`` Bars Fight `` By Lucy Terry - 923 Words

Throughout history, Native Americans in early America have been viewed as primitive and violent people. Artwork often depicts them engaging in barbaric behavior such as eating other humans and engaging in violent wars. However, this view of early Native Americans has been created by the works of people belonging to the â€Å"civilized world† of early America. Lucy Terry’s poem â€Å"Bars Fight† retells the story of when a group of Indians attacked two families that she knew. Terry’s work can be compared to those of Christopher Columbus and Thomas Jefferson in their portrayal and perception of Indians. Lucy Terry was an enslaved African American during the colonial period in America. While she was enslaved, there was an Indian attack on two white families that Terry was close to. Her poem â€Å"Bars Fight† paints a brutal scene that demonizes the Native Americans while glorifying the colonists. The details Terry gives in her poem give the impression that the colonists were defenseless during the attack. She states that the Indians ambushed them and that â€Å"Eleazer Hawks had no time to fight.† The use of this syntax implies that Terry does not think highly of the Native Americans and views them as barbaric. Terry’s opinion of the Indians is further shown by describing them as â€Å"awful creatures.† The wording of this shows that Terry sees the Native Americans as monsters rather than humans. It is interesting to note that Terry seems to glorify the colonists. Even though she was thought of asShow MoreRelatedThe Emergence Of The United States As An Independent Country, And African American Literature Essay1769 Words   |  8 PagesWilliam Wells Brown. The second African American writer was â€Å"Lucy Terry†. She was stolen from America and sold into slavery in Rhode Island as an infant. She spent time in Rhode Island, up until the age of five, when she was sold to Ebenezer Wells of Deerfield. At t he time, an Indian attack occurred in an area of Deerfield called â€Å"The Bars†, which was a colonial term for a meadow. At the age of 16, Lucy Terry wrote her first work â€Å"Bars Fight†, a ballad about an attack of Deerfield. The Ballad was preservedRead MoreAfrican American Women Under Slavery Essay2412 Words   |  10 Pagesex-slave narratives is talked about. The first being, Phillis Wheatley. She became the first African-American woman author to publish a book of Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral. Another one being Lucy Terry. Although her poems was not published until after her death, â€Å"Bar Fights† was the first poem composed by another African American woman. Her poems recalls the popular captivity narrative of the colonial period, in which she recounts her experience in captivity among the Indians,Read MoreKomunyakaas Dien Cai Dau Essay3910 Words   |  16 Pagesthe river,slow-dragging with ghosts from Saigon to Bangkok, with women left in doorways reaching from America The feared images of the past and promise for the future is that which cant be camouflaged. It is forced to the fore of ones thoughts.The fight about to be commenced is a focused vision, a world revolvedunder each mans eyelid.is an alternate expression of life passing before ones eyes. This vision prompts the realization that the soldiers dont belong here and their demise would be senselessRead MoreAccounting Information System Chapter 1137115 Words   |  549 Pagesphone into a credit card or debit card. Such a cell phone can buy items from a vending machine or convenience store, pay for train tickets and cab fares, and purchase and sell stocks and bonds. Businesses cater to this new technology by including bar codes in their catalogues or on street advertisements. Users can then use their phone to scan the barcode that brings the user to that company’s website. Users may then proceed to learn more about the item and order it with a click of the button. Read MoreStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 PagesBasil Adams, Notre Dame de Namur University Janet Adams, Kennesaw State University Cheryl Adkins, Longwood College Vicky Aitken, St. Louis Community College David Albritton, Northern Arizona University Bradley Alge, Purdue University Lois Antonen, CSUS Lucy Arendt, University of Wisconsin, Green Bay Anke Arnaud, University of Central Florida Mihran Aroian, University of Texas, Austin Gary Ballinger, Purdue University Deborah Balser, University of Missouri at St. Louis Christopher Barlow, DePaul University

Moral Theory Cultural Relativism Free Essays

In a fast shrinking world there is very little that a society can do to hide from the scrutiny and judgmental eyes of others. The media and the Internet make it very easy for the rest of the world to know of any indiscretion or any wrongdoing committed by a person or a group of individuals. The problem with judging others though is not as simple as it may seem. We will write a custom essay sample on Moral Theory: Cultural Relativism or any similar topic only for you Order Now There is simply no universal rule to be followed when it comes to some of the more complex ethical issues such as euthanasia, abortion, recreational drug use, etc. Determining what is right and wrong, in this modern age, has been simplified to a moral relativism never before seen since the Western World accepted religion as a standard for living right. The idea that no one can judge others – especially those coming from a different culture – is also known as cultural relativism. This is rooted, in a more general sense, to a concept called moral relativism. This makes the discussion more complicated because according to Timmons, relativism, â€Å"†¦ is used as a label for a quite a variety of views and ideas that differ in important ways† (2002, p. 38). Timmons adds, that relativism should be understood from the following perspective, â€Å"†¦rightness or wrongness of actions ultimately depends on the moral code of the culture to which one belongs† (2002, p. 38). The Positive Based on the above-stated definition the proponent can glean at least three ideas that can go in support and against cultural relativism. When it comes to those in favor of relativism then the following are easy to adhere to: 1.Cultural relativism allow other groups of people to experience a degree of freedom that they so crave without the interference of outside forces who may not have a clear understanding of what they are doing. 2.Cultural relativism makes a person outside the cultural sphere to give the insiders the benefit of the doubt which in some cases is needed to give other people room to explain themselves or to execute a plan to its completion. 3.Cultural relativism allows for healthy boundaries. This means that other nations or other people groups would do well to mind their own business. The Negative Now when it comes to the other side, one can also easily find that there are two sides to every idea. When it comes to cultural relativism the negative connotation is ambivalence that at best leads to instability and at worst will lead to chaos as explained in the following: 1.Cultural relativism allows for excuses when in fact what is needed is responsibility. 2.Cultural relativism allows gross misbehavior that can often lead to violence, violation of human rights etc. 3.Cultural relativism can be the cause of misunderstanding that can escalate to war and other international incidents. Expounding on the ideas described above it is better to begin from the positive side of cultural relativism. It is a common contention that cultural relativism is a position that one should take when discussing the evils of legalism – the familiar scene when those who are in a position to demand conformity abuses their power and forces others to follow. The dogmatism and legalism that came from religion is a painful reminder that without a proper view of cultural relativism then there are interest groups who will impose harsh laws and statutes that would make it impossible for others to follow. With regards to the second point, there are cases wherein people groups and even individuals need the benefit of the doubt from others in order for them to fully express themselves or even to execute a plan to perfection. The Western mindset can criticize the oriental mindset but there are times in history when the Western World could have benefited from the wisdom of some Asian practices if they just took the time to give them the benefit of the doubt. Americans for instance ridiculed some of the business practices of post-war Japan and later found out that their way of doing things allow them to produce quality products that even surpassed the competition. With regards to the third point, there is no need to look further and begin examining U.S. foreign policy and the way it has been criticized all over the world. There can be good reasons why the mighty United States of America is meddling with the affairs of other countries. But the reaction is already evident in the now infamous September 11 and the Iraq debacle. Understanding, the positive side of cultural relativism would do well to heal conflicts between two different groups but at the same time too much of a good thing can also backfire. Moral looseness can spell chaos, disaster, and tyranny. With regards to the first idea as to why cultural relativism must be opposed a case study was presented by the sociologist James Q. Wilson in sharing an experience he had with his class. Details are shown in the following pages. According to Wilson, he had an interesting and somewhat disturbing discussion with his students in the subject of relativism. He said that the students in reaction to the issue of the holocaust asserted an extreme form of relativism in that they refused to acknowledge that the evil that was the holocast. This is very serious for Wilson and the proponent of this study agrees with him. There is clearly a demarcation line between allowing room for cultural relativism and simply turning a blind eye towards something as significant as the murder of six million people. This is an example as to how cultural relativism can be taken too far. Furthermore, the two points raised concerning the negative aspect of cultural relativism can also be seen in the case study presented by Wilson. Cultural relativism can result in behavior that is destructive and harmful for the general public. In this case a group of people – the Nazis – were given blanket authority to harm fellow Germans, who happened to be Jews. This is the disturbing thing about relativism. The Jews who were massacred were not people belonging to another nation. They were in fact Germans, with valid citizenship who happened to belong to a particular heritage or to a particular religion. Yet, the Nazis did not consider this and instead went on to murder their own. On the third and last point, cultural relativism can be allowed but only on certain terms. If cultural relativism is allowed without boundaries, it can result in something as serious as a world at war. And the Nazis rise to power is the case in point. The German people allowed this group of radicals to dictate their politics and their moral code. So at the end they were forced to pay a steep price for it. Even today their history is tainted with the blood of six million Jews and it is more jarring that some of them are trying to erase the stigma by using cultural relativism, an idea that was seen in full bloom in Mr. Wilson’s class. Conclusion Cultural relativism, an idea rooted in moral relativism is a view that in essence encourages respect and creating boundaries in dealing with people coming from a different social background and culture. This simply means that relativism allow for a more understanding environment, a world where people learn to be more gracious and open minded when it comes to other people’s actions. Those who agree with cultural relativism points to the necessity of first understanding the other person’s social background, culture, and the details of the circumstances that made him or her do something even as disturbing as the holocaust. This view plays an important role in creating a world more open to discussion and less prone to hostility. But there is another side to cultural relativism that can create the same set of problems that it hoped to solve. Those who are espousing cultural relativism aims for a global society that is more humane, more forgiving and more open to discussion. The opposite can happen as seen above. The explanation can be partly seen in the analysis of Catherine Wilson who remarked that in order to perform, â€Å"†¦just and benevolent actions, to approve just and benevolent actions in others, and to attribute merit to those who perform them †¦ requires a social system that regards actions as items for judgment and criticism† (2004, p. 4). In other words this world cannot function having only cultural relativism as a guide. Humanity requires something more stable than just a simplistic answer such as relativism. Relativism is like a band-aid to something as serious as gangrene. One can simply patch up a festering wound denying the fact that something is rotting underneath hoping to show that everything is fine will not solve the problem. The sociologist James Wilson was right to be appalled by the naivete and simplistic formulations of his class. Six million people murdered not including millions more who suffered in death camps could not be simply be dismissed as part of freedom of expression based on the unique circumstances surrounding the event. It is the height of hypocrisy for the students to turn a blind eye from the suffering of Jews in Word War II and yet become so livid when others are violating their own freedom. How come they can easily allow the Nazis to trample the rights of the Jews when they could not stand their own parents telling them what to do. This is simply inconsistent and goes against human nature. Cultural relativism can be allowed in areas where cultural preferences and highly debatable issues are at stake but not when lives are on the line and especially when heinous crimes were committed. References Dreier, L. (2005). Contemporary Debates in Moral Theory. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishers. Posner, R. (1999). The Problematics of Moral and Legal Theory. Boston, MA: First Harvard University Press. Soccio, D. J. (2004). Archetypes of Wisdom: An Introduction to Philosophy. 5th Ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. Sorell, T. (2000). Moral Theory and Anomaly. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishers. Timmons, M. (2002). Moral Theory: An Introduction. Maryland: Rowman Littlefield Publishers. Wilson, C. (2004). Moral Animals: Ideals and Constraints in Moral Theory. New York: Oxford University Press. How to cite Moral Theory: Cultural Relativism, Essay examples

Economics - Product Differentiation in Monopoly free essay sample

Monopolies are firms that are the sole or dominant suppliers of a good or service in a given market. And what sets apart monopolies from competitive firms is â€Å"market power†- the ability of a firm to affect the market price. Price discrimination is the business practice of selling the same good at different prices to different customers, even though the cost of production is the same for all customers. Only monopolies can practice price discrimination, because otherwise competition would prevent price discrimination. Price discrimination increases the monopolist’s profits, reduces the consumer surplus and reduces the deadweight loss. (the buyers of the lower-priced product should not be able to resell the product to the higher-priced market. Otherwise, the monopoly will not be able to maintain price differentials. ) The monopolist must be able to identify segments of the market that are willing to pay different prices, and then market its products accordingly. We will write a custom essay sample on Economics Product Differentiation in Monopoly or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page A common technique to achieve this is by making it harder to get the lower prices, since wealthier consumers value their time more than their money. Some ways the monopolistic firms can implement discriminatory pricing are; †¢Linear Approximation Technique or Markup Pricing Technique †¢Personalized Pricing – extracting the maximum amount a customer is willing to pay for the product. †¢Coupons and Rebates – providing coupons to attract more customers or providing personalized discounts. †¢Bulk pricing – offering lower prices when customer buys a huge quantity of the same product. †¢Bundling joining products or services together in order to sell them as a single combined unit. Block pricing Charging more for the first set of the product, then less for each additional product bought by the same consumer. †¢Group Pricing- charging different customers different price based on factors such as race, gender, age, abilities etc. and also â€Å"psychographic segmentation†- dividing consumers based on their lifestyle, personality, values, and social class. †¢Charging different prices based on geographic location. Some products may be cheaper to produce in different places and based on the cost of the good sold the monopolistic firm can charge different prices in order to maximize its profits. Placing restrictions or other inferior characteristics on the low-price good or service, so as to make it sufficiently less attractive to the high price segment †¢Establishing a schedule of volume discounts (â€Å"block pricing†) such that only large-volume buyers (who may have more elastic demands) qualify †¢Using a two-part tariff, where the customer pays an up-front fee for the right to buy the product and then pays additional fees for each unit of the product consumed.