Thursday, August 15, 2019

Candide by Voltaire Essay

In the beginning of 17th century and the peak of 18th century, there was a movement known as â€Å"Enlightenment† which encompassed a wide variety of ideas and advances in the field of philosophy, science and medicine. Voltaire embodies the Enlightenment more than any other intellectual or writer. Enlightenment is also called the age of Voltaire. The followers of the movement had profound faith in the power of reason and rational thought. They believed that this philosophy would lead human beings to a better social structure. They attacked both the aristocracy and the church. In ‘Candide’, Pangloss and his student Candied maintain that â€Å"everything is for the best in this best of all possible worlds†. This idea is a simplified version of the philosophies of the enlightened thinkers, most notable are Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz. These philosophers believed that God exist and since God is perfect, so the world he created must be perfect too. They argued that people recognize imperfections in the world only because they are not aware of God’s grand plan. Voltaire does not accept that a perfect God or any God exist. Throughout the novel, he mocks the idea that the world is perfectly good and heaps merciless satires on this idea. The optimists Pangloss and Candide suffer and witness a wide variety of horrors- whipping, rapes, robberies, unjust execution, disease, earthquake, betrayal and crushing world-weariness. After Candide was thrown out of the castle of the baron Thunder-ten-tronckh, he was handcuffed and carried to the Bulgarian regiment. He witnessed the atrocities committed by the Bulgarians on the Abarian territories after winning the battle against King of Abres. They burn down villages, ravish young virgins and kill men and women alike. While travelling on ship to Lisbon along with Pangloss and the Anabaptist James they face a tempest. In Lisbon, they faced a violent earthquake, which destroyed three-fourth of the city of Lisbon. At the advice of the sages of the country, Dr Pangloss and Candied are secured for burning them alive for the infallible prevention of earthquake. In Surinam, Candide is robbed of his wealth. The lady he is in love, Miss Cunegund suffers too. She is ravished by two Bulgarians and receives two deep wounds in her belly. Her own castles are demolished and she witnesses the brutal murder of her parents and her brother. Though born a baroness, she is reduced to the station of a cook-wench. In the end she becomes the slave of Transylvanian prince and turns ugly and even Candide finds her repulsive. Pangloss the philosopher is reduced to a slave of a Turkish captain and Candide sets him free from slavery by ransom. These events only points to the cruelty and folly of humanity and indifference of the natural world and do not serve any good purpose. Pangloss struggles to find justification for the terrible things in the world but his arguments turn out to be absurd. In the end of the novel, Pangloss admits that he does not believe any more in his own previous optimistic conclusions. This example of events showed how Voltaire established his opposition towards the Christian Doctrine. He imposed Enlightenment through Pangloss’ characterization – its struggles and sufferings despite of his faith and ideology towards Christianity. The most glaring flaw in Pangloss’s optimist is that it is based on abstract philosophical argument rather than real-world evidence. In the chaotic world shown in the novel, philosophical speculations repeatedly prove useless and sometimes destructive. Again and again, it prevents characters from making realistic assessment of the world round them. It also stops them from taking positive action to change adverse situations. Pangloss is a character who is most vulnerable to this sort of folly. He checks Candide from saving the Anabaptist James from drowning during Tempest by demonstrating to him that the roadstead of Lisbon had been made on purpose for the Anabaptish to be drowned in there. When Candide lies on the ground covered with stones after the violent earthquake in the city of Lisbon, Pangloss ignores him request for oil and wine and instead makes great effort to prove the causes of the earthquake. Throughout the novel, Candide’s confusion regarding the philosophies of Pangloss is very much evident. When Candide and Cacambo are held by the armed Oreilles and they cry out: â€Å"A Jesuit! a Jesuit! we shall be revenged; we shall have excellent cheer; let us eat this Jesuit; let us eat him up†. Candied cannot accept the philosophy of Pangloss that everything is right. Voltaire elaborated his stand towards the issue of Enlightenment and Counter-Enlightenment. He explained through his novel the arguments of enlightenment through the characterization of Candide and counter-arguments through the characterization of Pangloss. Voltaire did not only encompass the existence of his philosophy for his belief in Enlightenment but also the existence of science, religion, and society. This criticism of philosophy that encompasses Candide is much more surprising and dramatic given Voltaire’s own status of a respected philosopher of the Enlightenment movement. Voltaire satirizes organized religion in his novel ‘Candide’. A series of corrupt, hypocrite religious leaders emerge throughout the story. The reader encounters the old women (who assist Candide and Miss Cunegund), daughter of a Pope. The pope, a man who as a catholic priest should be celibate, instead he is shown married in the story. A Catholic Inquisitor hypocritically keeps a mistress. A Franciscan friar steals all the jewellery of Miss Cunegund. Despite the vow of poverty taken as a member of the Franciscan order, he operates as a jewel thief. Finally the author introduces a Jesuit colonel who has marked homosexual tendencies. In the story religious leaders are shown to tyrannize humanity. The baroness Miss Cunegund is reduced to the status of a wench by My Lord Inquisitor. Candide meets the Pope, an orator who sermonizes on the subject of charity. The orator abuses and threatens him when he begs for food and his wife discharge a utensil full of water on him, thinking that he has accused him husband of being antichrist. Voltaire criticizes the superstitions of religious practice through the incident where sages of Lisbon decide that few men should be burnt alive to prevent further earthquakes. In the novel, the religious leaders also carry out inhuman religious oppressions against those who disagree with them on smallest theological matters. The Inquisitor persecutes Pangloss for expressing his ideas and Candide for simply listening to him. Pangloss is hanged and Lord Inquisitor preaches and cruelly whips Candide. Voltaire presents several examples of hypocrisy and immorality of religious leaders but he does not condemn the everyday believer of religion. James is a member of a radical protestant sect called the Anabaptists. These scenarios proved the idea of Voltaire towards Christianity and Enlightenment. Even if he put these elements to show the rationality of his evidences and justifications, it still shows that Christianity does not fill the incompleteness of radical belief. It also implies that Voltaire attacked the weak points of Christianity and give way to the strong points of Enlightenment. Throughout the whole novel, Voltaire made a distinct differentiation between Enlightenment and Christian Doctrine. However, it was seen that the arguments of Enlightenment brings positive evidences for its justification while Christian doctrine is obtained as negative integration of knowledge and conception. This criticism can be seen through the struggle, sufferings, and situation of Pangloss. In the end of the novel, Pangloss made up his mind and went through the light of Enlightenment as he started not to believe from his old principles and convictions. This resolution also made its readers become attracted to the illumination of Enlightenment. As a whole, Voltaire’s novel ‘Candide’ not only censure Christine regimes of power and the arrogance of nobility, but it also condemns certain aspects of the philosophical movement of the Enlightenment. It attacks the theory of optimism that argues that rational thought can restrain the evils committed by human beings.

Wednesday, August 14, 2019

Spirit Bound Chapter Eleven

WELL. HOW PERFECT. It took us a while to decide our next course of action. We tossed around a few feeble ideas to track Robert and Victor, all of which we eventually shot down. Robert's phone was a cell, and while the CIA could trace those kinds of things, we certainly couldn't. Even if Robert's address was listed in the phone book, I knew Victor wouldn't have let them go back there. And while Adrian and Lissa could spot a spirit user's aura, we could hardly go wandering aimlessly in a city and expect to find something. No, we were out of luck with those two. There was nothing to be done now but head back to Court and face whatever punishment awaited us. We–I–had screwed up. With sunset approaching–and seeing as we no longer had a known criminal to get us in trouble–my group glumly decided to head to the Witching Hour to make our travel plans. Lissa and I had the potential to be recognized over there, but runaway girls weren't quite in the same category as fugitive traitors. We decided to roll the dice (no pun intended) and hang around guardians rather than risk more Strigoi attacks before we could get out of Vegas. The Witching Hour was no different from any of the other casinos we'd been to–unless you knew what to look for. Humans there were too interested in the allure of the games and glitz to notice that a lot of the other patrons were uniformly tall, slim, and pale. As for the dhampirs? Humans couldn't tell that we weren't human. It was only the uncanny sense Moroi and dhampirs had that let us know who was who. Sprinkled throughout the cheering, chattering, and–at times–wailing crowd were guardians. As in demand as guardians were, only a handful could be allocated full-time to a place like this. Fortunately, their numbers were reinforced by the wealthy and powerful who'd come to play. Excited Moroi whooped over slot machines or roulette while silent, watchful guardians hovered behind them, keeping an eye on everything. No Strigoi would come here. â€Å"What now?† asked Lissa, almost yelling over the noise. It was the first time any of us had spoken since deciding to go here. We'd come to a halt near some blackjack tables, right in the thick of everything. I sighed. My mood was so dark, I didn't even need any spirit side effects. I lost Victor, I lost Victor. My own mental accusations were on an endless loop. â€Å"We find their business center and book tickets out of here,† I said. â€Å"Depending on how long until we can catch a flight, we might have to get a room again.† Adrian's eyes were scanning the action around us, lingering longest on one of the many bars. â€Å"Wouldn't kill us to spend a little time here.† I snapped. â€Å"Really? After everything that's happened, that's all you can think about?† His enraptured gaze turned back to me and became a frown. â€Å"There are cameras here. People who may recognize you. Getting hard proof that you were in this casino and not Alaska is a good thing.† â€Å"True,† I admitted. I think Adrian's typical blase air was masking discomfort. Aside from learning why I'd really come to Las Vegas, he'd also run into Strigoi–Dimitri among them. That was never an easy experience for any Moroi. â€Å"Though we've got no alibi for when we were actually in Alaska.† â€Å"So long as Victor doesn't get himself spotted around here, no one's going to make the connection.† Adrian's voice became bitter. â€Å"Which really shows how stupid they all are.† â€Å"We helped put Victor away,† said Lissa. â€Å"No one would think we'd be crazy enough to let him out.† Eddie, staying silent, gave me a pointed look. â€Å"Then it's settled,† said Adrian. â€Å"Somebody go book us tickets. I'm going to get a drink and try my hand at some games. The universe owes me some good luck.† â€Å"I'll get the tickets,† said Lissa, scanning a sign that pointed out the directions for the pool, restrooms–and business center. â€Å"I'll go with you,† said Eddie. Whereas before his expression had been accusatory, he now seemed to be avoiding my eyes altogether. â€Å"Fine,† I said, crossing my arms. â€Å"Let me know when you're done, and we'll find you.† That was to Lissa, meaning she'd tell me through the bond. Convinced he was free, Adrian headed straight for the bar, me trailing after him. â€Å"A Tom Collins,† he told the Moroi bartender. It was like Adrian had a mental cocktail dictionary in his head and just checked them off one by one. I almost never saw him drink the same thing twice. â€Å"You want it spiked?† the bartender asked. He wore a crisp white shirt and black bow tie and hardly appeared older than me. Adrian made a face. â€Å"No.† The bartender shrugged and turned around to make the drink. â€Å"Spiked† was Moroi code for putting a shot of blood into the drink. There were a couple of doors behind the bar, ones that probably led to feeders. Glancing down the bar, I could see happy, laughing Moroi with red-tinged drinks. Some liked the thought of having blood with their alcohol. Most–like Adrian, apparently–wouldn't take blood unless it was â€Å"straight from the source.† It supposedly didn't taste the same. While we waited, an older Moroi standing next to Adrian glanced over at me and nodded with approval. â€Å"You got yourself a good one,† he told Adrian. â€Å"Young, but that's the best way.† The guy, who was either drinking red wine or pure blood, jerked his head toward the others standing at the bar. â€Å"Most of these are used and washed-up.† I followed his shrug, even through there was no need. Interspersed among the humans and Moroi were several dhampir women, dressed very glamorously in silk and velvet dresses that left little to the imagination. Most were older than me. Those who weren't had a weary look in their eyes, despite their flirtatious laughter. Blood whores. I glared at the Moroi. â€Å"Don't you dare talk about them like that, or I'll smash that wineglass in your face.† The guy's eyes widened, and he looked at Adrian. â€Å"Feisty.† â€Å"You have no idea,† said Adrian. The bartender returned with the Tom Collins. â€Å"She's had kind of a bad day.† The asshole Moroi guy didn't look back at me. He apparently didn't take my threat nearly as seriously as he should have. â€Å"Everyone's having kind of a bad day. You hear the news?† Adrian looked relaxed and amused as he sipped his drink, but standing so close to him, I felt him stiffen a little. â€Å"What news?† â€Å"Victor Dashkov. You know, that guy who kidnapped the Dragomir girl and was plotting against the queen? He escaped.† Adrian's eyebrows rose. â€Å"Escaped? That's crazy. I heard he was at some maximum-security place.† â€Å"He was. No one really knows what happened. There were supposedly humans involved†¦ and then the story gets weird.† â€Å"How weird?† I asked. Adrian slipped an arm around me, which I suspected was a silent message to let him do the talking. Whether that was because he believed that was â€Å"proper† blood whore behavior or because he was worried I'd punch the guy, I couldn't say. â€Å"One of the guards was in on it–though he claims he was being controlled. He also conveniently says it's all a haze and he can't remember much. I heard it from some royals who are helping with the investigation.† Adrian laughed, taking down a big gulp of his drink. â€Å"That is convenient. Sounds like an inside job to me. Victor'd have a lot of money. Easy enough to bribe a guard. That's what I think happened.† There was a pleasant smoothness to Adrian's voice, and as a slightly dopey smile came over the other guy's face, I realized Adrian had pulled a little compulsion. â€Å"I bet you're right.† â€Å"You should tell your royal friends,† added Adrian. â€Å"An inside job.† The guy nodded eagerly. â€Å"I will.† Adrian held his gaze a few moments more and then finally glanced down to the Tom Collins. The glaze-eyed look faded from the man, but I knew Adrian's order to spread the â€Å"inside job† story would stick. Adrian gulped down the rest of the drink and set the empty glass on the bar. He was about to speak again when something across the room caught his attention. The Moroi man noticed too, and I followed both of their gazes to see what had them both so starstruck. I groaned. Women, of course. At first I thought they were dhampirs since my kind seemed to be making up most of the eye candy here. A double take revealed a surprise: The women were Moroi. Moroi showgirls, to be precise. There were several of them, clad in similar short, low-cut sequined dresses. Only, each one wore a different jewel-toned color: copper, peacock blue†¦ Feathers and rhinestones glittered in their hair, and they smiled and laughed as they passed through the gaping crowd, beautiful and sexy in a way different from my race. Which wasn't a surprise. I tended to notice Moroi men ogling dhampir girls more often, simply because I was a dhampir. But naturally, Moroi men were attracted to and infatuated with their own women. It was how their race survived, and though Moroi men might want to fool around with dhampirs, they almost always ended up with their own kind in the end. The showgirls were tall and graceful, and their fresh, brilliant appearances made me think they must be on their way to a performance. I could just imagine what a glittering display of dancing they must make. I could appreciate that, but Adrian clearly appreciated it more, judging from his wide-eyed look. I elbowed him. â€Å"Hey!† The last of the showgirls disappeared through the casino crowd, off toward a sign that said THEATER, just as I'd suspected. Adrian looked back at me, turning on a rogue smile. â€Å"Nothing wrong with looking.† He patted my shoulder. The Moroi standing next to him nodded in agreement. â€Å"I think I might take in a show today.† He swirled his drink around. â€Å"All this Dashkov business and that mess with the Dragomirs†¦ makes me sad for poor Eric. He was a good guy.† I put on a dubious look. â€Å"You knew Lissa's fath–Eric Dragomir?† â€Å"Sure.† The Moroi gestured for a refill. â€Å"I've been a manager here for years. He was here all the time. Believe me, he had an appreciation for those girls.† â€Å"You're lying,† I said coolly. â€Å"He adored his wife.† I'd seen Lissa's parents together. Even at a young age, I'd been able to see how crazy in love they were. â€Å"I'm not saying he did anything. Like your boyfriend said, nothing wrong with looking. But a lot of people knew the Dragomir prince liked to party it up wherever he went–especially if there was female company.† The Moroi sighed and lifted his glass. â€Å"Damn shame what happened to him. Here's hoping they catch that Dashkov bastard and leave Eric's little girl alone.† I didn't like this guy's insinuations about Lissa's dad and was grateful she wasn't around. What made me uneasy was that we'd recently found out Lissa's brother Andre had also been kind of a party boy who fooled around and broke hearts. Did that kind of thing run in the family? What Andre had done wasn't right, but there was a big difference between a teenage boy's exploits and those of a married man. I didn't like to admit it, but even the most in-love guys still checked out other women without cheating. Adrian was proof. Still, I didn't think Lissa would like the idea of her dad flirting around with other women. The truth about Andre had been hard enough, and I didn't want anything to shatter the angelic memories of her parents. I shot Adrian a look that said listening to this guy any longer really would come down to a fistfight. I didn't want to be standing here if Lissa came searching for us. Adrian, always more astute than he appeared, smiled down at me. â€Å"Well, my sweet, shall we try our luck? Something tells me you're going to beat the odds–like always.† I cut him a look. â€Å"Cute.† Adrian winked at me and stood up. â€Å"Nice talking to you,† he told the Moroi. â€Å"You too,† the man said. The thrall of compulsion was wearing off. â€Å"You should dress her better, you know.† â€Å"I'm not interested in putting clothes on her,† Adrian called as he steered me away. â€Å"Watch it,† I warned through gritted teeth, â€Å"or you might be the one with a wineglass in your face.† â€Å"I'm playing a part, little dhampir. One that's going to make sure you stay out of trouble.† We stopped near the casino's poker room, and Adrian gave me a head-to-toe assessment. â€Å"That guy was right about the clothes, though.† I gritted my teeth. â€Å"I can't believe he said those things about Lissa's dad.† â€Å"Gossip and rumors never go away–you of all people should know that. Doesn't matter if you're dead. Besides, that conversation was actually to our–by which I mean your–advantage. Somebody else is probably considering the inside-job theory already. If that guy can help get it around even more, it'll ensure no one even thinks the world's most dangerous guardian could have been involved.† â€Å"I suppose.† Forcibly, I pushed my temper down. I had always been trigger-happy, and I knew for sure now that the bits of darkness I'd gleaned from Lissa in the last twenty-four hours were making things worse, as I'd feared. I changed the subject, steering to safer ground. â€Å"You're being pretty nice now, considering how mad you were earlier.† â€Å"I'm not all that happy, but I've done some thinking,† Adrian said. â€Å"Oh? Care to enlighten me? â€Å"Not here. We'll talk later. We've got more important things to worry about.† â€Å"Like covering up a crime and getting out of this city without being attacked by Strigoi?† â€Å"No. Like me winning money.† â€Å"Are you crazy?† Asking Adrian that was never a good idea. â€Å"We just escaped a bunch of bloodthirsty monsters, and all you can think about is gambling?† â€Å"The fact that we're alive means we should live,† he argued. â€Å"Especially if we've got the time, anyway.† â€Å"You don't need any more money.† â€Å"I will if my dad turns me out. Besides, it's really about enjoying the game.† By â€Å"enjoying the game,† I soon realized that Adrian meant â€Å"cheating.† If you considered using spirit cheating. Because there was so much mental power tied into spirit, its users were very good at reading people. Victor had been right. Adrian joked and kept ordering drinks, but I could tell he was paying close attention to the others. And even though he was careful not to say anything explicitly, his expressions spoke for him–confident, uncertain, annoyed. Without words, he was still able to project compulsion and bluff the other players. â€Å"Be right back,† I told him, feeling Lissa's call. He waved me off, unconcerned. I wasn't worried about his safety either, seeing as there were a few guardians in the room. What concerned me was the possibility some casino official would notice his compulsion and throw us all out. Spirit users wielded it the most strongly, but all vampires had it to a certain extent. Using it was considered immoral, so it was banned among Moroi. A casino would definitely have reason to be on the lookout for it. The business center turned out to be near the poker room, and I found Lissa and Eddie quickly. â€Å"What's the report?† I asked as we walked back. â€Å"We've got a flight in the morning,† said Lissa. She hesitated. â€Å"We could have gone out tonight, but†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She didn't need to finish. After what we'd faced today, no one wanted to risk even the slightest chance of running into a Strigoi. Going to the airport would only require a taxi ride, but even still, that would mean we'd have to risk walking out into the darkness. I shook my head and led them toward the poker room. â€Å"You did the right thing. We've got time to kill now†¦. Do you want to get a room and get some sleep?† â€Å"No.† She shivered, and I felt fear in her. â€Å"I don't want to leave this crowd. And I'm kind of afraid of what I'd dream†¦.† Adrian might be able to act like he didn't care about the Strigoi, but those faces were still haunting Lissa–especially Dimitri's. â€Å"Well,† I said, hoping to make her feel better, â€Å"staying up will help get us back on the Court's schedule. You can also watch Adrian get thrown out by casino security.† As I'd hoped, watching Adrian cheat with spirit did indeed distract Lissa–so much so that she grew interested in trying it herself. Great. I urged her to safer games and recapped how Adrian had planted the idea of an inside job in the Moroi guy's head. I left out the part about Lissa's father. The night miraculously passed without incident–either of the Strigoi or security type–and a couple of people even recognized Lissa, which would help our alibi. Eddie didn't speak to me the entire night. We left the Witching Hour in the morning. None of us were happy about losing Victor or the attack, but the casino had soothed us all a little–at least until we got to the airport. At the casino, we'd been flooded with Moroi news, insulated from the human world. But while waiting for our plane, we couldn't help but watch the TVs that seemed to be everywhere. The headline story that night was all about a mass killing over at the Luxor, one that had left no clues for the police. Most of the casino guards involved had died from broken necks, and no other bodies were found. My guess was that Dimitri had tossed his cronies outside, where the sun would turn them to ash. Meanwhile, Dimitri himself had slipped away, leaving no other witnesses behind. Even the cameras had recorded nothing, which didn't surprise me. If I could disable surveillance at a prison, Dimitri could certainly manage it at a human hotel. Whatever mood-improvement we'd achieved instantly disappeared, and we didn't talk much. I stayed out of Lissa's mind because I didn't need her depressed feelings amplifying my own. We'd arranged a direct flight to Philadelphia and would then catch a commuter flight back to the airport near Court. What we'd face once there†¦ well, that was probably the least of our concerns. I wasn't worried about Strigoi boarding our plane in the daytime, and without any prisoners to watch, I allowed myself to fall into much-needed sleep. I couldn't remember the last time I'd gotten any on this trip. I slept heavily, but my dreams were haunted by the fact that I'd let one of the Moroi's most dangerous criminals escape and allowed a Strigoi to walk free and gotten a bunch of humans killed. I held none of my friends responsible. This disaster was all on me.

Reflaction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Reflaction - Essay Example Thus, it argues that there is no need of getting pregnant and later on procure abortions. The point is, it all depends with the mother on whether to abort or not. Some mothers feel it is good to have children because this will bring them joy, health and respect too. On the hand, others feel it is better to end a just-begun life. According to Arcana (227) states that the idea of being able to make own decisions is very important and women who are able to bear children are valued. Beargman (47) emphasizes on gender whereby some people always mistake a boy from a girl because of some features which they posses. According to Beargman (49), one might be inspired to know who exactly these people are; boys or girls. The idea of possessing these features is not new because such people are not in a position to reveal gender identity even though it is not pleasing to them. Pascode (36) argues that, interracial marriage is unnatural and immoral. In this way, racism is promoted instead of being fought against. This point of interracial marriage is not persuasive since it argues that if interracial marriage is practiced, this will lead to same-sex marriage (Pascode 37). These types of marriages nowadays are not something surprising even though there are laws against this. One would be inspired to know the reasons behind these marriages. Beargman (124) argues clearly that, those people with different features unlike their physical appearance might have some complications in their bodies and they are not willing to reveal their gender due to the fear of going through discrimination or suffering. The idea of hiding their gender is not persuasive because one might develop complex problems and die. It is not the wish of these people to be this way and therefore, they should be cared and valued just like any other human being (Beargman

Tuesday, August 13, 2019

Tragic Flaw in Sophocles' Oedipus the King Essay

Tragic Flaw in Sophocles' Oedipus the King - Essay Example That way the audience can experience a proper moral fear that badness always brings forth bad result. In the case of Sophocles’ â€Å"Oedipus the King†, the character that passes out as â€Å"tragic flaw† in the Oedipus is no doubt his pride and arrogance. In this paper we will be looking at the principle of â€Å"tragic flaw† as postulated by Aristotle in the context of Sophocles’ play â€Å"Oedipus the King†. The idea of tragic flaw that became synonymous to Greek tragedy was postulated by Aristotle, which might explain why this principle featured prominently in almost all his poetics. Tragic flaw basically describes a hero in a story making some fundamental mistakes that are mostly triggered by pride or hubris, which forms his main flaw in an otherwise perfect character, thereby marking his downfall. There is strong evidence to suggest that the development of the principle of tragic flaw was informed by the need to respond to the principle of tragedy which despite dominating Greek plays for so long was being challenged by the likes of Plato on moral grounds. In this regard, the principle of tragedy was attacked ostensibly for corrupting the audience by alluding to the futility of being virtuous. According to Plato, tragedy corrupts the audience by showing good and virtuous people perishing instead of emerging triumphant. It is, therefore, extremely disheartening to see them falling by the wayside primarily because of their virtues and goodness. It was in response to this challenge that Aristotle decided to add some flaw to an otherwise heroic character so as to explain his downfall on moral ground. By so doing Aristotle had offered a solution to the principle of tragedy as presented by Plato and other Greek writers and playwrights. In the play the Oedipus the King Oedipus commits a number of mistakes that can be blamed on his pride, which forms the tragic flaw in his character. One of such mistakes is his impatience with Creon after embarking in a journey to Apollo’s temple to plead with him to save the city of Thebes from the plague that has destroyed crops and livestock while rendering women sterile. After the arrival of Creon from Apollo’s temple we see Oedipus commanding Creon to tell him what Apollo has to say concerning the plague despite Creon’s protestation on spilling the information in front of his subjects. This offer from Creon to do it in private should have awaken Oedipus to the reality that whatever he was about to hear was not good to be spilt in the midst of his subjects. However, in total disregard of Creon’s advice he stood his ground and received the information in the presence of his subject, something that smirk of extreme pride. A careful analysis of the play will show a keen reader that this is a dangerous mistake that Oedipus has made because the answer that comes from Creon set the stage for his downfall. It is also important to note that ha d he agreed to receive the message from Apollo in private, things would not have gone out of hand as they eventually did. King Oedipus curiosity for truth is arguably the worst trait that contributes to his downfall in this play. If only he had decided to forget about where he came from and concentrated on resolving issues surrounding the plague, then

Monday, August 12, 2019

Recommendation Report Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Recommendation Report - Case Study Example Investigation is done by conducting a survey on a selected group of workers based on which recommendations are made. The survey was done on a certain group of employees that included both Production Workers and White Collar Workers. The outcome and the recommendations are made based on the employee response. About 63% of the production workers and 82% of the white collar workers think that the drug testing should be done right when the employees are hired. The response suggests that maximum number of the employees want that the drug testing should be done before employment is given. There was a mixed response among the employees when they were asked for random testing. Very few that are about 16% of the production workers and 42% of the white collar workers feel that it is right. The response suggests that the workers do not support the proposal of random testing. The reason may be that they feel some may escape due to this type of random sampling. Hence this may not be an effective method of testing the usage of illegal drug. About 46% of the production workers and 39% of the white collar workers feel that drug testing should be done at the time of physical examination or upon returning to work. This response suggests that the employees are not giving so much importance to the drug testing during physical examination. When asked about drug testing after the employee has met an accident, about 31% of the production workers and 30% of the white collar workers supported the suggestion and said yes to it. But since the response was less than 50% so it can be assumed that the plan may not work. This step was highly appreciated by the employees. About 62% of the Production workers and 72% of the white collar workers feel that this step should be executed. Majority of the workers say yes to implementation of the policy. However 12% and 4% of the production and white collar workers respectively

Sunday, August 11, 2019

3.Describe a scenario in which you would use the custom reports Essay

3.Describe a scenario in which you would use the custom reports feature under the Reports menu in the MS Project 2010 Project View - Essay Example The customs feature permits users to develop customized and pre-defined reports. Additionally, in MS Project 2003, one can easily locate the report link under the section of View | Reports. In MS Project 2007, similar features are found in Report | Reports. When users choose these reports link, a dialog box with unique custom features pops up. The customs feature may be used when users want to view details of their plans in varied ways (Schwalbe, 2011). A solitary report may entail a dynamic mixture of textual content, charts, and tables. Dissimilar to many views in MS Project, a story resembles a blank canvas where you can place any elements. The features include charts and tables that emphasize on information that interests users (Schwalbe, 2011). The custom features, similarly, helps users to develop particular information needs for the corresponding projects. The custom feature allows the execution of numerous functions that would otherwise be bulky and daunting. The individual features make report creation a simple

Saturday, August 10, 2019

Discussion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 105

Discussion - Essay Example Also, before forwarding a message, obtain permission from the sender, who may have intended the message for you only† (p. 370). As such, disclosing any privileged information that was accidentally received would be tantamount to a violation of trust and would be detrimental to one’s image, or it could even put at risk the security of one’s job. Presentation*. You are preparing for a presentation with a short deadline. You find perfect wording and great graphics on the Internet. Should you lift the graphics and wording but change a few words? You figure that if it is on the Internet, it must be in the public domain. Any information taken from other sources, written by other people, should not be copied. If they are to be used, even paraphrased or copied verbatim, these sources should be cited and properly referenced. Lifting the graphics and paraphrasing, without acknowledging the source is tantamount to plagiarism. As emphasized, â€Å"to avoid plagiarism, you must use material from outside sources properly. You can integrate outside material into your paper in three ways: by quoting, paraphrasing, or summarizing† (Gurak & Lannon, 2013, p. 429). Thus, in no instance should any material be lifted and copied without acknowledging the source, as