What's Your Definition of Happiness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

What's Your Definition of Happiness - Essay Example As I take it, then, well-being is synonymous with persons own good, welfare, or interest. To say that something contributes to one's well-being is simply to say that it is in one's interest, that it is good for one, or that it makes one's life go better. Understood as such, well-being is an inherently evaluative concept: when we say that something promotes one's welfare, we ascribe a certain type of value to that thing. In particular, we identify it as having prudential value (Silverstein, 2000, p. 279) Ascribing values to objects is certainly an interpretive process, but what has value, the object or the perceiver’s interpretation of the object. One would have to posit that the object is inherently valueless other than the value it may have to itself. Myers and Diener have found in their research that although money has been said to buy happiness, its value can often be short-lived: Wealth, it seems, is like health: its absence can breed misery, yet having it is no guarantee of happiness. In one survey, people on Forbes’s list of wealthiest Americans reported only slightly greater happiness than other Americans; 37% were less happy than the average American. Even lottery winners gain only a temporary jolt of joy. (Myers and Diener, 1995, p. 13) Over time there have been many attempts to discern what true happiness is. Also, attempting to resolve the difference between happiness and pleasure has been a key component of this search. This stretches back to Aristotle who states emphatically that they are different. Pleasure, he poses, has its origin in the survival needs of an organism to preserve itself, quite an early Darwinian attitude. So, no matter how much pleasure or joy can be associated with certain activities done for their own sake, Aristotle refused to identify pleasure with happiness.  Ã‚  

Jesus Galilean Ministry Essay Example for Free

Jesus Galilean Ministry Essay Jesus is the one sent by God the Father from Heaven for purposes of redemption of sin and restoration of the lost glory after the downfall of mankind. The four gospel books brings it forth that He is the promised Messiah whose coming was prophesied by prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 9:1-7 (Brown, 1979). He was brought up and began His ministry in Galilee which comprise of the northern regions of Palestine, Sea of Galilee and west of Jordan (Luke 4:14-15). Before he began his ministry, Jesus underwent various activities in preparation of the public launching of the ministry. Among these things include the baptism in river Jordan by the one known to be the â€Å"Voice of the one calling from the desert, prepare the way of the Lord Messiah†. It is after this baptism when the ministry of John the Baptist is no longer seen further in the bible and also the evidenced infilling of the Holy Spirit which enables Him in the execution of the God’s kingdom work (Niswonger, 1992). Jesus Ministry and God’s Kingdom When among the crowds, Jesus used parables which can be said to be wise twisted phrases of teaching but with hidden meaning like the parable of the Samaritan woman in John 4 (Funk et al, 1998). In all the parables he used, there was an intended message that he wanted drive into the followers and the crowds following him (Thomas Gundry, 1988). Healing of the Blind 0717897758 Among the many teachings offered by Jesus during the ministry is the story of the man born blind but healed on the Sabbath (John 9:1-12). From this story, it is clear that many believed that any deformity in a person was the result of a sin committed. Jesus contradicts this acutely in the story and puts it clear that this was purposeful and intended for reasons of God’s work to be seen. This healing raised a lot of concern from the Pharisees who sought an opportunity to persecute Jesus because of His teachings. The healed man openly declares Jesus as a prophet from God something which does not convince the Pharisees of the origin and mission of Jesus as one sent from the Father (God). The Pharisees go farther to enquire from the man’s parents about whether that man was their son. In fear of being chased out of the synagogues, the parents refer the Pharisees back to the man claiming that he is old enough to explain everything. It also raised a difference among the Pharisees some who claim that He is not from God because He keeps not the Sabbath while others are for the view that he is God sent because no sinner can perform the miracles and wonders he did. This serves to show God’s power and ability through the awaited messiah as well as proving the truth in Jesus’ words that He is sent from God. Jesus and Evil Spirits Demons are also seen to give into the command of the power and authority endowed in Jesus. This is depicted by the outright confession of demons in a man during a visit in the town of Capernaum by Jesus. In this case, the demons cry out in total submission to the authority of Jesus and acknowledge Him as the â€Å"Holy one of God, the Jesus of Nazareth† (Mark 1:24). Jesus is seen to command silence among the demons after which the evil spirits vigorously shake the man to the ground and depart immediately. The command by Jesus upon the evil spirits marks the separation of these spirits and the man. The crowds around also noted a difference and see the teachings of this man (Jesus) as one endowed with authority as opposes to those of the teachers of the law. This information is recorded to reach the whole Galilee as the people saw the truth accompanied with authority in work, something highly opposed by the Pharisees (Niswonger, 1992). This act thus advances the kingdom of God as one with power and authority as well as supreme to all other authorities of evil nature. The Calling of Levi The calling of Levi, a tax collector, is another story that focuses on the ministry of Jesus in the elaboration and nature of the kingdom of God. After his call, Levi follows Jesus and prepares a banquet for Him in his house. The fellow tax collectors also came to dine together with Jesus in Levis’ house. The banquet became another platform of criticism from the Pharisees who saw Him dining with tax collectors for they regarded them as outcasts and non candidates of the kingdom of God (Luke 5:27-31). In knowledge of His reason of coming to the world, Jesus answers them by telling them that it is the sick who consult a doctor and not the healthy. With this, He meant that His coming was not for the righteous and blameless but for those in darkness and wilderness of sin and iniquity (Vs 31). This indicates that Jesus came for purpose of redeeming the lost back to the kingdom of God and everyone is welcome as long as she or he is ready to follow and adhere to His commands (Thomas Gundry, 1988). Conclusion In Galilee, Jesus performed various miracles and wonders as well as teaching the crowds in the temple and synagogues (Niswonger, 1992). His ministry threatened much the Pharisees, Teachers of the law and Sadducees who had a lot of opposition. Despite all these oppositions, Jesus did not stop accomplishing the will of the one who sent Him but rather he sees this as fulfillment of the word of God (John 15:25). The crowds made a clear distinction between the Pharisees and Jesus and many are seen to follow Jesus due to the assistance, help, miracles and wonders He performed. At the end of the ministry, He assigns His disciples with one assignment â€Å"Go to the world and preach the gospel of the Lord and tell the people to denounce their evil ways and follow Gods’ righteous way. Also, they were to baptize all believers in the Trinity way† (Mathew 28:16-20).

This above all, to thine own self be true: Being True to Yourself :: essays research papers

Although many works of literature are very long, the main idea can be summarized in one or two of its lines. In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the most important line is: â€Å"This above all, to thine own self be true, / And it must follow, as the night the day, / Thou canst not then be false to any man† (1.3, 78-80). Spoken by Polonius, this advice is present throughout the entire play, together with the motifs of truth and lying. The characters desire to be true to themselves; however, some of them are not true to others. The main character, Hamlet, is a character that is not true to others, nor to himself. When the Ghost of his father tells him he was murdered by Claudius, Hamlet doubts the truth. He does not trust the ghost of his father, so has to find a way to prove it. Deciding on how to prove or disprove the Ghost, Hamlet predicts: â€Å"The play’s the thing / Wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the King† (2.2, 616-17). Because he distrusts the Ghost, Hamlet is not true to his father. However, when his plan proves to him that the Ghost’s words are true, Hamlet still does not act; he still cannot avenge his father’s murder. Hamlet decides not to kill Claudius, using the fact that he is praying as an excuse. Hamlet does not want Claudius’s soul to go to heaven, therefore he decides not to kill him, explaining: â€Å"A villain kills my father, and for that, I, his sole son, do the same villain send to heaven† (3.3, 76-78). However, after trying to p ray, the King claims that his prayers were not heard: â€Å"My words fly up, my thoughts remain below. / Words without thoughts never to heaven go† (3.3, 97-8). Therefore, had Hamlet chosen to kill Claudius at that time, his soul would have gone to Hell. Hamlet uses God as an excuse for not acting. He is not true and is lying to himself, because he wants to kill Claudius, yet does not. Claudius is also a character who is neither true to himself nor to others: he is not being true to the rest of the kingdom. He does not want to give up his gains, so the people of Denmark do not know why their previous King has died and his brother taken over. While making an attempt to pray, he realizes that his sins cannot be forgiven.

Discuss Chaucers poetic methods Essay

Discuss Chaucer’s poetic methods in presenting evil in the pardoner’s prologue and tale in the light of this comment.  In Chaucer’s time, the nature of evil related to any committing of the 7 deadly sins, consisting of greed, pride, blasphemy, sloth, avarice, wrath, lust and envy. The pardoner’s prologue and tale is comprised of many of these sins, the pardoner himself demonstrating the majority. Other characters, such as the 3 rioters also embody many of these sins. This essay will explore these characters as well as their evil natures and formulate an opinion how Chaucer presents evil in the pardoner’s prologue and tale. The pardoner’s evil nature is initiated from his physical description in the general prologue. He is described as having hair as yelow as wex and hood we wered noon – a description immediately illustrating him as a rule breaker, as for most clergymen it was assumed they would cover their hair. In addition to this, he is described as having such glaryng eyen. In the medieval times, this amounted to the suggestion of evil; therefore, Chaucer has constructed the pardoner in such a way to ambiguously imply he may be somewhat evil. Critics, such as Spearing, have noted that the pardoner’s repellent outer appearance reflects his inner corruption. The description of his fake relics, such as the sayle that saint peter hadde and oure lady veyl are used to demonstrate his evil intentions; taking advantage of the peasants’ good faith by tricking them into buying fake relics, that are nothing more than pigges bones. From the onset, Chaucer has incorporated the theme of evil within the pardoner and has maintained this throughout the prologue and tale. The prologue outlines the pardoner’s admittance to his evil nature, and suggests he may even be proud of this. He boldly states that his sermons are constructed around the well-known Latin biblical phrase, radix malorum est cupiditas – loosely translated as ‘greed is the root of all evil’. The missing word omnium from this is used to demonstrate his lack of biblical knowledge, which is emphasised by the repititon of this phrase throughout. In medieval times, it was common and often expected, for members of the church to know and practice in Latin. The pardoner admits to using pieces of Latin to saffron my predicacioun. This cooking imagery may suggest that he only uses Latin to reinforce his false position, and therefore highlighting his evil nature, and may relate to the sin of gluttony as he is referencing food, again reinforcing the evilness of his character. The pardoner states in the prologue, in the form of a confession, that he preche of no thyng but for coveityse. The repetition of this ironic language along with the shocking imagery that is portrayed through his rhetorical question will I live in poverte willfully? and his admittance to taking money from the povereste widye in the village paints an evil picture of the pardoner who is merely driven by greed. Some critics, such as Georgianna believe in the historical school of thought, and note that the pardoner is merely a vehicle for the substantial embodiment of the church’s abusement. It has been suggested and argued amongst several other critics that Chaucer had no other motive when constructing the pardoner’s character other than to criticize and highlight the wrongdoings of the medieval church. Many fake pardoner’s lived amongst the medieval audience, and carried out the same evil methods as the pardoner, all for the same motive; greed. As a result of this, anticlericalism grew popular amongst the peasant’s very quickly. Therefore, it can be suggested that the pardoner’s character was constructed in such a way to shine light on his evil nature and to draw parallels with the medieval church. The pardoner’s tale is a sermon against four particular sins; gluttony, blasphemy, gambling and drinking. He talks at length of each of these particular sins, giving biblical examples that he has twisted to his benefit, such as Adam and also his wyfe who were dryven for that vice. The pardoner is suggesting that gluttony was the downfall of Adam and Eve, when in fact it was temptation. To sermonize against drinking is massively ironic as the pardoner has admitted to needing a draughte before being able to think of a moral tale to tell the pilgrims – irony in itself seeing as he should not have to think about a tale of morality. The fact that the pardoner is guilty of committing the very sins he preaches about only adds to his evil nature. Many critics, such as Ruth Nevo, suggest that the pardoner is a character in his own tale that he tells. The novelle that the Pardoner tells the pilgrims consist of three rioters. He begins by stating the setting of the three men; in the develes temple – metaphorical for a tavern. The three rioters are established as sinners from the very beginning, already being guilty of committing two of the seven deadly sins; drinking and blaspheming. The repeated suggestion of a brotherhood and addressing each other as brethren has underlying irony as each rioter is ultimately killed by each other’s greed. It has been suggested that as the rioters are not named, and therefore are nt personally addressed, that they have been constructed to suggest the embodiment of sin. Their deaths are quick and do not have much effect; instead, the focus is on the sins that they do commit. This stresses that their evil natures are what caused their own deaths. However, it can be argued that although the pardoner presents evil in the pardoner’s prologue and tale, the fact that he acknowledges this suggests he is fully aware of his evil nature. Koff suggests that the pardoner is not so much evil as he is bold. This can be argued to an extent, as he does admit to being a ful vicious man, yet states that a morale tale yet I yew telle kan. This can be portrayed as being ironic, as he is fully aware of his evil nature, yet still believes that he can preach against the sins he so readily admits to committing. In addition to this, Chaucer does incorporate some good nature into the novelle in the form of the old man. It has long been questioned as to whether he is the personification of death himself, and therefore cannot die, or whether he is merely an instrument used to emphasise the evil nature of the three rioters. His addressing of the three rioters as sires in comparison to the rude greetings of the rioters compares and relates age and innocence; the old man may have been faithful during his lifetime and therefore God will not take his life. In contrast, the young sinful rioters quickly come to their death through their own lack of faith. To conclude, I believe that a ‘sinister exploration of evil’ is truly presented in the pardoner’s prologue and tale. Chaucer uses characterization of the pardoner and three rioters to present how corrupt medieval society was, as well as how readily sins were committed. The pardoner’s simile of as dooth a dowve sittynge on a berne to describe how he sees himself is used as an antithesis of his own character; as a dove carries religious connotations of peace and purity; the opposite to what the pardoner is. Despite infiltrating some holy and pure characters, such as the Old man, he only further emphasises the lack of good in the other characters. Overall, Chaucer constructs the prologue and tale in such a way to present several layers of evil in the Canterbury tales.

Understanding Deviance and the Criminal Justice System

Deviance has been one of the most apparent behaviors or actions of people who commit and engage themselves in violent crimes. By thoroughly understanding its delineated characterization in John J. Macionis’ Sociology, this behavior in most cases violates the established cultural norms which include lawfully enacted rules and even informal defiance of social customs (Chapter 9). The criminal justice system continuously reforms its standards and practices to efficiently maintain social control and crime to carry out proper sanctioning of people who infringe the law.The foremost goal of each society’s correctional theory is to furnish preclusion to the deviant behaviors of some citizens. The success of the current criminal justice system has been in great argument due to the fact that several people who had spent some time in state prison or jail did not change their whole being to the betterment of themselves and the society. The correctional system faces diverse issues a nd challenges in organizing and operating jails in coping up to the above concerns.The facilities and design of the prison are very significant to exhibit a detention cell that can accommodate the necessities of the prisoners but also administer incarceration and imprisonment to the highest level. Though, modern prison cells and jails are now proficient to progressively prohibit the movements of the prisoners in the facility while providing utmost level of direct custody, the overcapacity of prisoners give way to the utilization of other large buildings like gymnasiums to house huge number of offenders which almost establish likely as dormitories rather than prisons.This might be seen as a straight opposition to the punishment that the law offenders should received, and so make them realize that jail is not as strict and as firm as it should be and going back to such state is not hard to accept when they commit another crime. Due to the possibility of former convicted people to do a nother offense once freed, the rehabilitation program has been sought as one of the major reforms to adhere at this moment. Efforts could greatly be provided to the reformation of not only the penal system but the individuals themselves.Successful and effectual imprisonment curriculum decreases the likelihood of another wrongdoing or recidivism in the future (Andrews and Bonta, 2003). This would also bestow a goal which will fix the deficiencies in the offender and bring them back to the society as a more productive citizen. Moreover, the rehabilitation program will provide the prisoners with work skills; education, proper decorum lessons and self discipline which will equip them with the most appropriate social skills when they step out of detention.Hirchi’s Control Theory discusses four main social controls that can be attached to the rehabilitation program. He conferred: Strong social attachments promote conformity. The more the offenders get access to the justifiable and legitimate opportunity, the greater the possibility of conformity. Deviance can be inhibited through extensive participation in legitimate activities. Deviance can be controlled through sturdy belief in conventional respect and morality for the authority (qtd. in Macionis, Chapter 9).Rehabilitation theories, however, received many arguments that need to be addressed when pursued and mainly incorporated to the penal system. One main issue is the non-availability of scientific research in determining the reaction levels of individuals who will undergo the rehabilitation. This is important in determining the success rate of the rehabilitation scheme. Another concern being raised is the method or philosophy to be utilized for the offender. Resources and funds for the program appear to be too costly and complicated to successfully implement.The complexities of the processes to be used are also being questioned. This is because a modification in the values or behavior of the offenders can traumatically change the behavioral structure of the individual. Though there are still many quandaries being raised, the rehabilitation reform can be practiced in the penal system with appropriate resources. Studies should also be developed in answering the queries being raised by people who believe that extending sentences and making the detention cells and prisons a less desirable place than it is today.The deterrence of crime through a more rigid and strict penal system is a broader path to take by the authorities rather than the rehabilitation program. This is because while offenders may have committed heinous or violent crimes, they are still human beings with rights to take in consideration at all times. Despite the fact that, prisoners are deprived of freedom, they are still fully entitled to their human rights.Furthermore, the criminal justice system’s main objective is defined by the President’s Commission as a stand for the society to â€Å"†enforce the standards of conduct necessary to protect individuals and the community. † Prison reform is far from being over. While crime is prevalent, a more effective penal system should also be utilized. The legal and penal system of a society provides a gauge into the government’s law and order to include morality, it is always best to seek reform for the betterment of the offenders rather than harder punishments that callous not only their individuality but also their souls.