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The Nature of the Virtue in the Meno

The Meno is among Plato’s early dialogues. Meno starts the dialogue by questioning Socrates on whether virtue can be taught (Meno 70a). Socrates says that he is unable to answer Meno’s question since he is not aware what virtue is. Plato’s Meno is often considered one of his most significant and influential works. In his piece of writing, Plato extensively explores several philosophical issues, such as what constitutes a virtue. He addresses whether virtue is something that can be learned or is innate. This essay discusses the nature of virtue in the memo. Specifically, it presents Meno’s definitions of virtue along with their objection. It also defines whether or not virtue is teachable.

Meno defines the term virtue in three ways. In his first definition, Meno states that virtue can only be defined relative to the kind of person in question. Here, he means that the definition of virtue varies in different groups of people. He gives an example of virtue when it comes to a woman and explains that a woman’s virtue is to be good at managing a home and being submissive to her husband. He also explains that a soldier’s virtue is to be brave in battle and skilled at fighting. Meno further pinpoints different examples of virtuous conduct for other groups, such as men. He states, “If you want the virtue of a man, it is easy to say that a man’s virtue consists of being able to manage public affairs” (Meno 71e). In Meno’s view, there exists a virtue for each action, event, and age. Socrates disagrees with Meno’s definition of virtue, claiming that the philosopher has just provided several examples of it. According to Socrates, there must be something they all have in common, the reason why they are considered virtues. He also argues that a good concept definition pinpoints the core characteristic that unites all other ideas.

In his second definition, Meno defines virtue as the capacity to rule men. In his definition, he states, “What else but to be able to rule over people, if you are seeking one description to fit them all” (Meno 73d). The second definition of virtue that Meno gives is odd. However, the term may be defined in more detail for better comprehension. The accomplishment of a goal is what virtue aspires to. Happiness is the ultimate goal of every human being. Many various kinds of pleasures may contribute to one’s happiness. To fulfill one’s desire to rule over men, one must first satisfy one’s need for pleasure. In other words, gaining virtue is much easier when you’re in charge of other people. Socrates still does not agree with Meno’s second definition of virtue. He argues that the capacity to dominate men is only beneficial if the rule is fair. He further explains that justice is only of the virtues. Socrates argues that when it comes to morality, Meno identifies it with one particular virtue. Using an example, Socrates explains what he means, where he explains that there is no way to describe the idea of “shape” by referring to rectangles, circles, or triangles since they all have the same defining characteristic, which is their shape. According to Socrates, an accurate definition of shape would be something that is bounded by color.

Meno’s third definition of virtue is the capacity to acquire fine and beautiful things. According to Meno, power assists in attaining the capacity to get fine and beautiful. Socrates disagrees with Meno’s third definition of virtue, claiming that everyone wants what they believe to be good. Having differing ability to attain what they believe to be good might explain why individuals have diverse virtues. This may be done in a good or negative manner to fulfill one’s needs. Meno agrees with Socrates, explaining that such capability is only considered a virtue if exercised virtuously. Here, Meno goes right into the notion of the term he is trying to define.

Without a successful definition of virtue, Meno challenges Socrates to return to the fundamental issue of whether or not it is feasible to teach virtue. As Socrates explains, virtue may be taught, and he outlines his argument. According to him, having virtue is a wonderful thing to have. He further explains that good things can only be considered good if they are accompanied by a pearl of specific wisdom or knowledge. As such, virtue can be considered a good form of knowledge. Therefore, it is possible to teach virtue since knowledge is also teachable. This argument is riddled with inconsistencies and is not entirely convincing. The idea that for every good thing to be considered beneficial, it must be accompanied by wisdom does not imply that wisdom and virtue are the same. Definitions appear to focus on virtue as a certain form of knowledge. Here, knowledge refers to a person’s ability to determine what is best for them (Weiner 15). Any person who knows what is best for them is virtuous because they know how to live a good life and can identify the best paths to happiness.

Overall, in Meno’s first definition of virtue, he explains that virtue can only be defined relative to the kind of person and provides examples of virtuous groups of people. Socrates disagrees with this definition, claiming that Meno only gives examples of virtue. Secondly, Meno defines virtue as the capability to rule men. Socrates still refutes this definition. Meno also defines virtue as the capacity to acquire fine and beautiful things. This definition is refuted by Socrates, who argues that everyone wants what they believe to be good. He further explains that having the different capacities to attain what they believe to be good explains why individuals have diverse virtues. According to Socrates, this may be done in a good or negative manner to fulfill one’s needs. Meno, who agrees with Socrates, explains that such ability is only considered a virtue if exercised virtuously. The conversation comes to an end without a clear definition of virtue. Virtue is categorized as a special kind of wisdom or knowledge. However, the kind of knowledge that is required has not been stated. It is clear that virtue can be taught. However, no one has the theoretical knowledge to do so.

Works Cited

Grube, George Maximilian Anthony, and John M. Cooper. Five Dialogues: Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, Phaedo. Hackett Publishing, 2002.

Weiner, Ariel. “Knowledge and True Opinion in Plato’s Meno.” Pseudo-Dionysius 17 (2015).

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The nature of Virtue in the Meno

The Meno is one of the earliest Plato’s dialogues which involve the conversation between Meno enquiring Socrates whether virtue can be taught. It starts when Meno asks Socrates whether virtue is teachable or not. He states, “Can you tell me, Socrates, can virtue be taught? Or is it not teachable but the result of practice, or is neither of this, but men possess it by nature or in some other way?”(Meno 70a). Socrates then answers Meno by telling him he does not have the definition of virtue; hence, he does not know whether it is teachable. Meno is astonished by the reply and goes ahead to define virtue in three different ways.

The first description of Virtue by Meno is that virtue is dependent on the person and varies from person to person. For example, a woman’s virtue is that she can stay at home and manage household duties. He gives another scenario of a soldier’s virtue which is to be brave and skilled in battle. He goes on and on, giving different instances trying to show how virtue is dependent on the person. He then goes ahead to state how virtue varies for every action, occasion, and age. Socrates objects this definition due to Meno’s various instances stating that the common thing shared by the people should be the proper meaning of virtue.

After Socrates’s objection, Meno goes further to describe virtue as the gift to rule over men. In this definition, he states, “What else but to rule over people, if you are seeking one description to fit them all” (Meno 73d). In this description, Meno tries to argue how virtue’s main desire is the fulfillment of purpose. The ultimate purpose of men is happiness and pleasure, which is only satisfied by acquiring the power of ruling. His main aim in this definition is to show how ruling over men helps in acquiring virtues. Socrates, on the other hand, objects this definition by noting that the gift to rule over men is only useful if it is just; hence the definition involves only one virtue, which is Justice. Socrates also uses the analogy of how shapes cannot be defined by describing other shapes such as squares to object the second description of virtue.

Meno then gives the third definition, where he defines virtue as the desire and ability to acquire beautiful and elegant things. In this definition, he states, “I think, Socrates that virtue is, as the poet says, to find joy in beautiful things and have power” (Meno 77b). Socrates goes on to object to this definition by stating that everybody thinks his or her desires are good; hence, acquiring these things to fulfill one’s wishes can be bad or good. Meno agrees with Socrates that the capability will count as a virtue only if it is a good thing.

On failing to define virtue successfully, Meno asks Socrates to respond to his initial question on whether virtue is teachable or not. Socrates acknowledges that virtues can be taught where he then tries to explain his reasoning. He states that virtues are a good thing to have, accompanied by specific wisdom or knowledge. Hence virtue can be referred to as good wisdom or knowledge, which makes it possible to acquire. Thus virtue can be learnt if a person has the necessary knowledge and wisdom to acquire it.

Works Cited

Cooper, John M. Plato: Five Dialogues: Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, Phaedo. Hackett Publishing, 2002.

Weiner, Ariel. “Knowledge and True Opinion in Plato’s Meno.” Pseudo-Dionysius 17 (2015).

Pricing strategy

The need for a proper pricing strategy is reinforced in the available literature, and according to the researchers, a poor pricing strategy could lead to bankruptcy. The importance of the pricing strategy is recognised by Kerin (2012) who argues that pricing can help an organisation to attain the necessary competitive advantage. But what differentiates a proper pricing strategy from a poor one? In Kotler and Philip’s (2005) view, a proper pricing strategy should consider the external and internal environments, and should be affordable to the customer. In respect to mobile telecommunication industry, customers are very sensitive to price differences, and so the operators are forced to come up with affordable prices as well as adopt the ‘price bundling’ concept. Product bundling as Kotler and Keller (2012) suggest could be beneficial to organisations operating in competitive markets, and whose objective it to expand their market share. Companies in the telecommunication industry have also adopted the discount pricing strategy which helps them to sell a huge quantity of products especially in the developing markets.

Appropriate distribution channels allow companies to deliver goods to customers within limited time. In the mobile telecommunication industry, one of the common channel strategy used is direct marketing in order to increase the profit margins. Customers are able to access phones and other accessories from retails stores. Ziethmal (2000) recognises the need of incorporating direct customer interface in the firm’s value chain. The one-stop-shops allow the mobile operators including Vodafone to integrate the pre-seal, sales, and post-sales activities. In addition, the one-stop-shores allow the customers to access a variety of service including consultations, product presentation, contract arrangements and product delivery (Proctor, 2000).

The mobile service sector relies on heavily on relationship marketing to popularise their products and services. As competition becomes stiff, firms are being forced to keep loyal customers in order to improve the long-term profitability of the company. The concept according to McDonald (2001) evolved from direct response marketing and emphasises on long-term relationships. The concept replaces the traditional marketing framework, and extends communication beyond intrusive advertising and sale promotional messages. Unlike the traditional marketing framework, this new concept emphasises on customer retention, customer contact, customer value, and customer. In regard to the mobile telecommunications sector, relationship with the customers can be improved by providing them with quality services. The quality of services can be improved by increasing reliability and the capacity of the firms to handle customers’ concerns. Lovelock (2001) observes that other key determinants of quality service include the rate of responsiveness and the degree of empathy accorded to the customer. According to the available literature, good perceived service quality should have the following elements; accessibility and flexibility, service scope, service recovery, reputation and credibility (Vargo and Lusch, 2004).

The importance of the relationship marketing in the UK mobile phone sector is highly recognised and already companies like O2 and T-mobile have committed themselves to developing long-term relationship. It is assumed that developing enterprise-level systems could help firms to acquire real-time information for the improvement of customer services (Vargo and Lusch, 2004). In addition, such information provides telecom companies to interact with customers on a regular basis and helping the marketer to identify and prospect new leads (Moller and Halinen, 2000). Although mobile service providers are already using relationship marketing to achieve customer loyalty Dev, and Don (2005) believe they could do more by integrating their systems with call centre operations. Such a strategy will help the firms to collect consumer-related data and use it to meet their needs and wants. The information obtained could also be used to identify consumers’ demographics and their buying pattern and providing personalised services to different consumer segments (Sudhir, 2001).

The marketing communication strategy should involve differentiation of products and services. In the modern economy differentiation of products and services can be achieved trough branding. The available literature has also recognised the role of branding in the achievement of competitive advantage and giving the company a sustainable position in the industry (Erdem and Baohong, 2002). A brand as Aaker and Joachimsthaler (2000) observe should guarantee customers particular features, benefits and services, and ensure there is consistency. A key component as discussed by Aaker and Joachimsthaler (2000) is brand management which entails managing products and services from the time they are introduced in the marketplace until when they are removed. In the telecommunication industry, firms use all manner of strategies including advertising intangible assets such as quality, shape, colour, and lifestyle compatibility (Cellini and Luca, 2003).

A key component of branding is brand equity which is defined as a set of assets and liabilities which are linked to particular product or a service (Jobber, 2001). According to Capon and Hulbert (2000) branding equity influences consumer’s choice of a particular product over another and the willingness of a customer to pay relative more for a product or service. Branding equity provides value to companies by enhancing the value of their marketing programs, and by enhancing the following components: brand extensions, trade leverage, prices, and competitive advantage. On the other hand, brand equity provides value to the customers by enhancing confidence in purchase decision, improving satisfaction and increasing the speed at which information is interpreted and processed (Lawrence et al., 2000). In this regard, due to its high brand equity, Vodafone has more trade leverage when bargaining with mobile manufacturers, distributors and retails. Secondly, the company can be able to charge higher prices for its products and services compared to its competitors. Thirdly, the company has been able to establish brand extensions and its brand has high perceived quality.

As Blythe (2001) suggests brand equity is closely related to the following concepts: brand loyalty, name awareness, perceived quality, brand association and proprietary assets. As Blythe (2001) further observes brand loyalty is associated with the following constructs: switching costs, satisfaction, liking and commitment. Brand loyalty is very vital in the mobile sector, as it for this reason that firms always strive to ensure the consumers become committed to their products and services (Brassington and Pettitt, 2000). The available literature concurs that when well managed; brand loyalty can lead to positive outcomes such as reduced marketing costs, improved trade leverage and brand awareness (Lewis and Bridger, 2000).

Firms should always strive to create product of perceive high quality in order to attract new customers and gain the necessary competitive advantage, the concept, is defined as the perceived superiority of a product or service relative to other alternatives (Patterson, and Ward, 2000). In the mobile service sector, the perceived quality of products is very vital as it increases the switching costs and reduces the customer churn rate. It also gives customers a base on which they can make the purchase decision and differentiates the products from other competing goods. Of-course, as Ellwood (2002) posits, when a brand is perceived to be of high quality, it can command premium prices. Firms can take advantage of this strategy by increasing the existing products lines, which too are likely to attract high prices. Of most importance, branding creates association which are helps the consumers to connect with products and services. To create the right perceptions, a brand needs to be well-positioned. The available literature associates positive brand association with increased loyalty, positive attitudes and feelings (Schultz, 2001). In addition, researchers suggest that firms could take advantage of the brand associations to establish brand extensions, hence improving their bottom-line revenue. As suggested by Wang, Head and Archer (2000) brand associations can positively be impacted on through celebrity endorsements.

References

Lawrence, E., Corbitt, B, Fisher, J.A, Lawrence, J. and Tidwell, A., 2000. Internet Commerce, 2nd Edition. John Wiley & Sons Australia Ltd

Lewis, D. and Bridger, D., 2000. The soul of the new consumer : authenticity – what we buy and why in the new economy. London: BrealeyLovelock, P.,2001. Services Marketing, people, technology, strategy. Prentice Hall.Mascarenhas, O. A., Kesavan, R., and Bernacchi, M., 2006. Lasting customer loyalty:

a total customer experience approach. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 23(7),

397-405.McDonald, M., 2001. Marketing Plans. How to prepare them, how to use the. 4th edition, Butterworth HeinenammMoller, K. and Halinen, A., 2000. Relationship Marketing Theory: Its roots and directions. Journal of Marketing Management, Vol. 16 (1-3), pp.29-54

The Negative Economic Impact of COVID-19

It is essential for China to have a comprehensive grasp of the ways in which COVID-19 impacts the economy and energy in this day and age, when trade protectionism is on the increase. In a world where there is a lot of uncertainty, this will make China’s economy stronger and better prepared to withstand any shocks that come from the outside. Some companies have been impacted more severely by the recession of COVID-19 than they have been by any prior recession (Ashraf, 2020). Some of these businesses are dependent on the flow of people, while others, such as those that are reliant on the exchange of information, have been mostly untouched by the recent disruptions. The impact of the epidemic on the Chinese economy has been shown by a variety of different metrics, including changes in household incomes and fluctuations in the cost of basic items (Kaye et al., 2021). All economic sectors around the world have slowed down, and more than a third of the world’s population has been put under lockdown causing economies around the world, including strong ones like the U.S., to go into a state of global shock on both the demand and supply sides and the consequences have included high rates of inflation, economic meltdowns, and a loss of income from key industries like tourism, hospitality, transportation, and the food sector.

There is not a single nation on the face of the earth, nor is there an international or cooperative organization, that has not altered the manner in which it does its business (Ashraf, 2020) as a direct result of the substantial economic changes that have been brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of the effects on the economy come from the steps that different governments have taken to stop the spread of the disease, while the effects on health are caused directly by the contagion that spreads the disease. Most countries have taken important steps to stop the disease from spreading, such as closing their borders and slowing down or stopping their economies. Because of this, many places, like businesses, schools, and social services, have had to close for a while.

Because to COVID-19, significant economic pillars like tourism have been severely damaged, and as a result, the hotel and leisure industry now has the highest unemployment rate of all major industries, leading to institutional and business closure, massive unemployment rates, and economic losses. Due to the epidemic and the steps taken to stop it at the start, both domestic and international trade were affected. When the borders reopened at the beginning of June, the temporary rise in food prices that happened when they were shut down in April 2020 and people rushed to buy things has gone down. Important industries, like the tourism industry, came to a complete stop. Because all companies that depended on transportation had to close, the economy lost a lot of money.

While COVID-19 was wreaking havoc on businesses that were dependent on in-person interaction (Kaye et al., 2021), the use of technology for remote employment and commercial transactions increased dramatically, resulting in an increase in the profitability of technological industries such as e-commerce platforms, e-banking, and fintech businesses. According to a recent analysis by Jackson (2021), there is a risk that China will continue to use the same playbook of stimulus-led investment to improve economic development over the medium term. This presents a significant challenge for the country (Ceylan, Ozkan, & Mulazimogullari, 2020). It is anticipated that the rate of economic growth in China would decelerate in the remaining part of 2022 before rising in 2023, reflecting the economic harm caused by the continued presence of COVID-19. Between now and 2027, there will be an unprecedented increase in physical capital investment, which will provide significant growth in the short run (Dai et al., 2022). There will be a massive inflow of funding towards decarbonization and vital infrastructure renovation to the tune of around 130 trillion dollars. However, in China as well as the rest of the world, very few businesses are ready to respond quickly and efficiently to the recent infusion of financial resources due to the economic impacts of the pandemic (Liu, Liu, & Yan, 2020). Businesses should consider top-down planning for portfolio synergies; doing so presents a significant challenge that requires sophisticated stakeholder management, capital market knowledge, and an understanding of the nuances of regulatory procedures.

In China, investment growth is expected to accelerate over the next year, aided by a strong fiscal stimulus, countering weaknesses in real spending, which has been hampered by low consumer confidence as well as the reappearance of COVID-19 and accompanying mobility restrictions. China is now confronted with the dual challenges of mitigating the effects of COVID-19 and maintaining the country’s ongoing economic expansion (Liu, Liu, & Yan, 2020). The high amounts of debt held by corporations and local governments reduce the efficiency of policy easing and stockpile additional risks for the future of China (Dai et al., 2022). There is also the possibility of dangers arising from extended stress in the real estate market, which has the ability to trigger broader macroeconomic and financial consequences. On the plus side, if COVID-19 is effectively controlled with fewer restrictions, growth for the whole year might be higher than what is presently expected due to the recently announced additional stimulus measures. 

In summary, the harsh COVID-related mobility restrictions that were implemented in major cities and provinces throughout China presented substantial negative risks and further delayed the stalled resurgence of consumption and industries, deterred private sector investments, interrupted trade flows, and slowed economic development. Even while the government is making more efforts to relax its grip on macroeconomic policy, the people in charge of making decisions are having a tough time figuring out how to make the policy stimulus effective while at the same time maintaining mobility limits. While considering the economic impacts mentioned in this discussion, it emerges that China might attain a more balanced, equitable, and sustainable economic trajectory by implementing structural changes that stimulate a shift towards consumption, alleviate social inequalities, and revive innovation and productivity growth.

References

Ashraf, B. N. (2020). Economic impact of government interventions during the COVID-19 pandemic: International evidence from financial markets. Journal of behavioral and experimental finance, 27, 100371.

Ceylan, R. F., Ozkan, B., & Mulazimogullari, E. (2020). Historical evidence for economic effects of COVID-19. The European Journal of Health Economics, 21(6), 817-823.

Dai, X., Rao, F., Liu, Z., Mohsin, M., & Taghizadeh-Hesary, F. (2022). Role of public and private investments for green economic recovery in the post-COVID-19. Economic Research-Ekonomska Istraživanja, 1-21.

Jackson, J. K. (2021). Global economic effects of COVID-19. Congressional Research Service.

Kaye, A. D., Okeagu, C. N., Pham, A. D., Silva, R. A., Hurley, J. J., Arron, B. L., … & Cornett, E. M. (2021). Economic impact of COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare facilities and systems: International perspectives. Best Practice & Research Clinical Anaesthesiology, 35(3), 293-306.

Liu, X., Liu, Y., & Yan, Y. (2020). China macroeconomic report 2020: China’s macroeconomy is on the rebound under the impact of COVID-19. Economic and Political Studies, 8(4), 395-435.

THE NEGATIVE IMPACT ON TECHNOLOGY

The family of George and Lydia hadley is a typical American family this is because most American families have two children, a perfect house, all the new technology and also live in happy home. However according to Bradbury technology can destroy a happy home a good example is when peter tells his dad “I wish you were dead”

Human beings have been turned to objects of slavery by the technology. There are many inventions in the past that is helping in our daily lives but the inventions seem to be ruining human beings relationship sand destroying the minds of the children. As technology develops through the course of time humanity relies more upon it. In the present world technology surrounds humanity across the world from the cars that take people from one place to the next, to the cellphones that people carry. In the past families lived technology free-life: waking up by the sounds of birds, communicating face to face and walking in order to travel. Today it is almost impossible to find a means of entertainment that doesn’t involve a coloured screen. Despite the advantages of technology it has created an inactive generation that can’t think for themselves.

In the 1950’s family dynamics in post war period of WWII embodied the relationship between children and their parents. The suburban family lifestyle in the community centered on conformity-family togetherness involved parents taking interest in their child’s life. The co-existence of Americans in the fifties perceived the relationship between the children and the adolescents to their parents as rebelling against parent authority. A distant relationship between the parents and children is in “The veldt” where the children’s self-refinance on technology replaced the absent role in the family. The relationship between the parents and the kids is not good despite brad not telling us whether the parents have been abusive or demonstrated neglect towards the children. Actually both parents seem to be affectionate to the children who seem to care more about the nursery and the automated home. The parents spent so little time with the children that they don’t know them and more and have no control over them at all. The parents are to be partly blamed because they did not spend enough time with the children so they did not know that they had changed completely. Children raised with no parental supervision will never submit to discipline. Lydia Hadley has largely given the tasks of raising their children to the heir electronic house and in particular the nursery.

As young children grow their attitude dramatically transforms. They translate from loving their parents to disliking them especially if their normal lifestyle is adversely affected Human innovation can lead to their ultimate downfall. George is a good and loving father who buys his kids wendy and peter all the new and best technology including a nursery where the children thoughts are projected onto the walls. The nursery which is supposed to help the children actually causes them to grow hatred towards the parents. The hatred grows until wendy and peter murder their parents, an act which reminds the ready that not everything will have the effect that was foreseen. The children feel hatred towards the parents because they feel their parents are invading in their privacy with the technology. They spend more time with the technology than with their parents and obey the technology more than they obey their parents. George tries for the kids to respect him but they don’t actually wendy respects peter more than the dad because they mostly work together. The use of foreshadow hints at the fact that sometimes the things that we think may help our lives actually have a negative impact.

The love for a machine can never be real as the love of another human being. The fact that the children have more affection towards the machines means that the relationship between them and any other human beings is not strong enough therefore they distance themselves from the rest of the world

There is so much tension in the family: it mostly begins with the parents this is because the parents worry about the growing secrecy and disobedience of the children and decide to invite a friend who is a psychologist to examine the children and the use they make of the nursery. According to David the veldt image reflects the children’s hostility towards the parents. When we give our children everything they ever wanted is the reward secrecy and disobedience. When George turns off the nursery and the rest of the house, the children throw an elaborate tantrum in which peter implores the new disconnected machinery to let his father kill the house

Ray Bradbury has written a variety of short stories and novels and most of his work is fiction in this short story he warns people against becoming too dependent on science and technology at the expense of moral and aesthetic support. His position against technology stands not only in present in his literary works but also in lifestyle. The millennial with advanced technology create stress and frustration in everyday lifestyle. This frustration and stress is a race between humans and technology if we fail to keep up to date with the computer age we will be called out of date human. The technology has really bad effect on the families, imagine having so much technology that your kids start to think of it as their mother and father.

Bradbury also shows the consequences of the overuse of the technology on individuals. Lydia Hadley is the first of the two parents to point out the screams that are heard on the distance where the lions are. George dismisses them when he says he did not hear them. After George locks the nursery and everyone is supposed to be in bed, the screams are heard again insinuating that the children have broken into the nursery, but this time both the parents her them.

Little things are mentioned that foreshadow what is about to happen. The screams are one of the major things. When George enters the nursery after wendy and finds that it is now a forest full of color, there is an instant of doubt that maybe there never was any Africa or lions after all. George proves the suspicion wrong once he picked up something that lay in the corner near where the lions had been.

If individuals are not careful, technology and will eventually take over mankind he dives into the theme “The Vedlt” begins to introduce the Hadley’s and their happy life, home nursery, this house which clothed, fed and rocked them to sleep. However the Hadley’s soon began to fear their nursery, as it resembled and African veldt of blazing sun and ferocious lion. Their fear heightens when George Hadley finds his old wallet n the nursery with teeth and blood stains. They consult psychologist David McCleanand decide to shut the nursery down but become tempted to turn the machine back on and they pay soon pay for the descions o their lives the power of the nursery is exemplified throughout the story and its focus is a product of the story’s historical context.

Metamorphosisare examples of how Americans take advantage of the little things in life. In today’s society people don’t realize how easy they have it and will never fully understand the meaning of hard work. The children in “The Veldt” are disrespectful towards their family due to their disconnection to reality and abandonment from their parents. “Metamorphosis” displays how the parents take advantage of their son and all the work he does for them the story displays lack of respect and abandonment towards their family members in taking advantage of them or under appreciating them due to oblivious to their surroundings.

Work cited.

Caldwell Tracy M “The negative effects of parent and child conflict”

“Overview: The veldt” Short stories for students. Ed. Ira Mark Milne. Vol 20

Hart, Joyce. “critical essay on the veldt” short stories for the students Ed. Ira Mark Milne. Vol 20

The Negative Influences on Workers at the Gilded Age

The Gilded Age was an era of rapid economic growth and industrialized expansion. After the Civil War, there were significant developments in railroads, coal mining and modern steel factories in America. The rich accumulated massive wealth from these growing industries but the working class people received negative influences. The skilled workers lost their advantages, and the terrible working environments caused diseases among workers. Numerous children worked in dangerous factories to make livings. The laborers earned less than before while the rich made huge profits. In all, the Gilded Age was a terrible time for the treatment of workers.

First, the skilled workers lost their advantages due to the mechanization in industries. In 1885 Winslow Homer created the painting, the fog warning, in which a skilled fisherman who could catch fish with a few tools was left far behind of the main ship, and the smoke-like shades were approaching him like threatening fog. Through smoke-like shades, which symbolized the development of modern industries, Homer suggested that the skilled workers had lost their advantages at that age of industrialization. The reason was that there was a rise of mechanization in big industries in the Gilded Age and the machines replaced the skilled workers to complete the most technical works. The skilled workers had been “strong, even arrogant, in their indispensability.” Their advantages were their skills that were crucial in factory operations such as steelmaking. However, their “sharp sense of independence disappeared in the later years,” because each man “was training for the next higher job,” also, “usually capable of filling it.” The mechanization made complex works so simple that “no workman was irreplaceable.” Consequently, it was unpractical for the skilled laborers to ask the factories for favored treatment such as higher wages or better working conditions since the factories did not have to meet their requirements to retain them and their skills. The managers were more willing to hire cheaper unskilled laborers such as foreign immigrants including “Slovaks, Poles, Lithuanians, Russians, Croatians and the Roumanians,” because they could also complete work with machines but demanded less.

Second, the poor working conditions of laborers at the Gilded Age threatened workers’ health and safety. An article published in 1894 “In the Depths of a Coal Mine” documented the harsh working conditions of coal miners at the Gilded Age. The author described the factory as “huge and hideous monster” where “a might gnashing sound filled the ears,” and “the dust lay deep on every motionless thing, and clouds of it made their air dark as from a violent tempest.” These descriptions showed vivid images of one cacophonous dirty coal factory. Undoubtedly, there was no perfect sanitary, and noise control in this coal factory and the workers exposed in this dirty and noisy environment could get diseases physically and mentally. The conditions were similarly awful underground. The author wrote that the coal mine inside was “inscrutable dark” and a “soundless place” with “a subtly strong odor of powder-smoke, oil, wet earth.” The workers underground were likely to catch lung diseases when they breathed such feculent air daily. The dangers for underground workers were more than their poor physical health because such a working environment might threaten their life safety as well. There were not thorough safety facilities in the coal mines at that time, and as the author suggested “sometimes their enemy becomes exasperated and stuffs out ten, twenty, thirty lives,” the workers had little chance to escape when natural disasters like collapsing happened.

Third, child workers suffered from lousy factory environment, heavy workloads, and dangerous jobs. The author of “In the Depth of a Coal Mine” wrote that these coal mine child workers in “ragged shirts” “breathe this atmosphere until their lungs grow heavy and sick with it,” and “have this clamor in their ears until it is wonderful that they have any hoodlum valor remaining.” All child laborers worked in this situation without any special care regarding their young age. They were “slate-pickers” and needed to “grabbed deftly at the pieces of slate” to make sure the purity of the coal coming out. It was a hard job because as one picture in the article showed that these children had to bend their heads down in order to pick the slates. Their immature backbones suffered from keeping this position for a long time, which increased the possibility of deformation of the spinal column. Apart from the heavy workloads, certain risky jobs could left child workers with permanent pain. For example, one photograph from Lewis Hine’s collection in the 1880s, titled Boy Lost Arm Running Saw in Box Factory, showed a disabled boy with one arm left. The plain title might suggest that disabled child workers were prevalent at that time.

Last, the high concentration of wealth enlarged the gap between the rich and the working class. Andrew Carnegie wrote in Wealth that one of the problems of the Gilded Age was “proper administration of wealth.” Most of the wealth created at the Gilded Age was in the hands of the rich. Working people, as the creators of the wealth, could only receive a tiny part of it. For example, the Carnegie Steel Company’s net profits reached 4,000,000 dollars in 1894, but the same year the company had cut the wages in Homestead to half of the wages in 1892. Statistic revealed that the wage of rollers in homestead steel company was 12.15 dollars in 1982 and dropped to 6 dollars in 1894. Meanwhile “the increased cost of living,” made life harder for workers.

The Gilded Age was the symbol of progress and economic expansion in many people’s minds. It was undeniable that the wealth and the technology advancement in this era paved the way for future development of America. However, the terrible treatment of the laborers at that time was a reminder to modern people. Behind the surface flourishment of the Gilded Age, there were skilled workers losing jobs and poor working conditions that were harmful to workers’ health, and wide employment of child workers and the enlarged gap between the rich and the working-class. Reflecting the negative side of the Gilded Age is as important as learning from its developing side because it reminds people to solve similar laborer treatment problems in today’s society and prevent them from happening again.

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The Negative Use of Torture

Torture refers to the deliberate as well as the systematic dismantling of an individual’s individuality besides humanity by subjecting them to physical or emotional pain plus suffering. The main of torture is destroying a sense of community, elimination of some leaders for example from society or nation and also it is aimed at creating an environment of fear in a specific culture. Many adverse effects usually characterize the use of torture, and thus it should exist as a forbidden tactic in any war. It is not an adequate method of interrogation as it does not typically result in useful or straightforward information. For where torture is to be used, it has to be used ethically (Jervis, p.34). For example, it can exist as an effective mean of counter-attacking terrorists whereby it can be used in controlling them.

Moreover, when the terrorists are caught and found guilty of conducting some terrorists’ activities, torture can serve as a form of punishment. An excellent form of torture is rendition which can denote to the criminals, for example, terrorists being taken from one nation to another nation by extradition or by deportation. Also, it can refer to the method of holding individuals like criminals and then questioning them on foreign country whereby it will be hard for pesky convicts’ rights issues to come into the way (Sullivan, p.391). Under this situation, there is a high risk that the individual might be tortured or subjected to other ill-treatment and therefore, human rights act typically forbids the use of torture besides inhuman or demeaning treatment or chastisement.

The Rendition movie tends to explain this phenomenon well as it encompasses all these happenings of torture. In the film, there is a chemical engineer known as Anwar who the U.S government believes that he has some connections with some terrorist group, and when he is caught he is subjected under severe torture. Thus the whole movie is centered on torture. There exist several ways by which criminals like the terrorists are tortured by certain governments for example, in the film, “Eye in the Sky,” the drone technology is used to kill the terrorists whereby Katherine Powell who is a military officer leads an operation to capture terrorists. Drones are used to subject the terrorists under torture, but during their process of wiping out the terrorists, a young girl is killed. The killing of the young girl triggers an international dispute over the effects of drones in modern warfare.

Therefore due to the adverse consequences which drones have been attributed to having caused to humanity there usage and effectiveness in modern warfare remains a question. From ethical perspectives, the use of drones in warfare is not good for the well-being of individuals as it can also affect even the unintended group of people as with the case of the film, “Eye in the Sky.” The effects of drone attacks are usually worse, and therefore it should be discouraged especially as a form of torture towards the opponents.

Works Cited

“Eye In The Sky – Official Site”. Bleecker Street, 2018, https://www.bleeckerstreetmedia.com/eyeinthesky. Accessed 6 Dec 2018.

“Rendition (2007)”. Imdb, 2018, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0804522/. Accessed 6 Dec 2018.

Jervis, Robert. “The torture blame game.” Foreign Aff. 94 (2015): 120.

Sullivan, Christopher Michael. “The (in) effectiveness of torture for combating insurgency.” Journal of Peace Research 51.3 (2014): 388-404.

Agriculture, which dates back 12,000 years, has resulted in such a societal shift that it has been called the “neolithic revolution.” Since their creation, traditional hunters and human lives have been followed, choosing permanent dwellings and stable food sources. Cities and cultures have sprung up as a result of agriculture. The world’s population has grown from about five million citizens 10,000 years ago to more than seven billion today, as crops and livestock continue to be developed to satisfy demand.

There was no one catalyst or combination of causes that prompted people to begin farming in various parts of the world. Climate change, for example, was thought to have introduced seasonal conditions in the Near East towards the close of the last ice age, favoring annual crops such as wild cereals. Another cause, such as the spread of bacterial strains on natural food supplies in East Asia, may have compelled citizens to look for homegrown alternatives. Planting has sown fresh seeds, regardless of the reasons for their distinct origin.

Religion has played an essential role in the history of humans in many civilizations. There are many reasons why religions have played such a prominent position in forming a society’s identity; possibly the most remarkable reason is that belief in a divine or theological being adds meaning and significance to certain earthly people. This trend has been especially evident among persecuted groups. People who have been victimized have a deep desire to uphold their religious beliefs because their faith provides them with hope and a reason to survive amid horrible oppression. This is evident in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic traditions. Both three of these cultures have faced different modes of tyranny at some point in their histories, and some historians have cited the Party’s religious solid belief as one of the primary reasons for its survival.

Constructivism is a subfield of epistemology, which is concerned with how we learn knowledge. The fundamental theory of constructivist philosophy is that scientific significance, particularly in human contexts such as families, is traditionally unknowable. This philosophy is shared by social constructivism, which contends that we understand absolute, trustworthy, and natural objects. Our minds are socially modeled on human concepts by societies and language patterns. When we accept “fact” or “facts,” we are urged to consider whether our theories correspond to the way things were, that is, the Connection between our internal and external environments, and whether and how they reflect a specific privileged cultural internalization or externality.

Faith as a social framework critics contends that modern religious categories are based on ideas that arose in European history. In its initial Christian context, religion is used to identify a distinct feature of new societies (Asad, 1993: 37-43). Belief creates what it is supposed to describe. Linguists, theologians, missionary societies, imperial authorities, and nascent social sciences were among the early practitioners of comparative religion, which arose from philology. Theological conclusions would not be excluded from the concept if the definition shifted from religious distinction to a more secularized definition (Niebuhr). As a result, an ostensibly neutral party continues to apply principles from its Christian past in an informal manner. This relentless Christian determination towards religion is perhaps most visible in the continued emphasis on confidence as the central trait of religion.

Cushman wrote his book “The Cry of Stone” at one stage (the title refers to Luke 19:40, where he says that even though all individuals were mute, the stones would be witnesses to him). He went on to work for the good of the Plymouth Colony for many years until his death, perhaps from sickness, in 1625 CE (Cushman 78-165). Thomas Cushman (11608-1691 CE) married one of the Mayflower passengers’ daughters and rose to prominence in the colony. Mourt’s Connection became an English best-seller, inspiring other colonists to establish their territories. In contrast, Cushman’s patent for Plymouth Colony and the agreement he signed with the colonists guaranteed their longevity by regular supply ships. On the other hand, Cushman is often forgotten since he was not on the Mayflower in 1620 CE for its landmark crossing, but the famous voyage – and all that followed – would not have happened if it hadn’t been for him.

Work cited

Cushman, Philip. “Why the self is empty: Toward a historically situated psychology.” American psychologist 45.5 (1990): 599.

Niebuhr, Reinhold. Does civilization need religion?: a study in the social resources and limitations of religion in modern life. Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2010.

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The Nest

Renowned playwright Theresa Rebeck once again did an outstanding job in her latest play ‘The Nest’ shown at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts. The cast of the play was aptly chosen, and they embodied their characters perfectly. The props for the play also give the audience an authentic feel, starting from the intricately designed bar that is the centre of the action in the play. The cast also dressed appropriately for their parts when they get to ‘The Nest’ after a day at work, ready to exchange opinions on a wide variety of topics. Rebeck managed to tackle many important issues in society without making the play sound like a debate. I would rate ‘The Nest’ as one of the best playas I have watched in a long time.

The first thing that captured my attention was the revolving stage that helped the audience see the play from all angles. I had never seen such a stage, and for many members of the audience, it was also quite captivating. The bar itself was also quite a piece of work. It was intricately designed, and it was clear that a lot of time and work went into it. This was as it should be because it was the focal point of the story. Nick wanted to sell the bar and the mirror behind the bar, which is what caught the attention of the appraiser in the first place. The liquor bottles also add authenticity to the bar; it shows that the customers come to ‘The Nest’ for a drink and also conversations. The customers of the bar have been regulars for a long time; hence, they knew each other very well.

The cast of the play was terrific to say in the very least. Barry, Margo and Patrick were the most frequent customers of the bar for years. Played by Brian Coats, Carly Street and Brian Dykstra respectively, the characters keep the audience entertained. For me, Coats was the most entertaining actor of all, mainly due to his relatable humour. He gave the aura that he has seen it all and therefore he is qualified to air his thoughts and opinions to all the bar-goers such as the couple on their first date. Business at ‘The Nest’ was fast-waning with people preferring other hip and more advertised bars, but the few cast members stayed loyal to the bar and got together to discuss different topics in life.

The female characters in the play also gave me many points to reflect on. For example, Lila kept explaining that ‘The Nest’ was her property because it had been in her family for years, yet her husband was trying to sell it. Other topics discussed by the women include men’s anger and their lack of affection, the glass ceiling set for women in their careers, the tendency of men to pander to women’s beauty and also the way men lectured women. Given that the playwright is a woman, the play gave her the chance to give the female perspective on such issues. For female members of the audience, many of them could be able to relate to the topics, or at least understand where the women were coming from.

In conclusion, ‘The Nest’ is one of my favourite plays of all time. What might have been disconcerting for me was the adult content, but the play is only limited to adult audiences. Rebeck managed to execute a well thought-out script and keep audiences wholly engrossed from the first to the last. The cast took to their roles almost effortlessly and watching the play felt like a real-life event rather than a theatrical production.

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Introduction

The Museum of Fine Arts in Houston is currently having different exhibitions ongoing where most are to end in august and September. Among the current exhibitions are paintings, sculptures and photographs with different themes and agendas. One of the current exhibitions are Vincent van Gogh: His Life in Art where the museum showcases various paintings done by him on various occasions including travelling. Vincent Van Gough is a famous Dutch artist who did paintings in the 19th century. He was passionate about his work and in less than two decades, Van Gough had done over 2100 paintings whereby there were over 850 oil paintings mounted on canvas. It is believed that in his last two years of his life he managed to do over fifty paintings. The Van Gough survey opened on March 10th and it is expected to end on July 27th. The painting of interest that the paper is going to discuss is “Vincent van Gogh, In the Café: Agostina Segatori in Le Tambourin, January–March 1887, oil on canvas, Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam (Vincent van Gogh Foundation).” (https://www.mfah.org/exhibitions/vincent-van-gogh-his-life-in-art). There are both physical features and deeper meaning that the paining tries to describe.

In the painting, Van Gough used Agostina Segatori as his model. She was a famous model to various artists including Edward Mamet, Jean Baptiste among other artists. The venue of the portrait is said to be her restaurant where exhibitions were made. According to sources her café was a meeting point for various artists including Van Gough. Since her cafe was a meeting point for various artists, she allowed them to display their work in the Café just in case someone decided to purchase them.  Agostina accepted paintings and other forms of art as payment for meals and drinks in case the artists went short of money. Van Gough was not an exception.

Physical Features of the Painting

The painting shows a woman at a café seated holding a cigarette with his arms on the table. The woman appears to be a middle age adult in her thirty’s. There is a glass of beer on a saucer and there is one empty saucer on the table. The woman is wearing a brown coat, one cannot clearly tell whether she is wearing a dress or a skirt but from the look of things it appears to be dark green in color. On the far right we can see two table chairs next to the wall. The woman is seated on a round table and there are three round traditional seats of the time of around mid-19th century. On one of the seats there is what appears to be a broom, (one cannot tell exactly what it is). On the wall just next to where the lady is seated there is what appears to be some pictures on the wall (https://www.mfah.org/exhibitions/vincent-van-gogh-his-life-in-art).

According to MFAH museum the painting that is on exhibition has dimensions of 55.5 cm x 47 cm (https://www.mfah.org/exhibitions/vincent-van-gogh-his-life-in-art). It is an oil on canvas type of painting. An oil painting is paint made up of ground up pigments suspended in a binding medium of oil. The painting has most of the parts in dull colors whereby the wall has different shades of green, grey and blue. Red and white is scarce on the wall. The lady’s face has a bright color and she has a red hair on. We cannot tell whether this is the exact color or Van Gough used it so as to enhance the theme or make the hair visible.

History of the Painting

It is believed that Van Gough drew the painting of the lady who goes by the name Agostina Segatori while in the café owned by the woman. The painting was drawn in January at Le Tambourin café, but the complete work was in March, thus we can say he took three months to complete her painting. Van Gough had requested the Agostina to allow him display his paintings in her café then later requested her to pause for him to draw. Agostina is believed to have had an affair with Van Gough back in 1880s at the time when she was running the Le Tambourin restaurant. Van Gough in that month had an exhibition in the café where he was going to sell his Japanese collection. At the background of the painting we can see Japanese prints thus it is believed that he did the painting during that time.

The restaurant was a meeting point for various Pakistan artists thus Van Gough decided to do an exhibition of his paintings in the café. We happen to understand that the artists exchanged paintings and bus tickets for his meals. During the exhibition, less of his paintings were bought and in July the same year, he termed the project as a failure. The above painting of interest is one of the paintings among the two paintings of Agostina Segatori drawn by Van Gough during his exhibition (Leinbach, pg. 19). One can say it was in exchange of the favor granted by the lady for him to do his business in the restaurant.

As for now we expect the oil painting to be dry since they take approximately sixty years for the pigments to completely dry. The painting is 132 years old. Despite the age, the painting looks clear enough to display the theme intended by Van Gough which will be discussed later in the paper.

Rhetorical Analysis of the Painting by Van Gough.

Van Gough did his best to attract the audience to view the image. The author painted this picture in a manner that emphasizes focus on the woman who happens to be drinking and smoking at the same time. Also, the painting of Agostina’s body seems to be clear compare to all the other objects in the room. This was to emphasize that he painting was all about her and nothing else. Overall, the shot of this image is strategic, and it plays on the audience’s belief that this particular location is scenic; hence a majority of the people would love to visit the museum and view it physically after seeing it on the website. The use of organization of information in this picture contributes to pathos as this image sparks interest and desire among the audience to visit this MFAH (Leinbach, pg. 23). Also, the way in which this picture was painted adds to ethos as it proves that the author not only takes paints images, but he is also strategic about the angles and paints to use in order to display the lighting and other features at the moment he did paint. Therefore, this picture is persuasive as sparks the audience’s interest.

It is clear that Van Gough painted Agostina while he was so close to her. This is so because, her image is larger compared to other objects and due to the closeness =, some features such as legs and the floor where she is being not seen. We can see the floor far away where the chairs are. This proves that the author wanted to make the woman appear larger, thus dominant and emphasize it is all about her and not the restaurant nor the Japanese prints on the walls.

Despite the painting concentrating mainly on Agostina, the artists failed to include the fact that there could be people in the restaurant. At least he could have some sketches of one or two people to show that it is a café where the exhibitions were done. We can see the lady with a beer on the table, perhaps there is somebody who did serve her (Meissner, pg. 278). The restaurant does not look like a busy one since there are some basic features like the ones mentioned above which are excluded.

Generally, Van Gough did a very quality painting that highlighted his character as an impressionist. He gave an impression about Agostina as a sad person. We get to see the theme of loneliness in the whole painting. Everything is dull that is why he uses dull colors and we can tell that it is at night when the lady was painted (Sabbeth, pg. 32). The dull colors reduce the lighting in the room where the art was developed. If he would have used dull colors and a sad picture of Agostina, then there would be a lot of irony in the painting. Bright colors such as white, luminous green, red sky blue and so on are used to lighten up the mood of the audience and the models in the piece of art. Black, dark grey, jungle green and similar darker shades are used to create a dull mood for both the audience and the art itself. Thus he utilized these feature to create mood.

Interpretation of the painting

Van Gough paints a white lady who is decently dressed. She is a coat and a long dress that hides her legs and most part of her arms. However, we see a lonely lady who is drinking alone. When one is drinking it is a culture that he or she must have a company (Sabbeth, pg. 31). There are two empty seats around her. Perhaps it was Agostina’s culture to be a loner. On the upper note, maybe he painted the image adhering to the model alone so that his theme and impressions of the painting would come out clearly. Maybe if he included all the features in the restaurant, he would have a confusing image.

In the painting we see a lady who seems sad. Van Gough was keen enough to pain the eyes and the whole face with correct contours which brought out the sad face of Agostina. To enhance the fact that she might be going through a moment of sadness, Van Gough includes in the painting a cigarette, beer and two saucepans. From the look of things, it is evident that Agostina is on her second beer because of the one empty saucepan (Meissner, pg. 278). She cannot be smoking and drinking at the same time, that is why one is justified to judge the sad face.

Also in the painting, the Agostina is properly dressed implying in the 19th century when the painting was drawn people had begun to dress well and civilization was at peak. Clothing businesses are depicted in the picture to have grown and coffee selling business was progressing well in the Turkish coffee house because of the many people in the painting. It shows an era where beer was a common thing which was taken by the ladies. The era is that of civilization since currently, beer is taken is similar glasses and there exists sauce pans in the 21st century.

The painting is used to showcase the culture of Italian women during the 1880s. We can see from Agostina that they were decently dressed that is they covered most parts of their bodies. Agostina is having a fashionable outfit that existed during those days. We see her parasol lying on the stool and her hat is held up in position with pins, indeed she was an outgoing woman who would dress up to give a good image to his clients in the Cafe she managed. However, drinking was not an exception to them, just like the 20th and 21st century, women went drinking at night like the men did (Leinbach, pg. 22). We are told that the restaurant is called Tambourine perhaps the owner decides to embrace the name by using tambourine tops on chairs and tables. This is clearly evident from the environment at which Agostina is seated. We can conclude that this was a cultural restaurant that is why most of the furniture were from a specific Italian culture.

Conclusion

Through this image, various individuals in his audiences can conclude diverse opinions on this image; thus their conclusions are purely based on their views, and the ideas they think the author is trying to portray. The painting by Van Gough is well painted and at the museum am sure everyone would want to view it. More so, it is in a historical setting of 1880s. We all want to get a glimpse of what used to happen in the past especially how people spent their leisure and for this case, Van Gough gives us a glimpse of it. The passion and power of painting in his art is familiar to all art lovers not to forget his love for women as his models in his paintings. Besides Agostina, we have other women like the portrait of a woman in a straw hat.

Work of art of Interest

Vincent van Gogh, In the Café: Agostina Segatori in Le Tambourin, January–March 1887, oil on canvas, Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam (Vincent van Gogh Foundation)

Works Cited

https://www.mfah.org/exhibitions/vincent-van-gogh-his-life-in-artLeinbach, Cade. “10 Pieces for Vincent: A Suite for Mixed Chamber Ensemble.” (2018).

Meissner, W, W. “Love and Sexuality in the Life and Art of Vincent van Gogh.” Annual of Psychoanalysis 26 (1999): 269-294.

Sabbeth, Carol. Van Gogh and the Post-Impressionists for Kids: Their Lives and Ideas, 21 Activities. Chicago Review Press, 2011.