The New Jim Crow Essay Example for Free

The New Jim Crow Essay In the book â€Å"The New Jim Crow† author Michelle Alexander talks about numerous issues of racial inequality in our criminal justice system. Alexander’s book is something every person who even has an interest in the criminal justice field should read, as it really looks beyond the color of a person’s skin. Alexander points out the vast majority of the problems our criminal justice system faces in racial inequality and discrimination. These problems have really formed our country to what it is to this day. Most people feel that society as a whole is past discrimination and that it is no longer a problem anymore. In reality, it is still a major problem in many aspects of our criminal justice system as well as the everyday lives of Americans. In all honesty I was one of them, but â€Å"The New Jim Crow† really opened my eyes on the discrimination that occurs within minorities in the United States. Reflecting back on this issue I had realized that I have witnessed this first hand with one of my close friends who is an African American male. I will get into more detail about this later on in my paper, but for now I am going to address some of the issues of racial inequality in the criminal justice system that Alexander mentioned. First of all going back to the late 1800’s with slavery in the United States. This time period really set the tone for discrimination in the future of our country. At this point in time African American’s were much like Peasants back in pre-colonial times. This led to slaves literally walking off their plantations and causing chaos among plantation owners. This not only caused problems for plantation owners, but it also caused problems for the economy in the United States. After this was done black codes were created due to the African Americans unwillingness to work. Ultimately these codes were reversed due to several pieces of civil rights legislation that started the Reconstruction Era. During this era African Americans who were former slaves were allowed their first opportunity to learn how to read and write. Another form of racial inequality was during the Reconstruction Era. There were more laws set in place that were mainly enforced against African Americans. These laws were set in place to protect against things such as mischief and insulting gestures. This was possible in my opinion due to the federal government not aking an effort at the time to enforce civil rights legislation. Along with this death rates were extremely high due to private contractors did not care about the well being of the slaves. Like I said previously all these things set the tone for the future of our country. Looking forward to the 1950’s to the 1960’s crime rates were dramatically rising with many people believing that the Civil Rights Movement was the main cause of the raise in crime. Another reason that Alexander stated cause this boost in crime was the â€Å"baby boom† generation entering their early twenties. With the rise of the young men it created the rise in crime. With that being said many people felt that the Civil Rights Movement was the main cause of this sudden outbreak in crime. Another event that did not help the cause of African Americans in the 1960’s was the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Junior. This led to an outrage in the African American Community in which it gave white Americans more reason’s to think that African Americans were harmful to society. One issue of racial inequality that Alexander mentioned was how the courts place higher standards on African Americans than they do on white Americans. Along with that Alexander Talked about how white Americans are still more likely to do drugs than African Americans are. Even in â€Å"ghetto† neighborhoods African Americans are less like to sell and use drugs than white Americans are. Along with that though, African Americans are sent to prison on drug charges at a rate of twenty to almost sixty times greater than a white. Alexander also talked about a survey in the 1980’s that found out that ninety percent of white believed that black and whit children should attend the same schools, and that seventy-one percent disagreed that whites have a right to keep blacks out of white neighborhoods. Also eighty percent of the people that took the survey said that they would support an African American candidate for president, and sixty-six percent said that they opposed laws prohibiting intermarriage. After reading this it really kind of troubled me because I feel that segregation was still a little bit of a problem in the early 1980’s. In my opinion the problem with surveys are that a lot of the time people do not tell the truth and I feel like that is the case in this survey. I feel that those numbers would probably be around the same if not a little better today than it was back then. One reason I feel this way is partially to how my grandparents act towards African Americans. My grandpa who was born in Eastern Tennessee has never really been a big supporter of African Americans due to how he was raised by his dad who was actually a preacher. Also I feel that the results that the survey got would depend on what kind of area the survey was taken in. In a town like the one that I grew up in I feel that the results would definitely be lower especially since it is not a very diverse town. Now back to the story where I had witnessed discrimination in the criminal justice system. When I was in high school me and some friends one of which was a African American male was driving home from the bowling alley at around Eleven ‘O Clock in the evening got pulled over on our way back to my house. When the officer came up to the car he asked me for my driver’s license like you would expect the officer to do. The officer caught my friends and I off guard when he asked my African American friend for his license, but not anyone else in the car. Until I read Alexander’s book I never really thought about the situation since I was so young, but now I understand the magnitude of it all and how ridiculous it is that something like that happened and me not even realize it. Also I have been pulled over seven times by the police and this incident is the only time an officer has asked to see any identification of any of the passengers that I had with me. The next thing that I will talk about is how racism in criminal justice grew out of earlier historical periods. Earlier I mention how in the 1800’s there was a Reconstruction Era. The first Reconstruction Era was brief According to Alexander it stretched from 1863to when the Northern states freed the slaves in 1877. With this reconstruction it gave African Americans their first opportunity to read and write, but it also forced the government to help support the African Americans by providing things like food, clothing, and fuel. This period also gave the African Americans their first opportunity to vote although they had to be protected by federal troops from organizations like the Ku Klux Klan. At the end of the first Reconstruction Era the Civil Rights Movement that is also known as the Second Reconstruction started. During the Civil Rights Movement African Americans played a bigger part in the United States government due to African Americans gaining political power as well as the growing population of the NAACP. With the rise of the NAACP the Ku Klux Klan also grew as a terrorists program killing many officers of the NAACP. Along with Dr. Martin Luther King Junior who had probably the biggest impact on the Civil Rights Movement, President Kennedy presented a strong civil rights bill to the United States Congress. Although he was not able to see this through due to his assassination, his successor President Johnson made sure that this bill went through. This gave most African Americans a chance to go to schools with white students as well as giving them a chance to drinking from water fountains that they were banned from drinking out of before this bill. Recently I watched an ESPN 30 for 30 film about the University of Mississippi otherwise known â€Å"Ole Miss†. A young African American, by the name of James Meredith, attending the university outraged the state of Mississippi. President Kennedy sent troops down to Oxford, Mississippi on the campus of Ole Miss to help protect Meredith and other students from being injured due to riots. Even with the troops, the riots were too much to handle which ultimately led to several students getting killed and many others injured. Before this film I had never heard of the tragedy that occurred within the university. Perhaps this twisted event was swept beneath the rug as if it never even occurred. Maybe it’s the fact that society is too embarrassed to own up to the sickening deeds done onto our own kind? Now how does our criminal justice system, which is based on equality for all develop such discriminatory practices? It is not necessarily the system as a whole, but the actions of so many individuals who believe that discrimination is perfectly acceptable. Some regions of our beautiful country continue to believe that live a discriminating lifestyle and pass these beliefs onto their children. Mississippi is a prime example of location still considered to be very discriminatory. The university itself proudly flies the rebel flag to the tune of â€Å"Dixie† unaware of the pain and suffering associated to both. What is a caste? A caste is a way of diving a society into classes based on race, wealth, religion, and social status. With the most common example of caste is race and wealth. With that be said though Whit Americans are not the only one’s who can discriminate. African Americans or really anyone can discriminate against anyone person, race or social status. The criminal justice system is a caste system, because those at the bottom of the system can commit the same crime as a wealthy citizen and have more of a punishment than someone who can afford better lawyers and are well known. Also the discrimination between whites and minorities is probably the main reason why the criminal justice system is a caste system. Alexander talks a lot about this in chapter three of â€Å"The New Jim Crow†. Alexander talked about how long it could take public defenders to get to a case due to the overload of cases that he or she would be assigned to. One example of this is the O. J. Simpson murder case. There was so much evidence and motive for O. J. to commit the crime yet he was still found not guilty of the murder. Does discrimination end when people are released from prison? Absolutely not! After being released from prison, convicts will face more discrimination than before they were ever charged with whatever crime they have committed. The people who are released from prison will always have to face the fact that they will have the label of being convicted felon for the rest of their lives. After being convicted they typically do not have the same job opportunities as someone that has never been convicted, as well as not ever being allowed to get food stamps of public housing if they needed it. Basically, convicted felons might as well have a stamp on their forehead saying, â€Å"I am a convicted felon†. In conclusion, I feel that Alexander raises many good points on discrimination and racial inequality. Anyone entering the criminal justice field really needs to read this book and reflect on what needs to change to make our system an equality based system like it is supposed to be. I know it has me thinking about what needs to be done. I feel that is the only way we can make our criminal justice system a well-rounded system.

Individual Learner Difference In Second Language Acquisition Education Essay

Individual Learner Difference In Second Language Acquisition Education Essay SLA (Second language acquisition) is a process through which an individual learns a second language as an additional language after having learned a native language already. SLA involves broad research and is considered a branch of applied linguistics. The concept is also related to education, neuroscience sociolinguistics, and psychology. Learning a second language is not an easy task, this is a practice that involves commitment, study, dedication, patient as well as time in order to develop. People who learn a second language do not do it because is just a compulsory subject at school, but because they feel encouraged to learn it , considering factors such us, communication with foreigners, academic studies and better opportunities to find a good job. Research has shown that there are differences among second language learners that significantly affect language learning success. As a result, the study of individual differences (IDs) especially in language learning motivation and language aptitude has been attributed to researches on L2 studies dating back to the 1960s. Motivation is what guides people to accomplish and be successful in all areas of life. Regarding the classroom environment, this term is the basis of how enthusiastic or unwilling students are to learn and the guidance force to maintain the extensive and sometimes tiresome learning process. Both the degree of motivation and educational success frequently seem to go hand in hand, which can be clearly observed throughout the teaching practice. This essay seeks to explore and discuss in detail one individual learner difference in second language acquisition, which is motivation. Apart from defining the term, regarding different authors, the essay will also include the analysis of the various types of motivation, as well as, the role motivation plays in second language classrooms. And finally, ways of fostering motivation will be proposed. The term Motivation in SLA One of the individual learner differences in SLA is motivation, which is a term difficult to define, since its meaning could depend on the individuals and their cultures. DÃ ¶rnyei (2002: 1) says that motivation is best seen as a broad umbrella term that covers a variety of meanings, but simultaneously this author also describes motivation as the factor in charge of determining why individuals decide to carry out an action, the amount of effort people invest in the tasks as well as the rate of perseverance people put when completing various activities. Alike DÃ ¶rnyei, Passer and Smith (2004: 327) perceive motivation as a process that influences the direction, persistence and vigour of goal-directed behaviour. According to Gardner (1985), motivation is what makes people to act towards a given situation. Taking into consideration all these definitions which state what the term of motivation is, it can be deduced that the concept refer to some type of energy that guides individuals t o undertake a task in their lives. The motivated language learner Lightbown and Spada (2002) point out that motivation is a factor that plays an important role in language learning success. In the context of language learning is what pushes a pupil to gain knowledge of the English language. The importance of motivation in relation to achieving the goals of learning English as a Second Language according to Naiman et al, (1978) is that it gives the learner the ability to tolerate ambiguity; a need for achievement; a positive orientation towards the task; high aspirations; ego involvement; perseverance and goal orientation. Therefore, a motivated language student is a person who has positive attitudes towards the target language. These attitudes are shown when the second language learner makes efforts to acquire the language and has a consistent desire of studying and discovering new and additional material. Moreover, looking for opportunities and ways where he or she will be able to put in practice the target language. An additional way of defining a motivated learner is when learning the second language is a comfortable situation for the apprentice, taking pleasure in the tasks involved. Furthermore, a pupil that experience a high level of motivation will doubtless feel pleased about learning the language. Researchers have arisen several explanations of what encourages learners to study a foreign language; they have found that motivational factors are fundamental at the time of speaking about second language success. Types of motivation As it was mentioned before, there are diverse meanings for motivation in SLA, regardless of the words they basically refer to the same notion. Also, there are different factors which somewhat vary depending on the authors points of view. I will refer in this essay to the different types of motivation, taking into consideration different authors. Extrinsic and Intrinsic motivation: The words extrinsic and intrinsic are to some extent complicated, given that both terms do not seem to have a clear definition in the field of second language acquisition. Passer and Smith (2004) cite extrinsic and intrinsic motivation, even though Noels (2002) uses the terms extrinsic and intrinsic orientations. For these authors, Passer and Smith and Noel, extrinsic signifies that people carry out an action to accomplish an external goal or evade punishment, while by intrinsic motivation the authors altogether mean that students do activities, due to the satisfaction they get from the tasks themselves. Activities that motivate students intrinsically are likened to enjoyable activities, fun, or things that students do out of their own choice. Some of the conducted studies assert that intrinsically motivating activities lead to improved learning by the students. The difference between Passer Smith (2004) and Noels (2002) is just the notion motivation and orientations, in view of the fact that both terms involved different approaches of motivation. The initial term proposes that the motivation itself comes from outside or within; while the term orientation suggests that it is rather the different triggers of motivation that comes from outside or within. Although, Glasser (1996) does not use the terms intrinsic and extrinsic, he provides a third route to see where motivation comes from. He states that motivation is produced trying to satisfied the essential desires which all human beings own. For instance, the need of entertainment. He points out that even if a person is influenced by the environment, all motivation still comes from inside the individual, because it is he or she who really choose whether or not and how to carry out an activity. Though I concur with Glasser that just the individuals are the ones who make their own decisions, I think that what motivates people, are factors which can be both external and internal. Alternatively, Garden and Lambet (1972) coined the following terms to classify motivation. Integrative Motivation Garden and Lambet (1972) describe this term as the desire that the learners have to familiarize themselves with the culture of the ethnic group that speaks the language they intend to learn. Gardner (2002) himself perceives Integrativeness as one of the factors that conduct to motivation for second language learning, and by this he suggests that whether learners have the hope to come nearer the L2 community they will have real desire in learning and studying the second language. Besides, the term also refers to the degree at which the learner desires to understand the target community. Essentially, integrative motivation refers to a learners desire to expand their association with the community that they are targeting. Saville Troike, (2005) affirm that the main triggers of this type of motivation are emotions or affective factors. For instance, a Chilean boy who come to live in London for a time, meet an English girl and fall in love with her. He will have the desire and motivation to learn English in order to communicate with his girlfriend and integrate into the new culture and become part of the community. As Chile is mainly a monocultural society, chances to utilize the second language in daily conversations are fairly limited. Therefore, learners do not feel motivated to learn the second language to become part of the community, since they just need their first language to interact. It can be discussed that integrative motivation is an intrinsic factor, because it implies that learning a second language is more a final aim itself rather than a mean to accomplish a final goal, due to the authentic desire on the learning tasks (Noels (2002). Instrumental Motivation: One more term that Gardner and Lambert made up is instrumental motivation which Lightbown Spada (2002: 56) introduce as language learning for more immediate or practical goals. Very similar to integrative motivation, instrumental motivation also sees language learning as an instrument to accomplish a goal rather than the satisfaction in the action itself. However, what distinguishes both terms is the final aim, which in integrative motivation is the interaction in the L2 community while in instrumental motivation the ultimate goal is more practical, for instance, obtaining a better job, career developmental or passing exams. For most Chilean learners of English instrumental motivation is the key element at the time to learn English as a second language. For Lightbown Spada (2002) both types of motivation are important , they say that whether the students feel the necessity to interact in the second language in various social situations or to accomplish academic and professional aspirations, the communicative value of the foreign language will be perceived and therefore, they will feel encouraged to get proficiency in the language. I agree with the authors that both types of motivation are important to acquire a second language, However for Chilean people integrative motivation is far to be seen as a reason to study the second language due to the fact that Chile , as I mentioned earlier, is a monocultural and monolingual society. Classroom Learning Motivation vs. Language Learning Motivation When considering second language acquisition and motivation, it is important to put two motivational constructs into consideration. Research has shown that there are two categories of motivation that should be put into account when discussing SLA. This mainly deals with the difference that exists between classroom learning motivation and language learning motivation. Language learning motivation refers to the desire to learn a second language. Language learning motivation includes evaluated second language acquisition, socio-educational representation (Gardner, 1985), the preparedness to converse model (Clement, Dornyei, MacIntyre Noels, 1998) among others. It is the universal type of motivation that applies to any context of learning a language. The universal attributes of the learner relate to the need to learn the language. Clements (1980) social context model, Gardners (1985) SLA social-education model among others, agree that the motivation or desire to learn a second language is a characteristic that has considerable effects on the individual although they are different when it comes to assessment, correlates and antecedents. The other type of motivation is the learning motivation in a classroom. According to Heckhausen and Kuhl (1985), classroom-learning motivation is the general educational psychology as described by Dornyeis model of post-actional, actional, and pre-actional motivation model. Although it is seen to be an important part to motivation as a whole, the SLA socio-educational model by Gardner, (1985), characterizes it. The main focus is the persons view on the mission to be achieved and to a large extent, it is state oriented. This means that a number of issues that are related to the language class will affect the individuals perception. As a result, the atmosphere in the class, the teacher, the contents of the course, facilities and materials combined with the students personal attributes will affect the persons motivation when it comes to classroom learning. It is hard to differentiate between the two categories of motivation because they control the individual at any particular time. Therefore, it is important to consider both classes of motivation operative. Just as hard as it is to define motivation, it is equally difficult to give an explanation to the meaning of learning a second language. According to Gardner, the motivational strength can only be estimated from questionnaires based on an individuals attitude and is considered to be a hidden psychometric characteristic. Other educational practices have applied the use of indicators that have been observed from individuals behavior in response to a given task. This depends on the persons selection of tasks, which is determined by the level of difficulty, the persistency of the learner to tackle the problem at hand, the extent at which an individual participates in a group or class activities, the span of attention and focus, or the qualitative information available on spoken reports of self-regulation and self-monitoring. The new research program by Crookes and Schmidt (1991) includes the advancements made in the universal educational, which has narrowed to the field of language learning motivation. This directs its focus on individuals, the approaches that the learner might implement in the learning process, the learning contexts, and the observable conduct of class members. Following the inception of the new outline, the areas of interest have shifted to the learner as an individual. In Covingtons self-worthy theory (1998), the importance of the learners ideas were emphasized, their own beliefs, the strategy they use, and the level of their desire to deal with the task at hand. The self- efficacy concept by Bandura (1997) is a very important related characteristic which assesses the level at which learners gauge their potential and their own management. Individuals who have this ability come up with an efficient motivational thinking strategy and are able to reduce the risk of failure and increase t heir chances of success while depending less on outside obligatory measures and strategies. Motivation: Individual Learner Difference in Chilean Culture Clement and Noels (1996) indicate that the cultural settings present different language learning and individual learner differences. In the Chilean cultural setting, the motivation to learn the English language offer some challenges to the learners due to most of the students who attend Chilean public schools are in social risk. In addition, many of the learners may be discouraged to put personal effort in learning the language because of the fact that they may not find the language useful outside the educational setting. Others may be of the opinion that their chances of travelling to a country where English is spoken as a native language are rather minimal. Furthermore, challenges that come with teaching a class that has many students may affect the effectiveness of the teachers and the quality of the lesson. This together with the little interest towards learning the English language may influence negatively the motivation to teach as well as the motivation to learn. Fostering Motivation The best ways to foster motivation is to create a good environment, which is beneficial for second language learning. This can be done by reducing the number of students per class to ensure that the instruction given by the English teachers is of good quality. The teachers should also come up with plans that apply to both slow learners and fast learners so as to ensure that those who do not grasp quickly are not left far behind because this may demotivate them to continue learning. The schools may consider initiating exchange programs with schools where English is the native language. This would give students the feeling that studying English is not an effort in vain but a step in the right direction since it would help them in securing jobs and touring other parts of the world. Moreover, teachers should come up with a timetable that gives us enough time to prepare for our classes by getting the necessary materials as well as reflecting on the success of the program. This would help us in coming up with a better plan to teach hence improving our teaching methodology. It would also help teachers find ways of motivating their own students. With the relevant authorities ensuring that, schools are well equipped to teach English as a second language, students will be motivated to learn and teachers will be motivated to teach. Conclusion The above discussion has provided an analysis of motivation as an individual learner difference. There have been numerous research studies exploring individual learner differences, which have indicated that the main reason why many L2 students fail while others succeed effortlessly is the presence of different student characteristics such as language aptitude, motivation, or personality traits. The motivation of the student is very important in the learning process and is regarded as the key factor that contributes to the success of SLA. Research has revealed that intrinsic motivation is more successful than external or extrinsic motivation over the long term. Some students learning rate is higher as compared to others. Some learners are able to grasp quickly and they go on to the level of reaching near-native competence while slow learners experience difficulties in the early stages of the learning process. Recently conducted research has shown that this disparity is caused by the p articular strategy adopted by the learner, motivation, anxiety, personality, as well as societal and social influences. Research has clearly shown that the intensity of the students motivation to its highest level, including the cognitive, affective, and behavioral components are the most important aspects towards success in SLA. Since the integrative motive incorporates the aspect of being open to cultural identification as part of the process, it tries to imply that integration may be more connected to achieving highest level of achievement as compared to other types of motivation that do not have this component. Classroom learning motivation seems to be a system that encourages individuals to acquire specific language elements but for the students to be masters of the language, more is needed. In my opinion, the integrative motivation provides the students with a better platform for SLA. A teachers role in the process of learning a second language is rather complicated but very important. It surpasses the provision of reward since the whole experience is dependent on the self-efficacy of the student. The teachers role entails providing challenging yet supportive environment to allow the students to learn and explore their potential. The teachers are also supposed to help their students to develop their own motivational thinking by discovering their original orientation. The most challenging aspect in all of this is trying to avoid anything that may de-motivate the students. Although it is very much possible to imagine other forms of motivation, the type of motivation does not matter very much. The difference that emerges between instrumental and integrative motivation, or between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation does very little in helping us to understand the role that motivation plays in second language acquisition.

Everyday Use Essay -- Literary Analysis, Alice Walker

The characters in â€Å"Everyday Use† by Alice Walker serve as a comparison between how family heritage and traditions are viewed. Walker illustrates that heritage is represented not by the possession of items or how they look, but buy how they are used, how one’s attitude is, and how they go about a daily lifestyle. Every memory or tradition in â€Å"Everyday Use† strengthens the separation in the relationship between Dee and her mother, the narrator, which involves different views on their family heritage. Mrs. Johnson, the mother, is described as, â€Å"a large, big-boned woman with rough, man-working hands† (6). She tells some of her capabilities including, â€Å"I can kill and clean a hog as mercilessly as a man. . .I can work outside all day, breaking ice to get water for washing; I can eat pork liver cooked over the open fire minutes after it comes steaming from the hog† (6). This description informs readers that Mrs. Johnson has learned all the ways and traditions of her ancestors and knows how to survive from day to day. She and Maggie’s lives in the small home represent a simple, unsophisticated way of life. Dee, on the other hand is described as, â€Å"[light-skinned], with nicer hair and a fuller figure† who â€Å"wanted nice things† and â€Å"had a style of her own† (7). The clothes Dee wears and the phrases she uses to greet her mother and sister show that she has no real understanding of her background and where she comes from. Th is shows Dee to be materialistic, complex, and lead a life where heritage is looked upon as a trend and not for what it really represents. Although neither Maggie nor Mrs. Johnson are very well educated they show an understanding of where they come from. Mrs. Johnson and the community raised money to send Dee to a school... ...cause she had been â€Å"savin ‘em for long enough with nobody using ‘em† (12). After Dee gets the picture she walks out of the house and tells her mother â€Å"You just don’t understand. . .Your heritage. . .† (13). Dee is in fact the one who does not understand. Dee thinks of heritage to be as tangible as hanging the quilt on her wall or using the churn as a decoration for her table. Her mother, on the other hand, knows about traditions and heritage. Using the quilts would put the memories of their ancestors to everyday use. â€Å"Everyday Use† shows readers that heritage and culture is not speaking in a foreign language, wearing different clothes, or the changing of one’s name. One’s heritage and culture is taught and learned through generations, not just picked up. Walker illustrates that a person who truly has heritage and culture makes use of it every day of their life.

The History of Abortion :: Womens rights, murder of a child

Abortions have been mentioned throughout recorded history, simply not a prevalent issue. In the times before Christ, typical abortion methods would be to poison the mother (in hope that she lived while the fetus died), or to abuse the mother’s abdomen. Hippocrates and Soranos, who were considered the greatest of all ancient gynecologists, both opposed abortion, though whether it was for the protection of the mother or fetus is not clear. The Hippocratic Oath, formulated around 400B.C., prohibits abortion and was taken verbatim by U.S. physicians (Gilbert 1). Once abortions became better developed and they started to be considered safe, the Catholic Church felt compelled to condemn the practice. It was considered murder and a horrid mortal sin. The Church struggled to find the appropriate time in the pregnancy cycle to consider abortion murder of the baby’s life. Different beliefs about when the baby was actually alive caused much disagreement. The Church prohibited abortion during many different times, sometimes at conception, other times when the baby first moved, and still other times when the pregnancy was four months along, also known as quickening. However, Judaism, Catholicism, and Protestantism always prohibited abortion of an animate fetus, or one considered alive with a soul. The problem was simply figuring when life began. During colonial times, medical guides gave recipes to abort the baby, with herbs that could be grown in one’s garden. By the mid-eighteenth century, these herbs were so widely available that they caused the first abortion laws to actually be considered poison control laws. The sale of commercial abortifacients was banned, however the action of the abortion was not. The laws made little difference (History 2). Even today, as Beverly Wildung Harrison, a feminist, says, â€Å"The withdrawal of legal abortion will create one more massively profitable underworld economy in which the Mafia and other sections of the quasi-legal capitalism may and will profitably invest† (390). Until the last third of the nineteenth century, when it was considered a criminal offense, abortion was legal before quickening. Under common law, post-quickening abortion was considered homicide or manslaughter. Statutes usually differed throughout the states, but generally abortion was punished after quickening as manslaughter and prior to quickening as a misdemeanor (Gilbert 1). In 1857, the American Medical Association appointed a committee on Criminal Abortion. Its purpose was to investigate criminal abortion â€Å"with a view to its general suppression†. They concluded that a fetus was a living person at the moment of conception, and this belief was encouraged by an even stronger report from the same committee in 1871. The History of Abortion :: Women's rights, murder of a child Abortions have been mentioned throughout recorded history, simply not a prevalent issue. In the times before Christ, typical abortion methods would be to poison the mother (in hope that she lived while the fetus died), or to abuse the mother’s abdomen. Hippocrates and Soranos, who were considered the greatest of all ancient gynecologists, both opposed abortion, though whether it was for the protection of the mother or fetus is not clear. The Hippocratic Oath, formulated around 400B.C., prohibits abortion and was taken verbatim by U.S. physicians (Gilbert 1). Once abortions became better developed and they started to be considered safe, the Catholic Church felt compelled to condemn the practice. It was considered murder and a horrid mortal sin. The Church struggled to find the appropriate time in the pregnancy cycle to consider abortion murder of the baby’s life. Different beliefs about when the baby was actually alive caused much disagreement. The Church prohibited abortion during many different times, sometimes at conception, other times when the baby first moved, and still other times when the pregnancy was four months along, also known as quickening. However, Judaism, Catholicism, and Protestantism always prohibited abortion of an animate fetus, or one considered alive with a soul. The problem was simply figuring when life began. During colonial times, medical guides gave recipes to abort the baby, with herbs that could be grown in one’s garden. By the mid-eighteenth century, these herbs were so widely available that they caused the first abortion laws to actually be considered poison control laws. The sale of commercial abortifacients was banned, however the action of the abortion was not. The laws made little difference (History 2). Even today, as Beverly Wildung Harrison, a feminist, says, â€Å"The withdrawal of legal abortion will create one more massively profitable underworld economy in which the Mafia and other sections of the quasi-legal capitalism may and will profitably invest† (390). Until the last third of the nineteenth century, when it was considered a criminal offense, abortion was legal before quickening. Under common law, post-quickening abortion was considered homicide or manslaughter. Statutes usually differed throughout the states, but generally abortion was punished after quickening as manslaughter and prior to quickening as a misdemeanor (Gilbert 1). In 1857, the American Medical Association appointed a committee on Criminal Abortion. Its purpose was to investigate criminal abortion â€Å"with a view to its general suppression†. They concluded that a fetus was a living person at the moment of conception, and this belief was encouraged by an even stronger report from the same committee in 1871.

Topic Summary For Petroleum Paper :: essays research papers

CHEMISTRY ISU: REFINEMENT OF CRUDE OIL My ISU will focus on Petroleum, a complex mixture of hydrocarbons that occurs in the Earth in liquid, gaseous, or solid forms. The term is usually restricted to the liquid form, commonly called crude oil, but as a technical term it also includes natural gas and the viscous or solid form known as bitumen. In its liquid and gaseous states, it is also known as Oil, or Crude Oil. Italicized are segments from my ISU or introductions to the planned topics. In my ISU, I plan to dedicate potions of my paper to the following aspects of petroleum. †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Petroleum’s many uses. Petroleum today is the source from which we derive many items. The Motor vehicle’s development in the 1930s gave petroleum a new and swiftly expanding role as the primary source of gasoline; oil and then natural gas replaced coal as the primary fuel for industrial and domestic heating. Petrochemicals derived from petroleum became the source of such chemical products as solvents, paints, plastics, synthetic rubber and fibres, soaps and cleansing agents, waxes and jellies, explosives, and fertilizers. Petroleum fuels also generate a large portion of the world's electrical-power supply. †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I will also discuss the exploration for crude oil, and the impending crisis if it continues to be used up at the current rates of consumption. ( is expected to exhaust the world’s supply by the mid-21st century) and possible energy alternatives. †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Petroleum’s origin and formation:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Petroleum is derived from aquatic plants and animals that died hundreds of millions of years ago. Their remains mixed with mud and sand in layered deposits that, over the millennia, were geologically transformed into sedimentary rock. Gradually the organic matter decomposed into petroleum, which moved from the original source beds to more porous and permeable rocks, such as sandstones and siltstones, where it finally becomes entrapped. †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Types of petroleum; for example, Bitumen. It is formed by crude oil that has migrated toward the Earth's surface and has been stripped of its lighter fractions by descending water. †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The components of Petroleum:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  (A) hydrocarbons. I will spend a lot of time on this segment, as it allows a lot of discussion about hydrocarbons, in which I can discuss chemical compounds and molecular structures and subsequent properties. Can discuss paraffins, naphthenes, aromatics in detail.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  (B) Non-hydrocarbons. Other constituents of petroleum include sulfur, oxygen, nitrogen, and the metals nickel and vanadium. Most of these impurities are removed during refining.

Love and Lust: Two Different Concept Essay

Love has a different meaning for many. For some, it may be an act of loyalty, and for others, it could be a comforting relationship. It is also an act in which everyone is happy. However, few differentiate love from lust like the character of Tomas from the book â€Å"The Unbearable Lightness of Being† by Milan Kundera does. In fact, the function of the fifth part is to prove that even though Tomas has sexual relationships with other women, he still loves Tereza. Sex and love are two distinct concepts for Tomas who loves Tereza but then sleeps with other women. He justifies this distinction by referring to his colleague’s research that â€Å"claimed that during any kind of dream men have erections, which means that the link between erections and naked women is only one of thousands way the Creator set the clockwork moving in a man’s head.† (236). Indeed, it is with the imagery of a mechanism that allows the function of a device that permits the imagination to link the distinction of love and lust to something quite technical. Therefore, man can be sexually excited by anything symbolizing that Tomas has no real control over the attraction he feels towards other naked women. However, Tomas can choose the one he loves and he chose Tereza. Moreover, he also believes that â€Å"Attaching love to sex is one of the most bizarre ideas the Creator ever had† (237) meaning that love and lust are truly two different concepts f or Tomas who would rather not be disturbed â€Å"by the aggressive stupidity of sex† (237) while loving Tereza. In other words, Tomas does not believe that lust should be a medium that will allow him to prove his love for Tereza. Tomas is characterized as always wanting to fight for the greater good but for Tereza, he stopped, proving that he loves her. Indeed, Tomas linked the tale of Oedipus with the situation in which the world was currently in because of Communists. He then developed an â€Å"analogy [that] so pleased him that he often used it in conversations with friends, and his formulation grew increasingly precise and elegant† (177) and from there, wrote an article about it. When the article was printed, his job as a surgeon was at stake because the authorities were not happy with his perspective on events. Therefore, Tomas only had two options: whether to retract his article and keep his profession or to not retract his article and keep his honor. It became apparent that when â€Å"the thing that struck [Tomas the most]: although he had never given people cause to doubt his integrity, [was that] they were ready to bet on his dishonesty rather than on his virtue† (181). Tomas’ decision was being foreshadowed meaning that his honor was more important than his â€Å"meaning of life† (179). However, Tomas did refuse to sign a petition that would liberate political prisoners because by signing it â€Å"he could be fairly certain that [Tereza] would have more frequent visits from undercover agents, and that her hands would tremble more and more.† (219) and he did not want to hurt his wife anymore. In other words, he wanted her to be happy because he loved her. Tomas will, in the end, always choose Tereza over any other woman, which demonstrates his love for her. He realizes in the fifth part of the book that he will choose Tereza over the women of his life. The realization that Tomas had in which â€Å"he will abandon the house of his happiness, time and again abandon his paradise and the woman from his dream and betray â€Å"Es muss sein!† of his love to go off with Tereza, the woman born of six laughable fortuities.† (239) can only mean that he loves Tereza in his own definition of love as bizarre as that may sound. Moreover, Tomas does not believe in the idealistic world where everyone has a better half. The narrator promptly explained that â€Å"According to â€Å"Plato’s Symposium: People were hermaphrodites until God split them in two, and now all the halves wander the world over seeking one another. Love is the longing for the half of ourselves we have lost† (238-239). However, Tomas admits that Tereza is most likely not the part of him he lost thus not his soul mate. Therefore, juxtaposing Plato’s Symposium’s definition of love and Tomas’ actions result in a clearer perspective of Tomas’ love for Tereza. In other words, Tomas loves Tereza in his own way. Furthermore, the personification of when â€Å"he feels her pain in his own heart.† (239) allows the readers to comprehend Tomas’ way of loving Tereza. If hurting her was not an option then love can be the only explanation. These reflexions made from the fifth part of the book â€Å"The Unbearable Lightness of Being† by Milan Kundera prove that Tomas truly loves Tereza. One might even argue that Tomas loves Tereza more than Tereza loves him even though he physically cheats on her. Work Cited Kundera, Milan. The Unbearable Lightness of Being. New York: HarperPerennial, 1999. Print. .

Collapse of the Ussr

Stephen Wears Assess the mall factors of the break-up of the soviet Union The break up and dissolution of the soviet union on the 25th December 1991 heralded the end of the Cold War. It ushered In what had been termed ‘the new world order', furthermore, it was suggested by Francis Fauvism to have signaled the end of history and the battle of ideas which had dominated much of the twentieth century (Huntington, 1996; 31). The ‘clash of civilizations' had already seen the demise of fascism as a credible force in 1945, the close of 1991 would see the end of communism in Europe.The relatively sudden collapse of the USSR has compelled winkers and analysts to seek answers as to why the world's second superpower could collapse so quickly and so utterly. Can it be attributed to one single catastrophic event, or is it far more appropriate to place blame on a number of contributing factors? The controversy surrounding the collapse of the USSR has been compared to the collapse of the Roman Empire among others and will also continue to be interpreted and reinterpreted for many years to come (Liqueur 1993; 387).This essay will look at some of the factors which lead to dissolution and assess the importance of each. The key issues that this essay will assess include the problem of he nationalities, the Geographer factor, economic problems, and the social and political upheavals caused by Perestroika and Glasnost. The Geographer factor must be viewed In the context of state of the country he Inherited from his predecessors coupled with the effects of Glasnost and Perestroika. It has been suggested that Glasnost and Perestroika played key roles in hastening the collapse of the world's second superpower.Glasnost (meaning openness) allowed people to see the flaws In the system and questions were raised as to whether or not communism had been good for Russia. Perestroika (meaning restructuring) also highlighted flaws in the lattice and bureaucratic system that could not be given a quick fix. The economic problems of the USSR have also been cited as a considerable factor in the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The command economy had stifled Innovation and its existence outside of the world economy had caused major problems. Further to this the USSR could not keep up with the military spending of the USA during the 1 sass.Competing against the military spending of the Reagan Administration as well as fighting a protracted war against the Munched in Afghanistan had all but exhausted the economy of the USSR. The nationalities provided a great problem for any ideas of national unity. It has been argued by Lord William Wallace that it would be very difficult for the European union evolve into a unified state because there is a lack of identity and little sense to shared history across the continent (Smith, 2005). This is the same problem facing attempts by soviet leaders to foster a single soviet nationality.The very same Issue had been faced by the Ts arist system before It. One of the few things the nationalities had in common was the centuries of Russian domination. Sitting on what 75 years before had been the Tsarist Russian Empire, the Soviet union faced same problem as had the Tsarist regime, namely the Incredibly republics of the USSR, was made up of many smaller semi-autonomous republics. Russians formed the biggest ethnic group at Just over 50%, followed by the Ukrainians with 15% of the total population. Other nationalities included Zebu; Biliousness; Khaki and Volta Attar among many others.The downfall of the Soviet Union gave an opportunity for peoples across the vast territory from Kampuchea to the Kola Peninsula to glamour for recognition (Dukes, 1998; 332). This suggests that the problem of the nationalities would continue to e a headache for the newly formed Russian Federation. The rise of nationalism added to the troubles faced by the Kremlin during the sass. The growth of the Transactions and Baltic Popular Front s had brought the problem of the nationalities to the fore when in 1989 the Red Army entered Tidbits to assist the Georgian authorities in putting down a rally.Soviet troops were also used to prop up the communist government of Azerbaijan under threat from nationalist forces (Chubbier, 2001; 195). The Baltic States did not Join the chorus of statements of sovereignty which had come from Astrakhan and Ukraine, this was because they regarded their incorporation into the USSR as an illegal act. They challenged the legality of the Molotov – Robertson pact of 1939 and achieved international support in the form of the American refusal to recognize the annexation of the region (Strayed, 1998; 152-153).The policy of Perestroika can be seen as the catalyst for the increase in nationalism as the planned restructuring of the USSR exposed fundamental flaws in the Soviet system. The policy of Glasnost also exposed corruption within the Caucasian and Central Asian republics, Geographer res ponded by replacing the Khaki Communist Party leader Sunken with a Russian. This caused a great deal of rioting in Almost (Strayed, 1998; 150-151). Further to the rise of popular front movements within the constituent republics, the Soviet Union was also facing a crisis with its East European satellites due in part to the policies of Glasnost and Perestroika.Glasnost and Perestroika are often cited as the most important factors in speeding the demise of the Soviet Union. Eric Hobbies claims that the only thing that made the soviet system work was the command structure of the party and the state which had been inherited from the days of Stalin (1995; 480). Once again it mimed that reform from the top was going to introduce fundamental change which was to be ultimately uncontrollable. Hobbies also suggests that ‘glasnost amounted to the disintegration of authority' and ‘perestroika amounted to the destruction of the old mechanisms which made the economy work' (1995; 483).P erestroika had to an extent legalized dissent, and groups in cities across the USSR began forming larger political groups known as ‘clubs of socially active citizens' (Chubbier, 2001; 190). This radical departure from the Soviet norm of suppressing membership of political parties other than the Communist Party was acclimated by the decision to stop arrests on the grounds of political activity. The release of political prisoners saw the growth of new organizations outside of the Soviet system, however by 1988 this opposition numbered Just a few thousand (Chubbier, 2001; 191).Glasnost played a major part in the unraveling of the Soviet Union. It brought forward into stark light the myriad of social problems which had 320-321). Part of glasnost and perestroika involved the relaxing of censorship of the press and other media. It was clear to Geographer that hard line censorship was a utile exercise given the increasing public access to western broadcasts, particularly in the after math of the Coherency disaster of 1986 (Acton, 1995; 320). It was recognized that reform of the economy and wider society could not happen under the current level of state censorship.Not even Lenin escaped criticism under glasnost, it was claimed that the October revolution had been an unmitigated disaster for Russia, leading the nation on a long road to nowhere (Acton, 1995; 323). Geographer and his policies of glasnost and perestroika soon faced serious problems with regards to implementation of the reforms. It seemed that Geographer was trying to do the impossible by marrying completely opposing concepts, ‘socialism with capitalism, totalitarianism with democracy'(Chubbier, 2001; 194). This was also known as the Geographer Factor.The Geographer Factor stems from the problem of the Soviet Union being too reliant on the top figure in government (Chubbier, 2001; 194). It was almost impossible to override the powers held by Geographer, even if it did mean following his lead to the destruction of the USSR. It can be argued that this same problem led to economic stagnation under Brethren and the less than successful schemes of Khrushchev. Regional fragmentation and the erosion of the USSR as a ‘political and economic empire' pushed the republics further towards secession, the communist parties in the Baltic States split from the main communist party of the Soviet Union (CUPS).This caused a wave of similar actions in other constituent republics and served to hasten the disintegration of the country. The process of demonstration initiated by Geographer set the Soviet Union on the course to oblivion for it allowed the republics to elect popular governments and vote to secede from the union via referendum. This most significant of these was the referendum held by Ukraine the results of which indicated the will of the people to leave the union. However this is at odds with the referendum set down by Geographer regarding the retention and reform of the USSR , which received overwhelming popular support.Nevertheless the simple fact that the largest republic in the USSR other than Russia had voted to leave the union could only have a catastrophic effect on the future of the country as a whole. Geographer had no choice but to accept these events, as there could be no return to Stalinist era of brutal suppression such as that en during the Hungarian Uprising in 1956. Geographer faced opposition to the introduction of restructuring and openness to the soviet system. The opposition came to a head in August of 1991, the central state bureaucracy made an attempt at regaining political control of the country (Chubbier, 2001; 193).A coup d'Â ©tat was launched in an attempt to reassert conservative values to the Soviet system. Geographer was put under house arrest in Crimea while attempts were made at reversing the damage done by perestroika. This however received no popular support from the public, prompting Boris Yielding to act to put a stop to the coup. Yielding, President of the Russian SF led a three day resistance movement which involved barricades being set up in central Moscow and around the ‘White House' to prevent the plotters from assuming power (Chubbier, 2001; 193).This proved to be Geographer's power almost completely eroded, a secret meeting of the leaders of the three main Slavic states declared that the USSR officially ceased to exist. Without a country to lead Geographer tendered his resignation on 25th December 1991. All but five signatures were present on the declaration of the end of the USSR. The Baltic tastes had long maintained their annexation was illegal, Georgia would sign later. The other noticeable absence was that of Mikhail Geographer (Chubbier, 2001 ; 194-195).This essay has given an assessment of the events leading to the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. Although it cannot be said with any great certainty that any one factor was more influential than another, it must be noted that Gl asnost and Perestroika have not been too far away from any of the issues discussed here. The two flagship policies of Geographer had been intended to complement each other, in reality they had the opposite effect. Attempting to Join opposing concepts was a futile exercise which no doubt hastened the demise of the Soviet superpower.The problems faced by the Soviet government ran much deeper than appeared to the Soviet public. Years of economic stagnation and bureaucratic strangulation had left the Soviet Union a spent force by the late sass. Robert Strayed suggests that ‘tinkering with its fragile structures would send it [the USSR] spinning into oblivion' (1998; 88). One can't avoid this harrowing assessment being very similar to the assertion made by Doll Hitler shortly before launching Operation Barbarous, hat ‘one has only to kick in the door, and the whole rotten edifice will come crashing down'.Of course this was a statement of propaganda and should be viewed with t hat in mind. Ultimately the Soviet Union was broken by a series of intertwining events, both long term and short term, some more important than others but each playing a crucial role. Just as the USSR was established on the ruins of the Tsarist Empire, the newly formed Russian Federation is established on the ruins of the USSR, marked by the raising of the Russian Atrocious, watched by a small group of pro-communist supporters. List of References