4 Important Qualities of Women Leaders

4 Important Qualities of Women Leaders When it comes to leadership, does gender matter? Is there a difference between women leaders and men who lead? If so, what are the unique qualities of female leadership that the most effective women leaders possess, and are they unique to women? Caliper Study In 2005, a year-long study conducted by Caliper, a Princeton, New Jersey-based management consulting firm, and Aurora, a London-based organization that advances women, identified a number of characteristics that distinguish women leaders from men when it comes to qualities of leadership: Women leaders are more assertive and persuasive, have a stronger need to get things done and are more willing to take risks than male leaders... Women leaders were also found to be more empathetic and flexible, as well as stronger in interpersonal skills than their male counterparts... enabl[ing] them to read situations accurately and take information in from all sides... These women leaders are able to bring others around to their point of view... because they genuinely understand and care about where others are coming from... so that the people they are leading feel more understood, supported and valued. Four Qualities of Women Leaders The Caliper study findings are summarized into four specific statements about womens leadership qualities: Women leaders are more persuasive than their male counterparts.When feeling the sting of rejection, women leaders learn from adversity and carry on with an Ill show you attitude.Women leaders demonstrate an inclusive, team-building leadership style of problem-solving and decision making.Women leaders are more likely to ignore rules and take risks. In her book Why the Best Man for the Job is a Woman: The Unique Female Qualities of Leadership, author Esther Wachs Book examined the careers of fourteen top female executives- among them Meg Whitman, President, and CEO of eBay- to learn what makes them so successful. What she discovered echoes the Caliper study, including a willingness to reinvent the rules; an ability to sell their visions; the determination to turn challenges into opportunities; and a focus on high touch in a high-tech business world. Conclusions This evidence that the leadership style of women in power is not simply unique, but possibly at odds with what men practice, begs the question: Do these qualities have value in the marketplace? Is this type of leadership welcomed by society and by the public and private sector? Dr. Musimbi Kanyoro, the World YWCA Secretary-General, says attitudes toward leadership are changing, and what women offer is essential: Domination as a leadership style is becoming less and less popular. There is a new growing appreciation of...those traits that women use to keep families together and to organize volunteers to unite and make change in the shared life of communities. These newly admired leadership qualities of shared leadership; nurturance and doing good for others are today not only sought after but also indeed needed to make a difference in the world....A feminine way of leading includes helping the world to understand and be principled about values that really matter. Sources:   Women Leaders Study: The Qualities That Distinguish Women Leaders.  Caliperonline.com.Kanyoro, Musimbi. Challenges to Womens Leadership. Speech in honor of YWCA of Salt Lake centennial celebration. 13 July 2006.Are Women Natural Leaders, and Men†¦the Opposite? KnowledgeWharton, University of Pennsylvania 8 November 2000.

Satire and Comedy Essays

Satire and Comedy Essays Satire and Comedy Paper Satire and Comedy Paper Satire Satire is a term applied to any work of literature or art whose objective is ridicule. It has significant functions in social and political criticism. Satirical literature exposes foolishness in all its forms, such as vanity, hypocrisy, sentimentality etc. It also attempts to effect reform through such exposure. Satirists, therefore, design a work of literature focusing on human or individual vices, follies, abuses, or shortcomings. They use satire as a literary technique to combat these vices and shortcomings, and to censure by means of ridicule, derision, burlesque, irony or other methods (New Encyclopedia Britannica, 1993, 10, 467). Satirical works are commonly critical. Hawthorn (2005:197) states, Satire attacks alleged vices and stupidities either of individuals or of whole communities or groups and its tools are ridicule, exaggeration and contempt. However, Sutherland (1958:2) points out that not all satirical works are equally critical. He argues that: 2 Some works are satirical throughout; in others the satire is only intermittent, one element in a more complex effect. The lines that separate the satirical from the unsatirical are often hard to define, either because the writer shifts easily and rapidly from one mood to another, or because the satirical tone is so rarefied as to be almost imperceptible. In addition to being critical, many satirical texts are humorous. To put it in Feinbergs words, crit icism and humor have to be present in a literary work to be called satiric (1967:60). Thus, it is the nature of satire to be humorous and critical in order to expose follies and vices of individuals and society, and if possible, to do justice to such erroneous practices. Several literary critics state that satire is a protean term that makes it difficult to come up with a fixed definition. In line with this, The New Encyclopedia Britannica, 2005, 23,173 states, together with its derivatives, it is one of the most heavily worked literary designations and one of the most imprecise. This book even goes to the extent of saying: No strict definition can encompass the complexity of a word that signifies, on one hand, a kind of literature as when one speaks of the satires of the Roman poet Horace or calls the American novelist Nathanael Wests A Cool Million a satire and, on the other hand, a mocking spirit or tone that manifests itself in many literary genres but can also enter into almos t any kind of human communication. Similarly, Feinberg (1967:18) points out that satire is such an amorphous genre that no two scholars define it in the same words. However, many literary scholars have attempted to give suitable working definitions based on their own perspectives. This does not exclude the definition stated in the 13 above source that states, Wherever wit is employed to expose something foolish or vicious, to criticism, there satire exists, whether it is in song or sermon, in painting or political debate, on television or in the movies. Nor does it disregard what Feinberg says in defining satire as: a playfully critical distortion of the familiar (1967:19). It is, therefore, important to mention the varying definitions of satire given by different writers at this point. One of the most widely accepted definitions of satire is the one that is given in A Glossary of Literary Terms by Abrams (1981:167). Abrams defines satire as: The literary art of diminishing a subject by making it ridiculous nd evoki ng toward it attitudes of amusement, contempt, indignation or scorn. It differs from the comic in that comedy evokes laughter mainly as an end in itself, while satire derides; that it uses laughter as a weapon and against a butt existing outside the work itself. That butt may be an individual (in personal satire), or a type of person, a class, an institution, a nation or even (as in Rochesters A Satyr against Mankind and much of Swifts Gullivers Travels, especially Book IV) the whole race of man. The above definition emphasizes the principal notion of satire as a literary work in which human vice or folly are attacked through such techniques as irony, derision, or wit. Accordingly, it is the nature of satire to ridicule mans naive acceptance of individuals and institutions at face value (Feinberg, 1963:19). It is also acknowledged that satire gives us pleasure, for it presents the subject matter to scrutiny through humorous ways. 14 Robert Harris (2004), points out that the best definitions of satire should be formulated from a combination of its corrective intent and its literary method of execution. He quotes Thralls definition as an acceptable definition of satire as follows: A literary manner that blends a critical attitude with humor and wit to the end that human institutions or humanity may be improved. The true satirist is conscious of the frailty of institutions of mans devising and attempts through laughter not so much to tear them down as to inspire a remodeling. It is important to note in the above definition that satire involves the fusion of laughter and contempt. Inseparable from any definition of satire is its corrective purpose. Ian Gordon (2002) points out the corrective purpose of the satirist saying that the satirist stands in opposition to the current state of affairs, endeavoring to change things either to what they were in a recalled and often mythologized, past, or to what they might be in a preferred, and frequently Utopian, future. It may follow from the above definitions that the corrective purpose of satire is expressed through a critical mode that includes laughter and contempt. Scholes and Sullivan (1986:8) define satire based on the view of the world presented in a literary text. They argue, A work that presents a fictional world worse than the real world is in th e mode of anti-romance, or satire. They also suggest, The world of satire emphasizes ugliness and disorder. These authors claim remind us that the theme of sati re can be presented through different techniques in order to maintain standards, reaffirm values, and to come up with reforms in the society. 15 To put it briefly, satire is concerned with the nature of reality. It exaggerates or understates to criticize human follies and vices for it has a corrective purpose. It reveals the contrast between reality and pretense; yet again, it uses comic devices in order to criticize and give us pleasure. As Feinberg (1967) puts it, the sphere of satire is criticism of man and society, a criticism made entertaining by humor and moving by irony and invective. For many literary scholars, efforts at defining satire may vary. However, the definitions such as those described above commonly share the view that satire is concerned with the criticism of individual and social evils. Moreover, at the heart of every satire, there exists a corrective purpose that is expressed through critical humor. 2. 2 Characteristics of Satire Satire, in prose or verse, employs critical humor to expose human wickedness and folly. In reflecting the salient characteristics of satire, Mitchell (2003) argues that satire attacks those institutions or individuals the satirist deems corrupt. In other words, one characteristic feature of satire is that it is concerned with ethical reform. The other characteristics of satire according to Mitchell are: It works to make vice laughable and/or reprehensible and thus bring social pressure on those who still engage in wrongdoing. It seeks a reform in public behavior, a shoring up of its audiences standards or at the very least a wake- up call in an otherwise corrupt culture. Satire is often implicit and assumes readers who can pick up on its moral clues. It is not a sermon. Satire in general attacks types the fool, the boor, the adulterer, the proud rather than specific persons. If it does attack some by name, rather than hoping to reform these persons, it seeks to warn the 16 public against approving of them. Satire is witty, ironic, and often exaggerated. It uses extremes to bring its audience to a renewed awareness of its ethical and spiritual danger. According to Ian Johnston (1998), one characteristic feature of satire is the desire to use precisely clear language to induce an audience to protest. As a result, the language of the satirist is full of irony, paradox, antithesis, colloquialism, anticlimax, obscenity, violence, vividness, and exaggeration. The satirist uses these techniques to describe painful or absurd situations or foolish or wicked persons or groups as vividly as possible. Johnston argues, The satirist believes that most people are blind, insensitive, and perhaps anesthetized by custom and resignation and dullness. The satirist wishes to make them see the truth at least that part of the truth which they habitually ignore. Moreover, Johnston considers morality as an important characteristic of satire. To put it in his words: At the basis of every good traditional satire is a sense of moral outrage or indignation. This conduct is wrong and needs to be exposed. Hence, to adopt a satiric stance requires a sense of what is right, since the target of the satire can only be measured as deficient if one has a sense of what is necessary for a person to be truly moral. Satire attacks socially objectionable behavior through humorous ways. It aims at amendment of vices by correction. As Feinberg (1967) writes on the characteristics of satire, its essential qualities are entertainment and its freshness. That is, the appeal of satire lies in its literary merit, brilliance, wit, humor, and freshness (7). Satire, therefore, shows old things in a new 17 way to reveal the contrast between reality and pretense through skillful manipulation of language. To put it in Feinbergs (1967:16) words: Satires are read because they are aesthetically satisfying as works of art, not because they are (as they may be) morally wholesome or ethically instructive. They are stimulating and refreshing because with commonsense briskness they brush away illusions and second han d opinions. With spontaneous irreverence, satire rearranges perspectives, scrambles familiar objects into incongruous juxtaposition, and speaks in a personal idiom instead of abstract platitude. It is important to note in the above quotation that satire entertains through humor, irony and invective. Russell and Brown (1967:xviii) also argue that where attack is absent or where it tends to turn almost wholly on extreme distortion, what may pass as satire becomes ineffective and does not deserve the name. 2. 3 The Purpose of Satire Harris (2004), highlights that the satirists goal is to expose vice and hypocrisy in order to effect reformation. The best satire, according to Harris, does not seek to do harm or damage by its ridicule, but rather it seeks to create a shock of recognition and to make vice impulsive so that the vice will be expunged from the person or society under attack or from the person a society intended to benefit by the attack. Thus, satire attempts to effect some changes in the behavior of the target as well as to encourage others not to behave in such a manner. Satire is concerned with justice, morality, and virtue. Maynard Mack (quoted by Harris) states that satire asserts the validity and necessity of norms 18 systematic, values, and meanings that are contained by recognizable codes. Accordingly, Harris notes that satire has moral and didactic purpose. He writes: Satire is inescapably moral and didactic (in the best sense of that unfortunately slandered word) even when no efinite, positive values are stated in the work as alternatives to the gross corruptions depictions by the attack. The satirist does not need to state specific moral alternatives to replace the villainy he attacks because the morality is either already present in the lip service his target pays to virtue, or it is apparent by implication. Likewise, Feinberg (1963:20) argues that the primary purpose of the satirist is to moralize. Humbert Wolfe (cited by Feinberg) strengthens this idea considering the satirists work as half-way etween a preacher and a wit; he has the purpose of the former, uses the weapon of the latter. In other words, what motivates the satirist is the hatred he has for the wrong and injustice as much as his love of the right and the just. Moreover, the satirist holds up human and individual wrong doings to censure in order to make us better. The art of satire is, therefore, the delivering of moral judgment and its objective is not to degrade man but to show him how he has degraded himself (Feinberg, 1968:23). The purpose of the satire, according to Sutherland (1958:11) is to compel man to what they have tried to ignore, and to destroy their illusions or pretenses. As a social critic, the satirist, therefore, makes us see familiar things in a new way compelling us to what we have ignored. Accordingly, any kind of satirical comment may magnify, diminish or distort to tear off the guise and expose the naked truth, or to bring someone to his sense s. 19 Abrams (1981:67) agrees on the corrective purpose of satire. He says, Satire has usually been justified by those who practice it as a corrective of human vices and folly. Similarly, Harris (2002) argues that the corrective purpose of satire in exposing individual and human vice and hypocrisy succeeds only to the extent that the audience responds to the attack. Hence, as Sutherland (1958:20) puts it: Satire is not for the literal-minded. It exists on at least two levels, the overt and the implied; and it can only function properly when the tact, the intelligence, and the magination of the satirist are met by a corresponding response in the reader. In short, satire attacks erroneous practices of individuals in particular and human beings at large with intent to bring about changes. These changes may have corrective or moralizing purpose. That is, at the heart of every satire there is criticism that is geared towards exposing hypocrisy, pretense, corruptions, and other shortcoming of human beings. Therefore, satire aims at displaying the critical attitude of the satirist in order to reaffirm values, maintain standards and rectify the follies and vices of the society. 2. 4 Techniques of Satire It has been pointed out earlier that the essence of satire is giving pleasure of criticism by combining or contrasting ideas. Accordingly, satirists use different techniques to convey their messages. Certain specific literary techniques lend themselves to satire because they can contain a measure both of wit and of humor. Among them are exaggeration, distortion, understatement, innuendo, simile, irony, metaphor, oxymoron, parable, and allegory (Harris, 2002). On the other hand, Feinberg (1967) lists distortion, indirection, externality, brevity, and variety as major techniques of satire. Other scholars, such as Matthew Hogart, Gilbert Highet and Northrop Frye, 20 add reduction, invective, caricature, burlesque, and reduction ad absurdum to the list. A brief discussion of the prominent techniques has been presented as follows. 2. 4. 1 Exaggeration Exaggeration is one of the most commonly used techniques in satire. Harris (2002), notes that exaggeration is one of the best ways to get the target to recognize or admit that a vice exists. The satirist exaggerates in order to make the unseeing see, and the seeing-but-complacent oppose and expunge corruption. Hence, exaggeration as a satirical technique plays an important role. To use Feinbergs (1967:108) words: The exaggeration of satirists is not as purposeless as it tries to appear. What the satirist exaggerates is the bad, the foolish, the hypocritical; what he minimizes or omits is the good, the sensible, and the honest. The resulting scene is not only exaggerated but heavily biased-against the victims of the satirists attack. In other words, the satirist uses exaggeration to describe painful or absurd situations or foolish or wicked persons as vividly as possible. On top of that, as a dispassionate observer of humanity and the irate attacker of particular individuals (Knight, 2005), the satirist employs exaggeration to make his observation and attack effective. 2. 4. 2 Distortion The technique of the satirist, as indicated earlier, consists of a playfully critical distortion of the familiar. Distortion refers to changing the perspective of a condition or event by isolation (separation from its ordinary surroundings) or by stressing some aspects and deemphasizing others (Harris, 2002). Hence, the satirist distorts in many ways. For instance, he 21 may minimize the good qualities of the person or institution that he is attacking. For example, in Gulliver’s Travels (1726), Swift exposes humanity in all its baseness and cruelty using this technique. Sa tirists may also magnify the bad ones making isolated instances seem typical. 2. 4. 3 Indirection and Invective One often-used satiric technique is indirection. Many literary critics agree th at the quality of satiric representation is effective when the attack is indirect. David Worcester (cited by Feinberg, 1967:93) remarks that satire is the engine of anger rather than the direct expression of anger. Similarly, Sutherland (1958:20) points out that twentieth century satire relies more and more on the indirectness of irony, innuendo and fantasy. Accordingly, the indirectness of satire helps the satirist to make his or her attack tolerable by making it entertaining. As Johnston (1998) suggests satires that are very direct are boring and ineffectual. Unlike indirection, invective is very abusive. It is an open insult used occasionally for shock effect. It usually lacks irony in order to attack a particular target. According to Johnston, it is the least inventive of the satirists tools. Besides, the danger of pure invective is that one can quickly get tired of it, since it offers limited opportunity for inventive wit. 2. 4. 4 Burlesque Burlesque refers to ridiculous exaggeration in language, usually one that makes the discrepancy between the words and the situation or the character silly. To use Johnstons example, to have a king speak like an idiot or an ordinary worker speak as a king is burlesque. Similarly, a very serious situation can be burlesqued by having the characters in a literary text speak or behave in ridiculously inappropriate ways. In other words, burlesque creates a large gap between the situation or the characters and the style with which they speak or act out the event. 22 2. 4. 5 Irony Irony is a systematic use of double meaning where meaning of words is opposite of the literal or expected meaning. It is a stylistic device or figure of speech in which the real meaning of the words is different from the literal meaning. As Muecke (1969:3) puts it, irony may be a weapon in satirical attack. Likewise, Johnston (1998) notes that irony brings two contrasting meanings into play. Consequently, it becomes satiric when the real meaning appears to contradict the surface meaning. It should, however, be noted that irony is not confined to satire. To put it briefly, satirists use a variety of literary devices. They may use various techniques, such as those described above, in order to say two or more things at one time, and to compare, equate, or contrast for satirical purposes. Moreover, these techniques provide variety, conciseness, and opportunity for employing wit and humor. In explaining the use of satirical techniques, Harris (2004) writes the following about satirical techniques: The satire must be presented in a manner that will bring action, and in a world of complacent hypocrites, irony, with its various means of presentation, is essential; the message cannot be derived without it, if the message is to have any tangible effect. In a two-word abstract, the purpose of satire is the correction or deterrence of vice, and its method is to attack hypocrisy through the ironic contrast between values and actions. The aforementioned quotation highlights that the techniques the satirist uses have to serve the purpose the satirist has in mind. It is an indispensable 23 quality of satire to employ appropriate techniques. Furthermore, Hawthorn (2005:197) remarks that the satirist is concerned with drawing our attention to what he or she is attacking rather than to create characters, situations and events that are believable in and for themselves. That is, a novelist may include satirical elements in works that do not, overall, merit the term satirical novel (and indeed most novelists do). Therefore, literary works that are not usually categorized as satirical (novel or short story) may use the major weapons of satire in order to diminish a set of beliefs by making it appear ridiculous. Finally, based on the techniques the satirist employs satire can be divided into formal or direct and informal or indirect (Abrams, 1981:168). Abrams also distinguishes two types of formal satire, namely Horatian satire and Juvenalian satire, whereas the Menippean satire is indirect. On the other hand, Juvenalian satire is harsher; more pointed, and often attacks particular people with an invective attack. Horatian satire is mild and gentler. To put it in the words of Abrams (1981:169): In Horatian satire the character of the speaker is that of an urbane, witty, and tolerant man of the world, who is moved more often to wry amusement than to indignation at the spectacle of human folly, pretentiousness, and hypocrisy, and who uses a relaxed and informal language to evoke a smile at human follies and absurdities ometimes including his own. In Juvenalian satire the character of the speaker is that of a serious moralist who uses a dignified and public style of utterance to decry modes of vice and error which are no less dangerous because they are ridiculous, and who undertakes to evoke contempt, moral indignation, or an unillusioned sadness at the aberrations of men. 24 2. 5 The Nature of Comedy Comedy, according to Abrams (1971:26), is a form of literature that is de signed to amuse by use of wit, humor, criticism or ridicule. He defines it as: a work in which the materials are selected and managed primarily in order to interest and amuse us: the characters and their discomfitures engage our delighted attention rather than our profound concern, we feel confident that no great disaster will occur, and usually the action turns out happily for the chief characters. Abrams also notes that even though comedy is commonly applied to dramas, the comic form also occurs in prose fiction and narrative poetry. In whichever form it appears comedy attempts to arouse and satisfy human instinct for mischief. In line with this, Fowler (1973:31) has the following to say about the materials of comedy: Comedy in itself is neither morally useful nor immoral: it can perpetuate and extend misconceptions as well as ridicule them. Sometimes, however, dramatists use the irresponsible instinctual speed of comedy to lead the audience to a more complex intellectual awareness. According to John Morreall (http: //www. dbu. du/ mitchell/comedytr. htm) there are many characteristics that make up a comedy. One among them is the fact that comedy is more imaginative, stressing playfulness. For this reason, comedy tends to look for a variety of answers and does not need to solve everything. Secondly, comedy tends to call attention to the incongruities in the order of things, be it political, social, or religious. Thirdly, comic characters are often ironic and disengaged from the situation; they tend to respond wi th wit, imagination, or cynicism. 25 The other characteristic feature of comedy is that its language is fluent and articulate. To put it in Fowlers words: Characters do not feel a need to develop exploratory, stretching uses of language to account for themselves and the world around them, but are satisfied that the relationships between them and the world are simple and comprehensible (1973:32). It is also the nature of comedy to reveal playfulness. Even if it has its serious side, the comic vision tends to treat large portions of ife as not quite so serious. However, satiric comedy, according to Abrams (1971:27) attacks the disorders of society by making ridiculous the violators of its standards of morals or manners. In addition to this, comedy involves exaggeration, incongruity, and contradictions as techniques. It also uses contrast between social order and individual, suspension of natural laws, and comic premise to provide structural and thematic unity for comic dialogue. Ma ny argue that producing pleasure through laughter is the primary nature of comedy. On the other hand, Sypher (1991:148) states that the pleasure caused by the laughter of comedy is not a pure enjoyment. He further notes that it is not a pleasure that is exclusionary esthetic or altogether disintegrated. It always implies a secret or unconscious intent, if not of each one of us, at all events of society as a whole. Therefore, comedy may have a critical intent. Hence, comedy is not always a naive joke; nor is it always seriously stuffed with didactic moral issues. It expresses the characteristics of men in the ordinary circumstances of everyday life. As Sypher (1991:149) puts it: the comic is not always an indication of a fault, in the moral meaning of the word, and if critics insist on seeing a fault, even though a trifling one, in the ludicrous, they must point out what it is here that exactly distinguishes the trifling from the serious. 26 2. 6 The purpose of Comedy Comedies usually tend to focus on the larger community and spend more time paying attention to the interaction between groups. As a result, they often question tradition and those in authority. Comedy, according to Eric Trumbull, serves the purpose of looking at the world in which basic values are asserted but natural laws suspended in order to underscore human follies and foolishness. That is, in comedy we are usually being asked to laugh at our common human foibles and ourselves. Besides, comedy reminds us our inescapable human limitations. Sypher (1991:241-2) discusses several social meanings of comedy. He points out that in its earliest days comedy is an essential pleasure mechanism valuable to the society. To put it in his words: Comedy is a momentary and publicly useful resistance to authority and an escape from its pressures, and its mechanism is a free discharge of repressed psychic energy or resentment through laughter . . . The ambivalence of comedy reappears in its social meanings, for comedy is both hatred and revel, rebellion and defense, attack and escape. It is revolutionary and conservative. Socially, it is both sympathy and persecution. Comedy also serves the social purpose of affirming the security of any group already unsure of itself. With this regard, Sypher says, the comedian banishes doubt by ridicules and is the diplomatic artist (244). He further notes that comedy can relieve the stress between compelling ideals by laughter. In other words, comedy may enable us to adjust incompatible standards without resolving the clash between them. Finally, here is how Sypher (1991:245) describes the use of comedy in helping us with our disillusions: 7 Comedy can be a means of mastering our disillusions when we are caught in a dishonest or stupid society. After we recognize the misdoings, the blunders, we can liberate ourselves by a confident, wise laughter that brings a catharsis of our discontent. We see the flaws in things, but we do not always need to concede the victory, even if we live in a human world. If we can laugh wisely enough at ourselves and others, the sense of guilt, dismay, anxiety, or fear can be lifted . Unflinching and undaunted we see where we are. This strengthens us as well as society. To put it briefly, apart from the pleasure that we get from it, comedy enables us to laugh at evils and errors of human beings. Consequently, it serves the purpose of psychological compensation. In other words, comedy helps us escape from the vices and follies of individuals and societies making us laugh at the imperfections of the world around us. Not only that, but comedy can also be quite in accord with stern morality. It should, however, be noted here that what distinguishes satire from comedy, as Fowler (1973:167) put it, is its lack of tolerance for folly or human imperfection. 2. 7 Satire and Comedy Satire and comedy often shade into each other in ways tha t make an exact borderline difficult to draw. Like satire, comedy has a corrective purpose. The New Encyclopedia Britannica (2005,23,151) highlights that the comic artists purpose is to hold a mirror up to society to reflect its follies and vices, in the hope that they will, as a result be mended. Correspondingly, Johnston shares this view of the corrective purpose of comedy. He argues that satire is a particular use of humor for overtly moral purposes. According to him, satire seeks to use laughter not just to remind us of our common often ridiculous humanity, but rather to expose those moral excesses, those 28 corrigible sorts of behavior which transgress what the writer sees as the limits of acceptable moral behavior. One characteristic feature of satire, as indicated earlier, is criticism and humor. That is, the technique of the satirist consists of a playful critical distortion (Feinberg, 1967:19). Although not everything humorous may be satirical, Harris (2004) states that satire uses humor to make the attack funny. To put it in h is words: Satire, like all literature and poetry, must be intellectually rewarding, be reasonably well written, and especially must entertain in order to survive- and in the particular case of satire, in order to be received at all. The basic mood of attack and the disapproval needs to be softened to some xtent and made more palatable; wit and humor serve this end by making the criticism entertaining, and even attractive. The satirists major objective is unmasking or exposing human follies, vices and shortcomings. As Sypher (1991:242) put it, certainly the laugh of the satirist is often a sneer; and there is an undercurrent of satire in most comedy. As a result, when the satirist uses comic elements, it will only be for the purpose of criticism. In other words, wherever wit is employed to expose something foolish or vicious to criticism, there satire exists. Sutherland (1958:7) strongly argues that comedy, like satire deals with the common errors of our life. He says, If we can agree that it is the satirists intention to expose, or deride, or condemn that distinguishes him from the writer of comedy, then we shall probably find that much of what has conventionally been referred to as comedy should more probably be called satire. On the other hand, the tone of satire may vary in different works 29 eventhough the elements of attack and humor is associated with the efinition of satire. In line with this, Russell and Brown (1967:xviii) argue many satirical works are so playful or whimsical as to preclude the idea of attack, and many other satires, even some acknowledged to be great, lack humor and tend to become ponderous. However, satire and comedy are not exactly the same. Abrams (1981:167) argues that satire differs from the comic in that comedy evokes laughter mainly as an end, while satire derides; that is it uses laughter as a weapo n, and against a butt existing outside the work itself. What sets satire apart from comedy, according to Ian Johnston, is that in satire there is a clear and overt didactic intention. On the other hand, normal comedy aims at producing laughter at our common follies and ourselves. In line with this, Feinberg (1967:101) has the following to say: Uncritical humor is not satire, nor is all satire humorous. But since satirists use all the comic devices for the purpose of criticism, to see how satire works it is necessary to examine four basic techniques of humor: incongruity, urprise, pretense, and catering to the superiority of the audience. In general, there is a common agreement among literary critics that satire uses comedy for the effect of criticism. Besides, as Sutherland (1958:10) puts it, we must be prepared to find the writer of a comedy losing his moral neutrality and slipping into satire, and the satirist occasionally loosening his control over the reader and relaxing into co medy.

Strategic Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Strategic Management - Essay Example The key which we can derive from this description is that strategy is of foreseeing and planning for the future in order to optimize the performance of a certain group or entity in order to achieve a long term goal. It is the positioning of that certain entity which will transcend into an immediate outcome into a wider and greater scheme of things and objectives. As many a definition people view what ‘strategy’ is, they do not entirely deviate from the real essence of the word. When we translate ‘strategy’ in the matters of business, it is best defined as a specific way a firm competes in the industry, as said by Collis & Rukstad. There is no such thing as general template when it comes to strategic management. There are no pre-defined methods and ways. Every scenario differs from another and each requires a different strategy in order to navigate the complexities and the many variables of the world of business. In order achieve a good strategy, the crucial component is the management. By assessing what components are involved in the formulation of a strategy and discerning how each are related and how one and each of them fit in the larger picture requires an adept management team and skill. Herein comes then the concept of strategic management. This is a field which concerns itself with the course of action that the management section of the company acts on behalf of its owners in order to better utilize its resources so as to enhance the performance of the company when it is pitted in the external environment. It involves itself on the very primal building blocks of the company, which are defining the scope of its objectives and missions and visions (Nag et al., 2007, p. 935). The management should also have a sound and workable policies and plans that are also capable of being flexible in order to cope up with the ever changing and volatile times of the business battlefield. It also oversees how the company equips and gears itself in order to grasp the fruition of its objectives and long term goals. In a more simple definition, strategic management provides the overall direction in reference with and in limitation of what the company has and will have, its liabilities, and its faults, and potential failure points. By creating harmony and orchestrating the performance of the whole company, it shall then function as an efficient organism, capable of covering up its weaknesses with adjustments that will then be played by the strengths and advantages of the company. As many would put it, â€Å"strategic management is an on-going process that evaluates and controls the business and the industries in which the company is involved; assesses its competitors and sets the goals and strategies to meet all existing and potential competitors; and then reassess each strategy annually or quarterly to determine its effectiveness’ (Lamb, 1984, ix) One very popular and popular tool in order to come up with a good strat egy for the management is the SWOT analysis (Chapman, 2007). This is a very helpful framework for identifying the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (which is also the standing meaning of the acronym). For this paper, the author will evaluate the SWOT of the Starbucks

A Portfolio in Entrepreneurship and Entrepreneurial Characteristics Essay

A Portfolio in Entrepreneurship and Entrepreneurial Characteristics - Essay Example The paper tells that the creation of a business plan will not be acted upon unless the business concept is created. Concepts are based on the ideas of the group members who are planning to put up a business. This process is called idea generation. Idea generation puts emphasis on creativity, and on the discovery of new ideas. Not all ideas are turned into a business concept; it has to be weighed based on its appeal and substance, and the best idea that is chosen is the one used for commercialisation. It is the method used to stimulate and pick up internal, as well as the external ideas. In idea generation, the obtained ideas are being converted into an instrument that helps organisations reach their objectives. Since the process of creating a business plan takes a long time, it is crucial to choose the most appropriate idea to be used for commercialisation, to save time and effort. The success of an entrepreneurial venture depends on the accuracy of the business plan, and the accurac y and effectiveness of a business plan depend upon the ideas that were generated through the process of idea generation. Strategic objectives are extensive, long-term goals, which identify the basic nature and direction of an entrepreneurial venture. It serves as the basis for the decisions made by the members of the group or organisation that are planning a business. It takes into account the necessary information required in the making of a new product or business such as the product or service used as the main attraction, the primary target market, and the designated location. (Crosson and Needles, 2011, p.6). When the members of an organisation have already chosen the strategy to be implemented for the proposed business, strategic objectives have to be designated. It will help them recognise the probable outcome of the strategy and identify the targeted results of the business plan. However, one must ensure that the objectives are definite and assessable, and this can be done th rough including the targeted dates, the values to be attained and the milestones that are aimed by the firm (Stutely, 2002, p.113). Market Analysis and Research Information with regard to the target market, competitors, and marketing trends are seen in the market analysis section of the business plan. The target market is the group of people to whom the organisation wishes to sell or offer its product or service. This group of people is classified and identified through the process of market segmentation. Market trends can be classified into two, and these are industry trends and target market trends. Market research involves the methods used to obtain relevant information that are useful in making accurate and preventing inappropriate business decisions. The giving of questionnaires, polls, and surveys are some of the techniques used in market research. Competition Business competition is fundamentally a contest of product or service salability. Competitors are rival

Knitting In Edith Whartons Roman Fever English Literature Essay

Knitting In Edith Whartons Roman Fever English Literature Essay In writing, it seems as though a writers every word is calculated, each sentence a carefully crafted work of art intended to invoke a thought, idea, or message in a readers malleable psyche. In essence, this is indeed the goal of writing: to convey to others ones own ideas through written words. When viewed this way, a reader is required to read differently than he or she would otherwise. When the reader takes on the challenge of searching for some deeper, more sophisticated meaning within a story beyond that which appears on the page, each sentence becomes a golden nugget nestled in the gold mine of the paragraph as a whole, the reader a miner meticulously working his or her way through the paragraphs in search of the mother lode. With each reading the walls of the story recede, revealing ever more of the intricacies and complexities infused into the story by the writer. Edith Whartons Roman Fever is full of delicately placed words, carefully planned structures, and pieces of the pu zzle conveniently hidden from readers, and yet for reasons unknown it has received very little critical attention in the seventy-five years since its release in 1934 (Bauer 681). Those who have turned their attention toward it, however, seem to have focused largely on the role Mrs. Ansleys knitting plays in the story. In Whartons Roman Fever, the authors mention of Mrs. Ansleys twist of crimson silk is calculated, as the knitting serves to emphasize and symbolize the relationship between Mrs. Slade and Mrs. Ansley as well as to foreshadow the characters dramatic revelations later in the story (Wharton 1 of 12). Color is central to the human understanding of the surrounding world. People associate colors with feelings, places, people, and events in their lives, and each color harbors a different meaning for each individual. Thus, the color used by the narrator to describe Mrs. Ansleys knitting is vital to ones interpretation of the story. The narrator describes it as a twist of crimson silk, and in these five words there exists no shortage of meaning (Wharton 1 of 12). For instance, the knitting is said to be crimson (Wharton 1 of 12). Alice Petry explains it as an insistently passionate color in her article entitled A Twist of Crimson Silk: Edith Whartons Roman Fever' (164). In the article, Petry details the various meanings of the knitting, highlighting also the significance of the knitting within the story. Petrys characterization of the color is not singular to her interpretation of the story: red and its various shades are widely regarded as colors of love and of passion. This passionat e color choice serves to foreshadow the upcoming revelation of the characters as they realize that neither of them knows the whole truth about Mrs. Ansleys tryst with Delphin Slade. Much of the critical attention given to the story has centered on Mrs. Ansleys knitting, and so it is not surprising that critics have emphasized its color. Jamil characterizes the crimson hue of the knitting this way: If black signifies the gloom of guilt, then crimson signifies the heat of sexuality and risquà © youthfulness of romantic passion (99). The black to which Jamil refers is actually the black color of the handbag Mrs. Ansley is carrying, as the story says, Half guiltily she drew from her handsomely mounted black handbag a twist of crimson silkà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (Jamil 99; Wharton 1 of 12). This innovative comparison between the two colors emphasizes the foreshadowing effect created by the crimson color of the knitting. In much the same way that the human consciousness is heavily influenced by color, so also does the material from which something is crafted play a large part in how one perceives an object or an event. Different substances carry with them various connotations and denotations that must be taken into account when interpreting a story. Thus, just as color is important, the narrators mention of the type of material used in Mrs. Ansleys knitting is key as well. According to the narrator, the knitting being done by Mrs. Ansley is not made of yarn but of silk (Wharton 1 of 12). This seemingly minor detail is actually very significant, and it too foreshadows the characters coming disclosure of what really happened between Mrs. Ansley and Delphin Slade. Silk is often viewed as a very slinky, seductive material, and so this minor detail foreshadows the climactic revealing of the past that is to come. It suggests some kind of covert romantic encounter on the part of Mrs. Ansley and it can even be seen as contextually symbolic. Jamil puts it this way: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the act of bringing out the yarn, which is exquisitely delicate (silk), is the act of bringing the delicate thread out of the past into the present or bringing the present into the past (99). Jamil is not the only one to suggest some sort of connection between the silk and the storys plot, however. Petry also weighs in on the subject, saying, The sensuality and forcefulness suggested by [Mrs. Ansleys] knitting materials will help to render plausible her passionate moonlight tryst with Delphin Slade twenty-five years earlierà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (164). Both Jamil and Petry seem convinced that the narrators mention of the silk is not simply aesthetic; rather, both seem to believe that it is premeditated and deliberate, as it serves as one of the storys most powerful agents of foreshadowing. Mrs. Ansleys knitting does not solely serve to foreshadow the storys climax. Instead, it serves also as a contextual symbol of the relationship shared by Mrs. Ansley and Mrs. Slade. As a result of the narrators descriptions of the knitting, it can be said that the knitting suggests a great deal about the relationship between the two women by its very structure. To knit is, by definition, to makeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦by looping together yarn or thread by means of special needles (Knit def. 1). Because knitting does not normally relate to relationships beyond the context of this story, the use of knitting here acts as a contextual symbol for the relationship between the women. Curiously, this aspect of Mrs. Ansleys knitting has received little critical attention. This does not, however, detract from its magnitude. Knitting is essentially a system of interwoven strands that seem to be completely connected and totally intertwined; the article I Had Barbara: Womens Ties and Whartons Roman Fever' describes the lives of the women in much the same way in the following few sentences: [Mrs. Slade and Mrs. Ansley] move as one, they lean as one, and their expression is the same one. Mrs. Slade and Mrs. Ansley had lived opposite each other actually as well as figuratively for years: a cohabitation, figuratively if not actually alongside their marriages (Bowlby 45). In these few sentences Bowlby outlines just how close the two women really are. Much like the threads of a piece of knitting, the two women cannot get much closer together. The lives of Mrs. Ansley and Mrs. Slade are completely interwoven, and as a result it can be said that the knitting acts as a contextual symbol of the relationship between them. That said, however, even the best knitting will begin to destroy itself with even the tiniest snip of a pair of scissors. Viewed from this perspective, Mrs. Ansley and Mrs. Slade represent the strands of silk, the relationship between them is the knitting as a whole, and Mr s. Ansleys encounter with Delphin Slade and its emergence later in the story act as the scissors that will cause the relationship to fall apart. The one-night rendezvous between Mrs. Ansley and Delphin Slade has such far-reaching, severe effects that it eventually unravels the very structure of the relationship shared by the two women, which had heretofore been intimate (Wharton 3 of 12). Edith Whartons Roman Fever is, according to Petry, Probably Edith Whartons best-known short storyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (163). It is bursting with symbols, foreshadowing, plot twists, and vivid descriptions. What sets it apart from other stories, however, is the significance it places on the simple, seemingly innocuous act of knitting. Mrs. Ansleys knitting plays a central role in the story, as it foreshadows the storys climax and symbolizes the relationship between Mrs. Ansley and Mrs. Slade. The quantity of times it appears lends credence to the idea that Wharton intended for the reader to place a heavy emphasis on the knitting, and the placement and timing of its appearance is too uncanny and too often to be coincidental. Thus, it can be deduced that the narrators mention of Mrs. Ansleys twist of crimson silk is indeed calculated and is meant to invoke a deeper meaning to the story than would be found otherwise (Wharton 1 of 12). As a result, it cannot be ignored as one of the chief aspe cts of the story, and when included in ones interpretation of the story it in turn makes the story more realistic, more meaningful, and more enjoyable.

Dr Faustus

Doctor Faustus (play) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus Frontispiece to a 1620 printing of Doctor Faustus showing Faustus conjuring Mephistophilis. Written byChristopher Marlowe CharactersDoctor Faustus Chorus Wagner Good Angel Bad Angel Valdes Cornelius Three scholars Lucifer Mephistophilis Robin Beelzebub Seven Deadly Sins Dick Pope Adrian VI Raymond, King of Hungary Bruno Two Cardinals Archbishop of Rheims Friars Vintner Martino Frederick Benvolio Charles V Duke of Saxony Two soldiers Horse courser CarterHostess of a tavern Duke and Duchess of Vanholt Servant Old man MuteDarius Alexander the Great Alexander's Paramour Helen of Troy Devils Piper Date premieredc. 1592 Original languageEnglish GenreTragedy Setting16th century Europe The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus, commonly referred to simply as Doctor Faustus, is a play by Christopher Marlowe, based on the Faust story, in which a man sells his soul to the devil for power and knowledge. Doctor Faustus was first published in 1604, eleven years after Marlowe's death and at least twelve years after the first performance of the play. No Elizabethan play outside the Shakespeare canon has raised more controversy than Doctor Faustus. There is no agreement concerning the nature of the text and the date of composition†¦ and the centrality of the Faust legend in the history of the Western world precludes any definitive agreement on the interpretation of the play†¦ â€Å"[1] Contents †¢1 Performance †¢2 Text o2. 1 The two versions o2. 2 Comic scenes †¢3 Sources †¢4 Structure †¢5 Synopsis o5. 1 Faustus learns necromancy o5. 2 The pact with Lucifer o5. 3 Wasting his skills o5. 4 Damnation or salvation o5. 5 The Calvinist/anti-Calvinist controversy 6 Quotations †¢7 Themes and motifs †¢8 Mephistophilis †¢9 Adaptations †¢10 Critical history †¢11 S ee also †¢12 Notes †¢13 References †¢14 External links [edit] Performance The Admiral's Men performed Doctor Faustus twenty-five times in the three years between October 1594 and October 1597. On 22 November 1602, the Diary of Philip Henslowe recorded a ? 4 payment to Samuel Rowley and William Bird for additions to the play, which suggests a revival soon after that date. [2] The powerful effect of the early productions is indicated by the legends that quickly accrued around them.In Histriomastix, his 1632 polemic against the drama, William Prynne records the tale that actual devils once appeared on the stage during a performance of Faustus, â€Å"to the great amazement of both the actors and spectators†. Some people were allegedly driven mad, â€Å"distracted with that fearful sight†. John Aubrey recorded a related legend, that Edward Alleyn, lead actor of The Admiral's Men, devoted his later years to charitable endeavors, like the founding of Dulwich Co llege, in direct response to this incident. [3] [edit] TextThe play may have been entered into the Stationers' Register on 18 December 1592—though the records are confused, and appear to indicate a conflict over the rights to the play. A subsequent Stationers' Register entry, dated 7 January 1601, assigns the play to the bookseller Thomas Bushnell, the publisher of the 1604 first edition. Bushnell transferred his rights to the play to John Wright on 13 September 1610. [4] [edit] The two versions Two versions of the play exist: 1. The 1604 quarto, printed by Valentine Simmes for Thomas Law; sometimes termed the A text.The title page attributes the play to â€Å"Ch. Marl. â€Å". A second edition (A2) in 1609, printed by George Eld for John Wright, is merely a reprint of the 1604 text. The text is short for an English Renaissance play, only 1485 lines long. 2. The 1616 quarto, published by John Wright, the enlarged and altered text; sometimes called the B text. This second te xt was reprinted in 1619, 1620, 1624, 1631, and as late as 1663. The 1616 version omits 36 lines but adds 676 new lines, making it roughly one third longer than the 1604 version.Among the lines shared by both versions, there are some small but significant changes in wording; for example, â€Å"Never too late, if Faustus can repent† in the 1604 text becomes â€Å"Never too late, if Faustus will repent† in the 1616 text, a change that offers a very different possibility for Faustus's hope and repentance. A major change between texts A and B is the name of the devil summoned by Faustus. Text A states the name is generally â€Å"Mephastophilis†, while the version of text B commonly states â€Å"Mephostophilis†. 5] The name of the devil is in each case a reference to Mephistopheles in Faustbuch, the source work, which appeared in English translation in about 1588. [6][7] The relationship between the texts is uncertain and many modern editions print both. As an Elizabethan playwright, Marlowe had nothing to do with the publication and had no control over the play in performance, so it was possible for scenes to be dropped or shortened, or for new scenes to be added, so that the resulting publications may be modified versions of the original script.The 1604 version is believed by most scholars to be closer to the play as originally performed in Marlowe's lifetime, and the 1616 version to be a posthumous adaptation by other hands. However, some disagree, seeing the 1604 version as an abbreviation and the 1616 version as Marlowe's original fuller version. [edit] Comic scenes In the past, it was assumed that the comic scenes were additions by other writers. However, most scholars today consider the comic interludes, whoever wrote them, an integral part of the play. [8][9] Their tone shows the change in Faustus's ambitions, suggesting Marlowe did oversee the composition of them. citation needed] The clown is seen as the archetype for comic rel ief. [citation needed] [edit] Sources Doctor Faustus is based on an older tale; it is believed to be the first dramatization of the Faust legend. [6] Some scholars[10] believe that Marlowe developed the story from a popular 1592 translation, commonly called The English Faust Book. [11] There is thought to have been an earlier, lost, German edition of 1587, which itself may have been influenced by even earlier, equally unpreserved pamphlets in Latin, such as those that likely inspired Jacob Bidermann's treatment of the damnation of the doctor of Paris, Cenodoxus (1602).Several soothsayers or necromancers of the late fifteenth century adopted the name Faustus, a reference to the Latin for â€Å"favoured† or â€Å"auspicious†; typical was Georgius Faustus Helmstetensis, calling himself astrologer and chiromancer, who was expelled from the town of Ingolstadt for such practices. Subsequent commentators have identified this individual as the prototypical Faustus of the legen d. [12] Whatever the inspiration, the development of Marlowe's play is very faithful to the Faust Book especially in the way it mixes comedy with tragedy. citation needed] However, Marlowe also introduced some changes to make it more original. Here, he made three main additions in the play: †¢Faustus's soliloquy in the Act 1 on the vanity of human science †¢Good and Bad Angels †¢substitution of Seven Deadly Sins for a pageant of Devils He also emphasized his intellectual aspirations and curiosity and minimized the vices in the character of Faustus to lend a Renaissance aura to the story. [edit] Structure The play is in blank verse and prose in thirteen scenes (1604) or twenty scenes (1616).Blank verse is largely reserved for the main scenes while prose is used in the comic scenes. Modern texts divide the play into five acts; act 5 being the shortest. As in many Elizabethan plays, there is a chorus that does not interact with the other characters but rather provides an introduction and conclusion to the play and gives an introduction to the events that have unfolded at the beginning of some acts. Along with history and language style, scholars have critiqued and analyzed the structure of Doctor Faustus and its effects on the play as a whole. Leonard H.Frey wrote a document entitled â€Å"In the Opening and Close of Doctor Faustus,† which mainly focuses on Faustus’s opening and closing soliloquies. He stresses the importance of the soliloquies in the play, saying: â€Å"the soliloquy, perhaps more than any other dramatic device, involved the audience in an imaginative concern with the happenings on stage†. [13] By having Doctor Faustus deliver these soliloquies at the beginning and end of the play, the focus is drawn to his inner thoughts and feelings about succumbing to the devil. The soliloquies have parallel concepts.In the introductory soliloquy, Faustus begins by pondering the fate of his life and what he wants his career to be. He ends his soliloquy with the solution and decision to give his soul to the devil. Similarly in the closing soliloquy, Faustus begins pondering, and finally comes to terms with the fate he created for himself. Frey also explains: â€Å"The whole pattern of this final soliloquy is thus a grim parody of the opening one, where decision is reached after, not prior to, the survey†. [14] [edit] Synopsis [edit] Faustus learns necromancy As a prologue, the Chorus tells us what type of play Doctor Faustus is.It is not about war and courtly love, but about Faustus, who was born of lower class parents. This can be seen as a departure from the medieval tradition; Faustus holds a lower status than kings and saints, but his story is still worth telling. It gives an introduction to his wisdom and abilities, most notably in academia, in which he excels so tremendously that he is awarded a doctorate. During this opening, we also get our first clue to the source of Faustus's downfall. Faustus's tale is likened to that of Icarus, who flew too close to the sun and fell to his death when the sun melted his waxen wings.This is indeed a hint to Faustus's end as well as bringing our attention to the idea of hubris (excessive pride) which is represented in the Icarus story. Faustus comments that he has reached the end of every subject he has studied. He appreciates Logic as being a tool for arguing; Medicine as being unvalued unless it allowed raising the dead and immortality; Law as being upstanding and above him; Divinity as useless because he feels that all humans commit sin, and thus to have sins punishable by death complicates the logic of Divinity. He dismisses it as â€Å"What doctrine call you this?Que sera, sera† (What will be, shall be). He calls upon his servant Wagner to bring forth Valdes and Cornelius, two famous magicians. The Good Angel and the Bad Angel dispense their own perspective of his interest in Satan. Though Faustus is momentarily dissua ded, proclaiming â€Å"How am I glutted with conceit of this? â€Å", he is apparently won over by the possibilities Magic offers to him. Valdes declares that if Faustus devotes himself to Magic, he must vow not to study anything else and points out that great things are indeed possible with someone of Faustus's standing.Faustus's absence is noted by two scholars who are less accomplished than Faustus himself. They request that Wagner reveal Faustus's present location, a request which Wagner haughtily denies. The two scholars worry about Faustus falling deep into the art of Magic and leave to inform the King. Faustus summons a devil, in the presence of Lucifer and other devils although Faustus is unaware of it. After creating a magic circle and speaking an incantation in which he revokes his baptism, Faustus sees a devil named Mephistophilis appear before him.Faustus is unable to tolerate the hideous looks of the devil and commands it to change its appearance. Faustus, in seeing t he obedience of the devil (for changing form), takes pride in his skill. He tries to bind the devil to his service but is unable to because Mephistophilis already serves Lucifer, the prince of devils. Mephistophilis also reveals that it was not Faustus's power that summoned him but rather that if anyone abjures the scriptures it results in the Devil coming to claim their soul.Mephistophilis introduces the history of Lucifer and the other devils while indirectly telling Faustus that hell has no circumference and is more of a state of mind than a physical location. Faustus inquiries into the nature of hell lead to Mephistophilis saying: â€Å"Oh, Faustus, leave these frivolous demands, which strikes a terror to my fainting soul†. [edit] The pact with Lucifer Using Mephistophilis as a messenger, Faustus strikes a deal with Lucifer: he is to be allotted twenty-four years of life on Earth, during which time he will have Mephistophilis as his personal servant.At the end he will giv e his soul over to Lucifer as payment and spend the rest of time as one damned to Hell. This deal is to be sealed in Faustus's own blood. After cutting his arm, the wound is divinely healed and the Latin words â€Å"Homo, fuge! † (Flee, man! ) then appear upon it. Despite the dramatic nature of this divine intervention, Faustus disregards the inscription with the assertion that he is already damned by his actions thus far and therefore left with no place to which he could flee. Mephistophilis brings coals to break the wound open again, and thus Faustus is able to take his oath that was written in his own blood. edit] Wasting his skills Faustus begins by asking Mephistophilis a series of science-related questions. However, the devil seems to be quite evasive and finishes with a Latin phrase, â€Å"Per inoequalem motum respectu totius† (â€Å"through unequal motion with respect to the whole thing†). This sentence has not the slightest scientific value, thus giving the impression that Mephistophilis is untrustworthy. Two angels, one good and one bad, appear to Faustus: the good angel urges him to repent and revoke his oath to Lucifer.This is the largest fault of Faustus throughout the play: he is blind to his own salvation. Though he is told initially by Mephistophilis to â€Å"leave these frivolous demands†, Faustus remains set on his soul's damnation. Lucifer brings to Faustus the personification of the seven deadly sins. Faustus fails to see them as warnings and ignores them. From this point until the end of the play, Faustus does nothing worthwhile, having begun his pact with the attitude that he would be able to do anything. Faustus appears to scholars and warns them that he is damned and will not be long on the earth.He gives a speech about how he is damned and eventually seems to repent for his deeds. Mephistophilis comes to collect his soul, and we are told that he exits back to hell with him. [edit] Damnation or salvation The text leaves Faustus's final confrontation with Mephistophilis offstage, and his final fate obvious. The scene following begins with Faustus's friends discovering his clothes strewn about the stage: from this they conclude that Faustus was damned. However, his friends decide to give him a final party, a religious ceremony that hints at salvation.The discovery of the clothes is a scene present only in the later ‘B text' of the play — in the earlier version of the play devils carry Faustus off the stage. [15] [edit] The Calvinist/anti-Calvinist controversy The theological implications of Doctor Faustus have been the subject of considerable debate throughout the last century. Among the most complicated points of contention is whether the play supports or challenges the Calvinist doctrine of absolute predestination, which dominated the lectures and writings of many English scholars in the latter half of the sixteenth century.According to Calvin, predestination meant that God , acting of his own free will, elects some people to be saved and others to be damned — thus, the individual has no control over his own ultimate fate. This doctrine was the source of great controversy because it was seen by the so-called anti-Calvinists to limit man's free will in regard to faith and salvation, and to present a dilemma in terms of theodicy. At the time Doctor Faustus was performed, this doctrine was on the rise in England, and under the direction of Puritan theologians at Cambridge and Oxford had come to be considered the orthodox position of the Church of England. 16] Nevertheless, it remained the source of vigorous and, at times, heated debate between Calvinist scholars, such as William Whitaker and William Perkins, and anti-Calvinists, such as William Barrett and Peter Baro. [17] The dispute between these Cambridge intellectuals had quite nearly reached its zenith by the time Marlowe was a student there in the 1580s, and likely would have influenced him d eeply, as it did many of his fellow students. [18] Concerning the fate of Faustus, the Calvinist concludes that his damnation was inevitable.His rejection of God and subsequent inability to repent are taken as evidence that he never really belonged to the elect, but rather had been predestined from the very beginning for reprobation. In his Chiefe Points of Christian Religion, Theodore Beza, the successor to John Calvin, describes the category of sinner into which Faustus would most likely have been cast: To conclude, they which are most miserable of all, those climb a degree higher, that their fall might be more grievous: for they are raised so high by some gift of grace, that they are little moved with some taste of he heavenly gift: so that for the time they seem to have received the seed†¦ But this is plain, that the spirit of adoption, which we have said to be only proper unto them which are never cast forth, but are written in the secret of God's people, is never communic ated to them, for were they of the elect they should remain still with the elect. All these therefore (because of necessity, and yet willingly, as they which are under the slavery of sin, return to their vomit, and fall away from faith) are plucked up by the roots, to be cast into the fire. 19] For the Calvinist, Faustus represents the worst kind of sinner, having tasted the heavenly gift and rejected it. His damnation is justified and deserved because he was never truly adopted among the elect. According to this view, the play demonstrates Calvin's â€Å"three-tiered concept of causation,† in which the damnation of Faustus is first willed by God, then by Satan, and finally, by himself. 20] As Calvin himself explains it in his Institutes of Christian Religion: We see therefore that it is no absurdity, that one self act be ascribed to God, to Satan, and to man: but the diversity in the end and manner of doing, causeth that therein appeareth the justice of God to be without fau lt, and also the wickedness of Satan and man, bewrayeth itself to their reproach. [21] The anti-Calvinist view, however, finds such thinking repugnant, and prefers to interpret Doctor Faustus as a criticism of such doctrines.One of the greatest critics of Calvinism in Marlowe's day was Peter Baro, who argued that such teachings fostered despair among believers, rather than repentance among sinners. He claimed, in fact, that Calvinism created a theodical dilemma: What shall we say then? That this question so long debated of the Philosophers, most wise men, and yet undetermined, cannot even of Divines, and men endued with heavenly wisdom, be discussed and decided? And that God hath in this case laid a crosse upon learned men, wherein they might perpetually torment themselves? I cannot so think. 22] Baro recognized the threat of despair which faced the Protestant church if it did not come to an agreement of how to understand the fundamentals. For him, the Calvinists were overcomplicati ng the issues of faith and repentance, and thereby causing great and unnecessary confusion among struggling believers. Faustus himself confesses a similar sentiment regarding predestination: â€Å"The reward of sin is death. † That's hard. †¦ â€Å"If we say that we have no sin, We deceive ourselves, and there's no truth in us. † Why then belike we must sin, And so consequently die.Ay, we must die an everlasting death. What doctrine call you this? Che sera, sera, â€Å"What will be, shall be†? Divinity, adieu! [23] Ultimately, however, the theology of Marlowe and the text of Doctor Faustus remain far too ambiguous for any kind of conclusive interpretation. [edit] Quotations Faustus includes a well-known speech addressed to the summoned shade of Helen of Troy, in Act V, scene I. The following is from the Gutenberg project e-text of the 1604 quarto (with footnotes removed). Faustus â€Å"Was this the face that launch'd a thousand ships, And burnt the topless towers of Ilium–Sweet Helen, make me immortal with a kiss. — †[kisses her]† Her lips suck forth my soul: see, where it flies! — Come, Helen, come, give me my soul again. Here will I dwell, for heaven is in these lips, And all is dross that is not Helena. I will be Paris, and for love of thee, Instead of Troy, shall Wertenberg be sack'd; And I will combat with weak Menelaus, And wear thy colours on my plumed crest; Yea, I will wound Achilles in the heel, And then return to Helen for a kiss. O, thou art fairer than the evening air Clad in the beauty of a thousand stars; Brighter art thou than flaming JupiterWhen he appear'd to hapless Semele; More lovely than the monarch of the sky In wanton Arethusa's azur'd arms; And none but thou shalt be my paramour! † Excerpts from this speech appear in the film Shakespeare in Love and the Star Trek episode â€Å"The Squire of Gothos†; it also served as inspiration for the title of Volume 1 of the po pular Age of Bronze comic book. Another well-known quote comes after Faustus asks Mephistophilis how he is out of Hell, to which Mephistophilis replies: â€Å"Why this is hell, nor am I out of it. Think'st thou that I, who saw the face of God,And tasted the eternal joys of heaven, Am not tormented with ten thousand hells In being deprived of everlasting bliss? † This quote comes from a translation of Saint John Chrysostom, and implies that Mephistophilis has both a deep knowledge of God and a desire to return to heaven. [edit] Themes and motifs One theme in Doctor Faustus is sin. Throughout the play, Faustus is continuously making wrong choices. His first sin was greed. Faustus began his downfall by making a pact with the devil. Doctor Faustus is a German scholar who is well known for his accomplishments.He grows sick of the limitations on human knowledge, which leads him to his interest with magic. [24] Faustus summons a demon, Mephistophilis, ordering him to go to Lucifer w ith the offer of Faustus’s soul in return for twenty-four years of servitude from Mephistophilis. At the news of acceptance from Lucifer, Faustus begins his years filled with sinful nature. Faustus feeds sin with his need for power, praise, and trickery. [25] He becomes absorbed in the way people look up to him, believing him to be a sort of ‘hero’. In the end, Faustus realizes his mistake in believing power will bring him happiness.At the end of his twenty-four years, Faustus is filled with fear and he becomes remorseful for his past actions, yet this comes too late. When fellow scholars find Faustus the next morning, he is torn limb from limb, with his soul carried off to hell. In terms of historical context, a major thematic idea is that related to knowledge and the quest for it. With Enlightenment thinkers demonstrating the extent to which the sciences and rational speculation could inform human knowledge of the cosmos and other pressing mysteries of the age, Marlowe presents the idea of hubris which undamentally relates to the search for knowledge in a religious age. Marlowe also draws significant attention to feelings experienced both by himself and other thinkers of his time: the unsatisfying nature of the answers found as part of this quest and the impossibility of learning everything in a lifetime as brief as that of a human. Satanism and death are also prevalent themes. Marlowe sets the story in Wittenburg, Germany with Faustus selling his soul to the devil and declaring his servitude to Satan, Mephistophilis: â€Å"I am a servant to great Lucipher and may not follow thee without his leave.No more than he commands we must perform† (p 13 line 39-41). Marlowe shows throughout the play that his vow to forever be a servant of Satan negatively affects his life and how had he known what he was getting into, then he would never have made a deal with the devil. Magic is also a motif that plays a major role in Dr. Faustus. Faustusâ €™s downfall began with his love of knowledge, which leads for his need to use magic. Faustus loves the praise that he gets when people view him as a ‘genius’, which supports his need to have ‘special powers’. 26] Faustus enjoys playing tricks on people by using his powers, and even goes so far as to use his powers on a dragon. He summons demons with magic, and later brings Helen of Troy to comfort him in his final hours. The use of magic is a show of Faustus’s ‘demoralization’. He no longer wants to be a mere mortal†¦ he wants to be as powerful as the devil himself. [27] One of the most apparent themes in Doctor Faustus is the battle between good and evil. At the beginning of the play, Faustus finds himself torn between good and evil, knowing the distinction and consequences of the two, but overwhelmed by his desire for worldly pleasures.Faustus’s desire for mortal satisfaction is personified through the seven deadly sin s who all speak to him and tempt him. Nicholas Kiessling explains how Faustus’s sins brings about his own damnation, saying: â€Å"Faustus’s indulgence in sensual diversions, for, once being committed to the pact with Satan, Faustus partakes of the sop of sensuality to blot out his fears of impending damnation†[28] Another illustration of Faustus’s battle between good and evil is shown through the good and evil angels which try to influence his decisions and behavior.Kiessling says, â€Å"Although Faustus does not heed the plea, Marlowe very evidently implies that the chance for redemption still exists†. [29] Although Faustus recognizes the consequences of choosing to listen to the evil spirit over the good spirit, he cannot resist the temptations of the devil and the worldly and mortal pleasures he offers. [edit] Mephistophilis Mephistophilis is a demon which Faustus conjures up while first using his magical powers. Readers initially feel sympathy for the demon when he attempts to dissuade Faustus from giving his soul to Lucifer.Mephistophilis gives Faustus a description of hell and the continuous horrors it possesses. He wants Faustus to know what he is getting himself into before going through with the plan. â€Å"Think’st thou that I who saw the face of God And tasted the eternal joy of heaven Am not tormented with ten thousand hells In being deprived of everlasting bliss? O Faustus, leave these frivolous demands Which strikes a terror to my fainting soul! † [30] Sadly, his attempts fail with Faustus believing that supernatural powers were worth more than a lifetime in hell. Say he (Faustus) surrender up to him (Lucifer) his soul So he will spare him four and twenty years, Letting him live in all voluptuousness Having thee (Mephistophilis) ever to attend on me† (Marlowe 15) Some scholars argue that Mephistophilis depicts the sorrow that comes with separation from God. Mephistophilis is foreshadowing th e pain Faustus would have to endure, should he go through with his plan. [31] In this facet, Faustus can be likened to Icarus, whose insatiable ambition was the source of his misery and the cause of his plight. [edit] AdaptationsThe play was adapted for the screen in 1967 by Richard Burton and Nevill Coghill, who based the film on an Oxford University Dramatic Society production in which Burton starred opposite Elizabeth Taylor as Helen of Troy. A stage production at the Greenwich Theatre in London in 2009, which was directed by Elizabeth Freestone and which starred Tim Treolar as Mephistopheles and Gareth Kennerley as Faustus, was filmed for DVD release by Stage on Screen. It played in repertoire with School for Scandal. [edit] Critical history Doctor Faustus has raised much controversy due to its interaction with the demonic realm. 32] Before Marlowe, there were few authors who ventured into this kind of writing. After his play, other authors began to expand on their views of the spiritual world and how quickly and easily man can fall. [33] [edit] See also †¢Solamen miseris socios habuisse doloris, line from the play, commonly translated as â€Å"misery loves company† †¢Faust †¢Deal with the Devil [edit] Notes 1. ^ Logan and Smith, p. 14. 2. ^ Chambers, Vol. 3, p. 423. 3. ^ Chambers, Vol. 3, pp. 423-4. 4. ^ Chambers, Vol. 3, p. 422. 5. ^ Bevington, David M; Rasmussen, Eric (1962).Doctor Faustus A- and B- texts (1604, 1616): Christopher Marlowe and his collaborator and revisers. Manchester, England: Manchester University Press. p. xi. ISBN 0-7190-1643-6. 6. ^ a b Christian, Paul; Nichols, Ross (translator); (1952). The History and Practice of Magic 1. London: Forge Press. p. 428. â€Å"The name has many forms: Marlowe writes Mephistophilis†¦ † 7. ^ Jones, John Henry (1994). The English Faust Book, a critical edition. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. p. 1. ISBN 978-0-521-42087-7. 8. ^ Tromly, Frederic (1998). â €Å"Damnation as tantalization†.Playing with desire: Christopher Marlowe and the art of tantalization. University of Toronto Press. p. 135. ISBN 978-0-8020-4355-9. 9. ^ Cantor, Paul A (2004). â€Å"The contract from hell†. In Heffernan, William C. ; Kleinig, John. Private and public corruption. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield. p. 98. ISBN 978-0-7425-3492-6. 10. ^ Leo Ruickbie, Faustus: The Life and Times of a Renaissance Magician (The History Press, 2009), p. 15 11. ^ The History of the damnable life, and deserved death of Doctor Iohn Faustus by P. F. , Gent, 12. ^ Keefer, Michael (2008). Introduction†. Doctor Faustus: a critical edition. Ontario: Broadview. pp. 67–8. 13. ^ Frey, Leonard H. â€Å"ANTITHETICAL BALANCE IN THE OPENING AND CLOSE OF DOCTOR FAUSTUS. † Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Saint Louis University, Saint Louis. 26 Mar. 2009 p350 14. ^ (352) 15. ^ Bevington; Rasmussen (1962: 46) 16. ^ p. 157. Milward, Peter. Religious Controversie s of the Elizabethan Age: A Survey of Printed Sources. University of Nebraska Press, 1977. 17. ^ p. 157-163. Milward. 18. ^ p. 249. Princiss, G. M. â€Å"Marlowe's Cambridge Years and the Writing of Doctor Faustus. Studies in English Literature 33. 2 (1993). 19. ^ 5. 5. Beza, Theodore. â€Å"A Brief Declaration of the Chief Points of Christian Religion Set Forth in a Table. † 1575. Early English Books Online. 10 2 2007. http://eebo. chadwyck. com. 20. ^ p. 292. Stachniewski, John. The Persecutory Imagination: English Puritanism and the Literature of Religious Despair. Oxford University Press, 1991. 21. ^ 2. 4. 2. Calvin, John. â€Å"The Institutes of Christian Religion. † 1585. Early English Books Online. 10 2 2007. http://eebo. chadwyck. com. 22. ^ p. 510. Hyperius, Andreas. A Special Treatise of God's Providence With an Appendix by Peter Baro. † 1588. Early English Books Online. 10 2 2007. http://eebo. chadwyck. com. 23. ^ 1. 1. 44-50. 24. ^ (Fetzer, John. Per ceptions of Thomas Mann's Doctor Faustus : criticism 1947-1992 . New York City: Camden House , 1996. ) 25. ^ (Fetzer 21) 26. ^ (Kiessling , Nicolas . â€Å"Doctor Faustus and the Sin of Demoniality . † Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900 15(1975): 205-211) 27. ^ (Kiessling, 207) 28. ^ (Kiessling, Nicolas. â€Å"Doctor Faustus and the Sin of Demoniality. † Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Saint Louis University. 6 Mar. 2009 p205). 29. ^ (207) 30. ^ (Marlowe 14) 31. ^ (Snydre, Susan. â€Å"Marlowe's Doctor Faustus as an Inverted Saint's Life. † Studies in Philology 63(1966): 565-577. ) 32. ^ (Hamlin , William M. . â€Å"Casting Doubt in Marlowe's Doctor Faustus. † Studies in English Literature 1500-1900 (2001): 257-275. ) 33. ^ (Hamlin, 258). [edit] References †¢Chambers, E. K. The Elizabethan Stage. 4 Volumes, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1923. †¢Logan, Terence P. , and Denzell S. Smith, eds. The Predecessors of Shakespeare: A Survey and Bibliogr aphy of Recent Studies in English Renaissance Drama.Lincoln, NE, University of Nebraska Press, 1973. [edit] External links Wikisource has original text related to this article: The Tragedy of Doctor Faustus †¢The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus librivox. org audio †¢1616 quarto online †¢The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus From the Quarto of 1604 by Christopher Marlowe at Project Gutenberg †¢The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus From the Quarto of 1616 by Christopher Marlowe at Project Gutenberg †¢Doctor Faustus (play) at the Internet Broadway Database †¢v †¢t †¢e Christopher Marlowe Plays †¢Dido, Queen of Carthage Tamburlaine the Great, Parts One and Two †¢The Jew of Malta †¢Doctor Faustus †¢Edward II †¢The Massacre at Paris Poems †¢Lucan's Pharsalia †¢Ovid's Elegies †¢The Passionate Shepherd to His Love †¢Hero and Leander People†¢Thomas Nashe †¢Philip Henslowe †¢Thomas Heywood †¢Ingram Frizer †¢Eleanor Bull †¢Nicholas Skeres †¢Robert Poley †¢George Chapman †¢Edward Alleyn Fictional representations†¢Marlowe (Rost) †¢The School of Night (Whelan) †¢Tamburlaine Must Die (Welsh) †¢A Dead Man in Deptford (Burgess) †¢It Was Marlowe (Zeigler) †¢Kit Marlowe (David Grimm) †¢The Marlowe Papers (Ros Barber)Adaptations†¢Edward II (Jarman) †¢The Life of Edward II of England (Brecht and Feuchtwanger) †¢The Massacre at Paris (Murphy) Miscellaneous†¢English Renaissance theatre †¢Blank verse †¢Admiral's Men †¢Shakespeare authorship question †¢Marlovian theory †¢Lust's Dominion (attributed play, rejected) Retrieved from â€Å"http://en. wikipedia. org/w/index. php? title=Doctor_Faustus_(play)&oldid=540445519† Categories: †¢1590s plays †¢1604 plays †¢Plays by Christopher Marlowe †¢English Renaissance plays †¢Works based on the Faust l egend Hidden categories: †¢All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from January 2011 †¢Articles with unsourced statements from August 2009 Navigation menu Personal tools †¢Create account †¢Log in Namespaces †¢Article †¢Talk Variants Views †¢Read †¢Edit †¢View history Actions Search Navigation †¢Main page †¢Contents †¢Featured content †¢Current events †¢Random article †¢Donate to Wikipedia Interaction †¢Help †¢About Wikipedia †¢Community portal †¢Recent changes †¢Contact Wikipedia Toolbox †¢What links here †¢Related changes †¢Upload file †¢Special pages †¢Permanent link †¢Page information †¢Cite this pagePrint/export †¢Create a book †¢Download as PDF †¢Printable version Languages †¢Deutsch †¢Espanol †¢Francais †¢Italiano †¢ †¢Latina †¢ †¢Norsk bokmal †¢Portug ues †¢Svenska †¢ †¢Edit links †¢This page was last modified on 26 February 2013 at 01:40. †¢Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. See Terms of Use for details. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. , a non-profit organization. †¢Contact us †¢Privacy policy †¢About Wikipedia †¢Disclaimers †¢Mobile view †¢

Poop

Proposition Number six in California: what did it say? How was it decided? Rights from working in public schools in California. It was not passed due to the support of Harvey Milk, Pres. Carter, and other gay activists who argued for that act. 4. Why did Dan White resign?Why wasn't he allowed back? Dan White resigned because the salary he was receiving was not enough to support his family. Also found politics to be corrupt and unethical. He was not allowed back because of his arguments with Harvey Milk and other politicians. 5. How do you feel about the public response to Milk's and Anemone's murder? I believe the protestors had every right to gather in silence and try to accept what had happened to such great politicians. I completely agree with that one old women that was interviewed on the street that said â€Å"l am a very old women, and I do not want to be around when Dan comes out.I feel as though the protestors were so full of anger with the murders that the violent acts were almost inevitable. I feel as though they did need a way to grieve, but burning police cars took it a little too far, and people got hurt. 6. What happened in the trial of Dan White? Dan White said that he was not planning on killing anyone that day, although he had a gun in his pocket, extra bullets, and went through the window into the building. He also used the â€Å"Twinkle Defense† that he had consumed so much Junk food causing him to do such horrible things. He was sentenced for 5 years in prison for man slaughter.