Superstitions in India Essay Example for Free

Superstitions in India Essay Superstitions are based on ignorance and there is no place for superstitions but in the darkness. The best way to remove superstitions is to educate the people and given them light of reason. A true knowledge of Nature and God will take the place of blind beliefs and false traditions and this only can should the death-knell of superstitions. —Samuel Smiles. Superstitions are unreasoned and irrational beliefs of the people living in the past or in the present age. When certain happenings cannot be rationally explained, people assign mysterious and inexplicable reasons for their operation. This faith of the people in irrational things takes the form of superstitions. Superstitions are, therefore, unreasoned beliefs which have a chronic kind of intensity in their evil. In old primitive times, superstitions governed the majority of people. Those days were such that it favored the growth of superstitions. Superstitions enjoyed their hey-day of glory when the civilization and science had not lighted the darkness of the ignorance of the primitive people. Lack of scientific advancement is another cause of the growth of superstitions. They find a rich soil for germination at a time and in a country where science and philosophy have not had their hold on the masses. Unenlightened people always tend to be superstitions. Undue reverence for traditions and customs prevailing in a particular society also make people superstitions in their ideas. This belief in the sacredness of time and old traditions of ancestors, keep people in the pale of superstitious thought. The tricks of the priests also exercise their unhealthy effect and people with a religious orthodoxy are prove to fall an easy prey to these superstitious agencies. Superstitions have continued to exercise their sway on all classes of people all over the world. There are certain common superstitions which are shared by all the people in the world. Belief in spirits, ghosts, and witches is a common superstition among all the people of the world. Even today belief in witches is present in India, Scotland, England, France and many other countries. People, especially in India and other countries of the East, still believe in ghosts. The cries of certain birds like owl and ravenes and mewing of cats are regarded with superstitions all over the globe. There is a very common belief that when comets are seen, they portend the death of kings or great men. When beggars die there are no comets seen. The heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes. In India, every activity of life is associated with some sort of superstition. It is supposed to be bad if somebody sneezes behind or calls back a man who is leaving his home for a journey. He must stop for a while to let the ill-luck pass. It is again ominous if he sees an empty vessel or a broom right in front of the house. The story of Ram Chandra, coming across a snake on the left hand side and a jackal on the right hand side while he was coming back to his hut in the jungle is widely known. He at once guessed that some misfortune had befallen Sita. The sight of a dead body or a cow feeding her calf or a full pitcher is considered as auspicious while one is on a journey. Stories of ghosts and evil spirits are very common in all the countries of the world and especially in India. After death, a person changes into a ghost. Sometimes, a ghost molests the other members of the family generally, a pipal tree is supposed to be the haunt of ghosts. The fear of ghosts is so great that some people worship them in their homes without giving them any shape and form. The ghosts are offered sweets, cakes, clothes and many such Other articles to please them and bribe them against doing any kind of harm to the people. Generally, the illiterate and ignorant people believe in superstitions. In villages, the people believe that small-pox, cholera and some fevers all are caused by the displeasure of he-ghosts and she-ghosts. The small pox, whenever it spreads in the form of epidemic, is supposed to be the result of the wrath of the Goddess Shitaladevi. Numerous beliefs of this type are prevalent in villages. Sometimes, such miracles take place in the cure of such diseases that one is surprised at and compelled to believe in these superstitions. Indians have a blind belief in, Sadhus though the cases of cheating by the Sadhus are generally heard. The ashes given by the Sadhus to their devotees are considered as something extraordinarily holy. The tradition of observing Terahvi in Indian families is another superstition. Hindus believe that souls of the dead persons exist in some form or the other for about eleven days in the family. The family becomes free form the impurity of death on the twelfth day. On this day Brahmins are fed and given charities to give peace to departed soul. These acts of giving charities to the Brahmins and feeding them or repeated every year in the month of Kwar. This observance is called Shradha. People have a great faith in palmistry, astrology and horoscope. There may be some experts in them here and there but generally, we come across, cheats, who exploit innocent persons and befool them. Superstitions differ from place to place and caste to caste. In South India, the sight of a black cat, crossing the way in front of one is considered to be very inauspicious. In Punjab, the sight of a Brahmin right in the morning is supposed to bring one misfortune for the whole day. But a Brahmin is not looked upon as inauspicious elsewhere. The sight of a cobbler, oilmen or washer man bring ill-lack to one in U. P. ut not in Punjab, It should not be surprising that some of English superstitions are very similar to certain superstitions prevalent in India. But in England and India the following of a dog at night without any apparent cause is supposed to indicate the presence of a spirit nearby. As in Indian villages, people believe in witches, so do the people of England and Wales who live in remote villages. The only panacea for all the social evils like superstitions is education. To make the backward and superstition minded Indians enlightened, education should be spread widely. Education cultivates reasoning and thinking in a human being and as soon as a person comes under the shelter of reason and scientific outlook, he or she, becomes free from blind beliefs. Indians by nature are fatalists and they do not apply their energy to work for the betterment of their lot. This is the greatest superstition which has undermined and is still undermining the real prosperity of India. People should be properly educated and should be inspired to be hard working and honest. Then, we should judge everything by the strong light of reason, having firm faith in God.

Living and Working in Korea Essay Example for Free

Living and Working in Korea Essay The case of Ellen Moore is very interesting and diverse, because it shows different reasons why problems can occur in a project management and teamwork and highlights how cultural differences can affect the work in a very negative way. There are several reasons why the project has run into problems. Some of these could have been foreseen but some not. The main problem is that there were wrong decisions made when creating the team and also some risks were incorrectly assessed to be less important than they actually turned out to be. First of all in selecting project management representative Andrew Kilpatrick underestimated the cultural differences and did not listen enough to the warning from American consultants with WSI in Korea that it is impossible to send a woman to work in Korea. I don’t think it is completely impossible for a woman to work in Korea, but Ellen should have been more prepared and more informed about the local traditions particularly about the team building and after-work dinners and how the Koreans’ respect for position and status would influence the teams’ behavior. From the case it seems like too many things came as a surprise to Ellen and it was hard to focus on the primary tasks. Another problem was in the team composition especially in allocating roles. There were 2 project co-managers – Ellen and Jack – assigned to the team. But Jack was given an impression that he will be the sole project leader. For this reason Ellen’s addition to the team created tension between them and from the beginning and this undermined their chances to work together for the same goal. If it was decided to have 2 equal project manager positions, then their roles should have been allocated. For example each project manager would have specific areas of responsibilities and the rest of the team would be informed about these responsibilities. Instead both project managers ended up fighting for the power instead of working towards the common goal. The development of the events in the team also suggests that it was a wrong decision to appoint 2 team managers, because it is clear that the team performed better when they were led by one team leader – when  Jack was around the Korean team would follow his instructions, but when Jack was away and Ellen was the only leader the team cooperated and worked well under her supervision and coaching. The third problem was the expertise and experience of the Korean consultants. The American part of the team was only partially informed about the teams’ qualifications. But it soon turned out that none of them had sufficient previous experience to work on this project. That the teams’ inexperience turned out to be one of the reasons the project ran into problems is partially because of Ellen’s overconfidence. When she realized what is the actual qualification and experience of the team members she thought she could work around it and train the people on the team. Instead of suggesting changes in the team she relied on her skills as a coach to improve the situation. All these reasons are to blame that the project is in serious trouble and without clear action plan the project cannot be put back on track. One solution that could be done to get the project back on schedule is for Andrew to take on a more active role in the teams work and become the team leader in Korea and oversee both Ellen and Jack and the whole team. Since both Mr.Song and Mr.Park think that Ellen is the problem and is not effective, there is not much she can do to continue the role as the team leader because the supervisors in Korea don’t back her up. And in this situation it would be hard for her to become the team leader over Jack. If all the team members remain in their place under Andrews supervisions, roles to each member should be allocated also tem members need to be motivated to work together to achieve the goal. Rewards for cooperation and tem work could be in place here. Another alternative could be removing Jack from the team and find a Korean consultant that has experience with SI projects. This solution would eliminate the tension in the team and also increase the professional capacity of the team. If the budget of the project allows one more possibility would be to include additional team members with more expertise to assist the team. Also changing the team members could be a solution, but  there might be not enough time to completely change the team and still manage to finish the project on schedule. Although the situation is rather complex because the team is dealing not only with professional problems but also with personnel problems and problems caused by not understanding the different culture, there are some things that Ellen could have done differently. First of all she should have tried to draw Andrews and Mr. Park’s and Mr. Song’s attention to the fact that the team members are not qualified enough to work on this project in the early stages of the project. She should have asked to either change the weakest members of the team or have additional training for the team to raise their level of expertise. As for cooperation with Jack I think that the fight for the power between the two of them was inevitable, but one way how to try to deal with the situation could have been Ellen’s initiative to establish some ground rules on how they interact with the team, how they divide responsibilities between them. Her background information shows that she had previous experience in leading teams so probably also knowledge in conflict resolution and motivating people. Clearly Jack needed some motivation to become a team player. But altogether I think that most of the problems occurred because Ellen’s supervisors made wrong assessments about the project and the situation and also made some bad decisions in the beginning.

The Freedom Of Media Media Essay

The Freedom Of Media Media Essay This study seeks to explore the state of Freedom of Media during the Musharraf regime, the developments , achievements and then the restrictions imposed by the President are also intended to be analyzed. During the nine years of Musharraf regime media have gone through various critical and crucial phases. The progress of mass media, the freedom, the laws to curb the media, technological developments are some big phases the Musharraf government is associated with. This study is descriptive in nature and looks at certain political developments as predictors of media freedom. Political decisions that made people of Pakistan prosper or suffer and to what extent. The relationship between different institutions of the society and their effects on each other is studied, the structural-functional theory that suggests society works as whole on the basis of different institutions that are its structures performing their specific functions shows that media is one of these institutions .Mass media are the focus of this research it is hoped that it will be a little contribution towards the media development process, strains, achievements adding to the media history of Pakistan. Introduction Mass media are mirror of the society depicting the political environment and making discourses on the issues of significance. mass media can be defined as: The methods and organisations used by specialist social groups to convey messages to large, socially mixed and widely dispersed audiences (Haralambos et al., 2000, p935) In The German Ideology (1846), Marx asserts that the ruling ideas are the ideas of the ruling class. Applying this to Marxism, the media are the means by which the ideas of the ruling class maintain their dominance as the ruling ideas (Haralambos Holborn, 2000, p937). The Marxist view was dominant in Britain and Europe from the mid 1960s to the mid 1980s, and is still used in modern research. Although less dominant now, Marxism still affects much media research. In studying the relationship between media and government, the most important role of the media is its ability to perform a watchdog role, monitoring and criticizing government behavior because when the media performs this function it is able to act as a forum for political debate regardless of other limitationson its freedom. In his press freedom index, Van Belle (2000) focuses on the ability of the news media to criticize the government and thereby serve as an arena for political competition. This more narrow definition of media independence is aimed more at the function and practices of the media. While the political, legal, economic, and professional environments each play a role in the capability of the media to serve as a watchdog and an arena for political competition. Mass media are a structural and functional unit of the society .Every society constitutes several institutions that work together to make the system functional and stable . These social institutions are known as social structures and the work performed by them are called social functions in the structural functional theory . This theory was developed from 1930 to 1960 in the United States by Comte, Herbert Spencer and Durkheim . According to Marxist media analysis, media institutions are regarded as being locked into the power structure, and consequently as acting largely in tandem with the dominant institutions in society. The media thus reproduced the viewpoints of dominant institutions not as one among a number of alternative perspectives, but as the central and obvious or natural perspective (Curran et al. 1982: 21). According to adherents of Marxist political economy, in the mass media there is a tendency to avoid the unpopular and unconventional and to draw on values and assumptions which are most valuable and most widely legitimated (Murdock Golding 1977: 37, cited in Curran et al. 1982: 26). Similarly, some Marxist commentators have contended that media portrayals of elections constitute dramatized rituals that legitimate the power structure in liberal democracies; voting is seen as an ideological practice that helps to sustain the myth of representative democracy, political equality and collective self-determination. The impact of election coverage is thus conceived in terms of reinforcing political values that are widely shared in Western democracies and are actively endorsed by the education system, the principal political organizations and the apparatus of the state (Curran et al. 1982: 15). Alex de Tocqueville(1988,p517) once said only a newspaper can put the same thought at the same time before a thousand readers. In this century the same can be said about television, radio and internet which can provide information to million people simultaneously across the globe .Due to this power of mass media governments try to control media and influence media content in their own interest and sometimes in national interest. Media freedom around the world is different ,developed countries have a better state of media freedom than developing and under developed countries.Research shows that media freedom has relationship with other factors too. Media freedom is directly related to economy , technological advancement ensures media freedom similarly polity is a major reason behind curbing media freedom In the Marxist fundamentalist tradition, political economists see ideology as subordinate to the economic base (Curran et al. 1982: 26). Work by Graham Murdock (Murdock Golding, 1977; Murdock, 1982) represents the critical political economy approach, locating the power of media in the economic processes and structures of media production. Ownership and economic control of the media is seen as the key factor in determining control of media messages. .Education and religion are also factors that influence freedom of mass media. The effects of media freedom on economy and polity is evident from the the scenario in the African country Swaziland . It is a developing country where the system of government includes a king and a prime minister along with the cabinet . The government of Swaziland like many others in Africa has declared many times that the Swazi press is free with no attempt to gag or intimidate journalists. However, there has never been a specific free press clause in the Swazi constitution. In the article The politics of press freedom and the national economy Matt Mogekwu mentions the fact that the Swazi Government and the media-especially the independent media do not appear to be working in concert towards development. The patron-client relationship that seems to exist between them has elicited some degree of resentment on the part of the press that has manifested itself in the kind of confrontational stance taken by the press over the past couple of years. The journalists write as if to dare the government. This is unhealthy for the country in its dysfunctional consequences. There are progressive groups who oppose the system that is against the basic principles of modern democracy and fosters authoritarianism. They argue that the system discourages freedom of expression and limits the peoples contribution to policy decision making. The world outside picks up all of these pieces of information about continued discontent in Swaziland. There is an obvious effect of media government relation in Swaziland on its econmy the writer says in his article that The King, as Head of State, makes a number of overseas trips each year to woo investors. But the dividends from these trips are hardly ever significant. The picture that the King presents to the outside world hardly coincides with the picture created by the press. The differential interpretations of political philosophies and activities among groups in the country or between the government and the governed leads to a climate of fear that is felt outside. The Kings many trips overseas in search of investors w ill come to nothing if there is any dissonance in the minds of the potential investors regarding the investment climate in the country. The media play a crucial role in establishing this climate. Attempts at controlling parameters of (political) debate have serious consequences here. Form and substance and comparative freedom of public communication will be influenced by political news. The writer concludes Press freedom has become a very important political issue in Swaziland.In general, the government appears reluctant to hasten the process of democratization both in the area of communication and the general area of governance, thus creating problems for itself. The media need information to function and when they are denied this, they can react in several ways, one of which is being critical of government and its policies and help paint an unfavourable picture of the country to the outside world. The country thus has to suffer in many aspects . The issue of technological development with respect to media freedom is discussed by an author,In her article on New media and freedom of expression in Asia Ariel Heryanto of The university of Melbourne says about new media technologies that the global technological change that the west has helped propel forward has given more favorable effects to less modernized parts of Asia the reason for this relate to both technology and social factors. She adds In a sense world history can be seen as history of changes in media technology. The spread of radically new medium of communication always threatens existing power structures and hierarchies, and helps create new ones. Lawson (2002, 139) found that in Mexico, media openness led to increased coverage, first by the niche media and then by more mainstream media, of government corruption and state-sponsored repression: The discovery that Mexican audiences devoured scandalous information only encouraged greater reporting of incendiary and shocking events. For media owners, scandals sold newspapers and boosted ratings; for reporters, they helped make careers and satisfied personal desires to participate in a new kind of journalistic enterprise that would expose the failings of authoritarian rule. Market forces and journalistic norms thus encouraged Mexicos media to expose spectacular instances of government abuse. Political scientist Karl Deutsch has called that the system of communication proves a nerve of polityand any breakdown of the nerve may cause dysfunctional impact in the performance of the plity causing governance decay. In America the publics right to know is one of the central principles of American society. They determined long ago that the power of knowledge should be in the hands of people .The constitution of the United States became law in 1971 . The first amendment says that Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech , or of the press The government leaves it to people to settle issues with the mass media .Laws made in America at later stages have been all to give more freedom to media unlike Pakistan , where laws meant direct curb on media freedom. Few press laws are in force in the U.S. because of this broad constitutional protection of press freedom and analogous provisions in the constitutions of the 50 states. Existing laws tend to provide additional protections in categories not covered by the Constitution. The Privacy Act of 1974, for example, regulates the collection and dissemination of personal information contained in the files of federal agencies; the Privacy Protection Act of 1980 establishes protection from police searches of newsrooms. Additional examples include federal and state Freedom of Information and sunshine laws (such as the 1966 federal Freedom of Information Act) which opens up executive-branch records to public and press scrutiny. Similarly Britain is also very friendly to the media and respect the fact that democratic states have free media . There are no laws to stop the publication of accurate information as far as they are accurate and comments are free for anyone who wants to comment on any issue they want. Britain has also developed a strongly liberal democratic concept of freedom of expression, which emphasis the special role of the media and the particular importance of freedom of the press. The media therefore have a powerful weapon to use in challenging legal restrictions on the investigation and publication of matters of public interest but the right to freedom of the press in Britain must always be balanced against other rights and interests. The need to protect national security and public order and the rights of individuals to privacy and reputation will often outweigh the publics interest in knowing certain information. The balancing of rights and interests is common to all legal systems. However, a liberal democratic concept of freedom of expression demands that the government shows that its restrictions on the media are both necessary and as limited as possible. Pakistan is a developing state and the mass media have not been very free until the Musharraf regime, it was the time when technological boom took birth in Pakistan giving a new life to mass media. Pakistan has struggled through an entangled and unstable political system. Pakistan has had three periods of military rule that alternated with democracy rule, interval between them being approximately ten years. Military regimes were from 1958-71, Ayub regime was the first military regime then it was Zia-ul-huaq from 1977-1988 and last was the Musharraff regime from 1999-2008. Democratic regimes did not last for long therefore democracy had no time to get its roots strong. The various military regimes were very much interested in controlling the media, the most effective tool the media that was used to curb media freedom by them were media laws to reign it. Ayub khan was the first one to promulgate media laws in the country. He promulgates the press and publication ordinance (PPO) in 1962. This law empowered the authorities to confiscate newspaper, arrest and torture journalists and close down news agencies. Using these laws Ayub khan took over one of the two largest news agencies and nationalized the press. By these actions other agencies were pushed into severe crisis and they were forced to get help financially from the government as they had no other choice. TV and radio were also under the control of government due to their financial weakness. In the Zia regime (PPO) Press and Publication Ordinance was again made additions to in the 1980s. According to the amendments, the prosecuted if a story was not liked or approved by the authorities it was not published even it would have been true. In the past our media was dependent on the government because , revenue came from government advertisements and subsidies. The state owned channels was therefore was totally controlled by the government, freedom to speak or broadcast anything against the ruling party was a taboo. It was not even thinkable to produce programs in which analysts and critics could discuss various moves and decisions of the government. Media earned very little from the private sector because it had a small volume. But with changing media environment many national and international organizations have become source of big revenues giving economic strength to media, enabling it to be independent this financial independence have given the media independence in thought and action nowadays this freedom of thought is visible in editorial and content independence. 1999 was not a good year for the press of Pakistan. even for democracy it was not a good time, as on october 12 the Pakistani Army took the government from the Prime minister Mian Nawaz Sharif. This happened because Nawaz sharif attempted to dismiss Chief of Army staff Gneral Pervez Musharraf. In the begining of year 1999, The Nawaz sharif government tried to sub-due one of the largest media groups Jang. Journalists were punished who had cooperated in the BBCs production, a documentary investigating the corruption about the family and its business. these acts totally showed the acts of government to intimidate , harass and punish the press. but they were out to public within Pakistan and abroad as well. PPF Report by Owais Aslam(reference) Even the media was apparently enjoying freedom the inner story was quite different, the freedom given to media, allowing humorous criticism and open talk shows , critics speaking of their views , the military dictator carefully created perception of free media this helped him market himself and made it possible to sustain his regime as long as nine years. This study includes the strategies and events that were against the constitution and public wish, which were main reasons to tarnish the concept of democracy . Musharraf was swept in office with 98 percent of the official tally in April 2002 referendum but that referendum presented voters with no opponents and the following ballot question : Do u want to elect President Musharraf for the next five years for the survival of local government system , restoration of democracy, continuity and stability of reforms , eradication of extremism and sectarianism and for the accomplishment of Quaid e Azam ( i.e Pakistans founder Mouhammad Ali Jinnahs ) concept. The decisions made by Musharraf were not much appraised by the people from small decisions like day time saving scheme to the change in the constitution. DOMESTIC PROBLEMS OF MUSHARRAF: ELECTIONS 2002 Many judges resigned in protest when Musharrad assumed power . He cleverly got the Oath of judges order 2000 issued so that the judges take fresh oath and give their written word on not taking any action against the military. On May 12 , 2000 , Supreme court gave the order of holding national elections , which took place in 2001. Musharraf wanted to legitimize his Presidency and to keep it under the pressure of democracy he held referendum on April 30, 2002 to extend his term to five years since he was enjoying the office very much. He was aware of irregularities in the referendum , thus apologized from the nation on television. LFO Legal framework order was passed by Musharraf in August 2002 it provided for the general elections of 2002 and the revival of constitution of 1973 but with many ammendments. A part of this order of was rejected by supreme court. SUSPENSION OF CHIEF JUSTICE Pervez Musharraf suspended the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on th 9th of March 2007. There was corruption charges against him and a reference was filed against him. Then Justice Javed Iqbal became the acting chief justice. The suspension of the chief Justice became one of the major harvoc for Musharraf that pushed him in becoming unpopular and resulted in ending of his regime. In the nine years regime Musharraf and Pakistan have gone through various phases , the phase of Musharraf regime that faced the Judicial crisis is worth noticing as it led to his downfall. JUDICIAL ACTIVISM Musharrafs move to suspend the Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry sparked protests among Pakistan lawyers. On March 12 , 2007 lawyers started Judicial activism across Pakistan . They bycotted all court procedures in protest against the suspension. slowly the expression of support for the chief justice gained momentum and by May the huge rallies against Musharraf and his regime as Army chief was challen DECLERATION OF EMERGENCY Nov, 3, 2007, Black Saturday will go down as another day in our history. Emergency was imposed only to forget two institutions 1 .Judiciary 2. Media Chief justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, who took the seat after Justice Ifthikar Choudhry was dismissed, was pro Musharraf, so on 24 Nov, 2007, a seven larger bench of the supreme court under him directed the election commissioner and the government to declare Pervez Musharraf president for a second term by December 1, and said that he shall relinquish the office of chief of army staff (COAS) before taking oath, as president the supreme court also accepted the provisional constitutional order and validated the declared emergency. He was justified by the court to qualify for the election, constitutionally. Thus the target of general Musharraf was achieved safely to get re-elected with both the offices in his hand. Curbs on media were imposed by amendments in two ordinances. These ordinances bar them from printing or broadcasting anything which defames or brings into ridicule the head of state or executive legislative or judicial organ of the state Restraints have also been put on the media for printing or broadcasting material that is likely jeopardize or be prejudicial to the ideology of Pakistan or the sovereignty, integrity or security of Pakistan, or any material that is likely to incite violence or hatred or create inter- faith disorder or be prejudicial to maintenance of law and order. Curbs for the electronic media were more than the print. Musharraf attempted to gag cyber space but was futile, minute by minute information about raids, arrests, of journalists, activists, and lawyers. ppf report 1999 by Owais Aslam Mass media around the world were already progressing and flourishing on healthy pace but it was Pakistan among those countries where media was the property of the Government. it was the mouthpiece of the ruling party and in case of providing entertainment, no policies or efforts were made by the state owned channel to compete with the outer world. entertainment was possible for those only who had Dish antennae, recievers, decoders etc. Although Zia was a dictator, a millitary person but he was an Islamist .Zia ruled Pakistan from 1977 to 1988 but that was a period when Pakistan underwent Islamisation. it became a secular nation-state, which was the original vision of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah. now the state religion of Pakistan is Islam but its people are divided due to cultural clash between liberal and religious forces. witht the passage of time and changing governments it has become Presidential Federal democratic republic. Unlike Zia General Pervez Musharraf had a philosophy of enlightment in every area of life. in case of religion he had the view of enlightened Islam even wanted the Pakistani nation to follow the path of modernization under the label of his philosophy of enlightment. Similarly media was benefitted by this enlightment, it broadened the media scene in Pakistan. Pervez Musharraf had a liberal policy for media development that led to explosion of channels and private investors to jump in the show. It was quite a favour by Gneral Pervez Musharraf that his government gave and implemented the Deregulation policy and privately owned commercial media flourished and nourished the nation, mentally. Now the 24 hrs news and entertainment channels are the buddy and need of many people. The availability of information, news and entertainment channels have proved to play a catalytic role for social change and national development. Musharraf practiced the idea of Media democracy and tolerate the biased sections of media successfully for quite a time period but later when his regime was in danger and he could not justify his deeds he started curbing the freedom of media, that already was given by him. Editors were gaged, newschannels were banned. Most analysts and journalists (including Mir Khalil ur Rehman, founder of Pakistans largest media conglomerate) attribute this freedom to President General Pervez Musharrafs regime. He, for the first time, removed almost all curbs from the then strangled media groups. Most people count this as the now-deposed dictators biggest gift to Pakistan during his tenure. It is ironic, of course, that the same media he worked so hard to free was the one that was finally instrumental in having him exiled from the country. Objective of the study: This study aims to find the extent and reality about freedom that media enjoyed in the Musharraf regime. This study will also analyze the relationship between government (polity) economy, technological advancement and media freedom As stated in the earlier chapters, many studies have been conducted around the world regarding media freedom. Mostly media freedom was studied in advanced developed countries but in developing countries the studies are few. In case of Pakistan, Pakistan media is in its infancy specially the electronic media but developing very fast. In the past all media were under strict control of the government, instead of being watchdog it was called the mouthpiece of the ruling party. In all military regimes the media was under strict check by the government but in Musharraf regime the media scene started to change and he introduced a free environment to all the media. This freedom from the start till the end is covered in this study. Hopefully this will be a useful study to see the changes that media went through in Musharraf regime. These changes, and advancements will be important to evaluate and study for future researchers of the field as it is important to record the development stages of Pakistan media into a proper mature institution

Great Gatsby :: essays research papers fc

Fitzgerald’s Masterpiece F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is an enchanting novel, which tells an exquisite story through various techniques characteristic of a gifted author. The story has elements of deceit, high hopes, fallen dreams, and false intentions which make it thrilling to read. However, the true genius of the novel lies in the character description, setting of the novel, and the structure and form used. It is these literary devices that set The Great Gatsby apart from other novels. Life in the 1920’s was much different than that of life during any other era and Fitzgerald depicts this in The Great Gatsby very accurately through the characters. One critic stated that “The only bad of it is that the characters are mostly so unpleasant in themselves that the story becomes rather a bitter does before one has finished with it'; (Wilson 149). Where as one may take this as an insult, it can also be taken as a compliment. This shows that Fitzgerald described the character and their action so realistically that the reader developed strong opinions of the characters. Fitzgerald’s use of the setting is also another incredible technique used in The Great Gatsby. Fitzgerald’s description of Gatsby’s mansion is a perfect example of this. “The one on my right was a colossal affair by any standard- it was a factual imitation of some Hotel de Ville in Normandy, with a tower on one side, spanking new under a thin beard of raw ivy, and a marble swimming pool and more than forty acres of lawn and garden. It was Gatsby’s mansion.'; Throughout the novel Fitzgerald uses this type of description to put the reader into the story and give them a realistic sense of the time period. Not only do the words themselves paint pictures, but also the structure and form used is a delight. “…Every line of hard and intelligent effort'; (Mencken 148). The incredible part about this is that Fitzgerald does not do it too elaborately where the reader will get lost, but “written in sentences one can understand which is a comfort'; (Stein 149). Fitzgerald has written a complete novel which is his “best planned, best sustained, and best written [of Fitzgerald’s works]…not a whole in it anywhere'; (Wilson 147). The Great Gatsby is one of the few novels that is able to incorporate a wonderfully crafted setting and a very realistic set of characters that depict the young people of the time all in a smooth flowing well written novel.

Macbeth: Verdict Not Guilty! :: essays research papers

Macbeth, the Innocent Good day. Today I will prove to you that Macbeth, the king of Scotland, is innocent. It is outrageous that anyone in this courtroom should think otherwise. There are three key factors to consider before it is possible to make any judgment concerning the murderer of Duncan. First of all, before fingers are pointed at Macbeth, I ask you to consider if he is the only suspicious person? A murderer must have a motive and an opportunity. Obviously, there are several candidates that fit this category. Also, before you can reach a final decision, you must consider the character of the individual. Macbeth is a man of the finest character; he does not have the nature of a cold-blooded killer. I am sure you will agree with me long before you go into the jury room. Finally, the will of the gods must be taken into consideration. It is not within the powers of mortals, even important mortals like Macbeth, to change the future as determined by the stars. I am confident that you, dear jury, will con sider the three factors I will shortly describe and realize that Macbeth is a most unlikely suspect. First of all, Macbeth is not the only suspicious person. After all, where were the sons of Duncan just minutes after their father’s brutal murder? You would think that sons who really care about their father would want to discover the truth. What kind of son just runs off and vanishes when he learns of the horrific death of his own father? Where were Malcolm and Donalbain? If anyone here in this court lost a loved one, no one would turn his back, especially to a father. But these young men, next in line to the throne, decided it would be a better idea to wait for the heat to go down. The only possible explanation is that they, themselves, felt guilty. Sadly, I fear, we must also look at Lady Macbeth. Although it is unpleasant to speak ill of the dead, I ask you, why is the Lady dead? We all know that in the period of time before her death she was crazy and possessed. She walked around the castle rubbing her hands and trying to remove the stains of blood that she thought she saw there. Does this sound like an innocent woman? She believed that Macbeth was weak and not driven.

Asian Continents Rising :: Geology

Sea lion, a scientific mystery Last year ,prince of Monaco visited Russia, where the regional governor in Russia has gifted him with a pair of rare kind of sea lion commonly called as ‘’nerpa’at present the Russian seals called as ‘’nerpa’’ living only in the Baikal lake, which is situated at the center of the Asian continent. Seals are generally living in the coastal area. DNA test has showed that the ancestors of this Russian seals were the ‘’ringed seals’’ which is now living in the northern sea. Therefore the question is how could the ancestors of the Russian seals reached the land locked Baikal Lake which is situated at the center of the Asian continent , hundreds of miles away from the northern sea? Asian continent is rising. The fossils of marine insect called as trilobite which lived on the sea floor, before 50 crore years, now found in all the seven continents. Particularly the fossils of the sea insect, found both in the Russia and china. So it is proved that the continents which are now above the sea level had once been under the sea level. And later rose above the sea level. Similarly, when the Asian continent was submerged under the sea, the ancestors of the Russian seals were able to reach the Epicontinental Sea that covered the Asian continent in the ancient period, and caught in the central land locked Baikal Lake as the Asian continent later rose above the sea level. Still the land masses are rising. And due to this rising of land masses earthquake occurred only in the central region, Similarly the descendants of the northern ringed sea lion also found in the land locked Caspian Sea . So it is proved that the land which is now surrounded the Caspian Sea had once been under the sea level. African continent is rising Similarly, there is a lake called Tanganyika in the east where unique kinds of herring fishes are found. DNA test has showed that the Tanganyika herring fishes are descended from the herring fish, before 5 crore years, which is now living in the Indian Ocean . How the marine fish could reach the inland lake? So it is evident that before five crore years, the eastern part of the African continent had been under the sea level.

Napoleon And The Enlightenment Essay

The enlightenment was a time of great learning throughout Europe during the eighteenth century. Although the period is significant for scientific and other scholastic advancements, it is most important because it allowed for the opening of great minds–such as that of Napoleon Bonaparte. Shortly after this enlightenment made its way through Europe, revolution and civil war ripped through France between 1879 and 1899. The unrest of the time called for a strong ruler. A man/woman with an open mind and an enlightened soul. France needed a child of the enlightenment to sew its tattered flag. Napoleon Bonaparte was a child of the enlightenment. This was displayed in both his attitudes and policies as a result of enlightened religious ideas, political genius, and social reforms. Almost every ruler in history can be accused of having some kind of religious fanaticism. This religious fervor has led to persecution, civil war, unrest, instability, ignorance, and even genocide. The enligh tenment taught philosophes and scholars religious tolerance by lessening the importance of religion and God in everyday life. As a child of the enlightenment, Napoleon had a similar immunization to the devout and was able to use religion as a tool to accomplish his political ideas and goals. An example of this is the fact that whatever new land he conquered, he adopted the religion of that land in order to gain the acceptance of the general population. In France, he was Catholic. In Egypt, he was Muslim. But the only insight we have to his actual religious beliefs are that he said he followed his own star indicating that he pursued a somewhat mystical belief in destiny and fate. He completely regarded the church as a convenience to be taken advantage of by any enlightened despot. When he first came to power, the greatest force that could propel counterrevolution was the Catholic church, so ignoring the infuriated (and politically weak) Jacobeans, he signed a concordat with the Vatican. He said, Fifty . . . bishops paid by England lead the French clergy today. Their influence must be destroyed. For this we n eed the authority of the Pope. Through the concordat, the Catholic church was able to gain back authority that it had lost during the revolution, however, it was never allowed to recover its former autonomy or power. Napoleon kept the French church in his pocket. He paid the clergy directly, and he made them  financially dependent on his treasury. As a child of the enlightenment, Napoleon used cold authority and calculation to wield one of the most powerful weapons in the world–religion–and he did it successfully. It is hard to reconcile whether it was Napoleon’s political genius that made him enlightened or whether it was his enlightenment that made him a political genius. Regardless, he will always be recognized as a charismatic and remarkable enlightened despot. Everyone who encountered Napoleon Bonaparte were immediately impressed by his amazing wit and blunt intelligence. As a military figure he is unmatched and as a leader, he has been mimicked throughout history by other rulers hoping to eclipse his success. The element of Napoleon’s character that made him enigmatic to France at this time, however, was not eloquence or dazzle but crisp speech filled with reas on and calm assurance. He was, in a nutshell, exactly what France wanted after fifteen years of political upheaval. After coming to power, Napoleon immediately set up a pretend constitution and parliament, but he ruled with an iron fist. As far as voting was concerned, the population could accept his policies or not vote at all. (women, of course, could not vote no matter what) Though by today’s standards Napoleon may seem ignorant and unenlightened, during the 18th century an enlightened despot was an absolute ruler who was able to introduce rational reform and thought without considering the needs of the minority. As an example of this kind of enlightenment, Napoleon began to tax the upper classes. By taxing the nobility, Napoleon was taxing the richest two percent of the population that the former monarchy would not tax because they could yell the loudest. The former monarch was dead. The former monarch had been killed by that nasty ninety-eight percent in a very unpleasant way. Napoleon’s next step was to codify laws. For a child of the enlightenment, the codification of laws is definitely a requirement. But Napoleon did not only make law codes, he made law codes that surpassed the fame and glory of Roman law codes. Yes, Napoleon was a child of the enlightenment; this is clearly displayed by his policies and law codification that directly impacted the majority. Napoleons enlightened social reforms were often directly impacted by his religious agreements and political endeavors. The most interestingly enlightened social reform that Napoleon instituted was a law system that fell on the shoulders of every individual equally. There was no recognition of social  class in law. Military positions could no longer be bought or sold. A person was expected to make their way up in society on their own two feet, not riding the backs of their parents piggy-banks. Education became increasingly important because under this system, pedigree was dog food. Thus, the next most interesting enlightened social reform was a public system that has remained almost exactly as structured and rational today, as Napoleon himself instituted it nearly two-hundred years ago. Though the upper classes mainly benefited from them , scholarships were provided for youths who showed scholastic promise. (Of course this, once again, excludes girls–who by the way are good for nothing but breeding and prostitution) Yes, Napoleon did tamp down on any promise of a feminist movement that had glimmered during the French revolution. But this is expected from a male enlightened despot. A feminist movement could be almost as destructive as the church if properly instituted. One simply needs to peruse Aristophones’ Lysistrata for proof of that. So, by putting women back in their rightful and passive places and instituting social reform for the greater male population, Napoleon once again capitalizes on his enlightened mentality and proves that their is no grander child of the enlightenment than he. Napoleon instituted reforms in religion, policy, and society that clearly reflected an enlightened upbringing. Though these sentiment may seem slightly arrogant and assumed, Napoleon himself would have been happy to explain his enlightened magnificence if he weren’t dead. Has it been mentioned that he was short? (the writer could not help herself) Napoleon is a timeless example of an enlightene d despot. The bible still has not fully recovered from the rationality of his church. His codified law system is still active in France and the great state of Louisiana. Mankind today clutches desperately at his social ideologies. Though a modern thinker may say the only thing that keeps Napoleon from being enlightened is lack of democracy, the writer sitting in this chair thinks that the only thing that keeps democracy from being Napoleon is enlightenment. Had Napoleon been born merely fifty years earlier he may have been a trendsetter of the enlightenment. Or he might have been a fisherman. Regardless, Napoleon was a child of the enlightenment and not a parent. He followed the ideas presented by that period with such strategy and genius, people are still writing papers about it. (By choice?)