Shakespeares Macbeth - Renaissance Humanism Essay -- GCSE English Lit

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   While the witches present in Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth assume the role of supernatural beings, it was not Shakespeare’s intent to portray a classic case of fatalism. On the contrary, Shakespeare used Macbeth as a way to display the idea of Renaissance humanism. Although the witches did in fact possess uncanny powers, they were in reality not controlling Macbeth, but rather they were tempting Macbeth to act in particular ways. The witches, as well as other significant characters, may have encouraged Macbeth to act in a certain way, yet they did not by any means determine Macbeth’s actions. By comparing the humanist movement and its values to the tragedy Macbeth, it becomes blatantly obvious that Macbeth was intended to demonstrate the basic humanistic qualities. Under the premise of humanism it is required that there be a centralization and focus upon humans, a balance in which elements within reflect without, and all reason must be used to become more angelic than bestial. Although the witches’ predictions display supernatural properties, their philosophies center around the dealings of mere mortal humans. This gives humans a sense of importance in the workings of the world. Even nature is disturbed as part of fulfilling one of the philosophies (the displacing of Birnam Wood to Dunsinane). Moreover, one of the main themes of the play, the effects of evil in the life of one man- Macbeth, stresses a centralization on the individual being. Through the usage of masks in Macbeth, the balance is achieved by blocking off elements within from being focused without. This is shown in Act I, scene V, as Lady Macbeth talks to Macbeth, she gives him specific instructions: "Look like the time; bear welcome in your eye, Your han... ...he appearance of the Weird Sisters in Macbeth, as well as the encouragement of a few influential characters, Macbeth is clearly defined as a portrayal of the true spirit of Renaissance humanism. Macbeth may have attempted to place the blame away from himself, but the fact that he no longer accepted the responsibility for his actions does not mean that the responsibility is removed, and therefore Macbeth’s downfall can be traced back to the actions of one man, Macbeth.    Works Cited Page Cooper, The Mystery of Witchcraft, London, 1617. Epstein, Norrie, The Friendly Shakepeare, New York, Viking Publishing, 1993. Harbage, Alfred, Macbeth, Middlesex England, Penguin Publishing, 1956. Magill, Masterplots- Volume 6, New Jersey, Salem Press, 1949. Staunten, Howard, The Complet Illustrated Shakespeare, New York, Park Lane Publishing, 1979.   

Essay on The Great Gatsby -- English Literature

Essay on The Great Gatsby The Great Gatsby is a novel about a man who tries to win over a woman he had lost many years ago. Jay Gatsby is the hero in this novel because he stands out amongst the rich. Unlike the rest of the rich people in this novel Gatsby has moral values, and the rest of them can only grasp things of material value. Gatsby spends his whole life trying to hide the fact that he wasn’t like the others. Gatsby never fits in among them because what he perceives of them is all wrong, they were as uncivil as anyone else. Through being less primitive than the rich, determination for love, being ruled by his emotions that erase any doubt, he is quiet tempered; which upholds his greatness, and he is protected by others that tell us of his importance. Gatsby is not as primitive as the rest of the rich humans, he is more mannered and civil. The people at his parties are all wild and not civil, what you would not expect from people of this stature. Gatsby is this way because he has had to earn his money and has not just inherited it like the lazy lot of them. The only other person that comes close to Gatsby is Nick, but we don’t get to see what he would be like with wealth. Throughout the novel Gatsby looks out upon the crowd, when he comes down to greet Nick he is very polite to everyone surrounding him, knowing they spread rumors and lies about him. He doesn’t think anything of it because he knows it’s natural for people to gossip, he can’t judge them on it because it is the crowd he wishes to become. Nick tells Gatsby he is better than the whole rotten bunch of them, Nick realizes this because he knows what it is like to be poor and he knows Gatsby still acts like a poor man, but he has all t... ...new him. He always wants Nick to come with him on things he is unsure of, like when meeting daisy for the first time in eight years (p.83). He needs others to fulfill his confidence in himself, it is how he got as far he did in the novel (money wise). He only meets new people through association with someone else in the novel, he meets Nick through Jordan and Daisy through Nick. He is like this because he expects things to come to him like they have in the past like his job from Meyer Wolfshiem. James Gatsby is the hero in the novel through: his modern acts, determination for love, his conquering emotions, his quiet temperament, and his protected state. A hero is someone unlike the others and Gatsby fills this character perfectly in the novel. Therefore Gatsby is the character and no one else should even be considered for his place in The Great Gatsby.

Indigenous Disadvantage

Working Effectively with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People Why are Indigenous people in Australia still disadvantaged with regard to health care and services? For the last 200 years Indigenous people have been victims of discrimination, prejudice and disadvantage. Poor education, poor living conditions and general poverty are still overwhelming issues for a large percentage of our people and we remain ‘as a group, the most poverty stricken sector of the working class’ in Australia (Cuthoys 1983). As a people, our rate of chronic disease is still 2. times higher than that of other Australians, and Indigenous people in this country die 15 to 20 years younger than those in mainstream Australia. More than half of these figures are caused by chronic diseases such heart disease, stroke, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease and kidney disease. The majority of these chronic diseases are preventable and while research is continuing to find ways to reduce the risk fact ors, issues such as smoking, alcohol and substance abuse, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, and promoting healthy eating and active lifestyles are still major challenges in Indigenous communities throughout Australia.Healthy living choices are not easy for people living in remote communities which results in a high incidence of preventable chronic disease. Good nutrition is fundamental to the maintenance of general wellbeing and the prevention of sickness and disease. It plays an imperative role in pregnancy and early childhood, prevents obesity and type 2 Diabetes and can lower the risk of recurrent heart disease by up to 70%.However, remote communities face many barriers to healthy eating, including isolation, the high cost of food, the variable supply of fresh food, lack of community town infrastructure and inadequate health promotion support, are just a few of these barriers that prevent community people from being able to make healthy living choices. Community programs in the N orthern Territory aimed at building healthy communities are based on nutrition-related Menzies research and work to support community capacity to create a supportive environment for healthy eating and physical activity.These projects operate within the communities and are aimed at influencing food-related policy, promote healthy eating and physical activity, and encourage community engagement in activities for better health. Not as many health services are as user-friendly or culturally appropriate for Indigenous people as they are for non-Indigenous people, adding to higher levels of disadvantage and a greater reluctance to utilise these services. Sometimes this is because more Indigenous people live in remote locations and not all health services are offered outside of major centres.Specific issues such as reducing the incidence of chronic disease requires a significantly greater effort in coordinating collective strengths, creating and delivering preventative programs and primary health care for Indigenous communities and while great work is being done, more efforts are required to reduce the high incidence of chronic disease on Indigenous people and communities. When designing and developing services to meet the needs of our Indigenous people, close collaboration and consultation with the people for whom the service will be provided is vital.There is also much evidence suggesting that Indigenous women are over-represented in our hospitals and health clinics as victims of domestic and family violence. There is no clear measure of the extent to which Indigenous family violence is under-reported, but it is expected to be higher than for the general population (Cripps 2008; Cunneen 2009). In a report to the Australian Government about Indigenous violence, it was suggested that ‘priority should be placed on implementing anti-violence programs, rather than on further quantitative research’.The key risk factors for Indigenous family violence relate t o; social stressors; living in a remote community; levels of individual, family and community dysfunction; availability of resources; age; removal from family; disability; financial difficulties and substance use. Indigenous Australians make up 2. 6% of Australia's population; however they experience health and social problems resulting from alcohol use at a rate disproportionate to non-Indigenous Australians. It is estimated that chronic disease associated with alcohol use by Indigenous Australians is almost double to that of mainstream Australia.In 2003, alcohol accounted for 6. 2% of the overall incidence of disease among Indigenous Australians. According to available evidence, the use of volatile substances, especially petrol sniffing among the Indigenous population is much higher that of the non-Indigenous population. The use of volatile substances has major impacts on Indigenous people, families, communities and the wider Australian community. What resources are needed and req uired to address the issues and explain how you see that these resources be best distributed.What projects need to be done? What makes health services more accessible for Indigenous people? ? Having more Indigenous Health Workers on staff; ? Increasing the number of Indigenous people working in the health sector (Aboriginal, health workers, social workers, doctors, dentists, nurses, etc); ? Designing more health promotion campaigns aimed specifically at Indigenous people; ? Better training of non-Indigenous staff to be more sensitive to the needs of Indigenous patients and to improve cultural awareness; ?Making important health services available in remote locations (so Indigenous people do not have to travel to major centres, away from their support networks and the security of their own community); and ? Funding health services so they are affordable for Indigenous people who might otherwise not be able to afford them. As a result of our history and because of the continuing disad vantage, our people have needs that differ from those of mainstream Australians. Therefore, it is also imperative that we acknowledge and respect the impact of events and issues in Indigenous people’s history when designing and delivering these services.The social determinants of health include if a person is; working, feels safe in their community without discrimination, has a good education, has enough money, and feels connected to friends and family. Social determinants that are particularly important to many Indigenous people are; their connection to land, a historical past that took people from their traditional lands and away from their families. If a person feels safe, has a job that earns enough money, and feels connected to their family and friends, they will generally be healthier.Indigenous people are generally worse off than non-Indigenous people when it comes to the social determinants of health. Additionally, it is important to develop policy and practice to add ress substance use among Indigenous people. Programs addressing alcohol and volatile substance use should be operated in combination with a range of general programs aimed at ‘closing the gap’ between Indigenous people and other Australians in the areas of education, employment, income and housing. What strategies can be put into place to a. vercome access, equity, disadvantaged issues and; b. to make services culturally safe? A strengths-based approach involves working from a community’s collective strengths to assist them to address their challenges. Bringing together different people with specific skills to collectively address issues, communities can provide local solutions issues specific to their local area. This approach includes the practice of using culturally appropriate and consultative strategies, however, strengths-based approaches also focus on maximising the strengths of contributors.By doing so, the targeted interventions are more likely to realis e long-term change because they empower our communities to provide practical solutions that are appropriate for them (Haswell-Elkins et al. 2009; Leigh 2008). Australia has committed to developing strategies to address the causes of Indigenous disadvantage and six key areas have been identified as targets to reducing the divide between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. These targets are to improve life expectancy within a generation; to halve the mortality rates for Indigenous children under five within a decade; to nsure all Indigenous four year olds in remote communities have access to early childhood education within five years; to improve reading, writing and numeracy achievements for Indigenous children within a decade; to improve the number of Indigenous students in year 12 attainment or equivalent; and to improve employment outcomes between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians within a decade. A substantial amount has been invested in improving Indigenous health outcomes and the way the Australian health care system prevents treats and manages the chronic diseases that shorten so many Indigenous Australians' lives.The aim is to reduce the risk factors for chronic disease in the community such as smoking, alcohol and substance abuse, improve chronic disease management and follow up through our health services, and increase the capacity of our acute care workforce to deliver effective care to Indigenous people with chronic disease. How can we advocate for anti-racism policies? Although many other Australian minority groups have been reported to be experiencing racism in our country, the experiences of racism are most protracted among our own Indigenous people.Racist attitudes toward Indigenous people may be viewed as having two dominant waves; the first wave was predominant during the first 170 years following the arrival of the First Fleet, and the second was in the post-referendum era, which led to changes in Australia’s constitutio n that formally recognised Indigenous people as part of the Commonwealth of Australia. The belief in superiority based on skin colour was justified by the framing of Indigenous Australians as inferior humans. These politically entrenched attitudes justified dispossession of Indigenous people from their homelands.Dispossession resulted in reluctance by mainstream Australia to acknowledge land rights, loss of spiritual values, disrupted law, and disconnection from land, community, family and cultural values. Most policies were backed by legal provisions instituted by Australian state governments. For example in Queensland, laws enacted treated Indigenous people like prisoners, with little freedom of choice. They were required to work without pay and prevented from undertaking traditional cultural practices.These policies created a sense of powerlessness, hopelessness, stress and related illness. Today, there remains no ‘quick fix' solution to changing the levels of disadvantage that have been generations in the making. To move forward we must learn from the past and build through good practice and recognising that there are successful public, private and community sector programs and initiatives that have made substantial progress. Addressing disadvantage places responsibilities on those providing support and assistance and on those receiving it.For those who provide support there is a duty to those being assisted; for example, it means service providers should: work together with local Indigenous people and their communities; recognise and acknowledge our history and the consequences of past policy and practice; and empower local Indigenous communities to help themselves. For the communities being assisted, there is a responsibility to help ourselves as best as we can, this might mean looking for information on available services, assisting service providers to improve delivery outcomes, and recognising and addressing personal barriers to improvement.Some Indigenous communities have identified that taking responsibility in education and employment is an important part of the way forward. In other communities, the importance of individual and family commitment to a healthy lifestyle has been identified. Meeting these targets will also require our own people to take responsibility for implementing some lifestyle changes if the problems of obesity, diabetes and substance abuse are to be improved. Local, Territory, State and Federal governments and peak Aboriginal bodies have collective social responsibilities to Indigenous people as their constituents.Governments are responsible for ensuring that citizens have access to the resources and the opportunities needed to take their place in our society. Governments have the responsibility to ensure programs and services do not produce welfare dependency or other unintended consequences. Finally, Australian governments have responsibilities under the international treaties that Australia has entered into. References Review of volatile substance use among Indigenous people. d'Abbs P, Maclean S (2008) Volatile substance misuse: a review of interventions.Barton, ACT: Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing www. healthinfonet. ecu. edu. au Supporting the Yolngu Life: Yolngu Walngakum. Building healthy Communities www. menzies. edu. au Dunn KM, Klocker N, Salabay T (2007) Contemporary racism and Islamaphobia in Australia: racializing religion. Ethnicities; 7: 564-589 Angelico T (1993) Wellness and contemporary Australian racism. In: Collins J, ed. Contemporary racism in Australia, Canada and New Zealand: volume 2.Sydney: University of Technology: 237-258 Lewis W, Balderstone S, Bowan J (2009) Events that shaped Australia. Sydney: New Holland Publishers Trudgen R (2000) Why warriors lie down and die: towards an understanding of why the Aboriginal people of Arnhem Land face the greatest crisis in health and education since European contact: djambatj mala. Darwin: Aboriginal Resource and Development Services Inc. Howitt R, McCracken K, Curson P (2005) Australian Indigenous health: what issues contribute to a national crisis and scandal?. Geodate; 18(1): 8-15

Accounting consultation Essay

My future career choice is to become an accounting consultant; this job would require me to create financial reports, pro-forma financial statements and reports for businesses. I would have to analyse, interpret and evaluate financial statements and reports for various authorities accounting consultants help businesses with all of their financial needs. In order to become an accounting consultant, I would have to upgrade my mathematical, technical and accounting skills. I can better my skills in accounting software’s, I can do this by taking courses online that teach me how to use specific accounting software’s, taking this course would help me to progress in my career path as I would have the knowledge and this would help me stand out from other people, giving me a better chance of getting a job to be a successful accounting consultant. See more: Homeless satire essay Examples of websites that have online course that can teach me on how to use specific software’s are: https://cs.thomsonreuters.com/Training/ and http://www.professorteaches.com/course_info/accounting_fundamentals.shtml I can improve my skills in accounting by gaining a degree within an accounting course at university. Gaining a degree would mean that I would have three years to learn about accounting thoroughly and this would help me to gain the skills in accounting that I need, it would also help me improve my mathematical and numerical skills as accounting already consists of numerical skills so whilst studying the subject, my numerical skills should also improve. Another way that I can upgrade my accounting skills is by taking a professional accounting course, an example of a course that I can take is AAT, this course will give three qualification at the end and will give me the chance to learn practical skills to prepare me for my career choice, It teaches all the accounting skills that I would need to become an accounting consultant. For me personally I think a degree in an accounting related course is the best option as I believe that the learning is more intensive which means that I will be able to learn more thoroughly and also I will have the option of taking a sandwich course which means that I would not miss out on the real life practical side of accounting. The courses that I have applied for university are: 1. Business with accounting 2. Accounting with finance 3. Accounting with management I have chosen these courses as they all will allow me to reach my future career goal. I have not chosen to do accounting on its own as I believe that It can limit my knowledge, studying another topic will further my knowledge as I can see how accounting can relate to other subjects. By the end, I hope to have achieved a BSc degree in an accounting related subject with either a first or a 2:1. This print screen show the information about the AAT course, I have found out all the information about the course from this website. This print screen is of an online forum that discusses the pros and cons of both the course and a degree, this helped me come to a decision as all the discussions were from the point of views of students as well as professionals. Research Skills: I have used research skills both during my business course and during my UCAS application. I have used research skills in the units in the business course as I had to research various things in order to complete assignments and course works. A specific unit where I had to use research skills in unit 31 as this unit required me research about different businesses and find out things like their policies, their history and also trends. I used research skills during UCAS to find out about different courses available and I had to research university’s that we the best for me. Over all I think I have used my research skills well as I have researched effectively and found out the information that I needed. Literacy: I had to use literacy skills whilst completing my UCAS application as I had to write out a personal statement, which required me to have immaculate literacy skills, however I do not think that I have used the skill well as there were many mistakes in punctuation. I have also used literacy skills during my business units for example in Unit 15 I had to create posters and reports, these documents required good literacy skills although I do not believe that I have used the skill very well and grammar and punctuation  required a lot of improvement. Planning: I have to plan all my work within my business course, I need to plan to ensure that the work is handed in on time and it is not done at last minute to ensure that the work is presented at the best of quality. I believe that I am using this skill well as I have not handed in any work late, however I do occasionally find y self-completing work last minute which needs to be improved. Decision-making: I had to use decision making skills while completing my UCAS application as I had to make the correct decisions as to which 5 universities I want to apply to, I believe I have carried out this skill well as I decided realistically as I only applied to the universities that have the requirements that I can meet also I based my decision on the units the universities courses have. Problem solving: During unit 15 there were alit of problem solving tasks, i have tried to solve all the tasks however there were a few that I could not solve. I have to also do problem solving in unit 5, as I had to solve problems within a cash flow, I had successfully solved all the problems within the data. Time-management: I need to ensure I have good time management for both UCAS application and the Business course. I need to make sure that I hand in by UCAS application by the beginning of December, I believe I am managing my time effectively as I am ready to hand in my application and It is the middle of November. I also need to ensure that I have good time management Ability to prioritise:

The Business of Being Born

The Business of being born The Business of being born is an informative film that highlights us how hospitals turned into businesses and who actually benefits from the medicalization and the money that is made. We could see women giving birth naturally at home and others in hospitals and what has happened to women throughout the years in regards to childbirth. Also, doctors and midwives are interviewed which gives us a perspective from both sides.Before watching this film, I did not know about the â€Å"designer birth† which consists in scheduling deliveries and C-sections. This showed me how women prefer the medical aspect of birth that involves physicians. As one of the mothers said midwifery is â€Å"done†; it has become part of the past. In the US, midwives attend less than 8% of births because of technological and medical advances.Formerly, women including midwives used to give birth more than men before male doctors took over hospitals, turned them into â€Å"pat riarchal† institutions and made business out of it. However, we have to recognize that they should be remunerated for their services. Some mothers perceive surgery as an efficient and less time consuming medical technique. It has become uncommon and rare to see †fully† natural birth in hospitals. Doctors make decisions for monetary and legal reasons. These decisions can even affect the health of the mother or the baby.The use of Protozoan (medication that causes contraction) or Pitocin (helps inducing labor) and the practice of the Cesarean, which is a doctor-friendly technique, only reinforce the authority of doctors and the influence of their techniques on women bodies. Moreover, I found revolting that the United States has the second worst newborn death rate in the developed world. The medicalization of childbirth is challenging women’s confidence and self esteem. As one of the informant said â€Å"convince them that they do not know how to birth and the â€Å"power of birthing is taken away from women†.

Cloud of Sparrows Short Summary Review

Cloud of Sparrows by Takashi Matsuoka 1. The book takes place in 1861, after Perry opens the door to Japan. After centuries of isolation, Japan is lagging behind in ways of science and weaponry. The main character, Lord Genji, is Lord of the Okumichi Clan. He and his family are cursed with visions of the future. His uncle, Lord Shigeru, sees the coming bloodshed and massacre in Japan’s future and slaughters his wife and children to prevent them from suffering through it. Heiko, another character, is a ninja who masquerades as a geisha. She falls in love with Genji, and later confesses to him.He explains that he already knew of her dubious nature and returns her love. Though later, after learning of her irredeemable origins, Genji can no longer feel the same toward her and sends her to America. Brother Zephaniah is a priest wishing to save the â€Å"crude heathens,† but dies shortly after arriving from a gunshot meant for Genji. Emily, an American missionary engaged to h im, is running away from her destructive beauty to Japan, where she is thought of as repulsive. She felt no feelings of love toward him, but agreed to the proposal because he protected her from the horrible men who sought to ake advantage of her. Stark accompanies Emily and Zephaniah, but instead of hoping to spread the â€Å"True Word,† he is after revenge. He is in pursuit of Ethan Cruz, who murdered his beloved Mary Anne and her two daughters. Ethan murdered them because Stark murdered his father-like mentor who ran the whorehouse when he wouldn’t let Mary Anne leave. Kawakami is Genji’s enemy and despises him above all things. He takes great pleasure in knowing what others do not. They are enemies because years ago, there was a great battle at Sekigahara and their families were on opposite sides. Both sides re convinced the battle is not truly over and seek to eliminate each other completely. Genji takes the missionaries into his care in the capital of Edo, but when foreign ships fire on Edo, they travel to the well-fortified Cloud of Sparrows castle. 2. Shigeru has visions of the coming bloodshed and mutilation of Japan. This takes place before the wars and defeat of Japan by the British and later, the Russians. I was surprised by the loyalty the characters exemplified, and how easily they shed the blood of those they had known for years. 3. The author is trying to show how honorable Japan was, and how tragic the all of the old ways. He wanted the reader to understand how the Japanese felt and thought, and what a dramatic effect the introduction of guns had on their society. He wanted the reader to feel the depressing sadness and most of all, the painful loss of centuries of history and tradition. I feel that he conveyed this very well. I really cared about the characters and genuinely wanted them to prevail and maintain their way of life, so it was really hard for me to know that in the end, no matter what, history would remain the s ame. They would be defeated, and their country would forever change.

Bowling for Columbine

Bowling for Columbine At one point a reporter acts as though he is bothered by the tragic killing of a six year old girl but when the camera is off is only worried about how his hair looks. Moore shows that through the fear induced by the media many Americans are desensitized to the vasy amounts of violence and gun related crimes and turning a blind eye towards a solution to it. In the graph provided with this assignment we see that violent crimes have actually gone down year after year and yet every time we turn on the news we are assaulted with violent images and reports of gun violence. The media keeps gun deaths and violence first and foremost using the news, newspapers, magazines, talk shows, etc to keep us in a constant state of fear. In the film we see the town of Virgin Utah passed a law requiring all residents to posse firearms but why would you want more guns? Because the media induced fear that without a gun you will become the victim of someone with one if you don’t. Who benefits from this fear? Well first gun manufacturers, As we’ve seen with the massive amounts of guns purchased following the tragedies of Columbine and Sandy Hook. Second would be the media, People tuning in to the news or talk shows or even buying a printed publication to read about the latest tragedy. Third would be defense manufacturers, People buying bullet proof jackets or bullet proof backpacks for their kids or even schools buying metal detectors. And finally the government, By keeping the public fearful it makes them predictable and therefore easier to control. And why would these companies and organizations want us to remain ignorant and fearful? Because of money. If you are fearful that your neighbor might harm you or your family then your more likely to run out and purchase a gun or home security system therefore generating huge profits for those keeping us fearful. If you think another country might do us harm you are more willing to go along with spending increases for the military without any hard proof. A government report comes out about increases in crime in your area and how more police are needed and they convince you to vote for tax increases to pay for these. This leads to reinforced ideas like don’t tread on me or an eye for an eye, If someone might do me or my family harm then I need to defend them. This has a legitimizing effect because unless guns are removed or the media stops reporting mainly negative and violent news people will continue to do each other harm. Even without the media stirring up fear there will still be violence and crime but would there be such high levels of violent crime? Personally I don’t believe there would be. Did this tragedy spark a moral panic? Yes and it’s evident in almost every high school in America these days. When I was in high school you could leave the campus at any time you wanted and during lunch time many students did. These days most high schools have a closed campus so you can’t leave for lunch or at any time you choose. In some schools they have cameras everywhere as well as metal detectors and security guards. In the past if a student joked about doing something horriffic, Like shooting up the school, Most kids laughed and didn’t take it seriously but today you could be expelled for it. You could even been expelled for something ridiculous like dyeing your hair blue or folding a piece of paper into the shape of a gun and pointing it at someone. I feel that this tragedy has started some serious discussions about gun control and violence in our society but until we reign in the media and hold those accountable for the massive levels of violence in the news, movies, tv, video games, and American life in general no ground will be made. In todays society we often forget about tragedies almost as quickly as they happened because of the next latest horrible event we are fed by the media. Bowling for Columbine Bowling for Columbine Bowling for Columbine At one point a reporter acts as though he is bothered by the tragic killing of a six year old girl but when the camera is off is only worried about how his hair looks. Moore shows that through the fear induced by the media many Americans are desensitized to the vasy amounts of violence and gun related crimes and turning a blind eye towards a solution to it. In the graph provided with this assignment we see that violent crimes have actually gone down year after year and yet every time we turn on the news we are assaulted with violent images and reports of gun violence. The media keeps gun deaths and violence first and foremost using the news, newspapers, magazines, talk shows, etc to keep us in a constant state of fear. In the film we see the town of Virgin Utah passed a law requiring all residents to posse firearms but why would you want more guns? Because the media induced fear that without a gun you will become the victim of someone with one if you don’t. Who benefits from this fear? Well first gun manufacturers, As we’ve seen with the massive amounts of guns purchased following the tragedies of Columbine and Sandy Hook. Second would be the media, People tuning in to the news or talk shows or even buying a printed publication to read about the latest tragedy. Third would be defense manufacturers, People buying bullet proof jackets or bullet proof backpacks for their kids or even schools buying metal detectors. And finally the government, By keeping the public fearful it makes them predictable and therefore easier to control. And why would these companies and organizations want us to remain ignorant and fearful? Because of money. If you are fearful that your neighbor might harm you or your family then your more likely to run out and purchase a gun or home security system therefore generating huge profits for those keeping us fearful. If you think another country might do us harm you are more willing to go along with spending increases for the military without any hard proof. A government report comes out about increases in crime in your area and how more police are needed and they convince you to vote for tax increases to pay for these. This leads to reinforced ideas like don’t tread on me or an eye for an eye, If someone might do me or my family harm then I need to defend them. This has a legitimizing effect because unless guns are removed or the media stops reporting mainly negative and violent news people will continue to do each other harm. Even without the media stirring up fear there will still be violence and crime but would there be such high levels of violent crime? Personally I don’t believe there would be. Did this tragedy spark a moral panic? Yes and it’s evident in almost every high school in America these days. When I was in high school you could leave the campus at any time you wanted and during lunch time many students did. These days most high schools have a closed campus so you can’t leave for lunch or at any time you choose. In some schools they have cameras everywhere as well as metal detectors and security guards. In the past if a student joked about doing something horriffic, Like shooting up the school, Most kids laughed and didn’t take it seriously but today you could be expelled for it. You could even been expelled for something ridiculous like dyeing your hair blue or folding a piece of paper into the shape of a gun and pointing it at someone. I feel that this tragedy has started some serious discussions about gun control and violence in our society but until we reign in the media and hold those accountable for the massive levels of violence in the news, movies, tv, video games, and American life in general no ground will be made. In todays society we often forget about tragedies almost as quickly as they happened because of the next latest horrible event we are fed by the media. Bowling for Columbine