Alcohol intoxication and edgar allan poe’s ‘the haunted palace’

It is unfair to immediately conclude something of a poem because as is normal with poetry, such is given to various interpretations.   While common interpretations of Poe’s ‘The Haunted Palace’ seem to assert confirmedly that the poem describes somebody dying with tuberculosis, this particular interpretation seems to be very faulty in many aspects because it is an interpretation that concretizes the already concrete images in the poem.In poetry, emotions and abstractions are concretized using tangible images, in which case, the interpretation of any piece of poetry should be dependent on the emotions that these concrete images convey and not on the additional concrete images that can be gleaned for the existing imagery in the poem, otherwise, this would cause ambiguity in the reading.   This is what happened with the ‘tuberculosis’ interpretation – another concrete image was read into the already concrete imagery in the poem.   It would b e wise to offer another reading of the poem, in this case, it has to be argued that instead of the tuberculosis interpretation a more accurate reading of the poem would be to consider alcohol intoxication, after all, other than just the images in the poem, the author, Poe was also given to alcoholism after the various tragedies in his life.To start this argument, it would first be best to consider why the previous interpretation of death by tuberculosis is faulty.   The reason for this faultiness is that an initial general reading of the poem was applied, and some of the finer details were disregarded in favor of the general reading.   To illustrate these further, take for instance the passage, â€Å"Through which came flowing/†¦A troop of echoes,/ whose sweet duty was but to sing† (27-30) – most readers interpret this as blood spit, however, there is nothing in these lines that present an image of one coughing out blood; these lines are more accurately alludi ng to someone who is talking gibberish, hence, the follow-up lines, â€Å"In voices of surpassing beauty,/the wit and wisdom of their king† (31-32)Most readers interpret this as being someone who is coughing up blood, but if read again carefully, the lines actually speak of someone who is incomprehensible, talking without ‘wit and wisdom’. (32)Another instance in the poem where a faulty reading is made is with the fifth stanza, this stanza is actually where the ‘haunting’ begins in the poem because this stanza talks about how the ‘monarch’ (34) dies.   There are readings of the poem that interpret this as the plague that killed the ‘monarch’ (34), however, if the lines are perused slowly, no such plague can be read into the poem.Others would argue that, â€Å"But evil things, in robes of sorrow† (33) personify the sickness of the king, but if this line is dissected it has to be noticed that what is being referred to here are ‘things’ (33), perhaps to mock the integrity of those whom this line is intended; and these ‘things’ (33) are in ‘robes of sorrow’ (33); the only ones who wore robes during the era of chivalry were knights and other nobility.These lines show how faultily the poem was interpreted by those who interpreted it as being the description of a head or someone dying with tuberculosis.Moving on, the next step would be to fortify the argument that, indeed, the poem is about drunkenness.   There are many details in the poem that point this particular subject matter out.Initially, let us consider the general theme of the poem – reading through it, it may be interpreted to be about someone who was initially a man of the people, and eventually, after succumbing to alcoholism, becomes introvert, depressed, and isolated from society.   The ‘death’ in the poem may be interpreted not as physical death but the death of a particula r aspect of a human person, such as his social affiliations, his sanity, or his soul.   This is validated in the end of the poem as will be explained in detail shortly.To begin the discussion of the poem and alcoholism, let us first consider the narrative of the poem which is shown in the first three stanzas.   In these stanzas, which are mostly descriptions of the palace, various allusions are noticed.For instance, in the second stanza, â€Å"Banners yellow, glorious, golden/on its roof did float and flow† (9-10); as opposed to the common interpretation of this being representative of the blond hair of the king in the poem, a more accurate interpretation would come from the Puritan tradition.Yellow ribbons have their origins in the English Civil War when members of the Puritan Army of English Parliament wore yellow ribbons.   This is also the origin of the ‘yellow-ribbon-tied-around-a-tree’ tradition which represents waiting for someone.Therefore, these pa ssages may just simply allude to the Puritan background of the poem, or perhaps, to the fact that the occupant of the palace is waiting for someone’s return.The parenthesized lines, â€Å"(This-all this-was in the olden/Time long ago,)† (11-12)   So, with these lines, it is easily concluded that the occupant of the palace has been waiting for someone for a very long time, which perhaps could be the reason for the development of melancholy, â€Å"Along the ramparts plumed and pallid,/A winged odor went away.†(15-16) The ‘spirits’ (14) in the third stanza do not refer to the ‘ghost’ that we might suppose them to be, but to actual persons – just as it might be used in the idiomatic expression ‘there was not a single soul in sight†.It is clear from the three stanzas of the narrative of the poem that there is nothing that talks about ‘tuberculosis’ or ‘death’.   These first three stanzas simpl y set the tone for a paradox as the poem progresses.   The poem is a mini story and as such, it has all the elements of a piece of prose, only rendered in poetry.   The images are very vivid and it is quite surprising that anyone would interpret it as something else more than just what it is actually saying.

Kant Theory and Justice Essay

Immanuel Kant concerns himself with deontology, and as a deontologist, he believes that the rightness of an action depends in part on things other than the goodness of its consequences, and so, actions should be judged based on an intrinsic moral law that says whether the action is right or wrong – period. Kant introduced the Categorical Imperative which is the central philosophy of his theory of morality, and an understandable approach to this moral law. It is divided into three formulations. The first formulation of Kant’s Categorical Imperative states that one should â€Å"always act in such a way that the maxim of your action can be willed as a universal law of humanity†; an act is either right or wrong based on its ability to be universalized. This belief is part of the â€Å"universal law theory† and states that to determine if an action is essentially â€Å"good† or â€Å"bad,† one must essentially imagine a world in which everyone performed that same action constantly, and imagine if this would be a desirable world to live in. If not, then it is not okay to perform the action. He believes that this â€Å"universal law† lives within us; it is not something that is imposed on us from the outside. For example if one kills oneself out of self-love, it is logically contradictory because self-love refers to respect for one’s self as a rational being and rationality is based on objective (undistorted by emotion or personal bias). So, one can never justify suicide. The maxim of killing oneself cannot possibly exist as a universal law. The second formulation states that one must â€Å"treat humanity whether in thine own person or in that of any other, in every case as an end withal, never as means only. † For example, if I were to lie to a girl so that she would choose to go out with me then I, in effect, use her. Kant would say that I treated her as a means to achieve my end, and he specifically prohibits manipulating or deceiving a person for the purposes of achieving a personal end. According to Kant, only people are valuable as ends. Any action that disregards this is in clear violation of Kantian morality, and purports to reduce an individual’s autonomy; this consequently undermines a person’s rational capability and reduces him/her to a thing. This implies that if someone robs you and takes your wallet, he is treating you as a thing and not as a person. The third and last formulation requires that one sees oneself as the source of all moral law. This simply emphasizes the fact that the moral agent is the one who chooses to act morally. This third formulation tells us to imagine ourselves as the sole lawmaker in a society, and to choose the best possible set of laws that the society of rational beings would live by. Kant believes that we all have reason within us, but some choose to respond and act upon it while others do not. We can reason the way things ought to be, and based on that is how we should act, which explains Kant’s view that a moral action must be chosen through moral reason. For example, one does not cheat on a test because one’s reason tells him or her that it is wrong, not the consequences that follow if one gets caught. Another example is that we do not need the law to tell us not to steal because it is immoral; we simply have to access our ability to reason to rationalize this. In a world where each individual recognizes his/her moral dignity and freely chooses to adopt the same universalizable moral law, all actions become good. In opposition to the Categorical Imperative is Kant’s Hypothetical Imperative, which states that a particular action is necessary as a means to some purpose. Kant believes that these actions are not always moral because they are not performed out of â€Å"pure good will† (pure duty), which is the only thing in the world that is unambiguously good. In the case of the ethical credibility of the principles of affirmative action, Kant’s Categorical Imperative provides for the basis of approval. It is primarily out of a sense of duty that a society would seek to assist its struggling members who are in need of help. The action so far seems good, but we must test its universality. Can we imagine ourselves living in a world in which all societies seek to aid the underprivileged and the disadvantaged at the slight expense of others? Absolutely yes. It is important for one to bear in mind, however, that it is the very action of helping that is being judged as inherently good or bad, and not the action’s admirable or overbearing surrounding consequences. Secondly, we must test that the action is regarding everyone involved as ends and not as means to any particular purpose. Since the aim of affirmative action is to help the current predicaments of those people who were victimized in the past, focus is placed on respecting every individual’s autonomy. In this way, we can see that affirmative action is not a devious plan that seeks to manipulate, but one that seeks to compensate by adjusting the means (circumstances) and not the ends (individuals). Lastly, we must see if the action is establishing a universal law governing others in similar situations; one should behave as if one is the absolute moral authority of the universe. Is completing this action consistent with the application of moral law? If so, the affirmative action passes these three tests and the action is good. In his â€Å"Objections to Affirmative Action†, James Sterba talks about why he believes that Affirmative Action is morally wrong. He argues that a person’s race shouldn’t control his or her point of interest. Sterba argues that Affirmative Action leads to injustice and it is unfair to the white nonminority males because â€Å"it deprives them of equal opportunity by selecting or appointing women or minority candidates over more qualified nonminority male candidates. † He believes that the job of the government is to eliminate all kinds of discriminatory policies. He thinks that â€Å"alternative programs are preferable. † Thus, the government should instead promote equal opportunities through programs within agencies and departments instead of through Affirmative Action which he believes is a fancy word for discrimination. He argues that it is not fair to those who are more qualified for certain opportunities and cannot receive them either because they are not women or because they are not part of the minority. In his First Objection, he argues that Affirmative Action â€Å"is not required to compensate for unjust institutions in the distant past. † He talks about Morris’ argument that what occurred in the past is not the primary issue that puts all present-day African Americans at an unfair disadvantage; it is more about the issues of more recent origin. He makes a point that discrimination today could very well be the source of the disadvantaged disposition of African Americans and other minority groups, and it is certainly something that society could do without. The question remains that in attempting to â€Å"level the playing field† and eliminate present-day discrimination in America, is Affirmative Action a practical approach and should such a program be endorsed? The Fourth Objection goes on to say that Affirmative Action â€Å"hurts those who receive it† because in many ways the people benefitting from it would not see the need to work as hard, and it places â€Å"women and minorities in positions for which they are not qualified. † Sterba proposes that one of the solutions to this problem could be the installation education enhancement programs to compensate for any lack of skills. He believes that this will in a short time ensure that minorities are appropriately qualified for a position. In response to Sterba’s First Objection, Kant would agree that the rightness of Affirmative Action should be based upon the circumstances of the present situation and not what had occurred in the past; this is evident mainly through his a priori form of philosophical deductive reasoning that judges an action before the experience, or â€Å"in the moment. † However, Kant would disagree with Sterba’s Fourth Objection because in my opinion, Kant’s deontological theory correlates with the correctness of the affirmative action in its very aim toward helping â€Å"the right† people. Affirmative action has not significantly diminished gender, racial, and all other forms of discrimination, but the action has promoted equality and diversity to a large extent. In a world where everyone performs the â€Å"good will,† there is justice; and the installation of this program only serves to come closer to this justice. Discrimination is wrong because it violates a person’s basic and intrinsic moral rights. Thus, in itself the adoption of this program is an action that is good because without Affirmative Action it is true in many ways that minorities would remain at a disadvantaged position in the educational system and not be allowed the opportunity to exercise their true potential. Kant would argue that it is a duty out of â€Å"good will† to treat people equally. The concepts of equality and autonomy are emphasized in the nature of this program because it strives to treat everyone as a free person equal to everyone else. According to Kant, one should be treated as ends not as mere means. It can be argued that African Americans at a disadvantaged position were being treated as means by the dominant culture to achieve its own ends in the system. Discrimination cannot exist as a system of nature because those who discriminate would not want to be similarly discriminated against if things were reversed, and so Affirmative Action is justified because it aims to open the door of opportunities to those who have been oppressed for years. That being said, Kant would examine the action itself and not the consequences of the action. When making decisions, one has to put oneself into other people’s shoes and see if one wants to be treated the same way others have been treated; it is a duty to treat others as we ourselves want to be treated. Affirmative Action not necessarily needed in this society to reduce the inherent inequalities that are still existent, but it can certainly be used to assist in leveling the playing field. Affirmative Action has been successful on a short term basis, that is, in increasing the representation of minorities (including women) in areas of employment, education, and business from which they have been historically excluded. However, on the long term basis it can be argued that the program only serves to perpetuate a cycle of need. Kant advocates the idea of equality through his deontological theory by saying that all people deserve equal treatment as rational ends in themselves and that this should never be compromised by the flaws in any social system.

Environmental issues Essay

What ways has learning about new environmental issues changed the way of living sustainably? The knowledge of environmental issues has changed the way we live. We learn a lot from our past experiences. Environmental problems paved a way for scientific advancements. An example of this is the invention of alternative fuel in vehicles. Environmental issues help promote social networks among countries. Information technology improved our communication with other people. We learn about counter measures of certain environmental problems from them and in turn, we share our knowledge to them. In our everyday lives, we learn the importance of cleanliness and discipline. Throwing our garbage anywhere might start an epidemic and result to death of animals and plants as well as humans. What important information has the greatest impact on the way you think about the environment? How can you apply this knowledge in the future? The most important information that changed my way of thinking about the environment is the knowledge of Global Warming. Why? Well, among the biggest mistakes humans ever made was to cause the depletion of the ozone layer. Its effects are devastating yet there isn’t an effective way of stopping it. The knowledge of such issue will help save humanity. I may be the one to find a way to stop Global Warming in the future. Nevertheless, if only all will help in solving this problem, we might be able to find the most effective way of saving the environment, saving our own lives. Reference: Global warming. (n. d. ). Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Retrieved March 02, 2007, from Answers. com Web site: http://www. answers. com/topic/global-warming

Effects of non-verbal communication across cultures Research Paper

Effects of non-verbal communication across cultures - Research Paper Example The ability for one to exchange ideas with another, understand one another’s opinions, and solve problems is highly dependent on the effectiveness of the communication process (Agliati, Anolli, and Vescovo, 2006). According to Kirch (1979), verbal communication refers to the message content, arrangement and choice of words while communicating nonverbally addresses the message sent using body language. Non-Verbal Communication across Cultures The most common of all forms of non-verbal communication is facial expression (Levine and Adelman, 1993). Nevertheless, interpretation of the different facial expressions across cultures is quite hard. Lists of expressions exist with respect to situations, for instance; those that indicate happiness, fear, sadness and anger. This makes it hard for one to identify what expression is being conveyed and for what reason. Carey (1998) reports that â€Å"facial expressions are the most obvious ones that can be quite misleading, because most are pretty good at covering a lie† (350). ... A suitable example is the United States where eye contact and a firm handshake are considered a basic type of nonverbal communication whereas French people toss while looking at each other’s eyes as a symbol of respect and politeness. However, Kirch (1979) argues that other countries or rather other cultures consider avoiding eye contact as a sign of respect, for instance Africa, some parts of Asia and Latin America. Another common form of nonverbal communication used by people on a daily basis is body gesture (Carey, 1998). Good examples of using body gestures include greeting people using visual signals when initiating a presentation, and beckoning to a waiter instinctively. For instance, in a U.S bar, people walk over to the counter to get their bills while in Thailand, people snap their fingers to get their bills from the waiters in charge. In addition, Thai people greet each other by putting their hands together while in the U.S and with many Christians, people put their hands together while paying respect to the Lord God. In some cultures, bidding someone farewell is done by waving hands while in others it is done by embracing each other (Carey, 1998). Furthermore, people in other cultures hug and touch each other more. Habitats of Northern European countries do not fancy this type of bodily contact as compared to residents of southern countries. Some cultures have limited body contact between sexes to relatives only. Bulgarians nod their heads to signify rejection of a prevailing situation while other people in other cultures nod their heads to signify compliance (Carey, 1998). Culture and Nonverbal Communication The way in which people across different cultures communicate is greatly affected by the variations in

A Case Study of A War Or Military Conflict Essay

A Case Study of A War Or Military Conflict - Essay Example The Middle East also continues to be characterized by authoritarian regimes that have an uneasy relationship with the West and the culture of modernization that it purportedly represents. Mirjam E. Sorli, Nils Petter Gleditsch, and Havard Strand report in their article â€Å"Why Is There so Much Conflict in the Middle East?† that resource abundance can be as significant a factor in causes of conflict as resource scarcity. They mention that high resource states can witness a slow growth in their economy as compared to resource-poor states1. Research like the rentier state theory has also found that resource-abundant states develop authoritarian power structures2. The Iraq – Kuwait conflict is an interesting case study that can be studied in the light of the concerns stated above. Iraq invaded Kuwait on August 2, 1990, declaring Kuwait to be Iraq's nineteenth province. Andrew T. Parasiliti in an article titled â€Å"The Causes and Timing of Iraq's Wars: A Power Cycle Assessment† states that it was from the 1970s that Iraq started to assert itself in the Middle East. Its power peaked in the 1980s and then fell into a relative decline as compared to S audi Arabia and Kuwait which gained in power. At the time of its decision to invade Kuwait, Parasiliti estimates that Iraq was conscious of her decline as well as her thwarted ambitions for Arab leadership. Parasiliti contends that contrary to perceived opinions about Iraq emerging more powerful after the Iraq – Iran War, the Iraqi regime was conscious of its gradual decline in regional politics. The war against Iran was initiated by Saddam Hussein partly because revolutionary Iran infringed in Iraq's domestic affairs by supporting Islamic and Kurdish groups that opposed the regime of Saddam Hussein.

The most significant events in the decades following World War II Essay

The most significant events in the decades following World War II - Essay Example On one hand, the United States tried desperately hard not to let communism spread across the borders. On the other hand, the Soviet Union, having risen to the position military ascendancy, wanted to make sure it had a hold over other countries’ foreign, military and defense strategies. Additionally, the threat of a nuclear warfare became imminent with the respective centralizations of power in two regions that were geographically far apart. Europe became a focal point of contention for both the nations as neither of them was ready to forsake the advantages gained during the Great War. The Soviet Union assumed control of Eastern Europe courtesy of German’s defeat. The United States had political ambitions far greater than any other western countries in that it wanted to extend its military laterality to far and wide. Under these circumstances, developments on the political upfront following World War II were closely interlinked with one another. One event somehow heralde d and legitimized its succeeding chain of events. Moreover, each major event was conditioned by the situation leading up to it. This essay is going to elaborate on the major political events that took place in the next five decades following World War II. The events to be discussed are the rise of consumerism in the 1950s, the Vietnam War in the 1960s, Iranian revolution in the 1970s, the fall of Berlin Wall in the 1980s and global terrorism in the 1990s. Differences of opinion between the Soviet Union and the United States had existed for a long time, much before the Great War broke out in 1939. The great economic depression in the 1930s following the labor movements in Canada had already had a detrimental effect on American political idealism. An overwhelming sense of disillusionment and despair hovered upon the general psyche in the country. However, this difference of opinion did not surface much as both the nations formed allies to defeat the Axis forces. But once the War was

The development and future of the Sukuk in Saudi Arabia financial Essay

The development and future of the Sukuk in Saudi Arabia financial services - Essay Example n the global markets This chapter aims to provide a through insight into the research that has been conducted regarding regulation and securitization involving Sukuk. The chapter aims to elaborate the structure of the Sukuk markets and the processes that go into issuing Sukuk and summarize. The global perspective on Sukuk has been thoroughly-researched in the past few years and this has helped us considerably in conducting the present study. Moreover, previous researchers have provided a convergent viewpoint regarding the growth of Sukuk in Muslim as well as non-Muslim countries. A number of definitions of Sukuk have been proposed by researchers and scholars. Sukuk can be regarded as a product of Islamic banking that allows the creation of a system of investment that results in profits for the investor and at the same time aims to comply with the Islamic ban on usury. According to the definition proposed by the Academy of International Modern Studies (2009), Sukuk are referred to as trust certificates or as participation securities1. Sukuk are considered to be ideal tools for the management of liquidity. In general terms, Sukuk could be defined as a structure of Islamic banking that provides assets to the investor with a cash flow2. The word Sukuk is an Arabic word which is a plural of the word sak which refers to any financial certificate. The word Sak is a cognate of the English word Cheque. Sukuk are implemented by following a process of securitization which aims to meet the standards of Islamic financing required by the Shariah and by the national laws of Islamic financing. Another definition that sheds light on the issue of profit and risk taking in the issuing of Sukuk had been proposed by Tan Wan Yean (2009) in his research on Islamic banking quotes the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) definition of Sukuk: â€Å"†¦ certificates of equal value representing, after closing subscription, receipt of the value of