Imagination :: essays research papers

The human imagination is a very powerful thing. It sets humanity apart from the rest of the creatures that roam the planet by giving them the ability to make creative choices. The imaginary world is unavoidably intertwined with the real world and there are many ways by which to illustrate this through literature, either realistically or exaggerated. Almost everything people surround themselves with is based on the unreal. Everything from the food we eat to the books we read had to have been thought of by someone and their imagination. The imagination empowers humans.^1 It allows people to speculate or to see into the future. It allows artists to create, inventors to invent, and even scientists and mathematicians to solve problems. J.R. Tolken wrote â€Å"Lord of the Rings† by sitting in his backyard and imagining everything coming to life.^2 He thought about all the â€Å"what if† possibilities. But this method of storytelling can be used in much more subtle and/or soph isticated ways than in science fiction or fantasy novels. Through such works as the short story Dreams and the novel â€Å"Headhunter† by Timothy Findley, the film â€Å"the Matrix†, and the short story the Telltale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe, one can see how a writer can use the concept of the imaginary invading reality to write their story.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Dreams, by Timothy Findley, the main characters, two married psychiatrists named â€Å"the doctors Marlo†, have a fairly normal marriage. But they are both dealing with professional cases that are invading their personal lives. Mrs. Marlo specializes in autistic children. One case she is working on is that of a little boy who won’t talk, eat or sleep. She grows attached to this child and thinks of him as almost her own son. Meanwhile, Everett Marlo, her husband, is plagued by nightmares caused by one of his more puzzling cases, which results in insomnia. He begins to share his patient’s nightmares and dreams that he is looking through his patient’s dreaming eyes and is committing savage and bloody murders. Findley uses his character’s dreams to show that the imaginary dreams that Everett is having affects his normal, day to day reality. This makes for many plot possibilities that the author could have chosen. But Findley chose to have Everett fall asleep and have Mrs. Marlo discover her husband covered head to toe in someone else’s blood in the bathroom.

Abortion :: essays research papers

Abortion, termination of a pregnancy before birth, resulting in the death of the fetus. Some abortions occur naturally because a fetus does not develop normally or because the mother has an injury or disorder that prevents her from carrying the pregnancy to term. This type of spontaneous abortion is commonly known as a miscarriage. Other abortions are induced—that is, intentionally brought on—because a pregnancy is unwanted or presents a risk to a woman’s health, or because the fetus is likely to have severe physical or mental health problems. Induced abortion, the focus of this article, is one of today’s most intense and polarizing ethical and philosophical issues. Modern medical techniques have made induced abortions simpler and less dangerous. But in the United States, the debate over abortion has led to legal battles in the courts, in the Congress of the United States, and state legislatures. The debate has spilled over into confrontations, which are sometimes violent, at clinics where abortions are performed. This article discusses the most common methods used to induce abortions, the social and ethical issues surrounding abortion, and the history of the regulation of abortion in the United States. II Abortion Methods Print Preview of Section Induced abortions are performed using drugs or surgery. The safest and most appropriate method is determined by the age of the fetus, which is calculated from the beginning of the pregnant woman’s last menstrual period. Most pregnancies last an average of 39 to 40 weeks. This period is divided into three stages known as trimesters. The first trimester consists of the first 13 weeks, the second trimester spans weeks 14 to 28, and the third trimester lasts from the 29th week to birth.

Democracy and Pragmatism Philosophies: Approaches to “The Grapes of Wrath” Essay

In 1939, â€Å"The Grapes of Wrath† by John Steinbeck formed an agitation of excitement and controversy upon its emancipation. The book forced the American public into a heightened awareness of national consciousness. Influenced by the thoughts of several dominant American philosophies such as transcendentalism, democracy and pragmatism, Steinbeck creates a masterpiece that edifies Americans about their value scheme. This work of art finds its main lineage from three following elements of American philosophy: Emersonian Transcendentalism with its perception of the oversoul and conviction in the common man, Walt Whitman’s devotion of the common man and his credence in mass Democracy, and Pragmatism as advocated by William James and John Dewey. Transcendentalism Transcendentalism is a belief system that espouses a non-traditional appreciation of nature and includes intuition, individuality, and self-reliance. It initiated as a remonstration, in opposition to the general situation of society, and specifically, the state of intellectualism and the doctrine of the Unitarian church at that juncture. Transcendentalists’ fundamental principle is an epitome of spiritual state that goes beyond the physical and empirical aspects and is barely attained through people’s instincts, rather than through the dogma of conventional religions (Goodman). Steinbeck was indeed influenced by this philosophy and the ideologies of this are evident in his novel, â€Å"The Grapes of Wrath†. The author conveys the idea of transcendentalism to the readers through a range of exceedingly noteworthy characters. One such character is that of Jim Casey, a former reverend and long-time acquaintance of the Joads. As a preacher like none other, he does not give a sermon of the conformist thoughts of Christian faith. Instead, he sermonizes of the Emersonian tenets of the Oversoul. Jim Casey symbolizes a contemporary Christ form who desires to pass on spiritual solidity to migratory people heading towards the West (Steinbeck). Among the various correlations between Jim Casey and Jesus Christ are the following. Casey pays attention to the people, thinks deeply and philosophically about what is happening to them, and becomes a role model for most of the characters in the story. A quote from the narrative denotes the aforementioned similarities. â€Å"Muley is a lost soul. He wouldn’t come along with us† (Steinbeck). Casey in this quotation acts as Jesus Christ contemplating why Muley, depicted as one of His Apostles, would not approach and follow him. Alternatively, transcendentalism can also be seen in Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essay, which is entitled Nature. As indicated in his essay, he believes that a nation of men will exist because each believes that he is inspired by the Divine Soul which also fills all men with stimulation (Emerson). He closed the article by encouraging men for a revolution in human consciousness. â€Å"Emerson discards the Unitarian line of reasoning that miracles confirms the fact of Christianity and finds evidence for religion being more direct in creating a pious response† (Goodman). Democracy This is generally defined as the rule of the people where the individuals share in guiding the national activities, functioning either directly or by means of delegates, to manage their associations for their particular objectives. Equality is of great worth in considering this and would free persons as much as feasible from constraints which are not self-imposed. Steinbeck was also influenced by this philosophy and its ideologies are also reflected in his work. One of his characters, named Tom Joad, the oldest child of Ma and Pa Joad represents this. As we can cite in the book’s introduction, â€Å"Tom Joad gets a lift at a truck stop and tells the driver he’s paroled from prison in McAlester (for murder) and he’s headed home† (Steinbeck), the author unveils Tom as departing from imprisonment which symbolizes democracy and arrives at their place after being on the rampage. He subsequently learns a lot of things from their family friend, Jim Casey, and eventually matures in the course of their voyage, leaving their customary society to combat disparity (Steinbeck). In connection with advocating democracy, another avid supporter of this view comes with the poem referred to as â€Å"I Hear America Singing†. Walt Whitman, as the author, appears to have the love of all men and of mass democracy. Blessed with an exceptional ear for inner cadence, his application of a musical tone and mood all through the poem makes a connection to the concept of the free democratic structure in the society. Whitman expresses his considerably liberated, undulating, and continuing stanzas which invigorated the whole world of rhythmical style of writing, and particularly asserts that America has to establish its own modern dynamic and hearty voice. He made a hymn the whole time with his piece. His couplet embarks on presenting various people with different everyday tasks. In their daily lives each person sings â€Å"what belongs to him or her and to none else† (Whitman). Through his poem, he voices his belief that every American has pride in their life and vocation; thus, enhancing the concept of democracy. And for this, Whitman is honored as the Bard of Democracy, as the United States of America came to address the excellent writer. But needless to say, he also showed his support in democracy as affirmed in his letter to Emerson which states that â€Å"To freedom, to strength, to poems, to personal greatness, it is never permitted to rest, not a generation or part of a generation† (Whitman). Pragmatism Then as the final viewpoint, pragmatism is termed as a way of thinking wherein the certainty of a representation is considered by its uniformity with provisional consequences and by its realistic result. This prevails to be contrasting in doctrines that cleave to the idea that a fact can be achieved by means of deductive reasoning from a priori justification of premises. Furthermore, â€Å"the accepted wisdom is taken as merely a mechanism for sustaining the life aspirations of human beings and has no authentic metaphysical implication† (Shook). Steinbeck was also influenced by this philosophy and its ideologies are also apparent in his work. Appearing in the novel, when Ma Joad, the wife of Pa Joad and the matriarch of the family, addresses the people to †go on† (Steinbeck), it is a straightforward delivery of steadfast pragmatism. Ma is in fact the source of strength and determination for all of the family members and is especially close to Tom. Moreover, â€Å"She states that her thinking about the future would be too much. She has to take care of what’s in front of her† (Steinbeck). And as regards to advocating pragmatism, a proponent named William James, states that pragmatism is a specific philosophy in which beliefs are consequential as long as they have useful outcomes in tangible human events. He also believes that pragmatism is a worthwhile solution to some recent points of the word. James also claims that pragmatic values have certain attitudes which are eligible as true or false depending on how effective they attest in deed. Another proponent of pragmatism like James, named John Dewey, â€Å"maintains that the mind is an instrument for realizing purposes†(Goodman). According to him, in pragmatism’s moral facet, it holds that real knowledge and human values play as essential roles in the choice of means employed in order to attain an end. Both James and Dewey contend that a large extent of the discussion about the association of the mind to the body take effect from abstract uncertainties. They also claim that it is not essential to speculate the psyche as an ontological class (Shook).   References: Emerson, R. W. â€Å"Nature.† Pearson Education, Inc. New Jersey. Prentice Hall (2002). Goodman, Russel. â€Å"Philosophy of Dewey.† The Radical Academy. 2006. May 24 2007. . Goodman, Russel. â€Å"Transcendentalism.†Ã‚   Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 2007. May 24 2007. . James, William. . Shook, John. â€Å"The Pragmatism Cybrary.†Ã‚   2007. May 24 2007. . Steinbeck, John. â€Å"The Grapes of Wrath.†Ã‚   (1939). Whitman, Walt. â€Å"Letter to Ralph Waldo Emerson.†Ã‚   1656. May 24 2007. . Whitman, Walt â€Å"I Hear America Singing.†Ã‚   Pearson Education, Inc. New Jersey. Prentice Hall (2002).   

The Big Green Arm Chair

The Big Green Armchair a) i. The mood of the setting ii. â€Å"Staring into the grim winter/ Only slate – grey skies† iii. The author uses adjectives like â€Å"grim† and â€Å"slate – grey† to describe the winter’s day, which conveys a very dull and dreary mood. The author compares the grim winter’s day and the dull mood to the old woman. This helps the reader understand how the woman is feeling. b) The author creates a dull mood by describing in detail what the old woman sees outside the window. Staring into the grim winter, she sees no flowering plants. There are no colours, only slate – grey skies and bare, brown trunks. There are no buzzing cicadas or cheeky kookaburras singing and darting between the trees. This shows the reader that the old woman misses this time of the year. The use of repetition â€Å"There are no colors/ There are no buzzing cicadas†¦ † The use of repetition â€Å"There are no colors/ Ther e are no buzzing†¦Ã¢â‚¬  emphasizes the dullness of mood.This descriptive style of writing makes the reader picture the dull and gray setting and the old woman looking out of the window. c) The author writes in third person and uses past tense half way through the text which creates a nostalgic feeling which the old woman is going through. The use of adjectives and descriptive sentences like â€Å"summer was bright and lively† and â€Å"ruby red gerberas burst through the green gardens and purple flowers blanketed the huge jacaranda tree†, adds to the nostalgia and creates imagery.The author makes the reader visualize the bright sun and the blooming flowers. The use of sensory descriptive words like â€Å"the smell of meat sizzling on the barbeque lingered in the air† and â€Å"eating mouthwatering prawns† makes the reader imagine the smell of the barbequed meat and the taste of the prawns. This shows that the old woman misses those days and that th ose days are now memories that make her happy and comfort her.

Advantages and Disadvantage of technology

Technology changes and improvements have been applied in all sectors of the economy as well as the arms of the government.   Many employees and employers and the society in general embrace technology in different perspective depending on the impact it will cause on their lives.The police department as many other sector has also been embracing technological changes to be able to deal well with the increasing cases of crimes.   Generally, any technology will either have a positive or negative impact on all stakeholders.The recent technology that the police have continuously used is the use of stun guns and patrol car video surveillance to tackle criminal activities and provide protection to the citizens.Use of the stun guns.Stun guns are weapons that are aimed at disabling a victim temporarily by delivering high voltage electric shock.   There are various means in which the stun gun is used to a victim.   The aim of the stun gun to disable a victim but many people have ended up being killed by the used of guns.Tasers are a type of stun gun now being used by the police in the United States â€Å"[Tasers] are designed to incapacitate by conducting 50,000 volts of electricity into your body.   The electrical pulses induce skeletal muscles spasms that immobilize and incapacitate, causing you to collapse to the ground†, (Indyhack 2007).According to Eliot, more than 150 people have died in the US because of being struck by tasers since January 2001, and 61 in 2005.   Most of the death victims died because of being subjected to multiple or prolonged shock.   The police have been drawing the tasers so quickly even in cases that the use of such extreme force is not necessary.   For instance,Deputies fired Tasers at a teenager who ran after not paying $1 bus fare, a 71 – year who refused to get into a police car, and partially deaf man who could not hear deputies ordering him to stop†¦About three out of four of those shocked by Seattle po lice were unarmed, (Indyhack 2007).Apart form the abuse of the Tasser weapons by the police, the use of the Tasser can have side effect on the victim, in the long run. There is no any scientific proven research done to allay fears about the electrocuting of human beings by use of the gadget.Taser only relies on two studies.   The studies were done by company paid researchers’ on a single pig in 1996, and on 5 dogs in 1999, (Indyhack 2007).   Because of lack of scientific research, health hazards cannot be ruled out.Despite these problems associated with the use of the stun gun police, have vehemently defended the weapon use.   They argue that the weapon can be used rather than police handguns especially on victims who are armed with different weapons other than guns, or on victims who are mentally sick.   In this case, many lives will be saved because of the use of the less lethal weapons.Patrol car video surveillanceMany people because of the fact that it has played a big role in preventing crime have welcomed the video surveillance technology.   This system is one of the technologies that have quite well used to control criminal activities in most cities, homes, business building and public places.It has been widely accepted by many people that the surveillance system has highly reduced the cases of criminal activities, â€Å"Instead of being perceived as an Orwellian intrusion, the cameras in Britain proved to be extremely popular. They were hailed as the people’s technology, a friendly eye in the sky, not Big Brother at all but kindly and watchful uncle or aunt†, (Arroyo, 2002).The problem with using the surveillance is when it is combined with other technologies such as biometric facial recognition, thermal sensing, infrared, and other that greatly enhanced human visual capabilities (Arroyo 2002).If this system is used in line with the audio recording, the system will violate Title 1 of the Electronic Communications Act.   This is because the combination of the surveillance style and audio recording without a person’s knowledge is violating the person’s privacy.   This is especially a big problem if the police use the systems without being controlled, as they infringe on many rights of the people.The other problem that is associated with this system is that it also implicates on peoples free social life.   The monitoring of peoples’ movement in the society implies that a person will not be a free man in his own society, as someone somewhere is watching his movements. This system seems to undermine the people’s way of life as well as compromising it.Therefore, despite the fact that the surveillance might reduce many cases of criminal activities as some people argue, it at the same time causes destruction to the way of living of people and inducing the to conformity as one is not sure whether he is being watched or not.  Those who argue for the use of the surveillance system, they do see that the issue of security has become more important than only the social part of life. Hence arguing for the continued use of the system.ConclusionBoth use of the stun gun and the surveillance machine can be of much beneficial to the society only if they are applied in the correct manner that does not in any way infringe on a person’s rights.   Or else, as much as they are being applied as now, they have left many people’s rights abused.

Resilience Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Resilience - Assignment Example Cases of terrorist attacks are being put as a story of the past with several methods to fight terrorism attacks being put in order. Moreover, disaster resilience is vitality. The federal government has been in the front hand, encouraging community resilience as a way to ensure a productive nation. A resilient nation is a prosperous nation. Resilient people, organizations, and even countries are blessed with such an outlook that they can change course and soldier on, even after misfortunes. Resilience is the will to recover from or adjust easily to misfortunes or change. Usually the affected becomes successful, strong or healthy after something bad happens. It’s always the goal of any country, organization or to bounce back to the normal state especially when hit by either calamities or economic downfalls. Measures have been put in place to ensure that these countries, organization or firms adopt resilience. Rather than making failure overcome them, they rise from their ashes a nd move forward. Sportsmen and women are advised to be resilient during training and competitions as in the end; it produces positive results. Resilience is quite different from resistance though the two share numerous similarities. Resilient people, organizations, and even countries are blessed with such an outlook that they can change course and soldier on, even after misfortunes. Resilience and resistance have quite some similarities and differences. Psychologists have identified that positive attitude and being optimistic makes one be resilient.

Different levels of income and expenditure Essay

Different levels of income and expenditure - Essay Example e, fixed medical allowance, servant allowance, deputation allowance, other allowances like marriage allowance, telephone allowance, city compensatory allowance, family allowance etc. In addition to wages and salary, perquisites under section 17(2) are provided to employees by employer which includes certain benefits or amenities provided either voluntarily or under service contract. The perquisites for income tax purpose are tax free perquisites, taxable perquisites, perquisites taxable under specified cases. Example:       Amt in GBP Basic pay   Ã‚   40000 Dearness allowance   Ã‚   3000 Leave salary   Ã‚   5400 Professional tax paid by employer   Ã‚   5400 Perquisite for house:   Ã‚      15% of salary (40000+3000+5400)   7260    Furniture rent   1000    Less: rent recovered by employer   3000 5260 Less: professional tax   Ã‚   1000 Gross total income   Ã‚   53660 Less: tax deduction under section 80C   Ã‚      Contribution to statutory provident fun d    4000 Taxable income   Ã‚   49660 Income from house property The measure of charging income tax under this head is the annual value of property which is the inherent capacity of a building to yield income. Annual value has been defined as per Section 23(1) of Income tax act as (a) the sum for which the property is expected to be let from year to year, (b) where the property or part of property is let and annual rent received or receivable by the owner is in excess of sum as in clause (a), such amount received or receivable, (c) property or any part of property being let and was vacant for the whole or part of previous year, owing to such vacancy, the actual rent received or receivable by owner is less than sum as per clause (a), such amount received or receivable. Example: X owned two house properties, one for running business and other... The measure of charging income tax under this head is the annual value of property which is the inherent capacity of a building to yield income. Annual value has been defined as per Section 23(1) of Income tax act as (a) the sum for which the property is expected to be let from year to year, (b) where the property or part of property is let and annual rent received or receivable by the owner is in excess of sum as in clause (a), such amount received or receivable, (c) property or any part of property being let and was vacant for the whole or part of previous year, owing to such vacancy, the actual rent received or receivable by owner is less than sum as per clause (a), such amount received or receivable. Example: X owned two house properties, one for running business and other was let out at 3000 GBP per month. The second property was used as residence by X. Municipal taxes for two properties were 7200 GBP per annum. The business and let out premises were insured against loss by fire and insurance premium was 900 GBP.Sections 28 to 44D deal with computing income under this head. The term â€Å"business† defined in section 2(13) of Income Tax Act includes any trade, commerce or manufacture or any concern in nature of trade, commerce or manufacture. The term â€Å"profession† defined under section 2(36) of the Act includes any vocation. Income under this head includes profits and gains from business or profession carried out by an assessee during previous year, income derived by a trader or professional.