Various leading political scientists of the twentieth century have understood, defined and interpreted ‘democracy’ in a variety of ways. Robert Dahl, arguably the most influential American political scientist of the 20th century reckons that democracy is a utopian concept that is not found anywhere in contemporary geo-politics. In its stead, leading industrial societies of the…
Tag: Works Cited
How does the worldview presented in the movie ‘The Golden Compass’ converge or differ from a Christian worldview?
The Golden Compass is a bold movie in the sense that it tackles a major social malaise – namely religious authority. Although references to Christianity in particular and God in general have been removed from the film version, there is no doubt that the sweeping authority of the Magisterium includes these two sources of authority. …
Gender Bias: ‘Cat in the Rain’ by Ernest Hemingway and ‘Sweat’ by Zora Neale Hurston
Both short stories contain abundant instances of gender bias. To be more accurate, the gender bias witnessed in these stories is so pronounced and persistent that it is fair to call them misogyny. In Cat in the Rain, the victim is an American girl who is married to a man indifferent to her wishes and…
The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy: An analysis
One of the later works of Leo Tolstoy, the novella is preoccupied with the meaning of death, and by extension the meaning of life. The main character, Ivan Ilyich, is a sort of a symbol for common man in the industrial age. Outwardly, he has all the trappings of a successful life, but there is…
How do the themes, elements and issues found in Candide resonate with contemporary audiences?
There are many themes in Candide which resonate with a contemporary audience. One of the recurrent attacks in the book has been against religious institutions and the politico-cultural power wielded by them. Although Voltaire was a deist, he did not espouse the view of the Optimists who believed that we inhabit a perfect world in…
Response to Critical Essays/Books on Jonathan Edwards’ “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”
There are strengths and weaknesses to the book by Kimnach et al. Its strength is its comprehensiveness and its utility in the classroom environment. The background essays included in the compilation help dispel some of the myths and simplistic caricatures surrounding the personal of Jonathan Edwards. The book’s attempt to link the Sermon with the…
Phaedra as an example of Enlightenment values
Are love, passion and other emotions as dangerous as the play seems to make them and is reason alone enough to achieve happiness? Are human emotions a sign of weakness, disease, lack of control, or absence of Reason in the play? What is the cause of this tragedy? Phaedra, originally part of the large body of Greek…
The appeal of Marilyn Monroe
Introduction Marilyn Monroe is one of the biggest celebrities of 20th century America. From baseball stars to movie actors, men of all ages and professions were awed by her beauty and sex appeal. Even the Heads of State were not immune to her charm, as it is an open secret that John F. Kennedy had…
What is Social Capital?
The journal article by James Coleman titled Social Capital in the Creation of Human Capital talks in detail about the concept of Social Capital. The author identifies three predominant forms in which social capital manifests: “obligations and expectations, information channels, and social norms”. Social structural conditions under which social capital is created are explained in…
How does Aeneas’s piety and sense of duty change as the Aeneid unfolds?
In Virgil’s great epic poem Aeneid, the adventures of Aeneas are registered to create a powerful human drama that still retains its force two millennia past. Aeneas, the hero of the epic, is born of a divine union between the mortal Anchises and the goddess Venus. Believed to have been written circa 20 BC, this…