Destiny, Fate, and Free Will in Oedipus the King - A Victim of Fate :: Oedipus Rex Essays

Oedipus the King as a Victim of Fate Among the first thing a historian discovers in his study of early civilization are records of people's belief, or faith, in powers greater than themselves, and their desire to understand what causes these powers to act. People everywhere wonder about the marvelous things in the sky and on the earth. What makes the rain? How do the plants and animals live and grow and die? Why are some people lucky and others unlucky? Some believe in free will while others believe in fate or destiny. In the play Oedipus the King by Sophocles, Oedipus was a true victim of fate. Gods and goddesses were believed to be responsible for the wonders of science, and the vagaries of human nature; therefore, according to the facts of this story, Oedipus was a true victim of fate for several reasons. Laius and Jocasta, the childless king and queen of Thebes, were told by the god Apollo that their son would kill his father and marry his mother (page 56). A son was born to them, and they tried to make sure that the prophecy would not come true. They drove a metal pin through the infants ankles and gave it to a shepherd, with instructions to leave it to die. The shepherd pitied the little infant so he gave the child to another shepherd. This shepherd gave the baby to a childless king and queen of Corinth, Polybus and Merope. This royal couple named the boy Oedipus, which in its Greek form Oidipous means "swollen foot." Oedipus was brought up believing that Polybus and Merope were his real parents, and Lauis and Jocasta believed that their child was dead and the prophecy of Apollo was false. Many years later, he was told by a drunk man at a banquet that he was not a true heir of Polybus (page 55). He then went to the oracle of Apollo, to ask the god who his real parents were. All he was told was that he would kill his father and marry his mother (page 56). He resolved never to return to Corinth, to Polybus and Merope, and started out to make a new life for

Ineffective N.A.A.C.P. in James Baldwins Down at the Cross Essay

The Effect of the N.A.A.C.P. There are many different opinions of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (N.A.A.C.P.), the premier organization for African-American rights around the world. Some believe that the organization has made great strides towards equality and fairness across the country, and that segregation could still be a prominent fixture today if not for the N.A.A.C.P. Others scrutinize the efforts of the N.A.A.C.P., and claim that it is nothing more than a figurehead organization that doesn’t actually advance the African-American people. This seems to be the sentiment shared in the essay, â€Å"Down at the Cross,† by James Baldwin. Although mentioned only briefly in the essay, Baldwin conveys a sense of discouragement towards the N.A.A.C.P., and that there work doesn’t do much good because of their lethargy in the courtroom. (Baldwin, 320) Baldwin asserts that by the time the court decision has been made, the impact of the decision is a lmost nonexistent, and fails to carry a collective punch. For these reasons, Baldwin believes that the N.A.A.C.P. will never accomplish meaningful, and that they will continue to simply go through the motions, in an almost lifeless manner. The history of the N.A.A.C.P. dates back to the early 20th century. The organization was founded in 1909 by Mary White Ovington. Ovington had read an article from the New York Post entitled â€Å"Race War in the North,† written by William English Walling. Ovington became inspired to learn more about the African-American situation, and set up a meeting with Walling in New York. On February 12th, 1909, approximately 20 or so members met and formed the National Association for the Advancement of Co... ...essay, Baldwin may have proven to have predicted the fate of the N.A.A.C.P., even if its accomplishments did surpass his own expectations. Works Cited Baldwin, James. â€Å"Down at the Cross.† 1962. James Baldwin: Collected Essays. Ed. Toni Morrison. New York: Library of America, 1998. 296-347. Kellogg, Charles Flint. NAACP: A History of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press, 1967. Connerly, Ward. â€Å"The NAACP’s Decline and Fall.† The Wall Street Journal 16 July 2002: A16. â€Å"National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.† Spartacus Educational. â€Å"NAACP Timeline.† National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Lifting the Veil

Striving to Live Above the Veil W. E. B. Du Bois's The Souls of Black Folk, a collection of autobiographical and historical essays contains many themes. Themes such as souls and their attainment of consciousness and the theme of double consciousness appear in many of the compositions. However, one of the most prominent themes is that of â€Å"the veil. † The veil provides a connection between the 14 seemingly unconnected essays that make up this book. Mentioned at least once in most of the essays the veil is the stereotypes that whites bring to their interactions with blacks.African Americans are prejudged as incapable and thus not given a chance to prove themselves. This can become a self-fulfilling prophecy if one is told they can't do something, they may internalize that belief and think they can't, when in fact they can. Du Bois puts it as, â€Å"this sense of always looking at one's self through the eyes of others† (Du Bois 2). The veil is a metaphor for the separa tion and invisibility of black life and existence in America; also a way to represent the idea of blacks living in a â€Å"white world†. The veil is symbolic of the invisibility of blacks in America.Du Bois says that Blacks in America are a forgotten people, â€Å"after the Egyptian and Indian, the Greek and Roman, the Teuton and Mongolian, the Negro is a sort of seventh son, born with a veil† (Du Bois 2). The invisibility of Black existence in America is one of the reasons why Du Bois writes The Souls of Black Folk, in order to explain the â€Å"invisible† history and strivings of Black Americans, Du Bois writes in the forethought, â€Å"I have sought here to sketch, in vague, uncertain outline, the spiritual world in which ten thousand Americans live and strive† (v).Du Bois in each of the following chapters tries to build the idea of Black existence from that of the reconstruction period to the black spirituals and the stories of rural black children th at he tried to educate. Du Bois in the book is contending with trying to establish some sense of history and memory for Black Americans, Du Bois struggles in the pages of the book to prevent Black Americans from becoming unseen to the rest of the world, hidden behind a veil of prejudice.He writes in the after-thought, â€Å"Hear my Cry, O God the reader vouch safe that this my book fall not still born into the world-wilderness. Let there spring, Gentle one, from its leaves vigor of thought and thoughtful deed to reap the harvest wonderful†Ã‚  (165). Du Bois wanted this book to inspire Blacks to fight for their rights and equality, he didn’t just want this book to be read, he wanted people to react to the writing and make a change. The veil also acts as a psychological barrier separating blacks from whites.The theme of this separation of blacks and whites is a central metaphor of the book starting with the first lines where Du Bois recalls his encounters with whites who view him not as a person but as a problem, â€Å"They half approach me in a half-hesitant sort of way, eye me curiously or compassionately, and then instead of saying directly how does it feel to be a problem? They say, I know an excellent colored man in my town†(1). The veil in this case hides the humanity of blacks which has important implications to the types of relations that developed between blacks and whites.With their humanity hidden behind the veil black and white relations at the time of the writing of The Souls Of Black Folk were marked by violence: draft riots in New York during the Civil War, riots following the reconstruction period, the lynching of Blacks, and the formation of the Klu Klux Klan. The theme of separation caused by the veil is repeated throughout the book several times. For example slave religious practices were separate from white religious practices. Although many times slaves and their masters worshipped together.Religion during the slavery pe riod provided two very different things for master and slaves. For the master religion was a way to justify slavery and for slaves religion became a form of resistance; a way to resist social death and hope that they can overcome the barrier of white prejudices. Another difference is what the reconstruction period did for each race. For blacks reconstruction was a time of optimism and freedom; for whites reconstruction was a time in which the north repressed a defeated region, with ignorant former slaves, who unable to act constructively for themselves were pawns for the people of the North.These differences created immense misunderstanding and because of that neither race was able to overcome the obstacle of learning and excepting a different culture; both whites and blacks thought the worst about each other. Du Bois unlike other blacks is able to move around the veil, operate behind it, lift it, and even transcend it. In the forethought Du Bois tells the reader that in the followi ng chapters he has, â€Å"Stepped with in the veil, raising it that you may view faintly its deeper recesses, -the meaning of its religion, the passion of its human sorrow, and the struggle of its greater souls. Du Bois in the first Chapter steps outside the veil to reveal the origin and his awareness of the veil. He also rises above the veil in chapter six, when he explores the great arts, â€Å"I sit with Shakespeare and he winces not. Across the color-line I move arm in arm with Balzac and Dumas, where smiling men and welcoming women glide in gilded halls. From out the caves of evening that swing between the strong-limbed earth and the tracery of the stars, I summon Aristotle and Aurelius and what soul I will, and they will come all graciously with no scorn nor condensation. So, wed with Truth, I dwell above the veil† (67).No discrimination is to be had when he is reading great works of art because his race doesn’t affect his ability to read and interpret them. Als o it is Du Bois's awareness of the veil that allows him to step outside of it and reveal the history of the Negro. Du Bois goes on to show his white audience the history of the Black man following reconstruction, the origins of the black church. Du Bois then talks about the conditions of individuals living behind the veil from his first born son who, â€Å"With in the veil was he born, said I; and there with in shall he live, -a Negro and a Negro's son†¦.I saw the shadow of the veil as it passed over my baby, I saw the cold city towering above the blood read land† (128). In this passage Du Bois is both within and above the veil. He is a Negro living like his baby within the veil but he is also above the veil, able to see it pass over his child. After Du Bois's child dies he prays that it will, â€Å"sleep till I sleep, and waken to a baby voice and the ceaseless patter of little feet-above the veil† (131).Here Du Bois is living above the veil but in the following Chapter he once again travels behind the veil to tell the story of Alexander Crummell a black man who for, â€Å"fourscore years had he wondered in this same world of mine, within the Veil† (134). Du Bois relates to Crummell who struggled against prejudices while trying to become a priest. In the Chapter on â€Å"Sorrow Songs† Du Bois implores the reader to rise above the veil. He writes, â€Å"In his good time America shall rend the veil and the prisoner shall go free† (163). Du Bois compared the veil to a prison that traps Blacks from achieving progress and freedom.According to Du Bois the veil causes Blacks to accept the false images that whites see of Blacks. Du Bois although not directly in The Souls of Black Folk critique's Booker T. Washington for accepting the veil and accepting white's image and misconception of blacks. Booker T. Washington accepts the white idea that blacks are problem people; not a people with a problem caused by white racism. Washing ton seeks to work behind the veil by pursuing polices of accommodation. Du Bois in contrast wants blacks to transcend the veil by politically disturbing the concept of what blacks are and what they are worth and by gaining a full education.The veil is a metaphor that suggests the invisibility of black America, the separation between whites and blacks, and the obstacles that blacks face in gaining self-consciousness in a racist society. The veil is not a two dimensional cloth to Du Bois but instead it is a three dimensional prison that prevent blacks from seeing themselves as they are, but instead makes them see the negative stereotypes that whites have of them. This book was Du Bois's â€Å"letter† to the American people urging them not to live behind the veil but to live above it.

Nature Versus Nurture: Humans Should Morally Become Vegetarians Essay

To many, it is very acceptable and seemingly natural that humans include meat in their common diet. This practice can be found historically and globally across many countries and cultures. It is undeniable that humans are omnivores and have been for the past many millenniums. However, is consuming meat actually natural? What is acceptable may not be natural and may have become acceptable due to our environment and nurture, and it is important to distinguish between the two, as popular acceptance does not equal to moral rightness. In Animal Liberation, Peter Singer argues that, as animals have the ability to feel pain and pleasure, they have sentience and hence, are subject to the equal moral worth as human beings. Therefore he claims that it is only moral that most of us ought to opt for a vegetarian lifestyle. I agree with Singer on this claim based on the Natural Law Theory and with scientific proof that animals indeed have a sentience and also based on our natural physiological design. Singer argues that equality should not be limited only to humans and points out that beings with a sentience should be entitled to equal consideration of their interests (Singer, 1990), with sentience being the ability to perceive through the senses. This is perfectly reasonable as there is ethological evidence that animals do have sentience on several cases, such as sheep being able to recognize faces, prairie dogs speaking their own language. Furthermore, elephants bury their dead, gibbons take care of their elderly, and male bats babysit young bats that are not their offspring while their mothers are out hunting (Basile, 2005). These animals need not do these actions, as these actions are not necessary for their own survival, nor do their own progeny’s survival depend on them. However, these altruistic deeds show that animals do not merely act on instinct. Moreover, emotions are present in animals such as chimpanzees showing excitement and joy when they are allowed out in the sun. Also, sadly, works of Dr. Donna Haraway, a professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz, show that maternal deprivation, abuse and total isolation are shown to cause severe trauma in infant monkeys (as cited in Weisberg, 2009). The Natural Law Theory states that â€Å"good and right a direct function of the way things are naturally† and the good of human comes from realization of what is natural (VanDeVeer & Pierce, 2003). This law also supports anthropocentrism with â€Å"anthropo† being humanlike, with regards to sentience. When this theory was proposed, it was thought that only humans had the capability of being sentient and put human as of most importance. However, since some animals are now proven to have sentience, and arguably, morals as well, should they not be entitled to their own rights and interests as well? One might argue that since some animals, such as clams, cannot be proven to have emotions or morals, and hence it is morally acceptable to harvest them as food. However, this argument contains a fallacy of ignorance and is equivalent to arguing the Moon emits light before it was proven that in fact, it reflected the light from the Sun. Non-existence of an object should not be accepted simply because it has not yet been proven. Another objection to the equality of interests of animals may ensue from the natural state of the ecosystem: humans are at the top of the food chain and it is natural to consume beings positioned below us. And since the Natural Law Theory focuses on humans’ capacities, tendencies and desires, it is morally correct to consume meat as human beings. This is yet another fallacy of ignorance to what is natural. In fact, researchers have shown that humans are physiologically designed to be herbivores, and according to Dr. T. Colin Campbell, professor emeritus at Cornell University and author of The China Study, we have only started consuming meat around 10,000 years ago, which is recent in our years of evolution (as cited in Freston, 2009). Meat consumption is not essential for human survival and our omnivore tendency is out of choice, not of need. The anatomy of a human being is strikingly similar to one of a herbivore’s. Our not-so-sharp canine teeth and molar teeth are designed to optimize not the tearing of meat, but the chewing and grinding of fibrous plants. Also, carnivores have very short intestinal tracts, which is approximately three times its body length. However, a herbivore’s intestinal tract is around 12 times the body length, and human beings are extremely close to herbivores than carnivores. Also, humans lack the essential amino acids to properly digest meat and â€Å"It is clear that humankind’s gastrointestinal tract is designed for a purely plant-food diet. † (Mills, 2009). On a health perspective, meat eaters are found to be at a much higher risk of having intestinal cancer and heart disesse than those who opt for a vegetarian or even vegan diet. Towell, 2009) Since being vegetarian ultimately benefits humans and therefore flourishes humankind, fulfilling the Natural Law Theory, one can come to reason that being a vegetarian is morally correct and most should follow this lifestyle. However, it should also be pointed out that in some cases, if the human is extreme deficiency of a substance such as the vi tamin B12, and in that situation, meat contains enough of such substance that benefits the human in a much shorter time domain than choosing the vegetable alternative would, then the human should be allowed to consume meat for the sake of an utilitarianism view, as Singer supports. Since the interests of all beings count, the instant relieve of the human being leads to the longer pleasure from not being sick, and would maximize the net worth of happiness. Therefore, it is morally accepted, so long that the animal sacrificed in this case is treated as humanely as possible and with the least amount of pain inflicted upon it. Although we cannot deny that humans have more factual superiority, it does not mean we can abuse that power and forcefully consume animals against their will only to fulfill our unnatural tendencies and lust for meat. It is immoral to consume meat simply because years of nurture has made it seemingly acceptable and as a species with higher intelligence, we must take the responsibility to distinguish between nature and nurture, while ensuring the wellbeing of our moral equals and taking their interests into consideration.

Annotated Bibliography Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 15

Annotated Bibliography - Essay Example Ka-Kui discusses the concept of organized retail crime as the large scale theft of consumer goods and how it can be addressed. The author portrays shoplifting in Hong Kong as a problem occasioned by the existence of organized groups of professional shoplifters. The negative implications of organized crime can be reduced by using technology such as installing surveillance cameras. Most of the responses to these crimes come from the retailers with little input from the government. This gap is of particular importance to the anticipated research study. Ka-Sing addresses the various ways through which losses arising from shoplifting can be reduced. The approach used in the paper focuses on early identification of the shoplifters using such features as the physical appearance and signs of panic. The paper further categorizes the type of people that are most likely to shoplift and the reasons for their doing so. The paper approaches the problem by analyzing the methods that shoplifters use and uses the results to propose ways of curbing it. Overall, the paper is essential in our research objective of reducing shoplifting losses. The authors focus on diverting shoplifters as an effective strategy to respond to the problem of shoplifting. The research incorporated the input of public and private partners in coming up with promising alternatives in responding to low-level retail theft. The idea of the paper is to work with law enforcement agencies in tackling shoplifting. The role of legislation is particularly useful in the anticipated

Discuss the differences between Hamilton's and Jefferson's views on Essay

Discuss the differences between Hamilton's and Jefferson's views on politics, society and economics. Were there any areas of agreement between the two Which view(s) do you find most compelling Explain - Essay Example The purpose of this paper is to underscore the differences between Hamilton and Jefferson’s views on politics, society and economics. Both luminaries contributed immensely towards these subjects. Finseth lays bare the political wrangles that existed between Hamilton and Alexander. The Constitutional Convention of June 18, 1787 expressed Hamilton’s radicalism. Hamilton differed vehemently with the Republicans who did not agree with his ideas of establishing social and political strata. His view is that the noble and rich fellows of society belong to a class of the intelligent. They have both foresight and far-sight and are therefore more qualified to execute the measures put in place to rule the public. The others, Hamilton purports, are petty self-seekers who cannot be entrusted with the running of the state affairs. He proposed to have a president for life, one who could not be subject to the erratic and indecisive electorate. This political philosophy was very distinctive. Hamiltons other success sprung from his plan that the central government clear all the debts that states had sustained during the war. He argued that this war was for the whole union and it was incumbent upon the union to take up responsibility to settle it for its good. This assumption invited a series of criticism threatening to overcome the entire plan. The whole idea was deemed to fail and lead to the disintegration of the union, thanks to an informal dinner arranged by Jefferson. In an alleged and economic conspiracy, Hamilton’s assumption was passed with an agreement to have the Federalists consent to set the national capital on the Potomac. The bill was passed and Hamilton’s plans carried the day. He went in full favor of the plan for he believed that it was the best thing that ever happened to the United States, the best hope for an efficient union. He was not alone in believing that the potential consequences of rejecting the Constitution would breed less

Bulling in school Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Bulling in school - Research Paper Example Some people, parents and teachers alike, believe bullying is a customary element of social development and in fact helps children in coping with dominating, overbearing types during their lives. However, bullying is a considerable problem and should not be tolerated. The results of bullying can be extremely serious; from depression to suicide in spite of which role was played. Fortunately, because bullying behavior normally occurs on a persistent basis, it can also usually be identified and prevented earlier and easier than more deviant behaviors years later, perhaps with the positive outcome of a reduction in criminality numbers among adults. Research investigating the naturalistic playground behavior of children indicates that those children who have low levels of acceptance among their peers are more inclined to become bullies. Consequently, it becomes imperative that teachers recognize the social construction developing in the classroom to be better able to divert any dangerous a ctivity before it gets out of control. Then, intervention strategies can be employed to help at risk children to learn how to best deal with difficult social situations. Studies conducted within the classroom have identified numerous groups with elevated risk of bullying behavior as either the victim or aggressor, which can aid teachers in determining when and what type of intervention is suitable. Research has indicated certain populations display increased instances of bullying behavior when put in a poverty situation. It indicates the significance of teachers not being too fast to correlate a student as a likely victim or bully based only on their economic status. Most experienced teachers can dependably differentiate between proactive aggression (bullying) and reactive aggression (an intention to protect). Many teachers, especially those in middle and high school tend to assume students will solve