Scott Consigny on Protagoras and Logos: A Study in Greek Philosophy and Rhetoric. :: Philosophy Philosophical Papers

Scott Consigny on Protagoras and Logos: A Study in Greek Philosophy and Rhetoric Edward Schiappa's cogent and eloquent book fully deserves the praise it has received. As Donovan Ochs observes in his 1991 review of the book (RSQ 21: 3942), Schiappa, presents a clear account of Protagoras' philosophy and supports his reading with a detailed analysis of each of Protagoras' five extant fragments. But even though Schiappa's reading is compelling, we need not necessarily be persuaded by it; for as Protagoras himself remarks, it is always possible to articulate two opposed accounts about everything, and to make the ostensibly weaker account stronger. In this review I will undertake a "Protagorean" project, articulating and defending an account of Protagoras' philosophy that is opposed to Schiappa's account. To this end I will briefly sketch Schiappa's account, which I label an "enlightenment" reading of Protagoras, and I will then sketch an opposed, "rhetoricist" reading of the Sophist. Schiappa begins his study by acknowledging his debt to George Grote and Eric Havelock. Schiappa concurs with Grote's assessment of the Sophists as "a positive force" in the fifth-century Greek enlightenment (12); and he accepts Havelock's notion that the transition from orality to literacy in Greek society led to a progression "from a mythic-poetic to a more literate, humanistic-rationalistic culture" (21). Drawing on these two scholars, Schiappa depicts Protagoras as a pivotal figure of the fifth century enlightenment helping to transform Greece from an irrational, mythical and theocentric culture into a rational and humanistic culture. Schiappa then proceeds to examine Protagoras' contribution to this intellectual progress, namely his advocacy and analysis of logos, or "rationality" as the proper means of inquiry. In a detailed analysis of Protagoras' five extant fragments, Schiappa argues that Protagoras provides the groundwork for the subsequent development of rational inquiry by delineating the assumptions or principles, the proper procedure or method, and the kind of results or explanations that may be attained through rational inquiry. Concerning Protagoras' conception of the starting points or principles of inquiry, Schiappa argues that in his remark that "humanity is the measure of all things," Protagoras sharply differentiates his anthropocentric logos from the theocentric mythos of the poets who claim to be inspired by the gods. Schiappa also construes Protagoras' remark that he is unable to know whether or not the gods exist as further underscoring the Sophist's rejection of theocentricity. These remarks are fundamental to Protagoras' project, for in them he suggests that valid inquiry must be initiated by humans themselves, without information supplied by the gods.

Bauhaus School

Das Bauhaus Jeremy Hart German Civilization 2320 Professors Cook, Kopp, and Prager March 6, 2013 The Bauhaus, a revolutionary school of art and craft founded by Walter Gropius in 1919, stands today as an important influence on postmodern art and architecture. It is also the namesake of its own movement; which is characterized by severely economic and geometric designs and a functional view of materials. To truly understand the origins of the Bauhaus and the importance of its modern implications, we must first know about the influences that its founder relied on. The Vienna Secession was formed in Austria in 1897.The secessionist artists attempted to create their own style that had no clear relation to any historical eras. Paired with this avant-garde approach, they relied on more pure geometric designs to produce their art. The geometric approach to art proved to have lasting effects on Gropius and his contemporaries. The Werkbund was the German model of the Vienna Secession. Founded in 1907, the 12 artists and 12 industrialists who comprised it aimed to infuse industry with modern and functional designs. These designs would both foster efficiency and function and be free of traditional elements and ornamentation.A leading artist in the Werkbund named Peter Behrens was Gropius’ mentor and employer. Along with Belgian painter Henry van de Velde, the two men were Gropius’ main influences in forming the Bauhaus. In the Bauhaus manifesto he wrote in 1919, Gropius vows to return artists to the deep seat of creativity that rests in the handicrafts, and bring together an unbiased consortium of artists who would dictate architectural style to the modern world: â€Å"By the grace of Heaven and in rare moments of inspiration which transcend the will, art may unconsciously blossom from the labour of is hand, but a base in handicrafts is essential to every artist. It is there that the original source of creativity lies. Let us therefore create a new guild of craftsmen without the class-distinctions that raise an arrogant barrier between craftsmen and artists! Let us desire, conceive, and create the new building of the future together. It will combine architecture, sculpture, and painting in a single form, and will one day rise towards the heavens from the hands of a million workers as the crystalline symbol of a new and coming faith. In the latter half of this passage, Gropius is expressing a Utopian vision that encompasses the general public: â€Å"†¦building of the future together†¦from the hands of a million workers. † The new styles would not be just for artists, but their work would be accessible to everyone. The nature of the designs would be streamlined and simple to they could be mass-produced. The art would not only be of interest and use to a niche audience but to the majority, so they could appreciate its function and efficiency When the new conservative government of Weimar withdrew support for the Bauhaus in 1925, it found a new home in Dessau.Out of the new home in Dessau came the radical changes in style and material of everyday items, such as tea infusers, office chairs, and table lamps. Most importantly perhaps, the Bauhaus in Dessau was the home of the first workshop for architecture, the key Gropius outlined in his manifesto that would serve as the medium for infusing function and creativity into everyday applications. The new architecture would be the first tangible contributions to industry. Prior to this point, Germany had been in the midst of a severe economic crisis brought on by World War I.Now that there was money to be spent, new innovations in architecture began to become the standard in the modern industrial world. The first chance the new school had to prove itself, quite ironically, was by building itself. The school was to be constructed following mostly Gropius’ designs, now commonplace features of Bauhaus architecture: flat roofs, lack of ornamentation, an d strict geometric lines. The first true revolution in architecture for which the Bauhaus is credited came in the form of the workers’ housing areas.Architect and Gropius contemporary Ludwig Mies van der Rohe organized an exhibition for architects to design a modern solution for worker housing, with only one rule that each building have a flat roof. Unfortunately no groundbreaking design was hatched, but the designs helped change the culture of architecture forever. The Bauhaus was already establishing itself as a symbol of progressive art and architecture. Following the architectural and industrial boom in Germany, the Bauhaus relocated to America in 1933, fleeing Hitler and the Nazis.New director Laszlo Moholy-Nagy founded the New Bauhaus in Chicago. The spirit of innovation that marked the original Bauhaus was just as prevalent here as New Bauhaus students developed breakthroughs in photography, film, and the use of materials. In America, the Bauhaus style is still influen cing the gamut of industrial design, from towering skyscrapers that seem to be built entirely out of glass, to ‘wiggle chairs’ actually made completely of cardboard. Ultimately, postmodernists and modernists stand starkly opposed when it comes to the necessary attributes and function of designs and art.Postmodern culture was born out of a disregard for modernist minimalism, arguably a style perpetuated if not championed by Bauhaus theory. So one can say modernism is the de facto reason for postmodernism’s existence. The practitioners of postmodernism sought to revive theories from previous centuries that appealed to the human need for comfort for the body and beauty for the eye. The true similarity between the two movements was the importance of function. Both schools of thought believed art and architecture specifically should serve to promote the building’s function. The true difference lies in aesthetics.So in the same way we attribute postmodern styles to high art of years past, we can also attribute Bauhaus styles to the past. Gropius’ vision of a return to purer geometric forms, a proclivity for functional efficiency, and respect for materials exemplifies this. We see the strong disjunction between modern (Bauhaus) and postmodern style as the latter reacting to the former. Making this connection lets us argue that modernism and postmodernism are actually two aspects of the same movement, and thus shows us that the free-thinking, subjective aspects of postmodernism owe their creation to the logical, analytical aspects of its predecessor.Works Referenced Bauhaus Museum. www. bauhausmuseum. com/history/manifesto Bauhaus School. March 4, 2013. http://thebauhaus. org/thebauhaus/ Chicago Bauhaus and Beyond. March 4, 2013. www. chicagobauhausbeyond. org Exhibit Bauhaus. March 4, 2013. http://bengal. missouri. edu/~kuhlerd/art327/index. html Roger Cook. Class notes. http://germanciv. missouri. edu/2320/bauhaus/index. html

The Art of the Freshman Essay Boring From Within

In a speech delivered half a century ago, English professor Wayne C. Booth described the characteristics of a formulaic essay assignment: I know of a high school English class in Indiana in which the students are explicitly told that their paper grades will not be affected by anything they say; required to write a paper a week, they are graded simply on the number of spelling and grammatical errors. What is more, they are given a standard form for their papers: each paper is to have three paragraphs, a beginning, a middle, and an end— or is it an introduction, a body, and a conclusion? The theory seems to be that if the student is not troubled about having to say anything, or about discovering a good way of saying it, he can then concentrate on the truly important matter of avoiding mistakes.(Wayne C. Booth, Boring From Within: The Art of the Freshman Essay. Speech to the Illinois Council of College Teachers of English, 1963) The inevitable result of such an assignment, he said, is a bag of wind or a bundle of received opinions. And the victim of the assignment is not only the class of students but the poor teacher who imposes it on them: I am haunted by the picture of that poor woman in Indiana, week after week reading batches of papers written by students who have been told that nothing they say can possibly affect her opinion of those papers. Could any hell imagined by Dante or Jean-Paul Sartre match this self-inflicted futility? Booth was quite aware that the hell he described was not confined to a single English class in Indiana. By 1963, formulaic writing (also called theme writing  and the five-paragraph essay) was well established as the norm in high school English classes and college composition programs throughout the U.S. Booth went on to propose three cures for those batches of boredom: efforts to give the students a sharper sense of writing to an audience, efforts to give them some substance to express, and efforts to improve their habits of observation and of approach to their task—what might be called improving their mental personalities. So, how far have we come over the past half century? Lets see. The formula now calls for five paragraphs rather than three, and most students are allowed to compose on computers. The concept of a three-pronged thesis statement - one in which each prong will then be further explored in one of the three body paragraphs - requires a slightly more sophisticated expression of substance. More significantly, research in composition has become a major academic industry, and the majority of instructors receive at least some training in the teaching of writing. But with larger classes, the inexorable rise of standardized testing, and the increasing reliance on part-time faculty, dont most of todays English instructors still feel compelled to privilege formulaic writing? While the basics of essay structure is, of course, a foundational skill that students must learn before expanding into larger essays, the hemming in of students to such formulas means that they fail to develop critical and creative thinking skills. Instead, students are taught to value form over function, or not to understand the link between form and function. There is a difference between teaching structure and teaching to a formula. Teaching structure in writing means teaching students how to craft a thesis statement and supporting arguments, why a topic sentence matters, and what a strong conclusion looks like. Teaching formula means teaching students that they must have a specific type of sentence or number of citations in a specific section, more of a paint-by-numbers approach. The former gives a foundation; the latter is something that has to be un-taught later on. Teaching to a formula may be easier in the short run, but it fails to educate students on how to truly write effectively, especially once they are asked to write a longer, more sophisticated essay than a five-paragraph high school essay question. The form of an essay is intended to serve the content. It makes arguments clear and concise, highlights the logical progression, and focuses the reader on what the main points are. Form is not formula, but it is often taught as such. The way out of this impasse, Booth said in 1963, would be for legislatures and school boards and college presidents to recognize the teaching of English for what it is: the most demanding of all teaching jobs, justifying the smallest sections and the lightest course loads. Were still waiting. More About Formulaic Writing EngfishThe Five-Paragraph EssayTheme WritingWhats Wrong With the Five-Paragraph Essay?

Fast Food Good Or Bad - 839 Words

Amanda Arancio Professor Selving English 103 2 October 2014 Fast Food: Good or Bad? Each day one in four Americans visits a fast food restaurant. Fast food may be one of the, if not the worst thing that could be eaten. Between its high sodium and its high salt intake, or itbeing one of the leading causes to obesity and diabetes, eating fast food is a big no no! Fast food can cut off 17-27 years off of one’s life and one in every three children born in the year 2000 will have diabetes. Eating fast food is also extremely unhealthy because of the way it is made, the gravity of weight that can be gained, and the amount of time it takes to digest in your system. Most nutritionists recommend not eating fast food more than once a month, which is twelve times a year. Even this brings health concerns, but any more can definitely be extremely dangerous and concerning to your health. McDonald’s feeds over 46 million people a day, which is more than the entire population of Spain. That’s crazy! After eating fast food, digesting it ma y be one of the hardest things to do. Focusing mainly on McDonalds, only seven items on the entire menu contain no sugar. Is picturing how unhealthy this food is a little easier now? French fries are the most eaten vegetable in America, and we all know how good McDonalds fries are! So imagine how many are made in a day. If placing an order of a Super Sized Coke, fry, and Big Mac, a person would need to walk for seven hours straight to burn of all theShow MoreRelatedIs Fast Food Good Or Bad?1100 Words   |  5 PagesAdvantages Disadvantages of Fast Food More than 14, 350 McDonald’s restaurants in the United States alone, and over 18, 875 KFC’s worldwide, only goes to reflect the popularity of fast food all over the world. Fast food can be defined as food that is easily and quickly prepared and is sold in restaurants and snack bars as a quick meal or to be taken out. Such food fits perfectly into the fast-paced life of a modern, working individual. Although nothing appeals more to a hard-working professionalRead MoreFast Food Is Good Or Bad?1949 Words   |  8 Pages Fast food has become one of the first food people spend money on because of its availability, cheap price, and fast service. People know how food from fast food restaurants put them at high risk of health problems because of a high amount of ingredient these restaurants use. Despite putting people at risk, fast food helps people to save time in this busy world. so is fast food good or bad? Is the meat used produced with precaution? Does fast food really put people at risk? What ingredientsRead MoreFast Food So Good, But So Bad2005 Words   |  9 PagesMelissa Medina Professor White Monday /Wednesday 10am to 11:15am CHM1020 Fast Food so Good, But so Bad I sit down to watch T.V to catch my shows I’ve missed. Once I press the on demand button, the first commercial is McDonald ten pieces chicken nugget with small fries for two dollar and fifty cents. I think to myself I could make a healthy dinner but I feel so tired for school and work. So before I could change in to my pajama, I decided to go to McDonaldRead MoreHow Fast Food Is Addictive1436 Words   |  6 Pagestopic of fast food, most of us will readily agree that it’s unhealthy. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of whether it causes addiction. While some are convinced that it doesn’t, others are convinced that advertisements help brain wash the new generation. Along with the chemicals added to the fast food to help contribute to the addiction cycle. My own view is that fast food is addictive. In my point of view fast food is addictive because it seems that the more fast foodRead MoreBad Food Tastes Good But Can Kill You Essay1614 Words   |  7 Pages  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Bad Food Tastes Good But Can Kill You McDonald s, In-And-Out, and Carl’s Jr are all good places to go eat. Just thinking about these fast food joints makes your mouth water. Most Americans go to these fast food places every week. It is a weekly visit and addiction, although these foods taste good they are very bad for one s health. They can cause health problems and in severe cases death. There is advertisements and screenings about fast food or junk food everywhere now. A personRead MoreFast Food Is Better Than Healthier Choices886 Words   |  4 Pageslife? The answer to this question is fast food. Just in the United States there are over 200,000 fast food companies that make over 190 billion dollars a year. Although millions of people consume fast food, what are they really eating? I believe that fast food, as well as most processed food, is a problem that often goes unnoticed. Fast food does have several benefits to people. The first one would be that it is quick. Sometimes it is impossible to make food at home if you are driving all day, workingRead MoreEssay on Fast Food Industry968 Words   |  4 Pagesworld has become so fast paced that everything is rushed. Almost every aspect of life has become industrialized. Food and the way it is prepared is no exception to this world that always appears to be in fast forward. The fast food industry has revolutionized how and what people eat. The public has begun to consume more fast food and the problem is that people do not know what they are eating. If the concept of a nutritious meal is thrown out the window for the convenience of fast food then the healthRead MoreCritical Thinking Questions From The Movie Super Size Me976 Words   |  4 Pagesand just make my own healthy food diet. I started to eat out more because of my job and having a car to drive to restaurants and fast food places so I could satisfy m y hunger. I think it made a great valid point because there is so much evidence and It shows you that eating at fast food places like McDonald’s is bad for you and your health. 2. What do you think the relationship is between fast food and obesity? Do you think suing places like McDonalds is a good solution to our nation’s obesityRead MoreThink Before You Eat673 Words   |  3 Pages1 billion. (-) The world’s population obesity rates are not decreasing, the rates are increasing rapidly. The amount of bad food the population is consuming has affected the nation’s obesity rates, and there should be stop to this epidemic.† The percentage of obese adults has more than doubled over the last 30 years.†(Bad Food? Tax it, and Subsidize Vegetables). Obesity is a fast growing epidemic that we as a nation need to find ways to fight it and put a stop to the rapidly growing rates. â€Å"The risingRead MoreThe Health Of Fast Food1625 Words   |  7 PagesThe Health of Fast Food By: Chaise Wohrer Fast food is a very delicious meal sometimes. It s fast, it s cheap, and you don t have to clean pots and pans after you eat. Although, fast food might not be your best choice. These meals can be very unhealthy for you. I think fast food fast food can take a tool on your body when you eat it very often, large amounts, and unhealthy choices. A Big Mac from McDonalds contains 540 calories and 28 grams of total fat. (Calories in McDonalds Big Mac Burger)

Essay about Steroids in Sports Right or Wrong - 947 Words

Steroids in Sports, Right or Wrong? â€Å"We have to make some radical move to get the attention of everyone. Cheaters cant win and steroids have put us in the position that its OK to cheat.† (Lou Brock). Steroids in professional sports has became a major issue and has yet to be justified. Steroids boost the intensity of the game and provide the athletes with more agility and skill to play the game, but should it be fair to allow them? This would give some players an advantage in their sport over the players who reject the drugs. If drugs are illegal in the common world, then why should athletes be able to get away with performance enhancing drugs in sports. Should professional athletes be allowed to use these drugs without breaking the†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"It’s a slippery slope between allowing steroid use with proper medical supervision and eliminating anti-doping regulations. Where is the line to be drawn? Will it now be illegal to use steroids only i f taken without proper medical supervision? How can proper medical supervision be proven?† Although some people feel it would be absolutely absurd to allow the use of steroids in sports, some think it’s time to just go ahead and legalize performance enhancers in sports legally. â€Å"Steroids, doping and other illicit performance enhancing drugs and treatments have become the biggest scourge of professional sports leagues, and that’s why it may be time they were made legal.† (Chris Smith) These issues regarding to performance enhancers would seem to be wiped clean if they were just made legal. Sport officials, teams, and especially players would no longer have to worry about the inconsistency of different athletes being busted for the use of steroids. To some, it also looks as if the sport would be more fun to watch and worth more than in the past. â€Å"Not only would the playing field suddenly be even for all players, it would be at a higher level. A huge part of watching sports is witnessing the very peak of human athletic ability, and legalizing performanceShow MoreRelatedSteroids have more than one meaning. Generally your body produces some steroids to fight stress and800 Words   |  4 PagesSteroids have more than one meaning. Generally your body produces some steroids to fight stress and let your body grow during puberty. But then there is the kind of steroids that you take to improve your physical appearance or better you in the sport that you play. Normally when you hear people say steroids they are often talking about the illegal anabolic steroids. Anabolic steroids are a synthetic steroid hormone that resembles testosterone in promoting the gr owth of muscle. Steroids affect athletesRead MoreSteriods in Sports Should Be Banned1295 Words   |  6 PagesSheila Sim Mrs. Virginia Link-Pease English 122 02 October 2010 Steroid Use in Sports Should Be Banned Day by day professional athletes are being praised for their ability and accomplishments in their respective sports. The professional athletes that are succeeding the most are generally using performance enhancing drugs, other known as anabolic steroids (Mayo Clinic). Anabolic steroids are drugs which imitate the effect of the male sex hormone, Testosterone. The cells producing protein increaseRead MoreSteroids And Other Performance Enhancing Drugs1678 Words   |  7 PagesSteroids and other performance enhancing drugs have been banned from Major League Baseball since 1991; however, this law was not strictly enforced by the Major League Baseball Players Association (Anabolic Steroids). The MLBPA to date has become much more involved in the issue of PED use in the MLB, and they do test many of the players for traces of steroids. Few players are caught each year, but when a big name pops up, the whole debacle headlines newspapers, constantly talked about on sports networksRead MoreTh e Effects Of Steroids On The Human Body, Steroids Sports, And Reasons Why People Use Steroids1251 Words   |  6 Pages Jared Hipsher Mrs. Sexton 3-26-15 English 10 Steroids Jared Hipsher 3-26-2015 English 10 Mrs. Sexton Steroids Thesis : The history of steroids, the affects of steroids on the human body, steroids in sports, and reasons why people use steroids, are all things I ve wanted to know for a long time now I am going to further my knowledge on this topic. Introduction About A. Types 1. Anabolic 2. Corticosteroids III. History A. 1954 1. WeightRead MoreShould School Athletes Have Drug Tests?1301 Words   |  6 Pagesschool athletes will be exposed to drugs. Schools should allow drug tests to be permitted on high school athletes because taking drugs are unfair to the sport, drugs harm the body mentally and physically, and it can ruin future opportunities for athletes if they get scholarships to universities. Alternatively, there is a problem if schools ban steroids and perform drug tests on student athletes. â€Å"Parents and coaches can be anxious about nurses and physicians testing on there kids.†(Bates). The parentsRead MoreEssay about Media Sports: How did Baseball get Affected by Steroids?1246 Words   |  5 PagesAmerica’s national pastime baseball. Baseball is a sport that became the national sport in the United States in the late 19th century. From the beginning of the sport they tried to keep the highest standards to each player and ball club. There were times of scandal, but of all the things that happen to baseball substance abuse has been portrayed as one of the worst thing a player could do. To defame the baseball was to ruin everything the sport stood for. This research paper will look at one ofRead MoreEssay about Professional Athletes and Enhacer Drugs1338 Words   |  6 PagesBaseball) that take more drugs than any other sport. I hate how athlete s today take enhancement drugs to make them better in sports. (The use of performance-enhancing drugs is becoming relatively mainstream. Approximately 3 million people in the United States have used anabolic steroids (Silver 2001), with usage rates as high as 12% among young men and 2% among young women (Bahrke, Yesalis Brower 1998). Not only are newscasts filled with reports of steroid use by both Olympic and professional athletesRead More Use of Performance Enhancing Substances by Athletes is Wrong708 Words   |  3 PagesUse of Performance Enhancing Substances by Athletes is Wrong What would you be willing to do to become a professional athlete? This is a question that demands more than a fleeting thought, because not only will becoming a successful professional athlete bring you millions of dollars, but you will achieve fame, fortune and worldwide recognition. Along with that you will be getting paid a lot to do something that you really love and enjoy. It seems like professional athletes have it all. TheyRead More Steroid Use in Pro Sports is Unethical Essay1296 Words   |  6 Pages   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When you were a kid, didn’t you want to play a professional sport? What would you give to be one of the best athletes in the world? Would you risk your reputation? Your health? Would you be willing to die? Although many studies have come out saying that steroids diminish one’s health, people still take them hoping to be the best. Imagine if you were a 28 year old who left college early because a pro team â€Å"guaranteed† you that you would play in the big leagues. Yet you just got stuck inRead MoreThe Use Of Anabolic Steroids And How Athletes Are Cheating1482 Words   |  6 PagesThe athletic sports world has drastically evolved since the beginning of the creation of sports. Athletes are becoming bigger, faster and stronger. The competitive edge has started to increase and guys are looking for ways to enhance their performances. Many turn to repetitive practices and healthier diets, while some turn to protein powder. No matter the method the average athlete is trying their best to propel his or her efforts past previous marks. Most stick to natural remedies, but there are

Waiting Fo Death †Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot Free Essays

Waiting for Death By: Stephanie Melo Pabon Analysis on Samuel Beckett’s â€Å"Waiting for Godot†. Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett is a play starred by Vladimir and Estragon, two men who seem to spend their days in a country road talking, wandering and blathering while waiting for a person they call Godot. This Godot never appears in the story but they both talk about him -her, it, it is difficult to define- at the same time that they look for things to do while waiting. We will write a custom essay sample on Waiting Fo Death – Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot or any similar topic only for you Order Now During the two days they spend in that place just in the company of a dead tree, they have two encounters with two other men: Pozzo, an aggressive that seems to be the master of the other; the other man is Lucky, a terribly sick and tired man that looks like a mistreated donkey. The last character that appears is a boy who brings messages to Vladimir and Estragon saying that he -because the boy calls him ‘he’- is not coming today but tomorrow, for sure. The setting, as I said before, is a country road with just one mound and a dead tree -a willow like they think it is called-, everything leading to a hopeless atmosphere that accompanies their endless waiting. I think reading Beckett is a very difficult as he takes modernism to the highest level. He really expresses stories with plot and characters through his own way of thinking. I liked reading the play in spite of my dislike for reading plays; I do not like to read the setting and the characters actions and movements in such an explicit way. This time I was totally delighted by the characters’ dialogues. It was interesting to see how many thoughts about their conversations, the objects they use in the story, the setting, and their physical and personal description, actually arose. I read the play two times and watched one staging; since the first time I had many different thoughts and ideas to interpret the characters and situations they are in, these interpretations are the ones I will be telling. The main characters Estragon and Vladimir are, to me, the absurd depiction of the body and mind. They both are the same person: a poor man -Mr. Albert could be his name like the boy called Vladimir at the end of both Act I and II. Estragon is the body as he is the one with the need of sleeping and eating. He always wants to sleep but Vladimir does not let him do it and he always wants to eat, for instance when he asks for the chicken bones Pozzo leaves after eating in Act I, and in Act II when Pozzo falls and asks for help but Estragon only thinks about asking him for food to eat. Vladimir is the mind as he is the most lucid one; he remembers everything while Estragon never does, and he says Estragon he would be a heap of bones without him to show the dependence on each other. Also, at the beginning of the two Acts, Vladimir asks Estragon if he was beaten again and next he assures him that if he had been with him he would not have been beaten as he is the one that can make him stop of doing things he should not do. Although they say the idea of them together is to contradict and abuse each other, they both get along well: they communicate and seem to be friends. Estragon says they â€Å"always find something to give them the impression they exist†; they reason about many topics but Vladimir, the mind, is very healthy whereas Estragon is very tired all the time. The other two characters, Pozzo and Lucky, are the opposite; Pozzo, the very healthy but cruel man who is the slaver of Lucky. He is ambitious to the extreme of being greedy; he says he has professional worries, and about beauty and grace. Lucky is the tired and sick mind of a rich person that was never satisfied with material things; and I say he is rich because of the scene when Estragon asks for the chicken bones Pozzo is leaving but Pozzo says he has to ask Lucky because he is the owner. Estragon does that and Lucky does not answer, so Pozzo says it is ok if he takes the bones but at the same time he thinks something is wrong as he had not seen him refuse a bone before. This episode means to me Lucky’s tiredness of always wanting everything for him, even the wastes, and Pozzo’s surprise for his change. The relationship between Pozzo and Estragon is the main topic when Vladimir and Estragon ask why Lucky does not do anything and never put down the bags he carries, and Pozzo’s answer is that â€Å"he used to be very kind, helpful and entertaining but now he is killing me†, he also says Lucky wants to impress him by doing a job is not for him. Here the mind is sick; Pozzo is healthy but he is dying because of his mind while Lucky cannot bare any longer all that burden and pressure Pozzo has put on him to control him and not to let him think and decide his life is better without external pleasures and material worries. These all four characters are making an absurd portrayal of what life is. Estragon and his struggle for the boots to fit and how in the second act when he tries a pair of boots that were not of his, he says they fit and then he complains saying they are too big; it is the way they refers to our constant complains of the life we live and the circumstances, bad or good, we do not want to be in, as Vladimir says â€Å"There is a man all over for you, blaming on his boots the faults of his feet†. This is another way to say the metaphor about the life each one has to carry about with a cross: â€Å"†¦ to every man his little cross till he dies and is forgotten†. They both also talk about the searching of meaning when they say people speak always to themselves trying to determine where are â€Å"these corpses and skeletons† come from. They wonder if it is necessary to think or if they could have lived without it, as it was not enough just to live. Pozzo and Lucky are depicting the way society is always more concerned about material things, sometimes having as priority money and the mundane and superficial aspects rather than let the minds fly using the imagination and thinking beyond the banalities of the world. Also, with this two characters the performance of good deeds is visible when in Act II Pozzo falls and ask for help but Estragon prefers not to help him if he does not give anything to him in return. Vladimir compares what a tiger does to help his congeners without hesitating. Finally, as they spend their days in the same place and just looking for things to do to pass the time, it is just an ironic criticism to the routine the life becomes at some point; to the repetitive start, attempts, give up, and start again. This is just a cycle people live while for the end of the night to come, for the end of the daily routine to finish, for the death to come. When it comes they will be saved. How to cite Waiting Fo Death – Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot, Papers

Human Development and Life Transition Issue Adolescence

Question: Discuss about theHuman Development and Life Transition Issuefor Adolescence. Answer: Introduction Humans undergo a lot of development during their lifetime. They experience various stages such as the childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and the old age. It is during the adolescence that a person undergoes some necessary changes in the body. The essay would focus on the adolescence developmental stage of human beings. It will talk about the development of self, self-identity, and self-esteem of individuals during this juncture. There are many aspects of viewing a life stage. The article would discuss the normative, non-normative, physical, socio-cultural, and cognitive aspects of this stage. Ericksons theory of social development and Jean Piagets cognitive theory shall be utilized to explain the issues. Adolescence is the period of human life span during which a person undergoes a drastic transition both physically and mentally. This stage comprises the age group between twelve and eighteen years that is, from puberty to adulthood. Adolescence is associated with teenage and is in fact, the transitional stage between childhood and adulthood. However, the cognitive and physical adolescence growth may extend up to twenty years, particularly in males. It is during this period that humans experience a multitude of changes involving physical, mental, educational, employment, and training. Thus, an individual undergoes biological, cognitive, and social changes during this life stage (Csikszentmihalyi and Rathunde 2014). The biological transition is marked by the termination of growth and onset of puberty. Cognitively, the child begins to develop mentally and grows the power to think and reason in a concrete and complex way. The adolescence is the stage where a child develops his identity. Relationship with family, social sphere, and peers play a vital role in the development of adolescents. This is the stage when children tend to rebel from their parents and give importance to their peer group. In such a situation, it is paramount for parents to keep track of the child and his/her peers. A conflict may also arise at this stage. Peer groups may have a positive as well as negative impact on the child. Children develop their learning skills from peer groups. However, peer pressure may be detrimental (Kail and Cavanaugh 2015). Culture also plays a pivotal role in shaping the behavior, belief system, social responsibilities, and sexual expression. Adolescents develop a unique system of belief through their interaction with the society. Norms enforced on a child may pose a negative effect on the psychology of the child. The physical transition of body organs in both males and females and the ability to reproduce in the future are normative changes during adulthood. However, reproducing at the age of 15 or 16 is not a normative event during adolescence. In the present scenario, stepping out of home to work and develop a self-financial support may be normative. However, dropping school, getting married and reproducing children at this critical life stage is strictly non-normative (Barrouillet 2015). Jean Piaget explains that adolescence is the stage in which egocentric thoughts of an individual decreases and takes an abstract form. Children develop their view and perception of the world at this stage. The decision making process becomes personalized, and they start performing logical operations. The cognitive development is comparatively drastic and sudden. Children at this stage give more importance to their peers, and often a conflict arises between the parents and the child. Parents must not impose their decisions but instead, explain the child the consequences that he/she may face as a result of a wrong step (Siegler 2013). According to Erik Erikson, a person must resolve two crises during the adolescence. First is the identity confusion versus the identity crisis in which the adolescent tries to develop a unique identity while seeking to fit in the societal norms. Youths at this stage face a crisis as they must choose their identity, how they want to be perceived, and what they want to be. Once they can resolve this crisis, they would have a clear understanding of their identity. They would gain confidence and would be able to lead a well-adjusted, healthy life. Failing to cope up with the crisis may result in a lack of understanding of the self. They may get disconnected socially and develop a sense of self-importance and adopt extremist mentality. Secondly, children may experience a state of crisis between their early adulthood and late adolescence. This is called the crisis of isolation versus intimacy. This crisis is the struggle to achieve a balance between giving and receiving love and support. T he child tries to achieve the complementary nature of love and intimacy. Ability to resolve this crisis would make the person honest, and inculcate within him/her the capability to bond with others. Inability to address the crisis may make the person dependent, needy, self-contained, and vulnerable. The child may become lonely and isolated (Barrouillet 2015). Several factors may affect the self-concept and self-esteem of adolescents. Some of them are social support, problematic behavior, family harmony, parental support, peers, school adjustment, and body image. The development of the self concept is crucial for self-esteem determines the level of satisfaction in one's life. It is during the sensitive stage of adolescence that the personality of an individual develops. The adolescence is a challenging period for the self-concept and self-esteem of a person are the most susceptible at this juncture. They are most liable to be damaged due to the physical, social, and mental transitions. There arises tension between how they perceive themselves and the ideal self (Baumeister 2013). Mass-mediated social influences may lower the self-esteem. Children tend to follow mass media and celebrities. Practicing stunts and idolizing celebrities may prove to have a harmful effect on the young minds. Intense celebrity worship may increase self-esteem reg arding the reconstruction of the self. However, borderline pathological worship of celebrities may decrease the self-esteem because of the inability to become similar to the idolized star. Materialistic possessions may enhance the self-esteem (Baumeister 2013). Possession of materialistic things would be a benchmark of self-worth. However, material properties must not be the foundation of self-image and self-esteem as it might be dangerous. The child may take incorrect steps such as theft to gain materialistic pleasure. Adolescents are also highly influenced by peers as they are prone to experimentation of activities through which they might gain attention. They try to shape themselves by their peers so that they are accepted in the peer groups. For instance, children during their adolescence try to gain social recognition and acceptance by smoking and drinking (Birkeland et al. 2014). Since adolescents undergo a lot of developmental changes, it is essential to understand the physical, cognitive, and social aspects. Among so many children, there would be many who would act in a nonnormative manner. Understanding the psychological dimensions of a child would help nurses and midwives to take proper steps to cure them. The behavior and practice of midwives and nurses are defined by professional standards such as competency or practice standards, codes of conduct, ethics, and professional boundaries. Since nurses are accountable for the care and decision making of a person, it is of utmost importance that nurses understand the various aspects of the behavior of a teenager. They must strive to secure the best care possible (Nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au, 2016). They are the ones accountable for providing counseling and health care and also be responsive socially. It is thus essential to understand the behavioral patterns of adolescents as they are more prone to damage an d destruction. Parental attention and affection may be very helpful for psychologically disturbed children. As this is the phase where a person undergoes most transition mentally, physically as well as socially, it is imperative that they are well-taken care. References Barrouillet, P., 2015. Theories of cognitive development: From Piaget to today.Developmental Review,38, pp.1-12. Baumeister, R.F. ed., 2013.Self-esteem: The puzzle of low self-regard. Springer Science Business Media. Birkeland, M.S., Breivik, K. and Wold, B., 2014. Peer acceptance protects global self-esteem from negative effects of low closeness to parents during adolescence and early adulthood.Journal of Youth and Adolescence,43(1), pp.70-80. Csikszentmihalyi, M. and Rathunde, K., 2014. The development of the person: An experiential perspective on the ontogenesis of psychological complexity. InApplications of Flow in Human Development and Education(pp. 7-79). Springer Netherlands. Kail, R.V. and Cavanaugh, J.C., 2015.Human development: A life-span view. Cengage Learning. Modgil, S., Modgil, C. and Brown, G. eds., 2013.Jean Piaget. Routledge. Mooney, C.G., 2013.Theories of Childhood: An Introduction to Dewey, Montessori, Erikson, Piaget Vygotsky. Redleaf Press. Nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au. (2016).Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia - Home. [online] Available at: https://www.nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au/ [Accessed 25 Sep. 2016]. Overton, W.F. ed., 2013.The relationship between social and cognitive development. Psychology Press. Siegler, R.S., 2013. Georgina Salas Jean Piagets Cognitive Behaviorist Theory March 22, 2013 Siegler, RS, Ellis, S.(1996). Piaget On Childhood. Psychological Science (Wiley-Blackwell), 7 (4), 211-215.