Realism And Theatre Essays - Drama, Films, 19th-century Theatre

Realism And Theatre Realism is the movement toward representing reality as it is, in art. Realistic drama is an attempt to portray life on stage, a movement away from the conventional melodramas and sentimental comedies of the 1700s. It is expressed in theatre through the use of symbolism, character development, stage setting and storyline and is exemplified in plays such as Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House and Anton Chekhov's The Three Sisters. The arrival of realism was indeed good for theatre as it promoted greater audience involvement and raised awareness of contemporary social and moral issues. It also provided and continues to provide a medium through which playwrights can express their views about societal values, attitudes and morals. A Doll's House is the tragedy of a Norwegian housewife who is compelled to challenge law, society and her husband's value system. It can be clearly recognized as a realistic problem drama, for it is a case where the individual is in opposition to a hostile society. Ibsen's sympathy with the feminine cause has been praised and criticized; as he requires the audience to judge the words and actions of the characters in order to reassess the values of society. The characters in A Doll's House are quite complex and contradictory, no longer stereotypes. In Act II, Nora expresses her repulsion about a fancy dress worn to please Torvald (her husband): "I wish I'd torn it to pieces"; she attempts to restore it and resign herself to her situation right after: "I'll ask Mrs Linde to help". In Act III, Torvald ignores his wife's plea for forgiveness in order to make a moral judgement: "You've killed my happiness.You've destroyed my future". "I can never trust you again." Later on in the same act, he contradicts himself: "I'll change. I can change-"; much after Nora confronts him: "Sit here, Torvald. We have to come to terms". "...There's a lot to say". Here, Ibsen shows us he has worked in depth with the psychology of the characters, giving them a sense of complexity and realism. Playgoers therefore recognize the revelation of characters through memory. Thus drama became an experience closely impinging on the conscience of the audience. Ibsen was also unique for his use of symbolism to assist realism on stage. Symbolic significance is presented through the detail of design, props and actions of the characters. For example, in Act III, Nora goes offstage to get changed; "I'm changing. No more fancy dress". It is a symbolic representation of her personal change, one where she has come to the realization that she has been living the life of a doll, confined to the roles of a "featherbrain", "plaything", "dove", "skylark" and "songbird". Thus, symbolism enhanced realism, and its effect can be seen as positive in the sense that it stirred conscious awareness of values. The stage settings of A Doll's House are an integral part of the theatrical design, and not mere d?cor to be overlooked. The setting in Act II; "...the Christmas tree stands stripped of its decorations and with its candles burnt to stumps" is symbolic of the lack of happiness in Nora's life at that moment. Also the change of setting in Act III; "The tables and chairs have been moved centre" foreshadows a character change that will take place in Nora. The many references to doors also have significance beyond the stage directions. The play begins with the opening of the door and finishes with the "slamming" of the door. Nora enters the doll's house with the values of society and departs from it, symbolizing her rejection of them. All these intricacies of play settings and characters depict realism on stage. Ultimately, it has been good for theatre because it presents the playwright's ideas in interesting and original ways. Realism, as expressed through symbolism, also draws the attention of the audience, thus stimulating moral thought, and stirring reaction. Realism is also defined as art-imitating life (source). This is a fitting account of Anton Chekhov's plays, for they tend to show the stagnant, helpless quality of Russian society in the late C19th. Quite evident in The Three Sisters, when Tuzenbakh illustrates realism; "The suffering we see around us these days - and there's plenty of it - is at least a sign that society has reached a certain moral level." Hence, while the portrayal of life here seemed 'gloomy and pessimestic', it was still good for theatre in that it presented issues which audiences could identify with. It was also more intellectual theatre when the playwright could express their views, compared with the conventional

Anatomy and Physiology essays

Anatomy and Physiology essays One of the functions of respiration is powering of the speech production mechanism. It provides energy source for oral communication. When the volume of the chest cavity increases/expands, air is inhaled into the lungs by the way of either the mouth or nose and trachea. An increase in the volume of the chest may be affected through a downward, contracting movement of the diaphragm; through an upward, outward movement of the lower ribs; or through a combination of both. The volume of the chest cavity increases as the air pressure decreases or the volume of the chest cavity decreases as the air pressure increases (Boyles Law). In breathing for ordinary life processes, the periods of inhalation and exhalation are approximately equal. Breathing for speech, however, usually requires a longer period of exhalation than that of inhalation. Manner of production refers to the way the speech mechanism modifies the voiced or voiceless air stream. For voiced sounds, the vocal cords are he ld together by the action of the arytenoid cartilages, but they are held together less tightly than for a glottal stop. When air is forced up the trachea from the lungs, at a certain pressure it is able to force its way through the vocal folds, pushing them open. As air passes through the glottis, the air pressure in the glottis falls, because when a gas or liquid runs through a constricted passage, its velocity increases. This increase in velocity results in a drop in pressure of that gas or liquid (The Bernoulli Principle). Because of the drop in pressure, the vocal folds snap together, at the lower edge first, closing again. We perceive variations in the overall rate of vibration as changes in the pitch of the voice. For unvoiced sounds the vocal folds are abducted. Air can flow between them without being obstructed, so that no noise is produced by the larynx. If there is a sufficiently high rate of airflow through the open glottis, a qui...

The Inventor of Mass-Producing Steel Henry Bessemer

The Inventor of Mass-Producing Steel Henry Bessemer Sir Henry Bessemer, an Englishman, invented the first process for mass-producing  steel  inexpensively in the 19th century. It was an essential contribution to the development of modern day skyscrapers. The First System for Manufacturing Steel An American, William Kelly, initially held a patent for a system of air blowing the carbon out of pig iron, a method of steel production known as the pneumatic process. Air was blown through molten pig iron to oxidize and remove unwanted impurities. This was Bessemer’s starting point. When Kelly went bankrupt, Bessemer – who had been working on a similar process for making steel – bought his patent. Bessemer patented a decarbonization process utilizing a blast of air in 1855. Modern Steel Modern steel is made using technology based on Bessemers process. On the making of the first steel ingot, Bessemer said: I well remember how anxiously I awaited the blowing of the first 7-cwt. charge of pig iron. I had engaged an ironfounders furnace attendant to manage the cupola and the melting of the charge. When his metal was nearly all melted, he came to me  and said hurriedly, Where be going to put the metal, maister? I said, I want you to run it by a gutter into that little furnace, pointing to the converter, from which you have just raked out all the fuel, and then I shall blow cold air through it to make it hot.The man looked at me in a way in which surprise and pity for my ignorance seemed curiously blended, and  he said, It will soon be all of a lump. Notwithstanding this prediction, the metal was run in, and I awaited with much impatience the result. The first element attacked by the atmospheric oxygen is the silicon, generally present in pig iron to the extent of 1 1/2 to 2 percent; it is the white metallic substance of which flint is the acid silicate. Its combustion furnishes a great deal of heat, but it is very undemonstrative, a few sparks and hot gases only indicating the fact that something is going quietly on.But after an interval of 10 or 12 minutes, when the carbon contained in grey pig iron to the extent of about 3 percent is seized on by the oxygen, a voluminous white flame is produced which rushes out of the openings provided for its escape from the upper chamber, and it brilliantly illuminates the whole space around. This chamber proved a perfect cure for the rush of slags and metal from the upper central opening of the first converter. I watched with some anxiety for the expected cessation of the flame as the carbon gradually burnt out. It took place almost suddenly, and thus indicated the entire decarburisation of the metal.The furnace was then tapped, when out rushed a limpid stream of incandescent malleable iron, almost too brilliant for the eye to rest upon. It was allowed to flow vertically into the parallel undivided ingot mould. Then came the question, would the ingot shrink enough, and the cold iron mould expand enough, to allow the ingot to be pushed out? An interval of eight or 10 minutes was allowed, and then, on the application of hydraulic force to the ram, the ingot rose entirely out of the mould and stood there ready for removal. Bessemer was knighted in 1879 for his contributions to science. The Bessemer Process for mass-producing steel was named after him. Robert Mushet is credited with inventing tungsten steel in 1868, and Henry Brearly invented stainless steel in 1916.

Wester Civilization II paper #1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Wester Civilization II paper #1 - Essay Example The Prince by Machiavelli focuses on the dos and don’ts of a prince. According to him, a prince is not a public entity so his activities and life style should never be conventional like his subjects. According to Machiavelli, a prince always needs to build a kind of aura around him so that he can be easily identified someone superior and above the average human lot. The focus on the activity of a prince or the head of the state reshaped the treaty a lot and made the doctrine on one of the most valuable treaties of the political theory and diplomatic strategy. Machiavelli’s ‘The Prince’ focuses further on the military duty of a Prince. It also deals with the functional and the compositional aspect of the various troops with the special focus on the Mercenaries. The book is also focused on detecting and scrutinizing the reason behind appraisal or criticism of a man and especially that of a prince. The doctrine deals with the theory of cruelty or clemency and decides whether it is better to get love or to be feared. The other three important facets on which the treaty focuses are the way; the world of a Prince should be kept, the process by which he should acquire reputation and the impact of destiny of humans and the way to fight with it. All these theories and diplomatic treaties suggested in the book under any circumstance w ill help a prince to rule his kingdom with full sovereignty and have a stable government in his province. Machiavelli’s ‘The Prince’ is considered as the most important political work of the period. There is no second opinion regarding the effectiveness of the book but then the book also gained its pinnacle of popularity during the renaissance period because the book reflected largely about the political situation of the period and discussed issues to pacify the situation in Italy and particularly in Florence. Although there were numerous city – states by the beginning of the fifteenth

Discrimination Law Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Discrimination Law - Case Study Example Despite the fact that it is one of the most important types of the law in the UK, it nevertheless is widely regarded as one of the most cumbersome, inconsistent and complex legislation. This is due to the fact that that the person might be discriminated on many reasons and sometimes it might be difficult to distinguish between actual discrimination and legitimate actions that employer might take in the interest of the company. However, one should consider two main types of discrimination- sex and racial discrimination in order to evaluate the efficiency of the current anti discriminatory legislation in the United Kingdom; moreover, the British anti discrimination legislation should conform to the anti-discriminatory legislation of the EU. The case of Bilka-Kaufhaus GmbH v. Karin Weber Von Hartz is widely regarded as one of the most important cases in the anti-discriminatory legislation practice of the EU. One should recall the main features of this case. According to the documents provided in the case Bilka 1(which was a supermarket at the Western Germany) had occupational scheme for the workers employed by it. Despite the fact that scheme had been changed several times it was still regarded as an indispensable part of the contracts signed between workers and employers. Since 1973 the contract had stipulated that part-time workers could receive pensions only if they worked full time at least 15 years in the period of twenty years. Mrs Weber( who was working part-time) brought litigation against Bilka claiming that the above mentioned methods of paying pension was the violation of the article 119 of the EEC treaty (as this methods of the payments, in her opinion discriminated women against men, as women were more likely to be employed part time in order to look after their children). Bilka refuted these allegations and asserted that there were strong economic grounds for excluding part time workers from its pension's scheme, as the employment of full time workers lowered ancillary cost and provided more opportunities for the using of staff throughout all opening hours. According to the information provided by the company it paid 81.3 percent of its pensions to women, whereas women constituted only 72 percent of its work force, thus in view of Bilka's representatives there was no sex discrimination in the scheme mentioned. The case was still being considered at the Bundesarbeitsgericht and the court provided the following questions: whether there was indirect discrimination in the scope of the article 119 of the treaty and whether the company should modify the scheme so to accommodate workers who had to look after their families. In view of the representatives of the United Kingdom the scheme mentioned did not violate the article of 119 of the treaty as this article did not regulate the issue mentioned, moreover citing the case of Defrenne v Sabena, ECR they claimed that article 119 regulated pay discrimination between men and women and thus it could not be applied to other elements of employment. It also claimed that Council Directive on the implementation of the principles of equal pay between men and women that was submitted by the commission on 5 May, 1983 was the proof of the fact that the pension schemes were covered not by the article 119, but rather by Articles 117 and 118. Nevertheless, the Commission hold the view that the schemes mentioned fell within the scope of

Heart Disease Essay Example for Free

Heart Disease Essay Our body is composed of many organs and all of those organs are important. One of them is our heart. Heart played a great role in our body because it pumps the blood coming from our vessels throughout the parts of our body. Though there are still some people who are over using their hearts that can lead to some major heart problems. These problems are like heart attack, malfunction of our heart or even slowing of our heart rate. These kinds of heart problems can also be develop thru some diseases like diabetes and obesity. Obesity can occur because of lack in health or food diet and also lack of exercise everyday. Balance diet and lifestyle like exercising is a good habit to avoid obesity. Thought, thru this many things we are doing in this life it seems to be so complicated. From the day we wake up until to our work and back again at night. Yet, our heart can never be compare for what id did for us, working 24 hours a day, 7 times a week, 30 days a month and so on. For this reason, it was found out that unusual feelings or emotions may lead to some malfunction of our heart. Emotional stress is one of the problems due to some problems like in our family, work, or even in our personal relationship. If emotional stress often occurs to our self, it may produce various transient cardiovascular responses leading to some changes like heart rate then eventually develop to heart disease like heart attack. Then, changes in our heart rate will lead to risk for high blood and improper function of our heart. For this reason, we need to learn how to manage our stress to lesser the risk of heart failure. We need to realize that being frustrated or disappointed to little things like for example, giving other meaning on what we see or hear from other people may cause stress. For this instance, it is advice to always look on both parties and truly accept the opinions of others to lesser the tension that may lead to stress. Giving time for our self like walking around and having some exercise everyday may be a better help. Making negative things to positive way and being calm in every criticism we hear is a good help in relieving our emotions to stress. We need also to learn that we are the one who take control of our selves, that we have the choice if we let those negative things destroy us or make us better. Depression and hopelessness like being alone and losing faith and hope in things will not help to solve our problem instead may affect our heart and sometimes may lead to heart attack. Though there are times that it may also lead to develop some other diseases like diabetes and obesity that can increase risk in heart problem. Emotional trauma due to some death, accident and even because of different abuses can also trigger the risk of heart failure or even death. Since the person may also undergo in depression and hopelessness at this stage and for that reason they need accompaniment. If these cases occur, we need to ask some professional help or advices from a doctor because this kind of problems are too serious and need some attention from a professional person to avoid more complicated things to happen. For the reason that emotional problems is the leading reason of heart failure, doctors have advices that we need to be aware in everything we do, say or act even its physically, mentally or emotionally because it can affect our health in different way like heart failure. Doctors also recommended that the physiological factors that affect our health can never be cure or solve by other people instead by our selves only. People have different way in controlling ourselves and it only depends on us how to manage and handle it. We need to realize that sometimes, thinking too many especially unnecessary things may affect our emotions. We also need to always remember that if we allow those feeling to overcome us, it can just destroy us because it gives a lot of problems to us like health problems and in reality we can just let those bad thought to just pass away. We need to always remember that we are not on the world of imagination or thinking impossible things instead we are in a real world that even its complicated, its worthwhile living because its real. Painful and disabling headaches seem to be ignored to be just a simple one but in reality it needs much attention. It is because it can develop to some more complicated diseases that can more damage our brain system like migraine which can affect both sides of our brain that bring a lot of pain called headache. Too much and continues headache without paying attention by the person experiencing it   brought by migraine can damage our health that can lead to brain damage or even tumor in our brain that can cause to a death of one’s patient. Headache is also accompanied by vomiting, nausea and sensitivity to noise, smell and light. If one person is experiencing migraine, he/she can be experiencing â€Å"aura† that includes dizziness, double vision and changes in your vision while others can also experience migraine without aura call common migraine. One person can have a migraine through his/her heritage, it can also develop through the hard activities we had, through alcohol consumptions, through little or too much sleep, also through women who undergo menstruation and sometimes thru the psychological influences that our lifestyle brought to us. Though even researchers haven’t yet prove the psychological influences it brought in developing migraine, but still the factors that have been considered played a great role in curing or preventing migraine. Examples of these psychological influences are thinking of negatives things, frightening, angry, self demeaning and thinking a lot of unnecessary things. Thru these feelings, stress and depression may occur that can more trigger the migraine of one’s person because it affects our brain system. It affects our brain system because migraine is developed through out brain that leads to headache and if our brain is over work already plus more the things that we are thinking or experiencing, it can more trigger our migraine. These things are the psychological factors that influence a lot the development of migraine is one’s person. Treatments for this kind of disease is still undergoing research for scientist and doctors but some medicine like painkillers is been using for the patients because it can lower down the pain that the patient is experiencing. Though, through those psychological factors in developing migraine, treatment or even prevention can be applied. Doctors have found out that having a good lifestyle can be a good solution in curing or even preventing migraine. Example, having a good and right diet in the foods that we are eating can be a good key to have good nutrient for our body to fight for those bacteria’s and viruses that are causing migraine. Having a lifestyle also that is full of love and patient can be a good process in preventing anger and negative feeling to be in our thoughts that can lead to stress and even depressions. In conclusion, though psychological factors are not yet proven in preventing or curing migraine, it still played a great role in some major health problems we are experiencing like heart problem. Psychological factors also is a very safe way in having a good health because it doesn’t involve any taking of medicine because we all know that even good medicines have side effects. Psychological factors also a good key in preventing those diseases because those psychological aspects that may lead to some disease can be prevented by our own selves only. It is just through our self control to the things we are doing, saying, acting or even thinking. It is just a matter of self discipline in all things that we are doing. We need to remember that if we like to have good health, we need to take care of our self too. Health is never been precious than any things in this world. So, let’s take care of our self to prevent those diseases in destroying us. REFERENCES http://www.advocatehealth.com/system/info/library/articles/heartcare/howorks.html http://health.yahoo.com/headache-overview/migraine-headaches-topic-overview/healthwise==hw116876.html.

Victorian Social Reform in Britain :: European Europe History

Victorian Social Reform in Britain When considering the changes brought about in the social policy of Great Britain, in the decades immediately either side of 1900, one must look at the nation `s industrial history. The position as the world` s premier industrial nation had been cemented by the mid nineteenth century, achieved in part, as it was the first nation to industrialise. However, the headlong embrace of laissez- faire capitalism ignored the social infrastructure, and the emigration from the depressed agricultural areas to the industrial areas caused immense strain on the poorly-planned towns and cities. At the dawn of industrialisation, there were those who expressed concern about the health and hygiene of the dense industrial areas, notably Freidrich Engels, whose study of Manchester and London in 1844 collated in "Conditions of The Working Class in England" painted a truly dismal picture of urban squalor and hopelessness. " Such is the Old Town of Manchester, and on re-reading my description, I am forced to admit that instead of being exaggerated, it is far from black enough to convey a true impression of the filth, ruin, and uninhabitableness, the defiance of all considerations of cleanliness, ventilation, and health which characterise the construction of this single district, containing at least twenty to thirty thousand inhabitants. And such a district exists in the heart of the second city of England, the first manufacturing city of the world. If any one wishes to see in how little space a human being can move, how little air - and such air! - he can breathe, how little of civilisation he may share and yet live, it is only necessary to travel hither." (Engels.F. 1844 p.84 ) The publication, in 1842, of the" Report on the Sanitary Condition of the Labouring Population of Great Britain" elicited, and perhaps foresaw, the protests of disbelief. Edwin Chadwick was responsible for the report and also invoked the image of the "unknown country" as Henry Mayhew later did to bring to public attention the abysmal conditions with which the labouring poor had to contend. His principal concern appeared to be with "the miasma" emanating from decaying matter "the poisonous exhalations" which were the source of their physical, moral and mental deterioration. At the height of the cholera epidemic, the flushing of the sewers in order to dissipate the miasma, actually aggravated the problem by further contamination of the water supply, in the face of the advice which stated that the disease was spread by germs and infection.