The ethics of religious affiliation and social stratification Essay

The ethics of religious affiliation and social stratification - Essay Example Studies by important sociologists, economists, and politicians of the world today confirm that there is an essential connection between the spirit of modern economic life, which is supported by the theories of capitalism, and the rational ethics of ascetic Protestantism. In one of the most important work on the topic, Max Weber establishes that the spirit of capitalism in northern Europe was greatly influenced by the Protestant (predominantly Calvinist) ethic. Thus, Weber indicates that the work ethic of Protestantism immensely contributed to the growth of capitalism in the Western world, transforming the unplanned and uncoordinated mass into actions driven by the spirit of capitalism. â€Å"But not all the Protestant denominations seem to have had an equally strong influence in this direction. That of Calvinism, even in Germany, was among the strongest, it seems, and the reformed faith more than the others seems to have promoted the development of the spirit of capitalism, in the W upperthal as well as elsewhere.† (Weber, 43) Therefore, in a profound analysis of the relationship between religious affiliation and social stratification, it becomes lucid that the ethics of Protestantism has played an essential role in the development of the spirit of capitalism.

Structural Theory of Conflict Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Structural Theory of Conflict - Research Paper Example However, since the 1970s newer approaches have started to come out with new concepts of criminology. All of these approaches evolved into what is now known as left realism. The major difference which can be found between the left idealism and left realism is a moral issue which will be discovered later in this article. Traditional Marxist Theories Marx himself had very little to say about crime. He merely explained it as a product of poverty. However, there are other sociologists who have built the traditional Marxist approach to crime. There are four main areas which are discussed by the traditional Marxist approach: the manipulation of values; the process of law creation; the enforcement of law; and individual motivation. According to the Marxists society is controlled by powerful industrialists- bourgeoisie. Control is maintained in the society by means of socialization and threat. Through the process of socialization the young are taught to obey the power and value of the capital ist system. A wide range of social institutions such as the school, mass media and religion convey the message to the masses. Marxists claim that the meaning of crime depends upon the dominant social values. A very valid example would be that the murder of a person in a brawl will be counted as a severe crime but the death of a factory worker is considered an accident even though the cause of the accident might be the irresponsible attitude of the management. The problem which results from this is that the perception which is created through the sociological institutions that much of the crime is carried out by the youth, or the working class men or the black. This creates an ideology which causes the law enforcement agencies to focus more on these people and as a consequence there are more policemen in such areas. According to concepts of Marx law is created by the ruling class. The ruling class ensures that the laws not only maintain their dominance but they also provide them the freedom to carry out oppression and also preventing the working class for improving their standard of living. Marxists also argue that the law enforcement acts as a major catalyst in widening the gap between the ruling class and the working class. This is quite visible by the way that crime is handled. Street crimes are more likely to be punished more severely than white-collar crimes. This is compounded by the fact that white-collar crimes are very likely to be dealt by the firm itself by firing etc. to avoid the scandals. Apart from this the treatment of these crimes is also a question mark on the law enforcement system where street crimes might result in long jail sentences whereas corporate or white-collar crimes usually only result in heavy crimes. Two areas which are explained and discussed extensively in Marxist studies are mugging and corporate crime. When ‘mugging’ is discussed most important details are provided by Hall et al. (1979) in the book policing the C risis.’ It was in the early 1970s that mugging became the headline news in Britain. Mugging can be defined as robbery in the streets where the person is threatened or harmed. Mugging was an entirely new concept for the masses and simultaneously grabbed the focus of the news agencies who from time to time reported these crimes. This had increased such that the stat came out that it had increased by 129

Plant and Animal Interactions in the Tropical Rainforest

Plant and Animal Interactions in the Tropical Rainforest Why are animal-plant interactions considered important in the establishment and maintenance of high biodiversity in tropical rain forests? Include specific examples in your answer. The study of plant-animal interactions has been a key role in development of ecology hence it has been carried out for a long time. They are also key constituents of biodiversity, which is termed as a variation of life form in a particular ecosystem. Hence, with no diversity of antagonistic, mutualistic, comensalistic, and amensalistic interactions, ecosystems would simply stop functioning. Energy would not run between trophic levels, primary productivity would not be able to become secondary productivity, and inorganic nutrients would not rotate. Because species interactions are thought to be at the heart of many speciation events, they generate taxonomic and genetic diversity with tight and diffuse co-evolution (Waser and Ollerton 2006). Biodiversity is described as a response to dynamic processes such as ecological, evolutionary and physical, influenced by constant changes in time and space. Those changes consider species richness and their composition where the scale of them can take a variety of forms. They can be large such as changes in geological time of tectonic plates (Crame 2001), variable such as global climate change or small such as localized disturbance or heterogeneity (Jansen 1997). At each of these scales, biodiversity may be considered as a process that responses to biotic and abiotic factors rather than to static characteristics of a particular location. Biotic factors can singly or in combination, directly or indirectly change biological diversity in tropical ecosystems. Using different examples across plant and animal taxa I will highlight plant- animal interactions that cause changes, as well as establish and maintain biodiversity within a rainforest. While studies concentrating on ecology and evolution are thought of dynamic processes, their impact into effects of biodiversity conservation has been subject to debate. In general, many conservation attempts have concentrated on protecting particular areas, habitats and hotspots. For instance, biodiversity in Yellowstone National Park varies greatly because of re-introduction of wolves. On the other hand, the conservation of the park from location and/or habitat point of view has not altered. This suggests that (1) biotic interactions are the main reason for biological diversity; (2) biotic interactions may be direct or indirect (Letourneau and Dyer 2005); and (3) biodiversity and biotic interactions may result in a variety of causes and effects. For centuries, scientists have studied the functions of top-down (predator-dependent) and bottom-up (resource-dependent) regulations in structuring biological communities. The concept of trophic cascades engages indirect outcomes of top-down and bottom-up regulations, i.e. an alteration across one trophic level which indicates an alteration on a remote trophic level. Indirect outcomes involve modifications in biomass, abundance, efficiency or biotic diversity. Trophic cascade hypothesis was first described by Hairston et al. (1960) who stated that the world is green due to predation which regulates herbivores, hence, making productivity of higher plants found in the community more efficient. Even though first research concentrated on community structures across terrestrial habitation, other studies are driven toward establishing freshwater and marine ecosystems constituents and cascade outcomes found in there (Brett and Goldman 1996). A study performed by van Bael et al. (2003), whic h concentrated on a terrestrial habitat, illustrated that bird predation protected rainforest trees from arthropod foraging in the canopy where floral productivity was high. The above findings may be a great indicator of high diversity occurring in the tropics; nonetheless, the meaning of how important top-down and bottom-up trophic cascades are is still a subject of a debate. Nowadays research have concentrated on the way top-down and bottom-up trophic cascades can function in concern to structure community, change over space, time and taxa, influence mechanisms and constituents of complex food webs and maintain heterogeneity and biodiversity in complex ecosystems (Letourneau and Dyer 2005). Any fluctuations in tropics biodiversity can be maintained by a variety of direct trophic interactions. For instance, the species diversity of birds as predators can be dependent on food accessibility for their prey e.g. plants (German and Chacon de Ulloa 1997), or diversity of predatory arthropods can be shaped by herbivore diversity, which in turn is caused by plant abundance and diversity in a given habitat (Saiz et al. 2000). All ecosystems are retained by the interactions of various factors such as climatic changes, vegetation growth and the animals activities. Seed dispersal is one of the most significant processes, influencing the structure and dynamics of the entire plant and animal communities. Biotic interactions in relation to seed dispersal and associated with it species are next to be discussed. Many organisms contribute and provide a unique seed dispersal service in rain forests among which primates, birds, fruit bats, mammalian carnivores and ground-dwelling large herbivores play a crucial role. Primates may contribute in multiple ways to the ecology of tropical rain forests. One of it, as mentioned above, is being a seed dispersal agent, hence being a frugivore. According to Chapman and Onderdonk (1998), the eventual loss of a particular plant species (large, with large seeds and thick, inedible hunks which can be only removed using hands or teeth) may be associated with the decline or local extinction of primates. A typical seed dispersal done by primates involves dropping, spitting out or defecating seeds. Because seeds are generally hard to break and usually toxic, there is a tiny minority of primates that is able to destroy them completely. From a seed point of view it is not a good idea to end up directly under the fruiting tree where it has to compete with its sibli ngs and parent. Also the accumulation of pests and diseases in there is higher. This is when primates, yet again, serve as helpers by dropping or spitting out seeds in different locations. There are numerous factors contributing and subtracting to seed dispersal when consider primates defecation. In overall, the main ones include attractiveness of primate faeces to seed-predating rodents and the abundance of faeces-burying dung beetles (Andresen 2002; Feer and Forget 2002). Whereas primates are very important seed dispersal agents for large plants, birds play a significant role in dispersal of plants with small fruits. Birds seem to be especially important in New Guinea and Australia (Jones and Crome 1990) where a lack of frugivorous mammals is the main threat. In general birds are not for long in the fruiting tree. Before they void the seed they usually move to another tree hence they disperse the seed effectively (Green 1993). For this reason they are considered to be one of the most important seed dispersal agents across tropics. Furthermore, fruit-eating birds may be divided depending on their diet. The more generalist feeders visit more trees. They have, therefore, the potential to be capable of wider dispersal (Green 1993). The cassowary is perhaps one of the crucial seed disperser of local rainforests. Until recently, over 200 rainforest plants have been observed to be eaten by this bird (Kroon and Westcott 2001). One study discovered 78 species in cassowary faeces, with at least 70 of them being viable (Stocker and Irvine 1983). Many of the seeds appear undamaged and many of these are too large for other animals to disperse (Stocker and Irvine 1983). Although the bird itself is hard to see, its faeces can be common and prominent, and can have up to 1 kg of seeds (Stocker and Irvine 1983). Also, as a large animal, it has the potential to be efficient seed dispersal agents over larger distances. Thanks to radio-telemetry it was possible to show that cassowaries cover vast territories, sometimes of several kilometres, which may be done in one day (Kroon and Westcott 2001). Additionally, seeds can take more than 10 hours to pass the digestive system (Stocker and Irvine 1983), hence seeds are likely to be dispersed quite widely. Primates and large birds are great seed dispersal agents. As a result of that spatial distribution trees may increase greatly. A research suggests that tree distribution in the tropics depends on species methods of seed dispersal. The study by Seidler and Plotkin (2006) was done on 561 tree species in a lowland tropical forest in Malaysia. It was observed that trees with smaller fruit were less dispersed than trees with larger fruit. This may suggest that larger-bodied mammals and birds transmit the seeds of these tree species over larger distances. Bats are thought of less important but still meaningful seed dispersers. It could be said, they are wasteful as seed dispersal agents, because of depositing most seeds from the fruits they eat right near the angiosperms. Hence, the most successful seeds, in this case, would be the smallest ones as they can be swallowed and defecated or dropped during the flight. On the other hand, bats are crucial for the pioneer shrubs and trees that are abundant in natural or human-made clearings, mainly localised in Neotropics. Recent studies by Melo and colleagues (2009) suggests that small-bodied bats (Artibeus watsoni) inhabiting Neotropics are assumed to play a negligible role in the dispersal of large-seeded plants. They recorded at least 43 seed species around bat roosts and also suggested the pattern of species-specific abundance of seeds which influences seedling recruitment. These small frugivorous bats are especially important in regions where populations of large-bodied seed dispersers have been reduced or exterminated by hunting (Melo et al. 2009). Another example is a fruit bat (Chiroptera: Pteropodidae) localised in a lowland Malayan rain forest. The study performed by Hodgkison and colleagues (2003) suggests that fruit bats did not have negative influence on seed viability. Further, they found that in 1 ha of old-growth forest 13.7 percent of trees at least in part depended on fruit bats for seed dispersal and/or pollination (Hodgkison 2003). Rat-kangaroos (Hypsiprymnodon moschatus) studied by Dennis (2003) are believed to be good seed dispersal agents in Australians tropical forests. They were found to perform similar behaviour to agoutis, acouchies and squirrels found elsewhere. Even they are the smallest known marsupials they are still able to disperse large numbers if fruits and seeds which can be done in two unique ways: 1) by scatter-hoarding or 2) by dropping elsewhere. Another important factor influencing great biodiversity in tropics is pollination. It has been known for a very long time and firstly was described by Sprengel in 1793. Rain forest pollination, on the other hand, was first studied in the Neotropics (Roubik 1978; Bawa et al. 1985) where the most important pollinators were found to be bees, diverse insects and hummingbirds. They are excellent pollinators and a vast part of angiosperm diversity can be a result of their co-evolution. However, species such as bats, wasps, lemurs and even lizards are also vital pollinators. Studies performed by Corlett (2003) in the Oriental (Indomalayan) region suggests that, although these lowland forests are much less studied and known, they still express similar pattern as Neotropics. He found out that large solitary bees, moths, butterflies and vertebrates are less meaningful as pollinators than extremely social bees (especially Trigona and Apis species) and beetles (most likely to be the next crucial group). A study performed by Goulson and Derwent (2004), however, indicates that to be a pollinator it does not necessary mean to be beneficial to the ecosystem. They illustrated an example of an exotic weed, Lantana camara, and associated with it an exotic honeybee, Apis mellifera, inhabiting Queensland, Australia. This interaction, even though causing higher biodiversity across tropics, may equally bring losses and environmental degradation. Goulson and Derwent (2004) also pointed out that A. mellifera are possibly pollinators of many other weeds, both in Australia and elsewhere. Muchhala and colleagues (2009) studied impact of bats and birds on a flowering plant, Aphelandra acanthus, and its pollination. They observed that hummingbirds and bats could be compared in a case of pollination quantity whilst bats were the most effective in a case of quality. It was suggested that approximately 70 percent of A. acanthus was pollinated by bats themselves and since there is known 170 species of this genus the result is pretty impressive. This indicates that these angiosperms depend on bats pollination to a high degree. Another study carried out by Roubik (2000) shows that African honeybees, Apis mellifera, were the first exotic bees to invade Neotropics, where they interacted directly with approximately one-fourth of the floral population. These findings indicate that honeybees are a great indicator of a biodiversity formation and maintenance. By interacting with so many plants it can be predicted that the diversity of plant species may be easily preserved and upheld. Since plants and their pollinators are often in co-evolutionary mutualism, many research suggest that some insect species are associated and restricted to a particular plant species. Hence, there is yet another argument demonstrating that the biodiversity in tropics must be high in order to preserve all the co-evolving organisms. For this reason, some organisms relay on their mutualistic partners in order to survive. On the other hand, research proposed by Novotny and Basset (2005) suggests that a majority of species in herbivore populations found within tropics do not feed on a single species of plants when alternative hosts are accessible. Consequently, limits of host plants are likely to match with those of plant genera, rather than species or taxa. This illustrates an example that either way rain forests express high biodiversity and the way it is established. Another aspect shaping biodiversity across tropics arises when pitcher plants (Nepenthes gracilis) and their interactions with infauna are taken into consideration. The aquatic environment created by pitchers is very beneficial for organisms inhabiting it such as aquatic insects including mosquito or fly larvae. The inhabitants of the pitchers were split by Thienemann (1932) into three separate groups depending on their appearance inside pitchers i.e. 1) occasional visitors which originally belong to a different place; 2) occasional visitors which may change environments continuously; and 3) native inhabitants. Therefore, since the pitchers are, in general, only partly filled with liquid i.e. up to the waxy zone, there is a terrestrial fauna as well as an aquatic fauna (Lloyd 1942). Spiders, for instance, may take an advantage of pitchers by building nets above or nearby the plants therefore foraging at the expense of the pitchers. For aquatic infauna including protozoa, desmids and diatoms, rotatoria, crustaceae and various larvae of Diptera inhabiting the pitchers means food supply because they feed on animal detritus found in there (Lloyd 1942). Further, the pitchers interior environment is beneficial for many forms of Diptera larvae since they lay their eggs inside. In the fluid (always diluted by rain) the larvae grow to maturity (Bradshaw and Lounibos 1977). Alas, the environment may not be totally beneficial for these organisms since it is also inhabited by ants which in a case of absence of crucial nutrients tend to feed upon mosquito larvae (Clarke and Kitching 1995). Occurrence of ants as inhabitants of tropical pitchers may be, in turn, beneficial for both organisms. This thesis is supported by a study proposed by Clarke and Kitching (1995). They revised ant-pitcher interactions in Borneo and concluded that pitchers habitat was great for ants to live in. The ants nested in the tendrils of the plant, and fed on the large prey items caught by the pitch ers. Further, this relationship was also advantageous to pitchers because ants were removing an excess of prey which was accumulating inside the plant. This accumulation, if not removed, could lead to putrefaction of the contents and disruption of the pitchers digestive system (Clarke and Kitching 1995). Another study performed by Mogi and Yong (1991) proposed that aquatic arthropods, Diptera in particular, are able of coexistence in a single pitcher. Further, they stated that species belonging to the same trophic group commonly shared the same pitcher, because of the high occurrence probabilities of dominant species and positive associations between some taxa (mainly due to similar occupancies by pitcher age) (Mogi and Yong 1991). All these arguments may be a reasonable explanation why the abundance of species in pitchers followed by tropics is high. Yet another mechanism that drives biodiversity in tropics is maintained by herbivores and the impact they have on plant diversity. So far, at least five hypotheses have been proposed. First thesis was suggested by Janzen (1970) and Connell (1971) who have stated that richness of plant species might be established by herbivores feeding on postdispersal seeds and seedlings near adult plants and lower level far away. With such a pattern, any plant species becoming abundant would be predated avoiding competitive elimination. Second theory was proposed by McNaughton in 1985. He hypothesized that ungulates that grazed on the canopy grass species in the Serengeti could reduce plant species competition. Follow this idea, they would supply poorer competitors from the subcanopy with more sources, and, at the same time, they would diminish the loss of species through competitive elimination. Connell and Lowman (1989), who were authors of the third hypothesis, stated that deficient of herbivore predation on the abundant species might lead to monospecific tropical forests. Langenheim and Stubblebine (1983) introduced the forth thesis. They believed that in a case when herbivores would predate on certain conspecific chemical phenotypes seedling within this plant species might maintain nearby parent plants if they adequately vary in chemical profiles from their parent. In this way, predation could speed up competitive elimination in spite of Janzen-Connell idea about seed predation. On the other hand, it could also direct development of high genetic diversity within the aimed plant species. Fifth theory was announced by Connell in 1971. He stated that natural-enemy force (herbivores in this case) would be most successful. Also competitive elimination between plant species would be least expected in habitats with extremes of temperature and rainfall during the year i.e. lowland wet forests. In all above examples, herbivores control local plant diversity by decreasing the possibility of species loss through competitive elimination. It is vital, however, to think about the herbivores influence in a broader context. Mechanisms by which they can manipulate plant diversity in rainforests are worth to consider. Herbivores and their influence on competitive interaction is just one such mechanism. As an alternative, herbivores can have a direct impact on the existence of a plant species in a particular site by diminishing its local richness or completely removing it, independent of its competitive capability. More-indirect outcomes contain three pathways. First, herbivores might establish if a species appears at a given location by having an impact on its dispersal ability, and hence the possibility that it might emerge there. Second, once a seed has emerged at a given location, herbivores can have an influence on the physiological ability of the plant to determine, nurture and breed regarding the abiotic effects occurring in there. Third, herbivores might have an impact on emergence of species in a given site by decreasing its competitive capability. All in all, I believe I managed to introduce, explain and answer the topic question broadly. By introducing a selection of different examples I tried to cover many plant-animal interactions. That is why I can conclude that the tropical forests are a great habitat and environment for a variety of different species to coexist and co-evolve. Further, its favourable, warm, moisturised climate creates perfect developmental conditions for organisms to be able to persist and survive. However, one argument must not be omitted stating that tropical ecosystems may not be as biodiverse as previously thought (Novotny and Basset 2005). Hence, many comparisons between temporal and tropical zones should be taken into consideration to fully prove the idea. Nonetheless, from the number of organisms occurring within the tropics and their interactions it is easy to conclude that plant-animal interactions are tremendously important in order to preserve live in there. Moreover, because of different troph ic cascades and food webs biodiversity has to be maintained at an extremely high level so all organisms appearing in tropics will be able to stay alive. Word count: 3,289 words

Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard by Thomas Gray

Thomas Gray was the author behind Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard, which has proven to be a timeless literary piece. Written and published in the 18th century, the said poem generally contemplates on death and morality. However, it does not speak of merely any kind of death. Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard mourns the loss of the common village folk, and the idea of loss discussed in the poem is that of the dreams and opportunities that have been lost and unfulfilled by the common villager because of death. An elegy is a poem that mourns or grieves the deceased (Napierkowski).From the title itself, it can be derived that the poem is about death. However, Thomas Gray wrote the poem in such a way that the question of morality is focused on a single subject: the common man (Napierkowski). Gray points out that unlike artists, poets, politicians and celebrities, the common man dies without recognition, praise or applause. The author also dwells on the possibility of having a co mmon man— who eventually dies— to actually gain similar recognition given to more famous or richer people, but were never able to do so because of the loss of their life (Napierkowski).The poem begins with the â€Å"parting day,† or the end of the day (Gray; Cummings). The author describes the disappearing landscape, which is that of the country churchyard, at dusk (Jung). Not until the third stanza within the poem is when reference to the dead is mentioned. It also states the underneath the trees are the graves of the â€Å"forefathers† (Gray). In the sixth stanza, Gray wrote, â€Å"Oft did the harvest to their sickle yield,/ Their furrow oft the stubborn glebe has broke. † These two lines introduce the common people in the poem, and these folks are portrayed as workers of the land.Sickle is an instrument used in harvest; it is most distinguished for its blade which is shaped like a crescent (Cummings). Furrow refers to the indentation created by a plow for purposes of planting. The word â€Å"glebe† means â€Å"earth† (Cummings). In the seventh stanza, the speaker starts his defense of common men. Gray wrote, â€Å"Let not Ambition mock their useful toil,/Their homely joys, and destiny obscure. † This means that the hard work, simple desires and unrecognized efforts of common man must not be looked down upon.Gray continued, â€Å"Nor Grandeur hear with a disdainful smile/ The short and simple annals of the poor. † The â€Å"Grandeur† referred to in this line are the wealthy and powerful; the speaker states that these people have no right to be critical of the lives of the poor (Cummings). In the eighth stanza, the speaker simply affirms that regardless of status in life, all people will die (Cummings). Gray therefore concluded that â€Å"The paths of glory lead but to the grave† (Cummings). The idea of loss in the poem is first conveyed in the twelfth stanza. The speaker begins to c ontemplate about the chances lost to common men.Gray writes, â€Å"Perhaps in this neglected spot is laid/Some heart once pregnant with celestial fire. † The speaker considers the possibility that the deceased common people were filled with dreams or goals when they were still alive. The last two lines of the stanza is as follows: â€Å"Hands, that the rod of empire might have sway'd/ Or wak'd to ecstasy the living lyre† (Gray). The phrase â€Å"rod of empire† refers to the possibility of common man to become either an emperor or king; the last line's reference to the lyre implies the chance to be a musician (Cummings).The thirteenth stanza points out two factors that contributed to the unfulfilled dreams of common men: the lack of knowledge and poverty. In the first line, â€Å"But Knowledge to their eyes her ample page,† the speaker notes that the common men were not educated, which hindered their progress in life (Gray). The stanza's third line reads, â€Å"Chill Penury repress'd their noble rage† (Gray). â€Å"Penury† in this line means poverty; their poverty also prevented them from acting on their passions, and eliminating their ambitions in the process (Gray; Cummings).The fourteenth stanza contains the most identified lines in the entire poem (Cummings). It also expresses the intense despair the speaker felt about the lost opportunities for the common man. Full many a gem of purest ray serene The dark unfathom'd caves of ocean bear: Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, And waste its sweetness on the desert air (Gray). The speaker compares common men with ocean gems that have yet to be uncovered (Cummings). The next analogy is regarding flowers whose beauty is dulled by the desert; just like the flowers, the passions and talents of common people were dulled by circumstance.In the fifteenth stanza, the speaker mentions significant figures whose footsteps the common men would have followed if only they were given the chance. Two of which were Hampden and Milton. John Hampden was considered as a hero; as he was brave enough to defy the authority of King Charles I (Cummings). Meanwhile, John Milton is a renowned poet. The speaker believed that the village could have produced similar personalities. The sixteenth to the eighteenth stanza expresses the advantages and disadvantages of the common people's way of life.Gray wrote, â€Å"Their lot forbad: nor circumscrib'd alone/ Their growing virtues, but their crimes confin'd. † On one hand, the lot of common village folk forbade them from getting recognition from their virtues or contributions to society (Cummings). One of their contributions was their efforts to provide food, as they are mostly farmers. This remains unnoticed. On the other hand, their lot also forbade them to commit â€Å"crimes† they would have done if they were rich and powerful. The line â€Å"Forbad to wade through slaughter to a throne† meant that their status in life also forbade them from resorting to violence to become king (Cummings).Their lot also hindered them to â€Å"shut the gates of mercy on mankind,† which meant to show mercy to those who need it (Gray; Cummings). By the nineteenth stanza, the speaker resumes in speaking about the life of the common village folk. According to Gray, â€Å"Their sober wishes never learn'd to stray. † This meant that the common people remained in that kind of simple lifestyle (Cummings). Also, â€Å"They kept the noiseless tenor of their way† (Gray). This meant that they maintained the simplicity of their life (Cummings).At death, the common villager will also have a â€Å"frail memorial† but â€Å"with uncouth rhymes and shapeless sculpture deck'd† (Gray). This means that the stone of the grave would only contain simple words, with no elaborate engravings or design. Despite this, it still â€Å"implores the passing tribute of a sigh† (Gray). However simple a gravestone is, it can still cause passersby to sigh (Cummings). The common village folk, unrecognized and destined to be forgotten can only depend on a friend to be remembered. As Gray wrote, â€Å"On some fond breast the parting soul relies.† However, even at death, the common man seeks to be remembered (Cummings). As in the last lines of the twenty-third stanza: â€Å"E'en from the tomb the voice of Nature cries/ E'en in our ashes live their wonted fires† (Gray). Indeed, the poem Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard by Thomas Gray elevated the status and standing of common village folk. They may not have experienced fame and fortune as others had, but they deserved the same privileges if only they were given the chance. The death of a person is a cause for despair, but there is greater despair in not achieving what could have been done.The loss spoken about in the poem is greater than death itself. Works Cited Cummings, Michael. Elegy Written in a C ountry Church-yard. 2003. 8 May 2008 . Gray, Thomas. Elegy Written in a Country Church-yard. 2007. 8 May 2008 . Jung, Sandro. â€Å"Elegy Written in a Country Church-yard. † The Literary Encyclopedia. 30 October 2002. 8 May 2008 . Napierkowski, Marie Rose, ed. Poetry for Students. Detroit: Gale, 199

“Connected, but Alone” TED Talk

The TED talk, â€Å"Connected, but alone† by Sherry Turkle talks about how big of an influence technology had become in our generation and how it changed our social interaction. Sherry Turkle talked about how we turn to our phones or other gadgets to have a feeling of acceptance, companionship and interaction. She elucidated in her speech that people nowadays neglect social interaction with others around them and would rather tap away on their phones. She ended her speech hoping that technology can bring people back to the real world and connect us all with each other. I do agree that technology connected us to the world enabling us to learn more about the things around but in the long run, cultivated a feeling of isolation in us. Technology had connected us to the rest of the world but not with each other. At this day and age, technology had become a primary necessity for us. Professionals, students, employees or anyone rely mostly on technology to make their work easier for them. It is continuously developing and improving to make new inventions or improve old ones. Technology has done a lot of good things for us especially for Filipinos. It is not new for Filipinos to have at least one family member as an OFW and we find it hard to communicate with them regularly which is one of the problems that technology has fixed. Now, we can talk to anyone in the world no matter how far they are for us, for free. But even with these good benefits, we often tend to isolate ourselves from the real world and ignore the things or people around us. I can relate to this because as a teenager who grew up with computers and gadgets, I also feel that sometimes, since I can do everything in the internet, I would just stay in the house and tap away on my phone. Sometimes people would attend parties or other formal gatherings to interact with friends or family but now, some are just doing it to take pictures to post on Facebook or Instagram, flaunting their outfits to get a lot of â€Å"likes† which has now become a measure of confidence for some people. Families would sit around the dining table but instead of talking to each other about how their days went, everyone would be on their gadgets. We are also introduced to â€Å"virtual friends†, or people we find online and chat with them. While this is also a good example of how technology has made communication easier for us, when we actually feel the need to talk to someone personally and want to be around people, we feel lonely because we spent too much time online instead going out and meet up with friends. Sherry Turkle ended the TED talk by saying that we need to focus on the ways that technology can lead us back to our real lives. While technology brought about a lot of innovations to make work easier for humans, we must not completely rely on it and we must experience the world in real life and not just through a screen. Overall, the TED talk was effective and accurately describes how our generation utilizes technology for communication. I hope that this TED talk may serve as a wake-up call to not lose our connection with people in the real world and use technology to further improve communication without completely disregarding actual and real-life interaction.

Vampires Myth And Metaphors Of Enduring Evil, By Bram...

Feminism was a rising social shift in the late nineteenth century. Womens sexuality was seen as impure and insensitive to the society. Because of this, the feminist’s objective was to modify the conviction of the perfect Victorian while being able to express oneself sexually without shame. In other words, many women had sexual desires, but could not express them because of the society’s standard of women. To support this, Lois Drawmer wrote in his article, â€Å"Vampires: Myth and Metaphors of Enduring Evil†, â€Å"development of the womens movement received a backlash in the resurgence of reactionary ideology of â€Å"deviant† female sexuality† (Drawmer 1). Feminism was frowned upon because of the social and sexual standards of the era. Therefore,†¦show more content†¦This is exactly what Stoker did. With this in mind, if vampires are evil and they are highly sexual, that means sexual desires are evil. Count Dracula himself displays such s exual acts as he intakes Mina, â€Å"With his left hand he held both Mrs. Harker hand, keeping them away with her arms at full tension; his right hand gripped her by the back of the neck, forcing her face down to his bosom. Her white nightdress was smeared with blood, and a thin stream trickled down the man’s bare breast.† (Stoker 304). In truth, the violence of him forcing Mina to intake his bloodily fluids into her own, showcases sexual interactions. Even the content of which words Stoker uses for vampires are sexual like the words, â€Å"tension† and â€Å"gripped†. Additionally, not only is Dracula sexual but, the three women vampires are increasingly sexual because they are women which is to provide a stronger point. Stoker describes the female vampires as, â€Å"deliberate voluptuousness which was both thrilling and repulsive, and she arched her neck she actually licked her lips like an animal, till I could see in the moonlight the moisture shining on the scarlet lips† (40). The word usage of, â€Å"voluptuousness†, â€Å"thrilling†, and â€Å"repulsive† are sexual words that adds to a typical scene to suppress the sexual interactions that the novel portrays. Stoker adds these words to dramatically express the sexual desire yet toShow MoreRelatedVictorian Women And Feminism In Bram Stokers Dracula1979 Words   |  8 Pagesthe late Victorian society wrote their speculation about womens newfound sexual desires without directly expressing the acts. The emerging feminist views in the Victorian society, infuses the way Bram Stoker metaphorically personifies his perfect Victorian woman character Lucy Westenra, into a vampire in the gothic horror novel, Dracula, that showcases the social shift in female sexuality. The perfect Victorian women were pure, sensitive and a noble wife of a man. Many are to disclose that Lucy

Legalization Of Medical And Recreational Use Of Marijuana

The legalization of marijuana has been a very controversial topic that has everyone asking each other, is it really worth it? For many, the thought of legalizing a drug, which the government has classified as a Schedule 1 drug is, mind boggling to them. I am going to prove that the pros about the legalization of medical and recreational use of marijuana are greatly outweighing the cons. I will show with statistical evidence that legalization is beneficial in many ways such as generating higher state revenues, decreased crime rates, decreased imprisonment rates for petty drug crimes, breakthroughs in the medical field and that in general, banning marijuana is preventing our economy from its potential growth. A Thriving Economy Although the phenomenon of marijuana legalization is fairly new to this generation (excluding the sixties) the evidence speaks for itself. I’m first going to discuss Colorado, which was the first state to legalize recreational marijuana and also among the first few states to legalize medical marijuana as well. When Colorado voted to pass Amendment 64 in 2012, which was the right to regulate marijuana like alcohol, voters seemed to be almost split right down the middle but with the people in favor of legalize just about 10 percent ahead. Obviously the process was a little lengthy due to regulations and licensing, so about two years after the bill was passed, the first retail stores for marijuana opened on January 1, 2014 to ring in the New Year. AShow MoreRelatedThe Legalization Of Recreational And Medical Use Of Marijuana1237 Words   |  5 PagesThe legalization of recreational and medical use of marijuana is still a controversial social issue faced by the United States. Although marijuana was seen as a dangerous drug back in the 1900’s, research has revealed the truth about marijuana, making the drug less frightening towards Americans. Now in the year 2015, marijuana is generally more accepted by Americans and many more see marijuana in a positive manner. Although marijuana does have some negative side effects, the side effects are notRead MoreShould Marijuana Be Legalized? Essay1223 Words   |  5 Pagesthat the marijuana industry has had on the economies of the states which have legalized recreational marijuana use for consumers over the age of 21. Many predictions were made referring to the outcome of marijuana legalization, however, most predictions made did not foretell the actual outcome. The act of legalization in the state of Colorado has yielded many advantages in the field of marketing. With these advantages, however, come many disadvantages. This study will identify how marijuana legalizationRead MoreShould Mariju ana Be Legalized?972 Words   |  4 PagesMarijuana Legalization For thousands of years, marijuana has been used for a myriad of purposes ranging from medical use to recreational use. Although small steps are being for marijuana legalization across the country, there is still a long way to go. Some folks argue that marijuana is a gateway drug and impairs judgement, causing people to act recklessly. However, extensive studies have been conducted on the effects, risks, and benefits of marijuana, and have proven marijuana to be safer thanRead MoreShould Marijuana Be Legalized?1565 Words   |  7 PagesMarijuana Legalization From mandatory crop to illegal drug, cannabis has gone from revered to criminal in the course of United States history. Its fall from grace has been an education in mass hysteria, propaganda, market manipulation and greed. Fortunately, for those suffering debilitating medical conditions and those that wish to enjoy its euphoric effects alike, it appears that the pendulum is swinging in the opposite direction. The close of the 2015 legislative session revealed a potentialRead MoreEssay Astonishing Statistics of Marijuana Use in Minors1539 Words   |  7 Pagesmillion Americans ages 12 and over have reported to using marijuana at least once within the previous year. That number alone is an astonishing statistic on marijuana users. Although marijuana has been a drug with increasing popularity especially throughout the past couple of years due to the legalization in some states. In November of 2012 history was made when Washington and Colorado both legalized marijuana for recreational use. Although marijuana is considered to be a Schedule 1 drug, which means itRead MoreThe Legalization Of Marijuana And Marijuana Essay1314 Words   |  6 PagesMarijuana or Cannabis is one of the bused drugs in America and the rest of the world. Interesting accumulating evidence show that the significant negative impact of this drug outweighs the positive effects. However, the medical benefits of the drug seem on the process of chemical compounds as compared to the drug itself. Medical debates show that chemical compound in marijuana are the problem as compared to the plant. The said chemical compound affects the mental and physical health of the personsRead MoreShould Marijuana Be Legalized? Essay1372 Words   |  6 PagesLegalization of Weed Growing up, everyone is told that, â€Å"Drugs are bad for you,† time and time again. Now as a kid you don’t really understand the reasoning behind it, but you listen to your authority figure regardless. I remember being told this my entire life and even to this very day. But as I got older I realized that people would still use drugs even though it’s illegal. I could never understand why someone would go against the law and jeopardize their life just to use drugs? The drug thatRead MoreShould Marijuana Be Legalized?1456 Words   |  6 PagesPossession and use of marijuana is illegal in over half of the United States, but it is still the third most popular recreational drug in the United States. The debate for this drug to be legal has been going on for many years; some states have legalized the drug for medical use, and some for recreational use as well. Other states seem to disagree; they are not in favor of making the drug legal for medical use or recrea tional use. It has been proven that marijuana has a positive impact on societyRead MoreThe Importance of Legalizing Marijuana701 Words   |  3 Pagesleave the ones who smoke marijuana. 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The use of marijuana can be for many reasons such as, socializing, obtaining a high, escaping