Oedipus The King Free Will Vs Fate Essays - Greek Mythology

Oedipus the King: Free Will vs Fate Oedipus the King: Free Will vs Fate The events in Oedipus the King, written by Sophocles, show an underlying relationship of man's free will existing within the cosmic order or fate which the Greeks believed guided the universe in a harmonious purpose. Man was free to choose and was ultimately held responsible for his own actions. Both the concept of fate and free will played an itregal part in Oedipus' destruction. Although he was a victim of fate, he was not controlled by it. Oedipus was destined from birth to someday marry his mother and to murder his father. This prophecy, as warned by the oracle of Apollo at Delphi was unconditional and inevitably would come to pass, no matter what he may have done to avoid it. His past actions were determined by fate, but what he did in Thebes, he did so of his own will. From the beginning of this tragedy, Oedipus took many actions leading to his own downfall. Oedipus could have waited for the plague to end, but out of compassion for his suffering people, he had Creon go to Delphi. When he learned of Apollo's word, he could have calmly investigated the murder of the former King Laius, but in his hastiness, he passionately curses the murderer, and in so, unknowingly curses himself. "Upon the murderer I invoke this curse- whether he is one man and all unknown, or one of many- may he wear out his life in misery or doom! If with my knowledge he lives at my hearth, I pray that I myself may feel my curse." (pg. 438; lines 266-271) In order for Sophecles' Greek audience to relate to the tragic figure, he had to have some type of flaws or an error of ways. This brought the character down to a human level, invoking in them the fear that "it could happen to them." And Oedipus certainly is not one without flaws. His pride, ingnorance, insolence and disbelief in the gods, and unrelenting quest for the truth ultimately contributed to his destuction. When Oedipus was told (after threatening Teiresias), that he was responsible for the murder of Laius, he became enraged and calls the old oracle a liar. He ran away from his home, Corinth, in hopes of outsmarting the gods divine will. Like his father, Oedipus also sought ways to escape the horrible destiny told by the oracle of Apollo. The chorus warns us of man's need to have reverence for the gods, and the dangers of too much pride. "If a man walks with haughtiness of hand or word and gives no heed to Justice and the shrines of Gods despises- may an evil doom smite him for his ill-starred pride of heart!- if he reaps gains without justice and will not hold from impiety and his fingers itch for untouchable things. When such things are done, what man shall contrive to shield his soul from the shafts of the God?" (pg. 452; 975-984) Oedipus' unyielding desire to uncover the truth about Laius' murder and the mystery surrounding his own birth, led him to the tragic realization of his horrific deeds. Teiresias, Jocasta and the herdsman tried to stop him from pursuing the truth. Take for example a part of the last conversation between Jocasta and Oedipus. After realizing that the prophecy had came true, Jacasta begs him to just let the mystery go unsolved for once. "I beg you- do not hunt this out- I beg you, if you have any care for your own life. What I am suffering is enough." (pg. 461; 1158-1161) Oedipus replies, "I will not be persuaded to let chance of finding out the whole thing clearly." (pg. 461; 1166-1167) He is unable to stop his quest for the truth, even under his wife's pleading. For it is in his own vain that he must solve the final riddle, the riddle of his own life. Upon discovery of the truth of his birth from the herdsman, Oedipus cries, "I who first saw the light bred of a match accursed, and accursed in my living with them, cursed in my killing." (pg. 465; 1300-1303) Oedipus knew that his fate had indeed come to pass and feels cursed by it. The chorus then sings an ode on the sorrow of life and the tragic fate to which even the most honored, like Oedipus are ultimately subject. "What man, what man on earth wins more happiness than a seeming and after that turning away? Oedipus you are my pattern of

Johnson, Joseph Eggleston essays

Johnson, Joseph Eggleston essays Graduating drom the US Military Academy in 1829, Johnston was assigned to the 4th artillery. He resigned from the army after eight years, but in 1838 he was commissioned a first lieutenant in the Topographical Engineers, seeing service in the Seminole and Mexican Wars. On April 22, 1861 he resigned from the US Army and on May recieved a Confederate brigadier general's commission. He first commanded at Harpes Ferry, then brought his troops east to join battle at First Bull Run. On August 31, he was promoted to full general. He objected, however, to the fact that he was the fourth on the general's list when he had been first on the US Army brigadier general's list; he and Jefferson Davis had a falling out on this that lasted untill the war's end. Next he was in charge of stemming McClellan's thrust on Richmond untill badly wounded at Seven Pines. Recovered by November, he was named commander of the Depatment of the west, a nebulous title with uncertain powers. After Bragg was remove d, he was given the command of the Army of Tennessee which he led in retreat in a dance of manoeuvre with Sherman to the gates of Atlanta. There Hood replaced him and he was out of action untill Lee gave him command again in time for the last battleand then its surrender on April 26 1865. During the war Johnston was among the most popular of all Confederate generals. One artillery colonel wrote, 'As a soldier he will always rank high, though he never achieved great results, attributable to some extent to his relations with President Davis... The head of the Bureau of War noted in his diary on July 26 1863: 'While I do not trust him because he is timid and because he hated Davis and Lee, I do not think he has done anything worthy of a second-rate officer during the war. Finally, one of his privates later recalled that, he was loved, respected, admired; yes almost worshipped by his troops.Johnston was a fine organiser, but his main flaw as a general was in pa...

Sibling rivalry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Sibling rivalry - Essay Example Such actions bring out feelings of mercy and pity on the part of Cinderella and hatred on the part of her stepsisters. Such opposite feelings can only come out effectively through a relationship that shows sibling rivalry between the children. Sibling rivalry usually takes the form of competition in terms of affections, character, and other issues that affect the daily lives of the children. In many occasions, sibling rivalry occurs in ways that make one side of the rivalry to portray good characters while the other side of the character displays negative characters. The side that portrays the negative characters is usually powerful and makes every effort to intimidate, frustrate, and punish the other part that shows good characters. However, the side the portrays good character eventually wins favor and succeeds in life while the other parties are punished by nature and they begin to live desperate lives. Cinderella’s story contains some aspects of sibling rivalry, which make s her stepsisters to regret their own actions as Cinderella succeeds in life. Cinderella must have stepsisters in the story in order to make her situation more traumatizing. The fact of somebody suffering in the hands of her sisters evokes feelings of hopelessness because it means that that the suffering will continue for quite a long time. Oppression that appears at home is usually more severe and disturbing than the kind of oppression that occurs due to strangers. Naturally, sisters are supposed to show kindness to fellow sisters or stepsisters. Therefore, Cinderella’s situation becomes very difficult since she has nowhere to turn after experiencing severe oppression at home. Using stepsisters as the agents of oppression creates a desperate feeling in the sense that the stepsisters had the support of their mother whereas Cinderella did not have a mother. In this manner, it becomes important to consider the fact that some of the issues that relate to the subject of sibling r ivalry must eventually relate to the matter of oppression. The role of the stepsisters in the story is to create the hostile atmosphere that makes the life of the main character unbearable. All the suffering that Cinderella experiences are connected to the actions of the stepsisters. Their lives are very different in the sense that the stepsisters live a happy and joyful life while Cinderella lives in pain, torture, and misery. Therefore, the stepsisters are used in this story to show the difference in the lives of the main characters and the origin of Cinderella’s difficult conditions. The result of this relationship is the manifestation of a range of difficulties that manifest themselves through matters of conscience and the difficulties in the relationship between the oppressors and the oppressed girl. Stepsisters are usually used in order to bring out the kind of malice and rivalry between the competing characters. Under usual circumstances, stepsisters may want to compet e with one another in a variety of ways. It is natural for stepfamilies to show such kind of rivalry and malicious intentions towards each other. However, such malice and conflict can acquire extreme dimensions when they are not carefully monitored and controlled. In the case of Cinderella, the level of malice and hatred exceeds normal

Managing Diversity Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Managing Diversity - Research Paper Example Over the years, diversity management has emerged as an essential tool of the management to match the modern business environment where everything is changing. Change is essential to allow matching of present organizational resources to meet unlimited and changing needs through diversification of the various business strategies. Diversity calls for the reorganization of the organizational structures and other components that have an impact on the performance of an organization. Corporate executives seeking to regain a competitive edge need to do more than improve efficiency and tighten control by executing a fundamental change to transform systems firmly along with established inhibitive cultures. The internal, external and organizational components influence the organizational diversity and performance outcome within an organization. Critical Analysis The managers should lead the way for the establishment of improved business practices through interaction with peers in other countrie s. Such managers should establish elaborate audit mechanisms and accounting to enhance professionalism, as well as transparency. Managing an organization that has a workforce from diverse cultures is not easy. ... The idea of behind teamwork and motivation in the company is to increase employee and customer satisfaction while lowering costs. They execute the principle of teamwork by encouraging management team and employees to pool resources across all departments, and with end users and suppliers, to identify areas that need improvement. The control process should take into consideration factors such as code of ethics, standards, and statements of good corporate governance in their business operations and regulations (Bell, 2012). At present, the management team in an organization should be aware that both internal and external environments of the organizations are subject to change at any point of time, and hence the need for strategic management. It is important to have flexible legal provisions have removed hurdles in the regulation of businesses as well as the improvement of business standards. The legal and political frameworks have tried to help in managing business risks through harmon ization of existing regulations. It is important for international business operators have a broad understanding of culture, management styles, and cultural orientations in the country of operation. A manager working in a firm that has employees from diverse cultures should develop prerequisite attributes that will help in meeting business objectives. These qualities include; quality control, interpersonal skills, communication skills, organizational skills among others (Von Bergen, Soper, & Parnell, 2005). Quality control involves measuring the variations of actual performance from the regular performance, identifies the causes of such deviations, and recommends appropriate measures (Lauring &

Theories of Motivation in Organization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Theories of Motivation in Organization - Essay Example Greater the satisfaction level less will be turnover rate and thus, greater employee retention. One of the most important factors, that govern the employee retention within the organizations, is motivation level of the employees. There are many other factors such as pay, compensation packages and good environment but motivation is the one that serves the purpose. Employees work with innovation and uniqueness only when they are motivated to do so. Successful completion of the tasks depends not only upon the intrinsic rewards but extrinsic as well, such as appreciation by the supervisor that ultimately leads to employee satisfaction and makes them motivated. There is an old saying ‘you can take a horse to the water but you cannot force it to drink’; it will drink only if its thirsty - so is the case with people. Organizations operating in strong economies like UK and USA have considered employee motivation as their foremost and important task to carry out. Their focus is to motivate the employees to such an extent that they work in the best interest of the organization and towards the successful completion of tasks. Human resource department is trying their level best to introduce such policies and strategies that are coherent with the needs and demands of the employees in order to keep them motivated. This paper will shed light on motivation theories with their practical implications in the organization and on the literature dealing with motivation in organizations. One of the most important theories related to motivation is Goal Setting theory proposed by Edwin Locke in 1960. Findings made by Edwin said that intention to work towards a common goal is a major source of work motivation (Robbins, S. and Timothy, J., 2001), however, in order to understand the motivation in the work place there are several dimensions of goal setting theory that explains the motivation. Supervisors in contemporary times motivate

Reaction to the Movie, Camille Claudell :: Film

Reaction to the Movie, Camille Claudell This is one of the saddest movies I have ever seen. She wasted her life, for a man. Camille was a great sculptor. In her family, she always had the support of her father. She helped her brother with his poems because he liked to write, but that was not very well seen. As well Camille passion for sculpture was not well seen at all, her own mother despite her for what she did. However, she was very strong and always kept going. Everything in her life was going mostly ok until she met Robin, a very prestigious and recognized sculptor. He recognized her talent, so he took her as a pupil. They felt in love and had a passionate affair, but he was married. She became pregnant and since Robin had no intention to marry her, she had an abortion. After this she left Robin for good. She started working on her own works, but she became obsessed with Robin. It seems to her that everything that happened to her was a complot he had against her because he was afraid of her talent. I think that was not true. She produced a huge amount of work, and she got the chance to expose. By this time, her brother had become, thanks to her help, a world famous poet. In the opening of her exposition, she appeared dress very eccentrically. She scandalized everyone in the exhibition, and made her brother ashamed and ran off the room. She got good reviews, but her brother walking out on her, and not selling any of her pieces really disappointed her. So, when she got home, she destroyed, and then buried all of her pieces. Years after that, her father died and her mother and brother decided she was insane, so they secluded her in a Metal Institution where she stayed until her death. Camille Claudell, I think, was one of the best sculptors in the world. She was a genius, and this was mention a couple of times in the movie. It is too bad that she felt desperately in love with Robin, and she wasted all her life and talent loving him. She became delusional; she though everything was a complot against her prepared by Robin.

Eliezer’s Relationship with God in Night

Hanging On: The Description of Eliezer's Relationship with God in Night World War II breaks out in Europe during the conclusion of the 1930s. Adolph Hitler plunges Germany into darkness while quickly moving to take over bordering countries with his army of Nazis. Eliezer, a boy no more than 15 years old, lives in Hungary, which is dangerously close to Germany. Along with many other Jews, Eliezer is deported from his home and into a world of unimaginable terror. Night is a memoir of those experiences and, more importantly, a stark reminder that these events should never be allowed to repeat themselves.The Holocaust presents one of the most disturbing theological dilemmas of the twentieth century. As a survivor of the Holocaust, Elie Wiesel has to reevaluate God in his world. He does so through his writings, in which he questions God and tells us of the answers, or lack of answers, that he receives. In Night, author Elie Wiesel writes about his devotion as a child, religious observance s, and anger towards God to reveal how he is still a believer in the Jewish faith despite all that happen to him. Auschwitz, Buchenwald, and Treblinka are just a few of the names which evoke nightmares of the Holocaust.The suffering and death at these and other concentration camps were greater than any before endured. Before the Holocaust he had been one of the most devout Jewish children. The Holocaust created a void in the souls of many of those who survived. Elie Wiesel was one of those people. Before the Holocaust he had been one of the most devout Jewish children. Up until the end he waited for God to intervene in Biblical fashion. When that intervention was not forthcoming, he began to doubt in God and in His mercy. He began to accuse God of cruelty against his people.After the torture was over, he had to reevaluate the role of God in his life. He could be forgiving of God and allow Him another chance, as many he had seen had done. Or he could take on the role of God to himsel f and try to define his own destiny. To deal with this, Wiesel has to question God and himself. He does so through his writing. Elie Wiesel tells his heart-wrenching story of his imprisonment in Nazi Germany. He overcame the odds with his strength and will to live. Elie was told by his father to never lose his faith of his religion it would help him through everything, and keep him strong.One should never lose faith or whatever guiding force that may keep them going. This faith was the only force that helped Elie to survive, and without this faith Elie would have surely succumbed to dying. The question now is how far does Elie’s belief in God and in his own faith helps him to go on. He receives many answers, though none are satisfactory. Wiesel thought of God before and during the Holocaust as both the protector and punisher of the Jewish people. Whatever had happened before, he had faith that it was for their good, or one of God's greater plans.Either way, he would accept Go d's will without questioning. When rumors of the Nazis' crimes first reached some of the outlying Jewish towns, like Wiesel's Sighet, no one believed them. The town felt that God was with them and would protect them from anything as horrible as what these rumors suggested. They felt safe and secure in their faith. â€Å"And we, the Jews of Sighet, were waiting for better days, which would not be long in coming now†(17). Others who did not feel guilty believed that God at least had a good reason for punishing the Jews. They thought it must be a test. God is testing us. He wants to find out whether we can dominate our base instincts and kill the Satan within us. We have no right to despair. And if he punishes us relentlessly, it's a sign that he loves us all the more†(53). Faith delayed the revolution that might have erupted in the camps. The younger people felt it would be better to die fighting than to go like lambs to the slaughter. They had knives and a strong will. B ut their elders reminded them, â€Å"You must never lose faith, even when the sword hangs over your head. That's the teaching of our sages†¦ †(40).As long as the elders were willing to accept God's will, the younger people were willing to respect their faith. They still had faith that God had a greater purpose in mind, and though they opposed the idea of suffering, they would suffer with pride that they are part of God's plan. And so Wiesel and his town were indoctrinated without incident into the camps, believing that if their faith endured, they would be saved. Soon the delusions faded and Wiesel began to doubt God. It was not easy for Wiesel to doubt in God, or he would not have held on to his faith with such tenacity.But sooner or later, the seeming meaninglessness of the suffering his people endured had to burst into the consciousness of his seemingly indomitable Jewish faith. In the face of the crematory pit, Elie Wiesel noted, â€Å"For the first time I felt revo lt rise up in me. Why should I bless His name? The Eternal, Lord of the Universe, the All-Powerful and Terrible, was silent. What had I to thank Him for? †(42). He awoke to the idea that he was â€Å"alone-terribly alone in a world without God†¦ †(75). Lack of faith turned quickly to despair. If God wouldn't save His children, who would? No one believed the rumors of peace and safety.In the hospital at Auschwitz, Wiesel met a man consumed with this kind of despair. He said, â€Å"I've got more faith in Hitler than in anyone else. He's the only one who's kept his promises, all his promises, to the Jewish people. †(87). All around Wiesel, the number of faithful were dropping. As hard as they tried to hold on, Wiesel's people were finding it hard to believe in God and what He was allowing to happen. Others, like Wiesel, were given the burden of carrying the questions with them, never to be answered. At the hanging of the angel-faced pipel, Wiesel had an answer, when someone asked, † ‘Where is God now? And I heard a voice within me answer him: ‘Where is He? Here He is-He is hanging here on this gallows†¦ ‘ †(72). God died for the child Wiesel then. The destruction of his faith in the God of his childhood was complete. No longer did his name bring cries of praise from Wiesel. God seemed unworthy in the face of His worshipers to accept their worship. Wiesel cannot deny God His due. If anything he can question it and feel angry about it. He can even try to change it, by reevaluating God's role in the world. That is what many of those he encountered did once they got over the initial anger.Any answer cannot come from man, but from God himself. This is what Moshe the Beadle had tried to tell Wiesel when he was a young boy in Sighet, before the terrors of the Holocaust destroyed his life. Moshe said, â€Å"Man raises himself toward God by the questions he asks Him†¦ That is the true dialogue. Man question s God and God answers. But we don't understand His answers. We can't understand them. Because they come from the depths of the soul, and they stay there until death. You will find the true answers, Eliezer, only within yourself! †(15). There can be no end to the questioning, even if there are no answers.In reading the works of Elie Wiesel, I had to ask God some of the same questions that he did. The storm of emotion followed the paths of anger and despair, and finally ended with the acceptance that Elie Wiesel finds. God is not easy to figure out, and he never will be. With all our knowledge, we cannot guess at his reasons for doing anything. I will never stop wondering what happened, and, more importantly, why, but I will sleep quietly, as long as when I wake I watch to see that there is not another Holocaust, and I pray to God that whatever the reasons for the first one, there never will be a second.The Holocaust presented a call to people everywhere to reevaluate the role o f God in their lives. The pain and suffering that we know took place is in dark contrast to what we would have thought possible in the presence of our God, and anyone who comes in contact with these horrors will be forever shaken in his present faith. Some have reacted with anger toward God, others with denial. Still others reacted with mistrust of all that God had meant before. But by asking questions, some have grown to learn that God never did things the way people expect Him to, and that fact becomes the cornerstone of the new start to their theology.God does not answer questions unless they suit His purposes. This is what we have learned from Auschwitz and from the writings of Elie Wiesel. We must continue to ask questions, continue to challenge God, until, one day, He Himself will give us the answers. And until then we should never feel so secure in faith as to think that Auschwitz could never happen again. We must make certain, through our actions, that it will never happen a gain and to never lose the faith that has been devoted to God.