Modern Drama Essay Example for Free

Modern Drama Essay Through Shakespeare, came the birth of four major tragedies Hamlet, King Lear, Othello, and Macbeth. Shakespeares Hamlet made tragedies problematic. The play was all about whether it was right to take vengeance into your own hands, or whether you should delegate justice into the organs of the state. Arthur Miller, who turned the ordinary man into a figure of tragic stature in Death of a Salesman, felt obliged to the axiomatic laws of tragedy, and so wrote two essays, which he used to develop his ideas on, Tragedy and the Common Man and The Nature of Tragedy. In these two essays, Miller talks about tragedies that are appropriate for a modern audience. Because we differ from the renaissance audience due to an increase in democracy, our sense of individualism has also been enhanced, alongside the principles of equalitarianism. We all feel very important, and every subject feels as significant as the next, so we will respond to tragedies that address our experience as a pose to that of a king or queen. Shakespearean tragedy was about the high born who were brought low by some flaw in the nature of their society. On the contrary, Miller thinks that in tragedy, the protagonist or hero should be a common man and should bear very little, if any resemblance to a man of high statute. In his essay, Tragedy and the Common Man, Miller suggests that the common man is as apt a subject for tragedy in its highest sense as kings were. He goes on to discuss the sense of personal dignity, and of how tragedies deal with noble passions. He amply suggests that a tragic protagonist should be a character, ideally the common man, who does not remain passive in the face of their oppression or subjugation. This character should fight for his or hers immensivation. Miller, in first essay discusses, Tragedy and the Common Man. The renaissance conceptions of tragedy involve a tragic protagonist who is high born. It is through some character flaw, through concentrated hubris in his mind, which usually leads to a downfall. Miller says every one of us is a common person in a modern, democratic, individualised society. In this condition, every person is a hero in the drama of their own lives, whilst before, when the whole society was homogeneous, and everybody knew their place in cosmic order. Every person was subordinated into the larger design. Thus, important was the part they played in Gods design, and so individual pulses were passed with no significant meaning. Miller reflects upon how modern tragedy should be of a normal, common person. In addition to this, he also articulates his perspective, that in the modern world, because we have a heterogeneous society and do not all share the same beliefs, we do not believe in the same values, so we disagree on what is heroic. People feel it is more difficult to write tragedy because there are no widely shared ideas or values. In a tragedy, you have to have a protagonist who has the qualities that everybody believes in. He has to be one who fights against the corruption of certain aspects in the world. Every one of us fears, at the core of our being, our displacement from what we consider our position in society, our just. Therefore, what Miller does, is to say that his protagonists will not remain passive in the face of his oppression he would rather die than accept a compromised existence. Tragedy, to most, means death and sadness, but Miller feels this is not so. Millers perception of tragedy is that true tragedies are those works of literature that provide for us an optimistic view on human capability. We are inspired to ensure no person, whatever his or her nobility, oppresses us, and so look ubiquitously for sources of our subjugation. We begin to question things we would otherwise consider as customary or natural, and by so doing, we are helped in challenging the sources of oppression through these dichotomies. In his next essay, Miller discusses The Nature of Tragedy. There are many elements, which are highlighted, in this particular composition. However, the two dominating features, which are included, are of the discrepancies between melodrama and real drama within a novel or narrative based on the tragic mode. The concepts that these two conflicting drama types adopt are divulged in this essay, and so can be called upon as one of the centrepieces of this thesis. Melodrama is a specific means of writing, in the sense that it is very artificial. The melodrama type flourished in the Victorian period, and would often circulate around traumatic events. With this, a distinction between the two disparities can be accomplished. Melodrama deals objectively, with characters, which lack realism. These specifically chosen characters do not possess the complexity of real human beings, and good and bad, or white and black are clearly demarcated. When we see a melodramatic play, we see one-dimensional characters that have no moral turmoil in their minds; hence, the play is all about violence and action. With a melodrama, such scenes become almost obligatory. In a word, the work [here described as the play] is characterized by extravagant theatricality and by the predominance of plot and physical action over characterization. Conversely, the real drama approach falls far beyond the simplicity evoked in melodrama. Other than the current features of melodrama, a more assertive sense of human representation is applied to supplement real drama. In the same human breast, wickedness and goodness are converged, bringing a mandatory convention into the drama. Furthermore, there is conflict not only between characters, but also within certain internal impulses of the mind, and so a stalemate within the crest of the protagonist is averted without ambiguous contentment. What tragedies do is to provide us, the audience, with enlightenment. When we come away from the tragedy, we should have been transformed by the event and conformed to its consequences. On exiting the tragedy, we should feel very positive about the potential of the human animal for nobility, and the sacrifice of the protagonist it is often that which helps us to cleanse our selves of dire feelings. At the end of the tragedy, we achieve catharsis. The emanative thing that Miller involves in his own tragedies is to blend realism and expressionism together in a technique called subjective realism whenever the actual, chips into the past timeline. In addition to this, Miller orchestrates the music of the flute to connote pastoral harmony, amidst other devices. The characters are dressed in attire, used to express humour and the lighting has a gold, soft hue to it. This infiltration of his dramaturgy seems to release a realistic representation of life in the play throughout. By utilizing such devices, Miller wants to convey, more efficiently, the way people actually think. In doing so, he is able to take us into the past, in the same way Willy Loman moves back into this age in time. As humans, we are very fluid. In view of the fact that we have memory, we can look into the distant future. We tend to, in the most time, live in the past and anticipate the future whilst dragging the past burden with us. The past always remains, and so we are a part of it. Throughout his existence, Loman carries a strained guilt with him due to a very traumatic experience, which came about eighteen years ago. By so doing, he is barred from accepting certain activities, and so his operation is affected as a human being. Instead, Loman should put that memory to decent use, and by not doing so tragedy is once again insinuated as being the centrepiece of the play, as of course it proves to be in the closing scenes of the play. A brief synopsis of tragedy would be to use its cycle of events to change the world for the better, and the way human past interacts with the human present to build the future. In effect, we can travel to any time in the past within a second or two by one recessive sense. By using light and music, Miller achieves this, and shows us how the past, has never passed. To conclude, from his finely crafted essays, we become exposed to what a tragedy really is in its greatest being. We, as humans, thrive on accomplishing the memorabilia recognised as dreams, and when the path leading to it is barraged, we commit almost any feat in order to reach it. The tragedy, eternally undergoing evolution, is when we do commit, and do not face consequences for the deeds, in our lives or thereafter. As human beings, we are perverse, and try to distinguish ourselves from the animal kingdom, however due to our surreal nature, as with primates, our decree in society is what drives us to commit, indispensably, the things we would otherwise fear. Mohammed Lukman Ahmed 1111 11 SMO Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Arthur Miller section.

The effects of aids on society

The effects of aids on society Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, today am privileged to have this precious moment with you to discuss about the epidemic that has threatened to wipe away the youthful generation of African Americans. By the nature of ethnicity, the black community in United States is having a heavy burden due to the effects of the disease. Statistical results shows that by the end of 2007, nearly half (46%) of the infected were members of the black community. In the year 2006, the blacks accounted about 45 % of the new infections in fifty states as well as District of Columbia. It is very sad to find out that up to now many members of the black community are still losing their lives in a disease that can be easily controlled. It is estimated that 230,000 blacks in U.S. have lost their lives as a result of AIDS. These deaths represent a 40% of all the deaths. Statistics also show that about one million people live with the virus in America today with half of them coming from the black community. To you members of the panel do you believe on the statistical reports that indicate African American citizens contributing to 40% of HIV AIDS epidemic deaths? As a racial group, the blacks represent only 13% of the countrys total population. Estimations indicate that black males are exposed to the risk of being infected with I person in every six likely to be infected with the virus. For females, 1 out of every 30 of them is highly exposed than white males. Washington D.C has the countrys highest HIV prevalence with  ¾ of its infected population coming from the black community. Ladies and gentlemen, reports from the National HIV/AIDS Strategy African American makes up the biggest part of the HIV cases across many infected groups. These groups include heterosexuals, homosexuals, women, infants and drug users. Before we embark in the journey of fighting the epidemic in the community, we need to ask ourselves why members of the black community are disproportionately infected by the virus and how do they view the disease. According to you members of the panel, what do you think is the reason behind this disproportionate infection of blacks? I would also like you the members of the panel to figure out question that demands our attention is to try and figure out strategies being taken to mitigate the number of cases being highlighted in clinics and other health institutions across the country. As facilitators what do you think are the necessary strategies needed to be undertaken to control the spread? First and foremost, I would like to begin the discussion by looking at the first cases of the disease among the blacks. The epidemic first came into the public limelight in early 1980s. At first, the epidemic affected mainly the gay male population and drug users who used intravenous methods to inject drugs into their bodies. In the year 1983, the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) came out with the evidence of the first two cases of HIV in women. The two ladies acquired the virus through sexual intercourse with a drug user who used intravenous method to inject the drugs into his body. One of the ladies was of a Latin origin while her counterpart was a black. Since then, the disease started spreading at a high rate among the members of the black community. Women especially, were affected and five years later, the blacks accounted for 50 percent of all the AIDS cases in America. Im afraid to say that currently, sixty percent of women infected with the virus come from the black community (http://www.avert.org/hiv-african-americans.htm). Earlier on, a bigger problem was the reflection of the epidemic by the American media as a disease typical to white gay men. The blacks were provided with few reasons to believe that the disease could also affect them, despite the large portion of the early cases in bisexual and gay community coming from the black men. From the outset, black American heterosexual children and adults were mainly infected by white heterosexuals. From your perspective, do you blacks are at a higher risk than the whites? Im delighted to inform you that the first group to confront the epidemic through the enlightenment of the members of the black community was the San Franciscan Gay community or Black and White Men Together (BWMT). This movement was significant not only for counting Reggie Williams as one of its followers, but also gave rise to an AIDS organization. I personally would like to salute Williams as one of the first gay black activist who worked for many years to deal with deaths and enlightened homosexual members of the black community. Do you think Williams contribution to addressing the disease had significant impacts on the fight against the disease? The lobby became successful and ultimately led to provision of first ever donation by CDC to prevent the spread of the disease among the black gay community in the year 1998. The concern of the AIDS epidemic among the blacks in 1980s and 1990s was also raised by various highly influential members of the community who were infected with the disease or lost a friend or family members through the diseased. My salutation also goes to Max Robinson, the first black American news anchor. Max openly admitted that he was positive just before he died in 1988. Later on Arthur Ashe died of the same ailment in 1993 with rapper Eazy-E beaming another victim in 1995. May be the most influential AIDS victim of black origin who is still alive today is the basket ball player Ervin Johnson. He admitted that he was positive in 199. His assertion that any one can contract the disease showed a significant understanding that the AIDS epidemic was not just a disease typical to gays. Other individuals who have contributed in raising the profile in the black community include Jesse Jackson who became another famous black man to join other well known blacks in addressing the epidemic. The main risk factor among the blacks is sexual transmission. Having unprotected sex is the major likely cause of the disease. 43 % of the blacks living with the disease got the virus through male to male sexual intercourse. A research conducted showed that national HIV/AIDS policy showed that half of the black gay males and bisexuals in five well known cities in United States of America being HIV positive. A major study undertaken in 21 cities concluded that almost 1/3 of the black MSM had the AIDS virus. Among this category, the youth are mainly affected. In 2006, many black people in America who had sex with other men were infected with the disease. Also, the disease among this group has increased rapidly. Since 2001 and 2006, yearly HIV diagnoses among the African American MSM aged 13 and 24 went up by 93 % compared to twelve percent among the blacks of all ages. How many of you members of the panel agree with me that sexual intercourse is the leading cause of high rate of spread of the epidemic among the blacks? Many theories have been however proposed regarding the vulnerability of the young black men to the disease through the activities of homosexuality, but none is actually decisive. One theory is the high prevalence of the disease among the many of the members of the community. The risk is enhanced in young men who partner with their older male counterparts since older MSM appear to have had a lot of sexual exposure and increasing the risk of contracting the disease. Young African American MSM is also less likely to be informed about their status. This translates into less likelihood for them to take the necessary steps to stop the transmission of the disease. However, other studies have shown that young black take part in risky affairs to a greater degree than young Latin or White males. Also, black women are mainly disproportionately exposed to the disease, with the likely transmission means being heterosexual sexual practices. Eighty five percent of the black women living with HIV virus were exposed to the virus by through this means and make up nearly 50 % of the countrys female population with the disease. Back men living with the virus makes up 22% and were infected through heterosexual means. More than 2/3 of infected men were exposed in this manner to the disease (.http://www.avert.org/hiv-african-americans.htm). There are a lot of economic as well as social factors that come as a result of high levels of sexual HIV infections in the black community. However, higher phases of STDs in this group are also shaped by economic and social factors hence facilitating sexual transmission of the virus. The black Americans have eight times the number the level of Chlamydia, and eighteen times the level of gonorrhea compared to Whites. An evaluation by United States Centre for Disease and Prevention (CDC) discovered that nearly half (48%) of black females and about forty percent of African American men got infected by genital herpes in the country compared to 21% of females and 11.5%of men generally. Can anyone of you tell me the possible ways of reducing poverty in our society? Drug use is one of the most likely causes of AIDS epidemic among the members of the black community. In the year 2008, use of drugs was found to contribute a significant portion of all AIDS diagnoses among the blacks. Many black men and women living with the disease were infected through drug injection compared to those of any other race or ethnic group. Blacks injecting drugs have a likelihood of acquiring the in a higher rate and do not live longer after the diagnosis. Poverty also is another main factor that leads to infection of the virus among the black Americans. Poverty forces youths to drop out of school, stopping them from getting good jobs and good employment. Poverty also makes youths to lose a sense of value or self worth and attracted to illegal or socially ill habits that can expose them to the disease. Poverty symptoms also influence sexual patterns that enhance the spread of the disease. There is therefore need to pay a lot of attention to both economic and social perspectives in which the disease thrive. One person who has initiated such an idea is the current president Barack Obama. The president in his presidential crusade literature promised to tackle the poverty scourge where the victims of the disease proliferate. It is a fact that about  ¼ of the black American families lives in deplorable conditions, with a higher poverty rate for both single male headed and female headed homes making up to 30 and 40 percent respectively. A focus group that involved the blacks living in North Carolina showed that there is a connection between participants social environment and sexual connections within the community. These factors also included institutional stigmatization that lead to lack of employment possibilities and lack of capacity to obtain mortgage, lack of recreation and high imprisonment rates. Has any one of you experienced any form of stigma in the work place? The common believe among the blacks is that the government is not doing its mandate to address the need of protecting them from the epidemic. By estimation, half of the CDC budget is aimed at fighting the spread of the disease among the blacks. It is debated that directing the whole CDCs budget to the epidemic in the black community is not enough. What needs to be improved therefore is the size of the budget itself. For the financial year 2009, $ 1.6 billion was required to prevent the spread of the virus. This reflected a far excess budget than $753 million allocated for the year 2008 (.http://www.avert.org/hiv-african-americans.htm). Finally, ladies and gentle men, I would like to conclude my speech by saying that any sustained and effective attempt to tackle AIDS in United States of America should have positive results for the African American citizens as they make up such a large percentage of the overall infections. The CDCs consideration of and study of entrenched social aspects, like poverty which are the main contributors to the current HIV infection rates, is positive stride and should be seen in all concrete acts taken to alter the trend of HIV infection in the African American community.

Coeducation at Haverford :: School Papers

Haverford College did not begin as the institution that it is today. A group of concerned Quakers constructed the secondary school on the premise that it would provide a fine education for Quaker young men. On its founding day in 1833, the Haverford School's notion of a "liberal and guarded education for Quaker boys" became a reality. Jumping forward in time to 1870, a decisive change was on the horizon: the faculty and students had voted to go coed. However, the Board of Managers did not concede and Haverford remained single sex for over a century after the students and faculty had spoken. It wasn't until 1980 that a freshmen class comprised of both men and women entered Haverford. Yet it is the decade prior to 1980 that is the topic of this paper. The series of about 10 years before a Haverford female student would unpack her belongings in her room to settle down for four years of an intense and demanding education, both in and out of the classroom, was a time of much reevaluation and consideration on the part of the students, administration, and faculty. The 70's were vibrant and passionate years in the context of the debate over coeducation as students, faculty, and administrators voiced their opinions often in Haverford and Bryn Mawr's weekly newspaper, The News, forums, interviews, formal discussions, reports, and Collections (school wide meetings) on both Bryn Mawr's and Haverford's campus. The essence of the coeducational debate fell between two camps. One side argued that continued cooperation with Bryn Mawr was the best choice for both schools. The other said that it was time for Haverford to prevent its identity from merging with Bryn Mawr's and to step out on its own as a coed institution. The battle lines were drawn and the debate continued with zeal for most of the decade. Economics played an important role in the debate. Haverford's President John Coleman saw that Haverford's financial state was in jeopardy if it did not expand in size. He also saw that by prohibiting 50% of the population in an expansion would decrease the caliber of students at Haverford. Bryn Mawr's president Wofford felt passionately that the fate of Bryn Mawr rested on the decision of Haverford. His concerns were exacerbated by the seemingly coercive patterns Haverford's Board of Managers set by claiming to let the issue of coeducation rest but then by addressing the possibility again each year.

Space

Do aliens really exist? It could be true or false. Everybody knows that space is a big universe, full with many unknown cre ¤ture and objects that people have never seen before. In order to gain more knowledge about space, scientists spend a lot of money on research. The money we spend on space exploration should be giving people many beneficial factors in return, but it only gives people problems to solve. Searching for unrealistic things can be a real waste of time. The government should concentrate on things that are more important and less dangerous than space xploration.Space exploration is not important and dangerous because the humans can damages the original form of space, giving people new diseases, and wasting important money. After people change the order of space, it can never be undone again. The natural form of the space will be gone forever. That is why exploring space is not a good decision. â€Å"Weather mistreatment or suffer ever demand we may place on it† (Source E). Humans try to expand their presence into space like on Earth. The human presence caused extinction, unusual weather and soil erosion.These kind of results may happen in space too if human presence were to expand on space. But if the people reverent the way space is and leave the planets alone where we found them then nothing will worsen. The scientists that want to know more about space may be willing to do any necessary steps to get the information they wanted. New, living organism is found on earth. The astronauts that went to space, may have brought new diseases to Earth. These infectious germs may cause millions of death. â€Å"The hazard that some infectious extraterrestrial germ might be riding with hem† (Source F).Space is filled with living organism that people never knew it ever existed. â€Å"Because extraterrestrial life may exist, planetary exploration could bring trouble if people are not careful enough† (Source F). Even though the scientists had sterilized the hardware that used in spaced and the samples that astronauts got from there, everybody should still be cautious about it. Everyone should pay attention on how the taxpayers' money been spend. â€Å"All others, $0. 06†¦.. including†¦.. space and technology' (Source F) A part of the taxpayers oney was spent on space exploration, which is a total waste of money.The money that had been waste on space exploration could be spent on things that could benefit the people and earth. For example, the money could be spending on Medicare programs. Many people need Medicare to cover their hospital fee. Since many people in the world need medicine to cure their illness. Another choice could be, investing the money into the NIH (National Institutes of Health). â€Å"NIH scientists investigate ways to prevent disease as well as the cause, treatments, and even cures for common and are disease† (Source D) Health is more important than space. Don't tell me about all the spin-off Technology†¦.. Leave the money here on Earth. † (Source H). The government has more important things to focus on, other than space exploration. Investing into space exploration is not a good choice. Since space is involved with problems that we can never solve or maybe it will causes a huge ruckus space. Space is full of disastrous things and surprise that you can never imagine that it ever exists. If alien really do exist it is not as important/interesting as what happening on Earth.

Anxiety of High School Students Essay

1.1Introduction Anxiety is a general term for several disorders that cause nervousness, fear, apprehension, and worrying. These disorders affect how we feel and behave, and they can manifest real physical symptoms. Mild anxiety is vague and unsettling, while severe anxiety can be extremely debilitating, having a serious impact on daily life. People often experience a general state of worry or fear before confronting something challenging such as a test, examination, recital, or interview. These feelings are easily justified and considered normal. Anxiety is considered a problem when symptoms interfere with a person’s ability to sleep or otherwise function. Anxiety occurs when a reaction is out of proportion with what might be normally expected in a situation. Anxiety disorders can be classified into several more specific types. The most common are briefly described below. †¢Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is a chronic disorder characterized by excessive, long-lasting anxiety and worry about nonspecific life events, objects, and situations. GAD sufferers often feel afraid and worry about health, money, family, work, or school, but they have trouble both identifying the specific fear and controlling the worries. Their fear is usually unrealistic or out of proportion with what may be expected in their situation. Sufferers expect failure and disaster to the point that it interferes with daily functions like work, school, social activities, and relationships. †¢Panic Disorder is a type of anxiety characterized by brief or sudden attacks of intense terror and apprehension that leads to shaking, confusion, dizziness, nausea, and difficulty breathing. Panic attacks tend to arise abruptly and peak after 10 minutes, but they then may last for hours. Panic disorders usually occur after frightening experiences or prolonged stress, but they can be spontaneous as well. A panic attack may lead an individual to be acutely aware of any change in normal body function, interpreting it as a life threatening illness – hypervigiliance followed by hypochondriasis. In addition, panic attacks lead a sufferer to expect future attacks, which may cause drastic behavioral changes in order to avoid these attacks. †¢A Phobia is an irrational fear and avoidance of an object or situation. Phobias are different from generalized anxiety disorders because a phobia has a fear  response identified with a specific cause. The fear may be acknowledged as irrational or unnecessary, but the person is still unable to control the anxiety that results. Stimuli for phobia may be as varied as situations, animals, or everyday objects. Look more: problem cause solution speech outline essay For example, agoraphobia occurs when one avoids a place or situation to avoid an anxiety or panic attack. Agoraphobics will situate themselves so that escape will not be difficult or embarrassing, and they will change their behavior to reduce anxiety about being able to escape. †¢Social Anxiety Disorder is a type of social phobia characterized by a fear of being negatively judged by others or a fear of public embarrassment due to impulsive actions. This includes feelings such as stage fright, a fear of intimacy, and a fear of humiliation. This disorder can cause people to avoid public situations and human contact to the point that normal life is rendered impossible. †¢Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder characterized by thoughts or actions that are repetitive, distressing, and intrusive. OCD suffers usually know that their compulsions are unreasonable or irrational, but they serve to alleviate their anxiety. Often, the logic of someone with OCD will appear superstitious, such as an insistence in walking in a certain pattern. OCD sufferers may obsessively clean personal items or hands or constantly check locks, stoves, or light switches. †¢Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is anxiety that results from previous trauma such as military combat, rape, hostage situations, or a serious accident. PTSD often leads to flashbacks and behavioral changes in order to avoid certain stimuli. †¢Separation Anxiety Disorder is characterized by high levels of anxiety when separated from a person or place that provides feelings of security or safety. Sometimes separation results in panic, and it is considered a disorder when the response is excessive or inappropriate. 1.2 Background of the Study Anxiety is an unpleasant emotion experienced as dread, scare, alarm, fright, trepidation, worry, and uneasiness, which triggers mechanism for self-regulation strategies that facilitate performance (Schultz and Davis, 2000). Minimal amount of anxiety can mobilize human beings to respond rapidly and efficiently, but excessive amount of anxiety may foster poor response and sometimes inhibit response (Simpson et al., 1995). The quantity  of anxiety experienced by the learner and the negative effects of it on their academic achievement are one of the major reasons for educators to be concerned about (Price 1991, and Clement 1997). Anxiety is a common symptom found in different population especially among students. Researchers have focused on the role of anxiety in their attempt to understand these difficulties. Anxiety difficulties in certain students may be related to motivational orientation and the lack of effective study skills and test-taking skills. These students may not utilize cognitive, metacognitive, and self-regulated learning strategies effectively. Therefore, for these students, anxiety becomes an issue during course instructions and academic performance suffers. Educators are perceived to have enormous task and responsibility in helping the students reach their career goals. They play a very important role in making the learners realize their full potentials by helping them overcome the various obstacles they encounter in the process. The experience of anxiety seems to be inescapable in the phenomenological-existential world of these learners. Hence, an imperative need is felt by the researchers to further investigate this problem about anxiety. The present study is relegated to the high school students in a public Secondary Education Institution in Manila. The respondents chosen for the study were from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines Laboratory High School. Curriculum on this institution imposes a student to strive for academic excellence because of high standards and policies for grades. The schedule for these students is very demanding and requires attendance in class, laboratory work, six days a week along with daily homework. Frequent testing of students is necessary throughout the program for evaluation of progress in mastering content. Students verbalize and exhibit a great deal of anxiety regarding examinations, practicum, projects and other requirements. This study on the anxiety of high school students of Polytechnic University of the Philippines Laboratory High School is conducted to provide baseline data for the guidance and counseling department to plan and map relevant  intervention programs to address this specific concern of the recipient students. The findings gathered by this study can be of great help to the students, educators, parents, and the school administrators of the institution in arriving at solutions to the problem of anxiety among learners. 1.3 Theoretical Framework This study is anchored on the theory of Sigmund Freud (Freud, as cited by Fiest & Fiest, 7th Edition). He emphasized that anxiety is a felt, affective, unpleasant state accompanied by a physical sensation that warns the person against impending danger. The unpleasantness is often vague and hard to pinpoint but the anxiety itself is always felt. In one point of hid theory, he indicated that anxiety is a signal from the ego about a real (existing) or potential danger (Theories of Anxiety, Strongman, 1995). This study is also concerned o how anxiety relate to physical state of the students. In connection with this, researchers shall explore the physiological and neurological theories of anxiety. They account for anxiety as involving particular parts of The Central Nervous System, with addition of general arousal and their overt effect on the body, like perspiration and fast heart beat. According to the biological theory, the GABA system is responsible for the motivation of fear and anxi ety. GABA is known as Gamma-Amino Butyric Acid, it is a naturally occurring transmitter inhibitor. It is a substance in the body which helps us to maintain an optimal flow of stimulation or information thereby reducing the flow of neural transmission. There are GABA receptor sites which the GABA will bind and produce the effects mentioned previously. The ability to bind is not fixed, and is dependent on the presence of benzodiapines. This benzodiapines are anti-anxiety drugs such as Valium, Librium, and Alprazolam, which help regulate neural transmissions. The body naturally produces this chemical, but it has not yet been isolated. When the benzodiapines bind to the sites, it increases the ability of GABA to bind to its own receptor sites (Tallman et al., 1980). The GABA receptors then trigger the opening of Chloride channels which leads to a decrease in the firing rate of critical neurons in many parts of the Central Nervous System. Those who experience more anxiety than others (high level of anxiety), fail to produce or release  benzodiapines which are necessary for the amount of GABA needed to regulate neural transmission. This study wants to determine the level of state anxiety, the level of trait anxiety and the student’s perception of situational threat. State anxiety, like kinetic energy, refers to palpable reaction or process taking place at given time and level of intensity (Batoc, 2011). Its intensity is expected to be in high in circumstances perceived as a threatening and low in non-stressful situations. While trait anxiety, like potential energy, refers to individual differences in reactions (Batoc, 2011). It implies differences between people in the disposition to respond to stressful situations with varying amounts of state anxiety (Spielberg, 1982). The State-Trait Anxiety Theory which was developed by Spielberg gives the foundation for identifying the different psychological construct properties of state anxiety and trait anxiety, and for categorizing the different variables in studying anxiety. He postulated the State and Trait Anxiety are analogous in certain respect to kinetic and potential energy (Spielberg. 1985). While in Cognitive Perspective, loss of control and inability to make a coping response are two main focuses. Loss of control refers to a situation when there are unpredictable or uncontrollable events in one’s life which lead to anxiety and/or depression. As a result, feelings of helplessness develop. The unpredictability which may be associated with a task may cause anxiety (Seligman, 1975). The inability or perceived inability to make an adaptive response to a threatening event or the fact or perception that no such response is available will lead to feelings of anxiety. Since anxiety is very ambiguous, it is the key which prevents the elaboration of clear action patterns to handle the situation effectively (Lazarus, 1991).

Case Study: Murder by Two Colleges Students Essay

As an intellectual game, two male college students, ages 18 and 19, attempt to commit the â€Å"perfect crime† by kidnapping a young boy and demanding ransom from his parents. They receive the ransom money but kill the boy anyway. Later, they are caught, tried and convicted of murder and kidnapping with intent to do bodily harm. Their defense attorney, a brilliant lawyer, successfully argues against the death penalty and both men are sent to prison for life. After about five years, one of the men is killed in a fight, but the other completes his college education while still in prison and teaches other convicts English. He also volunteers for medical experiments, allowing himself to be injected with malaria germs in order to test new drugs. A model prisoner, he causes no trouble throughout his entire prison term. After about 30 years, he is paroled, whereupon he goes to a different country and continues to teach English. Two years later he dies of natural causes. Should this man have been subjected to capital punishment? Why or why not Theories that will be applied: 1. Divine Command Theory 2. Virtue Ethics 3. Utilitarianism Capital punishment has been and will always be a widely debated topic. The biggest question that surrounds capital punishment would be is it morally right or is it morally wrong? There are many arguments for and against capital punishment. Is a capital punishment really a deterent as some would say? I will apply and test three theories to the case mentioned above to see if capital punishment is the most appropriate solution or not. First I will examine the divine command theory and see how it applies to the case mentioned above. In all fairness I must say that in the case mentioned above the divine command theory is strongly contradicting itself. How is that possible? Well let us start by saying that the divine command theory uses Gods commandments to measure whether something is morally right or wrong. How is that contradicting? Speaking in the case of most major religions God asks us to punish those who commit intentional murder by death. At the same time God asks us to be forgiving. Even with this major contradiction we can safely say that the divine command theory would revoke the capital  punishment in the case mentioned above. Such a controversial conclusion can be easily proved. We can also safely say that forgiveness outweighs punishment in the eyes of God. We all know that God is the most forgiving and the most merciful. How do we know that? Lets take any human being as an example. There is no doubt that there is no human being in the world without sin. If God really preferred to punish us rather than forgive us for every sin we make then life would be a little different. Instead God waits for us and gives us a chance to repent so he can forgive us. Therefore in the case above it is clear for us all to see that the individual mentioned in the case above has committed to repentance and most importantly he is not the same man who entered the first time into prison. In conclusion the divine command theory would demand us to forgive the man and give him a chance after all that time he served in prison Now we come to the theory of virtue ethics. Without any argument or hesitation we can say that virtue ethics rejects capital punishment in all of its forms. Virtue ethics instead demands for a moderate solution. It considers capital punishment to be cruel and counter productive. Virtue ethics works towards making someone a better person and reinstate in them true and honorable virtues. How are you going to that if someone is dead? Some might say that there is a long time before a death sentence is carried out and there is enough time for that person to change and try to be a better person. Well that is definitely not the case here. That is similar to saying to a student we are going to let you in to college but when you are done we are not going to give you a college degree. You are telling him that he can work hard but he cannot harvest his fruit. No Matter how good we may try to make it sound it is extremely unreasonable to expect someone who is sentenced to death to commit to change without giving them some sort of hope. On the other hand when there is a little hope, a little light at the end of the tunnel, then we can say that we have done our part in the eyes of the virtue ethicist. Last but not least we come to utilitarianism. First we must understand utilitarian’s argue for the best possible outcome or the solution that would promote the greatest happiness and least suffering. In the scenario above utilitarian’s would also reject the death sentence. We can simply start off by asking how do two deaths or three deaths create more happiness? It is just unreasonable. There are other ways of punishment one can use for the crime committed above other than  capital punishment that are greater promoters than the death sentence would ever b e. To promote the greatest happiness in the scenario above is to give the inmate a chance to reform and repent and have a good influence or impact on society. In the balance that will always outweigh capital punishment. In my opinion, capital punishment is the best possible outcome for the scenario mentioned above. First let me start by saying that the punishment should fit the crime. The person mentioned above committed the most extreme crime known to man and therefore deserves a punishment equal in magnitude. Second I will without hesitation state that everyone fears death. Being so the case then capital punishment would be the best deterrent and preventative of crime man can employ. Then I will go on to mention that by committing intentional murder one has stepped outside the line that divides us from animals, there for no longer deserves to live among us. Then let us examine the case of the life sentence. It is very evident that one who is sentenced to life in prison has nothing to loose and is more likely to commit more crimes even inside prison. Summarizing all this up I stand by position as being a advocate for capital punishment in the case mentioned above and any other there is to come.

Spheres in Scarlet Letter Essay - 1627 Words

It was once said that â€Å"the only living societies are those which are animated by inequality and injustice.† A man named Paul Claudel wrote this in his work, Conversations dans le Loir-et-Cher, and he criticizes the ability to have a functional society. Societies are meant to organize the values of people into a system with uniform laws and expectations; however, societies can never fully achieve this. Claudel only sees societies with dysfunctional characteristics like inequality and injustice. There are always exceptions to the social order because all people are individuals with different life experiences that help define who they are. Nathaniel Hawthorne also criticizes the Utopian ideals that societies often hold in his novel, The†¦show more content†¦This furthers the idea that Hester is completely ostracized from society because even those that are naà ¯ve of the letter’s meaning will not accept her. Hawthorne illustrates the isolation Hester experie nces, as a result of wearing the scarlet letter, with the symbol of the sphere. Along with the negative aspects of isolation, Hester realizes that being in her own sphere takes away many societal pressures to conform to a set of beliefs. When Hester starts to come back in contact with society, she still feels as if she does not belong. Hester feels that all contact she has with others demonstrates that she is â€Å"as much alone as if she inhabit[s] another sphere† (74). Even though she is physically in contact with others, Hester is still alone. She no longer has to conform to the beliefs of her Puritan town because she â€Å"communicate[s] with the common nature† in different ways than â€Å"the rest of human kind† (74). Because she is isolated, Hester â€Å"[stands] apart from [society’s] moral interests, yet close beside them,† meaning she can take a step back to look at the views of the majority, but she has the option to make her own choices (74). Even though she feels separated from society, Hester can still feel the influence of its beliefs. This idea is also illustrated with the location of Hester’sShow MoreRelatedThe Gender Of The Scarlet Letter888 Words   |  4 PagesGender Spheres in Puritan Society and Their Importance in the Scarlet Letter Throughout the history of the last few centuries, an ongoing conflict in society has been the roles of the public and private spheres. The first of these has been mainly represented by men, taking on the positions of power and dominance, working outside of the home. The latter however was primarily controlled by their female counterparts; their positions as wives and mothers being all that mattered. 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She is punished for committing her sin by have the letter â€Å"A† in scarlet sewn onto her bosom, The â€Å"A† standing for adultery and is scarlet, representing sex, sin and, evil. Hesters husband has mysteriously never arrived to the colony, assumed to be at the bottom of the seaRead More The Lasting Effect of Sin and Guilt on Hester and Dimmesdale1451 Words   |  6 PagesWithout an honorable reputation a person is not worthy of respect from others in their society. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter, the struggle to shake off the past is an underlying theme throughout the novel. Characters in this novel go through their lives struggling with trying to cope with the guilt and shame associated with actions that lost them their honorable reputa tion. 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In the strict town, resident Hester Prynne stands upon a scaffold with a baby and a Scarlet Letter upon her bosom, both tokens of her sin. The intricate letter â€Å"A† stands for her very sin of adultery which lead to the birth of the child in her arms. The townspeople cannot help but stare at symbol of imperfection, but they cannot stare at whatRead MoreSymbolism in The Scarlet Letter Essay1252 Words   |  6 Pagesimage, the reader can visualize the concept more concretely. The old expression, â€Å"a picture is worth a thousand words,† applies to symbolism as the author creates a visual representation of ideas. The use of symbolism in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter helps to illuminate the overall meaning of the work. At the beginning of the book, the reader is introduced to a dark and gloomy town that had first built a prison and a cemetery. Amidst the depressing landscape, is a beautiful rosebush. â€Å"But

Definition of Dramaturgical Perspective

When William Shakespeare declared All the worlds a stage and all the men and women merely  players, he may have been on to something. The dramaturgical perspective was developed primarily by Erving Goffman, who used a theatrical metaphor of stage, actors, and audience to observe and analyze the intricacies of social interaction. From this perspective, the self is made up of the various parts that people play, and a key goal of social actors is to present their various selves in ways that create and sustain particular impressions to their different audiences. This perspective isnt meant to analyze the cause of behavior just its context.   Impression Management Dramaturgical perspective is sometimes called impression management because part of playing a role for others is to control the impression they have of you. Each persons performance has a specific goal in mind. This is true no matter what stage the person or actor is on at any given time. Each actor prepares for their roles. Stages   The dramaturgical perspective assumes that our personalities are not static but change to suit the situation we are in. Goffman applied the language of the theater to this sociological perspective in order for it to be more easily understood. An important example of this is the concept of front and back stage when it comes to personality. Front stage refers to actions that are observed by others. An actor on a stage is playing a certain role and expected to act in a certain way but backstage the actor becomes someone else. An example of a front stage would be the difference between how one would behave in a business meeting versus how one behaves at home with family. When Goffman refers to backstage means is how people act when they are relaxed or unobserved.   Goffman uses the term off stage or outside to mean situations where the actor is, or assume their actions are, unobserved. A moment alone would be considered outside.   Applying the Perspective The study of social justice movements is a good place to apply the dramaturgical perspective. People generally have somewhat defined roles and there is a central goal. There are clear protagonist and antagonist roles in all social justice movements. Characters further their plot. There is a clear difference between the front and backstage. Many customer service roles share similarities to social justice moments. People are all working within defined roles to complete  a task. The perspective can be applied to how groups like activists and hospitality employees. Criticism of Dramaturgical Perspective   Some have argued that the Dramaturgical perspective should only be applied to institutions rather than individuals. The perspective wasnt tested on individuals and some feel that testing must be done before the perspective  can be applied.   Others feel the perspective lacks merit because it doesnt further sociologies goal of understanding behavior. Its seen as more of a description of interaction than an explanation of it.