Titubas Journey Essays - Salem Witch Trials, Tituba, Salem

Tituba's Journey Every person has a journey that they must travel throughout their life to help discover themselves and the world around them. In Maryse Conde's I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem, the character Tituba has a journey that takes her from Barbados to Boston and back to Barbados. At each stage of her journey she discovers something about herself and the society that she is in. The first stage in Tituba's journey is in Barbados where she learns the secrets of healing and magic. Under Mama Yaya's guidance, Tituba is taught these mystical powers which play an important role in how she sees herself. Tituba sees herself as a healer and wants to use her magical powers to help people. She states, ? I was born to heal, not to frighten? (12). Tituba does not seem to understand why people would be scared of her. Tituba feels that she should be admired and revered, not feared. ?They should have greeted me with shouts of joy and welcome? Tituba must be loved! To think that I scared people? (12). Tituba discovers that she is willing to give up her freedom in order to be with the man she wants. She will have to live among white men again and that means they will govern her once more. Tituba knows this is a weakness on her behalf, but she cannot stop herself from wanting to be with John Indian. Even though white men have cause her parents' deaths, she declares ?Despite all that, I was considering living among white men again, in their midst, under their domination. And all because of an uncontrollable desire for a mortal man. Wasn't it madness? (19)? Tituba realizes that she is following her heart instead of her head, but she is defenseless when it comes to her feeling for John Indian. Tituba finds that the society in Barbados is oppressive towards Blacks. The majority of Blacks are slaves and forced to adapted to the Europeans version of what they consider civilization. The blacks are treated like they do not exist. Tituba says, ?You would think I wasn't standing there?They were talking about me and yet ignoring me. They were striking me off the map of human beings. I was a nonbeing?Tituba only existed insofar as these women let her exist? (24). They had to convert to Christianity and were left with no identities of their own. The second stage of Tituba's expedition is when she is in Boston. She discovers the hard lesson of not always trusting the people closest to you. Tituba grows very close to her new mistress Goodwife Parris and her daughter Betsey and Tituba even uses her mystical powers on them to protect them from getting sick. In return, they accuse her of being a witch and trying to hurt Betsey and other young girls. Tituba was very native about her situation and never thought someone she cared about would betray her that way. Tituba states, ?I had already heard these words or else read them in what people were thinking . But I never imagined they would come from the lips of someone so dear to me? (77). When Tituba is in jail, she become conscious of her hidden strength in herself to survive and return to Barbados. Tituba discovers that the Puritans in Boston are very self-righteous. They believe that everyone should follow their religion in Boston and if you do not they force you out. The Puritans believe that if your different, you are damned and for all their belief in God their punishments are very severe. The Puritans were not only at odds with blacks, but also with Jews. Tituba learned of the hardships of the Jews through Benjamin Cohen d'Azevedo when he was her master. Benjamin was accepting of Tituba and Tituba was tolerant of Benjamin. The Puritans did not feel this way. ?What are those who govern us thinking of? Did we leave England for this? To see Jews and niggers multiply in our midst? (132)? Those were the opinions the Puritans felt towards people who were diverse. The third stage of Tituba's journey brings her back to Barbados. In Barbados, Tituba discovers the happiness and peace that she was

Free Essays on Yucca Mountain

History For more than two decades, the Shoshone tribe, scientists, environmentalists, the federal government, Nevada citizens and politicians have wrestled over the fate of Yucca Mountain. Yucca Mountain is located within the Western Shoshone Nation and has long been a place of powerful spiritual energy for the Shoshone tribe. The water in the area is also sacred, as it is with many desert peoples. Yucca Mountain, and the surrounding area, was never actually deemed government land. According to the 1863 Ruby Valley Treaty that the Shoshone signed with the U.S. government, most of the area now used by the U.S. military for nuclear weapons testing and the proposed waste storage site was recognized as Shoshone land. However, the Shoshone are unable to control what happens on their ancestral land. Instead, legislators continue to try to persuade the Shoshone to accept financial compensation for their land, which most view as a way to overshadow native title and prohibit future land claims. In the late 1970s government scientists began to study Yucca Mountain as a possible repository for nuclear waste, and since 1987 it has been the only site considered for 77,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel and other radioactive waste. 98% of all the radioactive waste generated by U.S. nuclear reactors may soon be headed for the mountain. There is already more nuclear waste than the repository can hold, unless the 77,000 ton limit is raised. Though the facility will not open until 2010 at the earliest, reactor waste now sitting in pools of water around the country will fill Yucca Mountain’s tunnels and leave room for less than one third of the government’s nuclear defense waste, leaving 7,500 tons with no place to go. Commercial nuclear power plants produce 2,000 tons of high level waste per year, and by the time Yucca Mountain would be full in 2035, there would be 42,000 tons of newly generated civilian waste at reactors around the country. Th... Free Essays on Yucca Mountain Free Essays on Yucca Mountain THE YUCCA MOUNTAIN NUCLEAR WASTE REPOSITORY After much research and reading about the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste and repository, I have gained much knowledge of the situation. I will share with you the facts and what I have learned researching this topic, as well as the pro’s and con’s and my favorite part, my personal opinion. One would hope that they would find this topic an interesting topic. The controversial issue that is occurring with the Yucca Mountain area is not weather its right or wrong, but more of what we should do with our nuclear waste and where to store it. â€Å"In July 2002, president Bush signed a bill designating the Yucca Mountain site for development as a repository for the disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste† (orcwm.doe.gov). A valley not too far away from â€Å"Sin City† aka Las Vegas, Nevada, there is a remote desert where Yucca Mountain is in for consideration for storing nuclear waste. The U.S. Department of Energy began to study in this area in 1978 to determine whether it would be a decent place to contain the nation’s first long-term geologic repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Spent nuclear fuel is the radioactive by-product of making electricity commercial nuclear power plants and high-level radioactive waste is by-product from production at defense facilities. However, back in 1982, Congress also established a national policy to solve the problem of nuclear waste disposal. This policy is a federal law called the Nuclear Waste Policy c ongress based this policy on what most scientists worldwide agreed the better way that would work to dispose of the nuclear waste that has been accumulating over the years. Yucca Mountain was not the only place Congress had in mind where to store the nuclear waste; they also came up with six other states for consideration as potential repository sites. The researchers did not just p... Free Essays on Yucca Mountain INTRODUCTION: Yucca Mountain is the possible site of a nuclear repository designed to store and dispose of spent nuclear fuel. It is located in Nye County, Nevada, which is about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas (this can be seen on Figure #1). This land is federally owned, and located on the edge of the Department of Energy’s Test Site. The repository would be located in the mountain and be approximately 1000 feet below the top of the mountain and 1000 feet above the groundwater level. The repository will be designed to hold well over the 77,000 tons of nuclear waste already accumulated. If the project receives approval, it would be the nations first geological repository for disposal of spent nuclear fuel. The Yucca Mountain site was chosen for several reasons. First of all, water is the main means of transporting waste out of a nuclear repository and into the environment. The Yucca Mountain site is located in one of the driest and remote places in the United States. The area receives less than 7.5 inches of rain per year, and 95 percent of that does not even reach the mountain. The site also has many natural barriers, which prevent what little water is available from entering the site. The possible site is also located on federally owned land, which eliminates the lengthy task of acquiring land from the state. There is also no risk that groundwater that serves any of the nearby cities will be contaminated by the site. This is not possible, because the groundwater system that encompasses Yucca Mountain is not connected to groundwater of the Las Vegas Valley. The groundwater system at Yucca Mountain is an isolated hydraulic basin; that is; it does not connect to any other water sources. Isolated hydraulic basins are a very rare feature, and it is very well suited for the site. For these reasons, Yucca Mountain was chosen as the possible site of the geological nuclear repository. COST: The Yucca Mountain p... Free Essays on Yucca Mountain History For more than two decades, the Shoshone tribe, scientists, environmentalists, the federal government, Nevada citizens and politicians have wrestled over the fate of Yucca Mountain. Yucca Mountain is located within the Western Shoshone Nation and has long been a place of powerful spiritual energy for the Shoshone tribe. The water in the area is also sacred, as it is with many desert peoples. Yucca Mountain, and the surrounding area, was never actually deemed government land. According to the 1863 Ruby Valley Treaty that the Shoshone signed with the U.S. government, most of the area now used by the U.S. military for nuclear weapons testing and the proposed waste storage site was recognized as Shoshone land. However, the Shoshone are unable to control what happens on their ancestral land. Instead, legislators continue to try to persuade the Shoshone to accept financial compensation for their land, which most view as a way to overshadow native title and prohibit future land claims. In the late 1970s government scientists began to study Yucca Mountain as a possible repository for nuclear waste, and since 1987 it has been the only site considered for 77,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel and other radioactive waste. 98% of all the radioactive waste generated by U.S. nuclear reactors may soon be headed for the mountain. There is already more nuclear waste than the repository can hold, unless the 77,000 ton limit is raised. Though the facility will not open until 2010 at the earliest, reactor waste now sitting in pools of water around the country will fill Yucca Mountain’s tunnels and leave room for less than one third of the government’s nuclear defense waste, leaving 7,500 tons with no place to go. Commercial nuclear power plants produce 2,000 tons of high level waste per year, and by the time Yucca Mountain would be full in 2035, there would be 42,000 tons of newly generated civilian waste at reactors around the country. Th...

James C. Curtis, Andrew Jackson and the Search for Vindication Essay

James C. Curtis, Andrew Jackson and the Search for Vindication - Essay Example Throughout the start of the book, Curtis widely relates Andrew’s early encounters with his prospective motivations both in political and personal thoughts. Andrew Jackson personally participated in important national and international events within the period between, 1767 and 1845. For one, it is within this period that Andrew Jackson was the seventh president of the U.S. serving between 1829 and 1837. During this period, he remained a polarizing figure and controlled the Second Party System. As a president, he demolished the national bank and repositioned most Indian tribes to the west of river Mississippi. Before this, Jackson had served as a politician and an army general who was able to defeat the Indians during the 1814 battle of Horseshoe Bend. Similarly, Andrew defeated the British forces during the 1815 battle of New Orleans. It is during this period that Jackson became a rich slaveholder and appealed to the United States’ common people. He is also known for po litically fighting against what he referred to as closed and undemocratic aristocracy, hence, the era of Jacksonian democracy. Another event that marks this period in Jackson’s life is the Nullification crisis. This crisis was characterized by the tariff issue that evidently established one of the most important elements of Jackson’s term as a president. ... Andrew Jackson was extraordinarily successful in national politics as he played a major role in it. For instance, the Americans viewed Jackson as the embodiment of success as he was a man who could overcome inseparable opposition through determination. Hence, he was referred to as the Man of Iron Will .One of his remarkable characteristics as president was his well-known inflexibility of purpose. Andrew Jackson has remained extraordinary, as he was able to close the second Bank of the United States. He did this in order to avoid the destruction that would befall the bank due to corruption. Another noticeable success of Jackson was his famous duel with Charles Dickson, as suggested by O'Brien (89). In the duel, he was able to use his wisdom and ended the life of Dickson. Hence, his behavior in the duel gave an example of animal courage and demonstrated his ability to conquer battles. Jackson also alleged in rights of the states. He asserted that there were firm limits in the constitut ion in as far as federal government authority was concerned. As a result, he supported the state of Georgia in its jurisdictional disagreement with the federal government concerning the Cherokees. Moreover, Jackson strived to advance the common person interest against his almost equally corrupt opponents. Andrew Jackson also had outspoken commitment to particular principles that led him to shaping his party. He was also consciously and honestly dedicated to working people whether in agriculture or industry and to the America’s democratization. As a result, he insisted to limited public economy and government apart from where the President’s power was required to defend the interest of the

How thin is too thin Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

How thin is too thin - Essay Example ir collections in New York last week, appeared so gaunt and thin that their knees and elbows were larger than their concave thighs and pipe cleaner arms, and their bobbling heads looked as if a slight breeze could detach them from their frail bodies.† (When is this too thin?) Models set fitness standards and models have become skinny these days, they follow a very strict diet and make it a point to exercise. It is almost impossible to decide how thin is too thin; the fashion industry is one industry which requires great levels of fitness. Extra flesh on a person’s body can literally ruin his chances of becoming a model; in the case of females this becomes even much more demanding. Models have set standards and they have also popularized the concept of size zero which has become very popular these days. The bones and the ribs of these models are palpable to the audience and this is when one starts to wonder how do they manage to do that? Some people don’t find the frail look very attractive, it does not look good on females and they don’t look feminine. The designers require thin models to showcase their collection and hence it becomes imperative for them to be as thin as they possibly can. Most of these models suffer from eating disorders and this is why they lose a lot of weight and get reduced to bones. This is seen as a life threatening risk by many people, one gets really worried when their bones and ribs are visible. â€Å"Complaints about the idolization of role models who suggest unhealthy lifestyles are culturally endemic. Celebrities like Nicole Richie, Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton and Mischa Barton have all been subjects of tabloid headlines asking, â€Å"Are they too thin?† In all likelihood, the answer is yes, but that does not stop magazines from displaying their pictures or, likewise, designers from casting thin models in their shows.† (When is this too thin?) Very thin models have been in the modeling industry for the last so many decades

The Writers of the Beat Generation and their Role in Rebellion and Research Paper

The Writers of the Beat Generation and their Role in Rebellion and Reflection - Research Paper Example This research paper describes the Beat Generation, that was a period in American history where writers broke through the barriers of censorship, and were able to present views that explored the taboos of the time and helped to spur on a revolution. The purpose of this essay is to look at the revolutionary nature of the Beat Generation, particularly the writers from this period in American history, and consider the way in which these writers presented views that were controversial. In addition, the researcher of this paper considers the ways that the writers spurred on rebellion within their environment, which had previously been subject to high levels of censorship. The approach of the researcher to examining this topic consists of multiple aspects presented. This capstone essay also considers the ways in which the Beat Generation succeeded, and where it failed. The first aspect will be to examine literature and research that has been done on this time period to consider the way in w hich the writing and behavior of the Beat Generation would have been understood within its context. The second component is examining the literature itself, and also responses to this literature within peer-reviewed papers. All information gathered will be directly related to the thesis in an attempt to provide strong support for the argument. One approach that may be taken is to consider a few specific authors from this period and to consider the way that their work contributed the rebellion and revolution in this period. Thesis Statement: The Beat Generation was a period in American history where writers broke through the barriers of censorship, and were able to present views that explored the taboos of the time and helped to spur on a revolution. Preliminary Annotated Bibliography Arthur, Jason. Allen Ginsberg’s Biographical Gestures. Texas Studies in Literature and Language. (2010). 52.2, 227-446. Print. This journal article is an interesting examination of the biography published by Allen Ginsberg in 2006, who is one of the most well-known Beat Generation. The author discusses in detail the approaches that Ginsberg takes in crafting his biography, and what is interesting about these approaches. This article provides a useful examination into the way a prominent Beat Generation writer is perceived both by himself and by an outside observer a significant time after his generation has passed. Huddleston, Diane M. The Beat Generation: They Were Hipsters Not Beatnicks. Department of History semi nar paper. Western Oregon University, 2012. Web. This capstone paper considers the ways in which the Beat Generation succeeded, and where it failed. The author considers the motives of this generation and how their intent was misunderstood by the society around them. One important aspect about this piece of literature is it considers the way that the Beat Generation and its impacts progressed through San Francisco, providing detailed information about critical events during this time. Lagaron, Elizabeth M. â€Å"Blessed are the Pure of Heart† Variations on Magical Realism in the Beat Generation: Pathways to Critique and Resistance. Dissertation. University of Kansas, 2009. Web. This dissertation provides an in-depth examination of various aspects of the Beat Generation, including literary works, and considers how magical realism was applied through their work. The author focuses on three key writers from the Beat Generation, Diane di Prima, Elise Cowen and Jack Kerouac. The a uthor also considers the influence of this on the social realities that the authors faced, something that is highly relevant to this paper. Peters, Nancy J. The Beat Generation and San Francisco’s Culture of Dissent. In, Reclaiming San Francisco: History, Politics, Culture. James Brook, Chris Carlsson, Nancy J. Peters eds. 1998. San Francisco, CA: City Lights Books. Print. This article considers the impact that the Beat Generation had on a specific area of the United States. Peters examines the way in which San Francisco’s culture led to the prevalence of such dissent, and likewise considers the way that the Beat Culture shaped San Francisco. The article also discusses specific pieces of literature that appeared within the period, and chronicles some of the important events. Pokharel,

Using Theatre To Promote Social Change Theatre Essay

Using Theatre To Promote Social Change Theatre Essay Theatre can makes concepts coherent and real for people. It involves its audience both intellectually and emotionally, it sensitizes audiences to issues, ideas and people portrayed, and it engenders a personal connection with the events and characters on stage. Community-based theatre goes a step further; when a play is directly relevant to audience members lives and concerns, a process begins which can lead to deeper understanding and change. Audience members recognize the characters and their dilemmas and identify with the people portrayed. And because they can watch rather than live the experience, they also objectify the problems, and in so doing begin to be able to think critically about possible solutions or alternate actions and so have the ability to change. In this essay I will examine the need for social change as well as the impact of theatre on the society. I will explore the uses of theatre as an instrument of change as well as focusing on Boals theatre as his methods were used as a tool for change. What is social change and why it is needed? One of the most concise definitions of social change is characterised as the significant alteration of social structure and cultural patterns through time(Harper, 1993). And this social structure is made up of a persistent network of social relationships(Harper, 1993). In which interaction between people or groups has become repetitive. The resultant changes can affect everything from population to the economy, as industrialisation and shifting cultural norms and values, are also established agents of social change (Popenoe, 1995). In another words social change is the transformation of culture and social structure over time. There are various causes of social change. One of these causes is Culture which is a system that constantly loses and gains components. Also values, beliefs, and ideologies have certainly shaped directions of social change in the modern world, such as Nationalism, Capitalism and others. Change can be occur through the impact of environmental factors such as famine, International shifts in economic or political advantage, as the Globalisation which is one of the key factors in our modern society affecting the global economy, political structures, culture, etc. Change can also occur from social movement where people join together for a common cause or The mass media which considered a vital factor in speeding social change. It permits rapid diffusion of ideas, making this manifest in the private and relaxing environs of the home, where audiences are at their most susceptible. From all the above, social change can occur because of lots of reasons that mean there is always a demand for change, whether by individuals or through a larger forces which leads the community in some cases to a comprehensive change. Theatre is considering a mean to reflect people lives and re-create it for a deeper insight, it might be a tool to understand the real problems of society and contribute in finding solution for them as continues attempt for change. Theatre and societies Theatre arose in the ancient Egyptians era before 4500 years ago and in Greece before 2400 years ago on the basis that it is an education intermediate, Aristotle argues that the purpose of tragedy is purification while the purpose of comedy is social criticism (Aristotle, 1987), this what lead me to believe that the theatre in the beginning was closely connected with the concept of social change as we understand it today. Thus become the development of theatre throughout the history of the European Communities which was linked to their need for change, The history of theatre in Europe was and still in a clear continues progress, on the contrary, in many other cultures for example in the history of the ancient Egyptian Theatre, who did not continue its progress. Taking the example from history of Europe theatre does not negate the evolution of theatre in other societies such as China, India and some regions of Latin America. Back to linking the concept of theatre to social change in E urope, we find it represented in several periods which I will focus on some of them. The association with the Christian religion with politics and power in the first third of the fourth century theatre art has been eliminated temporarily as theatre artists was persecuted and considered to be heretics and enemies of religion but After a period of time theatre was revived again by the church itself, which used the theatre as a new way to celebrate and spread the message the religions and to promote to it. Thus, over the middle Ages the Church had to take a reconciled position with the theatrical art, perhaps this was a recognition of the clergy at that time of the role that could be played by theatre as a good and appropriate way to achieve the communication between the members of the community, which possessed the ability to unify a minimum fair amount of collective consciousness and activating the concept of culture that carries values for the society in which it was designed to be Christian, this theatre was used for social change towards the values and concepts of Christianity that was adopted as a prerequisite for this period. This played a role as in our own concept of the role of contemporary media, but because when theatre impersonating the media it loses much of its dramatic interactive and become closer to preaching than exploration and surprise pleasure. So soon after the fall of the Romanian empire and the weakness in the dominance of the church, new artists emerged in what is reminiscent of the Renaissance, this was an era in which theatre carried out to revive the Greek and Roman heritage and values relating to them, but in the frameworks respect to the traditions of the church, where the renaissance theatre worked for guiding the society towards rejection the superstitions. Theatre has also taken a functionality based on the guidance and education for people of moral values as well as changing society through the promotion of virtue and prevent vice. And with the emergence of William Shakespeare and his keen interest in issues of human self-imaging and his pain and anguish. where theatre become a carrier and reflective of the human as well as giving up it guidance role, and so theatre played a new role in the social life by becoming the centre of the desired change in that period which was elevating the attention of human beings and embody his suffering of all social, religious and political restrictions. The Norwegian writer Henrik Ibsen had realized the need for social change in his era, his works became one of the most visible models and a boot process for social change, as not only his attempts to deal with real issues and address the prevailing values by criticism and queries which leads to a demand for social change, but also he himself changed and shocked the theatre audiences when he used prose rather than poetry in writing the play in order to approach the level of daily language, and if he did not just announce the need for change but also uses new tools of his time (Barton and McGregor , 2008). Thus, from the history of the European theatre progress I conclude that the theatre and social change have always been two sides of the same coin, which theatre recreate life either by condensation, auditing, deletion, selection and rearrangement the art elements to be performed in front of viewers who can re-evaluate the performance and have hopes of change, or recreate life by staging it according to its creators thoughts in a period of time to put an image in front of the viewers pushing them towards the future of access desired. So, we cannot describe the theatre as a direct cause for social change this is because the social changer creates a model that community is required to reach while the art in general as a social and cultural practice wonder about the feasibility of the concept of change. And theatre in particular, as the form closest to the cultural practices in the community exposed to what is going on and measure the pulse of the community to discern the need for change and enquire about its usefulness, which he often does not answer these questions, even if the content has been alluded to answer, leaving the community to adopt these responses or even rejected, but in the end there will be perceptions of change, These perceptions were not to interact with reality, However, after the experience of these interactions through the theatre as a metaphor laboratory to test the prevailing societal values or alternative values that may be proposed within the assumed process of social change. Thus the theatre obligated to change its shape and form according to the causes and issues of society that generated it, However, these variables remained committed to the centrality of the theatrical text that presents what I referred to attempts to change, the theatre performance continued in bringing together all the elements for the interpretation of the text and despite the diversity of performance styles representative as the backbone of the performance that it was only in the context of the character. It is worth mentioning in this regard the most influential theoretical and pedagogical model of the twentieth century has been, without doubt, Konstantin Stanislavskys method. And here comes Bertolt Brecht to put new principles on the theatre art and be a pioneer in the exploitation of this art to the concept of a radical positive social change. Brecht attempts for change The reason for Brechts importance in theatre is that his work attempted to bring about a change in the whole relationship between the actor and the audience, the purpose of which was to broaden the social basis of the theatre and to set it once more in its proper social context. What Brecht most disliked and reacted against was the professionals view of the theatre as an end in itself. He wanted the theatre to accept its responsibilities as the social art with the utilitarian purpose of communicating with ordinary people about the matters that most concern them. (Bradby McCormick, 1978) In pursuit of theatre as craft or sporting display, Brecht later evolved his characteristic production style: the half curtain which did not attempt to completely cover the preparations in progress behind it; the use of placards or screen projections to comment on the action; the non-naturalistic settings; the visible rows of stage lights. These followed naturally from Brechts desire to reduce empathy in the audience and to induce his actors to demonstrate rather than to incarnate their characters. Just as a concert pianist or a boxer tries to show off his technique, so Brecht wanted every technique and object used in the production to be visible and comprehensible (Bradby and McCormick, 1978). For the production of The Mother in 1935 for the Theatre Union in New York, he wrote: Lets have a platform, and on this platform well put chairs, tables, partitions whatever the actors need. For hanging a curtain give me a wooden pole or a metal bar; for hanging a picture a piece of wall. And Ill want a large projection screenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Let it all be elegant, thin and fine like Japanese banners, flimsy like Japanese kites and lanterns; lets be aware of the natural textures of wood and metalà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Well place two grand pianos visibly at one side of the stage; the play must have the quality of a concert as well as that of a dramaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ And well show the lighting units as they dim on and off, playing over the scene. He approached acting less from an emotional and hence psychological angle than from its ability to demonstrate social relationships. Gestus or physical movements that accompany speech should not be seen as an expression of an actors personal experience but rather as supra-individual and thus symptomatic of larger, social contexts. This means that the actors relationship to his or her role is a detached one. Role enactment should serve as alienation or distancing effect whose goal is to endow the spectator with a searching, critical attitude towards the action on stage. (Balme, 2008) The alienation effect is the most consistently misunderstood part of Brechts theory. It is interpreted to mean that any emotional pleasure in the theatre must be suppressed. But for Brecht the strongest source of emotion to be found in the theatre was the delight in understanding reality. The alienation effect consists in the reproduction of real-life incidents on the stage in such a way as to underline their causality and bring it to the spectators attention. This type of art also generates emotions, such performances facilitate the mastering of reality, and this it is that moves the spectator. The purpose of the alienation effect, then, is to foster an alert, critical spirit in the audience by emphasizing causality. But this alone is perhaps not enough to generate emotions or give rise to fun. It goes hand in hand with an attitude towards people and their life in society summed up by the Philosopher in The Messingkauf Dialogues: I have an insatiable curiosity about people; its impossible for me to see and hear enough of them. The way they get along with each other, the way they develop friendships and enmities, sell onions, plan military campaigns, get married, make tweed suits, circulate forged bank notes, dig potatoes, observe the heavenly bodies; the way they cheat, favour, teach, exploit, respect, mutilate and support one another; the way they hold meetings, form societies, conduct intrigues. I always want to know why they embark on their undertakings, and my aim is to distinguish certain laws that would allow me to make predictions.(Brecht, 1965) To achieve the desired alienation effect, Brecht suggested that the actor perform in the third person, transpose the action into the past and speak the stage directions and commentaries. (Balme, 2008) Using a third person and the past tense allows the actor to adopt the right attitude of detachment. Speaking the stage directions out loud in the third person results in a clash between two tones of voice, alienating the second of them, the text proper (Brecht, 1964). Thus, far from wanting to suppress the emotions of his audience, Brecht wanted, like all great artists, to channel them, He wanted to provoke a spirit of passionate but detached enquiry. For this, he found that the ideal dramatic structure was that of the Shakespearean history play; a sequence of events narrated with no artificial restrictions as to time or place, which could vary the scene with ease from individual destinies to national conditions and back again. Brechts basic political position as a Communist, however unorthodox, meant that his plays were always addressed to the people rather than to the intelligentsia, and written in a language that would enable him to communicate effectively with working people. (Bradby McCormick, 1978) Brechts theatre was a theatre struggling for reintegration with society. He liked to describe it as a theatre that was scientific and dialectical scientific because of the detached way in which it tried to dissect the mechanisms of social life, and because it aspired to be useful; and dialectical because its method is one of discussion and contradiction, not of doctrinal affirmation. (Bradby McCormick, 1978) To conclude Brecht was convinced that theatre must be an agent of social and political change. He believed that theatre should appeal not to the spectators feelings but to his reason. While still providing entertainment, it should be educational and capable of provoking social change. Boals Spect-actors Theatre is a form of knowledge: it should and can also be a means of transforming society. Theatre can help us build our future, rather than just waiting for it (Boal, 1992) Augusto Boal established The Theatre of the Oppressed in the early 1970s which is nowadays used all over the world in different fields of social activities such as: education, culture, arts, politics, social work, psychotherapy, literacy programs and health. The Theatre of the Oppressed, in all its various modalities, is a constant search for dialogical forms, forms of theatre through which it is possible to converse, both about and as part of social activity, pedagogy, psychotherapy, politics (Boal, 2004). Two Brechtian principles underpin Boals praxis the first is that theatre should promote concrete political action. A performance should represent actual life, not for the purpose of allowing contemplation of powerful artistic fictions but to provoke and rehearse interventions that might change those aspects of society that oppresses individuals and groups. The second is the notion that dramatic performance it self constitutes a dialectical process of learning (Gordon, 2006). Boal was not satisfied with the inflammatory relationship that formulated in Brechts epic theatre, but he built a partnership between the spectators and actors in order to establish the scene and direct the events of the performance. He made more radical alternatives to the process of the epic that was adopted by Brecht, persisted in approaching the oppressed groups, contact with their problems in order to raise awareness of the causes and the potential to overcome these causes as well as engaging the public in analyze their problems, and search for their own solutions as a way to attempt change.( Gordon, 2006) In the traditional theatre, the spectator is a passive element, receptor of subjective representation of the reality. And since those responsible for theatrical performances are in general people who belong directly or indirectly to the ruling classes, obviously their finished images will be reflections of their visions of the world. Aristotle elaborated the poetics of the theatre that focused on its political dimensions.( Boal, 2000) The Theatre of the Oppressed therefore aims to transform the spectator into spect-actor. The word oppression is used as any force that private one individual to express and realize his wills. Everybody can be oppressed and an oppressor. This theatre gives the opportunity to express ones desires, identify the oppressions, which can be objective or subjective, and try to find the best way to deal with them. It is a Game of the Dialogue, where everybody can speak, and where everybody learns interacting with the others. ( Boal, 2000) When the spectator becomes spect-actor; he can modify the scenes he does not like in order to find different solutions that maybe would be afraid to attempt in his real life. He becomes active, developing his creativity and freedom of speaking. This activation that does not end with the play, activate his feeling of member of one society and his will to act in reality to improve it. Being citizen is not only living in one society but actively participate in it, trying to do it better for everyone.(Boal, 1992) The Theatre of the Oppressed appears as an effort to transform the traditional passive role of the spectator during and after any kind or performance. It consists in different techniques and games that can be used in order to make the spectator participate in the construction and the realization of the piece as the Image theatre, Newspaper theatre, Invisible theatre, Rainbow of desire and others. The main goal of this theatre is activate the creativity and the capacity of expression of the spectator, in order to analyze and find original solutions to the conflicts our society. As when the objective oppressions have been identified, a pacific confrontation to them will be proposed. When there is not a real oppressor or oppressed, the dialog should help find the better solution to deal with the conflict. One of Boals most influential methods is Forum theatre which was born from simultaneous dramaturgy when, according to Boal, by chance an audience member who was so frustrated that the actor did not understand her directions, took their place. This undid the audience/actor split and a new form of political theatre was created. He discovered that through this active participation the audience-actors, spect-actors, become empowered. This concept of the spect-actor became a dominant force within Boals later Forum theatre work. The audiences were now encouraged to not only imagine change but to actually practice that change, reflect collectively on the suggestion, and thereby become empowered to generate social action. Forum theatre events take place in public areas, in popular community, not necessarily in a theatre venue. They involve representing a scene with a conflict situation, or including an issue that the community suffers from, or telling a personal story that is without end. The performers are people from the community with Forum theatre trainers multipliers, the audience is invited at the end to make an intervention and suggest a way to deal with the issue or the situation by coming to the performance space and playing one role in the scene to try and change the events. This way we can provide live suggestion from the people to their own issues, through representation, as well as public discussion (Boal, 1992). Boals Legislative Theatre is also one and most remarkable stage in his work. Legislative Theatre is an attempt to use Boals method of Forum Theatre within a political system to create a truer form of democracy. It is an extraordinary experiment in the potential of theatre to affect social change. Forum Theatre invites members of the audience to take the stage and decide the outcome, becoming an integral part of the performance. As a politician in his native Rio de Janeiro, Boal used Forum Theatre to motivate the local populace in generating relevant legislation. In Legislative Theatre Boal creates new, theatrical, and truly revolutionary ways of involving everyone in the democratic process (Boal, 1998). Finally, the main purpose of Theatre of the Oppressed is to search for solutions to actual cases of oppression that members of the community suffer. From there the hope is that the community is empowered to manifest the change and dismantle the oppression. Theatre of the Oppressed clearly has the potential to make social structures, power relations and individual habits visible and, at the same time, provide tools to facilitate change. It is one of the few methods that offers an integrated approach to work on individual, group and social levels, and involves both the body and the mind. Study case: Theatre and Women Development The project name Theatre and Women Development, One year project in four segments, Series of training workshops, onsite community work, performances and publications, it was held in Alexandria, Egypt. Organised and managed by Reflection for arts training and development NGO. 2008 The project focused on the promotion and support of human rights via theatre, namely the rights of the freedom of expression linked with some personal rights, such as the freedom of opinion, and the rights of women, specifically to be protected from sexual harassment and domestic violence. The first segment of the project was a Forum theatre training workshop for theatre artists and social activists. Forum theatre was and still a methodology used for community work. It was the first time to create a Forum Theatre team in Egypt, a method that is made specifically for dealing with social issues, community participation, democratic discussion and seeking change. The second segment was a workshop for young women. The workshop was implemented in a community space in partnership with a feminist NGO, inviting 20 young women between the ages of 16 to 22. The workshop also used the Forum Theatre technique in order to represent situations which the participants live, suffer from, aspire to or oppose to. The end of the workshop included 3 nights of Forum theatre public events, where the participants performed stories and situations and ask the audience for their opinion, and how to find better ways to manage the difficult situations or experiences of those young women when they are faced by social values oppressing them. The aim of the workshop is not to reach the public events only, though it will be the culmination of the whole process and the real test of how this work can relate to the community and produce dialogue leading to change, but the aim is also to provoke discussions and give voice to young women who do not usually express themselves. The workshop was function as an open space for the participants to speak out, to gain self-confidence, to break the usual social hypocrisy and to acquire new skills of expression and of creative positive thinking, which could support their future roles in society as potential community leaders. The third segment of the project was a workshop with women between the ages of 30 to 50. The theme was domestic violence, one of the most sensitive and unspoken issues in Egypt. Domestic violence is a theme that will require a lot of care and sensitivity when it comes to community work. It will be our responsibility to respect the social borders surrounding this issue, while raising the awareness of the participants of their rights to be secure, respected and protected in their own homes and families. Forum Theatre technique was taught to the participants and used to structure scenes about situations of domestic violence that the participants suggest. The task of the group was to find out how to prevent those situations, how to deal with them and how to protect the women who are suffering in those situations. Special attention was given to traditional values as well as legal views, in order to analyze the reasons behind this phenomenon and to find out how to support and empower women to speak out and seek help. The fourth segment of the project used storytelling techniques and dramatic theatre to represent the real stories of sexual harassment in Egypt. For this segment we collected real stories from the community, re-worked on them dramatically, then brought female participants from the previous workshops, train them to act the stories out, and present them as the first theatre production in Alexandria based on true stories of harassment. The project Goals was to promote awareness on human rights: Freedom of expression, freedom of opinion, the right to security at home, and self-protection, the right to be respected and not discriminated against, and all related womens rights, To create a public form of participation in the dissemination of those rights via Forum theatre, To use this public form to represent real issues and stories of the community, To allow democratic discussion and management of those issues via Forum theatre, To empower young womens thinking and provide social skills of self-expression, To create new ways combining arts/theatre and development and social work, To bring sensitive issues to the surface in a creative and sensitive way, such as domestic violence . The project succeeds in reaching the majority of his goals and become a genuine basis of using theatre as a tool for social change. The Conclusion To conclude, Theatre through history had a great role on affecting peoples lives, by helping them to see their lives and problems more clearly. It become a tool to understand the real problems of society and tries to find an effective solution for them. It tries to enable those who are marginalized in some way to examine collectively their issues from their perspectives, to analyze causes of these issues, to explore avenues of potential action, and to create an opportunity to take such action. Through dialogue by rising the level of awareness as well as it contributes to the empowerment of all involved. It may also mobilize people to take action and support them in processes of social and political change.

Analysis of Tintern Abbey by William Wordsworth Essay -- Tintern Abbey

Analysis of Tintern Abbey by William Wordsworth William Wordsworth existed in a time when society and its functions were beginning to rapidly pick up. The poem that he 'Composed a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey, on Revisiting the Banks of the Wye', gave him a chance to reflect upon his quick paced life by taking a moment to slow down and absorb the beauty of nature that allows one to 'see into the life of things'; (line 49). Wordsworth's 'Tintern Abbey'; takes you on a series of emotional states by trying to sway 'readers and himself, that the loss of innocence and intensity over time is compensated by an accumulation of knowledge and insight.'; Wordsworth accomplishes to prove that although time was lost along with his innocence, he in turn was able to gain an appreciation for the aesthetics that consoled him by incorporating all together, the wonders of nature, his past experiences, and his present mature perception of life. Wordsworth begins his poem by describing the landscape of the abbey as unchanged during the past five years. He emphasizes the lapse of time by stating, ' again I hear';, 'again do I behold';, and 'again I see';. He seemed to be overwhelmed with emotions that he, though up on a very far away cliff, was certain that a hermit was in his cave sitting by the fire alone. Wordsworth wanted so much to remember the place that he was allowing his perception of the past take over his present reality. More importantly he says, 'I again repose here?'; to express that the scene gives him a sense of reconciliation. He further illustrates the isolation, peacefulness, and greenness of the abbey to tap into his vague memories of past encounters. Although there had been a 'long absence'; from the abbey, the memories of his hurried time in the Wye had consoled him ' 'mid the din of towns and cities'; (lines 26-27). 'With tranquil restoration'; Wordsworth has changed from the state of observing to the state of recalling his 'unremembered pleasures[s]'; (31). He had many times returned in spirit to the Wye, to escape the 'fever of the world'; (53). These memories have produced emotions beyond his understanding; enlightening him and relieving his frustrations. It is the abbey, 'in which the heavy and the weary weight of all this unintelligible world, is lightened'; and makes him become a 'living soul';. (40-49) Wordsworth was claiming th... ...e it was 'full of blessings'; (134). And if she ever happened to be alone, scared, in pain or in grief, Wordsworth wanted her to look upon these 'healing thoughts'; (144) and think of him. Wordsworth's 'Tintern Abbey'; is the poetry of consciousness and becoming aware of this state, and the understanding of where one fits into the scheme of everything within the world. Wordsworth looked into life as an active participant ready to grasp all knowledge and understanding that was available to him. So although he missed the abbey and lost some of his youth, he had gained ten-fold by being able to interpret his feelings through his own perception and knowledge. He had found a way to console himself, he had found a basis for hope in 'Tintern Abbey';. Wordsworth had become more thoughtful and saw the abbey in a different way than in his youth. He had learned how to appreciate things and wanted to instill those values in his sister/';Dear Friend';. Wordsworth had found the true comfort in nature and had incorporated that respect for nature in his life. Works Cited: Wordsworth, William. "Tintern Abbey." Romanticism: An Anthology. Ed. Duncan Wu. Oxford: Blackwell, 1998. 265-269.