Politics Dissertations - Culture Contested Concept - Free Essay Example

More than a half century ago noted American poet T. S. Eliot eloquently expressed the complexity of the term culture, a term that is used so freely and with so little aforethought today. As Eliot learned, culture is quite difficult to define. He succeeded in describing the term, as Lord Evans (2001) noted, but a definition eluded even someone with Eliots gift for words. But Eliot was not alone in wrestling with defining culture; experts in a variety of disciplines have yet to agree on a consensus definition and some even contest the concept of culture itself. As this essay will demonstrate, controversy surrounding the concept of culture can be attributed, to a large degree, to the failure by those who study the topic to adopt a widely-accepted definition that adequately captures the complexity of the term. After presenting the results of a literature review on various definitions of culture and the topic of culture as a contested concept, the focus of the essay turns to the significance of culture in conflict resolution, demonstrating that culture is a critical factor in successfully resolving conflicts and, further, that a consensus definition for culture that reflects the realities of modern society would facilitate the conflict resolution process. Culture Defined Experts may not be able to agree on a definition for culture, but they apparently experience no difficulty in agreeing that culture is a difficult term to define (Edensor 2002; Hall 1980, cited in Park 2005). Susan Wright (1998) reports the existence of at least 164 definitions for culture. Noted sociologist and anthropologist Clyde Kluckhohn (1949) defined culture eleven different ways in his book Mirror for Man, and he and his colleagues (1952) catalogued more than 160 definitions for culture into six categories descriptive, historical, normative, psychological, generic, and incomplete. Raymond Williams writes that, in the term culture, history has bestowed one of the two or three most complicated words in the English language, adding that culture can be used to refer to a wide range of phenomena and that the concept of culture has produced major political and philosophical disagreement (Williams 1983, cited in Chay 1990). Kluckhohn (1954) developed one of the most often cited definitions for culture in writing that it consists in patterned ways of thinking, feeling and reacting, acquired and transmitted mainly by symbols, constituting the distinctive achievements of human groups, including their embodiments in artifacts. Culture has also been defined as that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society (Tylor 1871, cited in Kluckhohn 1952); the human-made part of the environment (Herskovits 1955, cited in Earley and Randal 1997); shared meaning systems (Shweder and LeVine 1984, cited in Earley and Randal 1997); the sum total and organization of the social heritages which have acquired a social meaning because of racial temperament and of the historical life of the group (Park and Burgess 1921, cited in Kluckhohn 1952); the mode of life followed by the community or the tribe [including] all standa rdized social procedures (Wissler 1929, cited in Kluckhohn 1952); the sum of mens adjustments to their life-conditionsattained only through the combined action of variation, selection, and transmission (Sumner and Keller 1927, cited in Kluckhohn 1952); and a product of human association (Groves 1928, cited in Kluckhohn 1952). In the aggregate, the various definitions just presented express the theme of shared meanings acquired then passed from generation to generation. They also describe culture at group and societal levels. Other experts describe the term from the perspective of the individual or otherwise provide for differences in cultural attributes within a group or society. Hofstede (1980, cited in Earley and Randel 1997) defines culture as a set of mental programs that control an individuals responses in a given context. Park (2005) describes culture as a marker for difference in society. And Rohner (1984, cited in Earley and Randel 1997) defines the term as the totality of equivalent and complementary learned meanings maintained by a human population, or by identifiable segments of a population, and transmitted from one generation to the next. The phrase equivalent and complementary learned meanings is critical to an understanding of Rohners definition, according to Earley and Randel, because it p rovides for individual variances in interpretations of learned meanings within a culture. Although these definitions represent only a small portion of those revealed from a review of the literature, they provide some insight into the range of thought on the topic of culture, especially perspectives on assessing culture at various levels societal, group, and individual. As will be suggested, the difficulty experts have experienced in defining culture helps to explain why culture is a contested concept and why a solution to the definitional problem is important to resolving the debate about the role of culture in conflict resolution and, ultimately, to facilitating the conflict resolution process. Culture as a Contested Concept Fantasia and Hirsch (1995, cited in Ellis and Thompson, 1997) write, with a hint of sarcasm, that cultural theorists can take pride in their creation of a contested terrain in the study of culture. The literature review indicated that most experts who contest the concept of culture base their disputes on the belief that, in the modern world, there is no all-embracing culture in which everyone in a given society blindly holds precisely the same shared meanings, which is suggested by most traditional definitions of culture. The concept of culture has long been contested (Cooper and Denner 1998; Mathews 2000). Bhabha (1993) writes that, as people have increasingly migrated to other lands in modern times, they have only taken part of their total culture with them. The culture of these migrants becomes a mixture of the cultures from their native societies and those found in the society in which they entered. Heath (1997) writes that experts no longer consider culture to be a viable concept in a world of volatile, situated, and overlapping social identities, contending that various disciplines have taken issue with culture as a concept for various reasons. She writes that educators protest the concept on the basis of its transmission of connotations of objectivity, discreteness, essentialism, and ahistoricism; sociologists challenge the concept on the grounds of production, mass consumerism, and popular entertainment; and experts from the human sciences contest the totalizing universalizing perspectives of culture, replacing these arbitrary constructions with permeable membranes that are not predictable or deterministic. Heath (1997) also points to the fuzzy boundaries of culture, arguing that specific cultures are hard to isolate and claiming that variations are becoming apparent within groups that have been traditionally viewed as possessing unique cultures. Edensor (2002) writes that popular culture is having a major cross-cultural effect on traditional cultures. Childs and Storry (1999) claim that cultures are changing so quickly that a snapshot of current cultural practices is inevitably going to be blurred. Mathews (2000), in noting that even anthropologists are increasingly avoiding the term culture, poses the question as to whether in todays world of global flows and interactions cultural labels are appropriate and claims that individuals personally select which elements of a given culture to apply in their behavioural decisions. Brightman (1995, cited in Mathews 2000) notes t hat some experts are enclosing culture in quotation marks to indicate their ambivalence, self-consciousness or censure about the term. In closing, perhaps Earley and Randel (1997) offer the one of the more revealing insights into the controversy over the term culture: We suggest that while the romance of culture as a grand concept capturing the complexity of society and life is tempting, this conceptualization is both limiting and misleading. The Significance of Culture in Conflict Resolution Conflict resolution and culture are intrinsically intertwined. Rubin and colleagues (1994, cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry 1997) define conflict as perceived divergence of interest, or a belief that parties current aspirations cannot be achieved simultaneously. Hopmann (1998) contends that, in a complex world, conflict is unavoidable. Conflict is an inevitable consequence of the interdependence inherent in human interaction (Bjrkqvist and Fry 1997). Processes used to resolve conflicts must be considered within a larger cultural context (Just 1991). Conflicts are cultural events in every sense of the word, according to Lederach (1991). Bjrkqvist and Fry (1997) write that conflict resolution is a cultural phenomenon. Avruch (1991) refers to conflicts and conflict resolution approaches as cultural events. Various studies have confirmed that conflict resolution processes are culture-specific (Avruch and Black 1991; Avurch, Black and Scimecca 1991, cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry 1997). Ross (1993 , cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry 1997) originated the term culture of conflict to describe the norms and institutions that a society applies in conflicts. Beliefs, attitudes, and patterns of behaviours about conflict are internalised by people in their cultural settings and, in turn, strengthened by cultural norms and institutions. And, because conflict is a cultural phenomenon, the methods used to perceive and respond to conflict are typically transparent to those involved because these methods are based on assumptions that they do not question. (Bjrkqvist and Fry 1997) Bjrkqvist and Fry (1997) urge caution in applying conflict resolution approaches across cultural lines. For instance, they recommend that generic manuals prescribing conflict resolution procedures to be used in all cultural settings should be avoided (Avruch 1991). People involved in conflict resolution should be flexible and sensitive to cultural differences, according to Lederach (1991, cited in Bjrkqvist) and Benvenisti (1986, cited in Avruch 1991). Benvenisti chastises conflict resolvers who believe that communal conflicts are like a chessboard where one can think up the best arrangement of chess pieces and move them all at once. Cultures vary in the mechanisms they use in resolving conflict with some applying formal mechanisms such as court systems and others using informal approaches such as gossip, teasing, and exclusion (Black 1993; Fry 1992, 1994; Hollan 1988; White 1991, cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry 1997). Versi (2002) suggests that if you know where the other person is coming from culturally, you can develop a more effective approach to resolving conflict. Rubin (1994, cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry 1997), articulates four generic strategies used in conflict resolution: (1) contending, which involves a high level of concern for ones own results and a low level of concern for the others results; (2) problem solving, which involves high levels of concern for ones own results and those of the other party; (3) yielding, which involves a low level of concern for ones own results and a high level of concern for the others results; and (4) avoiding, which involves low levels of concern for ones own results and those of the other party. Of these, the authors argue that problem solving is the most effective strategy because it permits both contenders to win. Fortunately, the problem solving strategy is effective across a broad spectrum of cultures. In problem solving, the use of a non-partisan th ird-party facilitator has also been found to be effective across cultures (Black 1993, cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry 1997). The Culture Definition Dilemma and Its Effects on Optimal Conflict Resolution Outcomes The debate about culture, specifically the controversy surrounding the validity of culture as a concept, is important to the field of conflict resolution because cultural factors are so inexorably linked to conflicts and their effective resolutions. Results of the literature review of definitions for the term culture and the review of literature on culture as a contested concept suggest that definitions describing culture as a group or societal phenomenon without allowing for variance within the group or society may be at the root of the cultural concept validity dispute. As Bhabha (1993), Childs and Storry (1999), Edensor (2002), Heath (1997), and Mathews (2000) proffer, modern societies are increasingly integrating and, as this occurs, their members are mixing their unique cultural attributes with one another thereby blurring the distinctions that once defined individual cultures. But does this mean that the concept of culture is invalid? The answer to that question lies in the definitions of culture that allow for individual variance in cultural attributes. For instance, the definition offered by Rohner (1984, cited in Earley and Randel 1997), who defines the term as the totality of equivalent and complementary learned meanings maintained by a human population, or by identifiable segments of a population, and transmitted from one generation to the next, provides for individual variances in interpretations of learned meanings within a culture. This definition seems offer the flexibility to adequately define culture within the context of modern inter mingled societies, thus revalidating the concept of culture. How, then, would a definition for culture that provides for individual variance relate to conflict resolution? Although a definition that considers everyone within a particular culture to share precisely the same cultural attributes would help to make conflict resolution a much more predictable process, such a definition does not reflect the realities of modern societies. However, knowing that members of a culture share equivalent and complementary learned meanings, as proposed by Rohner, permits a certain degree of predictability whilst simultaneously providing needed flexibility to accommodate individual variance. There may even be an additional benefit in this condition for practitioners in conflict resolution. Individual variance may actually serve to weaken strong cultural barriers that have, in the past, obstructed successful conflict resolution. For instance, as cultures integrate more fully, their members typically become more understanding of each others cultural attributes . This understanding should provide an enhanced common basis for resolving conflicts and may even reduce the incidence of conflicts themselves. Conclusion In the modern global village, as opportunities increase for people and their cultures to interact, the need for effective conflict resolution has never been more critical or more difficult, yet experts in a variety of disciplines are engaged in seemingly endless philosophical arguments about the validity of culture as a concept, diverting their energies from what seem to be more productive endeavours such as developing new techniques for conflict resolution that could lead to a more peaceful world. Adopting a more flexible definition for culture one that recognises individual variances and the realities of the modern world would be a first step in achieving this worthy goal. References Avruch, K. (1991) Introduction: Culture and conflict-resolution, in K. Avruch, P. W. Black, and J. A. Scimecca, eds., Conflict Resolution: Cross Cultural Perspectives, Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood. Avruch, K., and Black, P. W. (1991) The culture question and conflict resolution, Peace and Change 16. Cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry (1997). Avruch, K., Black, P. W., and Scimecca, J. A., (1991) Conflict Resolution: Cross-Cultural Perspectives, Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. Cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry (1997). Benvenisti, Meron (1986) Conflicts and Contradictions, New York: Villard Books/Random House. Cited in Avruch (1991). Bhabha, Homi K. (1993) Cultures in between, Artforum International 32:1, September 1993. Bjrkqvist, Kaj, and Fry, Douglas P. (1997) Cultural Variation in Conflict Resolution: Alternatives to Violence, Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Black, D. (1993) The Social Structure of Right and Wrong, San Diego, California: Academic Press. Cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry (1997). Brightman, R. (1995) Forget culture: Replacement, transcendence, relexification, Cultural Anthropology 10:4. Cited in Mathews (2000). Chay, Jongsuk (1990) Culture and International Relations, New York: Praeger. Childs, Peter, and Storry, Mike (1999) Encyclopedia of Contemporary British Culture, London: Routledge. Cooper, Catherine R., and Denner, Jill (1998) Theories linking culture and psychology: Universal and community-specific processes, Annual Review of Psychology 49. Earley, P. Christopher, and Randel, Amy E. (1997) Culture without borders: An individual-level approach to cross-cultural research in organizational behavior, in Cary L. Cooper and Susan E. Jackson, eds., Creating Tomorrows Organizations: A Handbook for Future Research in Organizational Behavior, Chichester: John Wiley Sons. Edensor, Tim (2002) National Identity, Popular Culture and Everyday Life, Oxford: Berg. Eliot, T. S. (1949) Notes Towards the Definition of Culture, New York: Harcourt Brace and Company, 62. Ellis, Richard J., and Thompson, Michael (1997) Culture Matters: Essays in Honor of Aaron Wildavsky, Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press. Evans, Lord (2001) The economy of the imagination, New Statesman 130:4544, July 2, 2001. Fantasia, Rick, and Hirsch, Eric L. (1995), Culture and rebellion: the appropriation and transformation of the veil in the Algerian Revolution, in Hank Johnston and Bert Klandermans, eds., Social Movements and Culture, Minneapolis, Minnesota: University of Minnesota Press. Cited in Ellis and Thompson (1997). Fry, D. P. (1992) Female aggression among the Zapotec of Oaxaca, Mexico, in K. Bjrkqvist and P. Niemel, eds., Of Mice and Women: Aspects of Female Aggression, San Diego, California: Academic Press. Cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry (1997). Fry, D. P. (1994) Maintaining social tranquillity: Internal and external loci of aggression control, in L. E. Sponsel and T. Gregor, eds., The Anthropology of Peace and Nonviolence, Boulder, Colorado: Lynne Rienner. Cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry (1997). Groves, E. R. (1928) An Introduction to Sociology, New York. Cited in Kluckhohn (1952). Hall, S. (1980) Cultural studies: Two paradigms, in F. E. N. B. Dirk and S. B. Ortner, eds., A Reader in Contemporary Social Theory, Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. Cited in Park (2005). Heath, Shirley Brice (1997) Culture: Contested realm in research on children and youth, Personality and Social Psychology Review 1:3. Herskovits, M. J. (1955) Cultural Anthropology, New York: Knopf. Cited in Earley and Randel (1997). Hofstede, G. (1980) Cultures Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values, Newbury Park, California: Sage. Cited in Earley and Randel (1997). Hollan, D. (1988) Staying cool in Toraja: Informal strategies for the management of anger and hostility in a non-violent society, Ethos 16. Cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry (1997). Hopmann, Terrence (1998) The Negotiation Process and the Resolution of International Conflicts, Columbia, South Carolina: Columbia South Carolina Press. Just, Peter (1991) Conflict resolution and moral community among the Dou Donggo, in Kevin Avruch, Peter W. Black, and Joseph A. Scimecca, eds., Conflict Resolution: Cross-Cultural Perspectives, Westport, Connecticut: Praeger. Kluckhohn, C. (1949) Mirror for Man, New York: Wittlesey House. Kluckhohn, Clyde (1954) Culture and Behavior, New York: Free Press. Kluckhohn, Clyde et al. (1952) Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions, Cambridge, Massachusetts: Peabody Museum. Lederach, John Paul (1991) Of nets, nails, and problems: The folk language of conflict resolution in a Central American settting, in Kevin Avruch, Peter W. Black, and Joseph A. Scimecca, eds., Conflict Resolution: Cross-Cultural Perspectives, Westport, Connecticut: Praeger. Mathews, Gordon (2000) Searching for Home in the Cultural Supermarket, London: Routledge. Park, R. E., and Burgess, E. W. (1921) Introduction to the Science of Sociology, Chicago. Cited in Kluckhohn (1952). Park, Yoosun (2005) Culture as deficit: A critical discourse analysis of the concept of culture in contemporary social work discourse, Journal of Sociology Social Work 32:3. Rohner, R. R. (1984) Toward a conception of culture for cross-cultural psychology, Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology 15:2. Cited in Earley and Randel (1997). Ross, M. H. (1993) The Management of Conflict, New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University Press. Cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry (1997). Rubin, J. Z., Pruitt, D. G., and Kim, S. H. (1994) Social Conflict: Escalation, Stalemate and Settlement, New York: McGraw-Hill. Cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry (1997). Shweder, R. A. and LeVine, R. A. (1984) Culture Theory: Essays on Mind, Self, and Emotion, New York: Cambridge University Press. Cited in Earley and Randel (1997). Sumner, W. G., and Keller, A. G. (1927) The Science of Society, New Haven, Connecticut. Cited in Kluckhohn (1952). Tylor, E. B. (1871) Primitive Culture, Boston. Cited in Kluckhohn (1952). Versi, Anver (2002) Coping with culture clash, African Business, May 2002. White, G. M. (1991) Rhetoric, reality, and resolving conflicts: Disentangling in a Solomon Islands society, in K. Avruch, P. W. Black, and J. A. Schimecca, eds., Conflict Resolution: Cross-Cultural Perspectives, Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood. Cited in Bjrkqvist and Fry (1997). Wissler, C. (1929) An Introduction to Social Anthropology, New York. Cited in Kluckhohn (1952). Williams, Raymond (1983) Keywords, London: Fontana. Cited in Chay (1990). Wright, Susan (1998) The politicization of culture, Anthropology Today 14:1.

Middle School Problem Solution Essay Topics - Four Different Essay Topics

Middle School Problem Solution Essay Topics - Four Different Essay TopicsOne of the best ways to get your students writing papers is to provide them with a number of Middle School Problem Solution Essay Topics. These essay topics allow you to place your ideas in the essay and also help your students to more easily write their papers.Problems are one of the best teaching tools in school today. In the process of teaching them how to solve problems that are important to them, you will see that there are four different types of problems that your students have to solve.The first problem is the first issue you have to begin solving. The first topic that you will need to address is to come up with some sort of incentive for your student. The first thing you need to find out is why the incentive you are providing is important to them.Why should they be interested in the incentive? Why is it that they are actually able to find some reason to be interested in the incentive? This means that yo u will need to find a way to identify the main reason that will make the incentive important to them.The second problem is the one where you are going to teach your students about learning about situations that they can learn from. When you do this, you will be showing your students that this is an area where they can take some lessons, and a problem that they will be able to solve.Kids are always curious, and kids really love to find out the answers to questions. The first two problems that you will need to solve in your middle school problem solution essay topics are going to be in the first one category.The last problem is going to be your middle school problem solution essay topics that are going to allow you to show your students how you are going to find the answers to their questions. Using this process, you will be able to give your students plenty of ideas on how they can solve the problems that they have come up with.

The Flaws of the Creature a Critique on Walker Percy Essay

In his essay, The Loss of the Creature, Walker Percy claims that there are two types of students: privileged and unprivileged knowers. However, Percy labels his readers by what he feels is appropriate. According to David Bartholomae and Anthony Petrosky in the introduction to Ways of Reading, it is up to us, the readers, to determine what Percy might mean when he uses key terms and phrases in his essay. Bartholomae and Petrosky believe that The meaning is forged from reading the essay, to be sure, but it is determined by your account of what Percy might mean when he talks about ‘symbolic packages or a ‘loss of sovereignty (8). Yet Percy only believes in his ideas because of his elitist point of view and feels as though he†¦show more content†¦Isnt this the most logical answer? All humans have different points of view and ways of looking at certain things. I choose to believe what I want from Percys argument. For example, I am intrigued about his idea of privil eged and unprivileged knowers but I feel that it is neither a valid nor reasonable idea. It seems as though Percy is implying that he is an expert or privileged knower while also implying that we are the students or unprivileged knower. Supposedly, Percy is not convinced that those who might be the unprivileged knowers learn best from such experts. So is Percy saying that he himself is not in a position of to teach and share knowledge? I feel as though this is a flaw in Percys essay because it does not strengthen his argument against students having a sovereign experience. This is one of the several weak-points in his essay. Another weak-point derives from Percys idea of rating the authenticity of an experience by giving it a value P. He then states, it would be nearer the truth to say that if the place is seen by a million sightseers, a single sightseer does not receive value P but a millionth part of value P (Percy 469). This idea is another problematic point in his argume nt because Percy is unable to feel what one feels. If we were to measure the emotions felt whenShow MoreRelatedDeveloping Management Skills404131 Words   |  1617 Pages174 Generating Alternatives 176 Evaluating Alternatives 176 Implementing the Solution 177 Limitations of the Analytical Problem-Solving Model 178 Impediments to Creative Problem Solving 178 Multiple Approaches to Creativity 179 Conceptual Blocks 183 Percy Spencer’s Magnetron 185 Spence Silver’s Glue 185 The Four Types of Conceptual Blocks 185 Review of Conceptual Blocks 194 Conceptual Blockbusting 194 Stages in Creative Thought 194 Methods for Improving Problem Definition 195 Ways to Generate More Alternatives

The American Constitution, A Staple Of Modern Democracy.

The American Constitution, a staple of modern democracy. The shining jewel of how a country is supposed to be run effectively. In the 220+ years that this country has been founded, the powers of the federal government have grown exponentially. The Framers, influential white men from the original 13 colonies(minus Rhode Island), consisted of those who wanted a strong central government and those for strong state rights. Together, through a series of compromises, the Framers created the original unamend Constitution. Once sent out to the states for ratification, it was sent back to include the civil liberties that every citizen has, The Bill of Rights. After four years, the Constitution was ratified, and became the law of the new†¦show more content†¦The Articles failed to lead the country through war debts, multistate and international trade agreements, and Shay’s Rebellion. Like any war, the American Revolution was very expensive to have, especially on their own turf. The country borrowed money from the richer states in the form of war bonds, and when it was time to pay up, the country did not have the money, and defaulted on repayment. Congress did have the ability to create coin, but no ability to back it up. Plus, without having access to tax (the states kept rejecting Congress’s proposal), there was no way to raise revenue. After the war was over, multiple states made trade agreements with different, and at times, conflicting countries. This was a dangerous game, because as states in the same ‘unified’ country, a foreign entity may see one state trading with a country that they do not associate with, and another state may miss out on that trade opportunity that might benefit the country as a whole. The catalyst that brought the entire Articles down is Shay’s Rebellion. 1500 farmers marched to the Massachusetts capital to ensure the state does not close their mortgages, and the state government was too broke to must er up an army. 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The University Of Wisconsin Oshkosh Titans And The St....

Competition is a unique situation in life to analyze. If you can focus on the small details outside of the game, there’s a possibility that you can understand the way an athlete is performing and why a coach is behaving a certain way. In the heat of the moment, if not properly trained, one can not perform to their potential due to the pressure that the moment of competition can place on an individual. This can be just as much for coaches and how they react and act as much as it goes for player. Effective coaches know how to use the situation to their advantage and know what to do or how to react at the appropriate time. In this paper, I’ll examine the competition of the University of Wisconsin – Oshkosh Titans and the St. Thomas Tommies in a NCAA Division 3 playoff game. I’m watching this game from the UW-Oshkosh side, so I will be observing the UW-Oshkosh football team for the most part. With this competition between UW-Oshkosh and St. Thomas, I’ll break down this paper into four talking points and the effects of said points. These four points are pre-competition routine, feedback and reinforcement by coach, game flow and interruptions and then other thoughts and factors that I noticed during the game. First off, let’s discuss the pre-competition routine for this highly anticipated playoff game. UW-Oshkosh warms up with very little mistakes and appear to be comfortable with their warm-up routine. There is a lot of energy on the Oshkosh sideline, with smiles and head nods

Rousseaus Concept of Democracy Essay - 995 Words

Rousseau describes democracy as a form of government that â€Å"has never existed and never will† ; yet twenty-six countries in the world are considered to be full democracies. How can this be possible? Rousseau’s concept of democracy supports the most fundamental and basic premise of democracy – one in which all citizens directly participate. While his idea of democracy cannot be considered an effective indictment of what passes for democracy today, it is not Rousseau’s account which is flawed but that in modern society is would be practically impossible to achieve this idea of democracy. Jean-Jacques Rousseau defines democracy as a government in which â€Å"the sovereign entrust the government to the entire people†¦so that there are more†¦show more content†¦A state with â€Å"simplicity of mores† is a state in which its citizens are not greedy or ambitions. Finally, a state must have equality and little luxury because they both co rrupt the citizens. Even if a state were to have these basic premises in place, there must be institutions that allow for the prosperity of a democratic government. The democratic government, according to Rousseau consists of a legislative power and an executive power. While the legislative power belongs solely to the people (for they are the ones responsible for making the law), the executive power belongs solely to the Sovereignty. Along with this, Rousseau describes four types of law present in a democracy: political, civil, criminal and mores. These laws are in place to regulate relationships. Political laws regulate the relationship between the sovereign and the state, civil laws are for the relationship between the subjects, the relationship between man and law is regulated by criminal law and finally, and according to Rousseau, most importantly are mores laws which â€Å"preserves a people in the spirit of its institutions† and thus all other laws depend on this one. Democracy today is different from what Rousseau describes. Even in Norway, which ranked as the most democratic country in 2010, a constitutional democracy still exists. SocietiesShow MoreRelatedRousseau Vs Democracy853 Words   |  4 PagesDemocracy, More Like DemoCRAZY An issue with the concept and philosophy of democracy is that idea in which is theorized to uphold can sometimes contradict themselves. Democracy in itself cannot be definitely defined, but instead is left up to interpretation by many philosophers and theorists, all of whom have wildly varying convictions of how an actual democracy should function. The ideals in which one person might claim to the be fundamental basics of their version of a democracy could also theRead MoreRousseau s Beliefs On The Form Of Governments Essay1746 Words   |  7 Pagessovereign. In his writings from the social contract Rousseau outlines what the sort of government should be. 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Explore the different approaches to the theme of love and marriage presented in Acts one and Act Two of Romeo and Juliet Essay Example For Students

Explore the different approaches to the theme of love and marriage presented in Acts one and Act Two of Romeo and Juliet Essay William Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet is one of the most famous love stories of all time. Written in approximately 1595, it is considered to be one of Shakespeares great works. Using the on-going feud between the Montagues and the Capulets as a backdrop to his play, Shakespeare gains an insight into the lives of the residents of Verona. As the story unfolds, a great variety of moral approaches and explanations as to the meaning of love and value of marriage are explored. Different characters in the play have diverse approaches to the theme of love and marriage. At the beginning of the play, Romeo is clearly fascinated with the notion of being in love. It is this attraction to being in love rather than actual love that is displayed for the character of Rosaline. The audience does not see Rosaline throughout the whole play; they only gain an insight to her from Romeos clichà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½d descriptions. Shakespeare makes a play on words in the language he uses when describing the places Romeo goes when in love with Rosaline. e.g. Benvolio tells of Romeos times in the grove of sycamore (sick-a-more), revealing Romeos love sick indulgence. In the words of Mercutio, Romeos love for Rosaline is nothing but vain fantasy. Romeo is seen to spend much of his time in darkness whilst he is infatuated with Rosaline. Benvolio describes him as stealing away into the covert of the wood. A comparison can be made with Romeos love for Juliet and the infatuation with Rosal ine in the language that is used. With Rosaline, Romeo is always described as being confused and lamenting at his situation. Romeos use of oxymorons develop this impression of bewilderment; heavy lightness, serious vanity /feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, but his love for Juliet is genuine and pure. An interesting interpretation of Romeos rehearsed love for Rosaline is made in Luhrmanns Romeo + Juliette (1996). When the character of Romeo is first introduced he is writing down the oxymorons oh brawling love, oh loving hate Later, when he speaks to Benvolio he repeats these words again, giving the false impression of spontaneity though the audience know that this is not the case. Taking the popular expression to be in the dark to mean not knowing the full truth or not understanding, Shakespeare is dropping a subtle hint at the fact that what is shown for Rosaline is not really love at all, it is just a well rehearsed idea in the imagination of a teenage boy. Benvolio also makes an important insight into Romeos love for Rosaline Blind is his love, and best befits the dark. One could say that when Romeo meets Juliet, he has seen the light. Romeo instantly sees Juliet as the right woman for him. In saying, Did my heart love till now? and I neer saw true beauty till this night; Romeo finally reveals to himself and the audience that his previous impression of love was false. He describes Juliet in terms of light and all the beautiful things associated with light. To him she is now the sun who kills the envious moon. This is a far cry from the images of despair and darkness shown for Rosaline. Juliet is a pure, almost god-like being to him and he has completely dis pelled any thought of love for Rosaline. Later in Act 2, when Friar Lawrence questions Romeo on Rosaline he replies RosalineNo/I have forgot that name and that names woe; she is nothing more than a distant memory to him. How is Sheila affected by her realization EssayFriar Lawrence is one of the most interesting and mysterious characters of the play. His early interest in plants and herbs indicates some of the events that that take place at the end of the play. In saying that Poison hath residence in these plants it is clear to the audience that this is a potential component to Romeo and Juliets deaths at the end of the play. Friar Lawrence is pleased to hear of the news that Romeo no longer dotes on Rosaline and comments on this love by saying Thy love did read by rote that could not spell. This is clear confirmation that it is visible to all that Romeo could not spell out his love for Rosaline and had merely recited different impressions of love as they came into his head. He notes that youthful love rests Not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes this wise analysis portrays Friar Lawrence to be a learned and wise man whose advise should be listened too. His willingness to agree to marry Romeo and Juliet; although an apparent gesture of goodwill, is seen by many as to be the cause for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet later on in the play. Shakespeares use of language is a clear indication at the general mood of the play. It is often those with less social status who do not use rhyme. For example the serving staff in the first scene speak using slang and use little eloquent language in their speech. My naked weapon is out, said by Sampson is a line unlikely to be used by somebody of higher class. When Romeo and Juliet share their romantic encounter on Juliets balcony, some of the most beautiful language of play is used. Shakespeares use of sonnets and the religious references are vital to the structure of their lines. Loves light wings make this experience almost dreamlike for both persons; so much so, that Juliet sees it essential to confirm this love, which is in her mind too rash, too unadvised, too sudden, with marriage. Another evocative use of language is in the words said by Friar Lawrence. A striking resemblance between the way Mercutio speaks and the way Juliets Nurse speak can also be observed. The Nurses wor ds of seek happy nights to happy days said to Juliet, are similar to Mercutios advice to stop burdening love when it is such a tender thing. The Nurse and Mercutio also enjoy making sexual suggestions. In conclusion, love and marriage are approached by different characters in Romeo and Juliet from different points of view. This specific point of view is determined by a variety of factors, namely: social class, age and personality. Despite these differences in opinion, all characters agree on one fundamental thought: that love and marriage are not one-dimensioned states of mind. They are multi faceted ideas and there is no absolute definition for each one. Love and marriage cannot be experienced by an individual but by two individuals who each have their own aspirations for life.