Gay Marriage Should Be Legal Essay -- Homosexuality same-sex couples

On June 26, 2015, the US Supreme Court ruled that the US Constitution guarantees the right for same-sex couples to marry. Should gay marriages really be allowed? Has the Supreme Court ruled in error? Gay marriage should be legal because all individuals have the same right in society; because same-sex couples can constitute a good based family; because it is just a way to make official a common union nowadays, even with the religious issue; because it is not related to polygamy; and because love matters and it does not differ in nature according to the sex of its object or the person who experiences it. The first reason why same sex marriage should be legal is because it is fair for all individuals to have the same rights in society. With the end of sodomy laws, a recent decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, conservatives have lost their last excuse to write off gay lives and love as unworthy of social accommodation. But whatever ones feel about the reasoning of the decision, its results is clear: gay Americans are no longer criminals. Even if they were, as murderers on death row that have the constitutional right to marriage, they should have too. The second objection about why same sex marriage should be legal is because a same sex couple can really constitute a good based family, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics that has recognized that gay households can be just as loving and supportive an environment for raising children as the straight kind. Opponen...

Social Outcasts in John Steinbecks Of Mice and Men :: Steinbeck Of Mice and Men Essays

Social Outcasts in Of Mice and Men In the novel Of Mice and Men written by John Steinbeck, a variety of characters are present, although, not all fit in. Two of the strongest examples are Crooks, and Curley's Wife. Throughout the novel, they are portrayed as social outcasts in whatever they did. Another good example is Lennie, mainly because of his mental condition. All three are treated in a cruel manner at one point or another in the novel. Crooks is an older black man with a crooked back, who lives by himself in the barn. He was asked not to bother the whites, and to stay out of their way, and so therefore he requests that no one bother him. Being the only African American on the ranch, the reader begins to question racism and prejudice. Were the others racist toward Crooks? Not necessarily, they just didn't allow him to hang out in the bunkhouse with them. At one point in the novel, Crooks talks of how lonely he gets, and how a man goes insane without anyone to talk with. He says this to Lennie: ""S'pose you didn't have nobody. S'pose you couldn't go into the bunkhouse and play rummy 'cause you was black. How'd you like that? S'pose you had to sit out here an' read books. Sure you could play horseshoes till it got dark, but then you got to read books. Books ain't no good. A guy needs somebody-to be near him. A guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody. Don't make no difference who the guy is, long's he's with you. I tell ya, I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an' he gets sick" (pg.'s 72-73) Even if nobody treated him like an outcast, or in other words called him a nigger and pushed him around, he had to feel like one. The above quote explains what Crooks felt loneliness could do to a man. The other men on the ranch also treat Curley's wife, who is never given a name, poorly. She is always looking for attention and flirting with them, and this turns them off immensely. The fact that she is the only woman in Social Outcasts in John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men :: Steinbeck Of Mice and Men Essays Social Outcasts in Of Mice and Men In the novel Of Mice and Men written by John Steinbeck, a variety of characters are present, although, not all fit in. Two of the strongest examples are Crooks, and Curley's Wife. Throughout the novel, they are portrayed as social outcasts in whatever they did. Another good example is Lennie, mainly because of his mental condition. All three are treated in a cruel manner at one point or another in the novel. Crooks is an older black man with a crooked back, who lives by himself in the barn. He was asked not to bother the whites, and to stay out of their way, and so therefore he requests that no one bother him. Being the only African American on the ranch, the reader begins to question racism and prejudice. Were the others racist toward Crooks? Not necessarily, they just didn't allow him to hang out in the bunkhouse with them. At one point in the novel, Crooks talks of how lonely he gets, and how a man goes insane without anyone to talk with. He says this to Lennie: ""S'pose you didn't have nobody. S'pose you couldn't go into the bunkhouse and play rummy 'cause you was black. How'd you like that? S'pose you had to sit out here an' read books. Sure you could play horseshoes till it got dark, but then you got to read books. Books ain't no good. A guy needs somebody-to be near him. A guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody. Don't make no difference who the guy is, long's he's with you. I tell ya, I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an' he gets sick" (pg.'s 72-73) Even if nobody treated him like an outcast, or in other words called him a nigger and pushed him around, he had to feel like one. The above quote explains what Crooks felt loneliness could do to a man. The other men on the ranch also treat Curley's wife, who is never given a name, poorly. She is always looking for attention and flirting with them, and this turns them off immensely. The fact that she is the only woman in

The Jungle :: Socialism, Sinclair

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Throughout American history, people that have challenged themselves with a cause have had at least some control of major issues present during their lives. Upton Sinclair was one of these influential people. Using his talent for writing, Sinclair wrote his most successful novel, The Jungle. This novel stressed a need to improve conditions for industrial workers, and exposed the faults of Capitalism in order to promote his cause; which was Socialism. Sinclair achieved his goal of promoting Socialism with the story of Jurgis Rudkus and his family. By describing the harsh system in which workers were consumed by, Sinclair uncovered faults in Capitalism, and inversely promoted Socialism.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Sinclair’s story, he vividly described the family and the disagreeable situation they were in. The accounts of the meatpacking industry, developed mainly on truth from personal experience, were filled with examples of an unjust work system, corruption by employers, and the resulting low living conditions. For example, Packingtown laborers would be forced to work repeatedly faster, only to see their wages cut numerous times. Also, families became impoverished, causing the children to work. As a result, Elzbieta's son, Stanislovas, was eaten alive by rats. Such major problems in the Capitalist system were focused on throughout the novel. The problems in the meatpacking industry related to issues concerning the entire industrial labor force. Sinclair continued to show that these problems could have been solved by Socialism. The fact that Jurgis joined the Socialist Party and was dedicated to improving his surroundings was how Sinclair displayed the fact that Socialism was a more practical system. The Jungle :: Socialism, Sinclair   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Throughout American history, people that have challenged themselves with a cause have had at least some control of major issues present during their lives. Upton Sinclair was one of these influential people. Using his talent for writing, Sinclair wrote his most successful novel, The Jungle. This novel stressed a need to improve conditions for industrial workers, and exposed the faults of Capitalism in order to promote his cause; which was Socialism. Sinclair achieved his goal of promoting Socialism with the story of Jurgis Rudkus and his family. By describing the harsh system in which workers were consumed by, Sinclair uncovered faults in Capitalism, and inversely promoted Socialism.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Sinclair’s story, he vividly described the family and the disagreeable situation they were in. The accounts of the meatpacking industry, developed mainly on truth from personal experience, were filled with examples of an unjust work system, corruption by employers, and the resulting low living conditions. For example, Packingtown laborers would be forced to work repeatedly faster, only to see their wages cut numerous times. Also, families became impoverished, causing the children to work. As a result, Elzbieta's son, Stanislovas, was eaten alive by rats. Such major problems in the Capitalist system were focused on throughout the novel. The problems in the meatpacking industry related to issues concerning the entire industrial labor force. Sinclair continued to show that these problems could have been solved by Socialism. The fact that Jurgis joined the Socialist Party and was dedicated to improving his surroundings was how Sinclair displayed the fact that Socialism was a more practical system.

Emergence and Impact of Regional Parties Essay

It is raining acronyms in politics and the vibrant Indian political landscape is flooded. Well, almost so as Regional parties gain ground with amazing alacrity in a diverse India where a fast-transforming political map now promises a never before variety. SAD in Punjab on one side, SP, BSP in Uttar Pradesh on the other, RJD, JD(U) in Bihar as also DMK, AIADMK, PMK, MDMK and DMDK in the deep South and TMC, AGP and others in North-East —they seem to be flowing in from all nooks and corners to lend a different hue, their own hue, to the political waters as they flow in our country today. Though the experiment with regional politics first succeeded in the late 1960s when many parties won against the Congress, it was only post-1989 that regional politics really became a phenomenon, here to stay, courtesy the National Parties themselves. The alphabet-soup illustrating the striking transformation of India’s politics over the past two decades, brewed on the fire provided by the space vacated by National Parties to be wedded to the cause of regional issues, local aspirations and territorial priorities. Also, shrinking space of the National Parties led to creation of a vacuum which the Regional parties were happy to fill. They sprung up and marched ahead as a consequence of the leanings of the public to advance its aspirations. Essentially individualistic, personality-driven parties bound by a lose chain of thought rather than a cohesive coordinated ideology, these pandered to regional populism with a much narrower vision of things sans any broad-based National conse nsus on ideology and issues. But, then, what did the mushrooming of these regional parties, finally, find reflection in? While it strengthened the federal structure with assertion by the States of the Union for its share in power, privileges, taxes, revenues and benefits of micro-macro schemes, it also led to a certain amount of healthy competition inter se states, making us the republic that we really are. It also gave rise to the concept of â€Å"shared sovereignty†, marked by an increase in the capacity of the state to influence its own development performance while enhancing the representative character of India’s democracy. The relentless rise of these regional â€Å"home-grown† parties, sharing the one common attribute of having a mass base in only the state of their birth, led to a spate of constitutional and legislative reforms in terms of judicial, administrative and centre-state relations. Not only this, it weaved together an interplay of forces, prompting National parties to not only rope them in for support but also brought about a dependence which lent a Regional flavor to National Policies. Then, it is in this that emerged the beauty of the dove-tailing of the National and these Regional entities. But, then, since beauty is never blemish-free, there is a flip side too. Given their â€Å"strategic† positioning, the Regional parties have not only exploited this dependence of the National Parties for their own advantage but, at times, even arm-twisted the latter to get their way. There’s a way out of this of labyrinth in which National Parties find themselves lost in and it does not lie in a top-down approach which, in the present times, seems not only inadequate but also outdated. We have an India defined by mobilization of a plethora of identity and interest groups which have taken the shape and form of Regional parties to diffuse real power from the Centre to the states. The National Parties need to wake up and smell the coffee. The crutches of dependence on Regional parties have to go and they have to not only learn to stand on their own feet but even walk that extra mile to fulfill regional aspirations to show that each one of the 28 states matters as much. For this, they must permit regional units to function at the local level as semi-independent units with adequate flexibility for leadership-building at the regional level. This will help balance the regional interest with the National interest which many a times end upconflicting with each other. Besides, a cohesive National party with semiindependent regional strait-jacketed unit to cater to regional interests is the only guarantee for ensuring continuous unification within India’s multi-ethnic diversity which weaves the many strands of region, religion, culture and politics into one social fabric we call India.

Bebop Research Paper Essay

Bebop music was the next evolutionary change of Jazz music that succeeded swing music. This paper’s aim is look at musicians who impacted this era, exploring more in depth Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker. In the early 1940’s, the swing bands began to all sound the same as well as work along predictable chord changes.1 The music was now not used for dancing. Some people believed that this would let the music go away from the elite social groups, and now be for everybody. Also just because a musician could play swing music well, there was no guarantee that the same musician would be able to perform Bebop. This new style of music was defined through adventurous soloists such as Dizzy Gillespie. Although swing music did have some creativity, in Bebop the chorus was done once at the beginning and once at the end, the middle was mostly up to the soloist’s creativity and inventiveness. Bebop music really took hold during the years of American involvement in WWII. During this time there was a major strike from the Musicians Union because they wanted more money from labels because of money lost on free radio.2 The strike led to musicians jamming with each other and not being able to record. Since there was a lack of recorded material for the music, when recording started again, and people heard Bebop they were very taken aback. They had no warning that this new style of music was being created, let alone how different it was from swing. The musical style itself differed quite a lot from anything that had ever been done in Jazz up until this point. Along with the chorus only being repeated at the end of a musical number, there were fast tempos, asymmetrical phrasing, and intricate melodies. The only things that held Bebop together were underlying harmonies that were played by the rhythm section. Other then this, most of the music ended up being improvisational as discussed earlier. The chord progression which was used for the music was actually not much different from the swing era, but the melody was new and much more complex. At the end of the Bebop era, musicians were using harmonic substitutions instead chords. This style and era of Jazz took people by surprise. The music was different, unique, and really let the musicians express who they were as Jazz musicians. Dizzy Gillespie was born John Birks Gillespie in South Carolina on October 21, 1917.3 He was youngest of nine children. His childhood was not one that he wanted to remember much. His father was very abusive towards him and his siblings. â€Å"I was scared, scared of my father. He was super austere, and never showed any emotion. He’d give me a whipping every Sunday morning, me and my brothers,† said Dizzy speaking of his childhood. 4 Gillespie got into a lot of trouble as a child. But at the age of ten or so, an English teacher introduced him to music, which lead him to joining the school band. 5 He 3 Alyn Shipton, Groovin High: The life of Dizzy Gillespie, New York: Oxford University Press, 1999, 6 started his young music career playing the trombone. The instrument changed once he borrowed a neighbor’s trumpet for the first time.6 Dizzy began playing in the loc al bands all around town. After his younger years, Gillespie attended a school that was a boarding school and day college, called the Laurinburg Institute in North Carolina. 7 While he was there it is thought that he was struggling for money for clothes. Although tuition and board was covered for him, he had worked in the field to make extra money. 8 Dizzy Gillespie’s mother moved up to Philadelphia while he was at the end of his career at the Laurinburg Institute and moved up to be with her in 1935.9 He began playing in bands about Philly and in the area. This was done for a few years between 1935-1937, before he moved up to New York City.10 While he was in Philadelphia he got his reputation and subsequently his nickname, â€Å"Dizzy†. He was known for the unpredictable nature in which he would play the trumpet and act outside of performing. When he arrived in New York City, he was hired by the Teddy Hill Orchestra for a European tour.11 Before being hired, Dizzy was playing around town and making a name for himself. There he lived with his brother in an apartment in New York City. He went out all night so that his brother could come home form working all day and go to sleep. Gillespie’s first recordings were with the Teddy Hill Orchestra Band. After being with Hill for a few years, Gillespie joined Cab Calloway in the summer of 1939. 13 They played at the Cotton Club but Calloway was touring a lot. This gave Dizzy the opportunity to develop his musicianship through style and knowledge through playing at all night jam sessions. Then, in 1942, Gillespie joined Earl â€Å"Fatha† Hines band. Unfortunately, in 1943, lots of band members left, including Dizzy Gillespie. He began to form his own bands that started by opening at Onyx Club on 52nd St in New York City.14 Dizzy had begun to play â€Å"bebop† in 1940, and was now able to do it full time. The venue became a hot spot for this new evolutional sound in Jazz. In 1956 Gillespie and his band went on a state department tour of the Middle East, which earned another nickname â€Å"Ambassador of Jazz†. He continued to work as a Jazz ambassador for the rest of his career, going to Cuba in 1977, and working with United Nations Orchestra. At the end of his life he took up educating young musicians. He unfortunately died from pancreatic cancer in 1993. He left us with a new style of music, and left his mark by helping educate a new generation of Jazz musicians. Another great artist, and considered the second founder of Bebop was Charlie Parker. He grew up in Kansas City, Kansas. Parker was raised here until he was seven years old and then his family moved to Kansas City, Missouri that was thriving culturally at the time.15 It was an important city for African-American music as well. Parker had his irst bout with music in public schools in Kansas City, Missouri.16 In high school, Charlie Parker began by playing the baritone horn, then later on switched to the alto saxophone in 1933, which he stuck with. At the age of 15, the determined in yet not very talented yet, Parker left school to pursue his music career. The young man had a hard time at first getting yelled at by fellow band members, and then practicing for fifteen hours a day.17 From 1935 to 1939 he worked in Kansas City playing with local groups developing his talent through practice and performance.18 In 1939 Charlie Parker moved from Kansas City to New York City. When he arrived he worked as a dishwasher and attended jam sessions during the nights.19 While he was in New York City, he ended up meeting trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie. He would end up collaborating and working with Gillespie to create what we now know as Bebop.20 From 1940-1942 Charlie Parker played in Jay McShann’s that toured in the southwest and Chicago, and then recorded with them in Dallas.21 At this time, the recordings were more swing-based and were also made for broadcasting.22 In 1942 he joined Earl Hines band, this would prove to be a great move because him and Gillespie together were able 16 Ken Burns, Charlie Parker, to experiment. As this â€Å"big band† style of music began to decline, the up-beat improvisational style of Parker began to show. This style of Jazz caught on with the younger generations of musicians throughout the 1940’s and 1950’s. Parker’s success was cut short because of addiction. When he was a child, he had an accident that he got addicted to morphine from. In 1951, he had his cabaret license revoked.23 Parker was banned from performing at nightclubs and later attempted suicide twice, and died in 1955. As one of the founders of Bebop, Charlie Parker contributed quality work in Jazz for the future generations. When he was playing, the older generations did not take to his new form of Jazz, now people look back and call him and innovator. Max Roach is another great innovator, and is one of the best jazz percussionists to ever play. Roach grew up in Brooklyn in a house that was already full of music. His mother was a gospel singer and began to play instruments in gospel bands when he was 10 years old.24 The first instrument he played was the bugle, and then later switched to the drums. When he was 16 he played in his first big performance, he substituted in Duke Ellington’s band. 25 When he was 18, he began going down to 52nd street and 78th street to begin jamming with other Jazz musicians. He was influenced by Kenny Clarke and was one of the few bebop drummers of the time. Roach would keep time on the cymbal instead of the bass drum, as swinger drummers did.26 This technique allowed for more 23 Burns  space to create rhythmic accompaniment. Throughout his career, Max Roach played with all the greats of the Bebop jazz style. He was able to play with Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Thelonius Monk, Coleman Hawkins, and Bud Powell.27 Roach actually played on most of the recordings of Charlie Parker, including Savoy 1945, an important turning point in recorded Jazz.28 He also played on Miles Davis’s recording Birth of the Cool in 1950 and Jazz at Massey Hall in 1952.29 Max Roach is the percussionist who took Bebop took the next level and is one of the best percussionists there was in Bebop jazz. Miles Davis, born in 1926, came from middle class beginnings and was raised outside of St Louis.30 His mother raised him in an integrated in an integrated suburb and began music through playing trumpet after his father bought him one. Davis’ first teacher encouraged him to play the trumpet unlike Louis Armstrong and Roy Eldridge, using straight, vibratoless tones.31 After a visit by Billy Ecksteins Band to St Louis, which included Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker, he applied to the Julliard School of Music in New York City in 1944. Some people say that he only went there to find his idol Charlie Parker.32 The formal teaching at Julliard was not enough for Davis and he ended up 27 All About Jazz seeking out Jazz clubs such as the Savoy and Minton’s. He joined Charlie Parker in live appearances and recordings between 1945 and 1948.33 In 1948, Miles Davis started his own Bebop groups. He participated in a workshop with arranger Gil Evans. This led to collaborations with Gerry Mulligan, John Lewis, and Johnny Carisi, which ended up being recordings. They were recorded for Capitol under Davis’ name and later reissued as Birth of the Cool. 34 Miles Davis career at this point was marred by a heroine addiction. He was unable to perform much and when he did, it was with inferior accompanists, and performed infrequent recordings for labels. Miles Davis did not spearhead the Bebop movement as Parker or Gillespie did, but he was nonetheless very important in the Jazz revolution of the time. Davis’ jazz is some of the best in the 20th century. Thelonius Monk was a Jazz pianist who helped spur bebop during the height of this new revolutionary sound. Monk was born in 1917 in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.35 He grew up with a piano in his house, and that became his first exposure to music at a very young age. He taught himself how to read music when he was five or six by looking over his sisters shoulder as she was rec eiving music lessons.36 Before Monk was ten years old, his family moved to New York City, near the Hudson River. His father left his family after becoming ill and moving back south, leaving Monk’s mom to raise him and his siblings. She was able to get him a piano when he was eleven and he began taking formal lessons at this point.37 He started playing piano in the church choir which is mother sang in, while also being surrounded by the Jazz scene in New York City. In 1939, Monk created his first jazz group.38 Monk’s first notable moment was in 1940 when he was hired at Minton’s Playhouse in Harlem as the house pianist. 39 While at Minton’s he was able to playwith the house quartet, and got to play with Jazz pianist Bud Powell, Roy Eldridge, and Don Byas. In 1944, Theolnius Monk made his first visit to the recording studio as a part of the Coleman Hawkin’s Quartet. 40 In 1944 he also recorded Round About Night, and ended up joining Dizzy Gillespie’s Orchestra and playing on 52nd street at Spotlite Club.41 Then in 1947, Monk made recordings under his own name in a sextet session for Blue Note. Thelonius Monk was falsely arrested in 1951 for narcotics possession.42 He had his cabaret license taken away from him therefore inhibiting him from playing in the Jazz clubs in New York City. He played in out of town gigs and made some records for Prestige Label during this time.43 Then in 1954 he traveled across the Atlantic Ocean to play in the Paris Jazz Festival. While there he recorded his first solo album for Vogue, which would prove to be the way people would remember him, as one of the most imaginative solo pianists. The Bebop era was filled with musicians that are still talked about today as having great influence on 20th century music. Bebop let jazz artists express themselves through extended solos that were not very common yet. Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker really took the scene abruptly and changed the way one can play jazz. This evolution in Jazz evoked fast tempos, asymmetrical phrasing, and rhythm sections expanding their roles in the band. The Bebop era gave listeners great Jazz in an evolutionary style, that people still enjoy today.

A World at Arms: A World War II Book Review Essay

Abstract   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This book authored by a great historian Gerhard L. Weinberg is exceptionally written with impressive research. It integrated all the aspects of war – diplomatic, political, economic, and even cultural. In addition, the book has given an overview of how the different theatres of World War II are interconnnected. This paper explores on the author as an expert of this time period, on the book as an account of history, and its impact to the world.   A World at Arms: A World War II Book Review An Overview   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The truth about wars is that many facts would always be concealed and altered. There are numerous instances where events that transpired were never recorded, and many evidences were deliberately destroyed. Therefore weaving the entire tragedy is a very difficult task, and people could only carefully integrate the pieces together, whether they fit or not. World War II is exceptionally difficult for many historians for it is composed of many different theatres, for indeed the world was ultimately at war. The author of â€Å"A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II† Gerhard L. Weinberg has done the next to impossible, to write a single volume that ecompasses all the aspects of war, without sacrificing its value as a piece of literature.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Gerhard L. Weinberg is an expert historian who has enough authority to write about this period of the greatest war in the history of mankind. He has previously written a duely recognized two-volume account of the diplomatic affairs of Adolf Hitler. He is also credited for discovering and editing the second published book of Hitler. Not only is he well versed on this global conflict, he is also largely exposed on extensive archives including those of the Americans, the British, and the Germans which were of great addition to his books. These primary sources characterized his book with much freshness and color in comparison to other works with the same relevance (Weinberg, 1994).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This book contains accounts that include all of the six continents. It largely discussed the details of the war, its causes, and its effect on the world. Moreover, its timeline extends from 1939 until the end of war, and even including chapters that reflected the wretched aftermath of this conflict. This is a narrative that dissected the war into the different roles of diplomacy, espionage, land, and sea battles on the total outcome of the Second World War It is a relevant source of the weaponry used, military tactics, naval seacrafts, and even different aircrafts used in various offensives. This book is not confined within the overall military and diplomatic chaos that occurred during those times, for this piece of literature has also explored on the gravity of the situations in the Eastern Front and of the Jewish holocaust (Weinberg, 1994).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The book tackled interesting insights that are both amusing and surprising. Such information includes the reduction of American and British troops after the First World War, maintaining only a size comparable to that specified for the Germans by the Treaty of Versailles. Another thought provoking fact is that the British and the French failed to attempt to enter the war. It is basically an interwoven story of different stories. Stories are sometimes characterized by delaying the inevitable,   strategic mistakes, and too much reliance towards neutrality that they ignored, consciously or not, that Hitler really wanted a World War that would give him his Thousand Year Reich (Weinberg, 1994).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The book has also given emphasis on the different geographical and logistic significance that affected decisions in warfare. Examples include the impact of the Allied invasion during the landing in Normandy, as the place was a crucial port for the Germans. Southern ports were also seized by Allied troops, and this greatly benefitted their European campaign once they settled their military, naval, and air forces in France. The book also presented Hitler’s â€Å"fixation on blood and loot in the East† (Weinberg, 1994). Moreover, the author elaborated on the different preprations done by the Allied, and how they incorporated necessary deceptions for the enemy. Because of these ploys, Germany opted to invade Russia, as Hitler perceived it as an easier target compared to England (Weinberg, 1994). Purpose or audience for the book   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The primary focus that the author wishes to present to his audience is that this Second World War is brought upon the world by the Germans. They initiated and started this largest conflict in man’s history, which extended across oceans and continents. It is fundamentally an account of how the Germans caused the war’s outbreak in September of 1939 and how the Germans were defeated on the year 1945. This book is especially interesting to those in search of a book with accurate and specific details of World War II (Weinberg, 1994).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Even those who do not possess inclination towards historical subjects would enjoy this book presented in a manner apart form the regular academic and scholarly approach. It does not have the dessicated and dragging encyclopedic tone as it was written with much moral passion. This book is of great importance to every historical account of the World War II written after it. Authors couldn ot ever afford to not include this masterpiece in their reference list, as it contains most of the commonly known, the controversial, and even the great secret stories of the war (Weinberg, 1994).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The book is an account that has successfully interwoven the different narratives of both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters of war. They were integrated instead of being dealt with separately. This book discussed what others rarely encompass, the histories of America and Britain, the military fronts of Russia and China, and the Italian and Balkan countries. This book does not only cater to those who did not encounter the war, as it is also useful to those who and existed and were very familiar of the events before, during, and after World War II (Weinberg, 1994). Physical and Textual description   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In addition to the texts, the book also includes an additional 180 pages containing the endnotes, a detailed bibliographic essay, and 23 relevant maps. However, it is quite noticeable that this book lacks graphic illustrations and photographic documentation of the different events of the war. It is very much wanting of a comprehensive presentation of the different key battles that dictated the course of war. The book only contains two pictures major pictures and four historical icons of the war, and they are each located at the book’s cover and spine (Weinberg, 1994). Your reaction and evaluation   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As a personal assessment, I find the book to be a very interesting and well written documentary of the Second World War I believe that it is a ver powerful piece of narrative that attests to all the impact that this war has brought upon mankind. In the most possible concise way of writing the entire war in a single book, I believe that the author has done a tremendous job in conveying to the reader the importance of every aspect that comprises a war, without being too detailed and boring. Using his simple prose composition in laying out to the reader the causes, the events, and the consequences of the war, Weinberg has successfully integrated the two theaters of war. It is however unfortunate that his concentration is evidently towards the Atlantic Theater, but due to the purpose of writing a single volume, I believe that he has utilized the pages well. Every word in the book is of great importance, and he did not include miniscule details that would only make the text wordy and less interesting to the reader (Weinberg, 1994).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The author also demonstrated great knowledge on the subject matter, as he not only related specific details from the war, but also conducted in depth analyses on the different policies imposed to the people existing those times. He also thoroughly presented to the reader the different mistakes and failures of the German military and government, and related the consequences of the blunders the Germans suffered to the Allied victory (Weinberg, 1994).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     I can very well agree to the notion that the author wishes to convey. He insisted that the Second World War is a very novel entity, for no other war has reached such vast geographic extent or political and military scale. The book is a very clear narrative, which resembles a compilation of different symposia and lectures. The author used a very comprehensive language that would not intimidate nor discriminate any vocabulary and speech level. It has enough clarity and has successfully deployed its thoughts and arguments without sacrificing the integration of the necessary points to allow a reader understand the entire course of history (Weinberg, 1994). Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There is tremendous pain and suffering in the face of destruction brought about by war. Many civilians and soldiers alike are left in social and economic displacement, as the war has robbed them of the promising future they once had prior its outbreak. Those who have not witnessed the ravaging of war do not know its nature. But because of books such as this World War II account, readers are given a glimpse of the events that transpired and the difficulty that everyone encountered. War is a serious business and a complicated operation. And because of Weinberg’s attempt to provide the reader the truth he deserves, we are now equipped with a masterpiece that would tell our generation and the generations to come the truth of what really happened. References Weinberg, G. L. (1994). A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II. New York:

Theories of Miscommunication

Throughout history people had their media to communicate about matters of public interest. Therefore today mass communication i. e. newspapers, magazines, journals, radio, television, film, video and many more are not new. The history of mass communication however evolved over time where by each culture was dominant during a certain period of time as discussed below. The oral communication culture was dominant during the pre-literate or pre-industrial time, they used the spoken word for communication, nothing was written, no news reports, television, and radio. Everything meant what it was supposed to mean, nothing was like ‘read between the lines. ’ The contrast of oral culture was memory. People relied on their memory, placed a higher value on the present tense. Oral communication is still dominant in areas where the written culture does not exist. Their histories are verbally told through stories and myths. The written and printed communication culture started more or less 6000 years ago with carvings and cave painting, phonetic alphabets have been known for little more than 3000 years ago, and writing as we know it today started way back in 800 BC. After the written word came into existence the spoken word became casual. Writing makes records for the creation of a historical sensibility for example science. In 1450’s a German, Johann Gutenberg invented the printed press. Publishing contributed to the advancement of literacy, publishing contributed to institutions such as schools and by the end of 18th century, printing press had created an entirely new information and mass communication culture. Electronic communication culture is today’s new form of communication, the electronic and digital media dominate the mass communication culture. Today something is true because it’s on the television and internet not because its printed in the newspaper. In the 19th century, photography and film brought about the graphic revolution. Television however is the most dominant communication medium. When defining mass communication one has to define it from different perspectives because of its background and latest developments. For this reason mass communication has to be through the various theoretic perspectives of mass communication which are. Media-materialist, emphasis is on the technical aspects and how technology of medium impacts on the nature of media messages and audiences for example difference between radio and television. Social culturist influence the social factors an media production and reception and functions of social media are emphasized. With the social materialist media and content are mainly seen as reflection on society. Mass communication has got focal points such as communication, medium, message, and recipient, or audience, public nature of mass communication and diverse content of mass communication. A communicator is usually a collective body a group of people responsible for the production of programs, news bulletins, films, newspapers, websites and many more. A medium or a media is usually of technical nature and can involve complicated production and distribution technologies and techniques. Also the channel through which the media content is transmitted and distributed. A message has both concrete and abstract meaning. It is concrete in the form of content being produced for example the newspaper story you can hold and read, a message is abstract in terms of the meaning encoded in the content by the communicator and the meaning the reader,viewer,listener attaches to and derives from the content through their own interpretation of the content. An audience is heterogeneous and usually unknown, without audience there is no media. Other questions related to the focal points in any definition of mass communication are for instance what we mean by ‘mass’ in mass communication? What do we mean by ‘public sphere’, ‘publicness’, and democracy? These questions have been approached from a number of theoretical perspectives. Let’s look at the theories. Julia wood in her book communication theory, explains theories scientific value and that it teaches us how to describe, interpret, understand, evaluate, and predict a phenomenon. It also o provides an over view of the development of a discipline. Its relations with other discipline’s and its future developments. For example effect theories focus on the effect of the media on personal behavior and the developed into a more holistic approach to the effects of the media on society and culture in general. Effect theories started from a behaviorist perspective closely associated with the positivism and behaviorism of the social sciences in the in the first part of the 1900s and then moved onto the more critical approaches presently practiced in the social sciences. Theory teaches us skills of describing, interpreting understanding, evaluating, and predicting a phenomenon such skills can become entrenched in ways we have to deal with our everyday relations such as relationships with colleagues and family members. Goals of theory are to then describe explain understand, predict control and reform. Theory has got building blocks such as: Ontology where we distinguish between two broad views of humanity, determinism and humanism. Epistemology which in philosophical terms is the science of knowledge, we distinguish it between two different schools the objective truth and subjective experience. Purpose according two Wood concerns the purpose of theory, it’s also distinguished between two schools the universalist and situationalists. Focus the fourth building block is concerned with the two broad schools behaviorism and humanism. When evaluating theory Wood 2000:41-47 suggests five criteria; scope, where we have to establish how well and how much a theory describes and explains, Testability, where a theory can be theorized about and investigated by different researchers and they arrive at the same conclusion. Parsimony which refers to simplicity. A theory does not have to be complex. The fourth criterion is utility where theories need to have a practical value in terms of our understanding, controlling and improving of the phenomenon. The goals of mass media are to understand the structures involved and the human agency in influencing these structures. Understanding of the media and its structural relationships will come from different theoretical approaches as discussed below. Different authors have different ways of categorizing theories, Little John (1992:341-374) distinguishes between macro and micro theories, Mcquail(2000:61-16) distinguishes between theories and approaches concerned with the relationships between media and society and between media and culture and a third branch of new theories and approaches concerned with relationships between new media and information society. How we think about the power of media, the media effects on behavior, and the functions of the media in society and so on is usually done from a specific theoretical approach. Below we distinguish between the seven perspectives. The positivistic approach emphasizes on scientific methods on knowledge derived from scientifically processed and analyzed data about a phenomenon. The scientific method requires that all phenomena should be treated in the same way. In research the same rules and same requirements have to be applied and met regardless of the phenomena under investigation. Assumptions in positivism Application of the scientific method involves processes of empirical research which will yield objective findings and will ensure that no subjective elements intervene to influence the validity of the findings. This reasoning rests on the assumption that phenomena’s are governed by universal laws which may be relevant through the application of the scientific method. It comprises of certain fixed steps which must be followed by all researchers and requires use of standardized procedures and techniques. A researcher is only important in the sense that he or she must apply the method correctly. Empiricism is usually related to the natural sciences and is also called scientific method. The concepts of objectivity and measurement are highly valued. Behaviorism concentrates on the experimental analysis of human behavior. To a great degree this method still underlies the analysis of communication problems as executed within the framework of positivistic approaches Functionalism is usually associated with the sociology of Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) and Talcott Parsons (1902-1979). It concentrates on repetitive observable phenomena or observable indicators of phenomena. Positivism and mass communication. In positivistic research the emphasis is mainly on the efficient working and management of the media, efficient production of media content, functions of the media, media’s effect on people and society. Weaknesses of positivistic approach The weaknesses originated from the work of German sociologist Max Weber 91864-1920) he drew his work from Wilhelm Dilthey (1833-1911) who emphasized the difference between the natural and social sciences. Dilthey maintained that as social researcher would only gain insight into the social world by not distancing himself or herself from it claiming to objective. Human action is not just observable response to stimuli but it is based on interpretation and understanding. Although positivistic research may claim that its findings are objective because of its use of scientific methods, human behavior itself is scientific and based on values intentions, interpretations, understandings, meanings and contents which may differ from person to person group to group and circumstance to circumstance. Critical approach. The development of critical thinking on mass communication has a long history. Critical thinking about mass communication started with what is called mass society theory. Mass society theory was formulated at the turn of 19th century and continued through the middle of 20th century. Began as a reaction to technological innovation that in turn gave rise to industrialization and urbanization. Assumptions Media has the power to influence the minds of average people. Media has corrupt minds. Media can initiate social chaos. Critical theory today Critical theorists today are primarily concerned about medias ideological manipulation of the masses and capitalistic use and misuse of the media by owners to foster capitalized values. We have to describe as closely as possible the ideological instrument of society. These are instruments such as church, the economy, military and media. These instruments are responsible for production, circulation and distribution of ideology. The concept of ideology is therefore the center of the critical approach. Assumptions Media are symbolic forms of expressions for example literature,theatre ,paintings, and many more. Assumes that the media and its different forms and genres like editorial comments can be read as texts. There is a relationship between production conventions and ideologies. There is a close relationship between media politics and the economy. Political economy is an umbrella for all those theories and analytical approaches which seek to understand how economic and political relationships, interests and affiliations determine the nature and functioning of social institutions and the impact or lack of impact of these relationships on social transformation and development. Public sphere. A German philosopher Jurgen Habermas (1979) argues that the modern market oriented media undermine the idea of public sphere as a place for debate where consensus can be reached on the basis of which rational actions can be taken. Criticisms of critical theory. It does not acknowledge the libertarian, informative, educational and democratizing role of media. Does not acknowledge the entertainment value of media for billions of people. Production theory has its foundation in the phenomenology and symbolic interactionism. Phenomenology is a point of departure in the social sciences from the work of the Austrian philosopher Alfred Schutz (1899-1959) Assumptions Reality is not given, but it is a structure of meanings constituted by human beings. The shared world is a pre structured word experienced inter subjectively. Symbolic internationalism centers on the process whereby meaning is socially constructed. Assumptions Reality is not given but created by human beings by virtue of their capacity to give meaning to their experiences. Meaning is embodied in symbols. On both phenomenology and symbolic interactionism emphasis is on meaning and how meaning is constructed. Semiotics is the study of signs and codes. How signs and codes convey meaning. The aim is to sharpen our critical awareness on the ways in which media use signs and codes to reflect represent and imitate aspects of reality with the purpose of conveying a message. Technological determinism This focuses on the technology of mass communication and how such technology determines the nature of mass communication and its role in society and the lives of people. Its aim is that a single cause determines all other aspects of life. Like economic determinism and biological determinism. Criticism against technological determinism. Lacks empirical support, its based on experimental research Does not acknowledge other research Information society approach concerns the role of the new media, information and communication technology in society. Its three broad enquiries are definition, characterization and description of new media, impact of Information communication on society, and policy related to new media. Post structuralist approach. s characterized by new social, economic, technological, global and cultural dynamics. Post modernity society’s structuralism emphasizes on the relationship between assign and its meaning and the role of the producer or author of texts to encode a specific meaning into texts. Post-colonial theory and Afrocentric approach seeks to situate and understand phenomena within the context of the larger and unequal g eo political histories of global and cultural power. Normative theory concerns the perceived and ideal roles of the media which are to play in a society or ought to operate if certain social values are to be observed or attained.