Movies Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Movies - Movie Review Example Heartbreaking in its representation of normal lives affected by political turmoil, this ode to the basic values that subsist even under such harsh circumstances has an impressive gravity that remembers another great historical romance, â€Å"Doctor Zhivago.† While younger audience may find Zhang’s grungy period and classical style backdrop too untrendy to engage, the film’s prosperous melodramatic thrust has opened the gates for a large number of domestic audiences. In additional, the ‘’Coming Home† borrows from the novel â€Å"The Criminal Lu Yanshi† by a Chinese American-based writer Yan Geling. ‘’Coming home† is a real love scenario that captures various ways of love and romance. According to the movie, not even political violence and other infirmities could come in the way of love. The most interesting episode is the moment is the tragic coincidence that begets the two lovers; Feng Wanyu (Gong Li) and Lu Yanshi (Chen Daoming). Lu is arrested and detained in a political prison while his wife is involved in an accident where she sustains serious injuries. This episode is quite interesting as it exhibits the extent to which love can go. In this eposode, not even the prison bars of hospital confinement separate the two lovers. The ‘’Random Harvest† is a 1942 movie that is based on the James Hilton novel of the year 1941. The film, directed by Mervyn LeRoy, modified form the novel for the screen. It received several Academy Award nominations and won several award. The film diverged from the novel in various significant ways, as it proved quite hard to translate it to a film in it totality. It is significant to note that the movie is starred by Ronald Colman as an amnesiac-shell shocked, World War I fighter and Greer Garson as his girlfriend. According to the movie, "John Smith" (Ronald Colman) is a British soldier who was gassed and became shell shocked in the trenches in the course of First World War. He is

Fighting cocks Essay Example for Free

Fighting cocks Essay A richly textured social history of Hispaniola†¦ the cock flight is designed to pit equal combatants against each other, and among humans equality is in short supply on Hispaniola. Perhaps this explains why the victorious cock brings glory to his owner yet the victors in the human competition have hardly been inspiring. Kirkus Reviews (January, 1999) There are lots of situations in history when people of power try to use others to fight for the interests which they represent and use them as marionettes or as fighting cocks. We often become witnesses of historical events in which politicians were using ordinary people to fight for their ideals. The idea of the fighting cock is clear to everybody- in a general sense it’s a bird which fights in the arena for the amusement of its owner and as long as the cock wins, it remains alive. Whenever it loses, it gets cooked for the next dinner. Of course, the idea of the fighting cocks in the novel has an allegoric sense but it is hard to imagine any other word which would describe the events going on in the history depicted in the novel with a different term. In order to give a full review of the novel, we are going at first to focus on the main points which it covers, i. e. on the historical period which is depicted in the novel. The main goal of our research is to show how events were going in the period of history which we are analyzing, what contribution Michele Wucker has made to the analysis of the events and what made her work outstanding. We are also going to investigate who were the allegoric fighting cocks in the novel and their owners and how they were trying to achieve their goals by using the fighting cocks. In Michele Wucker’s novel Why the Cocks Fight- Dominicans, Haitians, and the struggle for Hispaniola, a complex exploration of the cultural divide between Haiti and the Dominican Republic is given and the novel focuses on the 1937 massacre which is the central movement in Hispaniola’s history. It appears impossible to understand the essence of the novel without knowing some information about the island Hispaniola which serves as the arena for the fighting cocks in the novel. Investigations show that Hispaniola rises out of the Caribbean between Cuba and Puerto Rico and nowadays still remains a mystery to most North Americans. During the conquest, France and Spain tore the island apart and thus considered themselves a general owner of the island. In a while, the conquerors found themselves no match for the Africans they brought there to work and die in the sugarcane fields. The Spanish-speaking Dominican Republic has diverged considerably from its French-speaking island neighbor but the two nations share more than a porous common border. In order to give a full idea of the differences between those nations, we can give the following information: while in the recent years the Dominican Republic has become a state which a GNP growing faster than GNP of any other Latin country, Haiti remains the poorest country in the Americas. Wucker’s novel focuses on the often tortured relationship between Haitians and Dominicans. They are the cocks which were mentioned in the title of the novel. Those cocks are fighting for territory and power in a cockpit of an island and the stakes are cultural and psychological, sometimes even matters of life and death, in a fight which has been going on for centuries and which brought lots of sorrows to the nations, like any fight. Even though the nations are sharing the same island, they have completely different cultures and thus share different ideals. One nation is French-speaking and black, another one is Spanish-speaking and mulatto. Just as the owners of the fighting cocks contrive battles between the birds, the leaders of Dominican Republic and Haiti often stir up nationalist disputes and exaggerate their cultural difference as a way of deflecting other kinds of turmoil. Even though ordinary people would probably not want to participate in the struggles from their own will and desire, the leaders do their best to force their people to realize that they need to fight for right to rule. The phenomena of Michele Wucker’s book is that the author weavers together the histories and current plights of Haiti and the Dominican Republic. It is not an easy task to depict both historical facts and also the realities of modern times but Michele Wucker has done a very successful job on that. The author unveils the seemingly chaotic yet ritualistic world of Dominicans and Haitians and in her novel moves back and forth from the time of Columbus to the 20th century and through the intervening years to emphasize recurring themes rather than a linear story.

The Doctrine Of The Mean Philosophy Essay

The Doctrine Of The Mean Philosophy Essay Aristotles The Doctrine of the Mean is defined as: virtue, then, is a state of character concerned with choice, lying in a mean, i.e. the mean relative to us, this being determined by rational principle, and by that principle by which the man of practical wisdom would determine it. An interpretation of the passage would be that at any given virtue lies between two extremes, either excess or deficient of, and the means between the two extremes determined by our rational principle, would be the virtue by which we should act upon in certain situation. Virtue as a state of character is a matter of how we stand with regard to the passions. Before proceeding with how Aristotle uses the doctrine, we should look at how Aristotle defines the mean as. Now, by lying in a mean, Aristotle does not take it to be arithmetical. For example, taking 10+2=12, and the mean of this equation would be 6. However, in the Milo example, the six pounds of food would be considered either too much or too little, depending on which athlete you are feeding. Aristotle does not deny that the intermediate is equidistant from each of the extremes, which is one and the same for all men, by intermediate relatively to us that which is neither too much nor too little-and this is not one, nor the same for all. What Aristotle seems to be saying here, is an account that on a particular scale of the two extremes, the intermediate, or virtue, is the same distance from the two extremes. Going on from both passages, it is not the case that it will be the same for all men, and the intermediate is determined by the individuals in how they act in accordance with certain situation. A case example of how the doctrine works is for instance, social party. There are two extremes, excess of drinking alcohol and deficient of drinking alcohol. In this case, an excess of drinking alcohol might impair your judgment on certain decisions, leading to a regrettable mistake, while lack of alcohol might lead to ostracizing of certain social group. In either of the two extremes, the action and the circumstance give unwanted results. The intermediate in this case would be, to feel them at the right times, with reference to the right objects, towards the right people, with the right motive, and in the right way. So the correct action to take in the fraternity case would be to take in the right amount of alcohol, neither excessive so that you would lose your rational, nor lack of so as to not be ostracized from the social group. Problem with The Doctrine of the Mean: clarifying what the Intermediate means. The problem with the doctrine is understanding what it means to be in the intermediary. In one sense, it is easily comprehensible as having the right references to do the right action, but for example, in the case of fear and confidence, where the extreme of fear leads to cowardice and the extreme of confidence lead to rashness, how are we to understand the relation of intermediary virtue between the two extremes? In one sense, we cannot neglect one vice over another, such that we cannot say that the intermediary is excess/deficiency of fear or excess/deficiency of confidence, for the intermediate has to carry both the properties of fear and confidence. It would not do to say that the intermediate lies in relation to one vice, for example, that the same intermediate would be found if we only take in account of having too much or too little fear, we would find the same intermediate for if we only take in account of having too much or too little confidence. Aristotle does not necessarily state anywhere in the text, however, it should be reasonable to suppose that any two extremes in relation to the intermediate will undermine, but not neglect, one of the two extremes and exaggerate the other extreme. So, we can suppose that both fear and confidence are unopposed to cowardice and rashness. If the intermediate have to carry both the properties of fear and confidence, then it would help give a clearer account on where the intermediate lies on the doctrine. A means in relation to the two extremes would then be between the two extremes, where the intermediate have both the property of the two extremes. A virtue then would be the intermediate between the two extremes, individually distinct from the two extremes by having both properties of the two extremes. Aristotle does not give an explanation in ethical application what he means by virtue as intermediate. However, Aristotles description of the intermediate and the two extremes do allow room for the argument to understand that intermediates have both properties of the two extremes. With an account of being able to find the intermediate on the scale of the two extremes, an intermediate is the right expression of action or emotion, independent of the two extremes, but the two extremes are dependent on the intermediate in their relation to virtue. Conclusion In this paper, I have given an account of Aristotles The Doctrine of the Mean, by offering a general interpretation of the doctrine and using examples to understand the doctrine. What I proposed for the paper is to give a clearer understanding of what the intermediate is and their relation to the two extremes. Most interpretation of Aristotles account of the doctrine seems correct, in that it is to act or express appropriately in a certain circumstance, but take it for granted that the intermediate is just what is between the two extremes. There are many problems regarding the doctrine that Aristotle gives, but in most cases, if we can understand the relation of the two extremes and the intermediate, then we could explain some of the discrepancy that arise from the doctrine.

Stratospheric Ozone Depletion and Its Effect on Skin Cancer Incidence E

Introduction This term paper is situated in an area of specific health related and environmental concern: the human dimensions of global change. For about a decade now there has been growing scientific interest in the global environmental changes resulting from anthropogenic activity. However most of this research has focused on the scientific bases of environmental transformations with little attention to how human social responses are linked to global change. As a result, scientists and researchers alike are beginning to ask questions about the symbiotic relationship between human well being and physical change. Abstract This research compilation plans to use one environmental health component of the global change phenomena - ozone depletion and skin cancer - to advance and deepen your understanding of the relationships between human wellness and environmental change. This project should deepen understanding by developing a framework for conceptualizing environmental health policy issues. In this way the relationships between scientists, policy makers and the public will be explored theoretically as the interactions of science, the state, and society as a whole. The Relationship of Skin Cancer Prevalence and the Increase in Ultraviolet-B Exposure due to Ozone Depletion Ultraviolet-B radiation damages the human skin: Acute exposure causes sunburn and chronic exposure results in loss of elasticity and increased aging. Increased absorption of UV-B triggers a thickening of the superficial skin layers and an increase in skin pigmentation (both of which act to protect the skin against future sunburns). This protective mechanism however, also makes the skin more vulnerable to skin cancer. Strong evidence exists of a dose... ...tion/2.html Mahaney, Francis X., "Nocturnal Animals Help Shed Light on Human Melanoma," __Journal of the National Cancer Institute__, 87 (21): (1 November 1995). Available on the World Wide Web at http://wwwicic.nci.ni h.gov/jnci/iss8721/87-1584.html. Roses, Daniel F., Stephen L. Gumport, Matthew N. Harris, and Alfred W. Kopf, __The Diagnosis and Management of Common Skin Cancers__ (Atlanta, Georgia: American Cancer Society, 1989), 89- 50M-No. 3373-PE. Schein, O.D. et al., "Ocular and Dermatologic Health Effects of Ultraviolet Radiation Exposure from the Ozone Hole in Southern Chile," __American Journal of Public Health__, 85 (4): 546-550 (April 1995). "Stat Bite: Trends in Melanoma Incidence," __Journal of the National Cancer Institute__, 87 (20): (1 November 1995). Available on the World Wide Web at http://wwwicic.nci.ni h.gov/jnci/iss8720/statbi20.jpg.

A Year of Wonders

Year of Wonders is a story of great courage in the face of extreme adversity discuss. ‘A Year of Wonders’, written by Geraldine Brooks is based during an era that represents a challenging time in history where original ideologies of religion is confronted by the effects of a catastrophic disease known as the black plague. Because traditional remedies through religious rituals proved ineffective, core beliefs were questioned and faith waned. How does one respond through such calamities where a cure seemingly ceased to exist?Strength, bravery and tenacity through specific females in the novel demonstrated how individuals can respond in an exceptional manner in horrific situations. As well as highlighting the constructive effects, Geraldine Brooks also points out how a dissimilar outcome can also be created where iniquitous behaviour is resulted instead. Despite this, it is clear that although the author acknowledges the negative results, she tries to emphasise the heroic a bilities instead through her narration of the novel ‘A Year of Wonders’.The heroine of the novel, Anna Frith is a symbol of hope. She represents the underdog, a character for which has no significant importance in society, but as the story unfolds and her town becomes the breeding ground for a deathly infestation, she rises above her original character, an ordinary maid, and is transformed instead into a hero for her community. Her subservience is illustrated through her selfless act in which she helps Merry Wickford, a young orphaned girl who lost her family to the plague.To prevent Merry from living a ‘bleak future in a poorhouse’, Anna embarks on a dangerous mission to attain the required dose of lead in the Wickford mine. Such an act held many potential dangers, although aware, Anna continued with her pursuit. Described as ‘the one good, perhaps, to come out of [that] terrible year’, Anna is a clear example of how arduous times can make â⠂¬Ëœheroes of us’. Independent, unconventional and unique are the words that describe Anys and Mem Gowdie. Their courage is shown through their decision to not conform to their community’s ideas.They represented a different group of women in their society, one who was not ‘a man’s chattel’ and was still able to ‘manage alone as a woman in the world’. Such behaviour was unheard of in their society, their differences were not welcomed in the town in which they resided and many despised them for behaving as they did. As tensions rose due to the death toll from the plague increasing, any ‘strange’ behaviours were questioned. Anys and Mem represented ‘strange’ but despite this, they stayed true to their character from start to finish.Only the brave can stand against the perceived normal, against the ideas of what is ‘right’ in the eyes of the majority and Anys and Mem are two symbolic figures who were b old enough to challenge the norm. Unlike the aforementioned, Aphra is a character who responds to adversity in a manner that can only be described as destructive and damaging. In the circumstance of plague in this time frame where cures were unknown, people become desperate for any remedies that may prove effective.Aphra takes advantage of these insecurities of fear and distress and exploits it for her own selfish gains. Posing as Anys Gowdie’s ghost, she deceives her community by selling fake charms at night which were assumed to provide cure to the disease but instead were merely a way to make profit of the situation. Another example demonstrating Aphra’s detrimental means to survive is through her most climatic experience, the death of her children.This is final event for which her personality is transformed dramatically where her rational is lost completely as a coping mechanism for the loss of her kin. Harbouring ‘a wealth of superstitions in her simple mind ’, the situation in which she is placed only further fuels these thoughts which eventually drives her into a state of insanity and hysteria. Her growing madness leads her to keep her child, Faith’s deadly corpse for torturous superstitious reasons and eventually to the most climatic event in the novel, the bloody murder of Elinor Mompellion and her own gruesome suicide.Through the character Aphra, Geraldine Brooks is able to illustrate how adverse times can also make ‘monsters of us’. ‘A Year of Wonders’ demonstrates ‘how people are changed by catastrophe’. These changes lead to the establishment of one of two persons; a ‘hero’ or a ‘monster’. Geraldine Brooks created characters such as Anna Frith and the Gowdie’s to highlight how individuals can use tragedy as the catalyst for good change such as valor, fortitude and tenacity.Although being largely based on celebrating such personalities, the auth or also takes into account of the opposing reactions. Aphra exemplifies wicked behaviour through her exploitative activities and corruptive mindset. Through this approach of contrasting two opposite reactions of the same environment, the story shows realism as it relates to how people of today’s society can respond to such conflict. By characterising these reactions, Geraldine Brooks is able to effectively mirror the responses of society in her powerfully dramatic tale.

Call of the Wild- Chapters 4 5 6

Chapter 4 What happens when Chris/ Alex drives the Datsun into the Lake Mead National Recreation Area? A flash flood comes and floods the engine of his Datsun. He is frustrated, and in his frustration he kills the battery trying to get it restarted. Rather than go to the local authorities (He decides he shouldn't due to his expired registration and license) he abandons the car with a note saying anyone who can get it out can have it. What do his parents think? Alex’s parents are very worried about him. They become even more worried when they realize that he told the post office to hold all of the letters they sent him until a certain date.Where does Chris/Alex travel in this chapter and what is the time line (dates and locations) July 9th 1990- Datson is flooded is flooded at Lake Mead July 10th 1990- Chris hikes toward N California August 1990- He gets a ride from/meets Crazy Ernie Chapter 5. What did the people of Bullhead City think of Chris/Alex? He is remembered as a stra nge but nice person. The employees at the McDonald’s where he worked said he worked at a slow pace, which contradicts what was said about his work ethic earlier in the novel. They said he needed to bathe more and one lady feels he quit because she told him so.Describe the slabs in your own words. The slabs are an abandoned military base that has become home to a lot of drifters. What do we learn about Chris/Alex in this chapter? Is your view of him changing? In this chapter we learn that Chris’s work ethic is starting to disappear because the former employees say that they felt he worked slow. My opinion is not really changing any of him because he still is very odd and obviously he is not all right. 4. Trace the timeline in this chapter. May 1991- Departs Las Vegas July/August 1991- Oregon coastSeptember 1991- Hitchhiked down highway 101 to Bullhead city Several months later- moved to the slabs Chapter 6. What changes do you notice in the narrative stance of chapter 6 ? Chapter 6 isn’t really about chris, its more about the people he met and the lives he affected. Why did they send Krakauer a letter from Ronald Franz? Because Franz wanted a copy of the magazine article which featured Chris and felt very attached to him. In Chris/Alex's letter to Ron Franz he reveals his philosophy of life. This is important for an understanding of what happened to him. Summarize his ideas in your won words. If you want to get more out of life, Ron, you must lose your inclination for monotonous security and adopt a helter-skelter style of life that will first appear to be crazy† 57. This is important because for the first time in words he is sort of describing the lifestyle that he is trying to live. He put the ideolism that he is living by into a phrase. What did Krakauer learn when he visited Franz? He learned that Franz was a very physically large men who did not show his age. He had always been praying for Chris to walk back down the road. When he learned that Chris had died, â€Å"{he} became an athiest† because his prayers were not answered†

Social, educational and economical impacts of the internet in the new millennium

Social, educational and economical impacts of the internet in the new millennium Introduction The Internet has emerged to be the most popular and advanced tool used for accessing information in the new millennium. The Internet is the most known transforming technology that man had ever developed before and it has all the capability of changing everything, including the activities people do on a daily basis. Moreover, the Internet is said to be the most important tool used when sharing information.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Social, educational and economical impacts of the internet in the new millennium specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Effect of the internet on the society The use of the internet has openly transformed societies and all activities people do on a daily basis. The Internet, being one of the latest technologies to be developed on earth has the highest number of people who prefer using it for communication purposes. This is because the internet makes it easy for people living thousand of miles apart to communicate with one another freely and even visually. Moreover, the internet also allows people living in different geographical locations to effectively coordinate their business operations and even exchange events of their social lifestyles (Ghandchi, par. 1). Currently, almost everyone has an access to e-mail and other social sites that are available on the internet. Teenagers, for example, are the most common users of internet social sites. They log in to retrieve miraculous information and also chat with one another (Symonds, par. 4). Other social sites available on the internet include; Facebook, Twitter and Skype. These sites make it easy for people to chat and exchange social and cultural ideas (Symonds, par. 4). Despite all the good things, Internet technology has brought to the societies, there are several drawbacks accompanying it. Internet crimes for example; identity theft, hackers and other advanced monetary thieves are on the increas e globally (â€Å"Effects of Computers and the Internet on Society† par. 4). Many people don’t involve much in online businesses because of fear. Impacts of the internet on education The development of the internet several decades ago lifted up the education sector, which really benefited from this technology. There are several developmental measures that have been put in place with the help of the internet. The question people ask is whether this technology will cause more positive or negative effects on education. There is no doubt that over a decade ago, the internet has ushered in an amazing progressive revolution as far as informational development was concerned. The Internet is currently the most accessible sources of information both, locally and internationally.Advertising Looking for research paper on social sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Anyone can access the unlimited amount of inf ormation in the shortest time possible through the internet. The Internet provides an alternative way of accessing the information as compared to the old system, such as libraries, it is time saving and students, instead of spending their entire day looking for information in books, will only spend a few minutes to login into a website and retrieve the same information (Maroki, par. 5). The use of the internet in educational institutions is currently being supported by majority of educators worldwide. Many educational institutions are now seconding the idea of fully incorporating the technology in the education sector. This is because the internet avails to students the most updated articles and data creating a sense of immediacy (Maroki, par. 9). Nevertheless, bearing in mind that internet exposes students to a great amount of information, not all students use this technology for the academic purposes. Instead, majority of students use it to play games, chat and listen to music. Fo r this reason, using the internet is disadvantageous to education because it redirects students from academic concentration to social activities. This is evident in cases where instead of reading, students engage more in social sites unrelated to education. Nowadays, students don’t carry out their own assignment and research work. Instead, they simply copy-paste the information available on the internet and submit as their own works. Most educators feel that it will reach a time when the internet will fully replace using books as sources of information (Maroki, par. 12). This is considered to be very disadvantageous to the student for whom reading books in libraries provides the possibility to develop skills of not only retrieving the information but also engaging in thinking broadly (Maroki, par. 12). When students use the internet alone as the primary source of information, most of them lose their time by engaging more in social websites available on the internet. Additiona lly, frequent use of the internet for academic assignments and research without accessing books can cause mind erosion (Maroki, par. 12). This will happen because of the frequent tendency of accessing free information from the internet. The students thinking abilities will go down because they will not have the possibility to read books which helps in memory development.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Social, educational and economical impacts of the internet in the new millennium specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Impacts of the internet on the economy It is clear that the internet has transformed businesses all over the world. Most companies nowadays have transformed from old e-commerce to modern e-business with the help of advanced internet technologies (Symonds, par. 6). This is primarily evident in cases where a company, through the internet, makes direct business connections with customers that are tho usands of miles away. Moreover, other companies are currently using more secured internet technologies to establish and intensify business relationship with their trading partners. This technological tool has seen many companies to grow economically and generate huge profits. Furthermore, it is cheap and easy to advertize products through the internet since everyone across the world can easily access the information very quickly. The other economic benefit is that trading partners nowadays can argue and negotiate on market prices online and even explore new market through the internet easily. Additionally, the internet has greatly reduced money spent as tax for any business transaction done online to about one cent (Symonds, par. 34). This is contrary to what business transactions done on banks demand. Notable to mention is that, for every bank transaction, 27 cent is charged as transaction fee (Symonds, par. 34). When processing a traveling air ticket through the internet, one pays $1 as transaction cost. This is cheaper than the $8 charged when processing the same through an agent (Symonds, par. 34). However, the use of the internet in business operation is also accompanied by several drawbacks that scare people from operating online businesses. Some of the negative impact includes the internet security assurance. In today’s world, we have hundreds of advanced internet hackers, e-terrorists and credit card thieves who spent their time on the internet developing fake connections. This has gradually lowered down customers trust and confidence to conduct business through the internet. Furthermore, lack of productivity power from workers is another common negative effect faced by most companies globally. This is observed in cases where employees spend most of their time on social websites instead of working (Beach, par. 5). Conclusion In summary, the internet technology has advanced tremendously in this new millennium. It is important to note that the int ernet use has both positive and negative impact on whoever uses it.Advertising Looking for research paper on social sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Beach, Justin. â€Å"Positive Negative Effects of the Internet.† E-how tech. 2011. Web. â€Å"Effects of Computers and the Internet on Society.† 2010. Web. Ghandchi, Sam. â€Å"The New Millennium: The Age of Thinking.† Iranscope. 1999. Web. Maroki, Neil. â€Å"The Impact of the Internet on the Education Systems in the New Millennium.† Business Library. 2001. Web. Symonds, Mathew. â€Å"The Economist.† The Net Imperative. 1999. Web.