The Modern Prometheus Essay Example for Free

The Modern Prometheus Essay I always saw my monster as something inarticulate, helpless and tragic. To him, Frankenstein was God. Boris Karloff (on his portrayal of Mary Shelleys monster). Who or what, in your opinion, is the real monster in Frankenstein? Ever since Mary Godwin wrote the first edition of Frankenstein, as a then unmarried 19yr old girl, people have been voicing different opinions over who is the real monster in the novel. Since the first writing of the novel, it has been rewritten and reworked into many different films and plays. Many of these do not follow the storyline of the book exactly and often portray the monster as a savage beast who has no self-control, knowledge, understanding and, most of all, feelings. Mary Shelley rewrote her first edition in 1831. This volume is more conservative and does not shock the reader as much as the first edition did. It portrays Victor more sympathetically and the monster more intellectually gifted than the first version. Mary Shelley illustrates many opposites in this novel: good and evil; creator and creature; monstrous and human. But the theme I will be looking at in detail is villain and victim, which relates to the original question of who is the real monster or villain. The dictionary defines a monster as an Inhumanly wicked or cruel person; A misshapen animal; A large, hideous animal or thing. This definition seems to imply that the exterior reflects the interior, or that a frightening external appearance conceals a wicked character. The creature in this novel has the notorious reputation for being the monster, but is this really justified? The first key passage describes the creation of the monster. Shelley builds up atmosphere at the start of the chapter by her description of the weather and surroundings, It was on a dreary night of November. This contrasts with Victors anticipation. He has been waiting his entire life for a chance to create life and now his workings reach a climax. This part of the novel is also a climax for the reader. But once Victor has seen the creature he has created, he is flooded with a huge feeling of anti-climax. The creature repulses Victor on sight. He refers to the creature harshly as the wretch and is completely horrified by the thing he has just given life to. This shows that Victor is only concerned with physical appearance. This is the same as when he was studying at the university in Ingolstadt. He was so disgusted with the appearance of his tutor M. Krempe that he delayed going to his first lecture for a few weeks until he was sure that another tutor was giving the lecture. This shows intolerance of imperfection and a flaw in Victors character. Shelley advances a criticism of intolerant and superficial societies that place emphasis on appearance. Victor rejects his creation. This is like a father rejecting his child. He had to initially resort to grave robbing to obtain the material needed to create his creature. Perhaps, when the creature came to life, Victor realised the enormity of the monstrous deeds he had committed. This passage shows Victor to be a monster, as he does not even try to understand the creatures cries for help. He has forsaken any duties he is expected to perform as a father. When the creature awoke from his sleep he convulsed. When Victor awakes from his sleep, all his muscles convulse also. These could be the first signs that the creature is the other side of Victor, the side that does all the things he cannot bring himself to do. When Victor sleeps, he has a dream. This dream could be seen as prophetic. Maybe Victor is associating the birth of the creature with the death of Elizabeth. Shelleys description of the monster is full of pathos. The first things that the creature wants are contact and affection, as any newborn thing wants, but his creator or father, Victor, denies him this. When Victor awakes from his dream, he finds the creature standing nearby, reaching out a hand towards him. Victor rejects this appeal for help and recognition. This passage may parody The Creation of Man by Michelangelo, which is on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. It shows God stretching out his hand to give life to Adam. The analogy of this is that Victor is playing God and the creature is Adam. Another parody is the story of Prometheus who stole fire from the Gods and gave it to the people on earth. Victor has stolen the power of life from the Gods and given it to the people. This is why the books title has the subtitle The Modern Prometheus.

Essay --

vProspect for Essay 4 Shawn Riley Engilsh 102 20 Nov, 2013 Rebirth of the Farmers Market The rebirth of the farmers market, and does it have enough movement to expand, would it make a difference in the local economy. I want to explore if it is economical for a person to start a business and make a decent living, with today’s standards of living. Second the quality of produce at a farmers market compared to a supermarket. Finally research if small businesses contribute more to local economy more than the larger businesses. Farmer markets Farmer markets have always been around and a strong reason to believe that they will still be around long after our time. There are several reasons why this age old tradition still exitst today and revolves around a very common question, â€Å"What does a buyer find important when they are about to buy food to be consumed, or how the produce is grown/manufactured, processed, marketed, and distributed. Supporting farmer markets and ensuring fair trade among the dealer and the seller can help promote healthier lives while building stronger communities. There are several reasons to support a community’s farmer market event because buying true locally grown food can allows the buyer to have options to food that is picked fresh and tastes better than what is sold in the supermarkets. Another benefit to farmers markets is that the food is sustainable, flavorful, supports local farms, and also in some areas, part of the proceeds goes to the unfortunate within that community. Wi th the addition of the food generally being more flavorful, locally grown food is adapted to the climate in which it was grown, and can remain fresh longer than that of an imported produce grown in a different climate. Final... ... sell their product at a lower rate due to the transportation, storage, and marketing costs. Having the food sold through private markets, cuts out the middle man, and allows more money to end up back into the farms, which helps the farmer put money back into their business and other businesses. Money that goes back into local businesses then increases the local economy through a process called the multiplier effect. The multiplier effect is an economics term that is used to describe where a small investment of money is circulated back into the economy, it sets off a chain reaction that increases exponentially. For example, if a consumer gave the farmer $20 for his goods and the farmer spends three fifths of his income ($20 + (.06x$20)), $32 would be the amount of money available in the market from the initial $20 investment (Krugman, Paul R., and Robin Wells).

Against Teen Pregnancy Essay

Many adolescents are sexually active today. Whether it personal decision or being forced into it, teenagers are still involved. According to Sue Christensen and Ann Rosen, of those sexually active, only one in five use contraception (Williams). These teenagers who do not use contraception set their selves up for hardships in life. Being sexually active and using contraception as a teenager is a choice that may determine the rest of your life. Is â€Å"it† really worth it? One major outcome of those sexually active is pregnancy, which leads to many other choices: adoption, abortion, or keeping the child. Pregnancy all begins with talk of sexual activity. According to Ilene Lelchuk, out of 618 California high school students, 44 are engaged in some type of sexual activity during the years of 2002 – 2004. These 44 students have had sexual relations by the end of tenth grade (Lelchuk 1). Statistics from The Family Connection of St. Joseph County, Inc., stated that â€Å"56 percent of young women and 73 percent of young men today have had intercourse by age 18†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Williams 3). Beginning in the 1950s, there are records of teenagers having intercourse and many unwanted pregnancies. Shockingly, pregnancy trends from the 1950s to present. According to Christensen and Rosen, the teen birth rate in 1957 was higher than it is today (Williams 1). Although teenage pregnancy has become more socially acceptable in this day and age, so have pregnancy terminations and abortions. This meaning the birth rate may have gone down but the pregnancy rate has not. Yet, â€Å"In 1955†¦only six percent of white teenage childbearing occurred outside of marriage; today it is 42 percent† (Williams 1). Although a teenager becoming pregnant was very common in the 1950s, after discovering they were pregnant, it was perceived as the right thing for the father to marry the woman he impregnated. The father was often forced into marrying the mother of his child. In the eyes of the public, this was a social norm for a teenage couple soon to have a baby. Even though the couple may not necessarily have been in love with one another, they still followed what was expected of them. Therefore, today pregnant teenagers don’t marry the father as often. Prior to the 1970s, demographers and family planners were focused on health aspects of both mother and baby in unplanned pregnancies of middle-aged women. Meanwhile the sexual activity of teenagers was being overlooked and in turn on the rise. With these occurrences, more attention was devoted to teenagers having children. By the mid-1970s, it was common to see teenagers â€Å"pregnant and carrying an armload of schoolbooks†. This seemed to be the start of moral decay of young men and women as well as our society in believing this trend to be socially acceptable. According to Christensen and Rosen, sexual activity was lower in the 1970s than today (Williams 3). These statistics should have directed the educators to target the use of contraception over abstinence, since sexual ac tivity was obviously going to continue to increase. Surprisingly, even though sexual activity in teenagers has risen, the birthrate from 1990 to 2005 has decreased according to Sandra M. Alters (Teen Birthrate 1). There are good and bad reasons for this decrease. A positive force was the education of teens in the use of contraception, which lowered the likelihood of becoming pregnant. With the legalizing of abortion in 1973, teenagers started relying on abortion as an easy way out of a difficult situation. From 1972 to 1990 the pregnancy rate increased per one thousand women from 95 to 117. As stated earlier, the birth rate went down in these same years due to the abortion rate increasing from 19 to 41. In their bizarre way of thinking, this may have helped their situation but they gave no thought to the health and well-being of the unborn child. There are two choices a teenager has before she has the chance of becoming pregnant. There is the obvious choice of abstinence. Abstinence means that teenagers do not have sexual intercourse. Abstinence protects teenagers from STD’s and pregnancy 100 percent. According to the Center for Young Women’s Health, more teenagers are choosing abstinence, including those who have already been sexually active. Three out of four teens already sexually active are now choosing abstinence (Why 1). Abstinence may be hard to live by with peer pressuring interfering, but in the end it is the best decision. Although there are many temptations that lure teenagers into sexual activity, they must stay strong in what they believe and realize the outcome may change their life. There are teenage boys who will say ‘If you love me, you’d have sex with me,’ but girls must remember, if it is really love, they would be willing to wait until marriage (Why 1). Contraception is th e second option. Contraception also has a better chance of reducing the risk of pregnancy. There are many different forms of contraception. One in five teenagers do not use contraception. Those who do not use it, have a 90 percent chance of becoming pregnant (Williams 5). Many schools have tried to have sex education classes teach about the dangers of being sexually active as a teenager, yet teens overlook them. Therefore, if adults cannot stop sexual activity in adolescents, they must provide a safer way to decrease the risks of pregnancy. Contraception is a must if teenagers refuse to stop sexual activity. Teens often make mistakes of ignoring these two options, leading to unwanted pregnancies. Far too often they do not realize the impact it has on themselves and also the family because their parents do not talk to them about being sexually active. To reduce these misunderstandings, parents need to be confident and open with their children, and converse about the risks engaging in sexual activity. According to Olivia Ferguson, â€Å"Parents, as teens themselves reveal, are the ones who have the most influence on their children’s decisions about sex†. Teenagers who delay sexual activity have â€Å"an intact family structure, parentsâ⠂¬â„¢ disapproval of adolescent sex, teens’ sense of belonging to and satisfaction with their families, parental monitoring, and parent-child communication about teen sex and its consequences†. Family structure means the number of parents living in a family along with the relationship they have with their children. Adolescents who live in an intact family structure are less likely to have sexual activity. Adolescents living in a non-intact family tend to begin sexual activity sooner because of the relationship differences between parents and children. For example according to Ferguson in 1960, 88 percent of children lived with their parents; in 2007 only 68 percent lived with parents. With this in mind, in 1960 five percent of births were to unmarried women, in 2006 these numbers increased to 38.5 percent. Therefore with the increase of parent-child communication, there is a decrease in teen sex, leading to a decrease in teen pregnancy. Teenagers have three alternatives after becoming pregnant. Adoption, keeping the baby, and abortion are options pregnant teenagers will have to face. Many parents are unable to have children; hence they adopt children. Pregnant teenagers hav e the wise option of putting their baby up for adoption. Adoption is a great way to give the baby a better life. Adoption agencies are very helpful in procedures. They offer financial help and therapy to cope with both the pregnancy and the emotions of giving their baby up for adoption. They help young men and women realize it is the best decision for both the parents and the child. The pregnant mother can rest assured that the baby will be given to parents that will love the child as much or more than they could have themselves. Not only will the parents love them, but will give them the life they deserve, a good life. Abortion is seen more frequent in more successful women because they have a career to pursue. They do not think they have time to take care of a child. Teenage girls who have higher goals and greater ambitions are more likely to seek an abortion rather than those who have few goals and future plans. Abortion is also a common choice in scared teenagers or girls pressured by the father of the child. The words of boyfriends, peers, or parents have a major influence in the choices made about a baby. Abortion is often said to be an easy way out. Abortion is a horrible decision for teenagers. The pregnancy of a teenager is not the baby’s fault, therefore the baby should not be punished for the selfish decisions the mother or father make. Why have an abortion when the baby can be put up for adoption? The third option is to keep the baby. Keeping a baby means that young teenagers must learn to become young parents. They must be able to care and provide for another life, other than their own. Keeping a baby is the toughest decision because you must learn the dos and don’ts of properly raising a child. More than love is required for a baby, but the lifetime of hardships will explain. Teen pregnancy is quite common. According to USA Today, every day more than three thousand teenagers become pregnant. There were 4.31 million babies born in 2007. Of these babies, 23 percent were from teen mothers .39 out of 100 girls at the age of fourteen will get pregnant once before they reach the age of twenty (Jayson 1). Most pregnancies are unintentional, yet it is the teen’s decision to become sexually active. Teen pregnancy is definitely not worth all the hardships. Teens should choose abstinence and completely reduce the risk of becoming pregnant. If pregnancy does occur, of those sexually active, adoption is the greatest choice a teenager can make. Providing the baby with a better life is the most important. Every teenager must ask themselves, is â€Å"it† really worth it? Works cited Jayson, Sharon. â€Å"Teen Pregnancy, Abortion Rates Rise.† Teen Pregnancy, Abortion Rates Rise – USATODAY.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Aug. 2013. Lelchuk, Ilene. â€Å"SAN FRANCISCO / UCSF Explores Teens’ Post-sex Emotions.† SFGate. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Aug. 2013. â€Å"Why Is Teenage Pregnancy Declining? The Roles of Abstinence, Sexual Activity and Contraceptive Use.† Why Is Teenage Pregnancy Declining? The Roles of Abstinence, Sexual Activity and Contraceptive Use. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Aug. 2013. Williams, Anna. â€Å"Teenage Pregnancy-Ann Rosen and Sue Christensen.† : Teenage Pregnancy- Ann Rosen and Sue Christensen. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Aug. 2013.

Japans Meiji Era

The Meiji Era was the 44-year period of Japans history from 1868 to 1912 when the country was under the rule of the great Emperor Mutsuhito. Also called the Meiji Emperor, he was the first ruler of Japan to wield actual political power in centuries. An Era of Change The Meiji Era or Meiji Period was a time of incredible transformation in Japanese society. It marked the end of the Japanese system of feudalism  and completely restructured the social, economic, and military reality of life in Japan. The Meiji Era began when  a faction of daimyo  lords from Satsuma and Choshu in the far south of Japan united to overthrow the Tokugawa shogun and return political power to the Emperor. This revolution in Japan is called the Meiji Restoration. The daimyo who brought the Meiji Emperor out from behind the jeweled curtain and into the political limelight probably did not anticipate all of the repercussions of their actions. For example, the Meiji Period saw the end of the samurai and their daimyo lords, and the establishment of a modern conscript army. It also marked the beginning of a period of rapid industrialization and modernization in Japan. Some former supporters of the restoration, including the Last Samurai, Saigo Takamori, later rose up in the unsuccessful Satsuma Rebellion in protest of these radical changes. Social Prior to the Meiji Era, Japan had a feudal social structure with samurai warriors on top, followed by farmers, craftsmen, and finally merchants or traders at the bottom. During the Meiji Emperors reign, the status of the samurai was abolished - all Japanese would be considered commoners, except for the imperial family. In theory, even the  burakumin  or untouchables were now equal to all other Japanese people, although in practice discrimination was still rampant. In addition to this leveling of society, Japan also adopted many western customs during this time. Men and women abandoned silk kimono and began to wear Western-style suits and dresses. Former samurai had to cut off their topknots, and women wore their hair in fashionable bobs. Economic During the Meiji Era, Japan industrialized with incredible speed. In a country where just a few decades earlier, merchants and manufacturers were considered the lowest class of society, suddenly titans of industry were forming huge corporations that produced iron, steel, ships, railroads, and other heavy industrial goods. Within the reign of the Meiji Emperor, Japan went from a sleepy, agrarian country to an up-and-coming industrial giant.   Policy-makers and ordinary Japanese people alike felt that this was absolutely essential for Japans survival, as the western imperial powers of the time were bullying and annexing formerly strong kingdoms and empires all over Asia. Japan would not only build up its economy and its military capacity well enough to avoid being colonized - it would become a major imperial power itself in the decades following the Meiji Emperors death. Military The Meiji Era saw a rapid and massive reorganization of Japans military capabilities, as well. Since the time of Oda Nobunaga, Japanese warriors had been using firearms to great effect on the battlefield. However, the samurai sword was still the weapon that denoted Japanese warfare up until the Meiji Restoration. Under the Meiji Emperor, Japan established western-style military academies to train a whole new type of soldier. No longer would birth into a samurai family be the qualifier for military training; Japan had a conscript army now, in which the sons of former samurai might have a farmers son as a commanding officer.  The military academies brought in trainers from France, Prussia, and other western countries to teach the conscripts about modern tactics and weaponry. In the Meiji Period, Japans military reorganization made it a major world power. With battleships, mortars, and machine guns, Japan would defeat the Chinese in the First Sino-Japanese War of 1894-95, and then stun Europe by beating the Russians in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05. Japan would continue headlong down an increasingly militaristic path for the next forty years. The word meiji literally means bright plus pacify. A bit ironically, it denotes the enlightened peace of Japan under Emperor Mutsuhitos reign. In fact, although the Meiji Emperor did indeed pacify and unify Japan, it was the start of a half-century of warfare, expansion, and imperialism in Japan, which conquered the Korean Peninsula, Formosa (Taiwan), the Ryukyu Islands (Okinawa), Manchuria, and then much of the rest of East Asia between 1910 and 1945.