Perspectives on Inequality and Poverty Essay Example for Free

Perspectives on Inequality and Poverty Essay Our society today is currently experiencing a widening of the gap between the rich and the poor. As the saying goes, â€Å"the rich is getting richer and the poor is getting poorer,† our society attests to such truth, where the wealthy is gaining more money while the poor’s case is getting worse by the minute. Poverty is a big problem ever since the dawn of man. In an ideal world, the number of resources produced could feed more than any of the hungry mouths all over the world. But in reality, wealth is not distributed properly to every living individual. There are those who get more as compared to those who get less or get nothing at all. The sad reality If you take into consideration every living individual in a certain community, only a small fraction of its population enjoy living a well-off life, and a majority suffer from lack of resources or doesn’t have enough to fill their stomachs. A fraction of imbalance in the distribution of resources and wealth affects a greater number of people, wherein the sad reality lies on whom are the ones getting much and who are the ones gaining a lot. This is the sad reality in our society, where people thrive in a world filled with inequality and sadly, majority of the people suffer from the extra gains of some people (Besley Cord, 2007). Class inequality can be traced way back in the history of men, when people learned to classify themselves, making some superior and some, well, rather inferior. Another sad reality is that the ones who are in the higher echelons of the society are the ones who are not doing actual hard labor. These people are the one’s capitalizing from the hard work of the poor working class, sweating their lungs out, literally giving their sweat and blood just to make money. This labor force is the one who is actually earning the money; it is their effort and strength that makes the real cash, not the ones bossing them around. But the harshness of life is reflected in this situation: the ones working hard gets paid less, barely enough to make a living out of it, while the ones bossing everyone around gets a much bigger share, wherein they have exerted minimal or no real effort in doing so (Kohl, 2003). This is the present situation of the working class of the past, the present, and maybe of the future. There are some great thinkers who have pondered on these things so to speak. This people, though separated by different views, expressed their opinions about how inequalities in the classes happen and why poverty exists, depending on how they see the situation. Their take on the realities are reciprocated by approval or by rejection from the people looking at their ideas. Some may seem radical to others, but some deem that is the necessary thought for that certain specific topic. These great thinkers include Karl Marx, Max Weber and Oscar Lewis.

Symbolism in A Street Car Named Desire Essay

Symbolism in A Street Car Named Desire Essay Tennessee Williams play A Street Car Name Desire is a domestic drama. There is a film adaptation of play which released in 1951 by Elia Kazan. In Tennessee Williams play A Street Car Name Desire; there are many symbols such as, The Elysian Field, The Paper Lantern, and The Varsouviana which are used for character development. Besides them, there are also some metaphors such as, The Light and The Music. In this research paper, firstly I will examine the symbols in the play and how they used for character development. Especially, how Blanches character development is shaped by them. Then, I will examine the metaphors which are used in the play. Metaphors definition and their effects on character development are examined by giving example passage from the play. Lastly, I will conclude with my point of view to these symbols and metaphors effects on character development. The Elysian Field is a place that people go to after death like paradise in Greek Mythology. Blanche lost herself in Laurel; she comes New Orleans to find her elysian field. When we look at Blanches life before coming to New Orleans, we see that she lost her all possessed. She thinks that she will be happy in a new town with her sister. The Elysian Field is a new place for her to forget her past. I think Blanche could not find the image of Elysian Field which she imagines because the houses have very poor style. They are mostly weathered grey and with rickety outside stars. When she first comes to her sisters home, she is shocked. We can see it in the beginning of play: Blanche comes around the corner, carrying a valise. She looks at a slip of paper, then at the building, then again at slip and again at the building. Her expression is one of the shocked disbelief. (Williams 5) The Paper Lantern symbolizes Blanches destruction. Blanche is afraid of the light. She does not want anybody to see her real appearance. In naked light, she seems very old. She wants to be appears as a young lady but her past and her age do not permit it. When Mitch pulls off the paper lantern from the light, it causes Blanches downfall. Mitch wants to learn real story of Blanche because he heard something about Blanche from Stanley. As the paper lantern covers the light, it covers Blanches past as a symbol. The Varsouviana is the polka music that played the night of Allans death. The music plays when Blanche remembers about Allan. It symbolizes Blanches loss of innocence. There is an example speech in scene six which shows this symbol: We danced the Varsouviana! Suddenly in the middle of the dance the boy I had married broke away from me and ran out of the casino. A few moments latera shot! (Williams 115) This music helps Blanche to imagine her past while she is talking about Allan with Mitch. In this mutual speech between Blanche and Mitch, music has different level according to characters behaviors. For example: The Polka stops abruptly. Blanche rises stiffly. Then, the Polka resumes in a major key. Mitch gets up awkwardly and moves toward her a little. The polka music increases. Mitch stands beside her. (Williams115) Stanley throws a package of meat to Stella. It symbolizes Stanleys barbarity. This symbol helps us to understand that Stanley is a rude man. Stanley does not give or hand it to Stanley. He heaves the package at her. She cries out in protest but manages to catch it: then she laughs breathlessly. Her husband and his companion have already started back around the corner. (Williams 4) The meat also symbolizes the sexual relationship between Stanley and Stella. The meat gives Stanley sexual pleasure. Stellas catching the meat show her blind love and sexual emotions to Stanley. The loss of Belle Reve symbolizes Blanches painful loneliness. There is no place for Blanche to stay except at a hotel. Blanche arrives as a broken woman in New Orleans. She sold everything. It shows us Blanches despair. The loss of Belle Reve causes a conflict between Blanche and Stanley. Stanley wants his wifes share from Belle Reve. He does not believe Blanches lost of Belle Reve. As it is seen, this symbol affects characters behaviors to each other. The young man in scene 5 can be seen as a symbol of Blanches own innocence at one time that was corrupted by others. Blanche lets the young man leave the apartment finally, his innocence intact (except for a kiss), as, it could be said, she would like her own innocence left intact.  [1]  The young man reminds the high school boy in Laurel who caused Blanche to lose her teacher job. Blanches own innocence was corrupted by others. As Stella says to Stanley, You didnt know Blanche as a girl. Nobody, nobody, was tender and trusting as she was. But people like you abused her, and forced her to change. (Williams 136) Allan Grey is a symbolic character. The memory of him symbolizes sometimes bad sometimes good memories. Blanche loves him very much. But he betrays her with a man. The death of Allan Grey causes Blanches mental illness. As I before mention, Allen killed himself as they are dancing. Playing Poker shows Stanleys power over his wife and Blanche. While Blanche is taken away, he wins the game at the same time. As Daniel Brooks mention, Significantly, the game reflects the dynamics of the plays four main char ­acters. Like the turned-up wild card, Blanche DuBois turns up at Elysian Fields and immediately impacts the lives of Stanley, Mitch, and Stella. They each stand to gain something if things go their way, so they play Blanche to their best advantage, as if she were a wild card in a poker game.  [2]   Stanley loses his control when he plays poker with his friends. When women come to home, he gets angry. If we look the game from Mitchs point of view, we can say that he comes to play for a different purpose. After he meets with Blanche, he comes to see her. In some scenes, Blanche drinks alcohol. Alcohol helps her get rid of bad memories. When she drinks a glass of alcohol, she feels herself well. Mexican woman can be seen as a symbol of death. She sells flowers for the dead. When Blanche hears and sees her, she is afraid of death. This woman affects Blanche by the way of reminding death. When wee look at the metaphors in the play, they help to develop character development. The Light is used as a metaphor for truth. Blanche uses lights for expressing her feelings. She is afraid of daylight. She thinks that daylight shows her age. Light symbolizes the reality. Blanche escapes from reality. She is afraid of seeming old. She wants to live her imagination world. As Blanche says to Mitch, I dont want realism. I want magic. Yes, yes, magic. I try to give that people. I misrepresent things to them. I dont tell truth, I tell what ought to be truth. And if that is sinful, then let me damned for it! Dont turn the light on! (Williams 145) Blanche sees Allan Grey her bright light. After his suicide, she thinks that she lost her vivid light. Bright light express her lovely feelings with Allan Grey. Also light express her desire to illusion over reality. Blanche is a victim of her own self-delusions. She wants to protect her ego. She lies to people as covering herself with dim light. Dim light reflects her fragile. In the beginning of the play, there is an explanation, Her delicate beauty must avoid a strong light. There is something about her uncertain mannerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (Williams 5) Williams uses bath as a metaphor for many conditions. For Stanley, Stella and Blanche, it has different meanings. For example; Bath is good for calm down nervous for Blanche. She also goes bath to wash away her sins. We can say that these baths show us Blanche wants to get rid of her ugly past. Bath has also same meaning for Stanley. After he argues with Stella, he goes to bath for his nervous calm down. At the poker night, his friends take away his to bath. Stanley realizes that he beats his wife while he is under the water. In Tennessee Williams play A Street Car Name Desire; there are many symbols such as, The Elysian Field, The Paper Lantern, and The Varsouviana which are used for character development. These symbols and metaphors mostly affect Blanches characterization. Every symbol and metaphor shows Blanches different desires to us.

Women and Resilience in Khaled Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns Essa

Afghan-born American novelist and physician Khaled Hosseini’s second bestselling novel, A Thousand Splendid Suns, written in 2007, is set in â€Å"war-ravaged landscape of Afghanistan†, and it focuses on the tumultuous lives and relationship of Mariam and Laila. In contrast to Hosseini’s The Kite Runner, which is a story of â€Å"father-son relationship†, this novels is regarded as â€Å"mother-daughter story† by the author himself. The novel relates the story of Mariam and Laila in four parts. The first part focuses on Mariam, while the second and fourth part on Laila, and the relationship between the two women in the third part. At the background the novel also recounts Afghanistan’s troubled history of last several decades, through the eyes of a segment of the Afghan population that probably suffered and lost the most during that period, that are its women. Through this pitiable story of two women married to a man Rasheed, who oppress the m physically as well as psychologically, the author tries to represent the situation of Afghan women, who are not only affected by the war but are also being oppressed by their domestic rulers, that are their husbands. The present paper attempts to examine the afghan women, oppressed under the rule of patriarchy, whether at the domestic level by their husbands or at social order under Taliban rule, and their resilience and tenacity to survive, which is clearly identified throughout this novel with a glimpse of hope at the end, as the rains return, the cinemas open, the children play and the orphanages are rebuilt. Khaled Hosseini brings in this novel the subject of women suppression in Afghanistan along with the various other restrictions of education and familial subjugation. He has created the man-d... ...ize that when oppression goes too far, whether through an individual or the state; once oppressed, subjugated or downtrodden can rise up against the tyranny. Hosseini, through the love and affection of Mariam and Laila for each other, portrayed â€Å"amazing resilience of human spirit where hope unfolds like a tiny, frail plant in the most unlikely places† (Null and Alfred 123). Works Cited De Beauvoir, Simone. The Second Sex. Trans. Constance Borden ad Sheila Malovany-Chevallier. Inroduction by Sheila Rowbotham. London:Vintage Books, 2011 (1st Ed. 1949) Hosseini, Khalid. A Thousand Splendid Suns. Rivekhead Books, 2007. Web. Null, Linda and Suellen Alfred. â€Å"A Thousand Splintered Hopes†.The English Journal. 97.6. National Council of Teachers of English (July, 2008), pp. 123-125. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40503428. Accessed: 24/02/2014 06:40

My Trip to the Philippines :: Philippines Vacation Personal Narrative Essays

My Trip to the Philippines In September 1989, when I was 11 year old, I came to Philippines during my short vacation. My father brought the whole family, also my cousin Jimmy. We spent 5 days in the Philippines. During these five days, I realized that there were many differences between Taiwan and the Philippines. The most difference was culture. People's language, behavior and also they are happy go lucky. The first problem I faced was the language problem. Philippine was ruled by Spanish long time ago. Most of Filipino could speak Spanish. I could not speak their language and also English, so what ever they said I just acted like stupid. I still remembered when I went to Cebu, in the hotel, the waiter came in to ask me something about my room. First, I was shock, then I used Chinese to answer her. The waiter was kind too. She started using Spanish, Japanese, French to answer me, but he never used Chinese. If he used Chinese, then that will be the time for me to reply. I run to my father's room, crying, and telling that someone is in my room and I doesn't know why he was there. After my father solved the problem for me. We were all laughing about it. My father said, "In the Philippines, eating with hands are their culture, you will never see this in Taiwan." In Taiwan, everybody use chopsticks to eat. Nobody will use spoon and folk to eat, because that's a kind of hard. Just like my first time used the spoon and folk. I doesn't know either to use my left hand to hold spoon or use my right hand. People have longer weekend than Taiwan. Both Sunday and Saturday are their weekend. In Taiwan, we can only have Sunday and half Saturday. For adults, they even only have Sunday to rest. That's unfair to adults. They should have longer weekend then kids, because they worked so hard. So, adults most be exhausted after hard work. People are happy go lucky. They wouldn't care much money they earn each day. They wanted to have better life than earning more money. Whenever they got a serious problem, like no place to overnight, they were try to find a place to

In Another Place by Ernest Hemingway Essay

The text under analysis is taken from the short story â€Å"In another country† belonging to the pen of Ernest Hemingway, an American novelist and short story writer whose works are characterized by terse minimalism and understatement. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1954. â€Å"In another country† is a powerful and true-to-life story about real experience of many soldiers who came home after the World War I and their hardships. The text presents a piece of narration with element of a description of nature and a dialogue. The narration is done in the first person. Hemingway tells the story from the point of view of the young American. The plot is eventless in events. The story describes the relationships that develop in Milan among an American and five Italian soldiers who have been wounded and are receiving physical therapy. All the wounded men go to the hospital every afternoon to use machines for physical therapy. The doctor assures the American that he will again play football even though his knee does not bend. His friend, an Italian major, is also undergoing therapy with a machine that exercises his hand that was injured in an industrial accident. Four other young men, Italian soldiers, are also using therapy machines, and they brag about the medals that they’ve received for their valor in battle. The plot consists of: Introduction. In this part the author talks about continuation the war and gives the description of autumn Milan. Development. The author introduces us with main character, an American soldier. Tells about him problems with health. Climax. In this part the author leads the Italian major and four other young men. Denouement. The author describes the way of soldiers from the hospital to the Cafà © Cova. The author compares the way with military operations. The mood of the story is established in the first paragraph, in which the dead game outside the shops is described as â€Å"stiff,† â€Å"heavy,† and â€Å"empty.† Loss, failure, and ruin permeate this brief story. Many of the characters grapple with a loss of function, a loss of purpose, and a loss of faith. Hemingway’s style is lean and declarative, but the author employs some stylistic devises. They help enhance the desired effect. The first two illustrate the author’s effective use of repetition and polysyndeton. For example, Hemingway states, â€Å"It was cold in the fall in Milan and the dark came very early.† He repeats this idea with a slightly different emphasis at the end of the paragraph: â€Å"It was a cold fall and the wind came down from the mountains.† The author uses vivid descriptions. For example, â€Å"On one of [the bridges], a woman sold roasted chestnuts. It was warm, standing in front of her charcoal fire, and the chestnuts were warm afterwards in your pockets.†

Intertwined Bodies with Separate Hearts Essay

In a world of wild modernity and sophistication, it is almost impossible for man not to connect with a single soul. Be it a friend, a loved one or a lover, these technologies conspire to feed the hunger in all of us and that is the need to be with someone. Others refer to that need as loneliness but the story â€Å"Strangers When We Meet† says its emptiness†¦The relationship of Florence and Rob can be looked at as a typical affair between a married woman who’s bored with her current relationship and a man who seeks adventure. He dazzles her with his youth and passion for life and for a brief moment she’s caught up in a trance of sharing the life that she could have, but chose not to live. That choice rest solely on the truth that her husband was a foundation that offered security. As she said at the end of the story, she equated security and strength to love. She realized in the later part that she was wrong. The fact that Rob is younger than Florence depicts a conventional extramarital affair in our society. However the story goes beyond the cheap pleasures of lust and adventure as it delves deep into the intricacies of emotion and relationship. A relationship can be defined. One can dare as the question â€Å"what kind of relationship? † In the story, Florence and Archie is in a relationship that is recognized by society and back up by the law. A union, a vow, a social contract that’s written on paper and flaunted out to the world. That is marriage. They share a partnership that may seem flawless in society as he was a responsible husband with secure income bounded by law to take care of his wife. Florence herself is a thing of beauty and it is a stereotype in our society that she is to be taken care of by a man who has the means to do so. He is in fact capable of doing just that. He was well aware that he had the woman that most men would fell for, and that’s why though he knew that they had an affair he wanted to see it for himself before he makes judgments. He went with her in the Vacation though he knew that she was to meet her lover. And when he came face to face with the man who stole his wife, he remained composed and even started conversations with him. He exhibited what most men don’t, the decency to be civil to the man who covet their wife (Kureishi). What exist between Florence and Rob on the other hand is a relationship that’s not accepted by society and condemned by law. It ought to be discreetly dealt with to save both parties from public humiliation. The fact that she is a married woman who happens to have a lover may seem offensive to the male supremacy. However, what ought to be looked at is not the act itself but the question on what made her commit such act. Perhaps at the beginning of their affair she simply wants to escape the world that Archie lived in or the lack of attention from her husband who is very much consumed in his work. But at the later part of the story it shows that she is deeply in love with Rob since she is willing to leave everything, even her child if only he says the word. Why did he not say the word? Why did he not take the chance to be with the woman who takes up much space in his heart to the point that he needed a psychologist to deal with his depression? It was a shot at happiness, to have the very thing that he wanted so badly but when it was his for the taking he did not take it. Here lies the complexity of human emotions. Their affair goes beyond the Holiday Vacation. Though the timeline of the story skipped a couple of years before their paths crossed again, it cannot be denied that in each encounter, the dying flame of their affair is fanned once more. A line in the story clearly points out their connection â€Å"Helen (Robs wife) looks across conspicuously. Florence and I are standing close to one another; perhaps one of us touching the other. † Though they were both contented with their lives and stopped seeing each other, both their spouses knew that there is something special between Florence and Rob†¦. perhaps a love story that should have not ended. That Holiday Vacation was of great importance to Florence, Archie and Rob. It was perhaps the climax of their lives. The moment that set the path upon which they will take. They were separate entities brought about in that place to clearly define the relationship that existed in the three of them. It was a chance to change their lives and redefine their connection, but such requires great courage that only Rob had at that time. Florence was, at that moment, scared to let go of the security that she had with Archie. In their marriage she had stability and he had a wife. It was ideal and accepted by society. Before the affair she was contented, but contentment if a far cry from happiness. At the end of the vacation she asked him not to leave, but he chose to do so. This is because man cannot stand the torture of having the woman that you want wrapped in somebody else’s embrace. Rob said that he longed for that vacation since it was the first time that he can have her the entire evening without having her rush home to her husband at dawn. It was a chance to feel that he owned her but that moment never came. It was a chance that she was too scared to take, and now that she wanted him desperately, it was him who chose not to be with her. She wanted him to say that he wants her but he never did just that. Though deep within his soul he knew that she still holds a place in her heart, it was his choice not to give in to that feeling. This proves the fact that in human relationships certain factors are to be taken into considerations before a person makes his decision (Layton-Tholl). Life is made up of choices, and maybe for Rob he already made the choice the moment he left the Hotel. It was to live a life that’s uncomplicated. Though the intensity of their connection cannot be denied, it was by choice that they lived separately. They have fulfilled the human need to connect with someone, they have their spouse. But just like how their affair started, they were just intertwined bodies with separate heart.

The Relationship between Impulse Buying and Sensation Seeking Essay

The Relationship between Impulse Buying and Sensation Seeking - Essay Example The results revealed that the data from the Impulse Buying variable was normally distributed unlike that for the Sensation Seeking variable. The results furtherv showed that there was a weak positive correlation between sensation seeking and impulse buying, rs= .762, n = 30, p = > .05. The results hence failed to support the hypothesis. Sensation seeking is the â€Å"need for varied, novel, complex sensations and experiences, and the willingness to take physical and social risks for the sake of such experiences† (Zuckermann, 1979, p265). Sensation seekers are risk takers. Their main aim is to get and enjoy the gratification that comes immediately after a certain activity. Impulse buying is purchasing items without having planned to buy them (Rook, 1987). Impulse buying behaviour is closely related to sensation seeking. The need for unique experiences as well as the willingness to take risks so as to fulfil these experiences is some of the reasons for impulse buying (Youn and F aber, 2000 and Verplanken and Herabadi, 2001). This topic which focuses on impulse buying and sensation seeking behaviours has been chosen due to the similarities in the two behaviours. Sensation seeking normally leads to impulse buying, a behaviour that is widely characterised by sensation seeking tendencies (Reynolds, Ortengren Richards, 2006). Sensation seeking has been described as the pursuit of the novel and/or intense and complex sensations. According to Rook (1987), there are many things that sensation seekers do that are not risky. There are those sensation seekers whose main aim is to experience the thrill ad adventure that comes with participating in a certain high-risk activity (Arnett, 1994). There are other people who prepare budgets, but they nevertheless end up buying thing that they had not planned to buy. Then is also a category of people who just buy anything they think will delight them (Zuckerman, 2007). They do not have to make any kind of budget because they d o not mind buying out of the blues. In many cases of impulse buying, an individual normally experiences a persistently powerful urge to purchase the product immediately without putting much thought into the consequences of buying the product (Rook, 1987). Some researchers have found that people who have high sensation seeking tendencies are likely to have high risk tendencies in their financial lives. Impulse buying is a relatively high risk tendency (Horvath and Zuckerman, 1993). According to Reynolds, Ortengren and Richards (2006), individuals who show signs of maladaptive shopping behaviours are more likely to suffer from distress and financial constraints. Most of these individuals are women. Such people are likely to experience some form of anxiety or relief before they make their purchases. This shows that there could be some relation between impulse buying and sensation seeking. For instance, when individuals feel anxiety and the need to cool down the anxious attacks, then th is could said to be sensation seeking. Impulse buyers live for excitement (Zuckerman and Neeb, 1979). Impulse buying is a rather exciting undertaking that sensation seekers normally find to be satisfactory. They think only of the immediate gratification, not of what may come after. An impulsive sensation seeker normally lacks the ability to process information cognitively when the need arises (Zuckerman, 2007). The need to satisfy a certain sensation is more important to