjects for international policy. One hundred and fifty participating nations endorsed UN Agenda 21, proposing as part of its policy agenda sustainable development based on the satisfaction of basic needs in developing countries Brundtland Commission proposed that sustainable development is development that satisfies the needs of the present without compromising the needs of the future. Brundtland (1987) The experimental evidence indicates that the present and the future are treated more even-handedly. Typically we do discount the future, but the trade-off between today and tomorrow blurs as we move into the future. Tomorrow acquires increasing relative importance as time progresses. It is as if we viewed the future through a curved lens. The relative weight given to two subsequent periods in the future is inversely related to their distance from today. (P.468) The two following axioms are non-dictatorship properties. Axiom 1 requires that the present should not dictate the outcome in disregard for the future: it requires sensitivity to the welfare of generations in the distant future. Axiom 2 requires that the welfare criterion should not be dictated by the long-run future, and thus requires sensitivity to the present. (P.469) Handbook of Sustainable Development Planning Studies in Modelling and Decision Support Edited by M.A. Quaddus M.A.B. Siddique The concept of sustainable development gained its currency with the publication of Our Common Future by the World Commission on Environment and Development (WECD) in 1987. It emerged from recognition of the need to maintain a balance between economic development and environmental protection and to ensure intra- and intergenerational equity. Before the 1980s, a mono-disciplinary approach was applied to define economic development. Economic development basically meant sustained increase in per capita income. For example, in 1957, Meier and Baldwin defined economic development as a process whereby an economys real national income increases over a long period of time (Meier and Baldwin, 1957, p. 2). This notion of development was prevalent among many of the third world countries until the end of the 1960s. However, during the last quarter of the twentieth century, a multi-dimensional concept of economic development was developed. One of the shortcomings of defining economic development i n terms of sustained increase in per capita income is that it fails to accommodate the question of distribution of income. It was believed that the distributional aspect would be taken care of by the trickle-down effect of growth. However, by the end of the 1960s, it became clear that economic development over a long period of time in many of the developing countries failed to bring about the trickle-down effect. A new environmental and social dimension of development, referred to as sustainable development, emerged in the 1980s. The first formal definition of sustainable development is found in Our Common Future, where it is defined as a process that fulfils present human needs without endangering the opportunities of future generations to fulfil their needs (WECD, 1987, p. 43). (P. 3) However, since the publication of Our Common Future, the concept of sustainable development was further modified and extended by development economists. In Caring for the Earth (IUCN/UNEP/WWF, 1991) sustainable development is defined as an improvement in the quality of human life while living within the carrying capacity of supporting ecosystems. It should be noted here that improvement in the quality of human life subject to environmental or ecological constraint is the main focus of this definition. Although the seminal definition of sustainable development by the WECD has been widely quoted by many, the precise meaning of sustainable development and the ways to achieve it have always been matters of intense debate among researchers and policy-makers. The main criticism directed against the notion of sustainable development perceived by both the WECD and the UNCED (United Nations Conference on Environment and Development) is that it is very broad and general. The lack of a universa lly acceptable definition makes the task for sustainable development planners difficult. Moreover, very often the objective of sustainable development is not clear. The implication of this is that the gap between theories (that is, the definition of sustainable development) and the actual application of sustainability to reality becomes particularly significant. This further results in many difficulties in the formulation of policies to plan sustainable development. As a result there is a demand for more precision in order to make sustainable development planning more consistent and efficient. Sustainable Development in Tribal and Backward Areas Kohli, Anju, Shah, Farida Chowdhary, A.P. (Eds)., 1997 : New Delhi, Indus Publishing Company Sustainable development is a development process that only generates economic growth but distributes its benefits equitably, that regenerates the environment rather than destroying it, that empowers people rather than materializing them. It is a matter of distributional equity between present and the future. It is intrinsically inexact concept which cannot be measured but can be a general guide to policies that which cannot be measured but can be a general guide to policies that have be with investment, conservation and resource use. In short, sustainability is an injunction not to satisfy ourselves by improvising our successors. It is an obligation to conduct ourselves so that we leave to the future the option or the capacity to be as well off as we are. P. 14 ============= In the developing world at least a billion people live in abject poverty for which no justification can be made. They have not received the benefit of growth. Unfortunately, they have no real choice except to burn their forest and to overuse their land and their resources just to secure a livelihood. P.194 The only important point to consider is the polluters must pay principle. It should be obeyed within the rules of the game. Putting this responsibility on government is both time-consuming and economically a costly preposition. P. 195. It is true that the developed world has contributed out of proportion in this game of destruction. The stage started in the colonial era when vast amount of timber wood and mineral resources were tapped. But the story of development after 1950 is even more hilarious. When large dams are erected or industrialization takes place, apparently it is an indicator of economic growth. But in the long run these efforts require a closer scrutiny. The economics of large scale dam construction is in vogue and even the World Bank clan has withdrawn its hands on ecological grounds. Even the much lauded Green Revolution has degraded the quality of soil. Thus in fifties every new invention or investment was an indicator of development. The end of twentieth century will like to rewrite the whole gamut of development economics. In todays economic thinking the propelling nature of economic activity is not profit maximization but creation of utility. P. 196 The economics of conservation should be a part of the development process. Sustainable development has defined in the World Conservation Strategy (1980) as : The management of the human use of the biosphere so that it may yield the greatest sustainable development to present generations while maintaining its potential to meet the needs and aspirations of future generations. P. 228 In order to ensure long-term sustainability it is essential to ensure that the national social and economic policy framework is consistent with, and supportive of, the development objectives and implementation methods of social sector projects and programmes P. 228 The problem of tribal development cannot be seen in isolation from mainstream development, yet, the preservation and sensitivity towards their socio-cultural identity also cannot be overlooked. The challenge, at present, is to be able to recognize and understand the priorities and anxieties of the tribal communities. These arise from their shrinking economic base due to massive felling of trees caused by commercial exploitation of forest wealth. More and more tribals are becoming alien in their own area. Our economic modernization through construction of big power projects, opening of mines and construction of large dams is leading to displacement and impoverishment of tribals. There is a need for having a critical look at all the ongoing tribal development programmes. The areas of concern will have to go beyond the conception and implementation of development programmes and projects to focus on getting sustained long-term benefits from investment. It is being seriously felt that while there has been emphasis on tribal development by both government and voluntary sectors, yet, it has rested only on project formulation and timely cost effective implementation of the development projects. The sustainability aspect of the projects has not received sufficient attention. P.229 Productivity of land in tribal areas is poor and the agricultural output not sufficient. So they depend on cheap daily wage labour and collection and sale of firewood from the forest to see them through the year until the next harvest. It is important to highlight that the problems of poverty, population and environmental degradation are linked and the stark reality is that weaker sections of our Indian society still inhibit the areas of environmental degradation. The issue of sustainable development assumes alarming significance for the tribal areas because the human resources base of these regions is very weak to shoulder the development responsibilities. Literacy level among the tribal social groups of Rajastan is still around 20%. The tribal Sub-Plan Areas concept has, of course, implanted some visible infrastructural masts over the whole TSP area during the last two decades. But the traditional socio-cultural fabric of tribal society perpetuates and still conditions the development parameters of the region spread over the 5 districts à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. Tribal economy continues to be governed by fragile agricultural and animal husbandry activities. The economy of this region is groaning under the increasing pressures of human and animal population. Land holding size and forest covered area is dwindling, droughts and famines continue to reoccur frequently and the land productivity is yet to surge up to a perceptible level. Governmental initi atives in promoting the use of modern farm technology à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.do not seem to have established the roots in the tribal landscape. Even the poverty eradication programmes executed under the IRDP scheme are yet to show their glow on the faces of poverty stricken tribal masses. This region has rich mineral resource base but the industrial activities have not developed on a large scale. P.236 Mineral and industrial development responsibilities are primarily shouldered by the outside non-tribal entrepreneurial talents and the local masses are being engaged as wage laborers. Looking to the geophysical setup and the growing population pressures, the secondary sector is expected to galvanize the tribal economy through the creation of larger and sustainable economic activities. However, as the situation exists today, no perceptible indicators are visible on the horizon of tribal region. To be precise, the development experiences of last four decades lead us to surmise if the prevailing policy parameters are sustainable for the next century. What should be the thrust areas of development ? How could the tribals be roped in the development process for promoting a participative development model ? What strategic components of tribal development planning could prove viable in eradicating the problem of poverty on a sustainable basis ? These issues crave for the indulgency of acade mic world including the galaxy of economists as well as social scientists à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ P. 237 The panorama of unspent funds and under-exploited schemes persists because of the poor responses from the target groups. Geographical isolation has perpetuated tribals fear psychosis and as such, this society has yet to become vocal for claiming its active participation in the development process. The society has remained mute spectator to the manoeuvrability of outsider plunderers of the natural wealth of the region. P. 237 The term sustainable development holds together two principles : the first, development component concentrating on meeting the needs of the present generation; the other, sustainable component limiting harmful effects of human activities on natural environment so that the ability of future generations to meet their own needs is not compromised. Environmental degradation and health hazards are the by-products of economic and industrial activities due to mindless and ruthless exploitation of natural resources. Poor planning and perverted process of development for short-term gains has destroyed the physical environment. If poverty existed before the pre-planning era, it was the result of under-utilization of resources, but if poverty, unemployment and inequalities persist today, it can be regarded as the consequence of ruthless over-exploitation of natural resources which left the physical environment degraded. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_development In 1987, the United Nations released the Brundtland Report, which defines sustainable development as development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The United Nations 2005 World Summit Outcome Document refers to the interdependent and mutually reinforcing pillars of sustainable development as economic development, social development, and environmental protection. Indigenous peoples have argued, through various international forums such as the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and the Convention on Biological Diversity, that there are four pillars of sustainable development, the fourth being cultural. The Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity (UNESCO, 2001) further elaborates the concept by stating that cultural diversity is as necessary for humankind as biodiversity is for nature; it becomes one of the roots of development understood not simply in terms of economic growth, but also as a means to achieve a more satisfactory intellectual, emotional, moral and spiritual existence. In this vision, cultural diversity is the fourth policy area of sustainable development. Economic Sustainability: Agenda 21 clearly identified information, integration, and participation as key building blocks to help countries achieve development that recognises these interdependent pillars. It emphasises that in sustainable development everyone is a user and provider of information. It stresses the need to change from old sector-centred ways of doing business to new approaches that involve cross-sectoral co-ordination and the integration of environmental and social concerns into all development processes. Furthermore, Agenda 21 emphasises that broad public participation in decision making is a fundamental prerequisite for achieving sustainable development. An unsustainable situation occurs when natural capital (the sum total of natures resources) is used up faster than it can be replenished. Sustainability requires that human activity only uses natures resources at a rate at which they can be replenished naturally. Inherently the concept of sustainable development is intertwined with the concept of carrying capacity. Theoretically, the long-term result of environmental degradation is the inability to sustain human life. Such degradation on a global scale could imply extinction for humanity. Consumption of Renewable resources State of environment Sustainability More than natures ability to replenish Environmental degradation Not sustainable Equal to natures ability to replenish Environmental equilibrium Steady state economy Less than natures ability to replenish Environmental renewal Environmentally sustainable The sustainable development debate is based on the assumption that societies need to manage three types of capital (economic, social, and natural), which may be non-substitutable and whose consumption might be irreversible. The business case for sustainable development : The most broadly accepted criterion for corporate sustainability constitutes a firms efficient use of natural capital. This eco-efficiency is usually calculated as the economic value added by a firm in relation to its aggregated ecological impact.[19] This idea has been popularised by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) under the following definition: Eco-efficiency is achieved by the delivery of competitively priced goods and services that satisfy human needs and bring quality of life, while progressively reducing ecological impacts and resource intensity throughout the life-cycle to a level at least in line with the earths carrying capacity. (DeSimone and Popoff, 1997: 47) Similar to the eco-efficiency concept but so far less explored is the second criterion for corporate sustainability. Socio-efficiency[21] describes the relation between a firms value added and its social impact. Whereas, it can be assumed that most corporate impacts on the environment are negative (apart from rare exceptions such as the planting of trees) this is not true for social impacts. These can be either positive (e.g. corporate giving, creation of employment) or negative (e.g. work accidents, mobbing of employees, human rights abuses). Depending on the type of impact socio-efficiency thus either tries to minimize negative social impacts (i.e. accidents per value added) or maximise positive social impacts (i.e. donations per value added) in relation to the value added. Both eco-efficiency and socio-efficiency are concerned primarily with increasing economic sustainability. In this process they instrumentalize both natural and social capital aiming to benefit from win-win situations. However, as Dyllick and Hockerts[21] point out the business case alone will not be sufficient to realise sustainable development. They point towards eco-effectiveness, socio-effectiveness, sufficiency, and eco-equity as four criteria that need to be met if sustainable development is to be reached.. What is needed now is a new era of economic growth growth that is forceful and at the same time socially and environmentally sustainable. The concept of sustainable development calls for a constant re-evaluation of the relationship between man and nature, and solidarity between generations, as the only viable option for long-term development. Sustainable development is a bridge concept connecting economics, ecology and ethics, Environment degradation is a result of the dynamic interplay of socio-economic, institutional and technological activities. Possible intervention strategies 1972, Stockholm : UN Conference on the Human Environment that the international community met for the first time to consider global environment and development needs together. 1992, 3 to 14 June Rio de Janerio, Brazil: The Earth Summit United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). Agreed to Agenda 21 and the Rio Declaration. 1992, December : The Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) was created. 1997, New York, Towards Earth Summit +5 2002, 26 August to 4 September Johannesburg, South Africa: World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD). 2012, 14 16 May Rio de Janeiro: UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) or Rio+20. Also referred to as the Rio+20 Earth Summit, Agenda21 Agenda 21 is a comprehensive plan of action to be taken globally, nationally and locally by organizations of the United Nations System, Governments, and Major Groups in every area in which human impacts on the environment. Agenda 21, the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, and the Statement of principles for the Sustainable Management of Forests were adopted by more than 178 Governments at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) held in Rio de Janerio, Brazil, 3 to 14 June 1992. The Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) was created in December 1992 to ensure effective follow-up of UNCED, to monitor and report on implementation of the agreements at the local, national, regional and international levels. It was agreed that a five year review of Earth Summit progress would be made in 1997 by the United Nations General Assembly meeting in special session. The full implementation of Agenda 21, the Programme for Further Implementation of Agenda 21 and the Commitments to the Rio principles, were strongly reaffirmed at the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) held in Johannesburg, South Africa from 26 August to 4 September 2002. P.K. Rao, Sustainable Development Economics and Policy, New Delhi : Blackwell Publishers, 2001 The history of human civilization has been strongly interwoven with the history of climate and environment. Until recently, the climate and environment were seen as major determinants of the growth and stability of civilizations, and this was perceived as a one-way effect. However, the impact of civilization or human influences on the climate and the environment is now seen to constitute a serious problem. This is because, in the emerging new scenarios, two-way interactions seem to exist between climate-environment, and human activities. We are entering the 21st century amid such potential for combined interactive effects. There is a significant need for an analysis of the underlying factors and their potential mitigatory alternatives. This analysis could lead to improved and pragmatic policy framework. P. 3 Dresner, Simon. 2005. The Principles of Sustainability. London : Earthscan Publications Ltd.. Book Review At a time of increasingly rapid environmental deterioration, sustainability is one of the most important issues facing the world. Can we create a sustainable society? What would that mean? How should we set about doing it? How can we bring about such a profound change in the way things are organized? This text tackles these questions directly. It goes beyond rhetoric to explain the deeper issues of sustainable development in a way that seeks to be accessible and interesting to the non-specialist reader. It covers historical development of the concept of sustainability; contemporary debates about how to achieve it; and obstacles and the prospects for overcoming them. The work should be useful to students, academics and activists concerned with sustainable development. It assumes no previous knowledge of the subject. We should live sustainably has become central to environmental discussions. P.1 The concept of sustainability in something like its modern form was first used by the World Council of Churches in 1974. It was proposed by Western environmentalists in response to developing world objections to worrying about eh environment when human beings in many parts of the world suffer from poverty and deprivation. The concept of sustainable development was put forward by International Union of Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources in 1980. Sustainability and sustainable development finally came to prominence in 1987, when the United Nations World Commission on Environment and development, chaired by former and later Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland, published its report Our Common Future. The central recommendation of this document, usually known as the Brundtland report, was that the way to square the circle of competing demands of environmental development. They defined it as development that meets . their needs. They wrote that sustainable development was about both equity between generations and equity within generations. P.1 Different people use the term in different ways, some emphasizing development through economic growth, and others emphasizing sustainability through environmental protection. Some environmentalists have claimed that sustainable development is a contradiction in terms, can be used merely a cover for continuing to destroy the natural world. On the other side of the debate, some economists have argued that sustainable development is too cautious about the future, potentially leading to sacrifices of economic growth for the sake of excessive concern about depletion of natural resources. Defenders of the concept argue that disagreement about sustainable development does not show that it is meaningless. Rather, it is a contestable concept like liberty or justice. P.2 The sustainability debate is not just about environment and growth. Although sustainability is often presented that you should not destroy the basis of your own existence it is more a question of equity. Concern about sustainability must be based on moral obligations towards future generations not just personal self-interest. Brundtland Commissions conception of sustainable development brought together equity between generations and equity within generations. P.2 The dispute between environmentalists and economists over sustainability is not just about the capacity of technological progress to substitute for natural resources. In the absence of sufficient understanding of the natural environment and of the capacities of future science and technology to deal with any problems, it involves disputes about how to deal with indeterminate risks. Economists tend to average out such risks in their calculations, burying worst-case possibilities in the average, or often even ignoring the possibility that things might turn out worse than they expect, so tending to advocate risky approaches to environmental futures. Environmentalists instead highlight worst-case outcomes and suggest that extra efforts should be taken to avoid them. There are parallels between the risky approach that economists take with the future and their lack of support for egalitarianism in the present. Both are a result of the assumptions of the utilitarian philosophy underlying mainstream economics, which is indifferent to the risk of very bad outcomes for some individuals in the present or everyone in some alternative futures. Most contemporary environmentalists are more left-wing, and it turns out that there is a real philosophical parallel between their interest in equity to future generations and equity within generations. Drawing on the theories of the philosopher John Rawls, I will suggest that there are very sever tensions between the utilitarianism basis of mainstream economic and sustainabilitys concern for equity within and between generations. P. 4. Malthus on Population Malthus argued that the tendency of population towards geometric growth meant that it would always outstrip the growth in food supply. The population was controlled by misery and vice. The standard of living of the labouring classes always hovered around the minimum necessary for subsistence. The World Summit on Sustainable Development took place in Johannesburg in 2002 as a sequel UNCED, ten years on. It was supposed to be more about development than environment, as Southern countries had felt that UNCED was more about environment than development. On both counts, though, it was a disappointment. The lack of substantial progress at the World Summit showed that global political efforts to bring about sustainable development had run out of steam, even as the environment continues to deteriorate. P.59 Sustainable development is a meeting point for environmentalists and developers. the term sustainable development lay in the way that it could be used both by environmentalists, emphasizing the sustainable part, and by developers, emphasizing the development part. The definition given by Brundtland Commission, is often criticized as hopelessly vague or non-operationalizable. In his essay, ORiordan expressed the concern that the vagueness of the definition would allow people to claim almost anything as part of sustainable development, reducing the term meaningless. P.64 The identification of sustainable development with the growth agenda has made radical environmentalists deeply suspicious of it. P.65 Sustainable development is a contestable concept one that affords variety of competing interpretations or conceptions. These concepts have basic meanings and almost everyone is in favour of them, but deep conflicts remain about how they should be understood and what they imply for polity. That something is a contestable concept does not mean that it has no meaning at all. Brundtland seems to be identifying the crucial elements of sustainable development as meeting basic needs, recognizing environmental limits, and the principles of intergenerational and intragenerational equity. P.67 The goal of development was first formally enunciated by President Truman in 1949. The objective was generally seen in terms o

English :: essays research papers fc

For years, Division I athletes have been pouring their hearts out day after day, week after week, to protect the pride and tradition of their universities. With television contracts and shoe deals alone, the athletes are really bringing in the money and other forms of revenue. Sure, you can say that the typical athletes scholarship is enough to compensate, but are they? A true athlete plays the game simply because he loves it. When you’re at the Division I level of sports, it is more or less a business and it is their job to make money for the school. Also, these athletes give up many freedoms. For a given number of hours per week, they give their blood, sweat, and tears just to play a sixty-minute game or run two times around a track. Take these factors and combine it with the athlete’s academic responsibilities, and it’s a lot to account for. When all is said and done, how much money does the athlete see? Well, aside from scholarships†¦zero. I mentioned earlier that intercollegiate athletics is more or less a business in itself. Let me break it down for you. A business has different departments; the owner, the management, and your employees at the bottom rung making everything run smoothly. The owners of course have provided the money for the company, the managers run the company, and the laborers perform the work. I’ve never heard of a business that doesn’t pay its employees. And of course no one would work for them if such a thing did exist. Most people think that an athlete should just be thankful for the education he receives in exchange for a few hours of practice. But an enormous amount of cash is being circulated within that school, at the athlete’s expense, which that athlete will never lay eyes on. Author and sports writer Steven Wulf says, â€Å"They are required to put in long hours of hard work for next to nothing, in hostile conditions, always under intense scrutiny of their bosses†. (Wulf) Of course this is a controversial topic, and there are obviously two sides to this argument: a side for and a side against the argument. â€Å"It is true that student-athletes aren’t your typical college students. They are unable to deposit that measly check most us work toward outside academic duties. Time and physical constraints do not allow these individuals living in a fish bowl to actively pursue a part-time job.

Downfall of the Governess in The Turn of the Screw by Henry James Essay

Downfall of the Governess in The Turn of the Screw by Henry James In the governess's insane pseudo-reality and through her chilling behavior, she managed to bring downfall to Flora and Miles, the children of Bly. With compulsively obsessive actions, irrational assumptions, and demented hallucinations, the governess perceived ghosts bearing evil intentions were attempting to corrupt and destroy the children she had taken the role of care for. In reality, the governess herself brought tragedy to the children through her own selfishness and insanity. From the first interactions with the young children, the governess's infatuation with their uncle, her employer, eventually proved to be her own failure in every fashion. In talk with the head maid, Ms. Grose, the governess explained her meeting with her employer and how she had fallen in love with him on their first meeting. Ms. Grose then began to explain that that was the nature of the her employer, to draw a women he could entrust his estate to, and that the governess was not the only one so taken by him to leave the infatuated governess without further communication. In restless sleep and longing for contact with those outside of Bly-- particularly her employer-- the governess placed hope in chance meetings of random individuals. In her walk in the yard, the governess began to wish for the sight of her employer who she was still madly in love with. The governess's desire to see him and receive his reassuring approval conceived the ghost of what was later revealed to be Peter Quint she believed she had seen. Later in her climax of interaction with her ghosts, the governess is afraid that the master will come home, for she is fearful of what he will think of her. ... ...d in the governess's eyes. After feeling she had lost Flora to the ghost, when in reality the governess had scared the child to death, Miles still shown to be a ray of hope for the demented governess. She refused to leave him alone and began to become angry and suspicious of his corruption when he would ask of his desire for schooling. In the governess's last attempt to consume the children for herself, she sends Ms. Grose away with the sickly Flora and keeps Miles with her at Bly. After her last vision of Quint and with Miles dilapidated in her ineludable arms, the governess frightens Miles so that he collapses and dies, by the governess's conniving will, and to her own bane. Although the governess seemed to have good intentions, her root of mind was self-serving and deceptive. Works Cited: James, Henry. "The Turn of the Screw." Esch and Warren 1-85.

1920-1930 Essay -- Essays Papers

1920-1930 The 1920’s are also known as the "Roaring 20’s". It was the first modern decade experienced by this country, as America flourished after WW I. The average number of hours worked per week dropped from 60 hours to 48 hours (Rayburn). For the first time, people felt that it was just as important to play as it was to work; family outings and weekend trips had become things that workers expected (Rayburn). Women became more open by appearing in public smoking and drinking. Trojan condoms first appeared and sex became an open issue for discussion. During these years, Prohibition caused the rich and the common folk to come together in the name of alcohol. The business of America had become business (Rayburn). Calvin Coolidge was president for most of the decade. He won his first election with the slogan, "Keep Cool With Coolidge" (Library of Congress). At this time, credit first appeared, and people took advantage by buying all the things they wanted like cars and radios. This mindset eventually led to the Great Stock Market crash, October 24, 1929. Women were becoming more open with their bodies and showed them with the clothes they wore. Fashion trends showed that skirts were getting shorter, but many expected them to return to the full-length style of the past after a year. Instead skirts and dresses continued to get shorter from that point. Many people also accepted the fact that women were now drinking and smoking. In the World there was an uncertain peace. World War I had just ended and some peoples had felt that peace negotiations were unfair. In 1922 Joseph Stalin was voted to be the general secretary of the Communist Party. He eventually became head of the Communist Party and issued his first five year plan in... ...s, 1931. Betts, John Rickards. America’s Sporting Heritage: 1850-1950. Reading, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, 1974. Hamilton, George Heard. 19th and 20th Century Art. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc. Lucas, John. The Radical Twenties. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 1997. Rayburn, Kevin. The Roaring 20’s. March 1997. "Calvin Coolidge and History in the 1920’s." The Online Library of Congress." http://www.memory.loc.gov Spielvogel, Jackson J. Western Civilization A Brief History. London: Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1999 Buildings on Campus. Dayton: 1937. Archives Collection, Albert Emanuel Hall, University of Dayton, Dayton, Ohio. Wehrle, William O. History of the University of Dayton. Dayton: 1981. Archives Collection, Albert Emanuel Hall, University of Dayton, Dayton, Ohio.

Religion and Modernity

Religion and Modernity Can it be truthfully said that organized religion is a barrier to modernity? In order to determine such an accusation, we must first try to identify how we define modernity as well as the role of religion in science and humanity. To think modernism means the present is a very narrow view. â€Å"For many Decades, modernization was depicted in social sciences as a broad series of processes of industrialization, urbanization and social changes through which modern societies arose. (Lu, 2011) For the purposes of this essay, we will try to limit the discussion strictly to the terms of modernity relative to science and the inequality of women. But why bring up religion in the context of mathematics and science? Because Science does not develop in a social and political vacuum. Imagine a world without the simplest understanding of the world that surrounds us. Without science, man may have never been able to navigate the seas, discover new continents, never developed beyond agrarian commerce, without cures for common ailments, electricity, telephones, and running water or with even the basic understanding of natural phenomenon. For example, in ancient times, thunder was seen by primitive people as God expressing his displeasure or showing his power. However, the scientific method has proven that lightning and thunder are caused by complex electrical processes in the atmosphere. Science and mathematics have provided the world with answers to questions and cures to deadly diseases and has touched the lives of every person in the world today. This clash between modernist thought and Christianity has produced centuries of â€Å"accusation, rebuttal and counter-accusation. † (Bogart, 2009) Famous sociologist, Emile Durkheim saw religion as a necessary institution which enabled society to function harmoniously and that religion provides stability by teaching and enforcing a definite moral code. Even with this admirable quality, probably few informed people would want to argue the point that the â€Å"bible and religious tradition has often been used to prevent people from pursuing certain avenues of self-expression† (Bogart, 2009) and to deter people from all sorts of activities. In the current view most would agree that it can easily be seen that basic scientific advancements have been beneficial to mankind and most would agree that without the developments in mathematics, and science, the world as we know it could never have existed but it was not long ago when he Christian church persecuted followers of science as heretics. Throughout history, the religious attacks on modernity in the form of mathematics and science is widely documented, forcing religion into a mostly defensive position. Even today, there are still scientific and medical advancements with potentially hundreds of life altering applications that keep religion and science at a standoff in the moral a nd political spectrum as well as in public opinion. In this essay, we will illuminate how organized religion has been integral in attempting to subvert modernity, from the development of mathematics and science in antiquity, the oppression of art during the Renaissance era, further suppression of secular education through the Age of Enlightenment, the ongoing battle for the rights of women and all of the way through the modern attacks on stem cell research, cloning, family planning and abortion. In as early as In 415 A. D. the last known head of the Department of Mathematics and Philosophy at the Museum of Alexandria, part of the Library of Alexandria, the female mathematician Hypatia was stripped naked in the streets of Alexandria with her flesh scourged from her body by Christian hands and fingers while being dragged to her final death by burning alive by fanatically enraged Christian Coptic mobs, inspired by the leading Christian patriarch, later canonized Saint Cyril of Alexandria. Hypatia's invention of an improved astrolabe and her subsequent book â€Å"Astronomical Canon†, a table of star positions for navigational explorers, was subsequently in use by other intrepid sailors and explorers for the next 1,200 years, all of this in addition to her thirteen books on algebra and another eight on geometry. This atrocity was not the first time and definitely not the last time that the church would attempt to use its power and influence, to try and subvert scientific advancement. Only a few hundred years later, at the height of the power of the Catholic Church, another movement created a scapegoat for religious persecution. The intellectual movement called â€Å"The Enlightenment† is one of those rare historical movements which in fact named itself. Enlightenment thinkers and writers, primarily in London and Paris, believed that they were more enlightened than their compatriots and set out to educate them. Many enlightenment thinkers had the admirable belief that â€Å"human reason could be used to combat ignorance, superstition, and tyranny and to build a better wor d. † (Brians, 1998) Additionally, â€Å"by celebrating the human race and its capacities they argued they were worshipping God more appropriately than gloomy priests and monks who harped on original sin and continuously called upon people to confess and humble themselves before the Almighty. † (Brians, 1998) While at the time, the â€Å"humanist†, the element responsib le for the â€Å"enlightenment†, did not have an anti-religious association, there were a few that claimed that humans were like God, created not only in his image, but with a share of his creative power. They believed that painters, architects, musicians, and scholars were, by â€Å"exercising their intellectual powers, were fulfilling divine purposes. † (Brians, 1998) While, even within the church, there were notable Christian who pursued and promoted advances in mathematics, astronomy, medicine and science in general, the humanist notions of divine creativity and enlightenment went directly against the basic tenant of the Catholic Church of a single all-powerful, all-knowing, divine god. Because the church could not frame these tools of logic to the uses it preferred, they were afraid that this message could not only diminish the power so long held by the church over the daily lives of the people and over the monarchy and politics, but could cause outright revolt from the church as it had in before in Athens. With so much fear and apprehension, the church struck out on a terroristic mission to shame, humiliate and publicly murder those who could not be tamed. During this time of the â€Å"Inquisition†, trials of witchcraft flourished as they never had during the Middle Ages and thousands were slaughtered as examples at the hands of the church. For those who were so lucky to avoid the execution table, they still faced public humiliation, had their life works destroyed in front of their eyes and in some cases like Galileo, were forced into the infamous, unjust house imprisonment. Galileo Galileio, was one of the foremost scientific thinkers of his time, and his works have served to be the basis for the majority of astronomical work to follow. He uses the same logic the seamen had used, reinforced with observation to argue for the notion that the earth rotates on an axis beneath the unmoving sun. † (Brians, 1998) The Church objected to this idea because the Bible clearly stated that the sun moved through the sky and denounced Galileo's teachings, forcing him to recant what he had written and beginning in 1633, under Pope Urban's personal authority given by the â€Å"Congregation of the Holy Office of the Inquisition† forced him into house imprisonment, preventing him from teaching further. In this case, the Church's triumph was short-lived, because while they were successful in silencing Galileo, they could not prevent the advance of science and astronomy. Some of the more caustic clashes between science and religion in modern history is the battle over stem cell research and cloning. â€Å"When news that Ian Wilmut and his team had successfully cloned an adult sheep in 1997, there was an immediate and ill-informed wave of public, professional, and bureaucratic fear and rejection of this new technique. † (Savulescu, 2008) Cloning is the process of multiplying cells and tissue to genetically replicate the host. Almost immediately, cloning of Human tissue was banned, but sampling of plant materials and various offshoots of the science have been allowed, such as limited cell regeneration and stem cell research as a means of treating or avoiding serious diseases. While this technology is a controversial issue, and few people have openly supported it, there are some important advancements that this technology could currently serve and endless possibilities that remain. For example, in agriculture, there are several advantages to cloning including yield, strength, and timing. A cloned plant can yield a thousand new plants from one parent plant. This means that farmers can produce more crops without a lot of seeds. In addition, cloning a plant means you can choose the best plants to clone. An entire crop of healthy, prosperous plants can be cloned from one strong parent plant. Lastly, cloned plants grow at the same rate, so harvesting can become streamlined. In reference to animal cloning, better breeding is a perfect example of the benefits of technology. In animal cloning, the best of the breed can be chosen as the clone subject. This means farmers can have the strongest or best producing animals on their farms. In the current world economy, and with a majority of the world stricken with hunger related problems, cloning could likely be the best option for countries with inopportune growing environments, or who have suffered from natural disasters, but several concerns about health issues and moral issues have stalled attempts to perfect the science. In addition to having multiple benefits in food production, there are also key benefits to the cloning of human tissue. The cloning of human tissues could lead to no longer needing to harvest animal organs to replace dead or damaged human tissue. In many cases, animal organs are rejected by recipients. In the â€Å"United States the discrepancy between the number of potential recipients and donor organs is increasing by approximately 10-15% annually† (Savulescu, 2008) Not only is there a shortage of human tissue, there are still the issues of incompatibility and the need for a lifetime of immunosuppressive therapy and serious side effects. With cloning, there could be abundant sources with near perfect capability. While there are several issues with cloning most notably those relating to the spiritual morality of creating or replicating human tissues. The movement to ban human reproductive cloning appears to draw strength from traditional religious beliefs. Religion is among the most powerful factors shaping attitudes toward human reproductive cloning and remains an influential force in human society, despite the secularization brought about by scientific progress, bureaucratic rationalization, and economic growth. Members of some religious groups, particularly Evangelical Christianity and Roman Catholicism, believe that a soul enters the body at the instant of conception, and that the fertilized ovum is in fact a human person with full human rights. † (Bainbridge, 2003) Another traditional function of religion has been to provide a set of metaphors through which people could think about their own psychological p rocesses. The Christian notion of an immortal, righteous soul offers hope in return for moral behavior and in regard to the cloning of human tissue, the assumption that clones would lack souls seems to be widespread. This worry is not limited to Christians, but also afflicts people in the broad tradition of Hinduism and Buddhism who believe that each being, whether human or non-human, is born with a spirit. â€Å"This spirit may or may not be a reincarnation of a previous spirit and that cloning will prostitute the natural evolution of spirits and life. † (Bainbridge, 2003) For many believers, the crucial quality of a soul is its immortality. In a sense, religion is the death business, and it cannot tolerate any technology that would take away its market. As we have seen throughout the readings, religion has a serious impact in the inequality of the genders and the subjugation of women throughout the world. In Sea of Poppies, Deeti made the difficult decision to abandon Kabutri with her family as the persecution she faced for her refusal to marry her brother-in-law, and then for the shame of disappearing with Kalua. Her village leaders meant to use religious law against her and to beat or kill her for her apparent indiscretions against morality. This example along with various other examples within Season of Migration to the North illustrate the plight of women in extreme religious societies. Particularly, the focus in the books centered around the Middle East and Islam. However, backward thoughts about women are not exclusive to the Middle East or to Islam. All major religions have a storied history of women’s subjection to men. It is not in all cases that women are beaten or shamed, in many cases the persecution is more subtle, but nonetheless ruthless. In religious history, across Christianity, Islam, and even Judaism women were and in some cases still are denied the ability to participate equally in religious ceremonies and rituals. In Judaism, there is a Jewish prayer that men say each morning. â€Å"â€Å"sh’lo asani isha†Ã¢â‚¬â€œ â€Å"that I wasn’t created a woman. † (Torah, 2012) That blessing is only one striking example of many where women are not treated or considered equal in Orthodox Judaism. In most synagogues women cannot be ordained as Rabbis, cannot lead prayer services for a mixed crowd, cannot chant from the Torah, and are discouraged from wearing traditional religious attire. However, Judaism is not alone. Even in Christianity there are direct references to the subordination of women to men. When researching the history of the Catholic Church, one will find that a doctrine against women has always been firmly maintained, and is so today, but not necessarily to the same extent. The Bible has many things to say indicating support of the idea that women are unequal and servile to men. From Genesis III â€Å"and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee† This is the first direct order of the subservience of women to men and that in Christianity, it is ordained by god that men bear rule over the women. Later in the New Testament, women’s subservience is mentioned again. ; â€Å"all the wives shall give to their husband's honor, both to great and small he sent letters into all the provinces, that every man should bear rule in his own house† (Esther, 2002) again like we have seen in all of our readings, women are valued differently and treated differently than men. Based on our readings women’s value is in the home as a servant to the husband and her opinions and thoughts are half of a man’s. As we have seen, the most visibly egregious and violent offender of women’s rights are fanatic Muslims. In Islam, rather than just being ignored and subservient, women were treated like slaves or property. Their personal consent concerning anything related to their well-being is considered unimportant, to such a degree that they were never even treated as a party to a marriage contract. In Islam, Women are needed only for procreation and are then discarded. Similar to the other faiths, the Koran has similar passages that diminish women. Men have authority over women because God has made the one superior to the other, and because men spend their wealth to maintain them. Good women are obedient. They guard their unseen parts because God has guarded them. As for those among you who fear disobedience, admonish them and send them to beds apart and beat them. † (Sura, 4:34) Furthermore, in some Islamic ruled counties, Women have no independence, cannot own property, are barred from employment and are not allowed to attend school and can be beaten or sentenced to death only for being seen I public, unaccompanied by a male relative. How can such intolerance and subjugation in the name of religion be considered peaceful or modern? It cannot. As in its dealings with science and modernity, organized religion stands united against progress. In the end, no one can claim that religion and modernity have been indifferent and unbiased towards each other. In addition and neither can it be implied that all the advocates of modernity were opposed to religion. â€Å"Dogmatic religious opposition is not rooted in technical or humanitarian concerns, but in a view of existence that is incompatible with scientific progress. There is no peaceful way to overcome such opposition, short of converting believers away from their strongly-held, literalistic faith. † (Dawari, 2012) On the other hand, it is not as if all the religious authorities have been opposed to modernity or have struggled against it. However, modernity has changed man's relationship with his fellowmen, with the world, and in some cases with the origin of the world. Scientific progress in many cases has served to debunk religious mythology in the eyes of some, while for others, it only serves to reinforce the idea of a higher power. Religious ideals are not bad or wrong. They are just many times wielded by those who wish to maintain power and control over the minds of people. Religious arguments about science will continue to rage as long a modern scientist attempt to understand the minute details of creation and to challenge the validity of a all-knowing omnipresent being. Likewise, in terms of slavery and oppression of women, religion continues to have a chokehold on the minds of many fanatic leaders who continue to brainwash youth into believing that it is gods will for women to be lesser creatures than men. Technological advancements and the distribution of their benefits has not been not equal and modernity has been slower to develop in some places more than others, but that does not change the fact that religion has directly challenged social and scientific progress at every turn. Some of the most basic scientific understandings likely may have not been possible if elements in organized religion had not been defeated. There are still many challenges ahead and it will take education and understanding to find common ground in the struggle against religious idealism and social justice. (2002). Esther. In King James Bible (pp. 1:20-22). Wheaton: Good News Publishers. Bainbridge, W. S. (2003, October). Religious Opposition to Cloning. Journal of Evoloution and Technology. , 13, 1-15. Retrieved from mysite. verizon. net/william. bainbridge/index. htm Bogart, M. (2009, May 25). Modernity vs Religion. Retrieved from Michael Bogart Ministries: http://mbogartministries. hubpages. com/hub/ModernityvsReligion Brians, P. (1998, March 11). The Enlightenment. Retrieved from Washington State University: http://public. wsu. edu/~brians/hum_303/enlightenment. html Dawari, R. D. (2012, 12 12). Imam Reza Network. Retrieved from Religion and Modernity: http://www. imamreza. net/eng/imamreza. php? id=429 Library of Congress. (2010, October 03). The Historic Conflict of Science and Religion. Retrieved from Relativity Calculator: http://www. relativitycalculator. com/conflict_science_religion. shtml Lu, D. (2011). Third World Modernism Architecture, Development and Idenity. New York: Routledge. Savulescu, J. (2008). Should we Clone Human Beings. In N. M. Ezell Shirley, Human Ecosyatems and Technological Change (pp. 417-428). Boston: McGraw Hill Learning Solutions. Torah. (2012). Torah The Five Books of Moses. In A. Simon (Ed. ).

Fashion during the Elizabethan Era

Keeping Up With the Fashion Field â€Å"Clothing and fashion during the Elizabethan Era was complex, complicated, and too dramatic† (Bloom). The Elizabethan Era, was a time period from 1558-1603 when Queen Elizabeth I reigned, and was a period when people expressed who they were through creativity and originality (Black and Garland 16). Some may say that the Era was important, as it was the Golden Age in English history. Fashion during the Elizabethan Era was very extravagant and â€Å"over the top†. Fashion and style were competitive, varied by gender, and also depended on one's social class.Keep up† is a phrase to describe the attitudes toward fashion during the Elizabethan Era. There was always pressure to be up to date. People's attempts to stay in fashion cost them a lot of money (Lace). Land owners felt obligated to entertain the rulers such as the king and queen when they traveled, so they would arrange big parties, and they and their families wore the most expensive clothes. Even the royal court wanted to show off and out-dress everyone. When the royal court traveled, they often made the nobles go broke trying to keep up with their standard of display (Lace).All types of people from land owners to the royal court felt the pressure to keep up. Fashion and style were different for men and women who were not rich. It varied by gender. Women and men both had fashion rules to follow. Men had to wear cheap materials which included sheepskin and wool (Elizabethan Era). They had to wear dull colors such as brown, dull blue and beige. Men wore low, flat hats. They also wore cheap breeches made out of rough materials. Women wore material from sheepskin and wool like men. They also had to wear dull colors. Women wore aprons and bodices. The bodice fronts were often laced up.They did not wear Jewelry or any other accessory. Men and women of working class both had restrictions on clothes, however, the clothes varied by gender. No matter how rich a man or woman was, no one could wear what they pleased. Clothing during the Elizabethan Era was controlled by sumptuous laws. These laws were put in place to keep the class structure strict (Renaissance Clothing for Kids). Clothes defined who a person was and what class they belonged to. Upper classes wore bright colors. Their clothes were made from expensive materials such as velvet, satin, silk, taffeta and lace.They also wore costly Jewelry such as pearls. The upper class women would wear clothes that included several different layers of material, while others women wore thin materials. Typical people such as the working class wore simple clothes as described above. During the Elizabethan Era clothing was associated with rank. There were a variety of colors and choices one could pick from if they were in a high class or had a high rank (Sixteenth- Century Clothing). No one could wear whatever they chose because people's clothing was controlled by laws.In conclusion, the Elizabet han Era as a time period when Queen Elizabeth I reigned, between 1558 and 1603. During the Era, many fields such as poetry and literature grew and flourished. An area that flowered included style and fashion. Some may say that the era was a time when people had the opportunity to express themselves. Others feel that fashion and style during this time was restricted. In today's world, fashion is not as restricted as it was during the Elizabethan Era and both men and women are free to wear whatever they want. Works Cited Black, Anderson J. , and Mange, Garland.