Ethics and faith

Introduction Education should be a right not a privilege. Woody Allen’s film provides a perfect platform for the discussion of the immoral and ethical. In this motion picture, he seems to support the defeat of the religious as seen through the death of the most religious person in the story – Ben. In order to make a comprehensive discussion, one must incorporate the views of philosophers such as Kierkegaard ad Nietzsche.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Ethics and faith specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Whether faith should play a role in what it means to live an ethical life The events in ‘Crimes and Misdemeanors’ occur at a time when the state of morality in society has declined. Some acts can be permitted by law, but are not necessarily acceptable in religious circles (Crimes and Misdemeanors). In a place where God is not that significant, then certain unthinkable actions, such as murd er, are tolerable. In this case, faith had been suspended from the lives of those involved and one would argue that the main character – Judah – had also discarded morality. Nonetheless in order to know for sure whether ethics was not relevant in Judah’s decisions, then some insights from Friedrich Nietzsche would be in order. Nietzsche believes that morality can either be understood from the point of view of the slave or a master. The master often preaches morality, especially Christianity to the masses as a means of controlling them. He believes that people who act in accordance to religious moral structures are weak and powerless. Religion causes people to continuously regret or feel guilty over their actions. However, the master views the world in a totally different light. It is devoid of any moral laws and man can, therefore, curve his own path or define his own identity. The master is some sort of superman because Nietzsche believes that religion is a man -made creation. The master must now create his own set of laws or ethics that will govern his life. In the film, one would argue that Judah was the ‘superman’. He chose to abandon the religious values that his father taught him, and instead created his own set of rules. Although it was difficult for Judah to get over the guilt that haunted him after his mistress’ death, he finally transcended it. He was able to come to his ‘true nature’ by overcoming the weakness of religion. Nietzsche would say that Judah was strong enough to get over his guilt-ridden religious structure and find peace with his actions. The philosopher would also argue that Judah created his own set of ethics and thus triumphed in the end. It is only those who stick to their true sense of will who are the most justified (Kaufmann 122).Advertising Looking for essay on ethics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More On the flipside, ano ther philosopher –Soren Kierkegaard asserts that man must pass through three phases of life before reaching the highest consciousness. In the aesthetic phase, one is only concerned about one’s desires. Issues such as beauty, comfort and food are all that one thinks about. However, one can move from this stage to the ethical one, in which other people’s concerns become significant. Nonetheless, the individual is still the main focus in the phase. Lastly, one may opt to move onto the religious phase, where one’s commitment to God takes center stage. One’s dedication to one’s religious teachings takes precedence over all else; hence the mention of Abraham who was willing to suspend ethical believes for his faith. To Kierkegaard, faith gives purpose and meaning to the other two stages of life, so it should never be suspended for the other. In Woody Allen’s movie, Judah abandons his religious beliefs for his familial responsibilities, and thus rationalizes his actions. Kierkegaard would state that Judah retrogressed by going back to stage two. He chose not to obey God unconditionally, and thus ruined his chances of eternal happiness. This philosopher would assert that Judah never got to the highest level of consciousness (Kierkegaard 81). While Nietzsche’s views assist individuals in finding satisfaction in life; these recommendations do not necessarily mean that humans will act ethically. When God is eliminated from the world, then no right or wrong answer exists. All human beings then come up with their own ethical laws, which reflect the path that they have chosen for themselves. In a world such as this, there would be no mechanism to decide which one of the many ethical laws is more rational or appropriate over the other. This brings out the importance of faith and God in the field of ethics. Conclusion From the above reflections, it is clear that faith plays an indispensable role in ethics. Kierkegaard ar gued that one’s soul was not one’s own but the Lord’s. This is what true happiness is about. Although it may seem that Judah triumphed in the film, one still questions the ideal picture portrayed of Judah and his wife.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Ethics and faith specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Even his mistress, Dolores, observed that he came to life when he was with her and seemed lifeless when he was with his wife. In fact, one should question whether Judah was really happy after eliminating Dolores. In a world devoid of religious laws, individuals are left to choose their own rules. They will rationalize their deeds irrespective of how unethical they are. Judah believed that he was doing the right thing by murdering the neurotic and indiscriminate Dolores. Human beings have a great capacity to rationalize the most extreme actions. Even Hitler thought that massacring a whole race was the greatest service he was offering to mankind. Nietzsche’s views endorse moral relativism and this leave a lot room for unethical acts. Faith and religion should be incorporated into ethics because they provide a moral compass for assessing the goodness of others’ actions. Works Cited Crimes and Misdemeanors. Ex. Prod. Woody Allen film. NY: Metro Goldwyn Meyer. 1989. DVD. Kaufmann, Walter. On the Genealogy of morals, NY: Vintage books, 1974. Print. Kierkegaard, Soren. Fear and trembling, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1983. Print. This essay on Ethics and faith was written and submitted by user Juliet E. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Taxonomy essays

Taxonomy essays Taxonomy is a branch of biology that pertains to the classification of organisms and their natural relationship to one another. There are seven categories: Domain, Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Genus, and Species. Carlos Linnaeus designed this system. In this paper, I will describe the five different kingdoms. The first Kingdom is Eubacteria. This Kingdom was changed form Monera to Eubacteris just a few years ago. Eubacteria organisms are mainly bacteria and cyan bacteria. Bacteria are the most primitive form of life. Eubacteria have no nuclei and the D.N.A. consists only of a double helix. They do not reproduce by the process of meiosis or mitosis. The second Kingdom is Protista. Protista are more advanced than bacteria. Protists are microscopic organisms found almost anywhere that is moist. They are unicellular or simple multicellular organisms. Protists do have a nuclear membrane and reproduce by way of meiosis and mitosis. A few protests are responsible for disease such as malaria. Fungi is the third Kingdom. Fungi mainly consist of molds, yeasts, mildew, and mushrooms. Fungi cannot produce their own food. They must absorb their nutrition from other living or non-living species. They are composed of filaments called hyphae. These organisms reproduce by spores, which can be either sexually or asexually produced. The fourth Kingdom is Plantae. Plants are multicellular organisms such as regular land plants, trees, and shrubs. Plants contain celluose in their cell walls, which is what gives the plant strength. Most plants contain chlorophyll in their chloroplasts, which aids in the process of photosynthesis. Most plants are immobile. Plants are autotrophic which means they are able make their own food. The last Kingdom is Animalia. Animals include organisms such as humans, cats, dogs, and beetles. Animals are multicellular and most are able to move. All anim ...

Americas defense spending Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Americas defense spending - Essay Example the portion of the United States federal budget set aside for any expenses on behalf of the Department of Defense and defense-related expenditures in general. This includes the training, salaries, and caring for all military and civilian personnel, along with maintenance of facilities and equipment, in all branches of the United States military. This expansive definition of defense spending puts the 2009 Department of Defense figure at approximately $1 trillion (Higgs). Such an expansion in the budget for defense inevitably follows as a direct consequence of military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. These two conflicts fuel the rapidly expanding allocation of federal tax revenue into defense. The efficacy of these expenditures in bringing about meaningful or measurable benefits for the American people is subject to some debate, as well as the issue of whether to increase the already overwhelming figures related to military budgets. Convincing arguments can be made for each side, w hich makes the question of increasing defense spending difficult to resolve in simple terms. In 2009, approximately 21% of the United States federal budget, and 24% of federal tax revenues, is allocated to the Department of Defense, with an additional 10% to 17% allocated to defense spending outside of the Department of Defense. Annually, military budgets expand by approximately 9%, and have done so since 2000 (Congressional Budget Office). In this time, total Department of Defense spending adds up to 4.8% of the U.S. GDP, which is not historically high, even while the Department of Defense budget, in absolute terms, is the highest it has been in history. A roughly 1% expansion in defense spending would put that 4.8% plateau of GDP back into peak military spending seen during the climax of the Cold War immediately before the collapse of the Soviet Union. The immediate impact, or tangible result, of this expansion is unclear. Nevertheless, arguments can be made for further incremental

The Painted Veil Literature review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Painted Veil - Literature review Example W. Somerset Maugham’s novel the Painted Veil is today recognized as a 20th century classic. The novel itself takes its title from a Percy Bysshe Shelley sonnet that states, â€Å"Lift not the painted veil which those who live / Call Life" (Maugham, ix). One considers that both the sonnet and the title hold a great degree of insight into the novel’s inter-workings. Specifically, the novel follows a variety of characters through personal challenges and foibles that are revealed after removing the metaphorical ‘painted veil’. This recognition carries with it a number of direct questions for the novel. For instance, is the work a bildungsroman -- a novel of development – or is it merely a critique of human weaknesses? This essay argues that the novel functions to demonstrate that life is the continual negotiation between moments of development and human weakness, and as such the central theme is one of adaptation and change. Analysis Throughout the nove l tremendous periods of change occurs, most notably in Kitty Fane’s life. The most notable developmental change in Kitty’s life occurs in direct relation to the specific places she lives and the people she encounters. One considers Kitty Fane’s life throughout the early stages of the novel as largely seeking a more firmly established identity or purpose. In the early stages of the novel Kitty’s weak identity is established as she faces pressure from her mother to marry. The text notes that, â€Å"Mrs. Garstin was a hard, cruel, managing, ambitious, parsimonious, and stupid woman" (Maugham, p. 19). This cruel and managing influence becomes a central area of concern in the novel as it drives much of Kitty’s decision-making. Not being able to recognize her mother’s social ambitions, Kitty rushes herself into an unhappy marriage with Walter Fane. Of course a notable shift in Kitty’s life occurs as she moves to Mei-tan-fu. Upon moving her e, Kitty states, â€Å"I feel like one of those old sailors who set sail for undiscovered seas†¦and I think my soul hankers for the unknown† (Maugham, p. 153). This is a highly significant statement within the text as it indicates that Kitty has achieved a new purpose in life. To an extent the notion of this area as contributing to Kitty’s new purpose in life is directly attributed to her becoming involved with the French nuns; these individuals work with the poor and take care of the orphans in the area. One considers that throughout a great portion of Kitty’s life her actions have been motivated out of self-interest and her mother’s irrational expectations. Her move to Mei-tan-fu then has allowed her to remove herself from her dysfunctional and ineffective adulterous affair with Charlie Townsend, as well as discover and throw herself into a life-pursuit that extends beyond her immediate self-interests. These are both things that she could not achie ve in London or in colonial Hong Kong. While Mei-tan-fu largely represents a period of awakening and stability for Kitty one recognizes that this peace is soon punctured by further moments of human weakness and strife. Despite Kitty’s new sense of purpose, her relationship with Walter is still recognized as containing considerable strife. Even Kitty’s newfound purpose and stability is not able to rectify the situation with Walter. It is not long before he gains cholera. It seems that to an extent Maugham implements Walter’s cholera as a sort of symbolic comment on the nature of their relationship as sick of dysfunctional. The text states, â€Å"I do not know what Walter has in that dark, twisted mind of his, but I’m shaking with terror. I think it may be that death will be really a release† (Maugham, p. 220). While Kitty is vague as to whose death would be a release it seems clear that the cholera in this instance functions outside of the direct re alms of a plot device and more in terms of a symbolic comment on the nature of the relationship. From the perspective of the novel as one of development it seems

What Makes Citizens Trust Political Institutions Politics Essay

What Makes Citizens Trust Political Institutions Politics Essay Issues of distrust in political institutions are very common in post-communist states in Europe. Even though trust is one of the key components for a successful democracy, the communist regime has left a trail of political distrust which will last for generations. When trust is low, the government cannot operate efficiently, and that creates further distrust, and a vicious circle is created (Mishler Rose, 1997: 419). This scepticism in post-communist Europe creates a paradox, because the states want to become more democratic, and see the senior EU members as an example of democracy and a direction they should be heading to, however the distrust in political institutions slows down the growth of the democracy and declines citizen participation in politics. It is reasonable to argue that no government should have an absolute trust as it might create instability. The trust in political institutions has been declining steadily since 1991 even in Western democracies, for example in Brita in the percentage of citizens who trust politicians decreased from 33 to 16 per cent.  [1]  In order to improve democracy in Eastern and Central Europe, political parties face a challenge of dealing with cynicism and distrust when communicating with the society. It is understandable, because many people, especially from the older generation, have lived a large portion of their life under the communist regime, and that changed their views on politics dramatically. Communist parties created various institutions such as party and trade unions, however the citizens felt it was all initiated by the state and did not intend to strengthen the civil society, but instead it was a tool to which was used to reduce the liberty of the society and create political conditions favoured by the leaders of the communist party. Instead of participating voluntarily, the citizens were forced into political participation or compliance by the communist party, and that resulted in further distrust of po litical institutions and destroyed free social life. This essay contains two main parts in the first part theory of institutional trust will be examined. The second part will be an analysis of Mishler and Rose article, which intended to explain issues of political trust in post-communist societies in Europe.  [2]  In the last bit of this essay both theory and the published article will be looked upon together, and a final conclusion will be made. Theory It is critical to understand the theory of political trust before we can proceed with the further research. Political trust is different compared to the personal trust. In order for an individual to trust someone, he needs to know that person quite well. However, political institution is not an individual and it is difficult to develop that kind of trust. The citizens trust institutions in a different way on a presumption that they will complete their duties as a governing body. Even though it is known that trust in political institutions has been declining steadily over the past two decades, there has been limited amount of research made purely on Eastern and Central Europe. Two main types of theories are identified which explain trust in political institutions in a different way cultural and institutional theories. Cultural theories explain political trust by the values and attitudes towards politics. Inglehart (1997) argued, that we form these values while we are growing up, and by the time we are eligible to vote we already have our own opinions towards politics, and it is extremely uncommon for an adult to change his political attitude completely. The trust in politics emerges from a non-political sphere, an overall life experience. In that sense, political trust is an addition to persons interpersonal trust, which develops while we are growing up and while we interact with others. Interpersonal trust can be affected by outside sources, for example the media, which is a big part in todays society; it can shape an individuals opinion towards something even if the individual does not have a good understanding on that subject. Many other factors can contribute towards an individuals attitude towards political institutions education, parents social status or the overall experience with institut ions while growing up. If a child is born in a family with high social status they are more likely to have better education. There has been evidence of correlation between familys social status and the childs trust in political institutions (Tong, 2007). Cultural theories argue that because cultural values are rooted to people when they are growing up, at least a few generations should pass in post-communist states in Europe before we can notify a significant increase in trust of political institutions. However, the trust of political institutions cannot be assigned only to the way people are brought up. Economic conditions of the state and overall well-being of the citizens might re-shape the values of the society. Because of that, the citizens can be categorised into two groups materialists and post-materialists (Inglehart, 1998). Materialist values for a successful democracy depend more or less solely on economic performance of the state if citizens are happy with the economic situation in the country, they are likely to trust the political institutions. Post-materialists, on the other hand, focus towards personal freedom and individuality, and therefore they might have issues of trusting political authority. Social background of the citizens is also important in cultural theory. Many post-communist states in Europe have a diverse population, and there might not be a lot of unity towards the political trust. For example, about one quarter of the Estonian population is Russian.  [3]  A question emerges whether the Russian population in Estonia would trust political institutions, because after the Independence was restored in 1991, the Estonian government shifted to a completely new direction and Estonia became a right-winged state. And indeed, there is a lot of tension in Estonia, as the Russians demanded that their language should be adopted as the second national language in Estonia. Despite these demands, the Estonian government did not give in, and even got tougher on Russian speaking citizens they might lose their jobs if they do not speak Estonian. This results in a clash of interests and Russian distrust in political institutions. However, cultural theories do not state that everyone goes through the same process, and everyone has a different experience of trust in life. Therefore, we should not assume that every citizen in a social group (based on age, race, ethnicity etc.) has the same attitude towards political institutions or interpersonal trust. Cultural theories have been criticized by Fukuyama, as he stated that it is in the human nature to develop a trust for groups and individuals who often interact directly. However, the degree of interpersonal trust varies significantly among democracies, and therefore we cannot make an assumption that high trust in political institutions is necessary for a successful democracy (Fukuyama, 1999). Institutional theories focus on the model of rule and the performance of the political institutions. If they perform well, that creates a sense of trust among citizens and benefits the democracy in the state. Institutional theories do not see the governments performance in the past or cultural aspects of individuals life as decisive factors on individuals political trust, although they can influence an individual to a certain degree (Mishler Rose, 2001:36). Unlike in cultural theories, short-time effects are stressed as highly important. Institutional theories make an assumption that citizens make rational choices by evaluating the political and economic performance of the political institutions. In that respect, citizens need to have a previous experience of interaction with an institution, or at least to have some knowledge about it. Institutional theories do not agree which factors are the most important when measuring the performance of the government. In Western democracies, th ey usually focus on economic conditions and policy performance, when in post-communist societies different measurements can be used. For example, the reduction of corrupt political officials or the liberalization of trade can be extremely important in post-communist states, because Eastern and Central Europeans have been oppressed for decades. By making these policy changes the governments are more than likely to receive positive feedback from the citizens, and that results in strengthening the trust of the institutions. However, institutional theories do recognize the importance of individuals values and political affiliations. If a citizen was in favour of communism, his trust of political institutions might be decreasing, despite the good performance of the new democratic government. It is important to understand, that not everyone sees economic factors as the key priority, and that people have very different values in life, and one model does not apply to everyone. Institutional theories have a significantly different approach towards the future of the political trust in post-communist countries. Unlike in the cultural theories, institutionalist scholars believe that trust for newly formed democratic institutions can be generated in a much shorter period of time (Mishler Rose, 2001: 33). If the newly formed government performs well economically and the citizens are happy with the new democratic system it should not take generations to develop the trust for political institutions. Micro and macro theories Both cultural and institutional theories can be sub-categorised into two dimensions micro and macro. It is important to distinguish the differences between them, because political trust is a very complex issue and these dimensions will play a crucial part in analysing Mishler Rose publication in section 5. Micro dimension is linked with an individual, while macro dimension is focused on the society as a whole. Both micro theories state that political trust is different among individuals, due to different background, experiences or individual perceptions. On the other hand, both macro theories see trust as a value, which is shared by all members of the society (Mishler Rose, 2001: 33). Macro-cultural theory has very limited interest in trust of individuals, because they focus on national traditions and sees society as one body, which either trusts political institutions or not. Micro-cultural theories, on the other hand, emphasise the importance of the individual within the society . Personal experiences are the main subject of focus, and the opinions on political institutions are formed by every member of the society individually. The differences between micro-institutional and macro-institutional approaches are even more significant. Macro-institutional theories are shifted towards the performance of political institutions while micro-institutional theories leave the evaluation of political performance to the individual. Both micro-institutional and macro-institutional theories have three implications. Firstly, with the accurate sampling, decent research techniques and sensibly asked questions the responses about trust of political institutions will be quite accurate on how well the system is actually performing. Secondly, if the political institutions do not have a high public trust, this can be fixed in two ways by either lowering the public expectations for the institutions or by improving the efficiency of the institutions. And thirdly, these theories r ecognize an indirect relationship between trust in political institutions and social trust. This relationship is expected to be strong on the aggregate level of societies, but not on the individual level (Newton Norris, 2000). This is because the trust of the political institutions is the direct outcome of the performance of the government, just like people trust others by knowing how they acted in the past. Measurement of trust Measurement of trust is a tricky concept. Most surveys, such as Eurobarometer or European Social Survey, ask only one question in order to find data on causes of political trust. That is why new approaches of theory are useful; however their implementation in current study seems to be a very difficult task. To current day different scholars use different methods and variables to measure political trust. Many different sources of literature have been used for this essay, which enabled me to see a pattern in scholars research on measuring political trust. However, I will be using Putnams model (Putnam, 2000) which, to my understanding, provided the broadest explanation and measurement of trust. This model consists of five key concepts, which need to be examined thoroughly in order to develop an understanding and measurement of trust. The reader must bear in mind that the questions asked about these five concepts were made up by me, as I found them to be the most relevant. However, in t he next paragraph of this essay the authors of the examined article used different methods and different questions in their research. The five concept approach was selected because I argue that it provides the best measurement of trust the literature could offer, despite being just a recommendation. The first concept is civic engagement, which, according to Putnam, has four dimensions (Putnam, 2000). Political activity is the first dimension, however it is impossible to justify an individuals political involvement by asking just one question (with the exception of question Do you engage in any kind of political activity? and the answer being no). A series of questions need to be asked in order to determine ones involvement in political activity, such as Have you voted in your local election?, Have you recently contacted any elected official about a certain issue?, Do you participate in local council meetings?. The second dimension of civic engagement is volunteering activity, and the respondents should be asked whether they volunteer for political, cultural, religious or charity organizations. The third dimension is leisure activity, and we should ask whether the respondent is attending any group meetings, for example, a book club or football practice. Leisure activities are im portant, because they are the key attributes of interpersonal trust. The last dimension is the engagement with the media, and the respondents should be asked how often do they watch the news on the television or the radio and how often do they read the newspaper. The possible answers to all the questions should be based on frequency, as Putnam argued that voluntary participation in civic engagement increases the trust among the citizens. The second concept is trust. Again, this is a tricky question and it needs to be approached with caution. The respondent should answer three questions whether he trusts the majority of the society, whether he trusts local political institutions and whether he trusts federal or international institutions. The third concept is social demographics, because according to cultural theory on the micro level, personal experiences are important and should have significant results in institutional trust (Mishler Rose, 2001: 34). The questions for this concept should reveal the age, social status, gender, education, occupation and marital status of the respondent. All this information is commonly used in analysis of political trust (Job, 2005: 8). The fourth concept is the government performance and, according to micro-institutional theory, a decent performance by the government allows the citizens to trust the institutions, as long as the needs of the society are being met. The questions for the respondents should ask do they feel any corruption in their institutions and whether they would support the decision to provide the government with more power for implementation of law and security. If the citizens are in favour of giving the government more power, it means that political institutions are generally trusted. However, this puts the citizens in a difficult position, because more power to the government leads to stricter control and therefore less democracy. The fifth concept is the world views and general well-being. The well-being most commonly determines whether the citizens will blame the government for being incompetent or not. If the majority of the population feels happy with their lives, that means political institutions are doing good work, and that increases the trust in society. The world views might have major consequences on political trust as well. We should ask the respondents their willingness to co-operate with the government and comply with the law. There should also be a question on whether the respondents feel overall happy or not and whether they feel secure under the current government or not. A negative response would indicate distrust in the current government. The analysis of the publication This section of the essay analyses Mishler and Rose article What are the origins of Political Trust?: Testing Institutional and Cultural Theories in Post-communist societies. The authors used two datasets, which were both compiled in 1998. The first dataset comes from the fifth New Democracies Barometer (NDB), and it contains data from nine post-communist countries Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Belarus, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia and Romania. Each country had around 1000 respondents in a face-to-face interviews. The second dataset comes from the seventh New Russia Barometer (NRB), and it contains 1904 face-to-face interviews. Both datasets used probability samples, in order to increase validity of the research. The authors used the following question for determining the trust in political institutions: There are many different institutions in this country, for example, the government, courts, police, civil servants. Please show me on this 7-point scale, where 1 represents great distrust and 7 represents great trust, how much do you personally trust in each of the following institutions (Mishler Rose, 2001: 40).

Understanding Islam

Introduction The literal meaning of Islam is peace. Because of many current world events, Islam is a highly controversial and sensitive issue that has many misconceptions that need to be more fully addressed and understood. It is true that the events of 9/11 have separated the history of American relations with the Muslim world into before and after phases, negatively affecting the patterns of assimilation of immigrant Muslims into American culture and society (Simmons, 2008). This essay will begin to give factual details regarding the Islam faith, compare Islam with other Abrahamic religions and discuss common misconceptions and current events that have changed the way the world looks at Muslims and the Islam faith. Body It will be useful to begin with attempting to scratch the surface and try to understand the teachings of Islam. Islam is a monotheistic religion based on revelations received by the Prophet Muhammad in the 7th century. These revelations were recorded in the faith’s text, the Qur’an. The Islam faith has â€Å"Six Articles of Beliefs†. People of the Muslim faith must have great conviction in these most important six areas. They are: 1. Belief in God. 2. Belief in the Angels. 3. Belief in the Prophets and Messengers. 4. Belief in the Sacred Texts. 5. Belief in Life After Death. 6. Belief in the Divine Decree (Abdulsalam, 2006). The believers worship God directly without the intercession of priests or clergy. They also have five duties that are given as rules to follow. Those are the Five Pillars of Islam; Belief, Worship, Fasting, Almsgiving and Pilgrimage (Grupper, Prentice, & Roughton, 2000). The country with the most Muslims is Indonesia, with 120 million. In addition there are millions more in parts of Eastern and Western Europe and in the Americas. The Islam religion claims nearly 1 billion followers in countries throughout the world. Islam is also the youngest among major world religions but is still one of the largest (Ridenour, 2001). Islam belongs in a group of three religions called the â€Å"Abrahamic† religions. Those three religions are Christianity, Judaism and Islam. They are three sister religions that are monotheistic and that claim the prophet Abraham as their common forefather. To compare Islam and Christianity, in relation to God, Muslims believe there is no God but Allah; Christians believe that God is revealed in scripture as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, three persons who are coeternally God (Ridenour, 2001). This sometimes causes Jews and Muslims to criticize the Christians as polytheistic. In all three religions, there is an ethical orientation. All three religions speak of a choice between good and evil, which is depended upon obedience or disobedience to God (Unkown, 2007). The three also have a linear concept of history with creation as the beginning and that God works through history. The believers of Islam are called Muslims which means â€Å"one who lives his life according to God’s will† (Langley, 1993). It would seem that this particular people and religion would be a people of peace, sincerity and love. Since 9/11, the world of the faithful in Muslim societies has been in turmoil because the living Islam, dominated by its traditional interpreters, the learned ulema, has not been able to guide the community at the most critical period of its existence (Sachedina, 2010). This current critical period of Islam existence has created many misconceptions. Only if it is assumed that the goal of Islam is to establish peace without resorting to aggression can one claim that that militant Islamists have hijacked their religion (van der Krogt, 2010). Islam is practiced all over the world and the way it is practiced is different in different locations. Islam does claim to be brotherhoods of â€Å"one religion†, but the Islam practiced in Indonesia is very different than the Islam practiced in Saudi Arabia, which is also different from that in Kazakhstan, or Iran, or Morocco. In researching for this essay, the author found many different â€Å"types† of Islamic groups all over the world. There are over 73 sub-sects that have emerged within Islam today (Venkatraman, 2007). Some peaceful and some more aggressive. A group called Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami (The Party of Islamic Liberation) began working in Central Asia in the mid-1990s and has developed a committed following inside Uzbekistan, and to a lesser extent in neighboring Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan. Estimates of its strength vary widely, but a rough figure is probably 15-20,000 throughout Central Asia. Its influence should not be exaggerated – it has little public support in a region where there is limited appetite for political Islam – but it has become by far the largest radical Islamist movement in the area (Unkown, Radical Islam in Central Asia: Responding to Hizb ut-Tahrir, 2003). The common misconceptions regarding Muslims did not begin with the terrorist attacks of 9/11, but that seems to be the current event that hits closest to home. Islamic terrorism is a movement in which the violence caused by terrorism is derived from and used to preserve extreme interpretations of the Quran in an Islamic community. Participants of this movement call for an unquestioned devotion and blind obedience or a Quaranic tenet has been broken. A few of the Islamic terrorist groups are Al-jihad, AlQaeda (Afganistan), Hamas (Palestine), Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (Kashmir), and the Lashkar e-Toiba (Kashmir) (Venkatraman, 2007). The 9/11 terrorist attacks were performed by AlQaeda under the direction of Osama bin Laden, the founder of AlQaeda. The death of Osama bin Laden has also certainly not stopped Islamic violence, but according to the president of the Muslim Public Affairs Counsel, Salam Al-Marayati, the death of Osama bin Laden â€Å"represents the beginning of the end of a dark era in U. S. -Muslim relations. † He goes on to say that â€Å"hopefully this ushers a new era of hope and democracy in dealing with the grievances of Muslim people throughout the world without resorting to political violence. † (Lozano, 2011). The media and these current world events are a definite misconception of all Muslim people. To gratuitously insult law-abiding Muslims by conflating them with terrorists is not only wrong, it is dangerous to U. S. national security (Stern, 2011). An article written in the New York Times in October of 2010, spoke about local New York Islamics having open houses to invite non-Muslims in to attend prayers, discussions and tours of Islamic centers as a way to defuse hostility toward the Muslim population. The idea for the program, â€Å"A Week of Dialogue,† emerged from a summit of Islamic leaders as a response to the furor surrounding a plan to open a Muslim community center and mosque near ground zero (Semple, 2010). Muslims in America and around the world are trying to bring back the truth to the original Islamic meaning of peace. We now must look at how Muslims and non-Muslims communicate and live together in harmony. Historically, in countries where Islam has gained political power, people of all rival religions are either wiped out, or in the interest of â€Å"tolerance† or â€Å"open mindedness†, permitted to exist as second-class citizens. Christians and Jews are looked down upon and may not practice their religion openly or freely without serious consequence. But, Islam in the West is completely different from Islam in Muslim dominated countries. Muslims who live in the Western democratic countries enjoy all the benefits and privileges of freedom and democracy. They have secure civil liberties and may practice their religion freely and openly. The Qur’an specifically states that Islam is a religion of mercy, tolerance and moderation. Moderation being the key to Muslim and non-Muslim communication. It allows Muslims to have a good relationship with non-Muslims, but to a certain limit. One quote from the Qur’an says this: â€Å"Let not the believers (Muslims) take for friends Unbelievers (non-Muslims) rather than believers. And whoever does that has no relation with Allah whatsoever, except by way of precaution that you may guard yourselves from them. † (Surah Ali Imran, V: 28). Conclusion In summation, some of the misconceptions that people around the world have regarding Islam, are backed up by some current and past events. We must first begin to understand the Islamic faith, it’s diversity in people, areas of the world and political stances. This author does not begin to understand the depth of the Islam faith. After researching for this essay, the realization of the diversity of this faith as compared to Christianity or Judaism, is overwhelming. The peaceful people of Islam must not be judged by the terrorists and the acts they commit. We learned that Islam has political side and a religious side as well. The editor of the journal, American Libraries, Leonard Kniffel wrote an editorial about how libraries jumped at the chance to begin educating communities on the Islam faith shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Mr. Kniffel states that, â€Å"Knowing that an anti-Muslim backlash was inevitable, they created programs to help the patrons of their libraries understand the teachings of Islam, the history of American policy related to the conflict we now find ourselves in, and what it means to be Muslim in America† (Kniffel, 2002). The Muslim American Society (www. muslimamericansociety. org) has a campaign called â€Å"The Straight Path Initiative†. It’s goals are to equip and focus on Muslims in America ages 15-30. This initiative has a goal to initiate an honest open ialog about radicalization and extremism in Muslim American communities. They are targeting high schools and college campuses to provide programs and activities to involve young Muslim Americans in a proactive way that limits opportunities for radicalization (Unkown, The Straight Path Initiative, 2011). Much like any religion or people group, Islam has a group of terrorists and non-peaceful people amongst them . The misconceptions are actually very real and have information and current events to back them up. It would also be fair to say, that most religions and people groups have those kinds of people. Understanding one another is the most important thing we can do. By educating each other on beliefs, understandings and ways of life, we can only then begin to have peaceful dialog to bring us together. September 11, 2001 became a day for American’s to see the true colors of the terrorist sect of the Islam religion. As this is a day we will never forget, we must begin to heal by understanding and not judging the entire Islam faith for these terrible acts of terrorism. References Abdulsalam, M. (2006, January 30). The Religion of Islam. Retrieved June 12, 2011, from www. islamreligion. com: http://www. islamreligion. com/articles/6/. Grupper, J. , Prentice, P. , & Roughton, R. (2000). Islam: Empire of Faith. Retrieved June 13, 2011, from www. pbs. org: http://www. pbs. org/empires/islam/film. html. Kniffel, L. (2002, January). Getting to know Islam. American Libraries , 48. Langley, M. (1993). World Religions. Oxford: Lion Publishing. Lozano, C. (2011, May 1). Osama bin Laden Dead: End of a dark era in U. S. Muslim relations'. Retrieved June 15, 2011, from L. A. Times: http://latimesblogs. latimes. com/lanow/2011/05/osama-bin-laden-dead-end-dark-era-us- muslim-relations. html. Ridenour, F. (2001). So What's the Difference? Ventura, CA: Regal Books. Sachedina, A. (2010, September). Religion, Order and Peace: A Muslim Perspective. Cross Currents , 332-338. Semple, K. (2010, October 22). At Mosques, Inviting Non-Muslims Inside to Ease Hostility Toward Islam. Retrieved June 15, 2011, from New York Times: http://www. nytimes. com/2010/10/23/nyregion/23mosques. html? ef=reconstruction. Simmons, G. Z. (2008). From Muslims in America to American Muslims. Journal of Islamic Law and Culture , 10 (3), 254-280. Stern, J. (2011, May/June). Muslims in America. The National Interest (113), pp. 38-46. Unkown. (2007, September 16). Abrahamic Religion. Retrieved June 14, 2011, from New World Encyclopedia: http://www. newworldencyclopedia. org/entry/Abrahamic_religions. References (continued) Unkown. (2003, June 30). Radical Islam in Central Asia: Responding to Hizb ut-Tahrir. Retrieved June 15, 2011, from International Crisis Group: ttp://www. crisisgroup. org/en/regions/asia/central-asia/058-radical-islam-in-central-asia- responding-to-hizb-ut-tahrir. aspx. Unkown. (2011). The Straight Path Initiative. Retrieved June 17, 2011, from Muslim American Society: http://muslimamericansociety. org/main/content/straight-path-initiative. van der Krogt, C. (2010). Jihad without apologetics. Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations , 21 (2), 127-142. Venkatraman, A. (2007). Religious Basis for Islamic Terrorism: The Quran and it's Interpretations. Studies in Conflict and Terrorism , 30 (3), 229-248.

Analysis of “Fight” by Laurel Blossom Essay

Complete opposite attract, just like a magnet. However at times, it may not always work out for the best. In â€Å"Fight† by poet Laurel Blossom, the contrast between the narrator and her lover seems to have affected her decision to either strive through their relationship in order to make it work or opt out. The narrator immediately tells readers â€Å"That is the difference between me and [him]†, helping readers understand from the start that they these lovers have their differences, as do most people in relationships do. However the narrator goes on to list their differences throughout the entire poem. She talks of how he â€Å"pack[s] an umbrella, #30 goo/And a red flannel shirt.† and later discusses their differences in hobbies, weather, natural state of temperature, and material preference when it comes to clothing. However the narrator bluntly states â€Å" That’s not what I do.† as if she’s trying to reinforce the idea and emphasize it so that readers can understand that they are complete opposite of one another. In the third stanza she uses repetition to add stress on â€Å"Florida† which could possibly mean that she’s trying to give readers the feel of her environment and setting of the poem. It’s a reasonable possibility considering the fact that in the next stanza, readers get a list of activities usually done in sunny and pleasant weather which Florida is known for. Once again the compare and contrast pattern is seen again as she critically states â€Å"[He] dig[s] in the garden. I swim in the pool/I like to wear cotton. [He] like[s] to wear wool.† in order to sincerely persuade her lover, since she addresses him directly within it, that they are too different for one another. In the last stanza the narrator finally comes to a conclusion after her rant of contrasting her and her lovers lifestyles. Apparently â€Å"[He] wants[s] to get married. [She] wants to be free†, which shocks readers, especially when the narrator blatantly tells her lover, who originally was the one she was talking to, that even though he doesn’t seem to mind â€Å"that is the difference between you and me†. The way that the narrator formed her poem, makes this line the strongest one and gives readers this feeling that she wants to end  whatever is going on between them. Her constant repetition within the poem that they are completely different and the constant contrasting between lifestyles, adds emphasis to her decision to end what they had since she wants to be â€Å"free†.