Plutarchs Aims and Achievements as a Biographer Essay -- English Lite

A critical study of a significant aspect or aspects of Plutarch's aims and achievements as a biographer -To what extent does Plutarch achieve his aims for the lives of Marius and Caesar? We are able to establish Plutarch's aims in creating his biographies by looking at his background and influences. Plutarch was born in Greece to a wealthy established family. He was well educated, studying rhetoric in Athens, and then travelled to Rome where he established connections with some important political figures. Despite being an outsider (a Greek), Plutarch accepted Roman aristocratic tradition as well as the moralising of some key Roman figures. This is reflected in the 'Lives' which in effect provide moral guidelines, prescribing how one should live a virtuous life. He viewed himself as an artist or moraliser rather than a historian, believing, "It is not so much history that we are writing but lives."[1] Plutarch was deeply into the platonic approach to ethics, and therefore was also influenced by Socrates. Plato was a pupil of Socrates who claimed that the most important thing in life was to know how one should live; an emphasis on moral conduct was therefore passed down to Plutarch. He is fascinated not only by great deeds and battles but, "often a little matter, like a saying or a joke,"[2] which can be more revealing in terms of character and virtue. Plato's philosophy was about the search for absolute standards of truth and moral certainty and almost all of his works are about ethics, or moral philosophy. His aim was therefore to create a, "revelation of virtue or vice,"[3] intending to "shape the life of each man"[4] in terms of moral not financial or political stature, and hopes the reader gains... ...against him but achieved less (although still a few) of his aims in the 'Life of Caesar'. --------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] Plutarch, Fall of the Roman Republic, Alexander, 1.1-3, Penguin [2] Plutarch, Alexander, 1.1-3, [3] Plutarch, Alexander, 1.1-3, [4] Plutarch, Alexander, 1.1-3, [5] Russell, p105 [6] Russell, Plutarch quote, p80 [7] Plutarch, Alexander, 1.1-3 [8] Plutarch, Marius [3] [9] Plutarch, Marius [7] [10] Plutarch, Marius [9] [11] Plutarch, Marius [2,5] [12] Plutarch, Marius [10] [13] Plutarch, Marius [45] [14] Plutarch, Marius [46] [15] Plutarch, Marius [7] [16] Plutarch, Marius notes by Robin Seager [17] Plutarch, Alexander, 1.1-3 [18] Plutarch, Marius [6] [19] Plutarch, Marius [46] [20] Plutarch, Caesar [1] [21] Cicero [22] Plutarch, Caesar [69]

Ethics in Project Management

ETHICS IN PROJECT MANAGEMENT 1ABSTRACT This essay will describe about ethics in project management which will provide us an overview of the aspects how the organizations develop the ethics in an organization and about the differences in the ethical decision making among various professionals in their given field. In order to understand various aspects of the chosen topic various literature have been examined including peer reviewed articles which have been carefully chosen. In today’s world all the professional fields have adopted the ethical code of conduct in one way or another but there are differences in the decision making because of variation in company culture and the ethical values of a project manager and the employees. 2INTRODUCTION Ethics basically define the values and the standards or customs of a particular person or a group of people. There are two things that provide the specification for the ethics. First, ethics refers to well based standards of right and wrong that set what humans ought to do, usually in terms of rights, obligations, benefits to society, fairness, or specific virtues. Secondly, ethics refers to the study and development of one's ethical standards. As mentioned above, feelings can deviate from what is ethical. So it is necessary to constantly examine one's standards to ensure that they are reasonable and well-founded. Ethics also means, then, the continuous effort of studying our own moral beliefs and our moral conduct, and striving to ensure that we, and the institutions we help to shape, live up to standards that are reasonable and solidly-based. To make good ethical decisions it is essential that the professionals must have trained sensitivity to the ethical issues and a methodology that will help in exploring the ethical aspects of a decision making. In the business world, ethics scandals have caused the downfall of global corporations and non-profits, causing public outrage and sparking increased government regulations. Globalization has brought economies closer together but has caused a realization that our practice of ethics may differ from culture to culture. The rapid, continuing pace of technological change has provided new opportunities, but has also introduced new challenges, including new ethical dilemmas. The Code of Ethics and Professional Development was approved by the PMI Board of Directors in October 2006. Breach of Code of Ethics: Should, in the opinion of the National Council, a breach or a series of breaches of the Code of Ethics indicate that the member concerned has conducted himself/herself in a manner seriously prejudicial to the profession, then the Council shall advise the member that his/her name shall be removed from the Register of Members and in the case of Registered Project Managers, from the Register of Project Managers. The other important issue is importance of monitoring to control unethical problems. There is no doubt, control is necessary to prevent unethical problems, especially illegal ones, like frauds, and it helps organisations to ensure the accepted policies perform properly. However, there are some possible conflicts here, especially about considering people’s privacy and answer to this question that how far should this control go? People do not like their personal actions to be watched by others and they expect their privacy to be respected, also in some situations, applying very strictly suspect view to control causes people feel to have to try to prove their innocence because someone thinks they are guilty. In my opinion, definitely people‘s right to have their privacy respected could not be ignored, but there are other rights for people too, they want to feel secure when they trust to an organisation and give their information to the organisation and it’s responsible to protect them against someone that tries to access the information and use it to abuse them, or they also want the information related to their banking transactions to be secure. In all of these cases, it is not a acceptable excuse to these organisations not to check their staffs’ or customers’ suspect actions just because of being care about respecting to people privacy rights. As we see, beside to privacy right, there are other rights that should be considered as well. So the someone privacy right should be respected as far as it does not provide possibility of break other people‘s right. Ethics in IT: Mentioned by Strassmann, there is an issue for which, about our personal responsibility to other’s unethical behaviour and deciding whether or not play the role of the ethics police for people including our colleagues, partners, customers or even our boss. Bill Nance, a professor of management information systems at San Jose State University, disagree with such a way of thinking, he believes this â€Å"don't ask, don't tell† policy might end up costing a lot more than the money saved by the illegal money-saving strategies. He gave reason that â€Å"If a client or co-worker is doing something that is beyond unethical –something that is illegal — and others involved know or `could have reasonably known,' as lawyers say in court, they could be considered an accomplice†. I personally think in this sort of situation expectation of always acting as a moral cop is to some extent idealist and not realistic; sometimes because of the side effects of playing such a role, it could cost too much, such as losing job or popularity, so it would not worth to do so. Following are the main objectives that are meant to be achieved with the implementation of ethics in the organization:- Inspiration: To inspire members of the profession to act more ethically in the work environment. Sensitivity: To give encouragement to the members to remain sensitive towards the moral aspects of their jobs Discipline: To enforce certain rules of the profession on its members to achieve integrity Advice: To provide advice in cases of moral complexity and ethical dilemma Awareness: To alert employers and clients as to what they can expect of the member when performing his or her job. Ethics in Construction: The American Society of Civil Engineers claims that corruption accounts for an estimated $340 billion of worldwide construction costs each year. Corruption (including bribery, embezzlement, kickbacks, and fraud) in construction projects undermines the delivery of infrastructure services. Further, corruption poses significant risks to construction and engineering companies themselves. Owners, while trying to minimize their costs for construction projects, are also required to address the ethical and social responsibilities to their shareholders. Terms such as â€Å"socially responsible investments,† â€Å"integrity,† â€Å"honesty,† and â€Å"ethical business conduct† can be found in the operation statements or codes of ethics of almost all public companies. Whistleblowing: In the past thirty years numerous pieces of legislation have been passed to offer protection to whistleblowers from retaliation for disclosing organisational wrongdoing. An area that remains uncertain in relation to whistleblowing and its related policies in organisations is whether these policies actually increase the individualisation of work, allowing employees to behave in accordance with their conscience and in line with societal expectations or whether they are another management tool to control employees and protect organisations from them. In the professional environment, defining what is ethical could be too subjective. So providing enough information about accepted ethical values is very helpful to make ethical decisions. In other words, it is organisations’ responsibility to have related ethical policies and inform people, who need to know about that, properly. Another point is that some people usually take lightly of what is considered unethical behaviour in the industry while they may think that this behaviour is highly unethical or even illegal in real life. This situation emphasizes necessity to pay more attention to cultural infrastructure to promote ethical issues e. g. in construction, medical or IT area. Finally, considering that The Project Management Institute does have a Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, every professional should accustom to commit to the code seriously and adhere to it in all circumstances. Also enforcement of the ethical standards should be a must for the organization to maintain a reputation and also to protect the interest of the public. REFERENCES 1) Reedy, Patrick. 2008. ‘Mirror, Mirror, on the Wall: Reflecting on the Ethics and Effects of a Collective Critical Management Studies Identity Project. ’ Management Learning Vol. 39 Issue 1 p 57-72. EBSCOhost viewed September 25, 2008. ) Garrett, Michael. 2008. ‘What Will You Do When Your Desire to Please and Ethics Collide? ’ Business Source Complete, p 42-44, EBSCOhost viewed September 25, 2008. 3) Small, M. 2006, ‘A Case for Including Business Ethics and the Humanities in Management Programs’ Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 64 Issue 2, p195-211, EBSCOhost viewed Se ptember 26, 2008 4) Tsahuridu, E. , & Vandekerckhove, W. 2008, ‘Organisational Whistleblowing Policies: Making Employees Responsible or Liable? ’ Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 82 Issue 1, p107-118, EBSCOhost viewed September 26, 2008 5) Sohail, M. , & Cavill, S. 008, ‘Accountability to Prevent Corruption in Construction Projects’ Journal of Construction Engineering & Management, Vol. 134 Issue 9, p729-738, EBSCOhost viewed September 25, 2008 6) Annas, G. 2008, ‘Military Medical Ethics – Physician First, Last, Always’ New England Journal of Medicine, Vol. 359 Issue 11, p1087-1090. EBSCOhost viewed September 26, 2008 7) Swartz, N 2003, ‘Business Leaders Form Ethics Organization’, Information Management Journal, Vol. 37 Issue 2, p14. EBSCOhost, viewed September 23, 2008 8) Belsie, L 2002, ‘Watching for technology abuse at work’, Christian Science Monitor, Vol. 0, Issue 184, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 September 2008. 9 ) Strassmann, P 2000, ‘Practice ethical IT’, Computerworld, vol. 34, no. 14, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 September 2008. 10) Jane, R 2002, ‘Facing ethical dilemmas’, InfoWorld, vol. 20, no. 52/01, p. 73, EBSCOhost, viewed 26 September 2008. http://www. acm. org/about/code-of-ethics http://www. pmi. org/info/AP_PMICodeofEthics. pdf http://www. scu. edu/ethics/practicing/decision/framework. html http://www. cpsr. org/act/contest/4wi2 http://gbr. pepperdine. edu/052/itmatters. html http://www. misq. org/archivist/vol/no16/issue4/effyoz. pdf

Macbeth Stylistic Devices

A. J. Wronski Shakespear Style Analysis Mr. Mettey English IV December 19, 2012 Macbeth Stylistic Devices In the play Macbeth, William Shakespear uses several stylistic devices. These devices help contribute meaning to the central themes of the play. One of the main devices used by Shakespear to convey the theme, the fall of man, is symbolism. Strange occurences, birds, and blood are all symbols that hlep convey this theme. The first examples of symbolism are the strange occurences after Duncan is murdered. After Duncan is murdered, Ross and the Old Man talk about many strange things that are happening.They talk about how its unusually dark when its daytime and how an owl attacked a falcon. They also talk about how Duncan's horses were acting strange and how they, â€Å"Turned wild in nature, broke their stalls, flung out, Contending ‘gainst obedience†(2. 4. 16-17). The fact that these strange occurrences happen right after Duncan's death means that they could symbolize his death or his downfall which supports the theme of the fall of man. The symbolism of birds also helps convey the theme of the fall of man. Birds are used many times throughout the play as symbols but once in particular before Duncan is murdered.While Lady Macbeth is talking about her thoughts to murder Duncan she says, â€Å"The raven himself is hoarse/ That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan†(1. 5. 36-37). Ravens are birds that usually symbolize death. This raven symbolizes the death of Duncan that is soon to come which conveys the fall of man as Duncan will soon fall. Blood is also a very strong symbol in this play. After Macbeth kills Duncan, his hands are stained with blood. Lady Macbeth tell him to just wash it off and forget about it but Macbeth can't do that.Macbeth questions if, â€Å"All great Neptune's ocean wash this blood/ clean from my hand†(2. 2. 58-59)? Macbeth is saying that nothing will ever be able to wash away the blood of Duncan off his hands. T his blood symbolizes the strength of Macbeths guilt and hints that that this guilt could possibly be his downfall in the future. The symbolism that Shakespear uses in Macbeth is very strong. Its helps clearly convey the theme of the fall of man. Through the use of the symbols of the strange occurences, birds, and blood the theme of the fall of man is clear throughout the play.

personality traits

Team Personality Traits Dawn Borden , Gracie Reed Johanna Guedea, Megan Miller PSY/250 December 02, 2013 Anney Snyder Team Personality Traits can be easily captured by five dimensions. These dimensions are called the Big Five. The Big Five consists of Extroversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Emotional Instability, and Openness. A combination of questions and answers provides information that determines which characteristics are associated with each other. If teams were handpicked with specific goals in mind, these characteristics could determine whether the team succeeds or not.For xample, a team made up of aggressive, deceptive, passive and destructive personalities would probably not agree on anything. The Big Five have been gathered through the result of decades' worth of psychological research into personality. While they don't capture the idiosyncrasies of everyone's personality, it is a theoretical framework in which to understand general components of our personality th at seem to be the most important in our social and interpersonal interactions with others (psychcentral. com/blog/archives/2009).Everyone took the same test and the results came out very different from each ther results. Johanna is a very well organized and can be relied upon, extremely outgoing, social and energetic. Agreeableness, finds it easy to express irritation with others. But also is generally relaxed most of the time. Gracie is reclusive, quite, unassertive, and private; overly organized, neat, structured, and retrained at the expense too often of flexibility, variety, spontaneity and fun. Gracie is relaxed, calm, secure, and optimistic in life. Moderately kind natured, trusting and helpful while still maintaining own interests.At times can be suggested overly small minded, raditional, and conventional at the expense of intellectual curiosity, possibility, and progress. Megan does not typically seek out new experiences, very well organized and can be relied upon. Extremely outgoing, socially, and energetic, good natured, courteous, and supportive. Generally relaxed at the most times in life and in most situations. Dawn is at times overall talkative, outgoing, sociable, and interacting at the expense of developing own individual interests and internally based identity.Overly organized, neat, structured and restrained at the expense too often of flexibility, ife at most times. Is overly kind natured, trusting, and helpful at the expense too often of your own individual development. Is intellectual, curious, imaginative, but possibly not very practical in life. Working together is a great asset once we learn how to utilize everyone's skills. Being on a team allows for much more perspective rather than Just our own. Looking at the Big Five Assessment results we can determine who is the most organized and works best under pressure.We can also tell who has a creative personality and is open to trying new things. These are all excellent traits to ave for a team completing an assignment. When breaking down the team assignments it would be in our best interest to choose someone who pays close attention to detail, is organized, as well as dependable to be our leader. If we chose a procrastinator and someone who is easily anxious we may wind up with a late or unprepared assignment which would cost us points. Knowing what everyone's strengths and weaknesses are allows us to really know who we are working with and how to handle our assignments.Looking at the Big Five assessment we can easily determine who has which traits. According to the results we all got, the Big 5 Personality Test is not the most reliable test to describe an individual's personality. There are various factors that define someone's personality, but if an answer is need instantly then the test is big help. For example for a Job interview, the Big 5 Personality Test is an extremely good way to somewhat let the employer know if that person is a good candidate for that cert ain position. According to each other's result we did not exactly came to an agreement for the accuracy of this test.In my opinion it was accurate, for myself. But I would not use the test to define who I am. Dawn's results were indeed not accurate one- hundred percent. Due to the fact that it said he was more of an extrovert than an introvert, when in fact he is the opposite. The Big Five test is perfect for online schools because it lets everyone know which person works well under pressure, who procrastinates, and who is an over achiever, and more. With this, each team can be prepared for what it is in stores within their team. The Big Five is a valid test for certain things, but it indeed does not define who an individual is.It is a very good elp, to begin working with others but we each will get to know each other as we all work together. â€Å"The weakness of the Big Five Theory is that there is some debate among researchers as to what makes up the core of each element† ( Booker, Kitchen, Rebman. 2007). It is clear that we all have different opinions of what makes up each of the components that the test is divided into, but we all have some similarities therefore the test is not that much inaccurate. Different definitions but same key points, which makes the Big Five Test a good method for online school and other hings such as Job interviews.The various personality tests can give a synopsis of a person's likely hood of working well within a group setting. It cannot however take into consideration all the various situations that may take place during this period. A person can start out with the best of intentions and fail. There may be a lack of communication among the group, prior personal commitments, technical issues, or just not understanding the assignment. You have people that adjust to any situation want to work by themselves because they do not trust others to do their share.The Big Five can be a useful way of helping an individual to unders tand themselves and others. You normally don't get to see the results of your teammate or coworker, so you are both working in the dark. Seeing the results can also lead to mistaken profiling. In most team assignments, you really don't get to know the people that you are assigned to work with due to time limitations. Walter Lippmann, an influential American writer, Journalist and political commentator, once said â€Å"For the most part we do not first see, and then define; we define first, and then we see.

How far does Macbeth deserve the title “Butcher”? Essay

When deciding whether or not Macbeth is deserving of the title â€Å"butcher† it is a hard decision. There were many contributions by other characters which influenced Macbeth’s actions: such as Duncan crowning Malcolm as his successor and giving the title Thane of Cawdor to Macbeth making in which the last one was a traitor: Banquo who kept his suspicions to himself; and Macbeth and Donalbain who fled. Lady Macbeth was the one who encouraged Macbeth to kill Duncan, giving him the confidence and courage to do the deed. The witch’s’ gave Macbeth the idea in the first place that he was to become king with their prophesies. The order in which I will analyse the characters which contributed to Macbeth’s actions, are the least influential characters to the most influential characters. I must also take into consideration the time period in which Macbeth lived in to make my decision whether Macbeth deserves the title â€Å"butcher†. During the time period in which Shakespeare set Macbeth, society in the 11th Century was very different from what it is today. The society in which Macbeth had lived in was very brutal, revolving around violence, as shown by Shakespeare in his play as executions would be a form torture. Little boys in that time period wanted to be seen as great warriors such as Macbeth, but in order to be one you would have to kill many men in battle. In the time period Macbeth lived in the more men you killed the more honored you became and Shakespeare shows the audience this by making Macbeth being seen as a great warrior during his time due to all the men he’d â€Å"slain† in the battlefield. When Shakespeare wrote the play he had to please James I, who was king at the time as he was his royal play right. Throughout his play he had to convey messages to the audience that James I would approve of. Such a message occurs during the beginning of the play, as the â€Å"disloyal traitor† Macdonald the Thane of Cawdor is killed and the title is then given to Macbeth. The divine right of Kings was very important during Shakespeare’s time period. Society in the 16th Century believed that the whole universe had an order in was decided by God. The King, was believed to be chosen by God, and so any action against the King would be an action against God. Anything unnatural was against this divine order, such as evil, in which society heavily believed in at the time. Shakespeare relates his play to what was happening at the time, as there were many threats to the monarchy such as foreign invaders. At the beginning of the play there is an invasion from the â€Å"Norweyan lord† against Scotland. Not only were there plots by foreign invaders but also insider within the country, such an example is looking back at history during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. During Queen Elizabeths reign, her half sister Mary Queen of Scots plotted to get rid of her. This is seen in the play as Macbeth plots against King Duncan. It was believed that if any harm was brought to the king it would anger God: â€Å"Thou seest the heavens, as troubled with man’s act, threatens his bloody stage† and the portrayer would be punished by god himself. In the play everything is brought back into place, as normal order is back in place as the thrown goes to the rightful heir Malcolm. It was a message to the audience at the time not to plot against the king as the consequences would fall upon you. The society in which Macbeth lived in also believed in God. They believed that if there was good there had to be evil known as Satan who rebelled directly against God and was responsible through witch’s and evil spirits for all attacks on the divine order. Through history during the time society was increasingly preoccupied with witchcraft. Laws came into order so that anyone who was suspected of witchcraft could be executed. At that time Shakespeare wrote the play the people were of a very superstitious culture as James I published a book on â€Å"Demonology† in 1597. Shakespeare relates his play to society at the time as he incorporates three witch’s that are â€Å"So withered, and so wild in their attire,† as they were sources of the supernatural. Throughout the play of ‘Macbeth’ Shakespeare relates his play to what was going on at the time. By using this play as a source of evidence and my own knowledge I am able to conclude that they lived in a very harsh and brutal society where innocent people weren’t put on trial but hanged by accusations. In the time period we live in today, Macbeth’s action would make him a butcher, yet in the context of the time period Macbeth was living in, I think he would be more acceptable in the community due to the harsh realities of life they lived in. I must also take into consideration the actions of the other characters, which influence Macbeth to become a â€Å"butcher† even though they might have unwillingly contributed towards Macbeth’s actions. Such a character is Duncan who had given Macbeth the title â€Å"The Thane of Cawdor† after the previous one was a â€Å"disloyal traitor†. The title ultimately makes Macbeth the most powerful thane. To a certain extent, Duncan is to blame due to naming the heir to the throne as Malcolm, even after all the loyalty and bravery Macbeth expressed towards the king. What furthered Mabeth’s slaughterous actions is fact that Malcolm, Donalbain and Macduff â€Å"fled† from the â€Å"tyrants rule† as they betrayed Macbeth by building an army to fight against him. The character that could have stopped Macbeth from the start was Banquo, as he’s suspicious that Macbeth â€Å"play’dst mosy foully for’t† yet he thinks abou t the witch’s prophesies and what it’d hold for his future, in which he would be the â€Å"root and father of many kings† so he keeps his suspicions to himself. Lady Macbeth had a strong influence over Macbeth in his decision to kill the king. Macbeth contemplates over whether or not to kill the king yet his final decision is that he’ll â€Å"proceed no further in this business† unlike Lady Macbeth who decides to kill the king: â€Å"The raven himself is hoarse that croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan under my battlements† after reading the letter written from her husband. Yet Lady Macbeth believes Macbeth is too kind to kill the king as he is â€Å"too full o’th’ milk of human kindness† in order to fulfill his ambition in becoming king. She is determined for her husband to become the future king of Scotland as when the couple meet, Lady Macbeth speaks her mind and persuades her husband into doing what she thinks will benefit them the most. Lady Macbeth encourages him with comments such as â€Å"so much more the man† if he becomes the king. Lady Macbeth manipulates her husband as she convinces him to do the deed to prove his love for her, as she says she’d be willing to do anything for Macbeth by saying: â€Å"I would†¦have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums, and dashed the brains out.† At first Macbeth doesn’t want to kill the king as he’s been â€Å"honoured† lately by the King with the title Thane of Cawdor but Lady Macbeth’s skill works as Macbeth is â€Å"settled† to do the â€Å"terrible feat† which ultimately is to kill the king. It is Lady Macbeth, who plans and organizes the murder, as she is impatient and wants the â€Å"future in the instant†. Without Lady Macbeth’s meticulous planning Macbeth may have never been able to go and kill Duncan. Lady Macbeth herself is the one that that calls upon supernatural spirits (â€Å"Come you spirits†) in order to become like a man, and fulfill the dreadful deed, which would take place. Yet Lady Macbeth contradicts herself as she can’t kill the king herself as Duncan resembles the face of her â€Å"father†. What furthers Macbeth’s murderous thoughts is the fact that when Macbeth didn’t want to kill Duncan she called him a â€Å"coward† and so Macbeth now wants to impress his wife when she finds out his great plans which leads to more killing. The second biggest thing that Lady Macbeth does which contributes to Macbeth becoming a butcher is the fact she is very deceitful. When the King arrives she plays the role of a humble hostess welcoming Duncan with many compliments, and offering â€Å"All their service† to him. It leads Duncan to believe nothing is wrong as he’s not suspicious of what a dark realm he is entering. Lady Macbeth is the one who makes sure the procedure of the plan is precise as she goes over it with Macbeth. She knows Macbeth must not show his guilt and so tells him â€Å"look like th’ innocent flower, but be serpent under’t†. Once Macbeth has killed the King he feels â€Å"sorry† and feels guilty about what he’d done, which is a contrast to how Lady Macbeth is feeling, as she tells Macbeth off for such a â€Å"foolish thought†. Lady Macbeth mocks her husband for being such a coward and to get over it, as he’s weak, feeble and overcome by the grief that shadows him. After the murder of King Duncan has taken place, Lady Macbeth is the one that takes charge and is in control as she knows that they must cover up their crime and blame it on others. Such an instance is when Lady Macbeth goes to sort things out as she says: â€Å"Give me the daggers† as she then goes off to â€Å"†¦smear the sleeply grooms with blood†. Once everything is in place Lady Macbeth once again orders Macbeth to retire back to their chamber in order to look innocent as â€Å"a little water clears us of this deed† which is ironic as she then does this as she goes crazy. A minor crime which Lady Macbeth committed, which may have contributed to Macbeth becoming a butcher is before Macbeth kills the king is when Lady Macbeth prepares to get the King’s guards drunk. Lady Macbeth sneakily served excessive amounts of alcohol to the kings guard â€Å"which hath made them drunk†. It served to put the King’s guards to sleep as they no longer had a watchful eye in order to protect Duncan from the dreadful deed that would have to take place in front of them without them knowing. Not only that but also when the lords find Duncan no longer lives and they announce the dreadful news, Lady Macbeth plays the role of a good actress as she pretends she doesn’t know a thing: â€Å"Woe, alas! What, in our house?† When the lords question Macbeth about the murder of king Duncan, Lady Macbeth suddenly faints. Whether this faint was on purpose or not, it diverts all the attention that was on Macbeth onto Lady Macbeth. Lady Macbeth’s plan worked well, as there is no suspicion that has fallen upon them, for the death of King Duncan has fallen upon others, such as the guards. The three â€Å"hags† are a representation of trouble and evil, being â€Å"withered† and â€Å"wild† in their attire. They influenced Macbeth in the process of becoming a butcher with their prophecies. Before Macbeth even knows anything about the witch’s, they plan â€Å"to meet with Macbeth† to try tempt him with their riddles and use him as a tool towards the destruction of the natural world order. They knew Macbeth’s weakness, unlike Banquo who is good and could resist the witch’s prophecies. They are malicious and crude in their nature and seek to cause chaos, mischief and misery in the world because they see evil as good, and good as evil â€Å"Fair is foul, and foul is fair†. Whenever the witch’s are present they bring along their omens of evil such as thunder, lightning and rain. Just before the witch’s are about to meet Macbeth a witch chants † A drum, a drum! Macbeth doth come†. This is very portentous and a warning that bad things are to come. The witch’s tell Macbeth about his future with their prophecies. Once they have spoken their riddles Macbeth is desperate to know more about his future as he becomes intrigued by what he has been told: â€Å"Stay you imperfect speaker, tell me more.† Macbeth doesn’t think what he is told by the witch’s is true but wants to believe that it is. The first prophecies the witch’s predicted which Macbeth did not know of yet is that he would become the Thane of Cawdor. Ironically, after the witch’s had told him this he was then given the title that the witch’s had foreseen. The second prophecies the witch’s tell Macbeth may have greatly influenced Macbeth in his future actions in becoming a butcher. The second prophecy claims that Macbeth would become King. As â€Å"two truths are told† with what the witch’s told him being Thane of Glamis and now Thane of Cawdor, it made Macbeth believe that he â€Å"shalt be king hereafter!† The witch’s have framed Macbeth into a state of mind that this is a â€Å"happy prologue† and that his power can only grow from Thane of Cawdor. The prophecy gets Macbeth to think of a â€Å"horrid image doth unfix my hair† that he may have to take action of his own, in order to secure his own future in becoming king. Then on a second thought Macbeth thinks that if the prophecy is true it will happen without him having to interfere as he thinks: â€Å"chance may crown me without my stir†. The influence of the witch’s prophecies has changed Macbeth in his line of thought, as all he wants to do now is contemplate and discuss with Banquo the witch’s prophecies. It triggers Macbeth to get Lady Macbeth involved as he’s fascinated by what he thinks is good fortune, which ultimately leads him working for the evil causing pain and havoc which is exactly as the witch’s wanted. Macbeth was a puppet used by the witch’s, which he naively was unable to see. Since seeing the witch’s, Macbeth changes from a â€Å"noble man† to a â€Å"tyrant† due to trying to accomplish the prophecy that he wants so very much. After Macbeth killed Duncan there is a reversal of the normal order as a â€Å"falcon† was â€Å"hawked at, and killed† by a â€Å"mousing owl†. The events that occurred are very ominous as it is a dark day. Everything has been affected by Macbeth’s actions, therefore it has turned the world â €Å"wild in nature† as it has been disrupted. God shows his anger as the one he chose as the ruler of Scotland is now dead. This is exactly the way the witch’s wanted it to be. A minor crime by which the witch’s influence Macbeth into becoming a butcher is when they decide to trick Macbeth by using apparitions. Hecate herself blames the witch’s for the starting of chaos in Scotland: â€Å"To trade and traffic with Macbeth, in riddles and affairs of death†. This proves Macbeth can’t be fully held responsible. They cast a spell where there is a great influence of evil supernatural powers, changing the way Macbeth thinks and sees things. The witch’s trick Macbeth as they deliberately allow him to think that he’s learning the truth from a superior power when it’s all a faà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ade. Part of Hecate’s plan is that the sprites will confuse Macbeth so much he’ll make mistakes: â€Å"strength of their illusion, shall draw him on to his confusion.† The witch’s suggest who he should be careful of, such a case being Macduff â€Å"Beware the Thane of Fife† suggesting to Macbeth that he should eliminate anyone that may cause him any harm. Part of the witch’s trick is to make Macbeth feel invincible by using the apparitions that tell Macbeth â€Å"none of woman born shall harm Macbeth† and that he would be safe for his entire life as â€Å"Macbeth shall never vanquished be†. The consequences of Macbeth meeting with the witch’s make him become unaware of the trick that being played on him as he is happy and re-assured with the news, becoming over beamingly confident with his reign. The witch’s have corrupted Macbeth by using spells for him to do bad, as he is now greedy wanting more, such as passing the crown down to his descendants rather than Banquo’s. The witch’s purposely infuriate Macbeth to make him behave rationally as they taunt him. Hecate planned to make Macbeth more of a butcher than he really is â€Å"he shall†¦scorn death†. The witch’s molded Macbeth into a butcher by using his weaknesses. Concerning how far Macbeth deserves the title â€Å"butcher† much of time Macbeth’s actions were influenced by a certain individuals such as Lady Macbeth and the three witch’s. Such a case is when Macbeth killed King Duncan. To a certain extent, those certain individuals cannot be blamed and Macbeth must be held responsible. Macbeth didn’t have to do anything he didn’t want to, such as killing Duncan. When the witch’s told Macbeth of the second prophecy they never mentioned the fact that he should actually go and kill King Duncan. Yet like Lady Macbeth he became impatient to know about the future. Lady Macbeth isn’t the only one that can be labeled deceitful as Macbeth told Duncan his only role is to be loyal towards him and â€Å"towards your love and honour†. Macbeth had the â€Å"absolute trust† and respect of the king, as he had fought brutally in the war like a warrior killing many of Duncan’s enemies. Due to his bravery was given the title Thane of Cawdor officially being the most powerful Thane, yet it wasn’t enough for Macbeth as he still wanted more power which shows his greed. When the witch’s first prophecy comes true, all Macbeth wants to hear is Banquo to confirm the second prophecy and say â€Å"You shall be king†. This is due to the fact that Macbeth is very keen on the subject, yet Banquo warns him about the â€Å"instruments of darkness† yet out of excitement and pride he take no notice. Once Duncan names his successor as Malcolm Macbeth starts his murderous thoughts who unlike Banquo accepts it and is happy for Malcolm. While to Macbeth Malcolm is seen as an obstacle, which needs to be got rid of. If Macbeth had never written the letter to his wife about the witch’s prophecies, she would have never encouraged him to kill the king. Even though Lady Macbeth seems to be the mastermind behind all the planning, Macbeth never dismisses the idea of killing Duncan. Macbeth at the end of the discussion with Lady Macbeth he makes up his own mind â€Å"I am settled.† When it comes to killing Duncan, Macbeth is only worried about the consequences of â€Å"If we should fail† and not the moral. The visions of the dagger that Macbeth has were created by his thoughts. When Macbeth does kill the king and he couldn’t say â€Å"amen† it shows that Macbeth is worried, as he has now gone against god and will be punished for his actions. Macbeth in contrast is very different once the lords arrive as he’s calm and collected unlike the nervous wreck he was before. Macbeth is now able to control himself and lie well, as he acts innocent to his actions â€Å"loyal and neutral† as he defends himself against accusations. I believe that when Macbeth decides to kill his best friend Banquo, he in modern day society would be seen a â€Å"butcher†. One bad deed of Macbeth’s lead to another â€Å"Things bad begun make strong themselves by ill†, as Banquo was suspicious of Macbeth that he â€Å"play’dst most foully for’t†. Even though Macbeth has got the thrown he is still not content with his present situation as he doesn’t feel safe: â€Å"To be thus is nothing, But to be safely thus.† Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth to accept the past â€Å"what’s done is done† yet Macbeth is unable too. Macbeth is devious as he tries to find out Banquo’s and Fleance’s movements in light conversation â€Å"Ride you this afternoon?† so he may ambush him. Even though he’s plotting Banquo’s murder Macbeth is two faced as he pretends to be nice to him. Macbeth and Banquo were always seen as equals, yet Banquo is loyal to Macbeth as he is king unlike Macbeth. Instead of Lady Macbeth arranging things now, Macbeth is the one planning. Macbeth is now misleading his wife as she knows nothing. In order for Macbeth to get the murderers to kill Banquo and Fleance he lies to them by telling them it was Banquo â€Å"which held you so under fortune†. Macbeth is glad about Banquo’s violent death. Macbeth is starting to talk like the witch’s as he uses inverted meanings such as â€Å"Banquo’s safe?† after being killed. By now Macbeth is able to hide anything and is a good liar as he pretends to miss Banquo and blames him for not attending, when Macbeth is the reason he isn’t there. Macbeth thinks that he’s done so many bad things that it’s to late to stop and isn’t giving up as â€Å"We are yet but young in deed.† Macbeth by this point has involved himself with evil â€Å"I conjure you† and is now evil himself and is doomed with the title â€Å"butcher†. Macbeth has resorted to killing innocent women and children â€Å"Each new mourn, new widows howl, new orphans cry, new sorrows strike heaven on the face†. Macbeth now resides to act without delay and will kill without hesitating: â€Å"From this moment firstlings of my heart shall be firstlings of my hand.† When Macbeth decides to attempt and kill Macduff, he targets his family who haven’t done anything wrong and are undeserving of their fate. Macbeth’s evil and cruelty shows through the suffering throughout the country of Scotland. Lady Macbeth feels guilty as she feels she started Macbeth on his evil path to destruction but didn’t know about any of her husband’s actions after the murder of Duncan. Macbeth has now become a â€Å"tyrant† and his â€Å"murders sticking on his hands†. Macbeth is determined to fight to the end till his â€Å"bones† and â€Å"flesh be hacked†. As he now knows that he is a butcher and no longer has a conscious, as when he finds out he was lied to by the witch’s, he’d rather â€Å"die with the harness on our back†. Macbeth wants to inflict as much pain on others before he dies, in which he fails to do so.

Interview Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Interview Analysis - Essay Example In that character keeps one on top of their game constantly keeping them in check. From the interview conducted the participants feel that police are sleeping on their jobs when it comes to ethical issues they do not uphold the law anymore and most time they end up not portraying the right character that the law enforcers should have at all times. For example they take bribes instead of punishing those who break the law; they favor those who are in influential positions instead of promoting equality for the people in the country. These small acts look very in consequential but in the real sense affect a lot of people. In the past the police or the law enforcers upheld their ethical principles so much since they had the public in mind. They did not take bribes but instead made sure that law and order was well maintained by the people. They dedicated their lives to full-service and had their character also put in check constantly to make sure that they were doing the right things for the greater good of the people. In the day to day lives even in the police academies the new recruits are rarely taught about upholding integrity .they are taught that oppressing the innocent is the order of the day since it pays more and makes the rich happy. The participants thus fear the police force more than they even the wrong doers or even the burglars who steal from them. They now fear the law enforcers more than even death itself. Most police officers get caught up in misconduct because they get low pay or because most crimes they try to fight are heavily loaded with money deals for example the drug deals. Most of them are approached by dealers and arte promised large amounts of money if they only look the other way when this deals go down. Most of them are from poor families and so they feel the need to get a fat pay check so as to support their families back at home. Others work closely with politicians who are corrupt and so since they are sworn to secrecy they end

Is Russia a Democratic State under Putin Research Proposal

Is Russia a Democratic State under Putin - Research Proposal Example In Russia however, since the end of the era of Stalin, which was clearly dictatorial and totalitarian, the succeeding governments through their rule have not demonstrated democracy in a clear manner. Putin has come under sharp criticism from the international fraternity regarding his governance approach in Russia. It thus becomes hard to tell whether or not Russia is a democratic state under Putin. Therefore, it is important to conduct a study in an attempt to address this uncertainty. This study will mainly focus on the situation of Russia under the leadership of Putin with regard to its adoption of democracy. Democracy is however a broad term thus will need to be broken down for effective analysis. In this regard therefore, it becomes important to adopt an analytical framework. In this case therefore, the analysis of level of democracy in Russia under Putin will be based on the 2004 UN General Assembly’s seven principles of democracy. The state of Russia will thus be analyse d based on its performance in (i) the separation and balance of power (ii) independence of the judiciary (iii) a pluralistic system of political parties and organizations (iv) the rule of law (v) accountability and transparency (vi) freedom of the media, and (vii) respect for political rights (Meyer-Resende 2011, 5). If the results show that the country performs well in all these seven areas, it will be indicative of its high level of democracy. On the other hand, if results show that the country performs poorly in these areas, it will indicate that the country is not democratic. The issue of democracy in Russia has been a major area of interest for many scholars of Political Science as well as different international organizations and the world at large. This is mainly because of the position of Russia and the contribution it makes to the world economy among other areas.