Mechanical Reproduction Essay Example for Free

Mechanical Reproduction Essay Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction by Walter Benjamin can be summed up into two important subjects—reproducibility and the concept of the aura. One of the main ideas of Benjamin Walter’s work is technological advancement in the field of the arts which has changed art itself. Mass reproduction of works of art has made even the replicas works of art by themselves. Consequently, the original has lost its authenticity. The concept of the aura is the next major idea that Benjamin Walter discusses—the aura is the very essence of a work of art, which is lost because of mass reproduction, particularly art that uses film as a medium. As the times change, so to do the perceptions of humans—and thus, contributing to the demise of the aura in art. Art and tradition go hand in hand, but with the advent of modern mediums today, art as business (mass production) has become the main concern. Art has two functions, either as â€Å"cult† magical in function, hidden from view, or as a public spectacle. The difference between film and portraits is that film does not have that aura. The succeeding sections mostly talk about film. One section delves into some theories on film, while another section talks about the actor, citing differences between acting in front of a live audience and acting in front of the camera and how the camera destroys the aura of the acting. Section nine is about how anyone can, or rather, play as works of art because of film. The camera hides real talent and shows only that which the filmmakers want to project. The rest of the discussion is still about film and the differences this new technology has made into our modern perception of art. Work Cited Benjamin, Walter. â€Å"The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction. † Core Concepts for Communication and Web Development. English Department, Bentley College. 02 March 2009 http://web. bentley. edu/empl/c/rcrooks/toolbox/common_knowledge/general_communication/benjamin. html.

Slavery :: Slavery Essays

Oppression and cruelty; just two of the many words used to describe slavery. However no word or words can be used to truly illustrate the hardships and tough times that the slaves went through. In the time of slavery, innocent people were taken from their homes and separated from their families to be sold as workers to people around the world. They did not just work, similar to modern times, they were restrained and held captive while being forced to work in terrible and unsuitable conditions. These people had dark skin, which the slave owners saw as an asset due to the fact that they could stay in the sun longer. In particular was a slave by the name of Olaudah Equiano, who wrote a personal narrative on his own experiences during slavery. In his writings, he did an excellent job in highlighting the oppression and cruelty in his own life and other peoples as well. The point of his narrative was to turn the English public against slavery. Based on what I have read, I can now give a cl earer opposition to slavery due to the fact that he has exemplified what slavery was really like. The idea of taking many, many people from their homelands and bringing them to a foreign place seems a bit over whelming. This seems like impossibility when looked at by the slaves’ point of view. During the times of slaves, the ships and such were not as advanced as they are now. They used wind and oars to power the boats. In addition, these boats were not being produced at a high rate. The point being the ships were so over crowded that it seemed pointless to ship slaves overseas. The slaves were put in these ships and packed into rooms that were not made to accommodate that many people. Equiano writes, "The closeness of the place, and the heat of the climate, added to the number in the ship, which was so crowded that each had scarcely enough room to turn himself, almost suffocated us" (p.56). This was how the slaves were kept when they were put under the deck. Enormous amounts of people packed into one small space. In this situation, one must think about the possible outcomes. If there are a lot of people, literally on top have on another, outbreak of disease will eventually occur- and of course it did.

“Dr Jekyll is a victim of his time and deserves our sympathy.” Do you agree? Essay

Dr. Henry Jekyll was born into an age of respectability, religion, and morality. The Victorians believed in â€Å"progress†, self discipline and strict, stern morality. Writers like Samuel Smiles wrote about â€Å"Self Help†. The Victorian age was one of polarisation of the lifestyle of the people. There were always two kinds of people, the respectable Jekylls and the destructive and filthy Hydes. â€Å"Pleasures† like prostitution and gambling, were frowned on by all of high society. Even so, many respectable people indulged in these activities in secret by night and then by day take part in a communal criticism of these actions. The Victorians were hideous hypocrites. Famous people such as Dr. Banardo were biefly suspected of the 1888 Ripper murders. The Victorians had a rigid social structure. There were the middle and upper classes who owned the vast majority of the nation’s wealth. There were the lower classes who often lived in abysmal conditions, meanwhile the rich people lived in luxury. Stevenson was fascinated by this polarisation, this was maybe because his father was a strict Protestant calvinist. In his writing Stevenson highlights the extremes of society because this was something which was a feature of his life, he had been known to be a â€Å"slum adventurer†. Dr. Henry Jekyll held a very high position in Victorian society. However, he was truly a rebellious character who wanted to do exactly as he pleased. It was incredibly difficult for him to do as he liked, because of his high social status. Jekyll created Hyde to let Jekyll be a rebel without the risk of being caught. At the other end of the spectrum there is Mr. Utterson. He was a lawyer and very respectible, but he does not indulge in â€Å"pleasures†. We see that â€Å"†¦though he enjoyed the theatre, [he] had not crossed the doors of one for twenty years†. Mr. Utterson is a vicarious person. In a way, Utterson is the opposite of Jekyll, he constrains himself and ensures his respectibility. Jekyll, on the other hand, wants to have everything, so he creates Hyde. One of Jekyll’s friends was Dr. Lanyon. He was a very conventional doctor, whereas Jekyll was very experimental and inventive in his profession. We see that Lanyon did not think much of this â€Å"unscientific balderdash†. There are some cases where sympathy for Jekyll is needed. He just wants to do what he wants, so he creates Hyde, this makes us feel some sympathy because of the desperateness of his situation, but at the same time he loses some sympathy because not everyone can have everything they want. Initially he doesn’t know what the consequences of taking the drugs will be, he is risking death for the furtherment of science, which may give us some sympathy. Also what he doesn’t know is that it matters what state of mind you are in when you take the drug†Had I approached my discovery in a more noble spirit†¦an angel instead of a fiend†, an evil person comes out of the experiment. Instead of just using Hyde from time to time, Jekyll gets addicted to Hyde (through some fault of his own he needed slef control) and soon the transformation becomes almost independent of his taking the drugs to change into Hyde. Hyde is without a doubt a terrible person. The incident where he tramples over the small girl reinforces this. It is a demonstration of the duality of nature of man where a respectable doctor can trample a small girl and not think twice. However, Hyde’s wrong doing does not stop at this. There is the brutal murder of Sir Danvers Carew, who was an MP, so very high up in society. In Dr Jekyll’s full statement of the case he admits that it was Hyde who murdered Carew; â€Å"It was Hyde, after all, and Hyde alone that was guilty† This ease with which he accepts Hyde’s guilt and tries to shift the blame for this terrible act makes us feel less sympathy for Jekyll, as surely he should be more than a little upset if something that he has created can to such an awful thing. When he first discovers that he can change into Hyde spontaneously, he is absolutely mortified â€Å"I must have stared upon it half a minute†¦I rushed to the mirror†¦ my blood was changed to something exquisitely thin and icy† We may feel some sympathy for Jekyll because of this, but on the other hand, Jekyll maybe could have seen what’s coming and stopped using Hyde. We also may feel less sympathy because it’s not that Jekyll can’t remember what Hyde’s been doing; â€Å"My two natures had memory in common† so maybe Jekyll should have realised that Hyde was being too evil and tried to stop unleashing him on the world before Hyde does any serious damage, as we see he does when he murders Carew. To some extent he does limit himself, he stopped using Hyde for two months, this makes us feel a lot more sympathy for Jekyll. When Jekyll goes into hiding after the murder of Carew he feels very remorseful about the death of Carew, and this makes us feel a little sympathetic towards him. He does not, however, turn himself in immediately for fear of the death penalty, he is rather selfish; â€Å"I think I was glad to have my better impulses thus buttressed and guarded by the terrors of the scaffold.† Jekyll thinks about trying to relieve his pain by having his pleasures as himself â€Å"No, it was in my own person, that i was once more tempted to trifle with my conscience†, and he does so. This makes us feel a bit of sympathy for him, as all he wants is to be free. Later on in his full statement of the case, he says â€Å"A change had come over me . It was no longer the fear of the gallows, it was the horror of being Hyde that racked me.† This gives us some respect for Jekyll, it shows he is altruistic. He doesn’t mind being hanged so much, more he feels that if he lets Hyde loose again he will do even more evil. This is the reason why he turned himself in, and we have to respect him for this action. Victorian society of obviously partly to blame for the demise of Dr. Jekyll. We see that if he had been allowed to indulge in his pleasures without being criticised and becoming a social outcast maybe his bad side would have come out more slowly, not through the terrible deeds that Hyde does; â€Å"My devil had been long caged, he came out roaring.† Nowadays we tend to tolerate depraved activities. If the addictions get too bad we try and help those affected; we don’t expel them from society. I think that the incident of Jekyll was partly Jekyll’s fault, but mostly society’s fault for not letting him be free. I do agree that Jekyll is a victim of his time and deseves out sympathy.

Buddhism& Religion

These were the lines the Buddha was believed to have said before he passed away at 80 years old (Boeree, 1999) after founding a way of thinking that would become one of the world’s biggest religions. Prince Siddhartha had everything in life: a loving family and riches beyond imagining. However, in spite of such abundance, Siddhartha had a lingering discontent. As Hesse (trans. Rosner, 1971) wrote in is his book, â€Å"†¦He still lacked all joy in his heart. Dreams and restless thoughts came into his mind†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Such restlessness compelled him to leave the comforts and safety of his kingdom to search for life’s purpose.Thus began Prince Siddhartha’s journey to enlightenment. After achieving the awakening that he desired, Siddhartha called himself Buddha or the Enlightened One, whose teachings became the foundations of Buddhism. WHAT I LIKE ABOUT BUDDHISM I can honestly say that my previous knowledge of Buddhism was limited to what I witnessed in the m usical The King and I, which isn’t much if you have seen it. So reading about this particular religion was really fascinating and an eye-opener as well. As I learned more about Buddhism, I realized it is not an organized religion; more of a way of thinking.As Keown (1996) once said, â€Å"Problems of the kind just mentioned confront us as soon as we try to define what Buddhism is. Is it a religion? A philosophy? A way of life? A code of ethics? It is not easy to classify Buddhism as any of these things, and it challenges us to rethink some of these categories. † Indeed, it is not for us to classify or label Buddhism, or any other philosophy for that matter. I suppose it should just be taken for the way it is and for the ideas that is espouses. In Buddhism, you are welcome to come and leave as you wish.The path of Buddha is a simple, ethical life, and awareness of thoughts and actions, that leads to wisdom and understanding. Buddhists pay respect to Buddha not to worshi p him; but to thank him for showing them the path to enlightenment. A major aspect of Buddhism is meditation. Buddhists believe that by going into your own thoughts, you cleanse and purify your soul. Meditation, while relaxing the body, sharply focuses the mind, thus enabling us to purge negative energy and achieve clarity of thought. Meditation is a keystone in Buddhism; without which one cannot achieve the awakening that they are looking for.For Buddhists the mediation technique can calm them, but it does not lead entirely away from all of our sufferings. There are a number of different approaches to Buddhism meditation. Meditation as keystone of meditation came from the fact that Buddha himself attained enlightenment during a long period of mediation. The first approach is samatha or calm meditation. The idea here is to calm the body and mind and bring one’s self into a state of perfect concentration. To attain this, breathing is very important; there has to be consciousne ss of one’s breath as it drifts in and out of the body.To the Buddhists, concentrating this way leaves no room for disruptive mental thoughts, known as the five hindrances: sensual desire, ill-will, sloth and torpor, restlessness and work, and skeptical doubt. When all these disruptions have been removed, this kind of calm meditation leads to a blissful state known as jhanas. But regardless of the benefits that calm meditation offers, it does not provide a complete pathway to enlightenment. Many Buddhists merge the calm meditation with or insight meditation. This type of meditation is intended for developing within us awareness of the world as it really is.It asks us to be aware of what we are doing at the precise moment we are doing it. Some people call this process metacognition, or awareness of our awareness. I have been practicing meditation for some months now. And studying Buddhism, I am able to appreciate the process even more. It is amazing how I find so much peace ju st by closing my eyes and be aware of every breath that I take. I agree with the Buddhists, meditation definitely brings inner peace and contentment. It renews the spirit and gives me the strength to cope with life’s uncertainties.WHAT I DON’T LIKE ABOUT BUDDHISM It’s hard to think of something that I would like to change about Buddhism. It has withstood the test of time, and deserves respect for that. Religion, if Buddhism is one of them, is one of the things that must abide in this world. Buddhism must be constant, a stronghold for people who are looking for peace and meaning in their lives. Buddhism advocates non-violence and respect for all living creatures. The ultimate goal of a Buddhist is to reach a state of sustained self-enlightenment or Nirvana, which is liberation from the bonds of reincarnation.This can be achieved through constant meditation and consciousness of thought and action. Buddhists are fierce vegetarians and are known for their stark, sim ple lifestyles and pacifist beliefs. They welcome anyone who wants to espouse their ways and do not impose that you forsake your own religious beliefs. The Buddha said that it did not matter what a person’s status in the world was, or what their background or wealth or nationality might be. All were capable of enlightenment, and all were welcome into the Sangha or community of followers. (Boeree, 1999)If I were a leader of Buddhism, I will resolve to remain faithful to the spirit in which Buddhism has been founded. Perfection can lead to complacency. The very philosophy of Buddhism renders it imperfect because it is always striving to attain awakening and enlightenment. The desire to change and better ourselves is the impetus that will keep us searching in life and within ourselves. However, if I were to choose something I don not like about Buddhism, it would have to be their stubborn refusal to make a stand and fight for their way of life.This refusal to fight in defense of their own has been the cause of their oppression. In the highlands of Tibet and Nepal, where Buddhism has established an unbroken, traditional way of living, there has been an upheaval because neighboring countries have been trying to take over these majestic lands and rule them. I believe that Buddhism has earned the right to keep their way of living, and no country has the right to come in and take that away, all in the name of progress. And Buddhist, in defense of their right to keep their traditions and simple living should fight for it.Of course I understand that fighting goes against the very grain of Buddha’s teachings of non-violence. But if the espousal of non-violence threatens their very existence, and will change their way of life to the very core, then that justifies fighting by all means. By fighting, I don’t mean the aggressive kind, but the kind of fighting that one needs to do when there is a clear and present danger that threatens your territory and life. Everyone, regardless of creed or color has the right to defend himself.That is a basic human right that everyone should respect and protect. Indeed, there is room for righteous fighting; even in the non-violent world of Buddhism. REFERENCES: Boeree, G (1999). The Life of Siddhartha Gautama. Shippensburg University http://webspace. ship. edu/cgboer/siddhartha. html Keown, D (1996). Buddhism: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press. Oxford. Hesse, H (1971). Siddhartha. (H. Rosner, Trans). Bantam Books. (Original work published 1922). Hopfe L. M. & Woodward. M. R. (2007). Religions of the World. Pearson Education Inc. New Jersey.

Free Essays on Suffering

â€Å"We cannot directly experience anyone else's pain, whether that "anyone†is our best friend or a stray dog. Pain is a state of consciousness, a "mental event, †and as such it can never be observed. Behaviour like writhing, screaming, or drawing one's hand away from the lighted cigarette is not pain itself; nor are the recordings a neurologist might make of activity within the brain observations of pain itself. Pain is something that we feel, and we can only infer that others are feeling it from various external indications . . . †( Singer, 1990 ). Many environmentalists like Aldo Leopold and Holmes Rolston III criticize as unecological the emphasis those animal liberationists like Peter Singer place on preventing animal suffering. Their argument holds that animal liberationists must regard predation as bad by extending the role of moral consideration to include things that do not feel pain or pleasure. The view that Leopold and Rolston hold maintain that like the natural system of the animal world ( humans and non-human animals ), the eco systems of the land (including soil, plants, and all animals) is highly debatable and should be taken into moral consideration. This paper disputes the latter view by arguing that the capacity for suffering and enjoying things is a prerequisite for having interests at all. As Holmes Rolston III argues, â€Å"Singer has himself proved blind to the still larger effort in environmental ethics to value life in all its ranges and levels, indeed to care for biosphere Earth . . . His victory is mainly for vertebrates, who form only 4 percent of living things by species and only a tiny fraction of a per cent by numbers of individuals†( Rolston, 1990 ). It is reasonable to suppose all vertebrate animals to be capable of feeling pain. With invertebrates the matter becomes unclear but some invertebrates also seem likely to experience pain. As Singer says, â€Å"In each case we must look at the n... Free Essays on Suffering Free Essays on Suffering â€Å"We cannot directly experience anyone else's pain, whether that "anyone†is our best friend or a stray dog. Pain is a state of consciousness, a "mental event, †and as such it can never be observed. Behaviour like writhing, screaming, or drawing one's hand away from the lighted cigarette is not pain itself; nor are the recordings a neurologist might make of activity within the brain observations of pain itself. Pain is something that we feel, and we can only infer that others are feeling it from various external indications . . . †( Singer, 1990 ). Many environmentalists like Aldo Leopold and Holmes Rolston III criticize as unecological the emphasis those animal liberationists like Peter Singer place on preventing animal suffering. Their argument holds that animal liberationists must regard predation as bad by extending the role of moral consideration to include things that do not feel pain or pleasure. The view that Leopold and Rolston hold maintain that like the natural system of the animal world ( humans and non-human animals ), the eco systems of the land (including soil, plants, and all animals) is highly debatable and should be taken into moral consideration. This paper disputes the latter view by arguing that the capacity for suffering and enjoying things is a prerequisite for having interests at all. As Holmes Rolston III argues, â€Å"Singer has himself proved blind to the still larger effort in environmental ethics to value life in all its ranges and levels, indeed to care for biosphere Earth . . . His victory is mainly for vertebrates, who form only 4 percent of living things by species and only a tiny fraction of a per cent by numbers of individuals†( Rolston, 1990 ). It is reasonable to suppose all vertebrate animals to be capable of feeling pain. With invertebrates the matter becomes unclear but some invertebrates also seem likely to experience pain. As Singer says, â€Å"In each case we must look at the n...

Why You Don’t Have to Look Good on Your Resume

Why You Don’t Have to Look Good on Your Resume True or false? â€Å"A resume is supposed to make you look good.† Answer:   FALSE Well, I’ll concede, it’s only partially false.   Although you want your resume to look good and to portray your job history and accomplishments in a clear and impressive manner, it’s important not to overdo your attempts to impress your reader. The misconception that a resume is supposed to make you look good can lead to mischaracterization of job duties, inflation of accomplishments, and flowery, high-falutin language.   None of those things belong on a resume!   Stick to the truth instead. Example #1:   A client who was applying for development jobs wrote in a bullet that she â€Å"[a]ssisted in organizing† a conference.   Since I do not like to see the word â€Å"assist† on a resume (see Words to Delete from Your Resume), I asked her what exactly she did to assist.   It turns out she set up tables and provided registration assistance on the day of the conference, but had no involvement in the planning or organization of the event.   We changed the verb in her bullet to â€Å"Staffed† – a much more accurate description of what this applicant did. Example #2:   A client stated that she â€Å"[p]articipated in† company meetings.   In actuality, she had organized materials for the meetings and attended them.   We made her language more specific, thus accurately reflecting her activities. Why not stretch the truth just a little? First of all, I never condone lying about anything and always support acting with integrity.   Additionally, if your resume gets you an interview, you could be asked questions about absolutely anything you’ve written.   You don’t want to get caught in even the tiniest lie. I’m glad I asked my clients questions about their bullets before an interviewer did.   The first client was applying to jobs where she could easily be called upon to organize a conference; if she submitted a resume that overstated her experience in conference organization, it could lead to an embarrassing and deal-killing interview moment.   Similarly, the second client was applying to jobs that entailed numerous meetings, and familiarity with meeting protocol was required.   It was dangerous for him as well to represent his experience inaccurately. When you are creating resume bullet points, and even when you are writing your Summary of Qualifications, make sure to report your activities, qualifications and accomplishments accurately.   Without using impressive or flowery language, you can succeed in writing a resume that makes you look good by clearly and truthfully conveying your accomplishments. As in so many other things, honesty on your resume is the best policy.   Think of the most impressive thing you can truthfully report and let it speak for itself.   Follow this advice and you’ll look good without even trying. Need resume help?   Contact The Essay Expert for a free 15 minute consultation. 🙂 Log in to Reply Paul Novak says: September 22, 2010 at 3:28 pm I think you may have described the most popular practices used in creating online business profiles. Until I started working online I had no idea there were so many assistant and associate positions;) Log in to Reply The Essay Expert says: September 22, 2010 at 4:39 pm Inflation and exaggeration are rampant indeed, in multiple areas of business. Although sometimes intentional, I think many of the overstatements come from a lack of rigor or willingness to be exact with language. Using a writing coach helps! Log in to Reply Jarom says: September 22, 2010 at 8:49 pm Thanks for pointing these posts out to me Brenda! Its awesome to see that youre getting some great comments and feedback. Log in to Reply Oz says: September 23, 2010 at 5:03 pm Brenda, this is very good advice. I took a resume class in college that taught me a lot about how to properly write a resume. Your tips are spot on. I recently wrote a blog entry, highlighting a similar topic from Salary.com about what not to put on a resume: https://garretts-attic.net/blog/2010/09/10-things-to-never-put-on-a-resume/ Log in to Reply The Essay Expert says: September 23, 2010 at 5:37 pm To clarify Jaroms remark, the multiple comments on this blog were generated largely by membership and participation in the Blog Zone group on LinkedIn. If any bloggers are reading, I recommend you join! Log in to Reply The Essay Expert says: September 23, 2010 at 5:38 pm Thanks for the affirmation Oz! I wrote this because multiple examples were coming up in my work, and I think many people are unaware that they are even doing it! Log in to Reply Jason Bahamundi says: September 24, 2010 at 6:48 am Brenda This is a great article. As an person who is unemployed and is sending out resumes I often wonder two things: 1- What would make me stand out more to the hiring manager and should I be more creative with it? The answer has always been no because if you are constantly changing information on your resume that is not true you could end up getting caught as you point out and trying to remember what you put on resume #1 versus resume #100 would be almost impossible 2- What are others putting on their resume and why havent I gotten a call since I think I am a perfect fit? Well since your article talks about building up ones accomplishments, that might just be the case here. By being patient maybe those that have embelished their resume will get uncovered and I WILL eventually get that call. Thank you for this post. Log in to Reply The Essay Expert says: September 24, 2010 at 8:13 am Youre welcome Jason. It might be that you are not being specific enough on your resume. Specificity helps your accomplishments stand out. Make sure you have items on the resume that do not sound like a job description! If youd like me to take a look I can give you a free 15 minute assessment. See my article published in New Grad Life, Back to the Future Log in to Reply

Brittany Article 4 Overview Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Brittany 4 Overview - Article Example The article "Brittany Article 4 Overview" presents the analysis of the Brittany Article 4 regarding the significance of younger employees recruitment and retention. The author of the article concurs with the sentiment that federal retirees often have little motivation or incentives to return to work because the current policy would reduce or cut their salaries by a number of their pensions. The office of personnel management has argued that redefining and modifying the rules to bring back skilled and experienced retirees on a part-time basis without interfering with their pensions would permit federal agencies to rehire recently retired workers to help with short term projects, train the future generation and fill critical gaps. Federal labor unions argue that it is imperative to have a more useful approach to offsetting the sting of retirement could be an increase of alternatives available to agencies incorporating flexible, part-time, and flex-place schedules for retirees. The author agrees that lawmakers should not make a permanent change to the statute but rather they should encourage the creation of a pilot program that would last for five years to assess and evaluate how the agencies react. In sum, recruitment and retention of younger workers should be encouraged since it will avert the issue of retirement in future. The federal retiree should be allowed to return to the workforce since they bring in skills and experiences. Therefore, the government should pay retirees who are willing to return to the workforce.