Ralph Waldo Emerson Essay Example for Free

Ralph Waldo Emerson Essay Ralph Waldo Emerson, who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century, once wrote, The virtue in most request is conformity. Self-reliance is its aversion. The Transcendentalist were a group of people who believed that everyone was equal and had power inside them as an individual. In the mid-19th century Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and Walt Whitman were the main writers and thinkers of the transcendentalist movement. In the 1960s as African Americans fought for civil rights in a cruel society. William Melvin Kelly combines the two in the book A Different Drummer. This book tells the story of Tucker Caliban, a black farmer who encourages a huge amount of blacks to leave the south when he decides to salt his crops and burn down his house and leave. Tucker embodies the characteristics of a Transcendentalist according to Emerson, Thoreau, and Whitman in three ways: he does what he wants without an explanation, hes self-reliant, and he fights a corrupt system in his own way. Tucker does what he wants without an explanation or logic. Tucker stays out all night to teach Dewey how to ride a bike, even though his grandfather would be mad. Tucker also burned his house down and salted his crops without explaining this to his wife or to anyone else. Tucker writes Dewey a letter in college, he ask about the bike he taught him to ride. Dewey doesnt understand why because Tucker really didnt explain what he wanted to know about the bike. This shows Tucker really doesnt tell anyone his logic behind his actions. To be great is to be misunderstood, Emerson. This quote refers to Tucker because he is misunderstood by the whites. This shows hes also self-reliant and free spirited. Tucker Caliban is self-reliant and unique. Tucker self taught himself to farm and ride a bike. He also doesnt believe in the civil rights movement which most other blacks strongly believe in. He also believes everyone has to free themselves or else there not really free. This shows that Tucker Caliban is not just any other black, hes unique. But he also fights the souths corrupt system in his own one of a kind way. We but half express ourselves, and are ashamed of that divine idea which each of us represents. This quote refers to Tucker because he is different and others are afraid to be different. Tucker Caliban is a rebel and he fights the system. He burned down his house and salted his crops because thats where the slaves worked for the Willsons. He broke the grandfather clock because it was bought the same day as the African. He cut down the tree that separated his land from the Willisons, that was there from the days of slavery. He did all of this to cut his ties from slavery and from the south. Society everywhere is in conspiracy against the manhood of everyone of its members. This refers to the south and other blacks like Tucker. Therefore Tucker Caliban embodies the characteristics of a Transcendentalist according to Emerson, Thoreau, and Whitman in three ways: he does what he wants without an explanation, hes self-reliant, and he fights a corrupt system in his own way. Tuckers movement from the south is a strong step in the right direction for racism in the south. To me what Tucker did was strong and no else was strong enough to leave before Tucker did it.

Justice In Orestes :: The Oresteia Equality Justice Essays

Justice in Orestes Aeschylus is primarily concerned with the nature of justice. In the trilogy The Oresteia, the Akhaians evolve from an older, more primitive autocratic form of justice, to a new concept of civil justice devised by Athena. He confronts the contrast between the old and new orders, the lives of the members of the House of Atreus, and the serious moral questions that Orestes' crime presents. The case against Orestes is strong. The son admits to striking down his mother, in violation of the sacred tenant of kinship. "But I came back, my years of exile weathered—killed the one who bore me, I won't deny it, killed her in revenge." (Eumenides lines 476-478) This shows that Orestes was fully aware of the act he was committing, that he willfully committed it, and that he must suffer for it. The bond between mother and child was broken when Orestes murdered Clytaemnestra. Marriage, arguably, is a tenant of Zeus and the Olympians. In the old order of things, family is by blood only. A husband and wife have no blood relation, yet the son is of the same blood as his parents. The Furies right to vengeance cannot be dismissed. Clytaemnestra is one who upheld the laws of the Furies. Agamemnon's murder of Iphegenia at Aulis was pure outrage. "Yes he had the heart to sacrifice his daughter , to bless the war†¦" (Agamemnon lines 222-223) Agamemnon killed his own blood relation in order to sail for Troy. This too, is a terrible crime, seemingly of the same weight as Orestes' act. Clytaemnestra believed she was justified in avenging her daughter, because her husband violated a sacred tenant of the old gods. "Here is Agamemnon, my husband made a corpse by this right hand—a masterpiece of justice. Done is done." (Agamemnon lines 1429-1431) This shows a clear morality behind Clytaemnestra's motives. She appears to have justification for her actions. The curse on the House of Atreus is fulfilled. In the last lines of Agamemnon the chorus foreshadows Orestes' return. Clytaemnestra responds by saying to her new husband, "We will set the house in order once for all." (Agamemnon lines 1708) The chorus's purpose for suggesting Orestes's return is to show that the house is not yet cleansed of the curse.. Like his mother, Orestes possesses what he believes to be a just motive for revenge. Unlike his mother, however, Orestes has reservations about killing. He does not wish to strike down his mother, but realises that he must. The defense of Orestes is rooted in the fact that Apollo ordered him to do so.

Negative Utilitarianism: An Overview

Most utilitarian theories deal with producing the greatest amount of good for the greatest number of people. Negative utilitarianism (NU) requires us to promote the least amount of evil or harm, or to prevent the greatest amount of suffering for the greatest number. Proponents like Karl Popper, Christoph Fehige and Clark Wolf argue that this is a more effective ethical formula, since, they contend, the greatest harms are more consequential than the greatest goods. Karl Popper also referred to an epistemological argument: â€Å"It adds to clarity in the fields of ethics, if we formulate our demands negatively, i. e. if we demand the elimination of suffering rather than the promotion of happiness. †(Karl R. Popper,1945) Most forms of utilitarianism hold that we ought to do that which maximises the good and minimises the bad. There is some disagreement about what the good and the bad are– whether the good is people being happy and the bad is people being unhappy, or the go od is people getting what they want and the bad is people not getting what they want, or whatever–but most utilitarians agree that whatever the good and the bad are, we ought to bring about as much of the former and as little of the latter as is possible. Negative utilitarians disagree. Negative utilitarians are concerned only with minimising the bad. They don't think we ought to maximise the good and minimise the bad, and that when we must choose between the two we must weigh the difference that we can make to the one against the difference that we can make to the other; rather, negative utilitarians hold just that we ought to minimise the bad, that we ought to alleviate suffering as far as we are able to do so. Suppose that I have a choice to make: I can either make the happiest man in the world even happier than he already is, or I can alleviate some of the suffering of the unhappiest man in the world. Suppose further that the difference that I can make to the happy man is much greater than the difference that I can make to the unhappy man. Most utilitarians would say that in this case I ought to help the happy man. As I can make a greater difference to the life of the happy man than I can make to the life of the unhappy man, it is the happy man whom I should help. Negative utilitarians disagree. Negative utilitarians hold that it is more important to alleviate suffering than it is to promote pleasure, and that I should therefore always choose to alleviate suffering rather than promote pleasure when forced to choose between the two. In most supporters of moderate NU the preference to survive is stronger than the wish to be freed from suffering, so that they refuse the idea of a quick and painless destruction of life. Some of them believe that, in time, the worst cases of suffering is defeated and a world of minor suffering can be realized. The big problem with negative utilitarianism is that it appears to require the destruction of the world. The world contains much suffering, and the future, presumably, contains a great deal more suffering than the present. Each of us will suffer many calamaties in the course of our lives, before those lives finally end with the suffering of death. There is a way, however, to reduce this suffering: we could end it all now. With nuclear weapons technology, we have the capability to blow up the planet, making it uninhabitable. Doing so would cause us all to suffer death, but death is going to come to us all anyway, so causing everyone to die will not increase the suffering in the world. Causing us to die now, though, will decrease the suffering in the world; it will prevent us from suffering those calamaties that were going to plague us during the remainder of our lives. Destroying the planet, then, will reduce the suffering in the world. According to negative utilitarianism, then, it is what we ought to do. That, though, is surely absurd. Negative utilitarianism, therefore, is false.

Antonio Lopez De Santa Anna - 1024 Words

Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna was born in Jalapa, Veracruz Mexico, on February 21, 1794. He belongs to a â€Å"criollo† middle class family. His parents were from Spain. He was a Mexican politician and military leader who was President of Mexico eleven times from 1833 to 1855. He was president officially six times, and unofficially five more. He was also a disastrous president of Mexico because he lost Texas and much more of the current American west in the United States. However, by far he was an important figure of his generation in the Mexican history. Many people love him during his first years of president, and he was remembered for two major conflicts, the Battle of the Alamo in 1836 during the Texas Revolution, and as a restored Mexican leader during the Mexican-American War in 1847 (tshaonline.org). The prestige of Santa Anna in 1829 helped him to gain the presidency in 1833. In 1829 he fought against Spain’s attempt to conquer Mexico, and after his victory everyone looked at him as a good leader. His victory from Spain makes him immediately turn over power. At that time the vice-president was Valentà ­n Gà ³mez Farà ­as, and allowed him to make some reforms, including many that aimed at the Catholic Church and the army. Because the people of Mexico do not accept his reforms, Santa Anna stepped in and removed Gà ³mez Farà ­as from power, and consequently he gained the presidency in 1833 as a Federalist and opponent of Roman Catholic Church. He was in power from 1833 to 1836Show MoreRelatedAntonio Lopez Essay675 Words   |  3 PagesAntonio Lopez de Santa Anna was born on March 21, 1794 in Jalapa, Vera Cruz and died in 1876, in Mexico City. Santa Anna had started in the military in 1810 as a cadet at the age of 16, and was promoted to Brigadier General in 1822. In 1828 Santa Anna became the governor of Vera Cruz. He became governor again in Vera Cruz in the year 1829. Then in 1833 he was elected the president of Mexico. Santa Anna led the Mexican attack on the Alamo in Texas in the year 1835. Santa Anna eventually capturedRead MoreThe Texas Revolution Essay1025 Words   |  5 Pagesand economic gain while under the Constitution of 1824. It gave Texas a steady population flow of American migrants moving onto Texas soil. It also gave them political liberty, freedom to own slaves and a steady economic progression. But Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, president of Mexico, wished to impose a stricter rule which could also explain why Texas felt the need to separate from Mexico. Another speculated cause was that the Anglo-Americans that lived there refused to conform to the Mexican rulesRead MoreSilencing the Past: Summary Essay663 Words   |  3 Pagespoint of view. He talks about how Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna took over a Franciscan Mission with a total number of 189 defenders. (Little did he know that mythic heros Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie were inside) The siege went on for twelve days before the Mexicans finally charged the fort and killed everyone inside. A few weeks later at the battle of San Jacinto Santa Anna was defeated by the Secessionist leader Sam Houston. The Texans went on to secede and Santa Anna went on to be the leader of a muchRead More The Alamo Essay2090 Words   |  9 Pagesshould establish themselves as a separate state of Mexico. He was jailed for eighteen months. The Texans protested and soldiers were sent to control the mobs. After the release of Austin on September 1, Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna had been elected President of Mexico. In the fall of 1835 Santa Anna had sent more troops, under the leadership of his brother in law General Martin Cos, to Texas in order to enforce the immigration laws. Austin and some soldiers had surrounded settlements in Mexican territoryRead MoreTitle The Alamo didn’t become a symbol of Texan Independence because it was a good idea on the1000 Words   |  4 Pagestrained to become a lawyer and practice in Claiborne, Alabama. He came to Texas both to make his fortune and he supported the revolt against Texas (William Barret Travis). Santa Anna, the Mexican general, and dictator, who led the Mexican army against the Alamo, had already sent another general to do the job. This first general, Santa Anna’s brother-in-law, General Cos, had â€Å"ordered the arrest of several troublemakers, including William Barret Travis (Sorrels 31).† William Barret became the main reasonRead MoreEssay about Mexicos Economy An Politics In 19th Century863 Words   |  4 PagesBustamante. Revolt followed revolt until 1833, when Antonio Là ³pez de Santa Anna was elected president. In 1834 a political crisis resulted in the overthrow of the constitution of 1824. A new centralist constitution, which stripped the Mexican states of their autonomy, was enacted in 1836. Protests against centralization encouraged the Texans to rebel against Mexican authority in 1835, in what came to be known as the Texas Revolution. Santa Anna was called back to the presidency to attempt to saveRead More The Alamo Essay2741 Words   |  11 Pagesin a string of firecracker events the seeds of revolution and the battle of the Alamo ensued.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Alamo first saw action when General Cos landed at Copano, and headed to San Antonio to meet up with Colonel Ugartechea. By now war was on everyone’s mind and many events prior to Cos marching toward San Antonio set the playing field for war, but not everyone really was for it,..... at least not yet. Meanwhile, in Gonzales the revolution had started over a cannon that the settlers would not giveRead More Hollywood vs. History: The Alamo Essay1557 Words   |  7 Pagesone of these settlers; he came to Texas to make a profit. Jim Bowie is best known to have built the bowie knife but even more so to have fought in the Alamo. Jim Bowie married a rich politician who is actually the sister of Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna was the new leader of Mexico; after he was put into power he proclaimed himself a dictator and abolished the Mexican constitution. As the Texan settlements prospered whites began breaking the codes and started smug gling inRead MoreThe Rallying Cry Of The Texans During Their Rebellion Against General Antonio Lopez De Santa Anna At The Alamo1208 Words   |  5 Pages92. The rallying cry of the Texans in their rebellion against General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna at the Alamo mission in San Antonio TX in 1836 when 200 Texans made a heroic stand against 3000 Mexicans under Santa Anna. 93. The manifest destiny was belief in which Americans believe that America had a divine obligation to stretch the boundaries to the Pacific Ocean. A symbol of manifest destiny was the figure â€Å"Columbia† that moves across the land leaving the darkness with light. 94. Texan AnnexationRead MoreThe Battle at the Alamo Essay1730 Words   |  7 PagesThe battle at the Alamo is one of the most significant events in the Texas Revolution, as well as in both Mexican and American history. For Mexican President and General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, it was a tale of determination and holding to the principles of a strong, central government. For Americans living in Texas, the Alamo was a venture of small scale Revolutionary ideals; a people should be able to democratically express how they feel their homeland to be governed. As we know, both countries