Essay Example on Cultural Theory

Essay Example on Cultural Theory Question 1 This argument is rather pedestrian, especially considering that the modern society is based on co-existence. Taking the United States as an example, multi-cultural societies are inevitable in the contemporary world, where globalization is the force behind the destiny of the human race. Race should not be the determining factor as far as what one will do is concerned. On the contrary, all races should be treated equally with such doctrines as the equal employment opportunity being the guiding principles. The origins of this person’s logic could be the basic reasoning of a person in a society with class conflict, with its people divided along the lines of race. Worth mentioning is the actuality that there is faulty logic. Faulty logic is a common phenomenon, especially where the person forwarding an argument does so subjectively, without making considerations regarding what the objective truth ought to be. For instance, putting more money into police enforcement is less likely t o be the solution to broad social problems rooted in culture. Question 2 The dialogue between the processes of production and the activities of consumption is clearly visible in a number of social explanations. Economists as well as social scientists explain the connection through different theories and concepts. Economists explain the way demand influences supply. Apparently, the demand side of the equation is defined by the consumption process. Since such demand shapes supply, it implies that the consumption activities affect the production process so as to match the quality and features desired by the consumption activities. Speaking of such processes, Disney is one of the companies that can be used in illustrating the theory. Being in the media industry, an industry prominently cited by Marx, Disney’s production is shaped by the consumption culture that has been created in and by the viewers. While the consumers do not have the power to directly alter the processes, they indirectly have significant influence. A consumer can disarticulate this b y understanding that the producers such as the media are the stakeholders that set the pace by eliminating some features and content, hence limiting the choices availed to the consumer. For instance, through media ethics, the industry determines that which is suitable for viewing. Question 3 In her article titled Nurturing Brand Loyalty, Meyer conveys very important lessons on the consumption production cycle. Opening with the Ford Motors Co. marketing efforts, Meyer notes that the production consumption cycle is based on customer loyalty, a concept that companies have sought to nurture in children at the tender pre-school age. In my view, the article tends to suggest that the production-consumption cycle is based on purely psychological phenomenon. The psychology in this article is seen in the presumption that children will grow up knowing that the brand they are exposed to as kids is the best brand. The article is substantially strong, especially considering that it draws from the studies carried out by the author, and the direct quotes employed to add realism to the discussion. The psychological aspect of the production consumption cycle is explained by the quote, they have more market potential than the older kids they have all their purchases and influence on paren tal purchases ahead of them.† My initial reaction to the information in the article is considerably comparable to that of Psychologist Susan Linn, who thinks that the advertisements directed at pre-school children are not ethically justifiable because such kids’ free will is curtailed by the fact that, at such a vulnerable age, they believe in what they see. As such, they may end up consuming things that they could not, otherwise, have consumed in the absence of such interference. If I were to teach young people on how to identify such practices, I would adopt different approaches; first I would ask them to question the sustainable intention of the information. For instance, it is clear that the long term goal of the Ford efforts is to have the children grow up knowing that Ford is the brand of choice in the automobile industry. Question 4 Perhaps the most notable simulacra I have encountered are the creatures in the horror movies. Apparently, the creatures, usually zombies and vampires are not real; perhaps no such things exist in the real world, even. What actually happens is the distortion of the faces and bodies of human beings to bring out a scary picture that will attain the essence of the movie – horror. While these creatures are certainly not real, they engage my senses so deeply that I actually get terrified by what I see. While it may not make sense that such agency can affect a reasonable human being, the representation acts as the real thing, and forces us to associate what we see with reality. Another simulacrum I have encountered in life is the use of statues. I have come across statues of prominent personalities from history. While I have certainly never met the real people in person, getting close enough to such statues gives me a feeling that I have actually met the people. Question 5 While vertical thinking creates the ideal employee, lateral thinkers are the most effective innovators as they come up with new ways of doing things, by trying to be as open minded as possible. The differences between the vertical and horizontal thinking are rooted in the fact that the vertical thinkers always tend to follow rules and structures, hence, will always get the task done to expectations. Vertical thinkers are likeable students. Lateral thinking refers to a tactic of solving problems that gets the thinker looking outside the box, and seeking to come up with new ways. Lateral thinkers make many mistakes, and ask many questions in class. Such thinkers are not likeable students. For agency purposes, vertical thinkers are the most preferable as they tend to execute the instruction of the principal to the letter. Question 6 According to Hall, there is a close connection between doing cultural work and studying theories related to such work. This, according to Hall means that the dynamic nature of culture extends to the intellectual endeavors of the institutions that have been put in place to address all changes and developments in social science. For this reasons, Hall thinks that we cannot shy away from cultural theory. This way, we must get directly implicated. Question 7 The public service announcements were based on the negative aspects of tobacco and were designed to discourage the smoking of cigarettes. Apparently, the PSA was not adequately effective because it was vague. Saying that tobacco has different implications or effects on the body of the consumer are rather vague as the implication is that there could be some positive aspects. Perhaps the main reason why the PSA did not work as per the expectations is because the PSA was alongside the advertisement message that brought out the brand as a positive product. The researchers expected it to work because they linked the PSA with the horrible effects revealed by studies. Question 8 PSA are problematic because, despite their effectiveness, they have serious negative implications. Foremost, they derail the economy by discouraging the consumption of products that are no doubt the most notable contributors to the country’s tax base. Secondly, such PSA’s are problematic because they bear exaggerated information, and are not particular. Perhaps the most important thing to mention is the actuality that not all people get cancer from smoking, it therefore follows that the PSA have psychological adversities on the people using them. Additionally, PSA may not work if not accompanied by significant policy and such measures as higher taxation. Question 9 Typically, the capital will control the districts because, in actual fact, the capital and the districts are interdependent. As a matter of fact, the capital is associated with higher degree efficiency. For such efficiency to be attained, the districts must have an input to contribute to the capital. This way, the needs of the capital modify the activities of the districts hence controlling it. Signs are deployed as a symbol of control because they influence the mindset of the people in such a way that everybody with access to the sign will consider the sign to be some form of social control structures which are almost rules. The people from the districts are normalized by getting subjected to specific structures which are in line with vertical thinking. As such, their conducts are limited. The capital people are different from the people from the districts because the capital people are more of vertical thinkers because they are made to live by the structures put in place to boost e fficiency and coexistence. On the contrary, the district people are no controlled by the signs. Katniss subvert the order of the games through coming up with structural changes that limit lateral thinking. Such strict changes are related to the tactics and strategies as explained by Certeau’s tactics and strategies. Question 10 Born in 1960, I was brought up in the United States of America where I have schooled and developed in many aspects. In this short biography, I must mention that I am an African American who has seen the society go through changes over time. I have gained a deep understanding of various concepts in the socio-cultural spectrum. Notably, I must mention that I had a big picture that makes a lot of sense in today’s society and culture. I did foresee that drugs will become a primary menace in the society. Unfortunately for our country, this has become a reality. I experienced the Brain on Drugs campaign in 1987. The effectiveness it attained was good, but not enough to eliminate drugs. Today, my foresight makes a lot of sense. Question 11 While I may have o anecdote to share on Wahab’s crisis, it is critical to mention that it is no doubt one of the most notable concepts in cultural theory. Wahab’s crisis revolves around the fact that some identities are not distinctly distinguishable doe to certain overlaps that may occur. Wahab’s crisis can best be portrayed by the race issues in today’s multicultural society, where the definition of race takes different dimensions. Wahab’s crisis also happens when it comes to determining the native language of a child that is born in a society that is natively English but is biologically Asian, for instance.

Sinners In The Hands Of An Angry God” Was Famous Sermon

Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God† was famous sermon delivered by Johnathan Edwards in Enfield, Connecticut in 1741. â€Å"Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God† was a severe warning to the congregation that God will stand in judgment of their actions and that punishment would be incredibly harsh( ). However, after a closer examination, the meaning of this sermon is even deeper. Once a reader gains a clear understanding of the times and religious tendencies of the day, he or she will discover that â€Å"Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God† is a historically important document full of literary devices to persuade his parishioners. Johnathan Edwards was a fourth generation puritan minister, and an influential of puritan leader. During the initial†¦show more content†¦Edwards goes through and talks about this verse and how people are risking their lives by a walk on the slippery slope of sin. Secondly, Edwards makes ten points about religion, sin, and God. He discusses that man lives at the mercy of God and that in the end, it is God alone who decided who belong in heaven or deserves to go to hell for eternity. In the final and the longest part, Edwards speaks directly to the sinners in his congregation and beyond. He describes the fires and pain of Hell and uses metaphors to help encourage his points. He reminds them that they are all simply â€Å"sinners in the hands of an angry God.† Metaphors are used throughout the sermon creating imagery. In one example, Edwards a spider and a rock show how powerless human are in comparison to God. Edwards says that the human has as much of a chance of staying out of hell â€Å"as a spider’s web would have to stop a falling rock.† Edwards uses the spider web and rock as a metaphor to help paint a picture in the audience’s head so they could see how powerless they really were and how strong God really is. Another example of a metaphor is when Edwards compares God’s wrath to â€Å"the arrow made ready on a string.† Edwards was showing that God wrath is ready like an arrow on a string and could pierce a sinner’s heart in just a split second. Edwards continues using metaphors to describe God’s wrath. Edwards goes on to say that God’s wrath is likeShow MoreRelatedSinners in the Hands of an Angry God Essay972 Words   |  4 PagesOutline 1. Introduction a. Hook - â€Å"Unconverted men walk over the pit of hell on a rotten covering.† ( A quote from Jonathan Edwards’ â€Å"Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God†) b. Thesis – Jonathan Edwards’s sermon portrayed Puritans as sinners of their religion through the use of rhetorical strategies such as ethos, pathos, and logos. 2. Body Points c. Body 1 i. Topic Sentence - Ethos is referred to as the trustworthiness or credibility of the speaker and theirRead MoreSinners In The Hands Of An Angry God Analysis1034 Words   |  5 Pagesauthor Jonathan Edwards was most well known for his sermon, â€Å"Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God†, in which he vividly described the hell waiting for all sinners. Edwards used fear tactics to get listeners to abide with what he was preaching. Jonathan Edwards uses repetition and imagery to get his point across in â€Å"Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God†. The most common tool used by Edwards to frighten people into believing what he was saying was repetition. Jonathan Edwards was trying to tell hisRead MoreGod’s Unconditional Love vs. God’s Unending Anger Essay1181 Words   |  5 PagesEveryone must accept God as their savior or they will go to hell. This is a very familiar message that is preached by Christian religious leaders in places of worship around the world. As simple as this message may seem, the way it is delivered to the people makes all the difference in either turning them into believers, or scaring them away from religion altogether. John Winthrop and Jonathan Edwards were both religious leaders that lived centuries before the present time. They shared the sameRead MoreSinners in the Hands of an Angry God by Jonathan Edwards1780 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God† was written by theologian Jonathan Edwards and is considered to be one of the most famous of all sermons because it is a common topic of debate for many people (who are in a religious setting). But, I am compelled to consider that there could be more to Edwards’ legacy and purpose than meets the eye. Jonathan Edwards was the son of a minister and a highly intelligent, willful mother (Griffin, 2007). Edwards was known for being an intellectual and profoundRead MoreThe First Great Awakening And The Age Of Enlightenment1663 Words   |  7 Pagesprovided a vital connection between historical, social, and political events. Through the incorporation of religious principles and philosophies, writers have dis covered a way to portray different time periods, characters, feelings, and most importantly God. As the Age of Enlightenment gradually came to an end, the British American colonists were ready to progress beyond the ideology of human reason and depend solely on biblical revelation. During the eighteenth century, a great movement known as theRead MorePlymouth Plantation By Jonathan Edwards And William Bradford Essay1473 Words   |  6 Pagesreligious ties, religion has been ingrained in our literature, influencing and directing our culture. The writers Jonathan Edwards and William Bradford have had a major influence on American culture through literature in their writings, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God and Of Plymouth Plantation. William Bradford’s writing Of Plymouth Plantation Is a written record of the journey from his old home in Europe to the settlement in the new world. The separatist traveled from England to Amsterdam andRead More Jonathan Edwards the Great Preacher Essay1604 Words   |  7 PagesHe was a man whose very words struck fear into the hearts of his listeners. Acknowledged as one of the most powerful religious speakers of the era, he spearheaded the Great Awakening. â€Å"This was a time when the intense fervor of the first Puritans had subsided somewhat† (Heyrmen 1) due to a resurgence of religious zeal (Stein 1) in colonists through faith rather than predestination. Jonathan Edwards however sought to arouse the religious intensity of the colonists (Edwards 1) through his preachingRead MoreInterpretation and Analysis: â€Å"Mr. Edwards and the Spider†1658 Words   |  7 PagesRobert Lowell was born in 1917 into one of the first families of Boston, also called the Bos ton Brahmins, a class of New Englanders who claim descent from the original English Protestants who founded the city of Boston, Massachusetts. Lowell attended Harvard College but transferred to Kenyon College to study under John Crowe Ransom. He turned away from his Puritan heritage and converted to Roman Catholicism from 1940 to 1946, which influenced his first two books, Land of Unlikeness and Lord WearysRead MoreJonathan Edwards Essay Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God2232 Words   |  9 PagesSinners in the Hands of an Angry God Rhetorical Analysis Essay Jonathan Edwards, a famous preacher in pre-colonial times, composed a sermon that was driven to alert and inject neo Puritanical fear into an eighteenth century congregation. This Bible based and serious audience sought after religious instruction and enlightenment. Through the sermon Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, Edwards offers a very harsh interpretation to humankind. Edwards utilizes various rhetorical techniques toRead MoreThe Great Awakening During The British Colonies2401 Words   |  10 PagesKing George III’s tyranny. The Great Awakening was a movement rooted in spiritual growth in which it brought a new national identity that swept through the Puritans in Colonial America. Certain Puritans at time began to disassociate themselves with the established approach to worship which led to a general decline of church goers in the British Colonies, and during the Great Awakening many ministers adopted instead a New Light approach in which was characterized by grea t fervor and emotion in prayer

Canterbury Tale(the Man of Law’s Tale) Free Essays

THE CANTERBURY TALES (The Man of Law’s Tale) The Man of Law’s Tale (also called  The Lawyer’s Tale) is the fifth of the  Canterbury Tales  by  Geoffrey Chaucer, written around 1387.   Summary The Man of Law, also known as The Sergeant at Law, tells a  Romance  tale of a Christian princess named Custance (the modern form would be Constance) who is betrothed to the  Syrian  Sultan on condition that he convert to  Christianity. The Sultan’s mother connives to prevent this and has Constance set adrift on the sea. We will write a custom essay sample on Canterbury Tale(the Man of Law’s Tale) or any similar topic only for you Order Now Her adventures and trials continue after she is shipwrecked on theNorthumberland  coast. Northumberland is a pagan country where the King, Alla (based on Chaucer’s understanding of the historical  ? lla of Deira[1]) eventually converted to Christianity. Alla’s evil mother intercepts and falsifies a letter between the couple, which results in Constance’s being banished. Constance is forced to go to sea again and is found by a Senator of Rome. The Senator takes Constance (and her child) back to Italy to serve as a household servant. King Alla, still heartbroken over the loss of Constance, goes to Rome on a pilgrimage, and fortunately finds Constance. In the end the couple return to Northumberland. Alla dies a year later, and the baby boy becomes the King. ————————————————- ————————————————- Sources The tale is based on a story within the  Chronicles  of  Nicholas Trivet  but the major theme in the tale, of an exiled princess uncorrupted by her suffering, was common in the literature of the time. 2]  Her tale is also told in  John Gower’s  Confessio Amantis, and both are similar to the verse  Romance  Emare, and the cycle is generally known as the â€Å"Constance† cycle. [2]  The oldest known variant of this particular type is  Vitae duorum Offarum. [3]  M ore distantly related forms of the persecuted heroine include  Le Bone Florence of Rome, and  Griselda. [4] An incident where Constance is framed for murder by a bloody dagger appears to be a direct borrowing from  Crescentia. [5] ————————————————- ————————————————- Analysis Saints’ lives genre The tale is meant as a morally uplifting story and is similar to  hagiography, or stories of the saints’ lives, which were common popular literature of the time. Custance, as her name suggests, is constant to her  Christian  religion despite the attacks and testing it receives from the  pagans  and  heathens  she meets on her travels. Rhetoric The Man of Law tells his story in a pompous over-blown style as if he is defending Custance in a court of law. He also uses manyrhetorical figures, taken straight from the manuals of rhetoric of the day, to emphasize Custance’s noble character—as well as the teller’s lawyerly skills—and state her case. John Gower Although Chaucer receives some praise and also criticism from his own character with favourable mentions of  The Book of the Duchessand  The Legend of Good Women; in the Man of Law’s prologue he seems to spare most of his opprobrium for  John Gower. [original research? ]  Two of the tales which he dislikes,  Canace  and  Apollonius of Tyre, involve  incest, as did the some versions of the story. Chaucer based this tale on the  Nicholas Trivet  story from his  Chronicle. Gower though had recorded all these stories. Chaucer is, perhaps, with friendly banter, trying to goad his friend and fellow writer into a storytelling challenge. But certeinly no word ne writeth he Of thilke wikke [wicked] ensample of Canacee, That loved hir owene brother synfully — Of swiche cursed stories I sey fy! — Or ellis of Tyro Appollonius, How that the cursed kyng Antiochus Birafte his doghter of hir maydenhede, That is so horrible a tale for to rede, Whan he hir threw upon the pavement. Sequence with other tales The various manuscripts of the tales differ on the structure of the tales with some containing the Man of Law’s epilogue and others not. In the  epilogue, the host invites the  Parson  but he is interrupted before he can begin and a different speaker tells the next tale. TheSummoner, the  Squire  and the  Shipman  are listed as interrupters in the different manuscripts but it is the Shipman whose character best matches the rude remarks although the mention of his â€Å"joly body† sounds closer to something the  wife of Bath  may say. What it probably shows is that Chaucer had not fixed his overall plan. There are also hints, with his claim he will talk in prose despite rhyming throughout, that the Man of Law originally told the  Tale of Melibee  before he was assigned Custance’s tale late in the composition of the tales. How to cite Canterbury Tale(the Man of Law’s Tale), Essay examples