...I. Characteristics A utopia is described as a perfect, highly desirable society where all citizens live in peace. The job of a utopian society, whether it is real or not, is to create a desirable goal for all people. "An ideal may be reasonably defined as a standard of perfection supremely desirable but not fully attainable",(Bottiglia). An example of a place that fits these standards is Eldorado from Voltaire’s Candide. Candide stumbled upon this place of great wealth and beauty with Cacambo and thought it must be the best possible world, therefore a utopia. “Fountains of pure water, rose-water, and sugar-cane liqueur played unceasingly in public squares, which were paved with a kind of precious stone smelling of cloves and cinnamon”,(Butt...
Words: 1982 - Pages: 8
...Alice Sewah Michael Davros English 101 28 February 2012 Society and Surveillance In today’s society we are under surveillance everywhere we step our feet to. The only place we get privacy is when we are at home, everywhere else there are cameras hidden watching you, without even noticing. At shopping malls, there are hidden cameras. The reason why they exist is simple: to prevent shopliftings, or in some cases, to catch shoplifters. Most customers realize that they are being watched and try to act properly, though there are some who fail to recognize or decide to ignore this fact and take the wrong path. It is not just shopping malls that have surveillance watching over people. Even when you’re driving on the street there is a hidden camera somewhere watching you to make sure you run a red light. Foucault starts Panopticism with a talk on the plague. After the explanatory introduction, Foucault presents an analysis of the prison system created by a famous economist Betham, Panopticon Readers could perceive a different conclusion as to what Panopticism is. According to my point of view Panopticism is the idea that schools are similar to prisons, and it is emphasized as well as stated throughout in the reading multiple times. The text gives a variety of examples to help the readers understand as well as analyze what the author is trying to portray. I concur with most of the ideas displayed in the text. Schools are similar to prisons due to the fact that individuals...
Words: 1271 - Pages: 6
...THE AMERICAN DREAM THE AMERICAN DREAM Section #1 a. The impact cultures in North America have on the United States is that each region adapted the traditions and/or beliefs of those who settled in that area by maintaining dance, music, and crafts. Many English settlers did not respect the Native American cultures, and were seen as uncivilized and/or savages. Basically there was a clash of cultures, with new ideas pushing away old ways and mayor cultures oppressing others. b. Immigration and migration shape the early United States, for example: The first person to be processed at Ellis Island was Annie Moore who arrived from Ireland on January 1, 1892. As the first immigrant Annie Moore was given a $10 gold piece. She soon was married and gave birth to eleven children. While Annie Moore was the first immigrant, she was definitely not alone. Some famous immigrants who arrived through Ellis Island included Charles Chaplin, Cary Grant, Harry Houdini, Walt Disney, Albert Einstein, and F. Scott Fitzgerald. It is easy to see from this list how immigrants have changed the face of the United States. All of these famous people contributed to the United States, giving a bright future for innovative contributions to the young nation. c. The most important change in the United States ‘ involvement in foreign affairs from 1789 to 1877 was expansion of its territory. Marked by a treaty with France buying Louisiana territory doubling the United States, and other treaties...
Words: 3352 - Pages: 14
...Human Nature: Are We Really as Bad as We Seem? Why do people do what they do? Are there always selfish ulterior motives for every action? More, Machiavelli, and Luther all realize the shortcomings of human nature, but have different ways in which they propose to deal with this problem. Machiavelli, More, and Luther all seem to have a similar view of human nature in that they see the necessity of a strong government because people are not essentially good and they need something to keep them in line. Luther said “There are always many more of the wicked than there are of the just” (Luther, 11). While this may be thought of as cynical, there are plenty of examples where people will do just about anything in order to achieve what they want. Luther and Machiavelli both were under the impression that people are naturally selfish, and thus need the guiding hand of the government to keep them in check. All three use the fear of punishment as an incentive to uphold the laws. Machiavelli said that “Fear is sustained by the dread of punishment that is always effective” (Machiavelli, 58). More doesn’t say it as up front as Machiavelli does, but the reason people behave is because of their fear of the punishment of becoming a slave, not because they love their rulers. Machiavelli and Luther both saw the need for there to be a separation of secular authority and religious authority, putting to question the idea of divinely inspired royalty. “Each must decide at his own peril...
Words: 1268 - Pages: 6
...Where Is Utopia in the Brain? DanieL s. Levine Introduction The designer of utopian societies, whether fictional or real, often confronts the limits of what is possible for members of our species. But how severe or flexible are those limits? The explosive growth of behavioral neurobiology and experimental psychology in the last decade has produced many results on the biological bases of social interactions. This growth suggests that we can now look to science for some partial answers to the question of limits. Until recently, the social sciences and the biological sciences have mainly developed separate and disconnected accounts of human behavior. In the “nature/nurture controversy,” for example, anthropology has tended to emphasize cultural influences on human nature whereas behavioral biology has tended to emphasize genetic influences. The journalist Matthew Ridley (Nature via Nurture) provides an accessible account of the intellectual history and rhetoric of these two fields. Yet an increasing number of scholars in both areas are now realizing that behavioral biology and anthropology are studying the same human phenomena from different viewpoints. This overlap means there should be an underlying reality that is consistent across the different disciplines regardless of any disagreements in terminology. The behavioral biologist Edward O. Wilson calls this type of interdisciplinary commonality consilience, a term coined earlier by the nineteenth-century philosopher William Whewell...
Words: 9281 - Pages: 38
...the early scholars trained in greek – regulized Christian theology. Influence on western world – top four or five who influenced. Confessions and City of God his writings…look up! What’s the purpose of improving human society – complex – why do it? Can human society be made better? Why bother, what is the point, justification? Takes effort, misery involved, change, unknowns, takes energy, takes risks. HAPPINESS – justification for improving society. What do you have to have to be happy? What is happiness – PHI 101 – happiness according to whom? Lack of misery; literally the elimination of misery. Secondly, food – gives pleasure – Happiness is lack of human misery and maximizing /pleasure and happiness. Bliss 24/7 – hedonism Epicureanism – eliminating misery and maximizing happiness. The justification of utopianism = why did plato want the republic? Justisifcation for improving human society among the Greeks? Poor always poor, always unhappy, death claims everyone - it is rational to maximize pleasure and eliminate misery. Do eternally accouding to plato. Opinions – 1. Relativism is a retreat in the 20th century. Can’t voice own opinion – can’t change the world – retreatist. Lazy persons out – often times used as avoidance. DO NOT USE AS IMMEDIATE THE POOR MANS WAY OUT OF ARGUMENT. If use, have to have massive justification for it. 2. a. Define the difference between Greek utopian experiments (2 of them) Plato and Homer refuge Plato – more of an activist ...
Words: 44275 - Pages: 178
...2. Don Quixote de la Mancha The narrator designating these synonymous titles of lunacy to Don Quixote is in sound observation. Throughout the text he repeatedly exhibits his knowledge and research of the figure thus demonstrating his ability to derive to this credible form of judgment. Don Quixote very well can be deemed “a madman” and “crazy,” but the complexity of the character and his story forbids the reader from making a declaration in haste. Quixote’s existence in the socio-economic structure of imperialist Spain is one that draws empathy. Our hero assumes the role of knight errant to assimilate himself in a nostalgic past time: that of idealized collectivity. By doing so he sets to restore old-fashioned values in contemporary society for which he believes has been curdled and immoral in practice. The noble task, a primitive one, is juxtaposed with the modern ideology of the time and it is from the linear relationship between the two that the existential struggle of Don Quixote can be understood in its proper place. An important point to bring up at conception before the analysis goes deeper is the disposition of Don Quixote de la Mancha before he became a knight errant. His name was once Alonso Quijano, a retired respected farmer who was intelligent, decent, and perfectly rational. As an avid reader of books of chivalry he “went so far as to sell acres of arable land in order to buy [these] books of chivalry to read (Chapter 1, pg. 20)” and “when his mind was completely...
Words: 1621 - Pages: 7
...Mohammed Asif PGPEX 23/8 Change is the only constant in life. Things and situations around us change every day and we have to adapt to them. But ironically, change is the hardest thing to bring about in a person or an organization. Resistance to change among employees is the biggest challenge a management faces when trying to effect a change. So, why should an organization change? Any business in today's fast-moving environment that is looking for the pace of change to slow down will surely be disappointed. In fact, businesses should embrace change. Change is important for any organization because, without change, businesses would likely lose their competitive edge and fail to meet the changing needs of ever changing customers. Change that results from the adoption of new technology is common in most organizations and while it can be disruptive at first, ultimately the change tends to increase productivity and service. Technology also has affected how we communicate. No longer do business people have to laboriously contact people, in person, to find out about other people who might be useful resources - they can search for experts online through search engines as well as through social media sites like Linkedin. Today's improving communication technology represents changes that allow organizations to learn more, more quickly, than ever before. As the world evolves, customer needs change and grow, creating...
Words: 2987 - Pages: 12
...Robotics: Utopia or Dystopia Robotics: Utopia or Dystopia? Table of Contents: Serial No. | Particular | Page No. | 01. | Introduction | 04 | 02. | Definition of a Robot | 04 | 03. | History of Robotics | 05 - 10 | 04. | The implications of robotics for jobs in manufacturing | 10-12 | 05. | The implications of robotics for jobs in the service sector: | 12 -13 | 06. | Robotics and future jobs, utopia or Dystopia | 13-15 | 07. | Conclusion: | 16 | 08. | Recommendation | 16 | 09. | References | 17 | Robotics: Utopia or Dystopia? Introduction: We are living in such an era, when the needs and demands of human beings are increasing day by day. To satisfy those needs, innovation and development in every field which guide the future of humanity is also proceeding in a rapid way. To meet the various needs and desires of the increasing population, inventors were seeking for a genuine solution which could provide the overwhelming challenges and will be able to meet the demands of the civilizations and that leads to the idea of mechanization. Inventors, who put forward the idea of mechanization, stated that by mechanization there would be great convenience for people to respond to their demands and can help them to complete their task in a short period of time. By following these principles, machines have started to meet the needs of increasing population...
Words: 7086 - Pages: 29
...lot of books that they will never read again and debt that will follow them to the grave. I am a late bloomer because most of my peers went off to college while I went to work. I decided to go to college much later in life. When I speak to most of my high school friends they complain of college tuition and debt that still hunts them. Now I have been out of high school for twenty years, so that’s at least fifteen years of debt from college. Yes, I believe it’s all about the money and not the elite education that we so eagerly have to obtain right out of high school. Why is it that when we purchased homes for forty to seventy thousand dollars we needed a down payment? However when it comes to buying an education we are just given the money by the federal government with the hopes of getting a job and repaying the loan in a timely manner. Yes I said buying an education because you pay for it wither you pass or fail. You are not allowed to say “hey I failed that class so I am not going to pay for it or the teacher is not up to par with his or her teaching skills so I want a...
Words: 1082 - Pages: 5
...Moral Compass Essay Yuebo (Grace) Zhu I. Introduction A moral compass is the moral guide on which a person bases his/her decisions and distinguishes what is right from what is wrong. With our moral compass, we know what rules we should play by. When I was a child, I learnt Chinese traditional wisdom, Confucianism, from my parents and elementary school. The core of Confucianism is humanity, to be altruistic, upright and courteous within the society, from which I got to know the rules I should honor. Never cheat. Be kind and honest. Don't do anything that will hurt others. These become the foundation of my moral compass. As I grow older, I have been introduced to other theories which cast light on the formation of my moral compass. According to Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill’s philosophy of Utilitarianism, the measure of right and wrong is to maximize happiness of maximized number. But when I tried to make decisions based on this theory, I met some problems. First, sometimes it’s impossible to transfer all the values into numbers to make comparison. Second, to achieve the maximized overall pleasure, I had to sacrifice the minority’s interests, which was unfair to them. As I was exposed to “Liberalism”, I found my answers. Every individual in the society deserves respect. Everyone has the right to choose freely, to live our life in the way we like, and to respect others for doing the same things. This part of Liberalism goes along with Confucianism; therefore I set...
Words: 1170 - Pages: 5
...THE PROBLEM WITH WORK A JOHN HOPE FRANKLIN CENTER BOOK THE PROBLEM WITH WORK Feminism, Marxism, Antiwork Politics, and Postwork Imaginaries KATHI WEEKS Duke University Press Durham and London 2011 © 2011 Duke University Press All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper co Designed by Heather Hensley Typeset in Minion Pro by Keystone Typesetting, Inc. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data appear on the last printed page of this book. THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED WITH LOVE TO JulieWalwick (1959-2010) Contents ix Acknowledgments INTRODUCTION i The Problem with Work i CHAPTF1 37 Mapping the Work Ethic CHAPTER 2 79 Marxism, Productivism, and the Refusal of Work CHAPTER 3 113 Working Demands: From Wages for Housework to Basic Income CHAPTER 4 151 "Hours for What We Will": Work, Family, and the Demand for Shorter Hours 5 CHAPTER 175 The Future Is Now: Utopian Demands and the Temporalities of Hope EPILOGUE 227 A Life beyond Work 235 255 Notes References 275 Index Acknowledgments thank the following friends and colleagues for their helpful feedback on versions of these arguments and portions of the manuscript: Anne Allison, Courtney Berger, Tina Campt, ChristineDiStefano, Greg Grandin, Judith Grant, Michael Hardt, Stefano Harney, Rebecca I would like to Karl, Ranji Khanna, Corey Robin...
Words: 116847 - Pages: 468
...For thousands of years, people have told stories of godly heroes conquering beasts and saving their people, but as time moved on the heroes took on more human-like qualities. By transitioning into more relatable characters, the heroes became not only icons for people to look up to, but something that they could one day become. Along with this transition, however, comes the addition of flaws. It is not believable for a human hero to be without flaws. Thus comes forth the fatal flaws, and then from that the beginnings of the anti-hero. An anti-hero is a protagonist that lacks important heroic qualities. The anti-hero rebels against society, but instead of completing their journey they usually fail. The beginnings of the anti-hero were brought...
Words: 1893 - Pages: 8
...home or a consistent base to draw upon; inversely, a large proportion of the Irish people are steadfast in their support for the cause. Al Qaeda’s indiscriminate killing of innocent civilians has resulted in a falling out with a large percentage of its former supporters. Finally, the IRA had a distinct, tangible, and realistic goal of expelling the British from Ireland, while Al Qaeda seeks to establish a new caliphate based on Islamic fundamentalist rule, something that very few people believe can really happen. As a result, its ranks are disillusioned by this relative lack of achievement. This paper will show how the comparison of Al Qaeda and the IRA serves as an excellent case study in attempting to see why the latter has become a stalwart in the history of terrorism, and why the former is ultimately destined to...
Words: 3638 - Pages: 15
...chance that those fruits and vegetables will be scarce, or not always available. You may find that the market has no strawberries at all. Why? Either no shipments of strawberries came in, or so few strawberries came in that by the time you got there, they were all gone. What does this mean for the demand of strawberries? If enough people want strawberries when none are available, then the demand is quite high. And the demand is high not because the price is low (as is usually the case) but because the supply is low. An older person in your family can probably tell you about a time 30 years ago when there was a gasoline shortage. At that time, in the 1970s, gasoline was scarce. Many people wanted to buy it, but only a certain amount was available. This is a great example of scarcity: Wants are more than what is available. The supply was low. Because the demand was greater than the supply, the gasoline was scarce. So how does scarcity relate to supply and demand? Scarcity is a measure of supply. If strawberries are scarce, then the supply of strawberries is low. And if many people want to buy strawberries when none are available, then demand is high because of a low supply caused by scarcity. When things are scarce, we have to make choices. If the market doesn't have strawberries, you have to decide if you really want strawberries. If you do, then you will have to...
Words: 2534 - Pages: 11
