Sunday, November 17, 2019
Roman Empire Culture Essay Example for Free
Roman Empire Culture Essay Wikipedias entry on the Fall of the Roman Empire is a comprehensive and multifaceted survey of the scholarship which seeks to indicate a certain period or event or series of events which caused the fall of the Roman Empire. One of the main differences between the Wikipedia entry and a traditional encyclopedia entry is the extensive analysis with which the Wikipedia entry is able to devote to sub-sections and sub-theories under the general banner of discussion.            The question of assigning a specific date for the fall occupies a great deal of the Wikipedia article. The traditional date acknowledged is September 4, 476 when Romulus Augustus, Emperor of the Western Empire, was deposed by Odoacer. But the Eastern Empire continued until the fall of Constantinople nearly a century later in 1453. Other dates in contention are 395, the year of the death of Theodosius, the last time the Empire was united; the crossing of the Rhine by Germanic tribes in 406 after the withdrawal of the legions to battle Alaric I; or the disintegration of the western legions following the death of Stilicho in 408. Many scholars disdain the term â€Å"fall†, preferring to describe what was happening as a â€Å"complex transformation†. The Wikipedia entry while seeming to dwell inordinately on a specific time or date of the fall is in actuality providing the researcher with a varied primer on the myriad theories which attend the question of historical dates of the Roman Empires fall.            Though the tone of the Wikipedia entry is scholarly, the lengthy digressions and somewhat scattered patterns of information make the entry less streamlined than a typical encyclopedia entry. In addition, the numerous off-site links and cross-references can prove to be distractive. And although the Wikipedia entry itself closely resembles scholarly writing there can be no assurance regarding the veracity of off-site links.            The most obvious bias that is apparent in the Wikipedia entry is resounding insistence that there is a date of collapse for the Roman Empire. The entry cites Edward Gibbon who argues the Roman population lost its way by allowing the Germanic tribes and other barbarian mercenaries a greater role in defending its interests. Gibbon claims Christianity was a contributing factor as well, turning the populations attention to other-worldly as opposed to here-and-now events.            Rather than examine contradictory theories in detail, the Wikipedia entry consumjes most of its energy revealing the survey of theories which argue for a date of collapse for the Roma Empire. Wikipedia surveys the â€Å"Pirenne Thesis†, wherein Henri Pirenne argued the Empire continued until the Muslim conquests in the 7th century, which disrupted Mediterranean trade routes and depressed the European economy. Pirenne sees the crowning of the Frankish King Charlemagne as the first Holy Roman Emperor in 800 as a continuation of the Empire.            But it is J. B. Bury’s contention in his â€Å"History of the Later Roman Empire†which receives critical attention in the Wikipedia article. His theory is that what amounted to a â€Å"perfect storm†of events combined to spell the downfall of the Empire:            *Economic decline            *Germanic expansion in the population and military            *De-population of Italy            *The treason of Stilicho            *The murder of Aetius and the lack of a leader to replace him            Bury says the Empire could have survived any of these events separately, but could not overcome the convergence of them.            William Carroll Bark’s â€Å"Origins of the Medieval World†reasons that basic economics was the Empire’s undoing. As a pre-cursor to feudalism, the tenant farmer’s obligation was to pay a fixed assessment of taxes on his grain supply. The oppressive taxes kept the farmers impoverished and unlikely to move into the more prosperous middle class. In fact, what middle class there was was forced to become collectors of the taxes for the inefficient central government. Government coffers suffered as a result. Also, the scarcity of gold late in the Empire made matters worse. Inflation of the currency in relation to its value in gold resulted in more people demanding payment in gold. The government’s cash-flow problems required them to seek cheaper mercenaries as defenders.            Radovan Richta says technology contributed to the Empire’s demise. The Germanic invention of the horseshoe and use of the new Chinese compass allowed mercenaries quicker access to Roman defenses.            Arnold Toynbee and James Burke also examine economic causes at the root of the Empire’s fall. The Romans had no budgetary system and wasted available resources as a result. The economy was basically based on plunder rather than production of new goods, and that declined along with territorial expansion. Landowners were exempt from taxation, making revenue production inefficient and unfair. The middle-class, the backbone of any free economy, was nearly non-existent. Exports were scarce. Military and bureaucratic costs increased. In overthrowing Romulus Augustus, the barbarian conqueror Odoacer assumed neither the title nor the responsibility of governance.            William H. McNeill in â€Å"Plagues and Peoples†notes a 20-year-long plague in the late second century killed half of Europe’s population. The reduced tax base was unable to support the government and military and the resultant economic and social decline also killed the Empire.              Further theories of the cause of collapse proliferate through the Wikipedia article. So much so that one begins to feel that each sub-section of the article has been contributed by an enthusiast of that particularly pet-theory, sacrificing a general tone of scholarship for a tone of specificity and personal expertise. Examples of this include Wikipedias survey of Peter Heathers theory: that the threat posed by the Sassanid Persian Empire has been overlooked as a cause for the Roman Empires fall. He used archaeological evidence to suggest the Romans were stretched militarily by their preoccupation with the Persians, allowing a succession of Huns, Goths, and Germanic barbarians access to their territory.            A researcher who is searching for a very good primer regarding the abundance of theories which exist in scholarship to examine the historicism of the Roman Empires fall will find excellent information in the Wikipedia article, as a general and unverified outline of the scholarship. However, a deep-researcher would probably find the entry inconsistent, erratic, and of little value for serious scholarship as a go-to source; rather the Wikipedia seems to serve better as a thumbnail sketch of info and links to other sources of potential value. REFERENCE            The Fall of the Roman Empire. wikipedia.com. Retrieved from the Internet March 16, 2007.
Thursday, November 14, 2019
Changes in Family and Marriage Structure :: Sociology
Marriages and Families â€Å"Changes†Imagine that, if in the 1920’s someone would have predicted that by the year 2000 one out of two marriages will end in divorce. The number of single parents will triple and lots of them will never marry. Stay at home moms will become almost obsolete and, gay people will want to get married and adopt children. Oh my, could you imagine the look on their faces? Families are defiantly different now than they were then, but the world is also different. Does this mean than families are deteriorating or are they stronger than ever? Maybe they are just changing and are still as strong as they once were. So many changes have taken place within the family. Some of them are higher divorce rates, more working mothers, more homosexual families, and a huge increase in children born out of wedlock. Many argue that most of the family’s problems come from the mother working outside of the house. The fact is that working mothers is nothing new. Mothers have always done something to help out, even if it was sewing, baking, or working on the land. In today’s world it’s very hard to make ends meet with only one income. Children benefit in some ways from their mom working. In this materialistic culture children want to have all the nice things and what’s hot. Working mothers spend on average just as much quality time with their children as non working mothers. Divorce, single parents, and unmarried parents have always existed. It is no doubt that the rates of them have increased dramatically. Is this a bad sign? This doesn’t mean that families are weak. It only means that people’s morals have changed. Families are not perfect, but they are strong. We also have more freedoms than we did in the 1920s. Women can now leave their husbands when things are unbearable. Women didn’t have as many choices then. Just because families seemed good then don’t mean that they were. It’s not something we should try to live up to. After all we are talking about a time when slaves were legal and treated badly. On the opposite side men don’t get to really be full time fathers after divorce. Divorce defiantly affects children. It is also better for children if they don’t have to live in a household of anger and unhappiness. Of
Tuesday, November 12, 2019
Blood Diamond Essay
Africa was known as â€Å"The Dark Continent†during the Victorian Era, believed by Europeans to be a land where even the slightest trace of civilization tends to collapse under madness and savagery. It seems especially common for Europeans to assume that anyone who ventures into Africa would then sink into an irrevocable state of delirium. Such notion was amplified by Joseph Conrad, who, in Heart of Darkness, took Africa as a land so free from moral restraints that no civility could stand from being pulverized by its darkness. Blood Diamond, dating a hundred years after Heart of Darkness, presents a different view. Although the film seems to faithfully support the conventional view of Africa as a place that forces its inhabitants into madness, a closer examination of Blood Diamond shows that, quite the opposite of depicting Africa as The Dark Continent, the film actually rebuts the view by emphasizing the underlying grace of the land. Blood Diamond sends out the message that rather then being the other way around, it is the colonizers of Africa who are forcing the continent into its present state of violence and madness. Through contrasting between parts of Africa with assorted degrees of western influence, director Edward Zwick shows that Africa without colonization would be a land of peace and grace. This contrast is established between the depiction of an RUF (Revolutionary United Front) headquarters and an elusive school that lies within the immutable jungles of Africa. Zwick uses costume to represent western ideals brought to Africa through colonization when portraying the RUF headquarters. When Danny Archer first gets off the plane to do business with Commander Zero, the audience is introduced to a group of African teenagers dressed in shockingly familiar looking attires. Indeed Captain Rambo, a member of the RUF, is dressed in no way different from any North American boy. His clothing without doubt emulates the fashion of North American hip-hop generation. His wide sunglasses, baggy pants, and chain necklace all too well indicate western influence. It is only when he holds up a gun that the audience senses a strong odour of irony. The gangster image that prevails this RUF headquarters contrasts with a peaceful African community in the midst of the jungle, a community in which the effect of colonization is less apparent. In fact, Zwick speaks of this community as an â€Å"island of sanity†. The term â€Å"island†denotes not only a sense of isolation from the atrocity of the surrounding world, but also a sense of isolation from western influence. It is within this community that a group of child soldiers are carefully returned to life. Of these two African communities, the one that displays a crave for western ideals is the one that rears violence and madness, whereas the primitive jungle described as the very medium of suffocation in Heart of Darkness becomes the place where sanity is restored. Through contrasting between a world greatly influenced by colonization and a world that is not yet penetrable to its grasp, Blood Diamond clearly conveys the idea that it is the white people who are jeopardizing Africa’s graceful soul with their intrusion, and it is the colonizers of Africa who are ultimately responsible for any violence seen there today. Zwick also uses various types of shots to establish Africa as a graceful land. Although scenes of RUF troops committing heinous violence are omnipresent in Blood Diamond, Zwick does not forget to show what Africa was like before war and colonization. The use of master shots often precedes any scenes of violence in the film to constantly remind the audience of the majestic panorama of Africa. Shots of grand canyons, peaceful sunset, and misty cities again and again take the audience’ breath away. These shots are images of Africa entirely different from those underscoring problems of poverty and hunger commonly seen in media, thereby are all the more shocking. It is indeed hard for one to find a trace of savagery or madness in this landscape. Without these shots, one would laugh with an air dismissal when Dia says to his father â€Å"teacher says our country (Sierra Leone) was built to be an utopia†. But with these breathtaking images, the audience cannot help but to ruminate over Dia’s belief that â€Å"when the war is over, our country will become a paradise. Apart from using master shots, Blood Diamond also employs wide shots to convey similar ideas. The film opens with a wide shot of fishermen working against sunrise. In the shot, the black silhouettes moving quietly yet arduously against the breaking dawn of the sky effectively convey a sense of peace. By integrating various types of shots into the content of the film in a meaningful manner, Zwick successfully delivers his desire to show what Africa was like before colonization. These shots are key to establishing Africa as a land of peace before its colonizer’s arrival. Zwick also conveys the idea that it is the Europeans who are responsible Africa’s present chaotic state by probing the different meanings of diamond in Africa and in Europe. A character responsible for this layer of the film is a sadistic RUF mine general– General Poison. Following after the priceless diamond like an animal after the smell of carcass, General Poison is depicted as the very heart of distortion and madness throughout the film. In the prison scene, Zwick’s use of lighting and colour effectively turns General Poison into the icon of animosity similar to that described in Heart of Darkness. The prison scene is dominated by a sickly luscious combination of brown, green, and red, creating a canvas that is hunted by greed and fear. Here, Zwick plays around with the employment of fluorescence light to give General Posion the aura of a mad dog as he barks at Solomon Vandy. Yet General Poison reveals something rather astonishing near the end– he craves for that diamond not because of greed, like the diamond dealers in London, but because he wants to escape his own cruelty. â€Å"You think I am a devil, but it is only because I have been in hell. I want to get out, and you will help me†. This is what the general says to Solomon, and the audience learns that he too is a prisoner suffering from the effects of colonization. General Poison craves for that priceless diamond not because of the wealth it shall bring, but because it is his only ticket out. As soon as this is revealed, the audience learns that his devilish behaviour is not the result of his native instinct; rather, it is the result of having to cope with the values of white men. It is white people, the colonizers, who are forcing him into madness. Suffocated by the atrocity of colonization, he must act cruelly to free himself from his own madness. This internal irony shows that Africa is not a continent with the natural tendency to drive its inhabitants into madness; rather, the madness seen in the film is only the result of Africans trying to cope with the values of their colonizers. In Blood Diamond, Zwick effectively combines style and content to show that Africa is not a continent of darkness and savagery; rather, the moral dilapidation seen there today is the result of colonization. Indeed instead of pushing those who venture into its land beyond the boundaries of civilization, Africa is itself a prisoner and a sufferer. It is with productions like Blood Diamond that the images outlined in Heart of Darkness become increasingly relegated from the status of a journal to that of a fiction. It is with productions like Blood Diamond that the truth about Africa is slowly revealed. In a way, Blood Diamond has given Africa a testimony of its grace that is rather long overdue.
Saturday, November 9, 2019
Chinese investments and business Essay
For more than ï ¬ ve years now, China has been the most important trade partner of Africa (OECD, 2011). Its growing investments in the African continent show the deï ¬ nite long-term interest that the Asian country has in Africa. When comparing the manner and the effectiveness of doing business in Africa of Chinese companies and of western companies, a lot of differences can be found. These divergences can help us better understand why Chinese ï ¬ rms are being more successful in Africa than European and American ï ¬ rms but also why they continue to be so eager to multiply and deepen their business partnerships in Africa. The particularities of the  « Chinese way  » to do business in Africa that enhance this growing investing trend can be assembled in three general characteristics of the Africa-China relations: the long-term relationship that was built between China and African countries over the years, the efï ¬ cient model used by Chinese companies to cultivate a good image in the eyes of the African people and the important role played by the Chinese government through diplomatic efforts. 1. Africa and China, in good terms since 1955. At the Bandung conference in 1955, China has allied with the newly independent African countries in order to resist agains any form or colonialism or neocolonialism. This ï ¬ rst contemporary step reï ¬â€šects the position that China has since been adopting: allying with African countries by showing them that China is  « on their side  » and helping them ï ¬ ght the western hegemony. By positioning on their side and emphasizing their common interest and similarities in resisting the western world, China has gained a great trust in Africa. This process was greatly catalyzed by the actions of the Chinese government from the 1960s till today. On the other side, complicated diplomatic relations between the African and the western countries have made it more difï ¬ cult for the European and American companies to do business in Africa. Indeed, political leaders from the West have had negative behaviors with African leaders and people, only emphasizing the poverty, the instability and the lack of democracy of this continent and underrating Africa’s potential for business (Rieff, 1998). In fact, companies from the Western world were only pushed by their leaders to invest in Africa in the 1990s, when these latter started to realize the performances of Chinese ï ¬ rms in Africa (Sautman & Hairong, 2007). On this side, we see clearly that the Western countries are late compared to China and still suffering from their image of neocolonialists. Furthermore, it is interesting to see that China has been paying more attention to the longterm consequences an interests, when investing in African countries. On the other side, the western countries as seen by the Africans as investing selï ¬ shly and only looking for rapid expansion without caring about the long-term consequences for Africa and its people. Also, when looking at Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, we observe that China and many African countries are similar on certain dimensions such as individualism (low) and power distance (high), which could make it easier for Chinese companies to invest in Africa. Nonetheless, the success and the attraction of China in Africa seems to have deeper explanations, and some authors suggest that a true  « Chinese model  » exists when it comes to its commercial activities on the African continent (Li, 2005). This speciï ¬ c method of investing in Africa is made possible for Chinese ï ¬ rms through China’s philosophy to encourage foreign direct investments (FDI) and with the help of all the Chinese savings. 2. A more efï ¬ cient model, a better image, a better business environment. Since the beginning, China was able to  « play on the same side  » as African countries as they can relate to some similarities in their history. Indeed, both African and Asian countries, except for Japan and Korea, were developing countries not to long ago, after suffering of decades of colonialism from the Western countries. In this sense, China, which is the best developed of the  « South  » countries can then show the way to African countries and understands the situation there far better than the Occidental countries do. To go even further, some authors argue that increased trade and investment from China is reducing the African dependence on the US and other Western countries: it is then seen as  « mutually beneï ¬ cial  » (Itano, 2005) It is because of that mutual understanding and beneï ¬ t that Chinese companies see Africa as a less risky proposition. These companies have understood how to do business in Africa and how to overcome the risks of that continent. At ï ¬ rst, it could look like Chinese, American and European companies are doing business in the exact same way: they all extract resources such as oil and buy tax materials from Africa, while exporting other consumer goods. However, China seems to be more selï ¬â€šess when doing it. Chinese companies, thanks to their still cheap manufacturing force, is able to export goods to Africa that are way cheaper than the ones from Western countries, and sometimes even cheaper than the local African goods (Donnelly, 2005). Moreover, Chinese companies seem to have understood that to improve their business relationship with African stakeholders, they have to really contribute to the development of the country in which they operate. While the Western companies have an image of only improving the GDP of the nations in which they !do business, only looking at their interests, pretend to be helping African countries because they help them grow. However, the main difference between Chinese and Western way of investing is that the ï ¬ rst one has been helping Africa to develop while the second one has only brought growth but no real development. The Chinese companies seem to have done more to help industrialism grow in the different African countries where they operate. According to the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, in 2009, 29% of China’s FDI to Africa went to the extractive industries but it represented 60% of U.S. FDI . During the same year, the CEIP reported that China had invested more in manufacturing, and in African jobs, than the U.S did (Proctor, 2013). Chinese companies have found that helping the African countries to develop and to industrialize, while providing low-cost technologies to their African partners (Muekalia, 2004) allowed them to build better relations with these partners and get more connections locally, which seems to be essential she doing business in Africa. The last characteristic of this Chinese model is very interesting and it has to do agin with the similarities between the two cultures. While western expatriates in Africa show a very negative image of their countries, this is not the case at all for the Chinese workers. These latter appear to have a closer lifestyle to the African people than the workers and businessmen from Europe and North-America. The have similar living conditions, are not privileged over the African employees and do not demand indecent salaries. On the other side, the Western executives and workers, even among Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) seem to have an exploitative behavior and take advantage of their position (Wainaina, 2006). This type of behavior can, without any doubt, be called neocolonialism, and this is what makes Western companies loose the trust an collaboration of their African partners. This altered relation between Western and African companies create an even riskier environment for the ï ¬ rst to business on the second’s territory. Nevertheless, Chinese’s good behavior and long-term earned respect allows its companies to enjoy good relations and an easier business environment. This important difference, however, is not only imputable to the Western companies actions, but particularly to the wrong strategies of their governments, completely opposed to China’s diplomatic strategy. 3. Efï ¬ cient diplomatic efforts from the Chinese government. Indeed, as it was said before, the diplomatic efforts of the Chinese government in Africa are more than 50 years old. The best example for this is the Tanzania-Zambia railway project, implemented by China during the 1960s and the 1970s, and which was made possible through the help of around ï ¬ fty thousand workers from China ( Hall & Peyman, 1976). This is the perfect example of the way China has been doing diplomacy in Africa for the past half century: it brings help without trying to force things and knowing that they will get something in return. In the opposite, E.U. and the U.S. have always attached conditions to their help in Africa, demanding changes from their governments and forcing different legal and economic reforms. Indeed, these governments have continuously tried to force their western conception of democracy into the African countries, while pushing for more deregulation and privatization. This obsession for democracy, coupled with an almost unhidden neocolonialist desire to  « educate  » the African people has pushed the Western leaders into complicated relationships with the African people and has deteriorated their image in the continent. Today, some of the Western governments start to see their mistakes and realize that their strategy has not been the right one and has made investing in Africa even more complicated for their ï ¬ rms. When she was still Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, ex- declared that the U.S. ï ¬ rms should look for  « sustainable partnerships in Africa that add value rather than extract it.  » (Salvaterra, 2012) However, these countries still have a long way to go, as they have been using international treaties that have weakened African nations (Nunn & Price, 2004) and that are seen as  « promoting an aggravated form of worldwide unequal exchange  » (Sautman, B & Hairong, Y, 2007). China, on the other side, has been promoting infrastructure, human capital and other long-term investment, while Western countries have been promoting only primary products and ï ¬ rst-aid. China’s government has never given any ofï ¬ cial political support, while keeping smooth relationships with the African leaders, which is a deep difference with the U.S. and the E.U. This difference seems to be the most obvious when it comes to aid in Africa. Western countries’ aid is called  « tied aid  », meaning that the aid will only provided in certain conditions, which will beneï ¬ t the stakeholder performing the aid. For example,when a U.S. passes a contract with an African developing country, it ties the ï ¬ nancial aid it will provide to this African country to the obligation to use this money to buy goods from American ï ¬ rms or non-proï ¬ t organizations. Chinese aid, on the contrary is mostly  « untied  ». The best description of this divergence of strategies between China and the Western countries seem to be described by Julius Nyere (1974), when he declared that  « the Chinese people have not asked us to become communists in order to qualify for this loan†¦ They have never at any point suggested that we should change any of our policies  ». Conclusion The main reason why it is easier for Chinese ï ¬ rms to do business in Africa than for other ï ¬ rms seem to be contained in this quote. China has been building a positive relationship with African countries, where both parties are winning and where Africa’s free agency is taken into account and even valued. The Chinese diplomats and companies have managed to lower the risk of corruption and of change from the African people by building a good image in their eyes and becoming  « friends  » with them. On the other side, Western ï ¬ rms still suffer from these risks of corruption as they rarely beneï ¬ t from a trust-based relationship in the African countries, which is crucial when trying to work around this problem. By having neocolonialist behaviors and building win-lose situations instead of win-win situations, they made it even worse for them to do business in Africa.
Thursday, November 7, 2019
Canadian T3 Tax Slips for Trust and Mutual Funds Income
Canadian T3 Tax Slips for Trust and Mutual Funds Income A Canadian T3 tax slip, or Statement of Trust Income Allocations and Designations, is prepared and issued by financial administrators and trustees to tell you and the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) how much income you received from investment in mutual funds in non-registered accounts, from business income trusts or income from an estate for a given tax year. Quebec residents receive the equivalent Relevà © 16 or R16 tax slip. Deadline for T3 Tax Slips Unlike most other tax slips, T3 tax slips do not have to be mailed until the last day of March the year after the calendar year to which the T3 tax slips apply. Sample T3 Tax Slip Canadian Tax Form T3 2018.  Canadian Revenue Agency The Canadian government creates a new T3 each year, so be sure your advisor downloads the most recent form. That site includes a standard pdf version of the form that the financial administrator of your trustee can print and fill out; and an electronic version that allows him or her to fill it out online. The sample T3 tax slip from the CRA above is from the 2018 tax year and shows you what to expect. The information required for this form includes your recipient identification number (social insurance number or business number), the cash amount of income from dividends you will need to report, capital gains, capital gains which are eligible for a deduction, and any other income. Most of that will come from your relevant financial administrator per trust or mutual fund. See the second page of the downloaded PDF form for more information on what is included in each box. Filing T3 Tax Slips With Your Income Tax Return When you file a paper income tax return, include copies of each of the T3 tax slips you receive. If you file your income tax return using NETFILE or EFILE, keep copies of your T3 tax slips with your records for six years in case the CRA asks to see them. If you decide to file your T3 slips online, you can use either Internet file transfer (XML) or web forms. Details on that process are available on the Canadian Revenue Agency website, Filing Information Returns Electronically. Missing T3 Tax Slips If you have trust or mutual funds income and havent received a T3 tax slip as you reach the CRA filing date, get in touch with the relevant financial administrator or trustee. If necessary, file your income tax return by the deadline anyway to avoid penalties for filing your income taxes late. Calculate the income and any related deductions and credits as closely as you can using any information you have. Include a note with the name and address of the financial administrator or trustee, the type and amount of trust or mutual funds income and related deductions, and what you have done to get a copy of the missing T3 tax slip. Include copies of any statements you used in calculating the income and deductions for the missing T3 tax slip. Other Tax Information Slips Other tax information slips include: T4 - Statement of Remuneration PaidT4A - Statement of Pension, Retirement, Annuity, and Other IncomeT4A(OAS) - Statement of Old Age SecurityT4A(P) - Statement of Canada Pension Plan BenefitsT4E - Statement of Employment Insurance and Other BenefitsT4RSP - Statement of RRSP IncomeT5 - Statement of Investment Income
Tuesday, November 5, 2019
Understand the Philosophical Theories of Nominalism and Realism
Understand the Philosophical Theories of Nominalism and Realism Nominalism and realism are the two most distinguished positions in western metaphysics dealing with the fundamental structure of reality. According to realists, all entities can be grouped into two categories: particulars and universals. Nominalists instead argue that there are only particulars. How Do Realists Understand Reality? Realists postulate the existence of two kinds of entities, particulars, and universals. Particulars resemble each other because they share universals; for example, each particular dog has four legs, can bark, and has a tail. Universals can also resemble each other by sharing other universals; for example, wisdom and generosity resemble each other in that they are both virtues. Plato and Aristotle were among the most famous realists. The intuitive plausibility of realism is evident. Realism allows us to take seriously the subject-predicate structure of discourse through which we represent the world. When we say that Socrates is wise it is because there are both Socrates (the particular) and wisdom (the universal) and the particular exemplifies the universal. Realism also can explain the use we often make of abstract reference. Sometimes qualities are subjects of our discourse, as when we say that wisdom is a virtue or that red is a color. The realist can interpret these discourses as asserting that there is a universal (wisdom; red) that exemplifies another universal (virtue; color). How Do Nominalists Understand Reality? Nominalists offer a radical definition of reality: there are no universals, only particulars. The basic idea is that the world is made exclusively from particulars and the universals are of our own making. They stem from our representational system (the way we think about the world) or from our language (the way we speak of the world). Because of this, nominalism is clearly tied in a close manner also to epistemology (the study of what distinguishes justified belief from opinion). If there are only particulars, then there is no virtue, apples, or genders. There are, instead, human conventions that tend to group objects or ideas into categories. Virtue exists only because we say it does: not because there is a universal abstraction of virtue. Apples only exist as a particular type of fruit because we as humans have categorized a group of particular fruits in a particular way. Maleness and femaleness, as well, exist only in human thought and language. The most distinguished nominalists include Medieval philosophers William of Ockham (1288-1348) and John Buridan (1300-1358) as well as contemporary philosopher Willard van Orman Quine. Problems for Nominalism and Realism The debate between supporters of those two opposed camps spurred some of the most puzzling problems in metaphysics, such as the puzzle of the ship of Theseus, the puzzle of the 1001 cats, and the so-called problem of exemplification (that is, the problem of how particulars and universals can be related to each other). Its puzzles like these which render the debate regarding the fundamental categories of metaphysics so challenging and fascinating.
Sunday, November 3, 2019
Synopsis of the Activity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
Synopsis of the Activity - Essay Example In the case of King- san life, the Adultery is divided into kinship ties of casts. According to Max Weber, the social class is a group that is divided into a broad definition other than material or wealth such as prestige, honor, and the type of religion an individual responds to. The perspective of Adultery by Parsons argues to the aspects placed on social differentiation. The society is defined by such social pledges keen in differentiating the patterns of socialization (Harris 45). The Adultery of the King-san life The take on adultery on the life of the king is evident in the article. After reading this article, it strikes me that King-san life use polygamy. I never knew that much about the religion of Mormonism. The church’s practice on polygamy has created controversies in the past. It is the same as today the same still runs. It was interesting to learn that Mormonism came from Christianity. Christians have no reception for polygamy as many denominations do not accept t he culture. This article directly relates to the primary source document because Joseph Smith discusses about his family and having multiple wives and in this article, bowman talks about more than one wife at the same time (Heider and Blakely 34). Adultery is not considered by the King-san life as the relationship if the individuals are in a union of marriage. The King-san life thought they were justified and did not think this was considered adultery. Though, if women were to do the same deed, they would have committed adultery. In the society of the King-san life, the women are belittled in the eyes of men, as they are considered possessions. During this time, men had all the power and women were treated unfairly. The men could get away with any relationship misfit as compared to women. The society that Joseph Smith currently lives in is still the same, but on a different level. Women remain the weaker sex. They cannot get away with things that men would simply get away with rando mly. The importance of literacy is applicable is the functioning of a society. According to (Andersen & Taylor, 2007) literacy plays an important role of how literal children will apply theoretical aspects in real life experience. In the case of the King-san life these strong literacy skills will ensure continuity of a community in the sense of earning a good job, earnings or even gaining training opportunities. Literacy comes through various studies, but main through education. One gains the different types of literacy through education from an elderly person or belonging to a given community (Hughes, Sharrock and Martin 78). The types of literacy include functional, cultural, and critical. Functional literacy is the ability of an individual to use basic reading and writing skills to run daily activities. It is the ability to read and write basic sentences in a given language. It is the ability of one to freely and easily communicate with others. Cultural literacy is the ability of an individual to relate to allusions, informal content and idioms that are related with the dominant culture. This includes one being familiar with street signs, restaurant signs, and commonly used slang. Relation to commonly used expression, art and historical experience is one of the aspects used by the culture. Critical literacy is the highest level of literacy. It involves an individual being able to interpret given
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