Dramatic Monologue Essay

The Dramatic Monologue is a type of a lyric poem. It was developed in the Victorian period. Robert Browning is said to have perfected the Dramatic Monologue, with poems such as My Last Duchess, and Soliloquy of a Spanish Cloister. As its name states, it is a monologue, hence it is a speech uttered by a single person. In its fullest form, the dramatic monologue has three salient features Firstly, a single person who is patently not the poet, utters the speech that makes up the whole of a poem, in a specific situation at a critical moment. The dramatic monologue must occur at a critical moment, as it is this feature that distinguishes the dramatic monologue from a monologue. It also gives a dramatic effect, as it gives the reader the feeling that the something has happened before which has led to the utterance of the dramatic monologue. For instance, in the poem, The Forsaken Merman by Matthew Arnold, the Mermans human wife has abandoned him and their children in order to go pray in a church. The Merman utters the poem at the time when he realizes that that his wife will never come back. Secondly, this person addresses and interacts with one or more other people, but we know of the auditors presence only from clues in the discourse of the single speaker. The auditor never speaks, but we know of what he or she says and does when the speaker tells us. For instance, in the poem The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S. Eliot, the implied auditor is Prufrocks lover. We know of her presence when Prufrock addresses her, for example Let us go then, you and I. This first line of the poem tells us then that the poem is addressed to a specific person. Another instance is Oh, do not ask, What is it? This line tells us that the auditor, that is the lover does interact with the speaker, Prufrock, but we know about these interactions only through what the speaker says. Thirdly, the main principle controlling the poets formulation of what the lyric speaker says is to reveal to the reader, in a way that enhances its interest, the speakers temperament and character. This focus on self revelation is what distinguishes the dramatic monologue from its near relation, the dramatic lyric, which is also a monologue at an identifiable  moment but it does not reveal any new facts. For example, in the poem Porphyrias lover by Robert Browning, the lover who is the speaker, through the course of the poem reveals his insanity. He reveals that though Porphyria was beautiful and loved him, he was still dissatisfied until the point of time that he realizes that Porphyria worships him. It is at this point of time that he reveals his insanity, when unable to contain his emotions on realizing the extent of Porphyrias devotion, he wound her hair Three times her little throat around | And strangled her. Thus, such revelations are characteristic of a Dramatic Monologue. A Dramatic Monologue may or may not have all three characteristics. For instance, the poem â€Å"Dover Beach† by Matthew Arnold does not take place at a critical moment. Yet, it is considered a dramatic monologue as it is uttered by a single speaker, and it has an implied auditor, the speaker’s love, whom he addresses in the last stanza â€Å"Ah, love, let us be true†. Thus the dramatic monologue is flexible as a poetic style. Bibliography : â€Å"A Glossary of Literary Terms† -M.H. Abrams, 7th EditionPersonal notes from lecturesPoems :†The Forsaken Merman† – Matthew Arnold†The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock† – T. S. Eliot†Porphyria’s Lover† – Robert Browning

Pow 13 Imp 1 Corey Camel

POW #13 Corey Camel Problem Statement: Corey the Camel has a small banana grove in the desert, her harvest this year was 3,000 bananas. The market where Corey sells her bananas is 1,000 miles away. Corey has to walk to the market to sell her bananas, for each mile Corey walks, she eats one banana. Corey can only carry 1,000 bananas at a time. In this POW the goal is to find the number of bananas that Corey can get to the market. Process: To find the answer to this POW I did the mini POW, as suggested. I used the same process for POW 13, as I did for the mini POW.The process is as follows: 1. Corey starts the trip with 1,000 bananas. 2. She travels 200 miles, she’s left with 800 bananas. She stashes 600 bananas at 200 mile point, keeping 200 the trip back. 3. Corey picks up another 1,000 bananas. 4. She travels 200 miles, she has 800 left. She then picks up 200 from the bananas stashed. She now carries 1000 bananas and has 400 more stashed. 5. She travels an additional 333 1/3 miles, she’s left with 666 2/3 bananas, she stashes 333 1/3 there (533 1/3 mile point), she has 333 1/3 bananas left. 6. She then travels back 333 1/3 miles to 200 mile point.She has no bananas left, so picks up 200 stashed (leaving 200 still at 200 mile point), and travels back to the grove, 200 miles away. 7. She picks up another 1,000 bananas at the grove. 8. She travels to the 200 mile point, leaving her with 800 bananas, she picks up remaining 200 stashed. 9. With 1,000 bananas, she travels 333 1/3 miles to 533 1/3 mile point, she is then left with 666 2/3 bananas. 10. She picks up all 333 1/3 that were stashed there 11. She’s back at 1000 bananas 12. She makes remaining 466 2/3 mile trip, 1000-466 2/3 = 533 1/3 bananas left to sell at the market.Solution: a. Corey the Camel will have 533 1/3 bananas to sell at the market. b. Yes, I do think that my solution is the best possible, because if you try stashing less bananas at the 200 mile point, or traveling further before stashing bananas, you always fall short of the 533 1/3 bananas that this method gives you. 533 1/3 is the most possible bananas that Corey the Camel can get to the market. c. The problems are basically identical, just the mini POW uses smaller numbers. It’s easier to work with and helped a lot in finding the answer to the POW.The answer is related, because you go basically the same steps, just with smaller amounts of bananas and miles. Evaluation: I definitely think that this POW was worthwhile; it made me think deeply about what the answer could be. I got a little frustrated for a moment, because at first glance, I would expect the answer to the POW to be 0 bananas, however, the more you look at it, you figure out multiple ways to solve it. The best part about this POW was it’s critical thinking factor, you really need to take into account many perspectives and ways to solve the problem.

Major Changes In The Way Sociologists Have Understood Religion During The 20th Century

The word religion is derived from the Latin noun religio, which denotes both earnest observances of ritual obligations and an inward spirit of reverence. In modern usage, religion covers a wide spectrum of meanings that reflect the enormous variety of ways the term can be interpreted. Religion in this understanding includes a complex of activities that cannot be reduced to any single aspect of human experience. It is a part of individual life but also of group dynamics. Religion is a sacred engagement with that which is believed to be a spiritual reality.Religion is a worldwide phenomenon that has played a part in all human culture and is so much broader, more complex category than the set of beliefs or practices found in any single religious tradition. An adequate understanding of religion must take into account its distinctive qualities and patterns as a form of human experience, as well as the similarities and differences in religion across human cultures. According to antiquity o f religious study, the first Western attempts to understand and document religious phenomena were made by the Greeks and the Romans.As early as the 6th century BC, Greek philosopher Xenophanes noted that different cultures visualized the gods in different ways. In the following century, Greek historian Herodotus recorded the wide range of religious practices he encountered in his travels, comparing the religious observances of various cultures, such as sacrifice and worship, with their Greek equivalents. Roman historians Julius Caesar and Cornelius Tacitus similarly recorded the rites and customs of peoples that they met on their military campaigns. By the end of the 19th century, scholars were making religion an object of systematic inquiry.German scholar, Friedrich Max Miller’s comparative approach, that every religion possessed some measure of truth, was adopted in many European and Japanese universities. In addition, field anthropologists had begun to compile firsthand ac counts of the religions of people who previously had been dismissed as savages. The study of tribal religions contributed a great deal to the general analysis of the role of religion in human societies. By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, scholars had begun to pose basic questions about the origin and development of religious ideas.Scholars questioned how religion began and the stages of its evolution. Some maintained that it originated with animism (belief in spirits), then evolved into the notion that there were many gods (polytheism), and ultimately emerged as the ideal of a single god (monotheism). Others held that religion began in a sense of awe at the impressive activities of nature, in a feeling of reverence for the spirits of the dead, or in an attempt to overcome mortality. Many other important questions about the nature of religion were addressed during this period: Can religion be divided into so-called primitive and higher types?Is religion a product of psycholog ical needs and projections? Is it a function of political and social control? Such questions have continued to generate a large number of theories. Romanian scholar Mircea Eliade, who taught at the University of Chicago from 1957 to 1985, emphasized that religious people experience the ordinary world differently from non-religious people because they view it as a sacred place. In Eliade’s view, believing in the divine foundations of life, transforms the significance of natural objects and activities.He believed that for the homo religious (Latin for â€Å"religious man,† a term used by Eliade to designate a person who lives according to a religious worldview), time, space, the earth, the sky, and the human body can all come to have a symbolic, religious meaning. Like Rudolf Otto, Eliade held that the study of religion must not reduce to something merely social or psychological, but must take seriously the idea that in the believer’s world the experience of sacre dness defines a distinctive reality. Modernity has posed acute challenges to traditional religions.In the 1906s membership in mainstream Christian denominations began to decline, and candidates for the priesthood were less numerous. For a large number of people in modern societies, religion is neither good nor bad but simply irrelevant, given the many alternative ways to find meaning in various forms of cultural pursuits, ethical ideals, and lifestyles. These challenges to religion are partly a result of the prestige of science. The sciences describe a universe without reference to deities, the soul, or spiritual meaning.In addition, critical studies of biblical history have demonstrated that the Bible is not unique among ancient religious and historical documents. For example, the biblical stories of the Garden of Eden and the Deluge (universal flood) are common to other ancient Middle Eastern religions. Other factors that have contributed to a decline in religious participation in the 20th century include the presentation of religion as a prescientific form of superstitious thinking, as a source of political control and divisiveness, as a confirmation of established patriarchal values, or as an emotional crutch.In addition, many families are no longer able to maintain stable religious traditions because they are disconnected from traditional, supportive religions or as a result of mixed or nonreligious marriages. Another influence has been the loss of community and social commitment that has followed in the wake of increased mobility. Frequent changes of location can result in a sense of impermanence or instability. This is particularly true of a move from town to city, which often results in the loss of stable community structure.Social uprooting can lead to religious uprooting because religious affiliation is closely related to social ties. Evangelicalism in its various forms, including fundamentalism, offers a different response to modernity. Conservative movements, which have appeared internationally in every major religious tradition, have gained vitality by protesting what they see as the conspicuous absence of moral values in secular society. In times of anxiety and uncertainty, such movements present scripture as a source of doctrinal certainty and of moral absolutes.Against the secularism of the day, evangelical movements have succeeded in creating their own alternative cultures and have acquired considerable political influence. For all its challenges to the traditional religious identity, modernity has at the same time created new spiritual opportunities. Thousands of new religious movements emerged in the 20th century, offering alternative forms of community to people otherwise removed from past associations and disenchanted with modern values.Collectively, these new religions offer a large number of options, and addressing virtually every conceivable type of spiritual need. In a sense, modernity has created needs and probl ems for which new movements are able to present them as solutions. Some offer ethnic revitalization; others, techniques of mediation and self-improvement; and still others, have the power of alternative or spiritual forms of healing. Buddhist- and Hindu-derived movements continue to have considerable followings among Westerners searching for truths beyond Judeo-Christian tradition.Further, in a world where home life has become less stable, an international movement such as the Unification Church emphasizes the holiness and divine restoration of the institution of the family. Currently, one of the most rapidly growing religious movements is Pentecostalism, which takes its name from the festival day when the first Christian community felt the power of the Holy Spirit pour out on them. Pentecostalism’s grass roots services provide direct, ecstatic spiritual experiences.A quite different but also widespread form of spirituality is that of the so-called New Age Movement, which off ers individuals the opportunity to reconnect with mystical dimensions of the self and thus with the wider cosmos-relationships that are typically obscured by secular culture and often are not addressed in biblical traditions. In summary, there have been many changes in the way religion is viewed in the 20th century, in all aspects of sociological templates, that is, historical, structural, cultural, and critical aspects.

Analysing The Challenges Facing Multilateral Organisations Today Politics Essay

Analysing The Challenges Facing Multilateral Organisations Today Politics Essay War is often the result of non negotiable problems/disputes. Since the end of the Second World War, liberal international theory advanced the establishment of international organizations such as the United Nations (UN) and its sub bodies, in the belief that such international forums were where state members have a chance to discuss and air their common issues and grievances and could prevent war and, widen the corporations between nation states. However, since its creation, the legitimacy as well as the effectiveness of these multilateral institutions has always been questioned. The end of the Cold War marked a new era of world politics where the United States (US) became the predominant power in the international system. In addition, the Iraq war of 2003, led by the US, but was not authorised by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and the issue raised a question about the hegemonic position of the US over the United Nations. This is just one of the many challenges multilater al organizations like the UN are facing today. The terrorist attack on 9th November on the US and similar attacks elsewhere in the world, as well as the increasing threat of weapon of mass destruction (being used by either a rogue state such as Iran or a terrorist group) in the 21st Century is another major challenge for the United Nations and its administrative departments. Moreover, with the increasing involvement of non state actors and non governmental organizations nowadays, the value of formal institutions like the UN is clearly affected in adverse ways. To clarify if multilateralism is in crisis or not, it is essential to firstly look at the difficulties posed by these new dimensions to multilateralism, then evaluate its reaction and effectiveness at tackling them. In this essay, the focus will be on UN as this is often seen as the vanguard of multilateralism. Firstly, the essay will examine what multilateralism can be defined as and will name the current challenges which Mul tilateralism faces, it will then go on to give analysis of the sources of those troubles. Finally, it concludes that such multilateral institutions like the United Nations are under real challenge to the effectiveness of their multilateralism; however, it is not yet in a crisis situation. The leaders of these organizations can no long presume their exchanges to be â€Å"business as usual† but need to take into account these growing troubles and think more about â€Å"reform† if multilateralism is to continue to function in a stable way. Before discussing whether multilateralism is effective one needs to consider what exactly multilateralism is. For Paul Nielsson, UN Commissioner, multilateralism is about ‘all parties’ carrying out ‘concerted efforts’ to strengthen the international regulatory framework’ (Jorgensen, 2007, p.2) and involves states ‘pooling’ both resources and sovereignty. The problem for many participants in multilateral processes is that the processes themselves are ‘often slow and difficult, and rarely do their results satisfy every participant’ (ibid). Thus, multilateralism is by definition a process where participants cannot expect a zero-sum outcome, where they can clearly identify their gains or losses and say it was a success or failure. Multilateralism is a compromise between states where its greatest success is that everyone is a winner and everyone is a loser, because nobody gets everything they want.

The Marxist theory Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Marxist theory - Research Paper Example The Marxist theory According to Bechmann (143), the media institution must be considered to be a part of the economic system with close links to the political system. The consequence of this can be seen through the reduction of independent media sources, the concentration of the news on large markets, the avoidance of risks by media houses, and the reduction of investment in less profitable media tasks such as investigative reporting and documentary film making. There is also a neglect of the poorer sectors of the potential audience and the range of news media is often politically unbalanced. The Frankfurt School is a neo-Marxist thought which rebelled against modern society and media as creators and bearers of contemporary culture and ideology. Their criticism of mass communication media was that they hamper the road to a utopian society which is free from class and domination, and that media also stands in the way of change. Negt (61) states that by selectively presenting reality, including aspects o f culture, education, and entertainment (in which the bourgeois values enjoy priority) the media confirms and supports the dominant capitalist ideologies and thus maintains the status quo at the cost of the working class, which is represented by the masses. This school is therefore concerned about the ideological manipulation and exploitation of the mass media by capitalist considerations. The media dependency theory, which is also known as the media system dependency theory, has often been explored as an expansion of the gratification approach although here are some slight differences between the two theories, that is, media dependency looks to the viewers goal as the origin of the dependency while the gratification theory emphasizes on the needs of the audience. Both the dependency theory and the gratification theory are, however, in agreement that media use may lead to reliance and according to the media dependency theory, the more reliant a person is on the medium for having his or her requirements satisfied, the more significant the medium will be to that individual. According to Einwiller et al. (305), the individual’s reliance on a particular medium is influenced by the amount of media sources available to that individual because a person should become more reliant on a particular available media if his access to alternative media is inadequate. The more alternatives there are for a person, the less dependent will he be on only one specific medium. There are, in my opinion, more similarities than differences between the theories of Marxists and that of the media dependency concerning the media. Both are concerned about the effect of media on the society, especially more about the use of the elite within such a society of the media to further their own ends, namely, the maintenance of their status. Media is used to control the masses so that they do not rise in rebellion against the oppressive upper classes of their society. It is not used for the purpose of social progress, as is claimed by the heads of media corporations, but for the purpose of maintaining the status quo so that the lower classes can continue to render their services to the elite and in the process making the elite richer, while the working classes remain poor. By limiting the content and quality of the media that the masses can access, the elite are able to perpetuate and justify its reasons for dominating the society as well as why they oppress the working classes for their own benefit. A very good example is when one

Chicago Gun Laws and its effect on the Criminal Justice System Research Paper

Chicago Gun Laws and its effect on the Criminal Justice System - Research Paper Example In fact, perhaps Chicago is a case study in which we see quite clearly that strict gun controls harm the public rather than protect it, by removing legitimate access to firearms and leaving the illegal arms trade to those who have less legitimate purposes for those guns. The legal climate of Chicago’s gun control policies is complex and confusing to most who try to follow it, especially with the constitutional challenges even new laws are facing. A detailed study of these laws, and their respective effects on the criminal justice system, should provide a useful perspective on whether their existence is warranted given Chicago’s crime rates. Chicago’s reputation for strict gun control laws started in the 1980s when the city passed, along with Washington D.C., tighter restrictions on who can legally acquire and use firearms within the city limits. However, despite these laws being in place in both Washington D.C. and Chicago, neither city enjoyed a reduced crime ra te (Levitt 174). Although Chicago never received a careful analysis at this time, it was known that Chicago lagged behind the nationwide homicide decline during the 1990s. This had led those familiar with the Chicago legal situation to suggest that policies raising the cost of using guns as opposed to targeting ownership is the most effective strategy for reducing gun-related crime. Although Chicago’s policies against guns were well known even in the 1970s, some authors have remarked that enforcement of those laws is the weak link connecting gun control laws to reduced crime (Bendis and Balkin). Because gun laws vary by state to state and, in some cases, from city to city, the best strategy for understanding the impact of Chicago’s gun control laws is to examine those laws in the context of state laws related to guns. In Illinois, firearms are not required to be registered nor are carry permits issued. However, individuals need a state permit to purchase a firearm and an owner license is issued to every firearm owner. Part of this process is the Firearm Owner’s Identification (or FOID) card, which owners acquire from the Illinois state police (Illinois General Assembly). An individual must present a valid FOID card whenever he or she attempts to purchase firearms or ammunition. This allows the state to monitor the purchasing of firearms (1) to keep dangerous weapons out of the hands of dangerous people and (2) to assist in investigations in gun-related crime. Additionally, the use of FOID cards screens out and prevents individuals who have been convicted of a felony from acquiring firearms from a licensed vendor. The FOID card is difficult to acquire for individuals under 21 years (Illinois General Assembly). As the most populated and crime-ridden city in Illinois, Chicago has in place its own level of restrictions on gun ownership. For instance, the municipality has an ordinance in place that requires all firearm owners not only to have p ossession of a FOID card, but also that firearms are registered with the Chicago Police Department, in addition to the Illinois State Police. This policy did not include handguns up until June 2010, when new registrations of pistols were unfrozen by law after thirty years (AP). The effect of not allowing handguns was negative in the view of many city officials, who began to recognize the need for conceal-and-carry

Auditing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 2

Auditing - Essay Example The Big 4 dominate the auditing industry to such an extent that policy makers are worried about the effects of a possible reduction in their number. Questions such as pricing power, bargaining power, quality of audits, the independence of audited financial reports and other matters that usually attend to an oligopoly has bedevilled government regulators and industry experts alike. This paper looks at some of the outstanding issues facing an industry with few market players, especially on the possible scenarios when any of the Big 4 exits the market altogether for whatever reason. The Big 4 auditing and accounting firms, together with professional and accountancy organizations, are actively promoting positive reforms in both their accounting and reporting standards to improve credibility and confidence in audited financial reports. At present, these big four comprise an oligopoly that dictated prices for their services. In classical economic theory, this is an imperfect competition where a few sellers can manipulate prices if they want to. Economists call it as the concentration ratio or C4 in which the four biggest firms control more than 60% of an industry similar to aircraft manufacturing and telecommunications. In fact, a report by the General Accounting Office (GAO) of the US (renamed now to General Accountability Office in 2004) indicated concentration to be higher, approximately 78% of all the publicly-listed companies that constituted 99% of all public company sales (Bloom & Schrim 2005) and has serious implications with regards to the risks for collusion. The GAO report was commissioned in response to the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act the previous year and also due to concerns about the effects of audit mergers and consolidation on competition, cost, quality, pricing and the cherished principles of auditor independence. Due to the few market players in an oligopoly, the action of one market participant tends to be known by