An Analysis Of If Men Could Me Essay -- essays research papers

From your perspective (male or female) how valid are the speculations offered by the author of â€Å"If Men Could Menstruate† Nothing With out a woman   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A hypothesis on a hyperbole is the best description one can render onto this piece by Gloria Steinem. The ideas present in the essay â€Å"If Men could menstruate† are so drastic and ridiculous, that it demands a second reading. These same ridiculous thoughts on this unique subject matter are generally quaint but for the greater part they evoke thought on the reality of society. Boarders, languages and oceans separate the planet physically; class distinctions, religion, color and gender separate it mentally. Man in all his glory cannot justify or gratify himself unless some other party recognizes a superior, therefor; it obviously becomes imperative for men to be seen by other as superiors. Based on this reasoning it is safe to imply that distinctions are a man made concepts that are used to promote his superiority be it in class, color and gender. Gloria Steinem uniquely presented a true and accurate stance on gender distinction based on the fact that any and almost every thing has been used to promote male superiority and female inferiority. The society today is not one that lends itself to the topic of a woman’s menstruation; quite frankly it is revered as taboo. A woman’s Menstruation (her period) is seen by males as an obstacle and is considered very dirty sexually. The menstrual cycle as perceived...

A MODEST PROPOSAL Essay -- essays research papers

In the nineteenth century, Ireland was marked by extensive personal suffering. Civilians, predominantly the catholic lower and middle-classes, were having a hard time finding jobs, paying rent, feeding their children, as well as putting up with overpopulation which contributed to the overall growing problem of poverty. During this time of suffering, many began to question whether Britain acted as hastily and as effectively as they could have, as well as believing that centuries of British rule and/or political oppression was a fundamental cause of the famine (which originated from a potato crop failure). Jonathan Swift, a poor-boy who found his niche as a social critic/spokesman for Irish rights, after analyzing the possible causes, he concludes that England should not be the sole one to blame and therefore proposes a rather straightforward solution to Ireland’s evident predicament by insisting that the abundance of children of the poor to be used as a food supply. Jonathan Swift blames the English Protestants for their cruel and inhumane treatment of the papists, or poor Irish Catholics, through both political and economic oppression. This is seen when the author’s â€Å"persona† believes that England would be more than willing to eat the Irish poor even if such a proposal had never been suggested, saying that, â€Å"†¦I could name a country which would be glad to eat up our whole nation without it.† Being a son of pauper parents, as well as having spent years in Ireland, he first han...

Plots, Characters, and Relationships in Anna Karenina Essay -- Tolstoy

Plots, Characters, and Relationships in Anna Karenina    "Reason has been given to man to enable him to escape from his troubles."1 These words, spoken by an unknown woman on a train minutes before Anna took her own life, proved cold comfort for Vronsky's mistress. Unable to reason her way out of her despair, she flung her body under a train in an act of vengeance and escape. She failed in her personal quest, one for fulfillment that she shares with the other main protagonist in the novel, Levin, who makes corresponding attempts to reason through his own dilemmas. Anna Karenina is an epic, through which are interwoven the parallel accounts of the personal struggles of Anna and Levin, developed in tandem. One ends in death and tragedy, the other in spiritual fulfillment. It is a novel of balances; not only of plots, but also of characters, and relationships between characters. Tolstoy's choice of title immediately sets up expectations in the reader; expectations that are destined to be disappointed. Although the reader may anticipate a straightforward tale of a woman's descent into adultery, they will find that that element is enclosed by and permeated with the equally dominant tale of a man's quest for harmony and love, and a good deal of extraneous material. Levin serves as a mouthpiece for Tolstoy's beliefs, and on occasions his activities take on a pseudo-biographical aspect. At times it seems that Anna's involvement in the novel is minimal - with episodes involving her being sparsely distributed - and the reader may well wonder why the novel is so entitled. Although it is difficult to be certain of Tolstoy's motives, this essay will argue that he so named the novel because of the utterly pivotal and essential fu... ...nt, independent, and thoughtful character, there is an undertone running throughout he novel that suggests that she has failed to adopt the befitting social role for a woman. Ultimately, she is portrayed as irrational and emotionally labile, driven by insatiable desires: "I don't know myself," says Anna as she sinks near to her lowest ebb; "I only know my appetites, as the French say."15 Bibliography Tolstoy, Leo, Anna Karenin, translated by Edmonds, Rosemary, Penguin, London, 1978. End Notes 1 Tolstoy, Leo, Anna Karenin, translated by Edmonds, Rosemary, Penguin, London, 1978, p. 799. 2 Ibid., p. 508. 3 Ibid., pp. 588-9. 4 Ibid., pp. 796-7. 5 Ibid., p. 490. 6 Ibid., p. 491. 7 Ibid., p. 798. 8 Ibid., p. 532. 9 Ibid., p. 672. 10 Ibid., p. 800. 11 Ibid., p. 853. 12 Ibid., p. 832. 13 Ibid. 14 Ibid., in "Introduction". 15 Ibid., p. 793

My Life as a College Student

GORDON KUSSI TABIRI English Writing: From Start to Finish My life as a college student Seven years ago I gained admission to pursue a B. A program in one of the prestigious universities in Ghana. The name of the university is Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST). I was offered a four year bachelor degree program leading to a degree in Sociology and Social Work. Thus, I read BA Sociology and Social Work. I was so happy at the time because of two reasons.One was that, I had tried twice to be admitted into the countries universities but refused until finally the third time of which I succeeded. The second reason why I was happy was related to the fact that I had the opportunity to continue my education to a level that I had always dream about. My first year as a fresher on campus was very interesting for me. I was to read sociology and social work as a major and Geography as my minor.I therefore registered for my courses for the first year which included subjects s uch as introduction to sociology, traditional social structure of Ghana, introduction to human geography, development of geographic thought, introduction to physical environmental systems, communication skills, introduction to computers, and ethics and etiquette in traditional systems. I read these subjects for the first and second semesters as my first year program. I attended all lectures, wrote my assignments and the years exams. The results of the exams came and I had a Cumulative Weighted Average (CWA) of 59. 17.I was so disappointed about my results and decided to make better grades no matter what it takes to do so. I wrote the second semester exams and improved upon my performance by obtaining a CWA of 60. 32. I realized the fact that increasing the hours of my studies yielded good results. My second year on campus was very exciting. This was because I made very good friends and also had acquainted myself with campus life in general. I had a good friend by name Christian Boat eng who happens to be an old classmate at Akrokerri College of Education where we both obtained our diploma in basic education in the year 2001.Christian was very instrumental in my life on campus because he taught me how to study for long hours. We actually took similar courses together in the first two years of our education in KNUST College. We were also roommates for three years and shared a lot of things together. My second year courses also included literature in English, introduction to geomorphology, theory and practice of geography, principles of cartography, concepts and theories in sociology, social structure of modern Ghana as well as the nature of social work. The courses were very challenging especially those related to geography.I had a successful year and also improved on my performance. This second year was very significant to my life because it was during this period that I decided to read a master’s program after graduation. That year helped me realized a l ot of my potentials and also changed my perception of life in general. My third year in KNUST also saw me reading courses such as perspectives in sociological theory, research methods, theoretical framework for social work methodology, industrial sociology, medical sociology, and also bamboo and rattan processing.I enjoyed reading these courses especially industrial sociology, medical sociology as well as sociological theory. During my third year, we were made to drop our minor course, so I concentrated only on the major which was sociology and social work and also other borrowed courses. I also managed to secure the same room on campus with my friend, Christian. We both studied hard and had very good grades in our third year exams. We also had lots of fun on campus until school vacated. Christian was actually based in Kumasi which is the city in Ghana were KNUST was located whereas I was also based at Accra, the capital city of Ghana.In view of this, I spent most of my school holid ays in Accra with my family. During the long vacation after the end of the third year, I had an attachment with Tetteh Quashie Memorial Hospital situated at Akuapem Mampong. I was attached to the social welfare department of the hospital where I performed generic social work. It was a great experience since I had practical training in dealing with social welfare cases of clients at the hospital, district court and the district family social welfare cases. My mentors taught me so well that by the time I finished my attachment, I had developed a passion of working as a social worker someday.After my attachment, I prepared for my final year academic work. On arriving on campus for my final year, I registered for courses such as social psychology, social development, human resource management, approaches to counselling in social work, environmental sociology and a long essay dissertation. I had actually started writing my BA thesis in the third year of my studies. My topic was, â€Å"t he role of non-formal education to the contribution of the social and economic development of Ghana: a case study of the Ejisu- Juaben Municipality†.It was a great and challenging topic to write, in that there wasn't much literature on the subject of non-formal education. Owing to that, I researched the web widely in writing this project. My supervisor by name Mr. Barnie gave me all the directions and support so well that I obtained an excellent grade in this long essay. I was very excited because I was constrained by time in combining my academic work with writing of this thesis. In spite of all the challenges, my hard work paid off with me obtaining very good grades in all my final courses I took.Thus, I completed all my forth year course exams and was ready for graduation. We were to graduate exactly one month after completion of all the necessary course requirements. I was among one of the students who were to graduate with second class upper (honors) degree in sociology a nd social work. During graduation, my uncle and a cousin of mine accompanied me, and it is a day that I will never forget in my life. I dressed neatly in my graduation gown and went through the ceremony very happy of my accomplishments. After the ceremony I took several pictures with friends and my family and we had a great party after the occasion.I would never forget my experience on campus because it transformed my life. My general outlook of life has changed tremendously. I now understand that I have great capabilities as well as weaknesses. My college experience has contributed in shaping my personality today. I have learnt to work hard to overcome my weaknesses as well as develop my potentials and capabilities. This is the reason that I had saved money to pursue a master’s program in Switzerland to be able to actualize my dreams and aspirations in life.

Black Feminist Theory Essay

Sula is Morrison’s main character and is a perfect example of a Liberated woman. According to Lois Tyson’s definition of a Liberated Woman, Sula has â€Å"discovered her abilities, knows what she needs, and goes about getting it. † Along with all these activities, comes pride and independence. It began when Sula was younger as she had Nel, her best friend, by her side. â€Å"In the safe harbor of each other’s company they could afford to abandon the ways of other people and concentrate on their own perceptions of things,† (55). Her friendship gave her the comfort to be herself and confident on acting on her own terms. Sula continued this attitude into adulthood but not everyone agreed with her actions towards getting what she wants. Sula leaves for 10 years to go to college and live her life beyond the Bottom. When she finally comes back, she and Eva get into an argument. Eva brings up her disappointment in Sula for not settling down with a family and Sula lashes back with, †I don’t want to make somebody else. I want to make myself, † (92). She displays her aversion to not have anyone dependent on her and she wants to only care for herself. Having a family and a husband, in her opinion, would stop her from getting what she wants or needs and would put herself second in her life. Sula doesn’t want to be tied down and oppressed by a man, she wants to be independent and she’s not ashamed about being the only woman wanting her independence . When Nel finally confronts Sula about her affair with Jude, Nel accuses Sula of being proud but she responds with â€Å"‘What you talking about? I like my own dirt, Nellie. I’m not proud’,† (142). This shows how Nel, along with everyone in the bottom, thinks she’s proud or conceded, but in actuality, she’s just not ashamed of her decisions or life style. Lois Tyson continues the definition of a liberated woman with â€Å"the ‘liberated woman’ has already found herself and likes what she has found. † When sula says â€Å"I like my own dirt† she supports Tyson’s definition because Sula also â€Å"likes what she has found. † Sula’s independence, and her pride in being so, fully supports Tyson’s complete definition of a Liberated Woman. Nel’s character fits into an Emergent Woman as she â€Å"[comes] to an awareness of her own psychological and political oppresion†¦ usually through a harsh experience of initiation that makes her ready for change. † On Nel’s trip to meet her grandmother, Nel witnesses her mother’s â€Å"custard† being revealed. From then on Nel â€Å"resolved to be on guard- always. She wanted to make certain that no man ever looked at her that way. That no midnight eyes of marbled flesh would accost her and turn her into jelly† (22). Ashamed of the â€Å"jelly† or the weak substance â€Å"custard† that Morrison also associates with Helene, Nel makes certain that no man shall look at her, and make her into anything weak. In this secne, she becomes aware of her mother’s oppression and makes the decision to never allow it in her life. At the end of their trip, Nel lays in bed thinking about the possibility of ending up like her mother. To establish her independence separate from her mother, Nel states, †I’m me. I’m not their daughter. I’m not Nel. I’m me. Me,† (28). As an Emergent woman, she demonstrates her ability to make her own choices and establish her own independence. Years Later, filled with resentment towards Sula, Nel visits ill Sula in her deathbed. For years, her depression was encouraged by the thought that her husband was taken and now she is alone to take care of her children. She believed it was all Sula’s fault and she hated her for this, but one day she confronts Sula about taking Jude away from her, and Sula asks â€Å"What you mean take him away? I didn’t kill him, I just fucked him. If we were such good friends, how come you couldn’t get over it? † Nel starts to think of the idea of it not being Sula’s fault, that Jude was the one who put her through the heart break of being alone. Sula dies and Nel attends her burial. There she realizes that â€Å"all that time, [she] thought [she] was missing Jude,† but actually, she missed her friendship with Sula (174). Their friendship was more supportive than her marriage as Sula helped bring out the ’me’ in Nel that she lost in her marriage to Jude. Her epiphany helps her to notice how Jude was the one who hurt her , and now she can move on. Toni Morrison portrays Eva Peace as a suspended woman. According to Mary Helen Washington, a suspended woman is a â€Å"victim of men and of society as a whole, with few or no options. † Morrison starts off Eva’s story with her discontented marriage to her husband, BoyBoy. BoyBoy â€Å"liked womanizing best, drinking second, and abusing Eva third,† (32). Eva, disappointingly, tolerates all his abuse, because of her dependency on BoyBoy. One day, when he leaves her and their three children, her dependency becomes clear. Being inconsiderate of his family’s welfare, he leaves as his worst affliction to his wife. Now, abandoned with nearly no money,Eva realizes that â€Å"the children needed her† and â€Å"she needed money,† (32). This shows her desperation and how BoyBoy belittled her as she had to beg and rely on the neighbors for basic necessities like food for her children. Her Neighbors â€Å"were very willing to help, but Eva felt she would soon run her welcome out† and the fact that she had to continue begging, knowing she had ask for enough, embarrassed her. Eva struggles to raise them on her own and one day her son, Plum, stopps having his bowel movements. When all the stress and pressure gets to her, â€Å"Eva squatted there wondering†¦ what was she doing down on her haunches†¦ She shook her head as though to juggle her brains around, then said aloud, ‘Uh uh. Nooo,’†(34). Eva leaves her children with her neighbor for more than a year and comes back with one leg, losing the other for money to care for her children. If BoyBoy had never abused or had left her, she would have never been a victim and never would have had to sacrifice her pride and her leg. This proves she’s a suspended woman because BoyBoy’s abuse and abandonment left her with the only option to leave her children and sell her leg, because as a black woman in their society, she had very few options. Toni Morrison exemplifies Mary Helen Washington’s definitions in Nel, Sula, and Eva through out Sula, using their experiences and personalities. Sula’s independence, Nel’s epiphany, and Eva’s abuse all characterize them into their type of African American female character, making Sula a Liberated Woman, Nel an Emergent Woman, and Eva a suspended woman.

Violating Social Norms

For this assignment, I decided to violate the social norm of not talking on the phone while watching a movie in a movie theater. Before the movie started, I tested my sister and asked her to call me during the movie. When she did so, I proceeded to have a 2-3 minute conversation with her and spoke loudly so that those around me would notice and be distracted. The people around me In the theater were obviously bothered by my behavior and annoyed. Several people turned around to stare at me or whispered under their breath to their friends.A few Just Just shook their heads or sighed. The social norm of refraining from talking on the phone during In a movie theater was an example of an explicit (In this case), Injunctive norm. The norm was explicit because during the movie previews, there was an advertisement that read â€Å"Please no talking on the phone or testing during the movie. † Through this ad, everyone In the theater was made directly aware of the social norm. Not talking on the phone In a movie is an injunctive norm because it is observed as the socially acceptable and polite thing to do.It is perceived that people approve of this behavior because it shows respect and consideration for those who want to watch the movie free of distractions or disturbances. This social norm is typically enforced through compliance. Even if a person might originally consider talking on the phone in a movie theater, they usually comply with the theater's directly stated request to not do so in the pre-movie â€Å"Please do not talk on the phone or text during the movie† message. My violation of this social norm elicited various mechanisms of social control from those surrounding me.As mentioned above, fellow movie-watchers tried to make me feel guilty for my â€Å"rude† behavior by fidgeting in their seats, loudly sighing, frequently turning around to stare at me, and muttering complaints to their friends. A woman at the end of my row even turned to face me and loudly said â€Å"Really!? Please get off your phone. † During my violation of a social norm, I felt extremely uncomfortable and self- conscious. I felt like all the attention in the theater was focused on me, and that everyone was negatively Judging me. As a result of the hostile responses around me, I let very attacked, anxious and embarrassed.I wanted to remove myself from the awkward situation as soon as possible. I think the people around me In the movie theater would explain my behavior with the assumption that I have a blatant disregard for others. They would probably attribute my violation of the social norm to what they see as self-centeredness, disrespect, and social awkwardness because compliance with the norm of not using your cell phone in a movie theater attempts to show decency and concern for the enjoyment of others. Since I used my phone and did not try to control my volume, people logically assumed that I Just didn't care about those around me.Violat ing Social Norms By calligrapher's would notice and be distracted. The people around me in the theater were obviously The social norm of refraining from talking on the phone during in a movie theater was an example of an explicit (in this case), injunctive norm. The norm was explicit talking on the phone or testing during the movie. † Through this ad, everyone in the theater was made directly aware of the social norm.

Social environment of business

Business Power James Buchanan Duke was born on December 23rd 1856 In North Carolina. HIS father was the owner of a small factory which produced a brand of chewing tobacco named Pro Bono Public. As he became older It was time for him to take over his father's business, however the number of competition was too high. Taking a major risk, he committed his company to a then-novel product- the cigarette. Unfortunately, back in those days, cigarettes were used by people from the lower class, and they were looked down upon. In spite of this, in 1881 Duke brought 10 Russian migrant cigarette rollers to his North Carolina factory and made about 2,000 per day. Since there was no demand at first, Duke decided to use a famous actress to advertise his cigarettes on a full page newspaper ad. By that time, James Bonsais had invented a machine capable of rolling 200 cigarettes per minute, which failed. Duke saw the opportunity and signed an agreement to operate the machine. The costs of production per thousand was down to $30 from $. 80. Duke moved to New York and had the Idea to hire people to visit tobacco shops ND demand his new machine-rolled Cameo and Cross Cut brands. At one time, he even put glamour photos of semi-nude American actresses on cigarette packs in China. In fact, his cigarettes became a big hit with Chinese men due to this. After carefully observing Rockefeller conquest of the oil industry he saw that his methods could be applied to the tobacco industry. 3 In 1884, he built a holding company called the American Tobacco trust.Bye he had built the trust into a monopoly that controlled 98 percent of the domestic cigarette market and sold 2. Billion cigarettes. His method was to sell his cigarettes at full retail price to dealers which were spied on occasionally by detectives to make sure they were not selling competitors brands. Duke's method shows how much the power of commerce can Influence society. Although cigarettes are poisonous for society's health, he managed to make this product acceptable in people's eyes.There have been many studies done which proved that the use of advertisement is a very powerful tool to use with society, especially with the youth. One of the study was conducted by researchers from Dartmouth Medical School where they followed more than 5,000 Vermont and New Hampshire students ages 10 to 16 from 12 to 26 months. They found that those with higher exposure to movie alcohol use at the initial assessment were more likely to have started drinking at time of follow-up. They also found depictions of alcohol use in 92% of 601 contemporary movies, including in 52% of G-rated films. According to the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth at Georgetown university, alcohol impasses spend nearly $2 billion every year on advertising In the united States. Between 2001 and 2007, there were more than 2 million television ads and 20,000 magazine ads for alcoholic products. 51 believe that this Is a big problem In today's societ y. People are being brainwashed by what they see on television, the Internet shown too much on media which makes it â€Å"okay† for teenagers to use them. Unfortunately, managers need to run their company and would do anything in the hope of becoming successful.