Philosophy in our daily lifes Essay Example for Free

Philosophy in our daily lifes Essay This essay will discuss how can we apply metaphysics to our daily life as students, including activities and philosophical situations that take place through the week. The writing will have a special focus on metaphysics, on how it highly impacts and relates to a high school student’s daily life, by using tools regarding this topic by Alain Badiou, Van Inwagen, Plato, Aristotle and The Matrix. Philosophy is the invention of new problems, however not all situations can be philosophically analyzed. That is why a current philosopher from metaphysics explains in his text â€Å"The Event† how are these situations identified, because currently a very crucial and polemique problem is that most of people think that philosophical situations are constantly affecting us in every single thing we do, which leads most people to mistaken normal standpoints as philosophical situations. Due to that, the author of â€Å"Thinking the Event † has made this writing to help people to stop using the term philosophy wrong. The three aspects that differ a normal standpoint with a philosophical situation are choice, distance and break. The first aspect means either picking to think or not thinking, when a complex and not regular situation takes place, which means choosing to research and get to know well the problem, or leave it how it is and walk away; the second requisite for a philosophical situation is the distance, which is the comparison of the actual situation which is commonly d etected as the truth and its farness from the power, which in regular situation there is no real distance or disagreement; the last condition is the break, which basically is to realize and accept how different is the event from reality as we know it. Cyber bullying and bullying are new problems that have grown exponentially in the twenty first century, because of the constant invention of technology and social networks. The stage of high school is a highly concentrated area of both types of bullying and other forms of molesting, however all of these according to the program of Bullying Stops With Me, one  out of four students is bullied, from which eighty percent of the times ends in physical aggression. To identify if this is a philosophical situation, the three requirements need to be present. The first one is the choice to think or not to, of why the bully is attacking the bullied; the second one is to find the distance between power and truth, in this case the power represented by the bully who is doing this because of any type of problems he has internally, that he projects towards the bullied, who represents the truth that has no reason to deserve the treatment of this teenager; the third is the break, which is being able to differ how bullying by this boy is so far from the ideal situation where he has no real problems with the bullied, who has to deal with the aggressive discharges from the damaged kid. The three conditions for a philosophical situation to be detected have been successfully proven, in a given event in a high school student’s life. This has been an example of a daily problem that many students experience in their studies at school, which after analysis it has been able to be categorized as a philosophical situation. After knowing how to differentiate regular problems from philosophical situations, it is easier to go deeper into philosophy and learn from one of its branches, which is metaphysics. Van Inwagen defines metaphysics as the study of ultimate reality, which shows a brief explanation of the topic, but still it contains a deep meaning in each word that conforms this definition given by the author. One great mind of this branch of philosophy is Plato, student of Socrates and teacher of Aristotle, who has deeply influenced many authors and philosophy as we know it today. Many high school students go through a very rough stage in their lives where the image of each person is always compared with the ideal one. These images are created or known through the ones that photoshop editors pick as perfect. They have a huge impact on the lives of high school students, which have created a substantial amount of problems to junior high students such as anorexia and bulimia among other problems because of the authors and editors and the figures that they have created to be the perfect ones and the ones that everybody should aspire to be. Plato discusses the ideal form or intelligible world and its influence on matter. This point taken by the greek philosopher relates to the perfect picture earlier discussed, of how the ideal image of a woman or man should be, which in consequence affects the matter or the scholars on their body, because they  want to resemble to those icons that the editors have created. This point is also taken by the movie of The Matrix when Neo is in the white room, seen as the residual image (perfect form of himself) which can be related to the ideal model that the world has cr eated of the human body, compared to the natural apppearence when he is in the real world, where he appears bold and his body is different. The relation of the photoshop form, the residual and the figure on the Matrix from the intelligible (Plato) world are things that highly influence a student’s life, which show how we are strange prisoners from these images, because these pupils are not common prisoners with shackles and in a prison as Plato mentions on his text The Allegory Of The Cave. Plato mentions the phrase â€Å"We are strange prisoners† because of the uncommon slavery that the world has made us be. This philosopher who lived thousands of years ago saw this polemique, that back then was present and after centuries it still is present in a high school student’s life and in a movie such as The Matrix. The film shows everyone as a prisoner from the program (the matrix), that was made by the machines to have all humans controlled so that they could take their energy. Taking into account this motion picture earlier mentioned, there is a relation between the real lives of each person in the matri x with the prisoners of The Allegory of the Cave. This text is about slaves shackled without any movement, who have been like that all of their lives, inside a cave where they see these shadows and a stories about them on a wall before them, with a fire behind to illuminate these shapes. One day the master decides to free one of the slaves who is taken outside the cave by force. Once the prisoner is out it narrates how difficult it is for him to get used to the light of the sun and the unusual world before him. For him to be able to adjust to these changes he starts by just seeing shadows, from that the moon and at the end the Sun. After his experience he gets back to the cave and he tells the other slaves what he lived and experienced, who later mocked him. At the end he gets to the conclusion that he rather be a poor servant with that knowledge than back in the shadows with ignorance. The Allegory of the Cave has six important symbolisms that relate to the lives of many high school students. The first one is the cave, which is the society, the knowledge and costumes that most of the people consider as the absolute truth; the second is the fire, representing the knowledge that society gives to each person, which shape  many lives of scholars through their acceptance of these; the third one is the prisoners that symbolizes the students; the fourth is the shadows, that are the things that learners think they know, which are perceived through their senses; the fifth is the shackles, representing the comfort zone where undergraduates stay due to the fear of being judged; the final is the light, where they can actually find the real knowledge. These symbolisms represent to be part of many of the lives that high school students have through their three years of study, because a great amount of these undergraduates constantly accept rules or truths that others implement on them. These situations reveal one very important problem that they experience when they try to belong to a group. They take the information that group gives them (fire symbolism) and that’s what they use as reference point to other activities they face through their day. As consequence they become strange prisoners from that information that is given to them, not allowing them to come out to the light (real knowledge) and experience the real world, which is way to different and more filled up with information about the world. In some cases there are students that notice that they are slaves of information that the groups give them and they decide to leave all that information behind and experience the real world, however for many it is very hard to get accustomed to the real world and its information due to the dramatic change, which in consequence leads them back to the world of shadows. Another greek philosopher named Aristotle, who made a huge impact on western philosophy discusses on his studies the four causes that lead a person to be virtuous. These causes are the material (material of what and object is composed of), the formal (the potentiality of what it can become or work for), the efficient (tools that shape the object) and the final (its purpose). These four causes are the ones that through reason lead people to accomplish their total actuality (ultimate purpose). The four causes are deeply related to a scholar’s life, as does any other human being, which can lead them to be virtuous people through the completion of the stages, however when teenagers try to fit in a club the causes seem to be farther away because of the shape that their lives take once they commit to belong to a group. High school is about fitting in and belonging to a society, where he or she relates to the people within, nonetheless these people usually try to belong to the high and social groups, which dictate a set of  norms in order to be part of it. These rules are usually doing drugs, drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes and relations hips with the opposite gender. They usually lead the subject to an acceptable place within the group, yet these requisites lead the person to move further apart from their causes and to a virtuous life. Peer pressure assumes an important role in this case, principally because the teenager desires so bad to belong, that he or she will do anything to accomplish their goal. This situation has created polemique, because once you enter high school no person wishes to be at the bottom, without being recognized socially, which builds another wall between the subject and the final cause depending on the type of group that a person wants to belong to and how far are the ideologies of the group from the ones of the person. Van Inwagen, a metaphysician debate on how appearances tend to be deceptive and that reality stands behind all these appearances. These, disguise the reality and they do this type of â€Å"scheme† through the misleading of what people sense. Many social groups and images that photoshop has ideally formed have highly disguised the truth of perfect and ideal body. In the case of groups they show how not having parents is better (appearance), yet these people suffer of psychological problems and loneliness (reality) which they tend to hide with the amazingness of not having elderly people caring for you, leading scholars to have problems with their parents because of the attention and concern that they have for them that it is bad seen in the teen society. Another case that can relate to the point of Van inwagen of appearances being deceptive is drinking and smoking, which is seen in social high school groups to be fine and without consequences (appearances), however drinking and drugs are another way to balance their lack of attention in parenthood (reality). For photoshop they disguise these models with perfect body, teeth, hair, skin among other things when the reality is that these models just stand there and let the photographers take pictures of them, which later are incredibly edited and placed on magazines and big announcements that serve the purpose of projecting an ideal form to sell advertisements among other things. Another important situation of an undergraduate is the effort and results they tend to have at school. Many students consider high school as a social network that leads them to a happy stage of their lives by partying and skipping classes, nonetheless they forget the importance of their education when they  fa il classes, which can be occasionally improved, however the way that students deal with failure is why they cannot succeed. Plato teacher of Aristotle debates that an unexamined life is not worth living because even though people experience some discomfort or pain this is only temporary and it is worth it due to what comes next. The â€Å"temporary pain† can be seen in this case as studying more and partying less, that eventually would lead to having good grades, getting into a good college and being successful. Yet if they remain in an unexamined life of ignorance they will live a different type of pain, which will remain there for all of their lives. This last phrase of different type of pain is related to a scholar’s life when he fails classes and eventually school, leaving him without his or her studies, leading to a bad employment and misery. That is why in the Allegory of the Cave, Plato in his conversation with Glaucon mentions how the slave that was set free and comes back to the cave says that he would rather live being a poor servant of a poor master with all the knowledge that bac k in the shadows. This shows in the student’s life that if he went out to the real world and saw what he could become and the truth about it, he would not rather be an ignorant teen that only parties who remains in the shadows because he can not see what can happen if he remains the same. To conclude this essay, it has been seen the different aspects that a teenager boy or girl on high school can have and how are they related to the different authors and movie of metaphysics. These authors have one thing in common which is seeking the truth, however their methods to guide them to the goal differ. The two main authors are of greek background, Aristotle and Plato. Aristotle focuses his methods and theory on the sensible realm and later on the intelligible realm, unlike Plato who uses these concepts the other way around focusing on the world of forms or ideal world and its influence on the natural realm. It is for each person to decide the view on which they stand, which could be philosophy being a set of footnotes of Plato; Aristotle being superior than Plato, because he took Plato’s ideas and improved them; or Plato focuses on abstract ideas and Aristotle is concentrated on concrete objects and its development, changes and purposes. This views are for each person to the decide focusing mainly on undergraduates and their philosophical situations and how they wish to deal with them by either choosing one of the views or remaining in the shadows. Bibliography BIBLIOGRAPHY Cohen, Marc. The Allegory of the Cave. 11 July 2013. 12 September 2014 https://faculty.washington.edu/smcohen/320/cave.htm. Cohen, S. Marc. Aristotles Metaphysics. 11 June 2012. 12 September 2014 http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/aristotle-metaphysics/. Paul, John. 2 July 2013. 11 September 2014 http://2011bullyingprogram.weebly.com/bullying-statistics.html . Stanford Universuty. Metaphysics. 10 September 2007. 11 September 2014 http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/metaphysics/. Thesaurus.com. Synonims. http://www.thesaurus.com/browse. Unknown. Notes on Alain Badiou’s Thinking the Event. 22 June 2012. 12 September 2014 http://de-bel-aizin.tumblr.com/post/25651855872.

Neglect and Decay in Joyce Carol Oates Haunted Essay -- Joyce Carol O

Neglect and Decay in Joyce Carol Oates' "Haunted" â€Å"Things in the world even those built by man are so quiet left to themselves†¦Ã¢â‚¬  People futilely fight the decay of life and relationships in an attempt to find beauty and goodness in the world. Joyce Carol Oates masterfully illustrates this theme in her short story â€Å"Haunted.† Oates reveals the protagonist Melissa’s desperate struggle with looming forces like the physical environment, her twisted relationship with her best friend, and even the insanity in her own mind. Oates utilizes imagery, symbols, and metaphors to show the downtrodden state of the countryside in which Melissa and Mary Lou live. Mentioning it several times throughout the story, Oates uses glass as a major symbol signifying the once beautiful structures which become ugly and useless in neglect. In all of the houses Melissa and Mary Lou explore, there is broken glass underfoot and windows which have been smashed. â€Å"Slippery like water,† the glass foreshadows the danger of Melissa’s mind finally shattering. Oates also describes Mary Lou’s eyes as blue â€Å"lik...

Mariah, by Che Husna Ashari

Mariah by Che Husna Azhari Introduction Mariah is a short story written by Che Husna Azhari who is a prominent Malaysian writer of literature. She received a degree from Tunku Khurshiah College, Seramban in 1973, and her A Levels from Oxford College of Further Education in 1975. In 1979, she received a degree from Brunel University of West London in Polymer Technology. In 1985, Che Husna was awarded a PhD in Response Engineering from Brunel University of West London. Che Husna is a Professor at the Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, specializing in non-metallic materials processing.She also serves as the Director of the Center for Corporate Planning and Communications at that university. Ms. Che Husna’s writings are generally set in Kelantan, Malaysia, and her best known short stories are used as standard teaching texts in Malaysia. Synopsis Mariah is widower who sells her ‘Nasi Berlauk' at her stall in order to survive herse lf and being admired. This Che Husna Azhari artwork is about polygamy issue within Pak Imam, which can be considerd as a big character besides Mariah. Pak Imam already has a wife, Cik Yam, who is a loyal wife and being the icon of other woman with full package in her own.After Pak Imam had discussed with her about his intention to have another marriage with Mariah, Cik Yam felt upset and do not agree on the time. But because she loves his husband so much, he agreed to let Pak Imam to get married. As for Pak Imam, even though he is known as Imam and respected by the whole villagers, but he is still just an ordinary person that cannot being separate by other human being by behaving like he is (want to get married with Mariah although he already have Cik Yam as his wife).Themes The theme is about women’s discrimination, sacrificial love and polygamy. Cik Yam agreed to the second marriage of her husband because she loved him so much and did not want him to be sad. She did not pre vent Pak Imam to get married with Mariah, the Nasi Belauk seller. At first, when Pak Imam tell Cik Yam that he want to get married another one, she just get sad for a while and and she gave permission to Pak Imam after that to be married with Mariah. In this story, issue of polygamy is not a big issue. However, he issue of polygamy is important in this story when it is about Cik Yam decision, whether she want to give permission or not to let the polygamy between herself and Mariah. Character Mariah A beautiful widow Usually wears Baju Kebaya Sells Nasi Berlauk in Molo Admired by men in her village Pak Imam A pious man Respected by all people in the village Husband of Cik Yam Friend of Che Gu Leh Fell in love with Mariah Cik Yam Wife of Pak Imam Characterized as perfect wife based on the sentence â€Å"The Imam looked at his wife with obvious pride.There was not a living man in Molo who did not envy him for having such a devoted wife. † Barren according to Pak Imam â€Å"Why couldn’t his wife bear children like other women? Some women, it seemed, have the fecundity of rabbits, but not his wife. † – Very devoted and loyal to Pak Imam A former politician. Plot The story begins with the exposition of the main character who is Mariah as the beautiful Nasi berlauk seller. It describes how Mariah’s beautiful figure appears as she walks as in â€Å"all eyes were transfixed on a figure coming through the entrance. It was the figure of a woman.She was delicately balancing two huge basins on her head, her hips swaying gaily to and fro with the rhythm of the balancing. That particular gyrating seemed to mesmerise the men and glue them to their places†. It also describes how Mariah was admired by men in the village. The rising action starts when Mariah was accused of putting something into her nasi berlauk to enchant all men in the village including Pak Imam by the head of womenfolk Che Gu Nab. It follows with the flashback of Pak Imam’s past about his unforgettable secret love with the daughter of his master, the Sheikh.The climax of this story is when Pak Imam asks permission from his wife to marry Mariah as in â€Å"He then told Cik Yam of Mariah, how he had fought his emotions and how he had lost. He begged Cik Yam’s forgiveness, kissed the hem of Cik Yam’s sarong and asked for her permission to take Mariah as his second wife! †. The falling action of this story is when Cik Yam finally agree to let Pak Imam to marry Mariah under the condition of equality. The story resolves with Pak Imam finally marry Mariah.

Atlantic Revolution

Nationalism and revolution often go hand in hand. Yet, while nationalism might lead to revolution, and perhaps national independence, it is much broader than revolution, and one should not be confused with the other. â€Å"All nationalists believe that nations can be identified by certain characteristics that all its citizens hold in common. These characteristics include the linguistic, ethnic, religious, or historical traditions that make a nation distinctive. All nationalists†¦are linked across time by [a common] language, literary tradition, and history† (Gelvin 2011). Atlantic Revolution What the American Revolution had in common with the Atlantic Revolution is that it wasn’t one single event or conflict that lead to uprisings everywhere. They were interconnected sharing common political vocabulary and strong democratic character† Where the American Revolution sought to create a new republic the Atlantic republics wished to recreate a new society from scratch. The American Revolution started a Trans-Atlantic Age revolution. Discovery of the New World It all began with the discovery of the New World by Columbus is 1492, which happened on behalf of Castile which was the Spanish crown. Prior to this discovery Europe had switched from the Feudalist system to the Capitalist system. Nationalism in Europe fueled the desire to control colonies in Asia and Africa. Finding a new route to the orient was the goal, when the Americas were discovered. The â€Å"Atlantic revolution,† was the redirection of trade routes brought about by the great geographic discoveries. The Atlantic revolution, however, did not so much replace the old lines of medieval commerce as build upon them† (Britannica). The European merchant capitalism formed a framework that became a joint venture for Europe, Americas and Africa. One that was founded upon coerced labor in which all contributed to the vast complicated network known as the Atlantic economy. â€Å"While not equal in power, each was critical in the contribution to the construction of the Atlantic world†(Benjamin 2011). Atlantic World By 1607 the first English settlement in America was set in Jamestown Virginia. Only Seven out of Ten settlers remained in the New World, due to starvation, harsh living conditions and wars with the Natives. The natives who had traded food for death were fighting two enemies disease and setters. Diseases such as malaria, small pox, scarlet fever and influenza wiped the Natives out. Creating a shortage of labor in the creation of the New World. When Columbus first arrived, he brought Horses. These horses were traded to Native Americans which helped change the face of hunting forever. This allowed the Natives to move from hunting parties requiring several men that lasted days to one hunter on horseback. The New World gave the Old World tobacco, cocoa, beans, tomatoes, corn and potatoes. Both Corn and potatoes became the food of the poor after Europe came out of the epidemic known as Black Death. Although no cure for the countless diseases on both sides of the New and Old Worlds. The retreat of the plague left Europeans with only war, hunger and a raft of other infections to deal with. † Economy The Columbian Exchange brought the Europeans wealth and power. The combined animal and plant products from the Indies exceeded gold and silver in value. While it brought the native Americas an unequal exchange of food for diseases that caused entire Indian cultures to vanish. The Columbian Exchange brought the Africans to other countries; discovered by the Portuguese searching for gold, later kidnapped later to be bartered and sold into slavery to satisfy Europeans unquenchable taste for goods. While the Columbian exchange had life changing positive and disastrous ending negative effects on four continents and three branches of humanity. Ecology became destiny determining who would thrive and who would die. Tobacco John Rolfe was an entrepreneur, who dared to sail to the Americas. He landed in Chesapeake Bay, with a dream and some tobacco seeds. He planted them and a crop grew that was worth One Million United States currency of today. August 1619 the first permanent African involuntary labors arrived to care for the tobacco crops. Slavery did not exist at this point in time, Later another One Thousand settlers arrived with Twenty African indentured servants. â€Å"The black indentured servant, with his hope of freedom, was increasingly being replaced by the black slave. â€Å" In 1705, the Virginia General Assembly removed any lingering uncertainty about this terrible transformation; it made a declaration that would seal the fate of African Americans for generations to come†¦ â€Å"All servants imported and brought into the Country†¦ who were not Christians in their native Country†¦ hall be accounted and be slaves. All Negro, mulatto and Indian slaves within this dominion†¦ shall be held to be real estate. If any slave resist his master†¦ correcting such slave, and shall happen to be killed in such correction†¦ the master shall be free of all punishment†¦ as if such accident never happened. † (PBS) â€Å"The Body of Liberties, recognized the enslavement of Africans as not only legal but also moral in 1641† (Code Noir 2008). Slave Revolution When the first record of blacks arrived in US history it was in Virginia in 1619. The Colonists used words like, black skin and connoted words like â€Å"soiled, dirty†¦ horrible, wicked to describe the blacks, while white skin connoted â€Å"purity, beauty, and goodness. â€Å"About 1860 racism reared its ugly head when white settlers started referring to themselves as white. As time progressed, harsh, brutal treatment of the Negro, the African American, the Black, was based on the dehumanizing of this person, and asserting white supremacy. † (Sanders) Unable to swallow the idea that a black man could be their equal, the American White Anglo-Saxon took steps to make sure that equality just didn’t happen. As early as 1740 laws were passed that punished, by death, any act of rebellion Negro slaves committed or any act against a white person that resulted in grievous wounds, bruises, or maiming, without benefit of trial. French Colony of Saint Domingue The French had the slave system down to a science knowing that the average rate per slave was three years. This inevitable death sentence, sparked a revolution within the slaves themselves. The French Revolution sparked, the most famous revolution which began in the French colony of Saint Domingue later known as the country of Haiti. The Haitian revolution lasted for twelve years, under the leadership of Toussaint L’Ouverture. The revolution took a turn when the slaves acquired guns from the neighboring Spanish and used them to fight off the British, French, and Spanish defeating 60,000 soldiers. The revolt caused Britain and France to abandon slave trade, making One Million black slaves French citizens in 1794. The French-Haitian Revolution What Nationalism and Revolution tell us about the role of slavery in the Atlantic World was what was done to justify slavery. In 1831 a Slave revolt lead by Nat Turner was used as reason to continue slavery. The whites were far outnumbered which was why The Haitian Revolution was kept quiet. For this reason, white Frenchmen were not permitted in Cuba for fear that they tell the story of the revolt in Haiti. One Million black slaves became French citizens in 1794 and when Napoleon tried to reinstitute slavery in 1802 things did not go well. Ultimately, Catholicism was used to try to de- Africanize the slaves, the colony wished to assimilate them culturally in order to continue their subjugation. American Revolution The American Revolution affected slavery by creating new ways for the slaves to be free. People started questioning slavery on all sides. The Americans won their independence from the British but the most vital area that America needed to address was the one of racial segregation. The primary cause of the civil war was slavery, and States’ rights. The Americans celebrated when the French overthrew its Absolutist monarchy. Sanctioned violence in France overflowed to the borders of Great Britain where they remained at war until 1815. Once the British war with France began depleting the British treasury. The war known as the French and Indian War is also known as the Seven Years War. The depletion of the treasury caused Britain, who decided the colonies had grown fat under their not so watchful eye to tax the Colonists on goods that had not previously been taxed. The Stamp Act of 1765, caused Parliament to take action, deciding that the colonies needed to contribute to their own defense. That action was followed by the British action to tax the Colonists on goods that had not previously been taxed. The final blow came when British forced the colonists to house and feed British soldiers. These collective actions made the colonists angry. The Colonists were without a representative in Parliament to peak for them. From these collective actions the phrase, no taxation without representation was born. Attempting to further cripple the colonists attempts for independence the English outlawed production of an American currency – and forced the colonies to borrow from British banks at high interest. John Adams stated that,† The revolution was effected before the war commenced. The revolution was in the minds and hearts of the people. † (Adams, 2010) Conclusion The American Revolution and Atlantic Revolution wasn’t one single event or conflict that lead to uprisings everywhere. They were interconnected sharing common political vocabulary and strong democratic character† While Nationalism and revolution often go hand in hand nationalism might lead to revolution, and perhaps national independence. Granted, â€Å"All nationalists believe that nations can be identified by certain characteristics that all its citizens hold in common. These characteristics include the linguistic, ethnic, religious, or historical traditions that make a nation distinctive. All nationalists†¦are linked across time by [a common] language, literary tradition, and history† (Gelvin 2011).

Colombia Essays - Member States Of The United Nations, Republics

Colombia Essays - Member States Of The United Nations, Republics Colombia COLOMBIA GEOGRAPHY: Colombia stretches over approximately 1,140,000 sq. km, roughly equal to the area of Portugal, Spain, and France put together. Colombia occupies the northwestern end of South America, and is the only country there with coasts on both the Pacific (1350 km long), and the Atlantic (over 1600 km.) Three Andean ranges run north and south through the western half of the country (about 45% of the total territory.) The eastern part is a vast lowland which can be generally divided into two regions: a huge open savannah on the north, and the amazon in the south (400,000 sq. km approx.).Colombia is a country of geographical contrasts and extremes. As well as the features mentioned, it has such curiosities as the desert of La Guajira, the peninsula in the most north-eastern tip of the country; the jungle of the pacific coast which holds one of the world's rainfall records; and the Serrana de la Macarena, an isolated mountain formation about 120 km. long, rising abruptly from the eastern plains t o some 2500 meters. Colombia also has several small islands. The major ones are the archipelago of San Andrs and Providencia in the Caribbean Sea, the Islas del Rosario and San Bernardo along the Caribeian coast, and Gorgona and Malpelo in the Pacific Ocean. HISTORY: Spaniards founded Santa Maria la Antigua del Darien in 1510, the first permanent European settlement on the American mainland. In 1538 the Spaniards established the colony of New Granada, the area's name until 1861. After a 14-year struggle, in which Simn Bolvar's troops won the battle of Boyac in Colombia on Aug. 7, 1819, independence was attained in 1824. Bolvar united Colombia, Venezuela, Panama, and Ecuador in the Republic of Greater Colombia (1810-1830), but lost Venezuela and Ecuador to separatists. Bolvar's Vice President, Francisco de Paula Santander, founded the Liberal Party as the Federalists while Bolvar established the Conservatives as the Centralists. Santander's presidency (1832-1936) re-established order, but later periods of Liberal dominance (1849-1857 and 1861-1880), when the Liberals sought to disestablish the Roman Catholic Church, were marked by insurrection and even civil war. Rafael Nuez, in a 15-year-presidency, restored the power of the central government and the church, which led in 1899 to a bloody civil war and the loss in 1903 of Panama over ratification of a lease to the U.S of the canal zone. POPULATION: The racial makeup of the Colombian population is diversified. About half the people are mestizo (of mixed Spanish and Native American ancestry), about 20 percent are of unmixed European ancestry, and about 14 percent are mulatto (of mixed black and white ancestry). The remaining 8 percent is made up of blacks, Native Americans, and people of mixed race. The population of Colombia (1993 estimate) was 34,942,767, giving the country an overall population density of about 30 persons per sq km (about 79 per sq mi). About 70 percent of the population was classified as urban in the late 1980s. CULTURE : The heritage of the Spanish colonial period is more noticeably preserved in Colombia than in any other South American country, and family life and dress often still conform to traditional norms. Although Colombia is a country of many racial mixtures, its culture is diversified more by region than by ethnicity. The Native American civilization was rapidly assimilated into that of the Spanish settlers, whose language nearly all Colombians speak today. Distinguished Colombian writers include the 19th-century novelist Jorge Isaacs and, in the 20th century, the poet Germn Pard Garca and the Nobel Prize-winning novelist Gabriel Garcia Marquez. The National Library in Bogot (1777) contains more than 680,000 volumes; it also administers town and village libraries throughout the country. The leading museums are located in Bogot. The National Museum contains collections relating to the Spanish conquest and the colonial period. The National Archaeological Museum exhibits utensils, stone carvings, textiles, gold works, and other materials found at sites throughout the country. The famous Gold Museum features a noted collection of pre-Columbian gold objects.

Comparatives and Superlatives in Spanish

Comparatives and Superlatives in Spanish In English we often use the suffixes -er and -est to indicate that something is or has more or most of a quality. But Spanish takes a different approach. Spanish Comparatives Spanish uses the adverbs ms and menos before an adjective to indicate that something has more or less of a particular quality. Such phrases are known as comparatives. Ms also is often the equivalent of the English suffix -er when applied to adjectives. Some examples: Él es guapo. (He is handsome.)Él es menos guapo. (He is less handsome.)Él es ms guapo. (He is handsomer.)Ella es inteligente. (She is intelligent.)Ella es menos inteligente. (She is less intelligent.)Ella es ms inteligente. (She is more  intelligent.) Such comparatives are explained more fully in the lesson on comparisons of inequality. Spanish Superlatives Superlatives are used to indicate that something has the most of a particular quality, as can be done with the English suffix -est. They are formed in Spanish much like above, except that the definite article is also used, as in these examples: Él es el ms guapo. (He is handsomest.)Él es el menos guapo. (He is the least handsome.)Ella es la ms inteligente. (She is the most intelligent.)Ella es la menos inteligente. (She is the least intelligent.) Plural definite articles can be used, as can the neuter article: Ellos son los ms guapos. (They are handsomest.)Ellas son las menos inteligentes. (They are the least intelligent.)Lo ms importante es amar. (The most important thing is to love.) The suffix -à ©simo or one of its variations is sometimes considered a type of superlative: Ella es altà ­sima. (She is extremely tall.)Él es guapà ­simo. (He is extremely handsome.) Irregular Forms of Comparatives and Superlatives The most common irregular comparatives and superlatives are those involving bueno (good) and malo (bad). The comparative and superlative forms are mejor and peor, respectively: Este coche es bueno. (This car is good.)Este coche es mejor. (This car is better.)Este coche es el mejor. (This car is best.)Esta casa es mala. (This house is bad.)Esta casa es peor. (This house is worse.)Esta casa es la peor. (This house is the worst.) The forms mayor and menor can also be used as irregular comparatives and superlatives when referring to age: Pablo es viejo. (Pablo is old.)Pablo es mayor que su hermano. (Pablo is older than his brother.)Pablo es el mayor de su familia. (Pablo is the oldest in his family.)Katrina es joven. (Katrina is young.)Katrina es menor que su hermana. (Katrina is younger than her sister.)Katrina es la menor de su familia. (Katrina is the youngest in her family.) Finally, pà ©simo is sometimes considered to be an alternate superlative of malo, and mximo an alternate for grande. Sample Sentences Mi principal compromiso es ms pragmtico que ideolà ³gico. (My main promise is more pragmatic than ideological.) El lago de Saoseo es ms azul que el cielo. (Lake Saoseo is bluer than the sky.) La nià ±a cuya belleza le dio el tà ­tulo de la nià ±a ms bonita del mundo ha firmado un lucrativo contrato. (The girl whose beauty gave her the title of the prettiest girl in the world has signed a lucrative contract.) Son ms baratos en otras tiendas. (They are cheaper in other stores.) No hay personaje ms o menos à ºtil; todos tienen su propio rol en el juego. (There is no character more or less useful; all of them have their own roles in the game.) No creo que sea menos importante. (I dont believe its less important.) Este aà ±o ser el mejor aà ±o de la historia de la humanidad. (This year will be the best year in this history of humanity.) De todos los posibles escenarios, ese me parece el menos probable. (Of all the possible scenarios, that seems to me to be the least likely.) Esta decisià ³n es la ms difà ­cil de toda mi vida. (This decision is  the  most difficult one of my whole life.) Gracias, abuelos, por esta divertà ­sima maà ±ana que nos habà ©is regalado,  ¡sois los mejores! (Thanks, grandparents, for this most fun morning you have given us. Youre the best!) Considerada por todos como la peor pelà ­cula de ciencia ficcià ³n de la historia. (It is considered by everybody to be the worst science-fiction film in history.) Key Takeaways Spanish uses ms before an adjective to indicate that someone or someone has more of the adjectives quality.Spanish uses menos before an adjective to indicate that someone or someone has less of the adjectives quality.To indicate that something has the most or least of some quality, precede ms or menos with a definite article such as el or la.

Beethoven Interpretations Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Beethoven Interpretations - Research Paper Example Beethoven was showing signs of romanticism in his middle period. Beethoven left the sonata form but the freedom he gave each movement is typically Romantic. The Piano Sonata N ° 27 is a beautiful piece of music which has been interpreted in many different ways. The Sonata has three movements: adagio sostenuto, allegretto and presto. It can take anywhere from 12 minutes to 15 minutes to perform depending on the interpretation. Beethoven composed it in 1801. He personally put the title as Quasia una fantasia or almost a fantasy. This means that it can be played as the artist sees fit. In listening to the difference of performance, it can be said that Beethoven's title is more accurate than Moonlight Sonata. A fantasy gives more freedom to perform the music as the performer wants. The name "Moonlight Sonata" was given as a publishing trick. Some say it was given after Beethoven's death. Others say Beethoven gave it as a tribute to his student, Guicciardi. Beethoven had fallen in love with her, a countess. He knew he could never marry someone of that social class. It is unlike him to have been so open as to name a sonata after someone who was paying the bills. This sonata was composed in his middle period. He was not composing romantic music. The title was misplaced (5). His music was steadily leaving the classical form (Waltz). In this Sonata, you see a difference between each performer, which is contrasting. Beethoven would have been heavy in his interpretation. He was already affected by his deafness. The loud pounding of the keys in the last movement enabled Beethoven to hear the vibrations. I listened to many different interpretations in order to get the right feeling for the Sonata. In my research, I saw that the Moonlight Sonata was one of his most famous sonatas. I was surprised at seeing that it could be played so differently by such artist. I chose two artists to explain the three movements (the whole Sonata) in order to have a comprehensive feeling of the dynamics and tempo: Bareboim and Gould. Their interpretation is so different. Then I chose two other artists in order to compare their first movement: Horowitz and Brendel in addition to Bareboim and Gould. I think my favorite of them all was Gould because I felt he was the closest to how Beethoven would have liked the Sonata to be played. In terms of the first movement, I felt it was a classic to hear Horowitz. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HpOb5NxtG-w   Baremboim played the first movement with emotion and slowly. He was sad or pensive. His expression was sad. The dynamics were softly played piano. There was, too, much of a difference with the two hands. The bass continued to have the same level of sound during the whole movement and the treble would have crescendos and be too loud. He used a little bit of the rubatto effect. The timing of the first movement was 6.55. Only towards the end did the two hands converse with each other. The end was slow. There was too much confli ct between the three note motif and the left hand. His left hand dominated the right only one time during the movement. Towards the end of the movement, he increased in volume and there was a slight crescendo of the left hand which tapered off in the final measure. His bass and treble were blended and not articulate. The Allegretto of the 2nd movement was still slow. It was happy.