How the internet or internet technology has helped me during the Essay

How the internet or internet technology has helped me during the course of my studies - Essay Example Before, we are not at all aware of what is happening in another country unless it is reported in television. And the news will only be reported if the reporters were there while the incident is happening, like during war. We will only know of news through the newspaper. And only a few of them make the newspaper. But now even if we don’t see it in the newspaper, just Google today’s news for the tiniest city of China or Zimbabwe, and we’ll see it! We also have a larger access to learning and knowledge. Google has actually revolutionized the whole Internet browsing experience. We can just type in certain keywords, and voila! we have the information we need. All we have to do is to discriminate the information, which are reliable and those which are made up. The Internet has been my best friend during college. It gave me the opportunity to get a better understanding of my classes. I don’t just look up information in the Internet, I take it a step further. I enroll in online classes to get ahead of my class. With this, I don’t only get additional information but I can also see different perspectives regarding a certain topic. This allows me to have a better understanding of the lesson or the issue at hand. It is not only gives me a headstart it also pushes me to become better as it allows me to get the picture of different views of people about the lesson. Also, as I’ve said the Internet allows you to find different kinds of resources that will aid you in research studies. I can get the information I need in less than second. How convenient is that! It cuts my time compared to manually checking the pages of a book where I can find the information I need. I believe that the Internet will go a long way. And it will even become better in future years. Humans love to invent and innovate. We have that creative gift. And we always want to make things easier for us. I believe that even if get out of

Lady Macbeth, an honoured hostess and a fiend-like Queen Essay Example for Free

Lady Macbeth, an honoured hostess and a fiend-like Queen Essay The audience witness a total transformation of Lady Macbeth from a powerful, scheming woman to a sad and lonely wretch. By the end of this tragedy she has nothing to live for, is riddled with guilt and has lost all sanity. At the opening of the play the audience see how fervent her hunger for power and status is when she summons evil spirits; Fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of the direst cruelty; (Act One, Scene 5, lines 40-41). This statement displays Lady Macbeths character deeply nefarious, it would perturb the superstitions of the Christian spectators. The audience might also perceive her to be disturbed as in that same soliloquy she asks the spirits to, Make thick my blood, At the time that the play was written thick blood was associated with illness and derangement. It would have been most horrific for the audience to listen to the character persisting that she did not want to be womanly, especially for someone of her status is society. Pronouncing that she wished to be unsexed and that she wanted the spirits to Come to my womans breasts, and take my milk for gall, would outrage their perfervid Christian views as women were supposed to be maternal and loving whereas she uses the oxymoron to intensify her wish to become corrupt and inhuman. Immediately after she calls the spirits, Shakespeare returns Macbeth to the stage, scheduling his wife the ideal time to discuss her plan. Lady Macbeth begins to instruct him as she says, Look like th innocent flower, but be the serpent undert. She uses this metaphor to reassure her husband and make known to him that others wont realise hed be doing anything wrong but at the same time urging him to commit the deed,ergo underlining the way in which it is her evil inventions which will destroy Duncan. The Shakespearean audience would be very disturbed to witness such wicked schemes emanating from a female character; women were particularly governed by societys expectations and considered to be the fairer, gentler sex, leaving political machinations to their male counterparts. Along with manipulating Macbeth into executing all of her schemes, she also is competent to cover up after him when he is vulnerable to suspicion. Without her help and guidance, Macbeth would have not been able to consummate his feats. After Macbeths first act in which he commits regicide by killing his dear king Duncan, he is incapable of coming to terms with his actions and returning with the weapons to Duncans chamber. His ever-dutiful wife finishes the task. Give me the daggers. The sleeping and the dead are but pictures. Her control here reveals her power and determination. We see her draw a veil over Macbeths behaviour again after he has taken King Duncans life as Macbeth makes the mistake of killing the guards, when he knows that as a soldier himself he should interrogate suspects. After Macduff attempts to question Macbeth on his reasons, Lady Macbeth faints (Act 2 Scene 3 line 112). This shows her ability to extemporise when the situation requires it. Indeed there are several occasions when Lady Macbeth steps in to avoid her husband being put under suspicion. Her role in the banquet scene after Macbeth sees Banquos ghost has a reason. Macbeth shows signs of weakening before the spirit of Banquo. However, Lady Macbeth shows her authority over the proceedings. She instructs all but herself and Macbeth in Act 3 Scene 4 lines 118-9 to Stand not upon the order of your going. But go at once, thus managing to clear their estate of all the guests who had been visiting, which would have been a difficult feat especially for a woman yet her determination impels her capable. We sporadically notice that she is not such a nefarious character, as she would like to believe. An example of her vulnerability is when she needs a drink to give her courage in order to go through with the plan for the murder of Duncan, That which hath made them drunk hath made me bold. If she were truly a fiend she would feel nothing. Similarly, when she is anxious and awaiting Macbeths return she utters that, Had he not resembled my father as he slept, I had donet. Had she been entirely evil she would have distanced herself more and be unable to draw comparisons. The decisive moment however for Lady Macbeth is when she detects that she is no longer needed. Act 3 Scene 3 lines 6-7 describe this further when she asks Macbeth, Whats to be done? and he proves to her that he is no longer the mere student but the master as he replies, Be the innocent of the knowledge, dearest chuck, till thou applaud the deed. Macbeths use of dearest chuck would have been supposed to be playful however in this context would have aggravated his wife and spurred on the doubts that would have been forming in her mind. The quotation is also analogous to what Lady Macbeth had said to him in Act 1 Scene 5 about looking innocent, thus extra proof of his imitation of his wifes influence. Lady Macbeths return to the action in Act 5, scene 1 is dramatic in its irony. She is a mere shadow of her former self, unable to sleep and riddled with guilt she re-enacts the role she played in Duncans murder, and in so doing betrays her guilt to her waiting woman and, of course, the audience. The constant washing of her hands and utterances Out damned spot Whod have thought the old man to have so much blood serve to expose her crimes, her sentiments in Act Two A little water cleans me of this deed are shockingly highlighted in the closing Act with poignant irony. Delirious and disturbing outbursts: Heres the smell of blood still; all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this hand. Oh, oh, oh! (Line 44-6) and her use of metaphor amplifies her acute mental torture and pain, she is a woman so construed by guilt that she loses all sanity. Lady Macbeths downfall, like her husbands, is a tragic one as she ultimately dies from her terrible crime. Like Macbeth, Lady Macbeth enjoyed reputation and status as the wife of the greatest Scottish warrior, much loved and honoured by king and county. However, she is as much Macbeth, guilty of vaulting ambition and when she succumbs to that fatal flaw she can no longer function. Indeed, so consumed by guilt, Lady Macbeth commits suicide knowing that her crimes have involved interfering with the divine right of kings. Interestingly, however, the audience see many times throughout this drama when Lady Macbeth is not so cold as she is made out to be. We know that she is not a fiend as we see on numerous occasions her inability to carry out acts herself, act 2 Scene 2, line 13-4, Had he not resembled my father as he slept. I had donet. She is unable to distance herself from the stunt and even helping to carry out the act she finds difficult as she needs help to bring the courage she needs: That which hath made them drunk hath made me bold; illuminating further how she has some empathy for Duncan. The audience see just how terrible an effect all the events since the witches first met Macbeth have had on her mental state as they hear how she has taken her own life in Act 5 scene 5 from Malcolm. To conclude, it is clear that Lady Macbeth begins her role as honoured; she certainly enjoys the wifely role of Scotlands hero. However, through greed and ambition, she forfeits her reputation and status. Certainly her actions are fiend-like but she does betray some small shreds of conscience and is therefore well aware of her choices. A totally fiendish character would not experience guilt, but Lady Macbeth goes insane simply because she knows she has been immoral and sinful. Lady Macbeth, an honoured hostess and a fiend-like Queen.

Analysis of Death of Ivan Ilych Essay -- essays research papers

Letting Pain Be   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To many individuals the word â€Å"progress† has a positive meaning behind it. It suggests improvement, something humans have been obsessed with since the dawn of society. However, if closely examined, progress can also have a negative connotation as well. While bringing improvement, progress can simultaneously spark conformity, dependency, and the obsession of perfection within the individuals caught in its midst. It is this aspect of progress within modern society that negatively affects Ivan Ilych, Leo Tolstoy’s main character in The Death of Ivan Ilych. Ivan’s attempt to conform to modern society’s view of perfection takes away his life long before he dies. Furthermore, his fear of death and reactions towards it reflects modern society’s inability to cope with the ever present reminder that humans still suffer and die, despite all attempts to make life painless, perfect, and immortal.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Although we as a society have advanced and made people’s lives easier, our mental suffering is as present as ever, due to our incessant need to have everything perfect. We seem to forget that the fascination of living comes from the imperfect and the unexpected. In her essay â€Å"On the Fear of Death† Elisabeth Kubler-Ross suggests that the modern age, while increasing life span and ease of life, has at the same time given way to a â€Å"rising number of emotional problems,† amongst the living (Ross 407). She also suggests that because of modern society’s progress, there has been an increased anxiety towards death. While Ross is writing for twentieth century society her ideas apply to the nineteenth century as well, when Tolstoy wrote The Death of Ivan Ilych.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ivan Ilych is living during the industrial revolution, a time of technological advancement, that mainly advances the upper class, which he is apart of. Ivan’s number one priority in life is to be comfortable and to do the correct thing at all times. Every decision he makes, including who he chooses to marry, is with the intent that it does not damage his â€Å"easy, agreeable, and always decorous character of his life,† (Tolstoy 213). Ivan is convinced that the best way to have an easy and agreeable life is to be wealthy, marry a woman from his own class, and live in a house full of modern conveniences and luxury. Ironically, it... ...roduction of Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism, Vol. 44 it is stated that â€Å"Ivan Ilych’s passage from life to death also entails a passage from falseness to truth†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (326). One could also look at this in a different light. From a physical perspective Ivan does go from life to death, from perfection to imperfection, but from a spiritual perspective it is actually the opposite. It takes the death of Ivan’s physical self to finally see what is important, his spirituality, his ‘divine spark.’ This, he finally realizes, is what true perfection is. Hence, Ivan is able to see past the falseness of conformity in the end and no longer fear death.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In his last moments of life, Ivan sees light instead of death. His final audible words are â€Å"What joy!† despite the pain he feels. This epiphany that he has happens in a single moment and in a sense makes him finally come alive. Thus, right before his final breath Ivan is able to say to himself â€Å"Death is finished, it is no more!† Death no longer has a hold on him because the quest of perfection no longer does. Ivan has finally decided, after a lifetime of denying it, to â€Å"let the pain be.†Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Analysis of Death of Ivan Ilych Essay -- essays research papers Letting Pain Be   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To many individuals the word â€Å"progress† has a positive meaning behind it. It suggests improvement, something humans have been obsessed with since the dawn of society. However, if closely examined, progress can also have a negative connotation as well. While bringing improvement, progress can simultaneously spark conformity, dependency, and the obsession of perfection within the individuals caught in its midst. It is this aspect of progress within modern society that negatively affects Ivan Ilych, Leo Tolstoy’s main character in The Death of Ivan Ilych. Ivan’s attempt to conform to modern society’s view of perfection takes away his life long before he dies. Furthermore, his fear of death and reactions towards it reflects modern society’s inability to cope with the ever present reminder that humans still suffer and die, despite all attempts to make life painless, perfect, and immortal.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Although we as a society have advanced and made people’s lives easier, our mental suffering is as present as ever, due to our incessant need to have everything perfect. We seem to forget that the fascination of living comes from the imperfect and the unexpected. In her essay â€Å"On the Fear of Death† Elisabeth Kubler-Ross suggests that the modern age, while increasing life span and ease of life, has at the same time given way to a â€Å"rising number of emotional problems,† amongst the living (Ross 407). She also suggests that because of modern society’s progress, there has been an increased anxiety towards death. While Ross is writing for twentieth century society her ideas apply to the nineteenth century as well, when Tolstoy wrote The Death of Ivan Ilych.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ivan Ilych is living during the industrial revolution, a time of technological advancement, that mainly advances the upper class, which he is apart of. Ivan’s number one priority in life is to be comfortable and to do the correct thing at all times. Every decision he makes, including who he chooses to marry, is with the intent that it does not damage his â€Å"easy, agreeable, and always decorous character of his life,† (Tolstoy 213). Ivan is convinced that the best way to have an easy and agreeable life is to be wealthy, marry a woman from his own class, and live in a house full of modern conveniences and luxury. Ironically, it... ...roduction of Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism, Vol. 44 it is stated that â€Å"Ivan Ilych’s passage from life to death also entails a passage from falseness to truth†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (326). One could also look at this in a different light. From a physical perspective Ivan does go from life to death, from perfection to imperfection, but from a spiritual perspective it is actually the opposite. It takes the death of Ivan’s physical self to finally see what is important, his spirituality, his ‘divine spark.’ This, he finally realizes, is what true perfection is. Hence, Ivan is able to see past the falseness of conformity in the end and no longer fear death.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In his last moments of life, Ivan sees light instead of death. His final audible words are â€Å"What joy!† despite the pain he feels. This epiphany that he has happens in a single moment and in a sense makes him finally come alive. Thus, right before his final breath Ivan is able to say to himself â€Å"Death is finished, it is no more!† Death no longer has a hold on him because the quest of perfection no longer does. Ivan has finally decided, after a lifetime of denying it, to â€Å"let the pain be.†Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Educational Literacy in the Context of Environmental Ethics Essay

Educational Literacy in the Context of Environmental Ethics ABSTRACT: I explore the concept of literacy and the role it might play in environmental ethics. One of the goals of environmental ethics is to describe and contribute to the creation of an ecologically responsible culture. The creation of such a culture requires the development of knowledge and abilities that will help sustain such a culture. Since education is one of the key institutions for instilling values and world views, it is important for environmental philosophers to think about the institutionalization of environmental theories in terms of their implications for the environmentally literate person. I argue that attention to literacy is significant for two reasons. First, it provides one way of evaluating the differences between competing environmental philosophies. Second, it raises the important question of what kind of person is required to carry out a particular vision of environmental responsibility. By addressing the issue of education and literacy, philosophers intere sted in environmental ethics can help create a vision of citizens who have democratically internalized and integrated environmental values and priorities rather than having them imposed from above. Environmental ethics presents us with a plurality of different theoretical positions, from sophisticated forms of anthropocentrism to competing views of ecofeminism and social ecology to various versions of biocentrism. The ethical discussions these positions have prompted reveal how difficult it is to extend or revise existing moral traditions in a manner that appears both plausible and socially legitimate to mainstream audiences. Traditional human-centered world views have a strong hold o... ...rz, Ecology as Politics (Boston: South End Press, 1980), p. 17. (2) Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac, with Essays from Round River, A Sierra Club/Ballantine Book (Oxford University Press, 1966), p. 246. (3) Lawrence Blum, "Moral Perception and Particularity" in Moral Perception and Particularity (Cambridge University Press, 1994), pp. 30-56. (4) cf. Justus Buchler, Nature and Judgment (New York: Grosset and Dunlap, 1955); and Toward a General Theory of Human Judgment, 2nd ed. (New York: Dover Publications, 1951). (5) Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed, translated by Myra Bergman Ramus (New York: Continuum, 1983), pp. 27-56. (6) Holmes Rolston III, "Environmental Values in and Duties to the Natural World" in Ecology, Economics, Ethics: The Broken Circle, eds. Herbert Bormann and Stephen Kellert (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1991), pp. 82-96.

Labor Relations Essay

With each of these scenarios also give the type of employer, the history of the worker at that company, the incident which arose, why it was a clear violation of employer policy, and what would be the likely result of arbitration of this issue if the employee acknowledged his wrong doing but asked to keep his job. Explain the reasoning for our considered outcome. When an employer has to discipline a unionized employee there are four steps to the grievance (infraction) procedure. In the first step the employee is given the grievance in an informal oral manner so a quick resolution can be made, and before a written record is established. The second step in the grievance procedure is to present the grievance to the industrial relations representative or (IR). The IR representative is familiar with the union’s contract and decides on a disciplinary action or if the grievance involves an employee discharge then the union will take it to step three. In step three the employee has union representation and the grievance is most likely settled at this step, if an agreement cannot be made then step four is the last chance to resolve the grievance or it goes to arbitration. Arbitration is a quasi-judicial process in which parties agree to submit unresolved disputes to a neutral third party for binding settlement. [ (Labor Relations, 10th Edition, 2009) ] (pg. 490). When an employee repeatedly breaks the rules and has been disciplined the union, employer, and employee write up a last chance agreement (LCA). This is an agreement drawn up by all parties stating that if the employee has another grievance violation within a certain amount of time the employee will be terminated. The type of employer that my three employees work at is a security company. The security company has hired all three as security officers and upon hiring they were informed of the company’s rules and the grievances that are imposed if the rules are not followed. All three employees have acknowledged the rules, and have signed a document stating that they understand the rules and the disciplinary actions taken if they break the rules. John, an officer at the security company, has never had any disciplinary actions against him since he started working for the company and has been a great employee thus far. John was involved in an incident while on duty with the company patrol vehicle. He has had an accident in the patrol vehicle and has run into a parked car while patrolling the parking lot. It is mandatory that if an employee is involved in an accident with a company vehicle while on duty a drug test is taken and if the drug test shows that John was under the influence (which he was) then that is grounds for immediate termination of his employment. John knows that this is a clear violation of company policy and has requested his union representative. If this disciplinary grievance goes to arbitration the likely result would still be the termination of John’s employment with the security company. The reason for my considered outcome is John was under the influence of drugs while on duty. There is a no tolerance policy for drug use especially while on duty, he could have done a lot more damage and very easily could have injured an individual in the process. Bill, an officer at the security company, has had issues with his behavior and attendance since he started working for the security company three months ago. It has affected his performance on the job and he has had two disciplinary actions against him in three months time. Company policy states that if an employee has three disciplinary actions in a 90 day period that is grounds for termination. Bill has just showed up late again for work and this will be his third grievance for the 90 day period. Bill admits his tardiness and swears that he will not be late again if he is given another chance to improve his attendance. Bill goes to arbitration and the likely result of the arbitration will be that Bill, the employer, and union will draw up a last chance agreement (LCA) for Bill to sign and abide by for a specific length of time. If Bill violates that agreement then it is automatic grounds for termination of his employment at the security company. The reason for my considered outcome of this scenario is because this is the most realistic way a company would handle this kind of disciplinary problem with an employee. Usually if an employee has had three disciplinary actions in a 90 day period that shows a pattern of undesired work behavior and the employer is going to want a last chance agreement to put an end to the undesired behavior. Bob, an officer at the security company, has been employed by the company for almost two years. Bob had a disciplinary action against him the second month of his employment with the security company. The infraction was a complaint of sexual harassment against one of his female co-workers at a previous job site. The complaint was investigated and Bob admitted to saying some inappropriate comments to his co-worker. The security company has a strict no tolerance policy on sexual harassment, but because Bob has admitted his wrong doing and the co-worker accepted his apology, Bob was permitted to stay employed with the security company and was put on a last chance agreement which he completed with no further issues. My considered outcome for this scenario was a bit light considering what Bob’s disciplinary action was for. The reason I considered giving Bob a second chance is that he acknowledged what he had done wrong and apologized to the co-worker that he had offended. Bob completed his last chance agreement he had made and has not had any other grievances since then. Bob probably did not think what he had said to his fellow co-worker would offend her like it did, and because it did he watches what he says and talks about while at work so he does not make the same mistake twice. Reference Fossum, J. A. (2009). Labor Relations (10th ed. ). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Irwin.

Study Guide for Albert Camuss The Fall

Study Guide for Albert Camus's The Fall Delivered by a sophisticated, outgoing, yet often suspicious narrator, Albert Camus’s The Fall employs a format that is rather uncommon in world literature. Like novels such as Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground, Sartre’s Nausea, and Camus’s own The Stranger, The Fall is set up as a confession by a complicated main character- in this case, an exiled French lawyer named Jean-Baptiste Clamence. But The Fall- unlike these famous first-person writings- is actually a second-person novel. Clamence directs his confession at a single, well-defined listener, a â€Å"you† character who accompanies him (without ever speaking) for the duration of the novel. In the opening pages of The Fall, Clamence makes this listener’s acquaintance in a seedy Amsterdam bar known as Mexico City, which entertains â€Å"sailors of all nationalities† (4). Summary In the course of this initial meeting, Clamence playfully notes the similarities between him and his new companion: â€Å"You are my age in a way, with the sophisticated eye of a man in his forties who has seen everything, in a way; you are well dressed in a way, that is as people are in our country; and your hands are smooth. Hence a bourgeois, in a way! But a cultured bourgeois!† (8-9). However, there is much about Clamence’s identity that remains uncertain. He describes himself as â€Å"a judge-penitent,† yet doesn’t provide an immediate explanation of this uncommon role. And he omits key facts from his descriptions of the past: â€Å"A few years ago I was a lawyer in Paris and, indeed, a rather well-known lawyer. Of course, I didn’t tell you my real name† (17). As a lawyer, Clamence had defended poor clients with difficult cases, including criminals. His social life had been full of satisfactions- respect from his colleagues, affairs with many women- and his public behavior had been scrupulously courteous and polite. As Clamence sums up this earlier period: â€Å"Life, its creatures and its gifts, offered themselves to me, and I accepted such marks of homage with a kindly pride† (23). Eventually, this state of security began to break down, and Clamence traces his increasingly dark state of mind to a few specific life events. While in Paris, Clamence had an argument with â€Å"a spare little man wearing spectacles† and riding a motorcycle (51). This altercation with the motorcyclist alerted Clamence to the violent side of his own nature, while another experience- an encounter with a â€Å"slim young woman dressed in black† who committed suicide by throwing herself off a bridge- filled Clamence with a sense of â€Å"irresistible weakness (69-70). During an excursion to the Zuider Zee, Clamence describes the more advanced stages of his â€Å"fall.† At first, he began to feel intense turmoil and pangs of disgust with life, although â€Å"for some time, my life continued outwardly as if nothing had changed† (89). He then took turned to â€Å"alcohol and women† for comfort- yet only found temporary solace (103). Clamence expands upon his philosophy of life in the final chapter, which takes place in his own lodgings. Clamence recounts his disturbing experiences as a World War II prisoner of war, lists his objections to commonplace notions of law and freedom, and reveals the depth of his involvement in the Amsterdam underworld. (It turns out that Clamence keeps a famous stolen painting- The Just Judges by Jan van Eyck- in his apartment.) Clamence has resolved to accept life- and to accept his own fallen, immensely flawed nature- but has also resolved to share his troubling insights with anyone who will listen. In the final pages of The Fall, he reveals that his new profession of â€Å"judge-penitent† involves â€Å"indulging in public confession as often as possible† in order to acknowledge, judge, and do penance for his failings (139). Background and Contexts Camus’s Philosophy of Action: One of Camus’s greatest philosophical concerns is the possibility that life is meaningless- and the need (in spite of this possibility) for action and self-assertion. As Camus wrote in his tract The Myth of Sisyphus (1942), philosophical discourse â€Å"was previously a question of finding out whether or not life had to have a meaning to be lived. It now becomes clear on the contrary that it will be lived all the better if it has no meaning. Living an experience, a particular fate, is accepting it fully.† Camus then goes on to declare that â€Å"one of the only coherent philosophical positions is thus revolt. It is constant confrontation between man and his own obscurity.† Even though the Myth of Sisyphus is a classic of French Existentialist philosophy and a central text for understanding Camus, The Fall (which, after all, appeared in 1956) should not merely be taken as a fictional re-working of The Myth of Sisyphus. Clamence does revolt against his life as a Paris lawyer; however, he retreats from society and tries to find specific â€Å"meanings† in his actions in a manner that Camus might not have endorsed. Camus’s Background in Drama: According to literary critic Christine Margerrison, Clamence is a â€Å"self-proclaimed actor† and The Fall itself is Camus’s â€Å"greatest dramatic monologue.† At several points in his career, Camus worked simultaneously as a playwright and a novelist. (His plays Caligula and The Misunderstanding appeared in the mid 1940s- the same period that saw the publication of Camus’s novels The Stranger and The Plague. And in the 1950s, Camus both wrote The Fall and worked on theater adaptations of novels by Dostoevsky and William Faulkner.) However, Camus was not the only mid-century author who applied his talents to both theater and the novel. Camus’s Existentialist colleague Jean-Paul Sartre, for instance, is famous for his novel Nausea and for his plays The Flies and No Exit. Another of the greats of 20th century experimental literature- Irish author Samuel Beckett- created novels that read a little like â€Å"dramat ic monologues† (Molloy, Malone Dies, The Unnamable) as well as oddly-structured, character-driven plays (Waiting for Godot, Krapp’s Last Tape). Amsterdam, Travel, and Exile: Although Amsterdam is one of Europe’s centers of art and culture, the city takes on a rather sinister character in The Fall. Camus scholar David R. Ellison has found several references to disturbing episodes in Amsterdam’s history: first, The Fall reminds us that â€Å"the commerce linking Holland to the Indies included trade not just in spices, foodstuffs, and aromatic wood, but also in slaves; and second, the novel takes place after â€Å"the years of World War II in which the Jewish population of the city (and of the Netherlands as a whole) was subject to persecution, deportation, and ultimate death in Nazi prison camps.† Amsterdam has a dark history, and exile to Amsterdam allows Clamence to face his own unpleasant past. Camus declared in his essay â€Å"The Love of Life† that â€Å"what gives value to travel is fear. It breaks down a kind of inner dà ©cor in us. We can’t cheat any more- hide ourselves away behin d the hours in the office or at the plant.† By going into living abroad and breaking his earlier, soothing routines, Clamence is forced to contemplate his deeds and face his fears. Key Topics Violence and Imagination: Although there is not much open conflict or violent action directly displayed in The Fall, Clamence’s memories, imaginings, and turns of imagery add violence and viciousness to the novel. After an unpleasant scene during a traffic jam, for instance, Clamence imagines pursuing a rude motorcyclist, â€Å"overtaking him, jamming his machine against the curb, taking him aside, and giving him the licking he had fully deserved. With a few variations, I ran off this little film a hundred times in my imagination. But it was too late, and for several days I chewed a bitter resentment† (54). Violent and disturbing fantasies help Clamence to communicate his dissatisfaction with the life he leads. Late in the novel, he compares his feelings of hopeless and perpetual guilt to a special kind of torture: â€Å"I had to submit and admit my guilt. I had to live in the little-ease. To be sure, you are not familiar with that dungeon cell that was called the litt le-ease in the Middle Ages. In general, one was forgotten there for life. That cell was distinguished from others by ingenious dimensions. It was not high enough to stand up in nor yet wide enough to lie down in. One had to take an awkward manner and live on the diagonal† (109). Clamence’s Approach to Religion: Clamence does not define himself as a religious man. However, references to God and Christianity play a major part in Clamence’s manner of speaking- and help Clamence to explain his changes in attitude and outlook. During his years of virtue and altruism, Clamence took Christian kindliness to grotesque proportions: â€Å"A very Christian friend of mine admitted that one’s initial feeling on seeing a beggar approach one’s house is unpleasant. Well, with me it was worse: I used to exult† (21). Eventually, Clamence finds yet another use for religion that is admittedly awkward and inappropriate. During his fall, the lawyer made references â€Å"to God in my speeches before the court†- a tactic that â€Å"awakened mistrust in my clients† (107). But Clamence also uses the Bible to explain his insights about human guilt and suffering. For him, Sin is part of the human condition, and even Christ on the cross is a figure of guilt: â€Å"He knew he was not altogether innocent. If he did not bear the weight of the crime he was accused of, he had committed others- even though he didn’t know which ones† (112). Clamence’s Unreliability: At several points in The Fall, Clamence acknowledges that his words, actions, and apparent identity are of questionable validity. Camus’s narrator is very good at playing different, even dishonest roles. Describing his experiences with women, Clamence notes that â€Å"I played the game. I knew they didn’t like one to reveal one’s purpose too quickly. First, there had to be conversation, fond attentions, as they say. I wasn’t worried about speeches, being a lawyer, nor about glances, having been an amateur actor during my military service. I often changed parts, but it was always the same play† (60). And later in the novel, he asks a series of rhetorical questions- â€Å"Don’t lies eventually lead to the truth? And don’t all my stories, true or false, tend toward the same conclusion?†- before concluding that â€Å"authors of confessions write especially to avoid confessing, to tell nothing of wha t they know† (119-120). It would be wrong to assume that Clamence has given his listener nothing but lies and fabrications. Yet it is possible that he is freely mixing lies and truth to create a convincing â€Å"act†- that he strategically using a persona to obscure particular facts and feelings. A Few Discussion Questions Do you think that Camus and Clamence have similar political, philosophical, and religious beliefs? Are there any major differences- and if so, why do you think Camus decided to create a character whose views are so at odds with his own?In some important passages in The Fall, Clamence introduces violent images and intentionally shocking opinions. Why do you think Clamence is dwelling on such disconcerting topics? How is his willingness to make his listener uneasy tied to his role as a â€Å"judge-penitent?†Exactly how reliable is Clamence, in your opinion? Does he ever seem to exaggerate, to obscure the truth, or to introduce obvious falsehoods? Find a few passages where Clamence seems especially elusive or unreliable, and keep in mind that Clamence may become significantly more (or significantly less) reliable from passage to passage.Re-imagine The Fall told from a different perspective. Would Camus’s novel be more effective as a first-person account by Clamence, withou t a listener? As a straightforward, third-person description of Clamence’s life? Or is The Fall supremely effective in its present form? Note on Citations: All page numbers refer to Justin OBriens translation of The Fall (Vintage International, 1991).

Remember the Tricolon

Remember the Tricolon Remember the Tricolon Remember the Tricolon By Maeve Maddox A tricolon is a rhetorical device that employs a series of three parallel words, phrases, or clauses. The word derives from Greek tri (â€Å"three†) + colon (â€Å"section of a sentence†). The plural of tricolon is tricola. Julius Caesar’s famous â€Å"Veni, vidi, vici† is a tricolon consisting of three verbs. The tricolon is phrased in ascending order, culminating with the most important action: â€Å"I came, I saw, [and] I conquered.† Churchill’s famous line in praise of the Royal Air Force repeats a â€Å"so† phrase: â€Å"Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few. Phrased in descending order or with an unexpected combination of words, a tricolon can be used for humorous effect, as in this quotation ascribed to Dorothy Parker: â€Å"I require three things in a man. He must be handsome, ruthless and stupid.† Tricola are at work in the answers to these two questions: How do you get to Carnegie Hall? - Practice, practice, practice. What are the three things that matter in property? - Location, location, location. Quotations that remain in the memory long after one’s school days often contain tricola: Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears. Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness of the people, by the people, for the people Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free. Many of our idioms, clichà ©s, and fossilized legal phrases take the form of tricola: Every Tom, Dick and Harry Lock, stock, and barrel Wine, women, and song Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth? Advertisers and PR agents understand the power of the tricola: Power, beauty, and soul (Aston Martin) Keeps going and going and going. (Energizer) Gracespacepace. (Jaguar) Snap! Crackle! Pop! (Rice Krispies) Buy it. Sell it. Love it. (Ebay) Thinner, lighter, and faster. (iPad2) Stop, Look, and Listen (Traffic safety slogan) Drop, Cover, and Hold On (Earthquake/tornado safety slogan) One of the most useful aspects of this rhetorical device is its effectiveness in embedding a thought in the memory. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Possessive of Proper Names Ending in SAt Your DisposalSupervise vs. Monitor