European Union and Human Rights Watch Research Paper

European Union and Human Rights Watch - Research Paper Example The European Union (EU) is one of the many institutions created with the solid intent of promoting and fostering peace among the constituent members and the world in general. The EU has led to the achievement of many goals and missions among them protection of sovereignty of the member countries, enhancing economic status of the member states, promoting democracy and literacy in the member states. EU has also fostered and as well as establishing adaptable regional and international relation of the member countries and outside world. The ideas that led to the formation and establishment of the European Union (EU) emerged in the early 1940s (Briney). The main idea was to reduce the series and cases of wars that involved individual European nations and to steer the constituent countries towards positive social-economic and political growth. It is important to reckon that the existence of small institutional relations otherwise called alliances, which consisted of friendly EU nations, wa s the main escalator and stimulator of the World War II that rocked the continent. The purpose of the alliances was to help create a protective shell developed on pacts signed by friendly nations to assure military, political and economic support upon external attacks and threats against any member. Alliances defined the political organization of the European states during and immediately after the end of World War I. However, this changed during and after the World War II as states settled to deliberate and solve differences that spurred conflicts among them. The first step was the unification of the coal and steel industries under the umbrella of European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). This organization became operational upon the signing of the Paris Treaty in 1951 under the chairmanship of Robert Schuman, who was French minister for foreign affairs. Upon formation, ECSC consisted of six member countries namely, France, Belgium, Italy, Luxemburg, Netherlands, and West Germany. In collectivity, the member states exercised control over the steel and coal industries, which produced ammunitions among other things (Dimitrakopoulos 13). The year 1957 saw the signing of yet another important pact named the Rome Treaty. Rome Treaty led to the creation and establishment a common market known as the European Economic Community (EEC). The main reason behind signing and commencement of the EEC was to unify the Eastern and Western fronts that tended to be at war. EEC could therefore help spread diversity across the contradicting fronts as people moved and traded freely across the member states that included the initial six members of ECSC (Dimitrakopoulos 14). During the same year of 1957, and still in Rome, was the signing of another treaty that led to the creation of the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or EURATOM). The three organizations that included the ECSC, EEC and the EAEC reduced to what was the European Communities. According to Carbaugh, the need to consolidate the operations of the three organizations under single commission and council attracted a meeting in Brussels that led to the eventual signing of the Treaty of Merger in 1965 (7). Denmark, United Kingdom and Ireland joined the European Communities in 1973, raising the number of members to nine. The increasing

Reflective Statement The Great Gatsby Essay Example for Free

Reflective Statement The Great Gatsby Essay The Great Gatsby is a novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It is said to be one of the greatest American novels of the last century, not only for it’s tale of hope and disillusion, but also for the way it portrayed the spirit of the 1920s. The information from the presentations made me realize that the characters in the story weren’t just any upperclass; they were the social and cultural upperclass of the world. The presentations also made me develop my understanding of the background of their arrogant and lavish behavior. They were born into the old elite and were stupendously rich in the wealthiest country in the world. They lived extravagant lives in a careless post-war time with mass media covering their lives in the tabloids. Another factor that contributed to this feeling of being superior must have been the lack of authorities and strong politicians. As the economy ran itself and the politicians were incompetent, the cultural elite were literally on top of the world. They distanced themselves from institutions and history and lived their lives in a social bubble, respecting only those who were a part of their class. The dream of being famous and glamourous bloomed in the 1920s and was distributed to the public through the mass media. The dream was available for everyone, and people strived to become a part of the cultural elite. The main characters in The Great Gatsby were already there, as a natural part of the scene. They lived luxurious and careless lives, following the latest trends, listening to the new music and attending extravagant parties. From the presentations I also learned about modernist literature. A significant trait of this genre is the break with traditions and the search for an absolute truth and a meaning of life elsewhere. The upperclass seemed to have lost their meaning in life in their extravagant lifestyle. Previously I had not given the social context too much thought, and without the information from the presentations, I may would just have seen the tragic love story of the book, and not how the book is a picture of and a comment to the 1920s life.

A Formalist Approach to Eavan Boland’s The River :: Boland River Essays

A Formalist Approach to Eavan Boland’s The River Over the years many different ways of analyzing poetry have been developed. One such approach is the â€Å"New Critical,† or the â€Å"Formalist,† which is based on the writings of Coleridge. The formalist approach is useful because it takes the poem’s form, which may be overlooked, and analyzes it to see what its effect is on the meaning of the poem. There are other aspects taken into consideration, like who the speaker is and how the author incorporates â€Å"ironic awareness† into the poem. Eavan Boland’s message in â€Å"The River† comes across best when looking at the poem with the formalist approach, taking into consideration the speaker and the speaker’s situation, the organic form, and the use of irony. Some aspects may have more importance than others, but all need to be looked at, beginning with the speaker. Using the hints within the poem, I see the speaker as possibly being an adult writing or talking to a parent or some unspecified figure about her early childhood. The speaker could be looking back at a time when someone took her to a river, and she is reporting what she saw. There is textual evidence to support all of these claims. The possibility the speaker is looking back at a childhood experience is shown when she writes, I remember how strange it felt- not having any names for the red oak and the rail and the slantways plunge of the osprey. (6-12) I see the speaker as possibly being a child because the speaker remembers not knowing the actual names of what she saw. A young child wouldn’t know â€Å"rail† or the osprey’s dive, probably using a word such as â€Å"birdie.† The other choice for the speaker is an adult, who is speaking about a time spent at a river in a foreign land. This is the choice I see as most likely possible because the speaker says it feels strange to not know the names, yet as a child I never felt odd because I didn’t know a type of bird.

Reading Response to a Poem Essay

The poem â€Å"Wild Geese† by Mary Oliver was a very inspirational poem. Oliver creatively uses imaginative language, emotion, symbolism, and romanticism which led to a very positive and upbeat tone in her poem. Throughout this poem, the one thing that I focused on was the positive and upbeat tones that this poem contained. By her use of symbolic and imaginative language in â€Å"Wild Geese†, the reader is opened to Mary Oliver’s underlying meaning behind her literary prose. Furthermore, the calm romantic tone of this thought provoking poem, raises positive emotions to rise up out of the moment, and invites us to further take a look at ourselves. Mary Oliver immediately engages the reader into considering the true meaning behind her choice of words. In lines one through five, the reader can envision being in a very noble place where rules are always followed. Mary Oliver (1986) noted that, â€Å"You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves† I believe that she is saying that you do not have to follow the rules of society by bowing down to others or to repent for being who you are. Oliver used the symbol of an animal, you should do what you love to do and not worry about having to say you are sorry. With that being said, animals never have to apologize for being who God or the Creator made them to be. In lines six and seven, she again uses emotion and romanticism to bring out the feeling of her readers. Oliver (1986) noted that, â€Å"Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine. Meanwhile the world goes on†. She cleverly shows that we all have problems and yet the world will still go on. God or the Creator never promised us an easy life. In lines eight through eleven, Oliver uses the symbols of nature once again to show us that life is still going on no matter what problems we face. Oliver (1986) noted that, Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain are moving across the landscapes, over the prairies and the deep trees,   the mountains and the rivers. She uses the emotional state of the reader along with the quiet romantic tones to show that although you will go through trying times in life, it will not last forever. She uses the symbolism of the wild geese, in lines twelve and thirteen, to show that we will always be guided to our destinations. All we have to do is allow our natural instincts to guide us just as the wild geese are guided home by natural instinct. In lines fourteen through fifteen, Oliver uses emotion and imaginative language to let the reader know that no matter who you are, or how lonely you feel, the world is for you to design it. The reader needs to use his/ her imagination. If you can dream it, you can achieve it. She again uses the symbolic nature of the wild geese to illustrate this concept. Last but not least, in lines sixteen through eighteen, she again uses imaginative language to challenge the reader to not conform to the world. The reader can use their imagination to break free from their conventional life styles and to join their place in the family of nature. In nature, there are no rules, but the ones that you create, where you are free to be as the â€Å"Wild Geese†. In conclusion, I found the poem â€Å"Wild Geese† by Mary Oliver extremely inspirational. She creatively uses imaginative language, emotion, symbolism, and romanticism to convey a very positive and upbeat tone in her poem. Throughout this poem, the one thing that I continuously focused on was the positive and upbeat tones that this poem contains. This is a very inspirational and uplifting poem. It encourages us to go beyond the plan that is laid out for us by society and lends us permission to be who we were destined to be. Throughout this entire poem, we are given permission to shake off all of life’s discretions, throw caution to the wind, and be as wild and free as nature intended us to be. References Clugston, W. R. (2010). Journey into literature. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

Bicycle Theives: the Unspoken Allure of Communism

Bicycle Thieves: The Unspoken Allure of Communism Bicycle Thieves is an exemplary demonstration of Italian neorealism that seeks to use non-professional actors to illustrate the struggle of average people surviving under a Fascist government. De Sica's use of film techniques such as close-ups heightens the effect of his neo-realist aesthetic, especially seen in his street-level depictions of Rome in the aftermath of World War II. The poverty and despair captured by De Sica's cinematography and narrative choices illustrates that capitalism has failed the Italian people, providing them only with grinding poverty and inward despair.By focusing on the mundane details of a simple man's life, rather than a narrative involving high drama, the film effectively captures the humiliating effects of class disparity while highlighting the role that communism could play in the improvement of life for the Italian people, if only a sense of community could be established. Director Vittorio De Sica u ses Bicycle Thieves as a vehicle in which to stress the burdens faced by the individual in a heartless and uncaring society.He has stated that his aesthetic intention with the film was to â€Å"reintroduce the dramatic into quotidian situations, the marvellous in a little news item [†¦ ] considered by most people throwaway material† (Cheshire), and so too is his main character, Antonio, a throwaway person. As an unemployed person, he has no value to the larger society and no apparent worth to his family as a provider. It is only once he secures a position as a poster-hanger that he begins to see himself as a productive member of society.De Sica illustrates the importance of this job by demonstrating Antonio's increasing desperation when his bicycle–an item he cannot do his job without–is stolen. His neorealistic style stems more from moral imperative than from necessity because, as critic Godfrey Cheshire notes in â€Å"Bicycle Thieves: A Passionate Commit ment to the Real,† the film was not shot in the low-budget style associated with neorealism, and instead was â€Å"mounted by a team of movie professionals working on a budget generous enough to allow for large-scale scenes, hundreds of extras, and even the apparatus necessary to create a fake ainstorm† (Cheshire). However, De Sica manages to retain an atmosphere of true realism that is heightened by scenes carefully chosen to display Antonio's quick downward spiral as he and his son ultimately fail to recover the lost bicycle. This devastating loss propels Antonio into a life of crime, demonstrating that under an uncaring government and without social support, the poor have no choice but to hurt each other for lack of a better outlet, and that those who are stolen from eventually become thieves as well. De Sica creates drama and illustrates his point by putting his protagonist in an unwinnable situation.Although Antonio has been offered a job, he can only take it if he has a bicycle. Due to financial circumstances, the bicycle has been pawned. In this way, De Sica establishes the character of Antonio's wife, Maria, who agrees to pawn their bed sheets to pay for the bicycle. This demonstrates that material comfort is secondary to the security that will come with stable employment. The actors themselves play a huge role in successfully portraying De Sica's message, and he sticks to the requirements of neorealism by using only non-professional actors.As film theorist Andre Bazin states, â€Å"none [of the actors] had the slightest experience in theatre or film. The workman came from the Breda factory, the child was found hanging around in the street, the wife was a journalist† (Bazin). An added level of realism can be found in using average people with faces that show the effects of time and experience. In his essay, â€Å"Bicycle Thieves: Ode to the Common Man. † Charles Burnett notes the effect of De Sica's choice to use non-professi onal actors, writing that â€Å"their faces are so expressive [†¦ ] they seem to be playing themselves† (Burnett).To further this realism, the director takes a similar approach with his background players. For example, in the pawn shop scene the director captures an elderly man with a tired, lined face who is trying, without success, to pawn a pair of binoculars. His expressiveness makes the scene seem more real, squalid, and filled with pain, while also illustrating that the Ricci family are not alone in their poverty. Indeed, the upwards panning shot that displays a towering pile of pawned sheets just like the set that Maria is exchanging for the bicycle, overwhelmingly shows the terrible effect of unrestrained capitalism on the poor.To further show the damage caused by a social and governmental system that doesn't value human needs, De Sica characterizes the upper class as the true villains of the piece. This is seen very clearly while Antonio is fruitlessly searching the stalls filled with disassembled bicycle parts while a good-looking young man blows bubbles into the air, filled with self-satisfaction and utterly unaware of Antonio's total terror. Symbolically, the bicycles can represent both the destruction of his ability to earn a living wage, and his own mental breakdown in having to confront the loss of such a vital mode of transportation.In this scene, also, a pedophile tries to lure Antonio's son, Bruno, into his clutches. Although the scene is populated with passerby, nobody pays any mind to the dangers faced by the vulnerable boy, let alone steps forward to offer assistance. By showing the oblivion of the group, De Sicoemphasizes the isolation of the individual, as well as demonstrating that no one, not even small children, are safe from the avaricious nature of the rich in a society where, as Burnett writes, â€Å"the predators are the rich and disconnected† (Burnett).The gripping conclusion of Bicycle Thieves further demonstr ates how the need to secure employment in order to survive can cause honest people to behave in a dishonest manner. De Sico uses a shot of Antonio sitting outside of a football stadium, hungrily eyeing countless parked bicycles; a temptation that is akin to showing a starving man a plate of food. Through the director's use of close-up shots of Antonio's pained expression, we experience his inner turmoil as morality fights with his baser needs.The climax occurs when he finally tries to steal a bicycle outside of an apartment building and is caught by a group of men who taunt and abuse while Bruno watches in horror. Cheshire writes that this point marks â€Å"where Antonio's solitary ordeal reaches a humiliatingly public climax† (Cheshire), and indeed it is a fitting conclusion for a film that has taken place entirely in the public environment of Rome.By making use of the city streets as his set, and the city's population as his background cast, De Sico manages to show all of t he missed opportunities where Antonio's life could have been changed for the better, were someone to have only taken an interest in his plight. As Bazin states in â€Å"Neorealism and Pure Cinema: The Bicycle Thieves,† â€Å"the thesis implied is wondrously and outrageously simple: in the world where this workman lives, the poor must steal from each other in order to survive.But this thesis is never stated as such, it is just that events are so linked together that they have the appearance of a formal truth while retaining an anecdotal quality† (Bazin). In such a manner, the irony of Antonio's predicament remains subtle, left for the viewer to determine based on their own experiences and observations. De Sico's film is most notable for what it avoids saying about the benefits of communism when held up against a corrupt, bloated style of capitalism that treats the working person as fodder for a greater machine.Rather than treat Bicycle Thieves as a propaganda device for his opinions, the director instead allows the audience to draw their own conclusions based on the realistic information he has provided to them. But the implication of Antonio's struggle is clear: community support is vital for the individual to survive under difficult circumstances. Without a collective group from which to seek solace and assistance in times of trouble, the individual is left as aimless and panicked as Antonio during his solitary and unsuccessful attempt to retrieve his stolen bicycle.Works Cited Bazin, Andre. â€Å"Neorealism and Pure Cinema: The Bicycle Thieves. † Theory Kit. 21 October 2007. Web. 1 May 2011. Bicycle Thieves. Dir. Vittorio De Sica. Perf. Lamberto Maggiorani, Enzo Staiola, Lianella Carell. Criterion, 2007. DVD. Burnett, Charles. â€Å"Bicycle Thieves: Ode to the Common Man. † Criterion Film Essays. Criterion. 7 February 2007. Web. 1 May 2011. Cheshire, Godfrey. â€Å"Bicycle Thieves: A Passionate Commitment to the Real. † Cri terion Film Essays. Criterion. 7 February 2007. Web. 1

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder essays

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder essays Stress is an every-day aspect of our life. From day-to-day stressors such as raising children, dealing with careers, dealing with our significant others, driving in traffic, we are continually bombarded with actions and consequences that place stress in our lives. Many of us have come to accept these stressors as normal, and most of us have adapted, even though we may feel a need to take it one day at a time. Yet, in extreme cases, such as wars or other traumatic experiences, dealing with these stressors becomes a life-long ordeal. Persons dealing with severe stress reactions from traumatic experiences, such as wars, long after the incident occurred, have what is called Post-traumatic stress disorder. This anxiety disorder, affecting not only current and past war veterans but also those that have been exposed to any traumatic life event, has been studied in depth and forms of treatment, from group therapy to drug therapy, have been used to treat the maladies associated with this disorder. Post-traumatic stress disorder is defined as the condition caused by extremely stressful experiences in which the person later experiences anxiety and irritability(Lahey). In addition, the website belonging to the National Center for PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) further defined PTSD as a psychiatric disorder that can occur following the experience or witnessing of life-threatening events such as military combat, natural disasters, terror incidents, serious accidents or violent person assaults like rape. The website goes on to explain that persons suffering from this disorder have trouble sleeping and feel detached from the rest of society. Also, the disorder can occur in conjunction with other psychophysical disorders such as depression, substance abuse, and problems with memory and cognition (www.ncptsd.org). In addition, social/family issues also ...

Desiree essays

Desiree essays "Dsire's Baby" is a story of love, prejudice and rejection, a story with noble beginnings that slowly turns to reveal an uglier side of human relations. Armand, a wealthy landowner of the plantation L'Abri in the ante-bellum south of Louisiana, is confronted by a family secret that has been hidden from him, even into adulthood. The secret is scandalous for its day, and its consequences run deep into the fabric of society. No one told Armand of this secret. He discovers it by chance at the end of the story, when he finds the remnants of an old letter written by his mother to his father, the significance of which, and its revelations, makes us focus on the many tragic and ironic decisions made by him during this story. In the old south, bloodlines are very important to the status of a family and their social placement, so the "purity" of the family must be kept. This "purity" does not accommodate marriages of mixed race. Knowing this, Armand marries an old friend who he had known since he was eight when he moved to Louisiana from France with his father after his mother had died. She was a girl of no distinction, who had no history or reputation of family name like that of Armand, but despite this he fell in love "as if struck by a pistol shot".(317). Others had warned Armand against marrying her, but he did not care for he was so swept away by her beauty. "He was reminded that she was nameless. What did it matter about a name when he could give her one of the oldest and proudest in Louisiana." (316). Tragedy comes early in the marriage with the birth of their first child. Although no one seemed to notice at first, by the time the child was three months old, neighbors and Armand himself noticed a change in the child. "When the baby was about three months old, Dsire awoke one day to the conviction that there was something in the air menacing her peace."(317). It turns out the baby is of m ...