The Fight for and Evolution of Same Sex Marriage in America Essay

The Fight for and Evolution of Same Sex Marriage in America - Essay Example The validity of the volume is incontestable because of its thorough application of qualitative methodologies, specifically in-depth interviews and observations. The volume also considers other important legal issues such as inheritance rights and health privileges. All over the discussion, arguments from all parties of the debate come out, thus creating a balanced discourse. (2) Alderson, K. & Lahey, K. (2004) Same-Sex Marriage: The Personal and the Political. New York: Insomniac Press. This volume summarizes the historic court decisions in Canada to recognize the marriage of homosexuals; the statutes in Belgium and Netherlands which have granted the permission to homosexual couples to marry; and the legal issues of same-sex marriage in the courts of California, Massachusetts, Hawaii, and other states (Alderson & Lahey, 2004). The volume is relevant to the thesis because of its elaboration discussion on the evolution of same-sex marriage typified by heightened personal happiness on t he one hand and by landmark legal interpretation and traditional social movement on the other. Although the volume is largely exploratory and descriptive, the authors’ thorough analysis of earlier literature and current empirical findings on the legal status of same-sex marriage builds it credibility. (3) Attorney, F.H. & Attorney, E.D. (2011) Making it Legal: A Guide to Same-Sex Marriage, Domestic Partnership & Civil Unions. Berkeley, CA: NOLO. The volume sums up the past, current, and potential status of same-sex marriage statutes in the United States. The volume is relevant to the thesis because the authors present a thorough evaluation of the factors that affect the choice to marry, explains the complicated and constantly changing directives of statutes on same-sex relationship, and offers realistic recommendations on the institution of marriage (Attorney & Attorney, 2011). The trustworthiness of the volume is unquestionable since the authors have personal experience with and professional knowledge of the past, present, and future legal status of same-sex marriage. Aside from their own perspectives, the authors involved other legal scholars and practitioners to contribute to the same-sex marriage discourse. (4) Barclay, S. & Fisher, S. (2003) â€Å"The States and the Differing Impetus for Divergent Paths on Same-Sex Marriage, 1990-2001,† Policy Studies Journal, 31(3), 331+ This article is related to the thesis because it puts emphasis on the motivations for the implementation of state legislations that prohibit the recognition of same-sex marriages. The article is adequate in terms of validity and reliability due to its use of a ‘regression model of pooled time series data from the 50 states in the period 1990 to 2001’ (Barclay & Fisher, 2003, 331). The authors take into account the validity of current social, demographic, and political movement variables (p. 331) that have been connected in the past to the passing of statutes re garding sexual perception of the local and central government. (5) Cahill, S. (2004) Same Sex Marriage in the United States: Focus on the Facts. Oxford, UK: The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. The book systematically compares between civil marriage, domestic partnership, and civil union prior to discussing the empirical findings concerning both the anti- and pro-same-sex marriage campaigns (Cahill, 2004). The author also discloses findings

Distinguish Knowledge from Opinion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Distinguish Knowledge from Opinion - Essay Example In Plato’s Meno, Socrates and Meno argue about what virtue is and whether it can be taught. What ensues is an exchange of ideas which lead Socrates to further prove his point – that virtue cannot be taught and is rather simply recalled. For Socrates, â€Å"the soul is immortal† and therefore â€Å"there is nothing which it has not learned.2 The soul therefore only has to draw out from its reservoir of knowledge all the truths that can be known. In order to prove this point, Socrates calls on a young servant boy of Meno’s and begins using the elenchus on him, hoping to draw out the truth from him without teaching him anything. Socrates begins his demonstration of the elenchus by drawing a 2 ft. x 2 ft. square on the ground. This square has an area of 4 square feet and Socrates then asks the boy how to come up with a square double this area, which is 8 square feet. Through a series of questions and answers using a trial-and-error method, Socrates and the __ ________________________ 1 Gladwell, p. 197. 2 Baggini & Fosl, p. 13. boy finally come to a conclusion that double the area of the given square is the square of its diagonal. Many times during the interrogation, Socrates points out to Meno that he is not teaching the boy and rather makes him remember the truth. ... For the French philosopher, the means of finding true knowledge is through skepticism, or the method of casting doubt on all arguments, principles and beliefs until any of these could be proven true. Descartes’ principle of â€Å"methodological doubt† begins when he notices that his senses sometimes deceive him.4 He then proceeds to wonder what is real and what is not. He thinks that everything that he can perceive through the senses may merely be opinion and not the truth for he can doubt the existence of these things. Moreover, the fact that he may be deceived by the senses also somehow makes him cast doubt on the goodness of God, for he wonders why a good God would allow him to be deceived. As this deceptive quality does not fit Descartes’ notion of a good God, he replaces God with an â€Å"evil genius† that possesses the power to deceive him completely.5 With such a powerful evil force, Descartes then begins to doubt everything else, even the verity of mathematics and geometry, and he asks himself, â€Å"What then will be true? __________________________ 3 Baggini & Fosl, p. 16. 4 Ibid., p. 50. 5 Ibid., p. 52. Perhaps just the single fact that nothing is certain.†6 Descartes, however, finally comes up with the conclusion that, despite the fact that the existence of everything can be doubted, he exists: â€Å"†¦there is no doubt that I exist, if [the evil genius] is deceiving me.†7 Descartes then takes it from here and he supposes that the fact that he is being deceived rests upon the fact that it is because he thinks so. With the premise that he as a thinking being now exists, Descartes is able to conclude that he as a thinking being can also doubt, understand, affirm, imagine, sense and perform many other functions related to thinking. Moreover, using

Internship Report Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Internship Report - Assignment Example It facilitated me to gain valuable insights about me, my community and various aspects related with the community in the most positive and effective way: Communication and Team work: The exposure to the real situation familiarized me in enhancing my communication capability and it also facilitated in increasing my competencies of working within the team as a team member. Problem Solving: The community internship enabled me to understand all the community associated needs and facilitated me to transform community actions by working together based on the knowledge, strengths and capabilities of the individual involved in the voluntary service. In relation to my learning and growth through the involvement in the community internship, the learning material consisting of lectures have facilitated in answering many of the questions such as why I was engaged in the community internship and what degree of insights and knowledge are required by me to effectively perform the requisite tasks of internship. It also facilitated me to make valuable judgment regarding my personal and professional capabilities. Before the inception of this course, I was apprehensive but every staff in Red Cross supported me and made me feel at ease and facilitated me to easily acquaint with it. The module 3 and module 4 significantly aided me rigorous understanding of the community and its various aspects. I also created a poster which reveals the mission statement of Red Cross service as well as the poster depicts the purposes of the activities that they are engaged in. The poster depicts the pictures that familiarize with stressful life of disabled people as well. My engagement in the community internship delivered me valuable insights about the changing community environment. While dealing with the changing community environment, it required me to be flexible enough to consider

Douglas Senatorial Debates Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Douglas Senatorial Debates - Essay Example Lincoln was prophetic in leading the nation to the Civil War until attaining the basic privileges for Black. Firstly, the presence of good people to be governed is an important requirement of a strong government; the second condition is the availability of efficient and effective people who can rule over a mass population without any discrimination or bias; and further for easy and good governance, the government has to develop right qualities, values and skills in its people (â€Å"Good government†). Everyone must have equal opportunities to bring out one’s full potential. Disparity in treatment cannot be tolerated at any point of time. But the condition in America prior to the bloody civil war was really contradicting. Only a half of the population was regarded to be good people to be governed. The rest was not considered as citizens though their forefathers lived there even before the migration of the whites. The people who came to power were also in a disposition to treat them as aliens and slaves. The evidences of the prevalence of slavery even in the early half of the 17th century is available from the plantation economy of southern Virginia. Most importantly, slavery is considered to be the reason for American civil war. American civil wars mainly emerged from the southern part where the evil had been highly endemic. The issues that emerged prior to the civil war were due to the sectional conflict over the slavery issues. The southern part of America was always prospering while the north was in misery. It is the occupants of the north who strongly opposed slavery. As Elliot points out, slavery badly affected the general education in America. While the white people had quality education; the colored and the slave who constituted vast majority of the population was deprived of it. The deprived population was not aware of their rights until some of them got educated. Moreover, the principle upon which the relation between the master and the sl ave was entirely in conflicting with the principles of a free government (117-118). The mass population under slavery and harassment were much need of a new framework that would provide them a better say in all the spheres of the government. As Nosotro points out, subsequent to the emergence of two sections and conflicts in opinions, anti slavery societies were formed in North America and revolutionaries raised their voice publically against the cruelties and injustices inflicted on the colored; and in northern America, many religious groups tried for the abolition of slavery, for they could not agree with the idea of owning a person by another. They published newsletters propagating the idea of prohibiting slavery and giving freedom to the blacks. At this juncture, the downtrodden blacks realized that it was the right time for a combined rebellion. In a country where democratic principles are followed, every citizen has the right to take part in the parliamentary procedures. The pe ople’s rights are not determined on the basis of their caste or creed. Unless everyone is treated equally, there can be no good governance. The economical inequality between the Northern and the Southern states acted as another reason towards the sectional conflict. The states in the Northern part of America were industrially stronger. On the other hand, the Southern states were frequently depending on a single cotton crop. They

Workers Compensation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Workers Compensation - Essay Example The employees are assured that their employer is concerned about their well-being, and this makes them be devoted to working in order to meet the organizational goals. Workers Compensation is the most ancient form of social insurance, and it was introduced in the United States close to a hundred years ago to provide medical services and money grants to employees who are hurt at the workplace, and still avoid cases of misuse of the compensation. This paper will provide a brief history to Workers Compensation by explaining the Code of Hammurabi and the current state laws pertaining to Workers Compensation. The Code Of Hammurabi was written in the 18th century, and it was a law made by an ancient king of Babylon. It is still in practice today because its main basics of law are applicable in today’s world. King Hammurabi’s laws insisted on the eye for an eye way of dealing with situations, and this is applied in compensation procedures. The law of Hammurabi provided fiscal reimbursement for injuries, and it consisted of compensation schedules that would mean that a specific injury was compensated with specific rewards or payments. This procedure is applied in today’s compensation of workers since when they are injured in the workplace they are compensated based on the intensity of the injury.

Shades of Black Essay Example for Free

Shades of Black Essay â€Å"Shades of Black† is an excerpt from Mary Mebane’s first autobiographical volume. In it, Mebane writes about the different types of black and the depictions of them in society. More specifically, how women of color are viewed and treated. Views of black woman have changed since the civil rights movement. From the 1950s to the 1970s, the views of black beauty have changed from one of reverence to one of disgust. Many different problems and obstacles present themselves to woman of color. Mebane writes about the ways in which black black girls and lighter skin African American girls were treated and viewed. Mebane stated, â€Å"by the twentieth century, really black skin on a woman was considered ugly†(Mebane 239). During the early 1900s, black woman were not really desired. At one point, they were though. Around the civil rights movement, black men considered black woman beautiful. As Mebane mentions, there is no definite date for the shift from beautiful to ugly, but it is undeniable that a shift did occur. This shift from desired to no desire could be referred to as the black consciousness movement. Between the 1960s and the 1970s, darker skin woman were not looked at much. Instead, black men chased after lighter skin woman and woman of a different decent. Woman of a darker shade faced a new problem. They were already part of the minority, now they were placed even lower. Because of their color, darker women had difficulty finding partners as well as jobs. In order to be recognized, darker women had to either befriend a light skin â€Å"beauty†, or turn to sex. According to Mebane and others, sexual acts were the only advantage a black woman had in getting ahead. Because they were no longer considered beautiful, black women were only good for sex. In regards to having a career, or even a job, black women actually had to have skill. Since they were not very appealing to the eye, darker skin women had to be appealing on paper. Training was the only way in which a darker shade of African American woman could land a job. She had to be trained better than the lighter skin women in order to be hired. Sometimes, training was hard to receive since they were not very wealthy. If darker skin women were able to receive training, they were not treated fairly because of their color. Therefore, black black women had to fight through in order to get enough training. African American woman faced a lot of problems in society during the twentieth century. Although they were once thought of as beautiful, for most of their lives their color took away from what they could have been capable of. Lighter skin African American women were not as burdened by their color as black black woman. Being educated, finding a partner, and landing a job were amongst some of the problems darker skinned women faced between the civil rights movement and the black consciousness movement. Again, there is no definite point of change, but there is no denying that there was a shift and unfortunately it wasn’t a positive one.

Text Analysis of Hamlet and Man on Fire Essay Example for Free

Text Analysis of Hamlet and Man on Fire Essay Over time Hamlet transfigures from a highly emotional state to a temperament which is extremely methodical and emotionally stale. This mentality leads to a course of self-imposed blockades that ultimately result in the deferment of his revenge. Creasy, contrastingly, begins in an emotionless and detached state, a facade consolidated through his apparent want to die. However, this icy stature is chiseled away by Peta when he is assigned as her bodyguard. Upon Peta’s kidnapping Creasy is enraged, with reason exchanged for an intense and tremendously emotional approach for revenge. Hamlet’s first soliloquy clearly exhibits the magnitude to which his emotions have informed and consumed his thoughts. Even before knowing the reasons behind his state, it is established that Hamlet has a wish to die, a point pushed by the expression of ‘too too solid’ in the opening sentence. This repetition of ‘too’ expresses Hamlet’s dismay at his own permanency, an idea consolidated in the following line with the words ‘thaw’, ‘resolve’ and ‘dew’ contrasting to make a depiction of evanescence. This remarks that he does not wish to live long . Hamlet also shares a rather resentful view of the world and this is represented through the use of decay imagery. When Hamlet depicts ‘how weary, stale, flat and unprofitable’ the world appears to be he wholeheartedly believes that there is no worth in the world and that it possesses things only ‘rank and gross in nature’. Additionally, the use of caesurae in the sentence indicates, in its very nature, the desultory state of Hamlet. Dislocated sentence structure is also an indicative part of enforcing his wildly emotional state. Constant and erratic leaps between ideas in the mind of Hamlet lets us know that he is not thinking methodically or in a way that would be considered steady. This concoction of chopping and changing ideas is easily displayed where Hamlet says ‘like Niobe, all tears: why she, even she—O, God! ’ This depicts how he redirects his thoughts as seemingly new ideas come to mind and this thus adds to the knowledge of Hamlet’s emotionally unpredictable frame of mind. In contrast, Creasy projects a completely different mental picture at the beginning of Man on Fire. He appears as a character that is very much in his right mind and objective of his emotions. This kind of emotionless facade is furthermore evident in Creasy’s unsociable stance when in the presence of Peta. An example of this comes when Peta asks Creasy whether or not he was scared of her to which he provides a very short, blunt reply of ‘I used to be. At first. But not anymore. ’ This dialogue also indicates that Creasy may have social difficulties and by extension is lost in ways of approaching people or at least those he is not familiar with. An obvious inference of this lack of communication is that Creasy is lonely and quite dejected. A view of the world as being hopeless is also taken up by the character and evident when Peta says that ‘there are some good things in the world’ and Creasy replies ‘Oh yeah, like what. ’ In this way the characters of Hamlet and Creasy are similar – sharing a correlating perspective in which the world is of no prospect. An amalgamation of all these elements lead to an inevitable emotional trough for Creasy; in which he falls into total despondency. This state is characterized through the song ‘Blue Bayou’ which Creasy plays while drinking in the night. In this scene he becomes suicidal as he is assaulted by images and thoughts from which he cannot escape; leading the song to becoming fragmented pieces of non-diagetic sound. This fragmentation and seeming discord is emphasized by Scott who employs a magnitude of frantic panning and rapid cut shots in order to display the breakdown in Creasy’s mental state. When the scene nears its end, Creasy attempts to take his life with a gun that inevitably fails to deliver the life ending bullet. At this point, a non-diagetic and mellow piano starts that indicates a kind of relief to the perplexity of the previous moments. The contemplation of suicide is comparatively explored by Hamlet in the third act. Here, he questions, quite simplistically, his existence with ‘to be, or not to be. ’ From this point, Hamlet appears to ponder reasons for living or ying by asking whether it is ‘nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles. ’ This analysis indicates that Hamlet has devolved from his highly emotional state to a temperament that is extremely methodical in nature, even when considering the ending of his own life. The use of the word ‘thus’ also indicates a fluent transition from one idea to another. Throughout the soliloquy Hamlet appears to be in search of reasons not to die rather than does that consolidate suicide. The most prominent idea being the ‘dread of something after death’. Evidence of this is most prominent when Hamlet states ‘ to die, to sleep;†¦for in that sleep of death what dreams may come’. This indicates fully his fear of life after death and perhaps a kind of retribution for his sins or that of which he will commit in ways of exacting revenge on Claudius. The analytical disposition assumed by Hamlet and his inherent rejection of passion ultimately leads to his downfall and thus, this is his tragic flaw. In contrast to this, Creasy establishes a strong bond of friendship with Peta and, in the wake of her kidnapping, transforms himself into an unstoppable and passionate force for revenge. The most evidential dialogue for this newly ignited passion comes when Creasy says ‘I’m gonna kill ‘em. Anyone that was involved. Anybody who profited from it. Anybody who opens their eyes at me. ’ These short sentences are indicative of his straight-to-the-point nature and disregard for excessive analytical thinking. Additionally, Tony Scott settles his use of cut shots and selects longer scenes to focus on Creasy’s intent for revenge and the fact that no external forces will impede his pursuit. Subtitles are also employed by Scott to emphasize certain key aspects of scenes and additional bolding of words within the subtitles makes features prominent still further. In all, Creasy’s heightened passion to rescue Peta leads to his downfall and this can be acknowledged as his tragic flaw. In conclusion, Creasy and Hamlet are two contradictory characters in terms of their mindsets over the course of their respective texts. Creasy in Man on Fire evolves for an icy, stale and emotionally objective state to a mentality of passion and purpose. A variety of cinematic techniques are employed to depict both demeanors of Creasy including cut shots, subtitles and diagetic and non-diagetic sound. Hamlet, alternatively, begins in a consumed state of passion that declines to a methodical manner involving enormous analytical evaluation. The final state of both characters are inevitably their tragic flaws and equally lead to their demise -fulfilling their roles as tragic heroes.