Slave Ship free essay sample

The Slave Ship by Marcus Rediker is a great fiction novel that describes the horrifying experiences of Africans, seamen, and captains on their Journey through the Middle Passage. The Middle Passage marked the water way in the Atlantic Ocean between Africa and the Americas. The use of slaves provided a great economy for the European countries due to the fact that these African slaves provided free labor while cultivating sugar cane in the Caribbean and America. Rediker describes the slave migration by saying, There exists no account of the mechanism for historys greatest forced migration, which was in many ways the key to an entire phase of lobalization (10). This tells us that African enslavement to the Americas causes a complete shift in the balance of globalization. Africans who became enslaved were usually prisoners of war between tribes. Merchants would give goods to the chiefs of villages for these people. Men, women, and children were stripped away from their own homes by being kidnapped, as well. We will write a custom essay sample on Slave Ship or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page These slaves would travel up to six months to the coast of the Atlantic Ocean to reach what is known as the slave ship. From here, they were abused by having to live in a harsh environment in the Journey hrough the Middle Passage. Many slaves would not even make it to their destination, but those who did were sold to spend the rest of their life cultivated mainly sugar cane. Rediker offers new insights to human history by researching many documents to find the hard truth in this novel to how slavery was introduced in the Americas. Rediker uses his research to explain how difficult it was for Africans to be introduced to the harsh lifestyle of slavery. He uses many diaries of the slave ships captains, and even a few slaves, to bring to life the brutality that was inflicted to hese innocent people emotionally and physically on the slave ship. Africans rebelled constantly against the slave traders every chance they had. Theyre very few slaves that would escape enslavement and live a free life, while many others perished into the horrific lifestyle of slavery. Some Africans did not go without putting up a fght. For instance, Captain Tomba led many villagers in burning huts and killing neighbors who cooperated with slave traders (14). He was later captured and sent to the slave ship where he would be sold in the New World. The slaves also resisted by refusing to eat. Most of them decided they would rather have death than to live the lifestyle on the slave ships. The captains punished those who refused to eat by giving them lashes to the bare skin until they decided to eat. Olaudah Equiano could be considered one of the more fortunate Africans involved in the slave trade. Rediker uses Equiano to show how Africans were kidnapped and brought to the slave ship. Equiano was home alone with his sister when he was snatched by a neighboring enemy tribe. Tribes were kidnapping each other to sell to the slave traders for goods and even weapons. Equiano was separated from his sister and sold off to merchants before actually boarding the slave ship. He mentioned several times how he would rather die than be on the slave ship. He noticed right away that the slave ship was equipped with nettings to prevent precisely such desperate rebellion (109). Equiano went to the Americas and was left alone when none of the merchants purchased him. He was sold toa captain and He got to stay on the deck and eat better food than he had during the Middle Passage. He also befriended a young child who was one of the captains apprentices. Equiano lived a free life and became literate as he wrote his own autobiography. The fear that the seamen were cannibals was very common on the slave ships. Fear was enriched into the thoughts of these slaves because they had no idea where they were going and what was to become of them. They also did not know what to expect from the captain along with his crew. The fear of being eaten by them and abused led them to wanting death. Communication was also a key to the slaves. Many of the slaves came from different tribes, so it was hard to communicate with each other since they had different languages. When they finally became a sort of new tribe on the slave ship, they reached the end of their Journey and lost the bonds that they made when being sold off. The Middle Passage was not only harsh for the slaves, but for the ships crew, as well. James Field Stanfield was a seaman who participated in the slave trade. Like many of the crew, Stanfield occasionally boarded ships to work for cruel captains. Some captains punished his crew as often as they did the slaves. Stanfield accounts that even at one point he had to take over for the doctor and dress wounds from the ashes on slaves and even the crew. He describes the Journey through the Middle Passage as horrific. He describes the working environment by saying seamen were also forced to work when sick, sometimes with fatal consequences (148). Stanfield is a living proof of the harsh conditions watching his crew members die and be tossed overboard. Sharks played a role in the Middle Passage. Sharks were known to follow ships because of the enormous amount of dead slaves and crew members being tossed over. John Newton was a rebellious crew member who turned into a good, Christian slave ship captain. He is portrayed of being extremely rebellious at first, and develops a heart and sincerity for the slaves. He improved the living quarters for the slaves by cleaning the small rooms below the decks to prevent disease and sickness from spreading. Newton also provided better food to the slaves feeling as though he would make more money if they were in good health when reaching port. The start of abolishing slavery started and was growing rapidly in Europe due to the amount of deaths and harsh lifestyle along the Middle Passage. The relationship between shipmates and captives was also terrifying, as well. When the slaves were brought to the ships, they were stripped of their clothing. Women had to squat to hide their genital area. The ship had one general rule when keeping the slaves locked up. Rediker says that all men were manacled and shackled at the wrist and leg, women and children were left unconstrained (267). The horrifying thing about these shackles was that they stripped the flesh off of the slaves. Ships were using a significant number of the enslaved t work aboard the vessel, at a wide variety of tasks central to the shipboard economy (268). This helped he crew with the Journey and caused a lesser workload for them. Even women were used as cooks to feed the ships population. This gave the slaves more interaction with the voyage. The mortality rate decreased since the slaves were not being constantly cooped up in the small living quarters that they were placed in at first. Rediker uses this human history to describe several things. He shows throughout the gathering forces that would bring it to an end (352). This novel is portrayed as a great human history because of the way Rediker shows both sides of slavery and the Middle Passage. He shows the merchants who thought of the slaves as nothing but profit. These merchants did not care what would happen to the slaves considering that it was no loss to them if one died. He also shows how abolitionists fight the horrific lifestyle on the slave ships. Although most do not want to end slavery all together until a later date, they desired a better living environment for the slaves while aboard the slave ships. Rediker efficiently uses his research to conduct this book in showing the terror and harsh lifestyle of a slave during the slave route from Africa to the Americas in what is known as the Middle Passage.

What Is Ethnocentrism Essay Example

What Is Ethnocentrism Essay Example What Is Ethnocentrism Paper What Is Ethnocentrism Paper In America, the greatest supremacy of the world, we have the most advanced and sophisticated culture in history. The inferior British drive on the wrong side of the road, and Greeks reek of the scent of Garlic. Does garlic really smell bad? Maybe the right side is the wrong side of the road, and other countries may feel the same way about their culture as those Yankees feel about their USA. What do we call the sense of cultural superiority? Sociology has a term called ethnocentrism, which is defined as â€Å"the tendency to look at the world primarily from the perspective of ones own culture† (about sociology). Many claim that ethnocentrism occurs in every society. The opposite of ethnocentrism is multiculturalism, which is the belief that all cultures are basically equal. Ethnocentricity is essentially a double-edged sword, and has been shown to be a powerful force that exhibits both positive and negative consequences inside a cultural group. There are three major causes of why ethnocentricity exists: individuals’ different life experiences, social and political power, and economic rationale. The truth is there is no one who can wholly abstain from being ethnocentric. Since it is impossible to experience the life situations of everyone in the world, we will always base some assumptions on life built from our existing finite life experience. It must also be noted that a worldview in which someone does not consider their view as the correct one, is inconsistent as it would be admitting falseness. In a social group or culture, ethnocentrism can produce a diligent, productive, and innovative society, while unchecked or distorted ethnocentrism can lead to racism, chaos, or war. Causal support for the existence of ethnocentrism can be found in the very definition of ethnocentricity itself, â€Å"characterized by or based on the attitude that ones own group is superior† (Merriam-Webster). The belief that one’s own group is better usually brings a sense of entitlement or power. Ethnocentrically based lust of power has created numerous instances of human rights violations, wars, racial conflicts, and colonization. The power struggle in the Darfur region of Sudan is a tragic example of ethnocentricity between two groups engaging in a civil war. The battle between the totalitarian Muslim government and African rebel groups has left approximately 400,000 people dead, and millions displaced (Associated Press). The Sudanese government has been accused of supporting the Arab terrorist group Janjaweed commit genocide throughout the country with an aim to annihilate the African insurgent groups that want a larger share of influence in the Sudanese government. The ethnocentric view of national imperialism has greatly affected most developing nations around the earth. An illustration of imperialism would be the European nations’ colonization of Asian nations. After monopolizing many Asian countries resources by gaining control of their trading ports and routes, the Europeans impressed much of their cultural ideals on these nations. As a result, people living under the British came to adapt their culture to match the British perspective. The colonies’ commercial interests, education and other concepts revolved around the British. The same occurrence happened to colonies under the Dutch, French and Spanish too. 831 was the year that Alexis de Tocqueville coined the term American Exceptionalism, which refers to the belief that qualitatively the United States differs from other developed nations, on account of its unique credentials, origins, and political system. This national pride has helped the United States in the past, including declaring their independence from being a British colony, and winning the Revolutionary War. Abraham Lincoln had a pro American Exceptionalism outlook and said, â€Å"My dream is of a place and a time where America will once again be seen as the last best hope of earth. Critics of American Exceptionalism argue that the United States is not the only country founded as a republic with those ideals, and they feel that foreign policy has been economic self-interest than an actual desire to spread their ideals. A case for American Exceptionalism rationale can be made because of statistics that show that that the United States has the largest Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of any nation in the world at 14. 265 trillion dollars (worldsrichestcountries. com), and a Gallup poll states that Americans generally are happy,† More than 8 in 10 Americans say they are satisfied with their personal lives at this time. So while obviously there are many problems in the United States, American Exceptionalists have ethnocentric pride in their culture. Additionally, economic systems are reasons for ethnocentricity, whether it is socialism, capitalism, or communism. The majority of citizens that inhabit most socialist and capitalist countries believe that their system is better since they have not experienced living in a dissimilar economic environment. One needs to look no further than Korea for the occurrence of economic ethnocentrism. North Korea, one of the worlds most centrally directed and least open economies has a GDP of only 40 billion dollars according to the website CIA. gov. As a result of governmental control and lack of free enterprise, a large proportion of North Korean citizens suffer with poor living conditions and malnutrition which is a serious predicament. South of the border, South Korea has a more open economic policy and therefore has the 15th largest GDP in the world of 1. 364 trillion dollars. Ethnocentricity is inevitable; my very writing about the subject is from an ethnocentric point of view. Applied correctly, ethnocentrism produces a diligent, productive, and innovative society, while unchecked and perverted ethnocentrism is leading to many atrocities happening all around the world. Cultures must learn to embrace and accept other groups’ differences, and learn from the positive and useful aspects of other societies. An ethnocentric philosophy is necessary in order to recognize violations of basic human rights, and just like in science, grounded understandings are not developed from the complete absence of bias, but instead the recognition and control of biases.

Up to the thing u write Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Up to the thing u write - Essay Example Foxfire has become a hero for the people working in atrocious conditions and even puts his own life in danger when it comes to savings lives of his own group and people. Otter is fascinated by his uncle’s stories about America and wants to accompany his father and his uncle to the country. Otter thinks very highly of his uncle. His uncle talks about the social upheavals in China. He then talks about his work in America, making himself a legendary figure in China. Listening to his stories Otter thinks very highly of his uncle. He thinks that his uncle is brave and heroic to have this opportunity and to lead it. What he doesn’t realize till he steps on the land of America that his uncle was very humble to the grueling circumstances around. Uncle foxfire in fact states his acceptance of the situation in the statement above. It is so true that there are only two ways to deal with a situation at hand. Either accept the change and adapt yourself to it or change the situation as per your requirement. Initially the statement may sound heroic but as we go on reading further it is very tragic to know that the heroic spirit has bowed to the inevi tability of the situation. Only in last few chapters uncle Foxfire leaves up to the heroic spirit he has within

Introduction to Special Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Introduction to Special Education - Essay Example These include reading disability, problems with expressive language, receptive language, poor hand-eye coordination, visual confusion, problems with socialization, behavioural difficulties, possible depression, social isolation, difficulties in visual motor skills, and over all learning disabilities. Each of these conditions would lead to disparate variety of educational needs for the student, and it seems none of these can be addressed at home, given the fact that Juan's mother is suffering from severe depression, and she needs Juan's help for her own care. Although his socialization, visual motor skills, and language had not developed, there is no help, supervision, or guidance at home that can help him improve. As is known, special education centres on a process of evaluation of Juan's development of skills in this area; it seems Juan is eligible for an individualized education programme. Examining the legal criteria for eligibility to be included in a special education programme, it must be stated that Juan satisfies the following criteria which qualifies him to be a child with disability. Juan is an individual between ages 3 to 22. He may have mental retardation, which has not been clearly mentioned in this case history. He has definitely established speech and language imp airment. Although he is not blind, he has visual impairment. Although there is no indication in the history about any serious emotional disturbance, from the case it is apparent that he might as well have depression. His socialization skills might have been lacking due to this. He was observed to be a loner in the class without any friends. His reticence in the class is pointing to this fact with stronger possibility. This may be due to his basic learning possibility, but a mental health assessment is necessary to rule out whether this is a mental health problem or a result of emotional disturbance. Fortunately, he does not have any orthopedic impairment. These disabilities are affecting Juan's academic performance. It appears from the very beginning, Juan was suffering from such problems, and these were affecting his learning and academic performance. Juan had severe discrepancy between achievement and intellectual ability in oral expression, listening comprehension, written expression, basic reading skills, reading comprehension (Wolff Heller et al., 1996). It appeared that his mathematical calculation and mathematical reasoning was just age-appropriate. Assessing the student's needs and designing the modifications in instructions form the basis of special education. When Juan has been diagnosed with learning disability, he will need special education services, and it can also be expected that scientifically validated interventions against his problems in the rural primary school was not able to result in an expected positive response. This also indicates presence of some unique and individualized learning needs. This analysis does not point to the presumptive cause of this disability. Therefore, a comprehensive evaluation of the cognitive abilities, processes, and deficits in Juan must be available before a final decision. This would also need to include an assessment and correlation with the academic achievements and the forms of psychosocial functioning. His ability has been attempted to be characterised by the estimates of his IQ. For the reference of this discussion, his WISC-III profile indicated his verbal IQ to be 82 and the

Baroque of Versailles and Italian baroque Essay

Baroque of Versailles and Italian baroque - Essay Example For the Italians, this involved a number of very unique style buildings. One of the first to use this style was Carlo Manderno, whose famous designs include the Santa Susanna (1) and the Santa Maria della Vittoria. One of the finest examples of his work is in the design of the Santa Susanna. The building is just two stories tall. The lower part has a total of five tiers and the upper level has only three. The construction of all the elements are so designed so that everything points to the middle of the structure, pointing to a loggia - a simple gallery open to the air. Funny enough, he used the old Renaissance style inside the building. You can tell the difference when you cross the street into the Santa Maria della Vittoria (2), where construction was also completed by Carlo Manderno. The interior of the building reveals the expanse of the building, with three chapels separated only by arches and pillars. The style is clearly simple, very strait forward, and also a very enormous wa y of getting a point across. For example, inside is a statue depicting something from the Saint Teresa of Avila (3). The scene portrayed is of a dream she had about an angel peircing her heart with a long shaft, and filling herself with both joy and pain. She is said to be in a contorted posture and the flowing robes, very voluptous looks between -- it was the essense of the Barouque style for the Italians. The statue is larger than life, and purposefully done so. It isn't a complicated piece, just very big, very to the point. Hence the Roman Catholic Church's vision is realizes in such art and architecture -- art that should be very easy for the public to understand the meaning, and so big that it will be unforgettable and symbolizing religious themes. ( Wittkower, R. 1999) French Baroque, often called Classicism, was similar in style to the Italians as to the simplicity and more importantly, the idea that size does matter, and that grandness was to mean you had great power. (Wikipedia Website. 2007) Not all the styles transferred from Italy to France, as the openness and very frank displays of the art was not always in French taste. While the French had no problem getting on with the grandness of their architecture, they had a problem with the bluntness, and preferred slightly subdued style. There were also differences in the architectural structure, given that the French preferred mansard roofs and complex rooflines. During the reign of Louis XIV, new construction was happening to the Louvre. He invited a designer to look into completing the project, but rejected his two design ideas. Because of his focus on Versailles at the time, the Louvre construction was

A Gender Neutral Law Of Rape Criminology Essay

A Gender Neutral Law Of Rape Criminology Essay It is often taken for granted that women are naturally unequal to men, and the artificial equality of women is more in the books than in the mores of the community; we live in a world where men are taught consciously to be aggressive, and women are taught to be docile and submissive, thus seemingly convincing every woman of her docile status.  [1]  Some studies  [2]  show the hard reality of the status of women in society as a negation of the constitutional promise of equality of status and opportunity. The concept of gender justice covers the right of women against victimisation, and accordingly, gender equality would be a mere lip-service with no tangible results unless women are protected against sexual violence and rape. Time and again, the Supreme Court of India has held that mere existence is not the exercise of the right to life, but that the right to life includes the right to live with human dignity.  [3]  Thus, says Justice Anand, when crimes are committed again st women, the same should be viewed in the context of violation of her right under Art.21 of the Constitution, and not merely as a crime in rem.  [4]   The debate presented herein considers the transformation of rape laws from gender-specific to gender-neutral legislation. The author presents arguments based in feminist legal theory and sociological jurisprudence to affirm that the law of rape in India  [5]  needs to progress from its current position as a women-centric law, to a gender-neutral law, recognising male victims of rape. The claim is indeed simple: if women have a right to live with dignity, so do male members of the society, and just as rape affects and traumatises the fairer sex, so too, does rape traumatise and humiliate the stronger sex. The author presents three strains of arguments in favour of his position: firstly, that males are socialised into recognising themselves as macho; secondly, that gender-neutral definitions of rape are not necessarily a backlash against the feminist school of thought; and thirdly, that male rape victims often fall prey to the patriarchal social structure that is largely prevalent in the contemporary world. 1.2 Recognising Rape as a Gendered Term Rape is a sub-species of sexual assault, usually involving sexual intercourse, which committed by one person or a large number of persons in a group against another, without that others consent. The act may be carried out by brute force, coercion, abuse of dominant position or with a person who is unable to give consent to sexual intercourse, including a person who is unconscious, incapacitated, intoxicated or below the legal age of consent.  [6]  It includes the forced penetration of the vulva or anus of a person, using a penis or any other body parts or an object.  [7]  In her seminal work Susan Brownmiller writes: Sexual assault in our day and age is hardly restricted to forced genital copulation, nor is it an exclusively male-on[-]female offenseà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.And while the penis may be the rapists favourite weaponà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.And as men may invade women throughà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦[their] orifices, so too, do they invade men. Who is to say that sexual humiliation suffered through forced oral sex or rectal penetration is a lesser violation of the personal, private inner space, a lesser injury to mind, spirit and sense of self?Similarly, the gravity of the offence ought not to be bound by the victims gender. That the law must move in this direction seems clear.  [8]   The traditional definition of rape as the penile penetration of the vagina leads to a gendered perception of the offence,  [9]  whereas the reality provides a different picture. The purpose of rape law is to protect the sexual autonomy of individuals from the risk of non-consensual penetrative sex acts.  [10]   It is arbitrary for traditional rape laws to exclude male victims by only proscribing punishment for male-on-female rape;  [11]  while it is admitted, and in fact accurate, that women are more susceptible to rape, it is not true that men are completely secure against sexual assault, or immune to the trauma and humiliation suffered therefrom. Therefore, it is arbitrary to cite minority instances as a reason against gender-neutral rape laws, and in fact, one may argue, that it is against the Constitutional mandate of equality before law, and equal protection of law.  [12]  It is not unfounded then, to expand the definition of rape to male victims, for otherwise, the criminal law fails to achieve its human rights objective of equal legal protection, and subjects men to inhuman or degrading treatment.  [13]   Mere biological differences in such cases do not constitute intelligible differentia, and neither are these differentia inextricably linked with the objective of rape-laws, as has been stated previously.  [14]  The feminist belief that the recognition of male victimisation is not the goal of rape laws  [15]  is well answered by Joceylynne Scutt, who argues: A principle of criminal law is, surely, that all persons should be protected equally from harm of like degreeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦treating crimes of a like heinousnessà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦[is] stronger thanà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦[distinguishing between] penetration of the female body and of the male body, whatever the sex of the actor.  [16]   1.3 Living in a Macho Society While feminists such as MacKinnon, Naffine and Novotny argue against gender-neutral definitions of rape, the necessity for such a definition cannot be ignored;  [17]  quite obviously, the existing laws have left much room for improvement.  [18]  The idea of violence, especially of the sexual kind, is so tainted by stereotypes that the first thing it usually brings to mind is a male alone as perpetrator and a female victim.  [19]  The male is almost always viewed as the aggressor, and never as a victim even in todays society.  [20]  Through the processes of socialisation, women are taught that they are constantly under the risk of sexual attack, and that they therefore need legal protection from such attack.  [21]   This pattern of thought can legitimately be challenged by plain facts that reflect the state of contemporary society today. Sexual violence against men is now a reality that cannot be ignored, as is the fact that it is indeed more prevalent than those against gender-neutral abuse definitions would like to admit.  [22]  This fact in itself changes the flow of the anti-gender neutrality debate that was until now heavily influenced by the notion that gender neutrality in defining abuse and rape are unnecessary. Hundreds of cases of male prisoners being subjected to sexual misconduct including rape have been reported by the Bureau of Justice Statistics of the United States of America.  [23]  This, in spite of the fact that most prisons have an unwritten and unspoken Code of Silence  [24]  that quietly but effectively discourages victims from reporting abuse to officials or administration. What is even more disquieting is that juvenile institutions are a huge part of this number. While rape itself is unimaginably horrific, the magnitude of damage that can be caused in the case of minors is alarmingly huge, and affects various areas of a persons life. The common assumption that sexual abuse of males is less harmful than that of females has dangerous implications for male victims.  [25]  It impedes their ability to live normally, and can lead to problems with intimacy, the ability to cope, and confusion regarding sexual orientation, and more dangerously, the likeliness to inflict self-harm, indulge in substance abuse and greatly reduce their quality of life.  [26]  One man who had suffered the trauma of statutory rape as a child states: I started drinking and taking drugs when I was 12à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.No one would believe me about all of the physical and sexual abuse, so when I took drugs and alcohol, I didnt even have to believe it myself. It made it easier to deal withà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦I buried the [sexual abuse] with booze and drugs.  [27]   Thus, it can be seen that it is absolute erroneous judgment that gender-neutral definitions of abuse and rape are considered unnecessary, and the kind of socialisation that looks at victimisation as something women-centric is in no way beneficial to anyone at all. That social and gender roles are labelled and stereotyped is extremely detrimental to the realism and practicality that we need, as we analyse rape today to ensure that justice can be administered in the true sense of the word, whenever and wherever necessary. No system of domination is absolute, and in these terms, rape cannot be seen as the phenomenon of victimising female members of society.  [28]  What is in fact singular is that the feminist legal theorists are themselves divided among themselves on the notions of formal equality and rape-law.  [29]   The tunnel-vision view of such selective socialisation is, as Talcott Parsons has stated, one that dictates the definition of gender-normative and gender-deviant behaviour. This is especially relevant, progressively more so in todays society where the trauma of male rape is aggravated by the victims sense of societal emasculation  [30]  and an assumed fear of disbelief.  [31]  That this happens should, in itself by all logical thought be the biggest catalyst that will enable gender-neutral definitions of rape to become the most relevant and significant. What is clear is that while traditional beliefs of rape continue to exist, the law has to consider rape beyond the traditional paradigms.  [32]   1.4 Gender-Neutral Definitions not a Backlash against Feminism Feminists have taken issue with the recognition of male rape, and criticise the same as a backlash against feminism;  [33]  according to Jeanne Gregory and Sue Lees however, male rape highlights the dominant hegemonic heterosexuality that prevails in contemporary society.  [34]  Feminists have expressed outrage at the rape-law reforms in the United Kingdom leading to the promulgation of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act of 1994, recognising that men too, can be victims of rape.  [35]  The new statutory definition of rape under the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act of 2009 allows for male victims of anal rape to be legally recognised as such.  [36]   It is further submitted that gender-neutral definitions of rape merely recognise male members of society as victims of rape committed upon them by both male and female perpetrators.  [37]  Herein, gender neutrality may be stated as simply recognising that males may fall victim to rape, and in no way does it undermine the substantive equality of women.  [38]  In essence, amendment to rape laws does not change the position of the original female victims,  [39]  but rather, adds a new category of legitimate victims. It is no doubt undeniable that majority of the instances of rape are male-on-female rape; however, incidences of rape being committed by female perpetrators cannot be ignored, even if (in Canada) they form a paltry 3% of the total number of offenders (in 2007).  [40]  It is also rather easy to brush off males sexual responses in certain states of severe emotion as voluntary, whereas in reality studies have shown that males are susceptible to involuntary erections;  [41]  the belief that it is impossible for males to respond sexually when subjected to molestation by women has been contradicted.  [42]   While the importance of labelling the experiences of female rape victims is well documented, the feeling of isolation is a mutually common experience for both sexes.  [43]  Social attitudes towards male victims of rape include homophobia and further sexual assault.  [44]  The social failure in most jurisdictions to recognise female-on-male and male-on-male rape as social realities no matter how minor the instances are to classify them as freak occurrences  [45]   contributes directly to the failure of the law to empathise with male victims;  [46]  social recognition of such a reality may contribute to the legal assistance of victims in seeking redress.  [47]   An author suggests, for example, failure to recognise rape as those cases in which a woman forces a man to penetrate her vaginally, orally or anally suggests that there is something specific about being non-consensually penetrated that is more fundamentally damaging, traumatic or violating than being compelled to penetrate.  [48]  While it is naÃÆ' ¯ve to assume, in this manner, that the elements constituting rape, including consent, would be the same for both male and female victims, it is not wrong to construct identical legal remedies;  [49]  this does not also mean to say that individual victims experiences are the same, although to a large extent, they may be said to be similar.  [50]  It is therefore, time to take male-rape out of the closet  [51]  and deal with it in courts.  [52]   1.5 Male Rape Victims as Victims of a Patriarchal Set-up What is in fact true and not wholly inaccurate, is that the feminist claim of male domination is prevalent in both social as well as legal structures  [53]   this may in fact be the very reason males are prevented from coming forth as rape victims. The dominance strain of thought in feminism calls to attention the male norm in law and society is universal and unchallenged;  [54]  it may in fact be this same legal and social male norm that prevents the legal framework from understanding the trauma and humiliation suffered by victims of unconventional rape. The argument of radical feminists for dramatic social transformation and redress of the power imbalance  [55]  may well be used in favour of gender-neutral rape laws. What may in fact be an accurate representation of the present scenario is that the conventional notions of patriarchy and male dominance in social structures have a consequential negative effect on male-rape trauma; if the need of the hour is to recognise male-rape as a reality, then the radical social transformation that feminists favour is indeed necessary; gender-neutral rape laws can mellow the power relations that dominate cultures and societies today, and therefore the feminist claim of a backlash effect  [56]  against them is negated by their own arguments. In other words, what the law must aim to do is to curb the negative portrayal of male power and positive portrayal of females as victims of male dominance,  [57]  and recognise males as victims of their own social set-up. The essential social relations, as recognised by MacKinnon, between men and women is that of domination and submission, and this is the reason for the ignorance of male victimisation;  [58]  the so-called gendered power-relations that govern male-female relationships often govern male-male, and in certain instances, female-male relationships as well; the author suggest that the patriarchal social structure, system and set-up itself has led to the aggravated victimisation of male rape victims. In essence, society has silently tolerated aggression against men, while rather overtly tolerating aggression by men:  [59]  it is a part of the code of manhood to be emotionally stoic.  [60]  By positing gender-neutral rape laws, the legal system in essence recognises rape as a crime of violence, rather than a crime of sex.  [61]   1.6 Conclusion As an author states, Over the past century and a half the gendered essence of [statutory] rape has become deeply embedded in the purpose of the statute.  [62]  While it is not denied that traditionally, rape forms a part of the repertoire of strategies of control  [63]  of women by men, incidents have come to light in the recent past  [64]  where men have been subjected to the same trauma and humiliation that is suffered by women female perpetrators and male victims do exist.  [65]  The broader point is that, no category of identity, gender being merely one of the many examples, withstands the test of time;  [66]  the law is dynamic, and must change with changes in social trends. Sexual aggression leading to rape has slowly been recognised in many jurisdictions as behaviour carried out with the aim of making another person to engage in sexual activity despite his or her willingness to do so;  [67]  gradually, the trend has emerged where a passive form of sexual aggression has been attributed to women.  [68]   Bearing in mind this debate, many common law nations have largely made a move towards reforming the law of rape and inculcating aspects of gender-neutrality (by redefining consent, or otherwise), and recognising males as victims of rape by both women and other men.  [69]  The challenge presented is therefore, of gargantuan proportions: adequate protection needs to be afforded to both female and male victims of rape, and the gendered opinion of the offence needs to be transgressed; in other words, India too needs to consider an amendment of rape laws under the Indian Penal Code, 1860,  [70]  and progress towards a gender-neutral paradigm.

Sigmund Freuds Ego Defense Mechanisms Essay -- denial displacement pr

Sigmund Freud is perhaps one of the most well-known theorists in regards to the study of the human psyche. Freud’s model of the human psyche is comprised of three core elements: the Id, or the unconscious mind; things out of our awareness. The Superego, or the subconscious mind, and finally the Ego, which lies between the unconscious and subconscious. Freud proposes that there are nine ego defense mechanisms that act the ego uses in its job as the mediator between the id and the superego. In psychoanalysis, an ego defense mechanism is an unconscious personality reaction that the ego uses to protect our conscious mind from threatening feelings or perceptions. The ego defense mechanisms are as follows: denial, displacement, projection, rationalization, reaction formation, regression, repression, sublimation, and suppression. Ego defense seems to occur subconsciously – we are often not aware that we are becoming â€Å"defensive†. I believe that we use a complex of many, if not all of Freud’s ego defense mechanisms.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Personally, I believe regression and rationalization may be the two defense mechanisms I use most. Regression is defined as â€Å"returning to a previous stage of development†. For example, if things do not go my way and continue to do so, it might be followed by bouts of temper tantrums and mood swings.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Rationalization is supplying a rational or logical reason as opposed to the real reason. I have found that I use this â€Å"tactic† a lot, and was not aware of i...

My utopian society Essay

The paper describes a utopian society that is created using Skinner’s principles of operant conditioning. The basic principles and norms of family and community relationships are discussed. The paper evaluates the basics of the community’s economic and criminal justice system. My Personal Utopian Society B. F. Skinner is fairly regarded as one of the most prominent figures in behavioral psychology. His experiments and theoretical elaborations resulted in the development of a new theory of operant conditioning – the turning point in the human understanding of psychology and human behaviors. In his writings on behaviorism and operant conditioning, B. F. Skinner openly voted against punishment: even before he became a well-known psychologist, Skinner had been opposing to punishment by all possible means (O’Donohue & Ferguson, 2001). With time, Skinner came to recognize the usefulness of punishment in particular conditions an in relation to particular subjects. In his statement on punishment, Skinner wrote that â€Å"punishment is usually used to the advantage of the punisher, but there are exceptions, and they are sometimes justified† (Griffin et al, 1988). Yet, I believe that positive reinforcement is an excellent way to encourage desired/ positive behavioral reactions. According to Skinner, positive reinforcement is a superior form of modifying human behaviors compared with punishment (O’Donohue & Ferguson, 2001). That is why my utopian society will apply to positive reinforcement to promote human behaviors that are desirable and benefit the community. A utopian society based on positive reinforcement will seek to reward its members for desirable behaviors. In positive reinforcement, the reward follows behaviors and decisions which the community considers as desirable and appropriate (Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman, 2009). Positive reinforcement will keep individuals from engaging in negative / undesirable behaviors (Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman, 2009). In my society, positive reinforcement will stimulate individuals to repeat desirable behaviors. My society will have its own constitution, which will list all desirable behaviors and the ways of rewarding community members for displaying and repeating these behaviors. The society will not distinguish between different types of desirable behaviors and all rewards will be equal. Equal rewards are necessary to ensure that community members are equally committed to all types of desirable behaviors. For example, a society member who decides to work additional hours on Friday and a society member who decides to share his profits with a poor neighbor will receive equal rewards. According to the constitution, desirable behaviors will include work, participation in music and fine arts, charity and medical assistance, marriage, birth control, and collective childrearing. To avoid overpopulation, my utopian society will encourage marriages and strict birth control. Every family that manages to have no more than 2 children during the first 10 years of its marriage will receive a small material compensation. The society will not reward abortions. Families that do not have children will be able to use a surrogate mother. Surrogate mothers will serve a form of reward to families that do not have a child and desire to have one. This is the rare case where the utopian society will apply to intangible benefits to reinforce desirable behaviors in community members – surrogate mothers will be a natural reinforcement for families that do not have children but want to become parents. Children will grow in collective facilities without parents. No formal education will exist. My utopian society will make children learn from the natural environment in which they live, from their relationships with other children and the constitution. Children will return to families after they are 16 years old. By that time, they will have to learn the basic professional skills and will become the full members of the community workforce. Children who actively engage in labor activities will receive a small material compensation. The society will reward parents who send their children to the collective facilities. The society will encourage and reward human relationships and unions that are based on mutual profits and benefit community rather than promote romance or friendship. The society will organize marriages based on reason. The society will reward only reasonable marriages organized around a common professional or productive goal. Such families will receive a small material compensation. Agriculture and unskilled labor will shape the basis of the society’s economy. My society will not reward education and related activities. The society will reward only unskilled labor. Individuals will have to work 6 hours every day. Saturdays and Sundays will be free. Longer hours at work will be desirable, and the society will materially reward members’ participation in various labor activities. The society will encourage its members to participate in music and fine arts. The society will stimulate individuals to avoid unhealthy and harmful behaviors. No formal criminal justice system will exist because, due to positive reinforcement, individuals will refrain from the criminal activity. Individuals that have never committed an illegal or immoral action by the time they reach their 40th birthday will receive a small material reward. The perspective of a reward will inspire individuals to avoid behaviors that can harm the society or its members. No formal authority will exist. Because authority empowers only a small group of individuals, it may disrupt the peace and balance in the society. My utopian society will encourage self-expression and open opinions and will stimulate community members’ participation in public discussions. Participation will become a form of positive (active) reinforcement for anyone who decides to express his view. Society members will have an opportunity to test their ideas and suggestions in practice. The society will gather once a week to monitor the progress of various experiments and to judge their results. The society will reward individual participation in experiments. The society will stimulate other members to sponsor such activities. The society will refrain from applying to punishment or negative stimuli. My utopian society will promote positive reinforcement as the basic element of modifying individual behaviors. Positive reinforcement will help the members of my utopian society to refrain from harmful or undesirable behaviors. Conclusion My utopian society will utilize positive reinforcement to stimulate desirable behaviors. Positive reinforcement will ensure that community members display and repeat behaviors that benefit them and their community and, simultaneously, refrain from behaviors that can harm other society members. All rewards will be immediate and will follow the desirable behaviors. All rewards will be equal, regardless of the specific form of desirable behavior and the amount of effort put in it. In this way, the community will guarantee that residents are equally committed to all types of desirable behaviors listed in the community constitution. Positive reinforcement will help the members of my utopian society to refrain from undesirable behaviors. References Griffin, J. C. , Paisey, T. J. , Stark, M. T. & Emerson, J. H. (1988). B. F. Skinner’s position on aversive treatment. AJHR, 7, 104-105. Retrieved from http://www. judgerc. org/Griffin1988SkinnerpunishmentstatementAJMR. pdf O’Donohue, W. T. & Ferguson, K. E. (2001). The psychology of B. F. Skinner. SAGE. Zastrow, C. & Kirst-Ashman, K. K. (2009). Understanding human behavior and social environment. Boston: Cengage Learning.

Democracy in America essays

Democracy in America essays Richard Heffner produced this edition of De Tocquevilles book in order to abridge and edit the original work in order to appeal to a younger audience so that more people may read it and have a knowledge of the ideas presented within. Heffners introduction basically served to outline the organization of De Tocquevilles book. The first part of the critique begins with a brief description of the New Worlds dimensions, of the origins of Anglo-Americans and of democracy and the absolute sovereignty of the people. Next follows an obsolete summary of the workings of the American government, then an analysis of the books central theme: the tyranny of the majority in the United States. The second part deals with the influence of democracy or majority rule on the foundation and dynamics of American society, on how Americans think, feel, and act, and on the indispensable nature of our freedoms. Here is where Tocqueville makes his unique and prophetic contributions to contemporary thought. Tocquevilles overall concern is for the development and survival of freedom and democracy. Heffner feels that Democracy in America suffers grievously from omissions and misinterpretations that can be traced directly to the authors to easy assumptions and to his desire to summarize, interpret, and generalize. However, despite these inadequacies and subjectivity of approach, many of Tocquevilles generalizations are surprisingly shrewd and perceptive. After having seen the failed attempts at democratic government in France, Tocqueville desired to study a stable and prosperous democracy to gain insights into how it worked in order so that they might learn from our example and devise a plan to set up a democratic government that would work to suit them. Tocqueville wanted to analyze democracy in order to determine its strengths and dangers so that governments could be formed to reinforce democracy's s...

Free Essays on The Didache And Its Impact On Christian Liturgy And Discipline

The Didache and Its Impact on Christian Liturgy and Discipline The text of the Didache was a manuscript discovered by Metropolitan Bryennios in a library in Constantinople in 1873, and was later published in 1883. The work consists of two parts, the first section, known as â€Å"Two Ways,† offering teachings on the way of life versus the way of death, and the second section dealing with issues of liturgy and different understandings of church discipline (The Study of Liturgy, page 85). The Didache is the Greek word for â€Å"teach† and this text is also called the â€Å"The Teaching of the Apostles.† The date of the Didache remains unclear, but there are different proposed time lines. They are as follows: 1. The Didache is an actual document of Church Order dating back to a very early period around 80-100 or earlier 2. It is a combination of sources dating from the second century based on an older period so that the reader could gain a sense of earliest Christian life 3. The Didache is a document that consists of varied stages of development, but originated from the first century possibly as early as the year 60 (The Study of Liturgy, page 86.) The editor, Andrew Louth, of Early Christian Writings (page 189) argues that the work is from the early first century, and that it does not appear to be made to appear primitive, and that it is indeed authentic. However, other scholars argue that the Didachist, in â€Å"The Two Ways† section shows knowledge of the Gospel of Matthew and Luke that would date the text into the second century (Early Christian Fathers, page 163). Given t hese debates, it is hard to pinpoint the exact date of the text, and this leads to further debate about the authenticity of the early Christian traditions described in the writings. This seems to be a consistent struggle in doing through examination of the first century due to the lack of clarity and confirmed date of documents, and, more importantly, the lack of histo... Free Essays on The Didache And Its Impact On Christian Liturgy And Discipline Free Essays on The Didache And Its Impact On Christian Liturgy And Discipline The Didache and Its Impact on Christian Liturgy and Discipline The text of the Didache was a manuscript discovered by Metropolitan Bryennios in a library in Constantinople in 1873, and was later published in 1883. The work consists of two parts, the first section, known as â€Å"Two Ways,† offering teachings on the way of life versus the way of death, and the second section dealing with issues of liturgy and different understandings of church discipline (The Study of Liturgy, page 85). The Didache is the Greek word for â€Å"teach† and this text is also called the â€Å"The Teaching of the Apostles.† The date of the Didache remains unclear, but there are different proposed time lines. They are as follows: 1. The Didache is an actual document of Church Order dating back to a very early period around 80-100 or earlier 2. It is a combination of sources dating from the second century based on an older period so that the reader could gain a sense of earliest Christian life 3. The Didache is a document that consists of varied stages of development, but originated from the first century possibly as early as the year 60 (The Study of Liturgy, page 86.) The editor, Andrew Louth, of Early Christian Writings (page 189) argues that the work is from the early first century, and that it does not appear to be made to appear primitive, and that it is indeed authentic. However, other scholars argue that the Didachist, in â€Å"The Two Ways† section shows knowledge of the Gospel of Matthew and Luke that would date the text into the second century (Early Christian Fathers, page 163). Given t hese debates, it is hard to pinpoint the exact date of the text, and this leads to further debate about the authenticity of the early Christian traditions described in the writings. This seems to be a consistent struggle in doing through examination of the first century due to the lack of clarity and confirmed date of documents, and, more importantly, the lack of histo...

Essay for Art and Design Class Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

For Art and Design Class - Essay Example There is an understanding that is reached with the material Smith used to create this art work considering how she handled them in order facilitates viewer’s thought processes. Smith painted The Court House Steps in reaction to the conservation emergency created when a landlord bulldozed a boulder marked with petroglyphs from its escarpment site (Smith and Kastner 63). He delivered the culturally significant stone to the courthouse to object legal arbitrations barring him from constructing a building on his land. The jagged angles on Smith’s work might be kiva steps bulging into high-rise buildings that grow and fall. Transversely, a series of orbs converges in a solar eclipse across the center. Smith and Kastner assert that, The Court House Steps is the most traumatic of all her paintings (87)† because â€Å"it documents a world spinning out of control† (87). In this painting, Smith is seen to be lifting imagery from the natural world, and then changing it into modernism via abstraction. Her inhabited landscapes show the infinite human conflict over disputed lands. Her painting fuses modernist color and techniques with her unique visual vocabulary of crashing lines in a stirred expression of the human spirit. The work establishes Smith’s artistic voice, grounding it in modern abstraction, where she extends her native tradition through images of plants, animals and humans to bring the message home. The idea that smith was communicating was that the petroglyphs were subjected to individual coming in and shooting in that area – getting rid of the petroglyphs from the lava escarpment. The Court House Steps is about uniting the traditional values in a very modern and fast changing world. In this painting smith informs us that world is complex and things will be changing very rapidly so we must prepare for the change and sometimes predict it. And we must work in a mixed way with some new things or ideally add in

Equality, Diversity and Difference Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Equality, Diversity and Difference - Essay Example This paper illustrates that Universal Declaration of Human Rights proclaims that, â€Å"All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.† However, as this definition does not relate to any law, various nations across the globe have put a legal standpoint to the definition of equality. ‘Equality’ (or ‘equal’) signifies correspondence between a group of different objects, persons, processes or circumstances that have the same qualities in at least one respect, but not all respects, i.e., regarding one specific feature, with differences in other features. Therefore, striving to achieve equality is generally defined as â€Å"the incorporation of Equal Opportunities issues into all actions, programmes, and policies from the outset†. As equality has been a cause of global concern, the new age government keep this aspect in mind each time when they consider a new policy or a law. When we look back historically, we know that human beings have always had the tendency to dominate over the weak. This resulted in the creation of a social structure where some sections became the privileged and other sections were considered less-equality. This craving for power and dominance started contributing to a society where inequality started existing. For example, areas of residences of various groups were demarcated. The affluent and dominating section of the society tried to ensure that the laymen do not live near to their places of residence To clarify further, we can also define equality in terms of non-discrimination. Equality means the absence of discrimination, and upholding the principle of non-discrimination between groups will produce equality. Therefore, discrimination can be defined as any act that denies equality that an individual or a group wishes for. It is widely accepted that equality and non-discrimination are positive and negative statements of the same principle.