Supreme Court Striking Down Taboos free essay sample

A paper which discusses the rulings of the U.S. Supreme Court on two cases dealing with interracial marriage and gay rights. The paper discusses how the U.S. Supreme Court provided tangible direction in 1967s Loving vs. Virginia and in 1986s Bowers vs. Hardwick. The paper shows that by ruling against states rights, the Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional to prohibit interracial marriage in Loving but sided with Georgia in Bowers and ruled that the state statute prohibiting sodomy was constitutional striking gay rights a blow from which they only began to recover in 1996. The paper explores how these two cases had an immense impact on the historical progress of the twentieth century the end of the century concerned itself primarily with equality and equal rights for various groups and these two cases were seminal in determining the course of the twenty-first centurys continuation of the quest for equal rights. We will write a custom essay sample on Supreme Court Striking Down Taboos or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Interracial marriages and gay rights represent much larger issues as if those issues are not large enough. American history since 1789 is one long debate between states rights and federal powers. Those usually willing to effect change in favor of minority groups have clamored for federal powers to refuse states the right to marginalize certain groups. Those who prefer the conservative whether evangelical Christian or not viewpoint call for the federal government to stay out of states regulations pertaining to hotbed issues like race and sexual orientation.

Russo-Japanese War and the Battle of Tsushima

Russo-Japanese War and the Battle of Tsushima The Battle of Tsushima was fought  May 27-28, 1905, during the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905) and proved a decisive victory for the Japanese. Following the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War in 1904, Russian fortunes in the Far East began to decline. At sea, Admiral Wilgelm Vitgefts First Pacific Squadron had been blockaded at Port Arthur since the opening action of the conflict while ashore the Japanese had laid siege to Port Arthur. In August, Vitgeft received orders to break out from Port Arthur and join with a cruiser squadron from  Vladivostok. Encountering  Admiral Togo Heihachiros fleet, a chase ensued as the Japanese sought to block the Russians from escaping. In the resulting engagement, Vitgeft was killed and the Russians were forced to return to Port Arthur. Four days later, on August 14, Rear Admiral Karl Jessens Vladivostok Cruiser Squadron met a cruiser force led by Vice Admiral Kamimura Hikonojo off Ulsan. In the fighting, Jessen lost one ship and was forced to retire. The Russian Response Responding to these reverses and encouraged by his cousin Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, Tsar Nicholas II ordered the creation of a Second Pacific Squadron. This would be composed of five divisions from the Russian Baltic Fleet, including 11 battleships. Upon arriving in the Far East, it was hoped that the ships would allow the Russians to regain naval superiority and disrupt Japanese supply lines. Additionally, this force was to aid in breaking the siege of Port Arthur before working to slow the Japanese advance in Manchuria until reinforcements could arrive overland via the Trans-Siberian Railroad. The Baltic Fleet Sails The Second Pacific Squadron sailed from the Baltic on October 15, 1904, with Admiral Zinovy Rozhestvensky in command. A veteran of the Russo-Turkish War (1877-1878), Rozhestvensky had also served as Chief of the Naval Staff. Steaming south through the North Sea with 11 battleships, 8 cruisers, and 9 destroyers, the Russians were alarmed by rumors of Japanese torpedo boats operating in the area. These led to the Russians accidentally fired on a number of British trawlers fishing near Dogger Bank on October 21/22. This saw the trawler Crane sunk with two killed and four other trawlers damaged. Additionally, seven Russian battleships fired on the cruisers Aurora and Dmitrii Donskoi in the confusion. Further fatalities were only avoided due to the Russians poor marksmanship. The resultant diplomatic incident nearly led Britain to declare war on Russia and the battleships of the Home Fleet were directed to prepare for action. To watch the Russians, the Royal Navy directed cruiser squadrons to shadow the Russian fleet until a resolution was achieved. Route of the Baltic Fleet Prevented from using the Suez Canal by the British as a result of the incident, Rozhestvensky was forced to take the fleet around the Cape of Good Hope. Due to a lack of friendly coaling bases, his ships frequently carried surplus coal stacked on their decks and also met contracted German colliers to refuel. Steaming over 18,000 miles, the Russian fleet reached Cam Ranh Bay in Indochina on April 14, 1905. Here Rozhestvensky rendezvoused with the Third Pacific Squadron and received new orders. As Port Arthur had fallen on January 2, the combined fleet was to make for Vladivostok. Departing Indochina, Rozhestvensky steamed north with the older ships of the Third Pacific Squadron in tow. As his fleet neared Japan, he elected to proceed directly through the Tsushima Strait to reach the Sea of Japan as the other options, La Pà ©rouse (Soya) and Tsugaru, would have required passing to the east of Japan. Admirals Fleets Japanese Admiral Togo HeihachiroPrincipal Ships: 4 battleships, 27 cruisers Russians Admiral Zinovy RozhestvenskyAdmiral Nikolai Nebogatov11 battleships, 8 cruisers The Japanese Plan Alerted to the Russians approach, Togo,  the commander of the Japanese Combined Fleet, began preparing his fleet for battle. Based at Pusan, Korea, Togos fleet consisted primarily of 4 battleships and 27 cruisers, as well as a large number of destroyers and torpedo boats. Correctly believing that Rozhestvensky would pass through the Tsushima Strait to reach Vladivostok, Togo ordered patrols to watch the area. Flying his flag from the battleship Mikasa, Togo oversaw a largely modern fleet which had been thoroughly drilled and trained. In addition, the Japanese had begun using high explosive shells which tended to inflict more damage than the armor-piercing rounds preferred by the Russians. While Rozhestvensky possessed four of Russias newest Borodino-class battleships, the remainder of his fleet tended to be older and in ill-repair. This was worsened by the low morale and inexperience of his crews. Moving north, Rozhestvensky attempted to slip through the strait on the night of May 26/27, 1905. Detecting the Russians, the picket cruiser Shinano Maru radioed Togo their position around 4:55 AM. The Russians Routed Leading the Japanese fleet to sea, Togo approached from the north with his ships in a line ahead formation. Spotting the Russians at 1:40 PM, the Japanese moved to engage. Aboard his flagship, Knyaz Suvorov, Rozhestvensky pressed on with the fleet sailing in two columns. Crossing in front of the Russian fleet, Togo ordered the fleet to follow him through a large u-turn. This allowed the Japanese to engage Rozhestvenskys port column and block the route to Vladivostok. As both sides opened fire, the superior training of the Japanese soon showed as the Russian battleships were pummeled. Striking from around 6,200 meters, the Japanese hit Knyaz Suvorov, badly damaging the ship and injuring Rozhestvensky. With the ship sinking, Rozhestvensky was transferred to the destroyer Buiny. With the battle raging, the command devolved to Rear Admiral Nikolai Nebogatov. As the firing continued, the new battleships Borodino and Imperator Alexander III were also put out of action and sunk. As the sun began to set, the heart of the Russian fleet had been destroyed with little damage inflicted upon the Japanese in return. After dark, Togo launched a massive attack involving 37 torpedo boats and 21 destroyers. Slashing into the Russian fleet, they relentlessly attacked for over three hours sinking the battleship Navarin and crippling the battleship Sisoy Veliki. Two armored cruisers were also badly damaged, forcing their crews to scuttle them after dawn. The Japanese lost three torpedo boats in the attack. When the sun rose the next morning, Togo moved in to engage the remnants of Nebogatovs fleet. With only six ships left, Nebogatov hoisted the signal to surrender at 10:34 AM. Believing this a ruse, Togo opened fire until the signal was confirmed at 10:53. Throughout the rest of the day, individual Russian ships were hunted and sunk by the Japanese. Aftermath The Battle of Tsushima was the only decisive fleet action fought by steel battleships. In the fighting, the Russian fleet was effectively destroyed with 21 ships sunk and six captured. Of the Russian crews, 4,380 were killed and 5,917 captured. Only three ships escaped to reach Vladivostok, while another six were interned in neutral ports. Japanese losses were a remarkably light 3 torpedo boats as well as 117 killed and 583 wounded. The defeat at Tsushima badly damaged Russias international prestige while signaling Japans ascent as a naval power. In the wake of Tsushima, Russia was forced to sue for peace.

29 Improv Opening Lines to Try

29 Improv Opening Lines to Try Here are 29 opening lines- improv starters- to get two-person improvisations jump-started. Each line is created to give the student actors a sense of the characters and setting for an improvised scene. Directions: Print this page and cut the paper into strips- one line per strip.Put the strips into a â€Å"hat†- a container.Assemble student actors into groups of two scene partners.Explain that one student actor per pair will pick a slip that has an opening line printed on it. That student actor will need to read and memorize the opening line, but will not reveal the line to his or her scene partner- yet. This line will be the first line spoken in the pair’s improv.Have one member of each pair pick a line out of the hat and memorize it.Remind student actors of the classroom improvisation guidelines.Have each pair present their improv.Hold a brief reflection on each improv- â€Å"What can you praise?† â€Å"What might they polish?† Opening Lines Excuse me, ma’am. I need to return this shirt for a refund.Miss, I am afraid I did not order a hot dog for dinner.Look, I know you hate this, but we need at least one good photo of you.So, Jordan, please explain why Paul’s homework was in your backpack.Officer, please, no! Don’t give me a speeding ticket!Do you think Mother would like this crown or the silver one?Oh! It is such an honor to meet you! Could I get your autograph for my daughter?Sir, your suitcase will not fit in the overhead bin.I think our cheer needs a better jump and some words that rhyme with team.Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome today’s guest- Pat Perkins- an expert on how to organize your desk!Look, my muscles are killing me! Can’t we take a break from this workout?Just rip the paper off! I can’t wait for you to see this totally unique gift!Excuse me, ma’am. Is that dinosaur skeleton real or is it just a model?Well, this is what we’ve been training for- t he Olympics! Are you ready to earn that gold medal?I think these shoes make my feet look far too big. Please get me a different pair. Ugh! All the other parents let their kids see PG-13 movies! You’ve just got to let me go!All you have to do is step-kick-step-kick-step-kick. Now try it with me.Behind us is the U.S. Capitol Building, and over there, you’ll see the Washington Monument.It’s just a little tattoo on my arm! Dad has one! I don’t see why you are so upset!Mr. Higgins, please tell our viewers how you plan to spend your lottery winnings!I understand you were an eyewitness to the skateboard theft. Please tell our viewers what you saw.Oh, I am so sorry, but pumpkin spice latte season ended yesterday! What other drink can I get you?Did you honestly think that a trail of breadcrumbs would help us find our way out of the forest and back to our house?Stop right there. You are not leaving this house dressed like that!Halt right there! You are not leaving this palace dressed like that!Your teacher tells me that your classroom behavior is inappropriate. What is your side of the story?I am so sorry, but your credit card has been declined. I’ll need another form of payment. O  woe! O pity! There is no way we shall ever reach the castle by dark!Ew! I thought you said you could cook!

Aspects of Contract & Negligence Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Aspects of Contract & Negligence - Assignment Example 1). For example, a contractor agrees to construct a building on a specific site for the site owner within a particular timeframe and pursuant to detailed specifications in consideration of a specific price to paid by the site owner. In ordinary circumstances this would be a gratuitous exchange of promises. However, since the parties (site owner and contractor) intend to create legal relations, the agreement is a contract and therefore the voluntary undertakings and promises become legal obligations under the law (Koffman and MacDonald, p. 1). For instance, if the contractor fails to construct the building within the specific timeframe, the site owner has a right to sue the contractor for a breach of contract and can seek compensatory damages for the same. Likewise, if the contractor lives up to his or her undertakings and promises and the site owner fails to pay the promised price for the same, the contractor can sue the site owner for breach of contract and may seek compensatory dam ages as well. In a typical case, the parties to a contract will expressly state or write out the terms of the contract. In this regard, each of the parties’ undertakings and promises will be articulated. The parties will then have a legal obligation to abide by those express terms (Ashcroft and Ashcroft, p. 50). The express terms of a contract will often have an impact on other persons who are not parties to the contract, although the right to enforce the express terms of a contract will only be applicable to the parties who have formed the contract and negotiated its terms and conditions (Ashcroft and Ashcroft, p. 51). The impact on other parties not parties to the contract can arise in specifically defined circumstances. For example a contract for a contractor to install doors and windows in a dwelling house for a site owner who leases the house to tenants will impact the tenants. In the installation of windows and doors, the tenants will be subjected to disruptions and int erruptions in their daily lives as the construction takes place. Therefore if for some reason either the contractor or the site owner delays the installation of the doors and windows, the tenants will be disadvantaged. Therefore in an action for breach of contract on the part of the contractor, the site owner may be entitled to claim additional damages for having to compensate the tenants either by a reduction in rent or a temporary relocation as a result of the delay. Therefore, although privity of contract only means that only the parties to the contract are bound by the specific terms and conditions in the contract, the impact of breaching those terms and conditions on third parties may increase the obligations of the parties to the contract (Koffman and MacDonald, p. 476). In the example provided (a contract for installing doors and windows), the contractor will also have to rely on other parties to ensure that he or she lives up to her specific terms and conditions. For example , the contractor will have to order doors and windows and will also have to enter into a contract for the delivery of the windows and doors. Therefore, two other contracts will come into play under the main contract and any breaches of these incidental contracts can impact the contractor’s ability to live up to the terms and conditions of the main contract (Koffman and MacDonald, p. 477). Therefore, if the windows and doors are not delivered on time, the contractor may be in breach of the contract with the site owner and in an action

Adminstrative Ethics and Patient Privacy Research Paper

Adminstrative Ethics and Patient Privacy - Research Paper Example These include trust and confidentiality among others. However, in the issue discussion, the paper aims at understanding recent ethical problems from different perspectives. In conclusion, it supports the concept of penalizing violators of patient privacy. In addition, different forms of thinking used in this paper are also discussed. In summary, similar to any other right, patient privacy is extremely fundamental thus deserves respect. Introduction In administrative ethics, beliefs are described as an acceptance that the administration and the staff people perceive at the hospital as truth or reality to private privacy. It may also include a conviction or opinion that is steadfastly held by the staff involved. Values, on the other hand, are the significant beliefs or attitudes, which people acknowledge by choice, pride or articulate in action with a sense of responsibility and ownership towards patient privacy. Similarly, perception involves the selection, organization and interpreta tion of sensory data in a form that enables us to understand the world patients and their privacy. Perception can also be the way people interpret outside events and experiences into sensible internal comprehension. Alternatively, administrative ethics involves the principles of right and wrong that determine the roles and functions of administration officers. On that note, it should involve responsibility to the society, virtues, principles, and benefits that assist the patient in safeguarding his privacy (Bruce, 2001). Ethics can also be the internal regulations that push a person to obey or not obey certain external facts. Therefore, what is the link between beliefs, values, perception and ethics in administrative matters and patient privacy? In this aspect, the general beliefs people have toward administrative ethics and the privacy of patients is what generates to various values. However, ethics is the perception of people toward these values in a setting such as a hospital and they relate to the privacy of patients. Ethical action according to me is the method of realizing a problem, producing substitutes and selecting among them in order for the substitute chosen to capitalize on the most significant ethical values. Additionally, the substitute selected is also meant to achieve the intended goal (Kaner, 2011). Therefore, in my view, the most important beliefs and customs in consideration of behavior pertaining to patient privacy are several. For instance, medical practitioners involved in the administrative ethics of patient privacy should have an open mind, which makes them unbiased towards their patients. In addition, their personal convictions should have ethical basis, which do not end up affecting the trust of the patients. Issue Statement Various contemporary administrative ethics are applicable in different organizational settings. For instance, there are positive issues such as honesty, fairness and integrity that have an effect on patient priva cy. On the other hand, there are negative issues in the form of lying, abusive or intimidating behavior, bribery, corporate intelligence and discrimination. However, in this case, we are going to discuss the administrative ethical issue of discrimination in relation to breach of a patient’s privacy. Discrimination as a form of negative ethical issue is the prejudice against a person on the grounds of color, disability, religion, marital status, sexual orientation, public assistance status and age among others (Abele, 2004). These forms of prejudice go at betraying the trust and confidentiality of the patient leading to gross violation of rights and freedoms. So, why do

Types of chocolate Essay Example for Free

Types of chocolate Essay Do you like chocolate? How many times do you eat chocolates in a day? Some people like to eat chocolates, some are even obsessed with them. Some people don’t like chocolates because those people think that they will make them fat. Some people just don’t like chocolates, without any clear reason. I believe that chocolate has many benefits which we can’t underestimate. Chocolate is a raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. It is Greek for â€Å"drink of Gods†. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico, Central and South America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC. Chocolate has to be processed from cocoa to be the chocolates we know. Most chocolates are brown-colored, even though there’s a variant of chocolate with white color called â€Å"white chocolate†. Chocolates come in many forms, for example, â€Å"chocolate bar†, â€Å"chocolate wafer†, â€Å"chocolate stick†, and so on. I personally like chocolate bars or chocolate balls. Chocolates have wide range of prices and you can find them in many places. There are chocolates which are very inexpensive, there are also chocolates that are costly. Chocolates are also easy to get, we can find chocolates everywhere. I love chocolates that are very delicious but not too expensive. Chocolates are very close to our life, we often eat them to gain pleasure. Chocolates are one of the most popular holiday gifts. The International Chocolate Day is observed on 13 September. Actually, chocolates have many benefits. That’s why we should not underestimate the power of chocolates. First, chocolate functions as remedy. In Harry Potter films, to heal Dementor’s Kiss, one must eat chocolates. Dementor is a creature in Harry Potter world that can absorb a person’s happiness by â€Å"kissing† them. We can say that Dementor is the manifestation of sadness and sorrow, while chocolates are the manifestation of happiness and joy. So, metaphorically, it says that to lessen sadness, we should eat chocolates. This thing is true because eating chocolates release endorphins in our brain, which can make us feel happier and more relaxed. Chocolate is a good stress-buster, it contains valeric acid that can immediately relax our muscles and nervous system. In my personal experience, when I eat chocolates, I feel satisfied. Second, chocolate can make us more beautiful. In fact, nutritionists claim that there are certain types of chocolate that can make our skin look more healthy and radiant. The high content of flavonoid in dark chocolate can moisturize and make our skin naturally shining and smooth. This ingredient can also absorb UV that can contribute to a better blood flow. There is also a chocolate-based mask, it’s believed that using chocolate mask can prevent wrinkles. Third, chocolate is beneficial for our health. Dark chocolate has been shown in studies to lower blood pressure in people with elevated blood pressure. Eating dark chocolate on a regular basis has been shown to reduce LDL cholesterol (unhealthy cholesterol) by as much as one percent. Several studies have found chocolates to be one of the best cancer-fighting foods. Chocolate works as cancer fighters by inhibiting cell division and reducing inflammation. Fourth, Chocolate makes us smarter. Again, it’s that increased blow flow to the brain. One recent study revealed that seniors who ate chocolate reported sharper cognitive ability for several a hours after eating it. According to a study done by the Department of Nutrition at the University of Oslo in Norway, people who regularly eat chocolate scored higher on cognitive tests than those who didn’t report eating as much chocolate. Fifth, Chocolate can unite people. Most people like chocolates. I usually share my chocolates to people, and they like them. Sharing can provoke happiness, sharing chocolates can make people happy and satisfied. But, there are a few cautions that we need to know when we want to eat chocolates. It doesn’t mean that we have to stop eating chocolates, but we just have to control it. There are limits in every human’s life, and eating chocolate has some limits too. First, chocolate can be addictive. If we’re addicted to chocolate, any kind of chocolates, it’s most likely that we will spend your money to buy it. We need to know that our money can be spent on many useful things like buying other healthy foods. Second, chocolate is a little bit dangerous. It’s high in oxalate which can cause kidney stones. According to sciencedirect. com, fifteen samples of commercially available cocoa powder were collected from four different countries, the total oxalate contents ranged from 360 to 567 mg/100 g DM. Oxalate is also found in spinach and almonds. Third, 50% of all chocolate, cocoa and chocolate flavoring is harvested by slaves, many of them are children. The cruelty of humanity is inserted in form of chocolate. Using slaves is very wrong, it’s a degradation of humanity. Those children aren’t able to get freedom. As humans, we should have empathy toward those child slaves. There are ways to overcome these obstacles in consuming chocolate. So, we don’t need to worry about consuming chocolate. First, eat other healthy foods other than chocolates. Our body needs much nutrition and chocolate can’t replace those foods. Focus on eating nutritious foods like fruits, vegetables or fish. We can spend our money on buying those healthy foods. Second, don’t eat it too much. I’m sure that chocolate isn’t that dangerous because it’s allowed to be eaten worldwide. And oxalate is also found in other kind of foods like spinach and almonds, but those foods are still eaten by people. So, I think we can still eat chocolate. But, just in case, don’t eat it too much. Third, eat chocolate from organic chocolate companies and fair-trade chocolate companies. Fair-trade is an organized social movement that aims to help producers in developing countries to make better trading conditions and promote sustainability. Organic chocolate is linked to fair trade because most organic chocolate companies also support fair trade. Fair-trade chocolate companies don’t employ children to be their workers. Organic chocolate/fair-trade chocolate may be more expensive than regular chocolate, but I think it’s worth it. Because we don’t need to eat happily while the child slaves are suffering. So, chocolate is very good to eat because it has many advantages. But, chocolate also has some disadvantages. There are ways to overcome these disadvantages. We can eat chocolate but we have to control the consumption of it. We should also eat chocolate from organic chocolate companies and fair-trade chocolate companies.

Eudora Weltys The Ponder Heart as Dramatic Monologue :: Eudora Welty The Ponder Heart

Eudora Welty's The Ponder Heart as Dramatic Monologue Dramatic Monologue", Edna is defined as the filter through which we see everything. "What we commonly call "point of view"-- is the nexus of our interpretation of the novel's characters, events, and thematic significance"(Nissen 1, emphasis added). According to Nissen Welty's narrators are often "ignored or misconstrued" by critics. In "The Ponder Heart", Edna Earle is an exemplary storyteller at her best and at her worst defined by critics as "bossy, narrow-minded and dumb" (Nissen 2, emphasis added). Edna Earle fits none of these negative lashes. She is a Southern woman who cares for her family and community and tries to put them in their best light for her audience. The form of dramatic monologue has long been a way for authors to give their audience an inside view by allowing us to be voyeurs; we are not part of the story, but simply folks who are passing by the actions at hand. With this genre tag already in place, we bring to our reading certain expectations. "In a sense, we never read a story for the first time; we bring into our reading the expectations that previous encounters with the genre have created" (Nissen 2). Nissen sees Edna Earle as putting herself second in the line of importance to the story she tells with Grandpa Ponder and Uncle Daniel as the primary forces that shape her narrative. She sacrifices her own needs in order to fill those of Grandpa and Uncle Daniel. "That she has been taken for granted must be painfully clear to the narrator as well as her audience" (Nissen 9). In this way, she arouses sympathy from her audience much in the same way as if we were passing by her on the street while she told her story to a friend. We hear her, but are not free to help her. We are strangers in her world and cannot affect the outcome of her circumstances. In closing, Nissen rewrites the end to reflect the importance of Edna Earle's voice as narrator. "I'd like to warn you again, Edna Earle may try to give you something--may think she's got something to give. If she does, do me a favor. Make out like you accept it. Tell her thank you" (Nissen 9). I agreed with Nissen's article, but believe he could have stated his points more concisely. This article was long for the amount he really had to say. There is clearly no arguing the point that The Ponder Heartis a monologue, yet he spends three pages

The Vampire Diaries: Dark Reunion Chapter Eleven

The car skidded in behind one of the police cars that was parked crookedly in the street. There were lights everywhere, lights flashing blue and red and amber, lights blazing from the Bennett house. â€Å"Stay here,† Matt snapped, and he plunged outside, following Stefan. â€Å"No!† Bonnie's head jerked up; she wanted to grab him and drag him back. The dizzy nausea she'd felt ever since Tyler had mentioned Vickie was overwhelming her. It was too late; she'd known in the first instant that it was too late. Matt was only going to get himself killed too. â€Å"You stay, Bonnie-keep the doors locked. I'll go after them.† That was Meredith. â€Å"No! I'm sick of having everybody tell me to stay!† Bonnie cried, struggling with the seat belt, finally getting it unlocked. She was still crying, but she could see well enough to get out of the car and start toward Vickie's house. She heard Meredith right behind her. The activity all seemed concentrated at the front: people shouting, a woman screaming, the crackling voices of police radios. Bonnie and Meredith headed straight for the back, for Vickie's window. What is wrong with this picture? Bonnie thought wildly as they approached. The wrongness of what she was looking at was undeniable, yet hard to put a finger on. Vickie's window was open-but it couldn't be open; the middle pane of a bay window never opens, Bonnie thought. But then how could the curtains be fluttering out like shirttails? Not open, broken. Glass was all over the gravel pathway, grinding underfoot. There were shards like grinning teeth left in the bare frame. Vickie's house had been broken into. â€Å"She asked him in,† Bonnie cried in agonized fury. â€Å"Why did she do that? Why?† â€Å"Stay here,† Meredith said, trying to moisten dry lips. â€Å"Stop telling me that. I can take it, Meredith. I'm mad, that's all. I hate him.† She gripped Meredith's arm and went forward. The gaping hole got closer and closer. The curtains rippled. There was enough space between them to see inside. At the last moment, Meredith pushed Bonnie away and looked through first herself. It didn't matter. Bonnie's psychic senses were awake and already telling her about this place. It was like the crater left in the ground after a meteor has hit and exploded, or like the charred skeleton of a forest after a wildfire. Power and violence were still thrumming in the air, but the main event was over. This place had been violated. Meredith spun away from the window, doubling over, retching. Clenching her fists so that the nails bit into her palms, Bonnie leaned forward and looked in. The smell was what struck her first. A wet smell, meaty and coppery. She could almost taste it, and it tasted like an accidentally bitten tongue. The stereo was playing something she couldn't hear over the screaming out front and the drumming-surf sound in her own ears. Her eyes, adjusting from the darkness outside, could see only red. Just red. The record player clicked and the stylus swung back to the beginning. With a shock, Bonnie recognized the song as it started over. It was â€Å"Goodnight Sweetheart.† â€Å"You monster,† Bonnie gasped. Pain shot through her stomach. Her hand gripped the window frame, tighter, tighter. â€Å"You monster, I hate you! I hate you!† Meredith heard and straightened up, turning. She shakily pushed back her hair and managed a few deep breaths, trying to look as if she could cope. â€Å"You're cutting your hand,† she said. â€Å"Here, let me see it.† Bonnie hadn't even realized she was gripping broken glass. She let Meredith take the hand, but instead of letting her examine it, she turned it over and clasped Meredith's own cold hand tightly. Meredith looked terrible: dark eyes glazed, lips blue-white and shaking. But Meredith was still trying to take care of her, still trying to keep it together. â€Å"Go on,† she said, looking at her friend intently. â€Å"Cry, Meredith. Scream if you want to. But get it out somehow. You don't have to be cool now and keep it all inside. You have every right to lose it today.† For a moment Meredith just stood there, trembling, but then she shook her head with a ghastly attempt at a smile. â€Å"I can't. I'm just not made that way. Come on, let me look at the hand.† Bonnie might have argued, but just then Matt came around the corner. He started violently to see the girls standing there. â€Å"What are you doing-?† he began. Then he saw the window. â€Å"She's dead,† Meredith said flatly. â€Å"I know.† Matt looked like a bad photograph of himself, an overexposed one. â€Å"They told me up front. They're bringing out†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He stopped. â€Å"We blew it. Even after we promised her†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Meredith stopped too. There was nothing more to say. â€Å"But the police will have to believe us now,† Bonnie said, looking at Matt, then Meredith, finding one thing to be grateful for. â€Å"They'll have to.† â€Å"No,† Matt said, â€Å"they won't, Bonnie. Because they're saying it's a suicide.† â€Å"A suicide?. Have they seen that room? They call that a suicide?† Bonnie cried, her voice rising. â€Å"Oh, my God,† Meredith said, turning away. â€Å"They think maybe she was feeling guilty for having killed Sue.† â€Å"Somebody broke into this house,† Bonnie said fiercely. â€Å"They've got to admit that!† â€Å"No.† Meredith's voice was soft, as if she were very tired. â€Å"Look at the window here. The glass is all outside. Somebody from the inside broke it.† And that's the rest of what's wrong with the picture, Bonnie thought. â€Å"He probably did, getting out,† Matt said. They looked at each other silently, in defeat. â€Å"Where's Stefan?† Meredith asked Matt quietly. â€Å"Is he out front where everyone can see him?† â€Å"No, once we found out she was dead he headed back this way. I was coming to look for him. He must be around somewhere†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Sh!† said Bonnie. The shouting from the front had stopped. So had the woman's screaming. In the relative stillness they could hear a faint voice from beyond the black walnut trees in the back of the yard. â€Å"-while you were supposed to be watching her!† The tone made Bonnie's skin break out in gooseflesh. â€Å"That's him!† Matt said. â€Å"And he's with Damon. Come on!† Once they were among the trees Bonnie could hear Stefan's voice clearly. The two brothers were facing each other in the moonlight. â€Å"I trusted you, Damon. I trusted you!† Stefan was saying. Bonnie had never seen him so angry, not even with Tyler in the graveyard. But it was more than anger. â€Å"And you just let it happen,† Stefan went on, without glancing at Bonnie and the others as they appeared, without giving Damon a chance to reply. â€Å"Why didn't you do something? If you were too much of a coward to fight him, you could at least have called for me. But you just stood there!† Damon's face was hard, closed. His black eyes glittered, and there was nothing lazy or casual about his posture now. He looked as unbending and brittle as a pane of glass. He opened his mouth, but Stefan interrupted. â€Å"It's my own fault. I should have known better. I did know better. They all knew, they warned me, but I wouldn't listen.† â€Å"Oh, did they?† Damon snapped a glance toward Bonnie on the sidelines. A chill went through her. â€Å"Stefan, wait,† Matt said. â€Å"I think-â€Å" â€Å"I should have listened!† Stefan was raging on. He didn't even seem to hear Matt. â€Å"I should have stayed with her myself. I promised her she would be safe-and I lied! She died thinking I betrayed her.† Bonnie could see it in his face now, the guilt eating into him like acid. â€Å"If I had stayed here-â€Å" â€Å"And that would have been better!† Stefan cried. His chest was heaving. â€Å"I would rather have died with her than stood by and watched it! What happened, Damon?† He had gotten hold of himself now, and he was calm, too calm; his green eyes were burning feverishly in his pale face, his voice vicious, poisonous, as he spoke. â€Å"Were you too busy chasing some other girl through the bushes? Or just too uninterested to interfere?† Damon said nothing. He was just as pale as his brother, every muscle tense and rigid. Waves of black fury were rising from him as he watched Stefan. â€Å"Or maybe you enjoyed it,† Stefan was continuing, moving another half step forward so that he was right in Damon's face. â€Å"Yes, that was probably it; you liked it, being with another killer. Was it good, Damon? Did he let you watch?† Damon's fist jerked back and he hit Stefan. It happened too fast for Bonnie's eye to follow. Stefan fell backward onto the soft ground, long legs sprawling. Meredith cried out something, and Matt jumped in front of Damon. Brave, Bonnie thought dazedly, but stupid. The air was crackling with electricity. Stefan raised a hand to his mouth and found blood, black in the moonlight. Bonnie lurched over to his side and grabbed his arm. Damon was coming after him again. Matt fell back before him, but not all the way. He dropped to his knees beside Stefan, sitting on his heels, one hand upraised. â€Å"Enough, you guys! Enough, all right?† he shouted. Stefan was trying to get up. Bonnie held on to his arm more firmly. â€Å"No! Stefan, don't! Don't!† she begged. Meredith grabbed his other arm. â€Å"Damon, leave it alone! Just leave it!† Matt was saying sharply. We're all crazy, getting in the middle of this, Bonnie thought. Trying to break up a fight between two angry vampires. They're going to kill us just to shut us up. Damon's going to swat Matt like a fly. But Damon had stopped, with Matt blocking his way. For a long moment the scene remained frozen, nobody moving, everybody rigid with strain. Then, slowly, Damon's stance relaxed. His hands lowered and unclenched. He drew a slow breath. Bonnie realized she'd been holding her own breath, and she let it out. Damon's face was cold as a statue carved in ice. â€Å"All right, have it your way,† he said, and his voice was cold too. â€Å"But I'm through here. I'm leaving. And this time, brother, if you follow me, I'll kill you. Promise or no promise.† Damon hitched up his jacket, straightening it. With a glance at Bonnie that scarcely seemed to see her, he turned to go. Then he turned back and spoke clearly and precisely, each word an arrow aimed at Stefan. â€Å"I warned you,† he said. â€Å"About what I am, and about which side would win. You should have listened to me, little brother. Maybe you'll learn something from tonight.† â€Å"I've learned what trusting you is worth,† Stefan said. â€Å"Get out of here, Damon. I never want to see you again.† Without another word, Damon turned and walked away into the darkness. Bonnie let go of Stefan's arm and put her head in her hands. Stefan got up, shaking himself like a cat that had been held against its will. He walked a little distance from the others, his face averted from them. Then he simply stood there. The rage seemed to have left him as quickly as it had come. What do we say now? Bonnie wondered, looking up. What can we say? Stefan was right about one thing: they had warned him about Damon and he hadn't listened. He'd truly seemed to believe that his brother could be trusted. And then they'd all gotten careless, relying on Damon because it was easy and because they needed the help. No one had argued against letting Damon watch Vickie tonight. They were all to blame. But it was Stefan who would tear himself apart with guilt over this. She knew that was behind his out-of-control fury at Damon: his own shame and remorse. She wondered if Damon knew that, or cared. And she wondered what had really happened tonight. Now that Damon had left, they would probably never know. No matter what, she thought, it was better he was gone. Outside noises were reasserting themselves: cars being started in the street, the short burst of a siren, doors slamming. They were safe in the little grove of trees for the moment, but they couldn't stay here. Meredith had one hand pressed to her forehead, her eyes shut. Bonnie looked from her to Stefan, to the lights of Vickie's silent home beyond the trees. A wave of sheer exhaustion passed through her body. All the adrenaline that had been supporting her throughout this evening seemed to have drained away. She didn't even feel angry anymore at Vickie's death; only depressed and sick and very, very tired. She wished she could crawl into her bed at home and. pull the blankets over her head. â€Å"Tyler,† she said aloud. And when they all turned to look at her, she said, â€Å"We left him in the ruined church. And he's our last hope now. We've got to make him help us.† That roused everyone. Stefan turned around silently, not speaking and not meeting anyone's eyes as he followed them back to the street. The police cars and ambulance were gone, and they drove to the cemetery without incident. â€Å"We left his feet untied,† Matt said heavily, with a grimace of self-disgust. â€Å"He must have walked away since his car's still down there.† Or he could have been taken, Bonnie thought. There was no mark on the stone floor to show which. Meredith went to the knee-high wall and sat down, one hand pinching the bridge of her nose. Bonnie sagged against the belfry. They'd failed completely. That was the long and short of it tonight. They'd lost and he had won. Everything they'd done today had ended in defeat. And Stefan, she could tell, was taking the whole responsibility on his own shoulders. She glanced at the dark, bowed head in the front seat as they drove back to the boarding house. Another thought occurred to her, one that sent thrills of alarm down her nerves. Stefan was all they had to protect them now that Damon was gone. And if Stefan himself was weak and exhausted†¦ Bonnie bit her lip as Meredith pulled up to the barn. An idea was forming in her mind. It made her uneasy, even frightened, but another look at Stefan put steel in her resolve. The Ferrari was still parked behind the barn-apparently Damon had abandoned it. Bonnie wondered how he planned to get about the countryside, and then thought of wings. Velvety soft, strong black crow's wings that reflected rainbows in their feathers. Damon didn't need a car. They went into the boarding house just long enough for Bonnie to call her parents and say she was spending the night at Meredith's. This was her idea. But after Stefan had climbed the stairs to his attic room, Bonnie stopped Matt on the front porch. â€Å"Matt? Can I ask you a favor?† He swung around, blue eyes widening. â€Å"That's a loaded phrase. Every time Elena said those particular words†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"No, no, this is nothing terrible. I just want you to take care of Meredith, see she's okay once she gets home and all.† She gestured toward the other girl, who was already walking toward the car. â€Å"But you're coming with us.† Bonnie glanced at the stairs through the open door. â€Å"No. I think I'll stay a few minutes. Stefan can drive me home. I just want to talk to him about something.† Matt looked bewildered. â€Å"Talk to him about what?† â€Å"Just something. I can't explain now. Will you, Matt?† â€Å"But†¦ oh, all right. I'm too tired to care. Do what you want. I'll see you tomorrow.† He walked off, seeming baffled and a little angry. The bulb in the attic ceiling lamp was missing, and Stefan had lighted a candle. He was lying haphazardly on the bed, one leg off and one leg on, his eyes shut. Maybe asleep. Bonnie tiptoed up and fortified herself with a deep breath. â€Å"Stefan?† His eyes opened. â€Å"I thought you'd left.† â€Å"They did. I didn't.† God, he's pale, thought Bonnie. Impulsively, she plunged right in. â€Å"Stefan, I've been thinking. With Damon gone, you're the only thing between us and the killer. That means you've got to be strong, as strong as you can be. And, well, it occurred to me that maybe†¦ you know†¦ you might need†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Her voice faltered. Unconsciously she'd begun fiddling with the wad of tissues forming a makeshift bandage on her palm. It was still bleeding sluggishly from where she'd cut it on the glass. His gaze followed hers down to it. Then his eyes lifted quickly to her face, reading the confirmation there. There was a long moment of silence. Then he shook his head. â€Å"But why? Stefan, I don't want to get personal, but frankly you don't look so good. You're not going to be much help to anybody if you collapse on us. And†¦ I don't mind, if you only take a little. I mean, I'm never going to miss it, right? And it can't hurt all that much. And†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Once again her voice trailed off. He was just looking at her, which was very disconcerting. â€Å"Well, why not?† she demanded, feeling slightly let down. â€Å"Because,† he said softly, â€Å"I made a promise. Maybe not in so many words, but -a promise just the same. I won't take human blood as food, because that means using a person, like livestock. And I won't exchange it with anyone, because that means love, and-† This time he was the one who couldn't finish. But Bonnie understood. â€Å"There won't ever be anyone else, will there?† she said. â€Å"No. Not for me.† Stefan was so tired that his control was slipping and Bonnie could see behind the mask. And again she saw that pain and need, so great that she had to look away from him. A strange little chill of premonition and dismay trickled through her heart. Before, she had wondered if Matt would ever get over Elena, and he had, it seemed. But Stefan- Stefan, she realized, the chill deepening, was different. No matter how much time passed, no matter what he did, he would never truly heal. Without Elena he would always be half himself, only half alive. She'd come up here to give Stefan a gift that he didn't want. But there was something else he did want, she realized, and only she had the power to give it to him. Without looking at him, her voice husky, she said, â€Å"Would you like to see Elena?† Dead silence from the bed. Bonnie sat, watching the shadows in the room sway and flicker. At last, she chanced a look at him out of the corner of her eye. He was breathing hard, eyes shut, body taut as a bowstring. Trying, Bonnie diagnosed, to work up the strength to resist temptation. And losing. Bonnie saw that. Elena always had been too much for him. When his eyes met hers again, they were grim, and his mouth was a tight line. His skin wasn't pale anymore but flushed with color. His body was still trembling-taut and keyed up with anticipation. â€Å"You might get hurt, Bonnie.† â€Å"I know.† â€Å"You'd be opening yourself up to forces beyond your control. I can't guarantee that I can protect you from them.† â€Å"I know. How do you want to do it?† Fiercely, he took her hand. â€Å"Thank you, Bonnie,† he whispered. She felt the blood rise to her face. â€Å"That's all right,† she said. Good grief, he was gorgeous. Those eyes†¦ in a minute she was either going to jump him or melt into a puddle on his bed. With a pleasurably agonizing feeling of virtue she removed her hand from his and turned to the candle. â€Å"How about if I go into a trance and try to reach her, and then, once I make contact, try to find you and draw you in? Do you think that would work?† â€Å"It might, if I'm reaching for you too,† he said, withdrawing that intensity from her and focusing it on the candle. â€Å"I can touch your mind†¦ when you're ready, I'll feel it.† â€Å"Right.† The candle was white, its wax sides smooth and shining. The flame drew itself up and then fell back. Bonnie stared until she became lost in it, until the rest of the room blacked out around her. There was only the flame, herself and the flame. She was going into the flame. Unbearable brightness surrounded her. Then she passed through it into the dark. The funeral home was cold. Bonnie glanced around uneasily, wondering how she had gotten here, trying to gather her thoughts. She was all alone, and for some reason that bothered her. Wasn't somebody else supposed to be here too? She was looking for someone. Step by step, as if something were pulling her, Bonnie approached the casket. She didn't want to look in. She had to. There was something in that coffin waiting for her. The whole room was suffused with the soft white light of the candles. It was like floating in an island of radiance. But she didn't want to look†¦ Moving as if in slow motion, she reached the coffin, stared at the white satin lining inside. It was empty. Bonnie closed it and leaned against it, sighing. Then she caught motion in her peripheral vision and whirled. It was Elena. â€Å"Oh, God, you scared me,† Bonnie said. â€Å"I thought I told you not to come here,† Elena answered. This time her hair was loose, flowing over her shoulders and down her back, the pale golden white of a flame. She was wearing a thin white dress that glowed softly in the candlelight. She looked like a candle herself, luminous, radiant. Her feet were bare. â€Å"I came here to†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Bonnie floundered, some concept teasing around the edges of her mind. This was her dream, her trance. She had to remember. â€Å"I came here to let you see Stefan,† she said. Elena's eyes widened, her lips parting. Bonnie recognized the look of yearning, of almost irresistible longing. Not fifteen minutes ago she'd seen it on Stefan's face. â€Å"Oh,† Elena whispered. She swallowed, her eyes clouding. â€Å"Oh, Bonnie†¦ but I can't.† â€Å"Why not?† Tears were shining in Elena's eyes now, and her lips were trembling. â€Å"What if things start to change? What if he comes, and†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She put a hand to her mouth and Bonnie remembered the last dream, with teeth falling like rain. Bonnie met Elena's eyes with understanding horror. â€Å"Don't you see? I couldn't stand it if something like that happened,† Elena whispered. â€Å"If he saw me like that†¦ And I can't control things here; I'm not strong enough. Bonnie, please don't let him through. Tell him how sorry I am. Tell him-† She shut her eyes, tears spilling. â€Å"Stefan, no! Elena says-† It didn't matter. His mind was stronger than hers, and the instant she'd made contact he had taken over. He'd sensed the gist of her conversation with Elena, but he wasn't going to take no for an answer. Helplessly, Bonnie felt herself being overridden, felt his mind come closer, closer to the circle of light formed by the candelabras. She felt his presence there, felt it taking shape. She turned and saw him, dark hair, tense face, green eyes fierce as a falcon's. And then, knowing there was nothing more she could do, she stepped back to allow them to be alone.

A Man’s Character Is His Fate to What Extent Is Othello’s Own Character?

‘A man’s character is his fate. ’ To what extent is Othello’s own character the cause of his downfall? According to Aristotle’s Poetics, a classical tragic hero should be renowned and prosperous, superior in some specific way, so that the reversal of fortunes or downfall, stirs up feelings within the audience of a greater intensity. Such disastrous results are often triggered by the mistake of the tragic hero due to their tragic flaw or hamartia, which is often linked to hubris or excessive pride.In Shakespeare’s Othello, as a General of the Venetian army, Othello meets these criteria, as his mistake is to trust ‘honest Iago’ and convince himself that revenge upon Desdemona will lead to honour and success. In fact, as with most tragic heroes, it is this decision which leads to his destruction. However, it is important to consider whether Othello’s ruin was the inevitable result of the defects in his character or whether the re were other forces, outside of his control, which led him to his doom.If it is solely Othello’s hamartia which leads to his downfall, then it must be related to the change in his perception of Desdemona. In Act 1, when warned by Brabantio that Desdemona may also deceive Othello, Othello retorts passionately: ‘My life upon her faith! ’ The exclamation here demonstrates the dedication and trust that Othello feels towards his new wife, but by Act 3, Othello is already beginning to doubt her: ‘By the world,/ I think my wife by honest, and I think she is not’ (3. 3. 389).Shakespeare’s use of cosmic imagery when Othello swears illustrates the magnitude of Othello’s resentment at his own hesitation, as his judgement is usually impulsive, as in Aleppo, (5. 2. 361) when he knew immediately to ‘smote him thus’, as he was certain of his enemy, but in this case, doubt has impaired his vision and he is unsure who to trust: his new wif e or ‘honest Iago’. Othello’s peripeteia occurs when he decides to trust Iago; however, the audience are surprised at this decision, as it is unclear what has changed his perception of Desdemona so that he condemns her as ‘that cunning whore of Venice’ (4. . 88). Some critics are of the opinion that it is jealousy that has clouded his judgement thus, and argue that this must be his hamartia. However, it is equally possible that Shakespeare has given Othello the ‘fitness of character’ that Aristotle stated was an important feature of a tragic hero, as his true hamartia may be his value of the honour-shame culture which existed among European Elizabethan warriors, and is linked to the hubris common in tragic heroes.It can be argued that the shame induced by the idea of his wife’s unfaithfulness results in his downfall, which Shakespeare expresses through animalistic imagery: ‘I had rather be a toad/ And live upon the vapour of a dungeon/ Than keep a corner in the thing I love/ For others’ uses’. Therefore, Desdemona’s murder becomes an act of sacrificial love: ‘A murder which I thought a sacrifice’ (5. 2. 64) as he feels that ‘else she’ll betray more men. Perhaps it is for this reason that, in his death scene, Othello says: ‘For naught I did in hate, but all in honour’ (5. 2. 301) and calls himself ‘An honourable murderer’. Either way, possible flaws like these suggest that Othello’s downfall was his own doing as such traits may have driven him to trust Iago and murder Desdemona, actions which in his anagnorisis led to extreme suffering, and caused him to commit suicide. Alternatively, Othello’s impulsive and passionate nature could also have contributed to his downfall, as this may have been his hamartia.This would fit the necessary ‘consistency’ outlined by Aristotle, as the same passion and instantaneou s response can be found in his reaction to Brabantio in scene 1 as in the later scenes, in his immediate reaction to Iago’s suggestive statements. At first Othello responds calmly: ‘Why dost thou ask? ’But the more evasive Iago is of such questions, the more it riles Othello and Shakespeare uses cosmic imagery when Othello swears such as ‘By heaven, I’ll know thy thoughts’ to demonstrate the value that Othello assigns to Iago’s opinions.When Iago eventually suggests that Desdemona is dishonest, Othello trusts Iago to ‘Give [him] the ocular proof’ (3. 3. 361), and some critics may argue that this rash decision to trust Iago is proof that Othello is impulsive, causing him to make foolish decisions. It is for this reason that he accepts Iago’s story of Cassio’s dream as the ‘ocular proof’ even though Iago admits ‘’Tis a shrewd doubt, though it be but a dream’; Othello immediately reacts: ‘I’ll tear her all to pieces! ’ (3. 3. 433).Shakespeare then uses dark and malignant imagery to show Othello’s passionate rage with phrases such as ‘Arise black vengeance’ and ‘tyrannous hate! ’ Such imagery would have been significant to an Elizabethan audience, as they considered the colour white to symbolise purity and goodness, whereas black had strong connotations of the devil, evil and uncleanness, thus highlighting the wickedness in Othello’s disposition. Therefore, this can be used as evidence that Othello was only convinced byIago’s improbable suggestions because he was led by passion and impulse, being ‘Perplexed in the extreme’ by rage, instinctively trusting Iago. The motif of blood that Shakespeare includes supports this: ‘O, blood, blood, blood! ’ (3. 3. 452) as it has connotations of violence, therefore foreshadowing the violence of the final act, in which the motif is repeated by Desdemona: ‘Some bloody passion shakes your very frame’ showing the connection between Othello’s hamartia and Desdemona’s murder.On the other hand, it can be argued that Othello’s downfall was not his own doing. In Act 3 scene 3, Shakespeare first suggests that Othello truly doubts Desdemona when he says, ‘And yet how nature erring from itself-’ (3. 3. 229) because he thinks that being white, Desdemona would prefer a white man like Cassio to himself. Such racial insecurities are highlighted in Othello’s character throughout the play, and may be the reason behind the pains that he takes to impress people through his speech and experiences.However this line implies that Othello’s doubt in Desdemona were the result of racial insecurities, and whilst they could be singular to him, the prejudices that existed against ‘Moors’ in the Elizabethan era, and in the play suggest otherwise. Queen Elizabeth com plained in 1601 of the â€Å"great numbers of Negars and Blackamoors which are crept into this realm,† 1 a feeling also expressed in the play when Othello is condemned as an ‘old black ram’ (1. 1. 89) and a ‘Barbary horse’ (1. 1. 111). Such animalistic metaphors emphasise the low opinion that Elizabethans had of ‘Blackamoors’, which may have been the root of Othello’s downfall.Similarly, the unconventionality of Othello’s marriage to Desdemona rebelled against Elizabethan ideology, being ‘contrary to nature’ as critic Karen Newman put it, which presented an obstacle in itself. Their marriage broke the natural order causing chaos and consequently, as in most tragedies, this chaotic force had to be destroyed for order to be restored. Such ideals may be evidence that the couple’s ruin was inevitable, as to an Elizabethan audience, they symbolised the unnatural, chaotic force which must be overthrown.Alterna tively, it is equally possible that although Othello had many flaws, it was Iago who acted as a catalyst by exposing them, thus causing Othello’s downfall. Shakespeare frequently alludes to this through recurring motifs which show Iago’s power of corruption, the first of these being poison. For example, when plotting, Iago refers to poison when he says: ‘I’ll pour pestilence into his ear’ (2. 3. 346), and then in the final scene, Lodovico summarises the 3 corpses as ‘poisons sight’, thus demonstrating the link between Iago’s manipulation and the plight of Othello and those around him.Shakespeare builds upon this manipulation through the motif of turning, as Iago vows to ‘turn her virtue into pitch’ (2. 3. 350), in the same way that Othello turns ‘Turk’ through the metaphor in his final speech, ‘an turbaned Turk†¦ traduced the state†¦ And smote him thus’ (5. 2. 349-52), and is evide nce of Iago’s success in turning Othello from a General into an enemy of ‘the state’. Similarly, the black and white imagery of ‘virtue’ and ‘pitch’ is repeated by Othello himself when referring to Desdemona’s reputation: ‘begrimed and black/As mine own face. However, ‘begrimed’ implies that both characters are stained, but as Desdemona is innocent, and Othello’s inherited ethnicity determines his skin colour, the simile could relate to Iago’s manipulation, and the darkness that he has brought upon the couple. This is mirrored by the transformation of Othello’s language: formerly grand verse depicting his former successes becomes sinister and dark, with animalistic imagery of goats, monkeys, toads, and poisonous snakes, and diabolic metaphors for Desdemona such as ‘fair devil’, which liken his language to that of Iago.These changes are evidence of the vital role of Iago in Othel lo’s downfall, suggesting that Othello’s flaws, although numerous, may not have been fatal. It is for this reason that the phrase ‘Perplexed in the extreme’ in Othello’s final soliloquy, can take on a double meaning, as although Othello’s passionate emotions of jealousy, rage, and shame clouded his judgement, Iago’s ability to manipulate, which Shakespeare has emphasised through his use of repeated motifs and imagery, could have been the other vital factor.It was this combination that influenced Othello to make the fatal and mistaken decision that Iago’s suspicions were correct and believe that his honour would be regained if he took vengeance upon Desdemona. Iago was only successful because of Othello’s hidden flaws, but equally Othello’s flaws were deeply buried within him, allowing him to become a General of the Venetian army, proving that they were not fatal, but aroused by skilful manipulators like Iago. 1584 words Bibliography †¢1 = http://www. suite101. om/content/elizabeth-i-motives-for-expulsion-of-blackamoors-from-london-a248507 †¢A. C. Bradley (1904) Shakespearian Tragedy, New York: Palgrave Macmillan †¢Beard & Kent (2008) AQA AS English Literature B, Cheltenham: Nelson Thornes †¢Marian Cox (2003) AS/ A-Level Student Text Guide, Othello, William Shakespeare Oxfordshire: Phillip Allan Updates †¢http://www2. cnr. edu/home/bmcmanus/poetics. html †¢http://www. britaininprint. net/shakespeare/study_tools/race. html †¢William Shakespeare (2003) Othello Edited by Norman Sanders Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Culture and Leadership in a safe Industrial Environment

Culture and Leadership in a safe Industrial Environment Abstract The purpose of this paper was to discuss the role of culture, management leadership, and employee involvement in the process of improving safety in an industrial environment. In this regard, the discussion focused on the development and implementation of an improved environment, health, and safety (EHS) program at GE Aviation. The main goal of the EHS program was to develop measures for protecting the company’s employees from any harm as they work in various manufacturing plants.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Culture and Leadership in a safe Industrial Environment specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The program was also established to enable the company to reduce its ecological footprint. The elements of the company’s culture that facilitated the development of the program included visible leadership, accountability, responsibility, and collaboration between staff and management. Management lead ership facilitated access to the resources and motivation that was required to develop the program. Employee involvement, on the other hand, enabled the company to avert resistance and to utilize the expertise of its staff to develop the program. Introduction The health and safety of workers determine the continued success of any business. Occupational health and safety can be improved through effective management leadership and employee involvement. Effective management involves â€Å"securing the health, safety, and welfare of all staff by reducing risks and ensuring protection from injuries/ harm arising out of work-related activities†. An effective management leadership should provide the motivation and the resources that are needed to improve safety at the workplace. Employee involvement, on the other hand, involves creating an enabling environment in which workers nurture and demonstrate their commitment to health and safety. This paper will focus on the role of managem ent leadership and employee involvement in promoting a safe industrial environment in the aviation industry. Specifically, it will discuss the application of organizational culture, management leadership, and employee involvement to develop an environment, health, and safety (EHS) program at General Electric (GE) Aviation. Employees who were Involved in the Program General Electric Aviation is the â€Å"world’s leading producer of jet engines for commercial and military aircrafts† (GE Aviation, 2014). The company also provides repair and maintenance services for jet engines. In this regard, the production processes of the company are characterized with several health hazards that are likely to endanger the lives of its employees.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Thus, the company decided to enhance the safety of its employees by developing an improved environment, health, and safety program. Apart from reducing occupational safety risks, the program also enables the company to reduce its ecological footprint. The EHS program was developed by a team of 1,000 health and safety professionals (GE Aviation, 2014). The professionals were drawn from various departments in over 500 manufacturing plants that are owned by the company. The role of the professional team was to assess the company’s safety standards and to develop improved measures for reducing exposure to health hazards at the workplace. The company’s management supported the professional team by helping them to define the goals, values, and expectations of the EHS program (GE Aviation, 2014). The management also provided the resources that the professional team required to develop the EHS program. The company’s employees also participated in the development of the EHS program by helping to identify health hazards and suggesting measures that could be tak en to address safety risks. However, the contract workers did not actively participate in the development of the program since most of them worked for the company for less than six months. What the EHS Program was Set Up to Accomplish The EHS program was developed to achieve the following objectives. First, the program was expected to promote a â€Å"culture of operational safety ownership† (GE Aviation, 2014). In particular, the company intended to utilize the EHS program to integrate operational safety ownership in its organizational culture. In this regard, the responsibility of ensuring safety at the workplace was to be accepted as a value that every employee indentified with. Second, the program was expected to develop a framework for reducing or eliminating employees’ exposure to the health/ safety risks associated with chemical operations (GE Aviation, 2014). Specifically, the program was expected to develop solutions that would enable the company to adopt safe operations through strategies such as re-engineering processes and using protective devices. Third, the EHS was set up to enable the company to reduce the accidents and injuries that occur due to human error. The company believes that employees will always make mistakes that are likely to cause injury at the workplace (GE Aviation, 2014). Consequently, the EHS program focused on redesigning the manufacturing processes that often led to human error at the workplace. Fourth, the EHS was developed to improve employee involvement in improving safety at the workplace.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Culture and Leadership in a safe Industrial Environment specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Employees are likely to support a health and safety program that they helped to develop (OSHA, 2014). This explains the company’s decision to involve all its employees in the development of the program. Finally, the EHS program was expected to facilitate organizational learning. It was expected to enable the company to learn from any health or safety incident that would occur in future. The main accomplishment of the EHS program is the health and safety intelligence system that has since been developed to improve compliance with safety requirements. The intelligence system was developed as a web-based software that uses a checklist of 680 questions to assess the company’s compliance with various safety standards (GE Aviation, 2014). It also provides suggestions for improving safety in various manufacturing operations. Where the Program was Developed The EHS program was developed in an institutional setting that promotes a collaborative approach to addressing occupational safety risks. The company believes that managers and employees must collaborate in order to develop effective solutions to the safety challenges that it faces. Accordingly, the company promotes employee involvement by obtaining feedbac k from workers in every department concerning its commitment to safety (GE Aviation, 2014). The feedbacks are often obtained through perception surveys that enable the company to receive suggestions from its employees on how to improve safety. Employees are also involved in conducting site inspections and analyzing routine hazards in order to develop safe work practices. Employee involvement facilitated the development of the EHS program in several ways. To begin with, staff involvement enabled the health and safety professionals to incorporate the expectations of the employees in the goals and objectives of the EHS program. In addition, the values of the program were based on the employees’ needs for safety at the workplace (GE Aviation, 2014). As a result, the employees supported the development and implementation of the program. In this case, employee involvement enabled the company to avoid staff resistance during the development and implementation of the EHS program. In addition, employee involvement promoted the culture of operational safety ownership. This was achieved by improving employees’ commitment to enhancing their safety and that of their colleagues. The success of GE Aviation’s EHS program can also be attributed to the fact that it was developed in an institutional setting that promoted the culture of responsibility and accountability. Accountability leads to a safe industrial environment by enabling companies to measure the performance of managers based on predetermined health/ safety goals and standards.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More An effective accountability model must have established performance standards, evaluation system, and the resources that managers need to meet their targets. Moreover, it must be applicable at all levels and provide incentives that promote high performance. Accordingly, GE Aviation’s operations managers bear the greatest responsibility of improving the safety of its staff. The company’s culture of responsibility and accountability enabled the health and safety professionals to develop appropriate goals that each operations manager had to achieve in order to improve the safety of employees (GE Aviation, 2014). The managers were evaluated and rewarded based on the extent to which they achieved their health and safety goals. As a result, the managers focused on inspiring employees to internalize the values of the EHS program. However, delegating too much responsibility to operations managers negatively affected the company’s commitment to promote a culture of occup ational safety ownership. In particular, the employees perceived occupational safety as the responsibility of the managers rather than every worker in the company. Undoubtedly, ownership of the process of improving safety can only be enhanced if responsibilities are distributed equally among employees. Visible leadership is also an important element of GE Aviation’s organizational culture that facilitated the development of the EHS program. Visible leadership involves leading by example and participating actively in safety and health committees at the workplace (OSHA, 2014). Accordingly, the company’s management focused on developing the EHS program without undercutting the authority of the operations managers to steer the program. The operations managers retained the authority to make key decisions concerning the implementation of the program. This devolved system of making decisions enabled the company’s leadership to involve as many employees as possible in d ecision-making processes through consultations between operations managers and their juniors. When the Program was Developed The program’s development life cycle lasted for a period of eighteen months. Origination was the first stage in the development of the EHS program. At this stage, the company’s CEO having recognized the business case for improving employee safety, proposed the idea of developing a comprehensive EHS program (GE Aviation, 2014). The focus of the origination stage was to win employees’ support for the idea of developing an improved EHS program. In this regard, effective management leadership enabled the company’s CEO to create a sense of urgency for change within the company. The CEO focused on inspiring and motivating the employees at various levels to support the proposed EHS program. Having won the support of key change agents within the company, the management officially initiated the process of developing the new EHS program. An E HS program manager was selected to lead the process of overhauling the company’s health and safety system (GE Aviation, 2014). After the initiation, the management proceeded to the planning stage where detailed plans for developing the program were developed. At this stage, effective management leadership enabled the company’s managers to determine the program’s scope, goals, costs, risks, and opportunities (GE Aviation, 2014). Employees were actively involved at this stage in various activities such as cost benefit analysis, reviewing existing safety standards, and making suggestions on the processes that needed re-engineering to improve safety. The rationale of this strategy is that employee involvement leads to high staff commitment and motivation, which in turn improves participation in health and safety promotion initiatives. The feedback from employees enabled the management to identify the solutions that had to be implemented to improve safety. In additio n, the employees provided valuable insights that enabled the company to provide adequate resources for the program. Having developed the plans, the management proceeded to the execution stage where key deliverables were managed. The key deliverables included budgets, implementation schedules, and plans that defined the strategies that were expected to improve safety. At this stage, the focus of the company’s management leadership was to provide the technical expertise that was required to develop and implement the program (GE Aviation, 2014). Consequently, the team of health and safety professionals concentrated on implementing the solutions that had been identified to improve safety. Employees’ involvement at this stage included provision of supportive services such as reviewing budgets, as well as, monitoring and evaluation of the implementation process. In the last stage, the new EHS program was adopted by the company’s management. Currently, the employees an d the management are actively involved in implementing the requirements of the program and reviewing its effectiveness on a regular basis. This is important because reviewing health and safety programs through employee involvement enables managers to address emerging health and safety risks at the workplace in time (AHMP, 2014). Why the EHS Program Came About The EHS program came about due to the following reasons. First, the management of GE Aviation had a goal of reducing occupational hazards in order to improve the safety of its employees. Health and safety conditions are important elements of the industrial environment since they determine the productivity of workers (NOISH, 2014). Employees who feel unsafe are likely to leave the company in order to avoid endangering their lives. Thus, GE Aviation’s management adopted the EHS program to reduce labor turnover and to increase the productivity of its workforce. Second, the EHS program was adopted to help the company to comp ly with the regulations concerning safety in an industrial environment. The program was expected to enable the company to identify viable strategies for achieving or exceeding the workplace safety standards set by organizations such as Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Compliance with occupational safety and health regulations helps companies to avoid penalties and cancelation of their licenses due to poor or unsafe work conditions (OSHA, 2014). Thus, GE Aviation had to establish a new EHS program to help it comply with regulations. Third, the company intended to reduce its impact on the environment through the EHS program. This goal was to be achieved by re-engineering various manufacturing processes in order to reduce the amount of toxic substances that the company discharged to the ambient environment. As a result, the company would reduce the exposure of its employees to toxic substances that are harmful to health. Moreover, the company would be able to reduc e its level of pollution (GE Aviation, 2014). Reducing the level of pollution and improving employees’ safety was expected to improve the company’s image in the countries that it operates in. Furthermore, reducing pollution would enable the company to attain its objective of achieving sustainable production of jet engines. How the EHS Program Functioned Politically, Technically, and Financially Politically, the EHS received adequate support in various departments within the company. The employees welcomed the idea of developing an improved EHS system because it would improve their wellbeing. However, there were divisions at departmental committees on how the EHS program was supposed to be implemented. For instance, the finance committee did not agree with the initial budgetary allocation. According to the finance committee, the EHS program did not deserve a significant budgetary allocation since it did not directly lead to generation of revenues (GE Aviation, 2014). De spite the differences in opinions in various committees, the EHS manager and his team managed to solicit adequate support and resources to develop and implement the program in time. This demonstrates the effectiveness of the company’s management leadership in the process of developing the new EHS program. The technical aspect of the EHS program did not encounter a lot of challenges. At the onset, the company’s management had a clear understanding of the expertise that was needed to develop and implement the program. Consequently, the management employed a team of 1,000 professionals who were qualified in various disciplines to steer the development of the EHS program (GE Aviation, 2014). High employee involvement also enabled the company to utilize the expertise and experiences of its staff who were not directly involved in the development of the program. The financial performance of the EHS program was average. The management intended to implement the program within t he set budgetary allocations. However, there were cost overruns due to minor changes in the original plans (GE Aviation, 2014). For instance, the training of operations managers took longer than was expected, thereby increasing the costs. Nonetheless, the cost overruns were not significantly. Conclusion GE Aviation developed a new EHS program to improve the safety of its employees who work in over 500 manufacturing plants. The main factor that led to the adoption of the new program was the need to improve productivity and to reduce labor turnover by creating a safe working environment. In this regard, the goals of the program included creating a culture of accountability among operations managers, reducing human error, and improving employee involvement in implementing safety measures. In addition, the program was expected to enable the company to learn from future incidents in order to improve its health and safety conditions. The success of the program is mainly attributed to effe ctive management leadership and high employee involvement. The company’s management participated in the development of the program by providing the required resources, setting goals, and soliciting employees’ support. Employee involvement enabled the management to avoid resistance from workers during the implementation of the program. Additionally, the employees collaborated with the management to complete various tasks such as identifying health hazards and suggesting solutions to address them. References AHMP. (2014). Regulatory and management perspectives. Web. GE Aviation. (2014). GE citizenship. Web. Gravel, S., Rheaume, J., Legendre, G. (2011). Strategies to develop and maintain occupational health and safety measures in small businesses employing immigrant workers in metropolitan Montreal. International Journal of Workplace Health Management, 4(2), 164-178. Griffith, A., Bhutto, K. (2008). Improving environemental performance through integrated management syst ems (IMS) in the UK. International Journal of Environmental Quality Management, 19(5), 565-578. Leman, A., Yusof, M., Jung, W. (2010). Environmental quality index (EQI) for industrial ventilation and occupational safety and health evaluation in manufacturing plant. Asian Journal on Quality, 11(3), 210-222. NOISH. (2014). Hazards and exposures. Web. OSHA. (2014). Regulations. Web. Zwetsloot, G., Scheppingen, A., Dijkman, A. (2010). The organizational benefits of investing in workplace healthand safety. International Journal of Workplace Health Management, 3(2), 143-159.

Asian Philosophies of Critical Thinking

Asian Philosophies of Critical Thinking Essay EXTENDED ESSAYAsian Philosophies of Critical Thinking: divergent or convergent to westernestablishments?MAY 2003 AbstractThe research question of this extended essay came across at a very earlystage in my life. Having been born and developed from a family with all itsmembers being University instructors and professors, I was often involvedin arguments related to the lack of critical thinking in Asian cultures. AsI got older, having had the chance to emerge in different cultures, Istarted to develop my own viewpoints and answers. I started to wonder aboutthe truth between the real differences of Asian and Western philosophies ofcritical thinking. This extended essay, intended to be a research andinvestigation, bearing the title Asian Philosophies of Critical Thinking:divergent or convergent to Western establishments? is in fact howevermerely just a summary of my viewpoints and answers which I have developedthroughout the years. In the first section of the essay, Logical Tradition in India and China Iwill attempt to give evidence of critical thinking in two Asian culturesthat I have chosen; namely India and China. In India, I will argue thatcritical thinking is clearly visible in historical texts such as the Carakaand Nyayasutra. This is presented as the well-known five-membered argument,a system of logical deduction, similar to the Aristotelian syllogism foundin the west. In China I would focus mainly on the two schools of logicalthought, the Mohists and the Logicians. For the Mohists I would argue thatcritical thinking is a vital element in the building of what they callmental models. For the Logicians, I would study deeply the writings ofHui Shih and Kungsun Lung, I would show that in fact both of them developedsystems of logical and paradoxical thinking that could well serve as thefoundations of modern science. If critical thinking is clearly presentable in these Asian cultures thenwhy are there still concerns for introducing it to them? This is thequestion I intend to answer in the latter section Needhams Grand Questionand Fullers Interpretation. During this section, I would also show thatdiscussions of modern science seem to enable us to see how the tradition ofcritical thinking arose and how they were promoted or discouraged. I wouldcover how Asian historical, economic, social and cultural factors have abig influence on their development of critical thinking. Lastly I wouldshow how the prioritization of a civilization has a devastating effect ondeciding the future road they intend to walk. In conclusion, I would argue that since the philosophy of a culture is butan abstract and theoretical expression and justification of the culturesdecision to choose one set of priorities over another, Asian philosophy andcritical thinking are neither necessarily divergentnornecessarilyconvergent to western establishments. Contents|Introduction|4|||||Logical Tradition in India and|4||China||||||Needhams Grand Question and|7||Fullers Interpretation||||||Asian Philosophy and Critical|8||Thinking: Divergence or|||Convergence?||||||Conclusion|9|||||Bibliography|10 |||||References|11 ||||Asian Philosophies of Critical Thinking: divergent or convergent to westernestablishments?By Clement NgIntroductionIt is widely recognized nowadays that critical thinking has become anecessary ingredient in all levels of education. Educators and educationalpolicy makers agree that one of the desirable goals of education is thatstudents are able to think critically. Throughout the past few years, manyhave felt the need to consider critical thinking more seriously ineducational programs. At the moment several different acts are beingconsidered around the world by various factors and agencies. The core ofthese proposed acts is the idea that the students are able to thinkcritically and independently. Although there are widespr ead disagreementson what critical thinking actually is,1 there is an agreement that it hasbecome very important in the world overwhelmed by huge amountsofinformation. Some Western educators who teach at schools or universities in a number ofAsian countries have voiced their difficulties and problems they encounterwhile trying to teach critical thinking and other related skills to Asianstudents. Bruce Davidson (1998) argues that a set of Japanese culturalfactors act as a kind of barrier against teaching critical thinking tostudents. Atkinson (1999) goes so far as to argue that critical thinking isculturally specific, and is a part of the social practices of the Westhaving no place within Asian cultures, which do not adopt such practices. What these educators have in common is the feeling that some elements inAsian cultures do prevent the full realization of critical thinking skillsin the students. Most of these elements perceived by Western educators inAsia are quite well knownthe beliefs that teachers are superior andalways right, that knowledge is not to be made here and now, but existseternally, so to speak, to be handed down by teachers, that social harmonyis to be preferred rather than asking probing questionsto mention just afew. Is critical thinking really culture specific? Can the traditional beliefsystems of Asia respond to the challenge of the modern world while stillretaining their distinctive identities? Are Asian philosophy and criticalthinking necessary divergent or possibly convergent? These areverysignificant question not just for Asian cultures, but for understanding howcultures of the world respond to globalization. In addition the questionalso has a bearing on the problematic relation between critical thinkingand the cultural environment in which it happens to be embedded. In this essay, I attempt to argue that critical thinking is not necessarilyincompatible with Asian traditional belief systems. In fact I will showthat both India and China do have their own indigenous traditions oflogical and argumentative thinking; it is just because of certain barriersthat prevent them from further developing such establishments. I willfurther try to show that these traditions can and should be reexamined,reinterpreted and adapted to the contemporary situation. By doing this Iwould seek acknowledgement to the essay question and would provide ananswer to the Western educators who have found no such critical traditionsin the East. Logical Tradition in India and ChinaIt is widely known that India had a highly advanced logical tradition,spanning more than two thousandyears.ThesuccessesofIndianmathematicians and computer programmers are perhaps due to the fact thatlogic and critical thinking have been integral to the Indian way ofthinking since time immemorial. Such integration can also be witnessed inthe fondness of Indians for talking and debating. Tscherbatsky (1962: 31-34) tells us that in the times of Dignaga and Dharmakirti, two of thegreatest Buddhist logicians, the fate of entire monasteries depended onpublic debates. According to Tscherbatsky, Dignaga won his fame and royalsupport through his defeat of the brahmin Sudurjaya at Nalanda Monastery(31-34). In another vein, Matilal (1990: 1-8) argues that the Indian logicaltradition is entirely home grown, since there is no evidence of India beinginfluenced by Aristotelian ideas. Matilal also shows that many topics,which are of interest by contemporary logicians and philosophers today,were discussed and researched into with sophistication by Indian scholars. Such topics include theory of inference, empty names, reference andexistence, perception, knowledge of theexternalworld,substance,causality, and many others (Matilal 1990). Moreover, Tscherbatskys (1962)work, dealing mainly with the works of Dignaga and Dharmakirti illustratesthat India is one of the great logical and philosophical civilizations ofthe world. There are a number of topics that both traditions discovered independentlyof each other. For example, Matilal notes that the counterpart of theAristotelian syllogism is the five-membered argument found in such textsas Caraka and Nyayasutra. Instead of the three propositions found inAristotelian syllogism, the five-membered argument consistsoffivepropositions, the first of which is the conclusion, and the last repeatingwhat is already stated in the first. The remaining three propositions inbetween are the premises. Here is one example of the five-membered argumentcited by Matilal (1990: 5):1. There is fire on this mountain. 2. For, there is smoke there. 3. Smoke goes with fire always (or, in all cases, or in all places):witness, kitchen. 4. This is also a case of smoke. 5. Therefore, there is fire there (on the mountain). Logicians will immediately be able to reconstruct this argument in thefamiliar Aristotelian form as follows:The place on the mountain is a place where there is smoke. A place where there is smoke is a place where there is fire. Therefore, the place on the mountain is a place where there is fire. Matilal, however, notes that there is at least some dissimilarity betweenthe Indian and the Aristotelian argument forms presented here.Forinstance, he says that the conclusion of the Indian argument form is in theform of singular proposition, (i.e., modified by demonstratives likethis or that) whereas that of the Aristotelian syllogism is eitheruniversal or particular (i.e., modified by quantifiers like all orsome). But the dissimilarity here could be amended, as indexicals (termslike this or that which relies on the context of utterance for theirfull meaning) could be dispensed with by supplying the required informationon the context in which they are uttered. Thus it could be safely statedthat the Indian logical tradition fully comprehended the essence, so tospeak, of logic, which is the concept of validity and the basic validargument form. Another of the worlds great civilizations, China, also had its ownindigenous and independent logical tradition. Two of Chinas logicalschools of thought are the Mohists and the Logicians. The former wasfounded by Mo Ti, who lived between 479 to 381 B.C., during the WarringStates period of Chinese history (Ronan 1978: 114). Among the typicalChinese scholars the Mohists are better known for their doctrine ofuniversal love and the condemnation of offensive war rather than theirinterests and achievements in the physical sciences. In the latter Needhamreports that the Mohists went very far towards realizing that the thoughtsystem was in fact a prerequisite for modern science. Most significantly,the Mohists appeared to be in grasp of the concepts of deduction andinduction. They viewed the former as a way of thinking which follows amental model, which guarantees that whoever follows it will never fail tobe right in their thinking. Here is an example of reasoning based onfollowing such mental model:Model thinking consists in following the methods of Nature. What are followed in model-thinking are the methods. Therefore if the methods are truly followed by the model-thinkingliterally: hit in the middle, the reasoning will be correct. But if the methods are not truly followed by the model-thinking, thereasoning will be wrong (Ronan 1978: 119). On the other hand, the Mohists also recognized the value of extensionwhich is a kind of reasoning from the known examples and extend it tounknown cases similar to them:Extension is considering that that which one has not yet receivedi.e. a new phenomenon is identical from the point of view ofclassification with those which one has already received, andadmitting it (Ronan 1978: 119). READ: Teen Suicide EssayIt is clear then that the former is an instance of deductive thinking,while the latter represents the basic idea of inductive thinking. The two most well known representatives of the Logicians are Hui Shih andKungsun Lung. The former is known for his paradoxes resembling that ofZeno, and his writings were designed to shock and to illustrate deeplogical point. For example, Hui Shihs writing that The Heavens are as lowas the Earth; mountains are on the same level as marshes (Ronan 1978: 122)could be regarded as a way of illustrating the fact that, viewed from thecosmic perspective, the sentence written by Hui Shih here is actually true. Other pieces of his writings concern what and how we perceive:Fire is not hot. Eyes do not see (Ronan 1978: 122). These are designed to lead one to think that what is hot in fire may wellnot be in the fire at all, but is located within our tactile perception ofit. And the factor that actually does the seeing is not the eyesthemselves, but the consciousness or whatever that gives rise to theperception. Similarly, according to Needham, Kungsun Lung had a system of logical andparadoxical thinking that could well serve as the foundation of modernscience. The following excerpts show that Kungsun Lung grasped suchconcepts as the universality and unlocalizability of number and universalsand their contrasts with particulars that are their instances. Mostinterestingly, Kungsun Lungs discussion of changes in Nature could wellpoint to modern scientific way of thought:Q: Is it permissible to say that a change is not a change?A: It is. Q: Can right associating itself with something be called change?A: It can. Q: What is it that changes?A: It is right. Q: If right has changed, how can you still call it right? And ifit has not changed, how can you speak of a change?A: Two would have no right if there were no left. Two contains `left-and-right. A ram added to an ox is not a horse. An ox added to a ramis not a fowl (Ronan 1978: 121-122). Here one finds a discussion of the unchangeability of universals and theirdistinction from particulars. One thing, A, located to the right of anotherthing, B, would form two things, A-and-B. This thing, A-and-B would undergoa change if A happens to move to the left of B. What are changed here arethe relation between A and B. However, the Right itself is changeless, eventhough the particulars forming right or left relation to each other do. Thus, a ram added to an ox would still be two animals, and wont becomeeither a horse or a fowl. The changelessness of universals is a differentmatter altogether from the mutability of particular things. Kungsun Lungswriting here reminds us of Western medieval treatises on logic and theproblem of universals, such as those of Abelard or Duns Scotus. No matter how similar or different these Asian writings on logic andphilosophy are from those of Europe, it is certain that both India andChina do indeed have rigorous and profound systems of logic and criticalthinking, systems which could well form a launching pad for advancedscientific research and innovation that actually took place in the West. Thus Atkinsons argument that critical thinking is culturally specific tothe West is clearly not borne out by historical facts and thus is mistaken. However, when we look at the situations in the Asian countries today,especially in Thailand whose cultural tradition is mostly influenced byBuddhism, which originated within the Indian philosophical and religiousmilieu, Atkinson seems to be right in that there is a felt need forteaching Thai students to be able to think critically. McGuire (2000)argues that there is a need to teach critical thinking and that criticalthinking can be taught to Asian students because it does not necessarily goagainst the grain of local cultures and contains universal elements thatany local culture can find acceptable. If critical thinking is alreadythere in these cultural traditions, then why are there concerns forintroducing it to them? Something must have happened to these culturaltraditions so that there feels a need to bring in the skills and practicesof critical thinking from outside. Or is it really the need to reintroduceand to reestablish these traditions with something which is clearly theirown , but is somehow lost?1901Needhams Grand Question and Fullers InterpretationAn adequate investigation into what actually may have caused the decline ofthe logical traditions in India or China would comprise one thick book. However, I believe that a glimpse toward an answer could be found if wecompare the dominant positions in the two civilizations with the logicaltraditions. In India, the logical schools, Nyaya, Mimamsa, together withthe Buddhist logic and dialectic schools of Dignaga, Dharmakirti andNagarjuna never gained the supreme control when compared to the othertraditions such as the Vedanta. Personally, I think that this may be due tothe fact that the teachings of the logical schools were limited to themonks or brahmins who practiced them. And when the logical tradition had tocompete with other traditions that could garner more popular appeal, it isquite conceivable that the remote logical schools would lose support. Perhaps in India the tradition of logical and critical thinking was limitedto the highly educated class in such a way that the general population knewnothing of it, and this could be one explanation, as to why modernscientific thinking did not develop in India. For science to develop, theremust be a tendency toward a full understanding of all of Nature through afew general laws that could be learned and understood by anyone. The methodof learning such laws must be such that no one is excluded from studyingexcept through his own intellectual capabilities. In China, Needham suggests that the reasons for modern sciences lack ofdevelopment are due to historical, economic, social and cultural factors(Needham 1969: 190-217). Needham rightly dismisses the interpretation ofEuropes eventual mastery of modern scientific techniques in geographicalor racial beliefs. The scientific and mathematical achievements in bothIndia and China during the ancient and medieval periods is so great that itis hardly conceivable at all to think of Europes success in terms of herdestiny or superior level of advancement as propagated by the Hegeliantradition. On the other hand, Needham seems to believe that it is more amatter of luck that Europe could eventually mastered the arts of modernscience and became dominant. Needham writes:The further I penetrate into the detailed history of the achievementsof Chinese science and technology before the time when, like all otherethnic cultural rivers, they flowed into the river of modern science,the more convinced I become that the cause for the break-throughoccurring only in Europe was connected with the special social,intellectual and economic conditions prevailingthereattheRenaissance, and can never be explained by any deficiencies either ofthe Chinese mind or of the Chinese intellectual and philosophicaltradition. In many ways this was much more congruent with modernscience than was the world-outlook of Christendom (Needham 1969: 191). The special social, intellectual and economic conditions that explainEuropes success are nowhere necessarily attached to thehistoricaldevelopment of Europe. They seem only to be those that Europeans adopted,consciously or not, in response to their historical, social, and mercantileneeds. Those needs apparently were not in the minds of Indians or Chinese,whose priorities for their civilization as a whole seemed to be somethingelse. Thus, instead of looking for a unifying theory capable of explainingand predicting natural phenomenon so that men could harness the power ofNature to their own material needs as well as feel a sense of mastery whenNature is thus comprehended, Indians and Chinese chose to put the ideals oftheir civilizations in another way. The summum bonum of the Indian philosophical tradition, attainment ofMoksha or Liberation, is quite contrary to the ideals and assumptions ofmodern scientific thinking. Instead of looking for the way to free oneselffrom the endless cycle of rebirths throughstrictself-discipline,Europeans sought to advance their own self-interests that are more inclinedto the ordinary. In China, the rapid transformation from feudalism to statebureaucratism, coupled with the influence of the Confucian ethos, whilehugely successful in preserving Chinas cultural identity amidst the greatvariety of people and localities, nonetheless made it the case thatmaterial innovations and proto-scientific and logical theories would begiven little attention. Writings on such matters are referred to the`Miscellaneous category by the mandarin scholars who put the highestpriority to moralistic, ethical, or historical writings (Ronan 1978: 19)This interpretation, which is focused on the contingent character of therise of modern science in Europe, is regarded by Steve Fuller as the underdeterminist one. According to Fuller, the reason why China did not developmodern science was that it was not specifically promoted (Fuller 1997: 80-88). He contrasts this with the over determinist modethe kind ofexplanation that seeks to explain the lack of progress of modern sciencethrough the idea that it was specifically prevented from occurring. Thus,according to the former outlook, the reason science did not develop inChina was because historical, social, economic conditions were such thatthey were simply incompatible with its rise. I think this could be due tothe Chinese not putting a high priority on things scientific. On the otherhand, the over determinist would assume that science is part of a culturesdestiny which would materialize anyway if the circumstances were favorable. However, in the case of China these circumstances were not favorable,blocking sciences potential development. To viewthehistoryanddevelopment of science in the latter mode would mean that science is anecessary part of a cultures path of development, which is the same forall cultures. A culture in which science successfully develops is thusviewed as more advanced than another where the development of science issomehow stinted. On the other hand, the under determinist would argue thatsuch a picture of each cultural entity racing along the same path smellstoo much of teleology and Gods design to be tenable. Instead of soviewing, each culture should be regarded as having its own path notnecessarily shared with others. Since critical thinking and modern scientific thinking are closely related,discussions of the historical rise of science in various cultures aredirectly related to our investigation of whether critical thinking iscompatible with the major Asian cultural traditions. Discussions on therise of modern science seem to enable us to see how the tradition ofcritical thinking arose and how they were promoted or discouraged. If theunder determinist mode of interpretation is accepted, then the lack ofcritical thinking tradition in Asia could be explained by the fact thatsomehow members of these traditions decided not to go put critical thinkinghigh on their list of priorities, despite the fact that critical thinkingskills could be found deep within the traditions themselves. READ: Ambition in Macbeth examples Essay1034Asian Philosophy and Critical Thinking: Divergence or Convergence?Hence, the values typically associated with Asian culture such as socialharmony and deference to the elders and teachers are thus seen asconsequences of the cultures deciding to put a certain set of prioritiesabove others. Social harmony was instrumental in bringing about thecultural unity that is the most distinctive characteristic of Chineseculture. It is valued above most other types of values because it goes handin hand with social stability, whose alternative is perceived as chaos andgeneral burden of social structure. The prioritization of social harmonycan also be seen in other Asian cultures such as the Thai one, and resultsin Thais trying as far as they possibly can to avoid open conflicts anddisagreements. In the case of China, since all the elements that couldbring about the rise of modern science were in place, it is quite clearthat the Chinese culture actually chose not to go along the path taken bythe Europeans. The decision made by a culture to adopt a particular systemof beliefs and practices certainly did not happen suddenly, as if at oneparticular moment of history, members of a culture had a meeting anddeclared their cultures adoption of this or that set. The decisionoccurred gradually throughout the historical development of a culture, andcan be seen in China adopting Confucianism ratherthanthemorematerialistic and scientifically inclined Taoism and Mohism, and in Indiaadopting the more mystical doctrine emphasizing the role of meditation andprivate insights rather than publicly demonstrable methods of knowing. Ithink that reasons for such decision are enormously complicated, but it ishardly conceivable that China was somehow destined to lag behind Europe inthe science race due to factors they could not control. This may be taken to show that critical thinking and Asian thought aredivergent. If the Asian cultures chose not to go along the path wherecritical thinking is one milestone, then both do not seem to go with eachother, and Atkinson may be vindicated when he argues that critical thinkingis a part of Western culture only. If the Asian cultures prioritize sets ofvalues which are incompatible with critical thinking, and if they freelychose those sets over the set adopted by Europeans for whatever reasons,then it appears that critical thinking would belong to European cultureonly, and to adopt it to Asian cultures would be the same as to importingforeign ideas and practices to alien lands. Thus, Atkinsons argument seemsto fit well with the under determinist position. This line of reasoning, however, would be valid only if a culture decidedas its own set of priorities at one time will always remain so for allother times. If the Thai culture, for example, once decided that socialharmony should take precedence over critical argumentation andopendebates, then critical thinking practices would be forever alien to them. But that is surely a very unreasonable position to take. Cultures, likehumans, often make decisions that later are amended or revoked with newdecisions made; when things are not the same any longer. Decisions toprioritize one set of values over another are not etched in stone, but evenso the stone can be broken down or else taken to a museum or a pedestalwhere it loses its real meaning. Decisions at one time reflect thecircumstances normal at that particular time, and to stick onto pastdecisions with no plan of adapting or making new decisions in response tochanging circumstances would make the culture frozen and unabletoparticipate. Opting not to correct their past decisions, a culture would ineffect be telling the world that it is constructing a wall around itself,giving nothing to the world and receiving nothing. However, sociologicaland economic conditions of the current world do not permit such a scenariofrom happening. Cultures need to change themselves, not merely to survive,b ut to prosper and to permit better lives for their members. Consequently, Asian cultures and critical thinking are divergent only ifthe former opt not to correct their decisions. But since we are talkingonly about decisions, then it is not difficult at all to suggest thatcultures would make new decisions in response to changing times. Doing sowould make the two more convergent. Hence, the divergence and convergence,after all, depend on what decisions a culture makes. There is nothingnecessarily attached to a cultures path along history that makes itessentially divergent or convergent from the modern critical thinkingtradition, or from any tradition for that matter. Since the philosophy of aculture is but an abstract and theoretical expression and justification ofthe cultures decision to choose one set of priorities over another, Asianphilosophy and critical thinking are neither necessarily divergent nornecessarily convergent. ConclusionAny attempt to introduce, or we should say to bring back critical thinkingpractices to the cultures of Asia would, therefore, begin within thecultures themselves. This is in line with the under determinist idea thateach culture has its own peculiar development path which is not necessarilyshared with others. The mission of spreading the truth of one culture toanother is a misplaced. One that apart from sounding patronizing, issomething the current morality cannot accept. Thus the first step in suchan attempt must consist of a series of arguments designed to show to mostmembers of the culture where critical thinking is to be introduced, thatcritical thinking is really good. However to do that would at least requirelarge amounts of explanations, something that is definitely out of scope ofthis present essay. Besides, to argue that critical thinking is actually agood thing to have is difficult, because it may run counter to the deeplyestablished belief that critical thinking i s just a label fortheconfrontational mode of life that the culture finds unpleasantanddifficult to accept. Though the task is difficult, I believe that it is unavoidable. As aninsider of my own Chinese cultural tradition, I am trying to convince themembers of my culture of the value of critical thinking and its importantrole in educating citizens for the increasingly globalized world of todayand tomorrow. An important part of my argument for combining criticalthinking and its belief systems to the Chinese culture is the idea thatpeople should view the elements of their culture which could present themost serious obstacles to critical thinking as benign fiction. That is,elements such as respect of the elders and the belief in social ranking andso on should be viewed in the same way as a modern person views his or herown traditional customs and ceremonies. One is in a sense a part of theculture where the ceremonies happen, but in another sense detached from it. This is because he knows himself only to serve a certain function in theculture, and in addition, knowledge of other cultures enables furtherdetachment from his own customs and ceremonies. Such an argument would naturally require a lot more space and time than isavailable here. What I hope to have accomplished in this essay, however, ismuch more modest. It is, as we have seen, an argument that Asian philosophyand Asian thought in general do not necessarily conflict with criticalthinking and its presuppositions. Furthermore, it is the influential makingof decisions throughout the history of each culture itself, which, Ibelieve, is flexible and adaptive enough to effect important changes forthe future. 1065BibliographyAtkinson, D. 1997. A Critical Approach to Critical Thinking. TESOLQuarterly 31, 71-94. Blair, J. Anthony and Ralph H. Johnson. 1991. Misconceptions of InformalLogic: A Reply to McPeck. Teaching Philosophy 14.1, 35-52. Davidson, Bruce. 1995. Critical Thinking Education Faces the Challenge ofJapan. Inquiry: Critical Thinking Across the Disciplines, 14.3, 31 pars.,http://www.shss.montclair.edu/inquiry/spr95/davidson.html. Fuller, Steve. 1997. Science. Birmingham: Open UP. Hatcher, Donald. 1995a. Critical Thinking and Epistemic Obligations. Inquiry: Critical Thinking Across the Disciplines 14.3, 38 pars.,http://www.shss.montclair.edu/inquiry/spr95/hatcher2.html. Hatcher, Donald. 1995b. Should Anti-Realists Teach Critical Thinking?. Inquiry: Critical Thinking Across the Disciplines 14.4, 21 pars.,http://www.shss.montclair.edu/inquiry/summ95/hatcher.html. Hongladarom, Soraj. 1998a. Critical Thinking and the Realism/Anti-RealismDebate, http://pioneer.chula.ac.th/~hsoraj/web/CT.html. Hongladarom, Soraj. 1998b. Humanistic Education in Todays and TomorrowsWorld. Manusya: Journal of Humanities, 1 (forthcoming). Hostetler, Karl. 1991. Community and Neutrality in Critical Thought: ANonobjectivist View on the Conduct and Teaching of Critical Thinking. Educational Theory, 41.1, 1-12. Matilal, Bimal Krishna. 1990. Logic, Language and Reality: IndianPhilosophy and Contemporary Issues. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. McGuire, John. 1998. Is Critical Thinking Cultural Thinking?. Unpublishedms. McPeck, John E. 1991. What is Learned in Informal Logic?, TeachingPhilosophy, 14.1, 25-34. Needham, Joseph. 1969. The Grand Titration: Science and Society in East andWest. London: Allen Unwin. Paul, Richard. 1993. Critical Thinking: What Every Person Needs to Survivein a Rapidly Changing World. Santa Rosa, CA: Foundation for CriticalThinking. Ronan, Colin A. 1978. The Shorter Science and Civilization in China: AnAbridgement of Needhams Original Text. Cambridge: Cambridge UP. Sutton, Robert. 1995. Realism and Other Philosophical Mantras. Inquiry:Critical Thinking Across the Disciplines, 14.4, 18 pars.,http://www.shss.montclair.edu/inquiry/summ95/sutton.html. Tscherbatsky, F. Th. 1962. Buddhist Logic. New York: Dover. References1 The literature on the nature and definitions of critical thinking areenormous. Probably the most intense debate among critical thinking expertscenters on the question whether critical thinking can be a separateautonomous academic disciplines dealing with the general form of thinkingto be applied by students in all of their academic areas. Or whether it isnot autonomous at all, but should always be part of important academicdisciplines. However, I believe that these debates giveuslittleunderstanding of what critical thinking should be. For critical thinkingwould be nothing if not applied to real cases, and the study of it wouldnot be totally effective if the skills and theories unique to it were notabstracted and studied on their own. The other debates focuses on thenature of critical thinking, or the meaning of critical thinking itself. Richard Paul (1993) provides a definition that no one can gainsay: Criticalthinking is the kind of thinking one thinks of ones thinking in order tomake ones thinking better. Hatcher (1995a; 1995b) calls for the kind ofcritical thinking that is based on the so-called epistemological realistposition this is contrasted by Sutton (1995) and Hostetler (1991), whoargue that critical thinking is more amenable to the anti-realist position. Whatever it is, there is still no correct definition concerning the truemeaning of critical thinking.