Feminism in Sylvia Plaths The Bell Jar :: Feminism Feminist Women Criticism

Feminism in The Bell Jar In Sylvia Plath's autobiographical novel The Bell Jar, the reader learns of the adventures of a young woman in a male-dominated society that will not let her achieve her true potential. Plath's alter ego, Esther, is thus driven to a nervous breakdown and attempts suicide numerous times. In many ways, this novel is a feminist text, centered around the struggles of a young woman who cannot reach her goals in our male-dominated society. People close to Esther, do not accept her talents as a poet and writer, but rather try to push her into traditionally more feminine roles. For example, Esther's mother repeatedly tries to convince her to learn shorthand, but Esther rebels, saying "...when I tried to picture myself in some job, briskly jotting down line after line of shorthand, my mind went blank." (100) Esther, unlike many women of her time, refuses to be controlled by society's gender-based constraints: "The last thing I wanted was infinite security and to be the place an arrow shoots off from. I wanted change and excitement and to shoot off in all directions myself, like the colored arrows from a Fourth of July rocket." (68) The phrases "infinite security" and "the place an arrow shoots off from" come from Mrs. Willard's description of the woman's role in society (58). This passage directly addresses Plath's central purpose in the novel, which is to look at the mental problems that can befall a woman with ambitions that the surrounding culture will not allow her to fulfill. This book was published in 1963, towards the beginning of the "feminist movement"; the events chronicled in this book, however, take place in 1953 (208), in a period during which women's rights were not yet widely recognized in our society. The passage quoted above, and the emotions which it conveys, are typical of a feminist like Esther, but Esther is ahead of her time and is thus unable to express herself to society in the way she wants.

Just One Bullet! Essay

Everyone assembled at the bitter isolated base waiting, waiting anxiously for the deafening signal of unbearable battle, that could make them a prominent hero or just another failure. Jack and the rest of the army sat in their camouflaged overalls and stared intensely at the loyal colours of their flag as it waved at them vigorously in the freezing uncontrollable wind. Most sat deeply in thought and contemplation, reflecting on their battle strategies. Others just shivered greatly at the thought of the dreadful atrocious war, which was unavoidably going to take place. There was no going back. All they could do now is wait for the inevitable. This passionate battle would decide the fait of either team and the excruciatingly cold weather added to the dangers and troubles of the task in hand. Even the wolves were howling stridently as they retreated back to their dens subsequent to a harsh battering from the torrential rain. There was now merely five minutes before the clash between the two conflicting tribes, positioned on each side of the dense unforgiving wood. The Tribes would enter the wood at their own peril as this mysterious area was unknown to the approaching teams of men. It was just seen as another little obstacle in their way. Ruthless and merciless combat was impending ever closer when James, the proud audacious leader of Jack’s army, stood up clutching his gun tightly, and stared around the room at the tired depressing faces sitting in front of him. He paced sturdily up and down with satisfaction and pride, and had a beaming grin covering most of his dirty -blemished face. He was about to present the essential encouragement speech. This is a speech that all superior, influential leaders give previous to entering the battlefields. Obviously James was no exception. â€Å"This is it. We’ve come this far and there’s no going back. Does everyone remember their roles?† There was a dawdling hesitant nod of heads from most boys, as others bellowed YES as the adrenalin was now pumping dynamically through their blood streams. â€Å"Okay just remember keep your eyes open and your ears peeled because it takes just one bullet!† Jack advised his army seriously as he paced around pompously trying ineffectively to unearth more words of encouragement from his limited vocabulary. Just before he could speak again the feared war whistle was sounded vociferously, and everyone charged hastily out of the freezing draughty hut and let out a great thunderous cry as they entered the merciless wood. The war had begun. The wood was an eerie, murky and desolate place, where James’ band of hardhearted killers were stealthily creeping around, dodging and weaving the trees as their branches waved ferociously in the irrepressible wind. The wood was almost silent except for the chilling toot of the old wise bird, as it stood motionless on the prolonged arm of the gigantic great oak tree. These tall oak trees stood over the vigilant army creepily as they crept cautiously through the slender meandering path, avoiding the trees that could be hiding the malevolent enemy. The wind blew ferociously and howled deafeningly, as it brushed past the trees stripping it bare of its leaves. The never-ending heavens were a depressing black shade and even the brightest stars couldn’t be distinguished with the naked eye. The only source of luminosity was coming from the vivid dazzling lights of the torches, which were positioned on the army’s head protectors. Jack was becoming more nervous by the second, and his heavy breathing started to generate condensation on the front of his mask. Jack accompanied the leader, James, during the daunting and difficult terrain of the forest. Jack followed James like a helpless cub, pursuing its mother for protection against anything dangerous that might be lurking around the corner. James stopped abruptly almost causing a collision with him and Jack. He turned around sharply and stared fiercely into Jack’s wide apprehensive eyes. He then raised his index finger and pressed it decisively against his firm dry lips, implying Jack to be quiet as something was in close proximity. They both crept silently towards the naked deciduous bushes. James pulled his gun gradually out of its small auburn pouch trying not to make a noise. He snatched the clip back carefully and pulled on the trigger. A little whimper was heard from the seemingly sinister undergrowth. Jack took a massive gulp. He froze in astonishment, as James peered curiously into the murky bushes. â€Å"Damn rabbit,† James muttered angrily as he forcefully thrusted his weapon into his little pouch and stormed off from the scene of the savage shooting. Jack wiped the cold sweat of his brow with his quivering hand, relieved that it was just a rabbit and followed James closely through the dense mist. It was now six in the morning and the beautiful shades of red coming from the intensifying sun lit up the skies, and overwhelmed the two soldiers. The scarlet sky was now alive and energetic with graceful song coming from the striking winged birds, as they perched blissfully on the soaring trees in their hundreds. The wonders of nature were currently at their climax. There were masses of scurrying squirrels selecting nuts to transport back to their home, ready for hibernation. Both Jack and James stopped in bewilderment to take in this astonishing spectacular sight. The thought of the malicious war was erased from their momories for a few minutes, as they watched the environment around them intently. It was a remarkable sight. Unexpectedly the view was suddenly interrupted by gunshots, and the cruel reality of the malevolent war had soon sunk in again. Their stunned desperate bodies dived into the green shrubbery for protection. Jack was horrified. His body started shake immensely. He didn’t know what to do. He turned around to see James being his courageous brave self. He was pelting lethal bullets into distance where the gunshot was heard. Jack calmed himself down. He reassured himself that everything would be okay. He pulled himself up reluctantly and joined in shooting into the remote distance. Their bodies were now quivering with excitement and exhilaration. After about a minute they both halted their fire. The wood was now silent except for the panting of the exhausted soldiers, as they tried to catch their breath speedily. You could now cut the atmosphere with a knife. All of a sudden, the unbelievable happened. A single fatal bullet came darting out of the distance and hit James in the middle of his chest. â€Å"No!† screamed Jack emotionally as he darted rapidly to James’ side. Jack could see the crimson paint dripping down his throbbing chest. â€Å"Jack,† James managed to say while clutching his fatal wound. â€Å"Go, you can’t stay here.† Jack unwillingly left, leaving James to struggle through the pain. Jack ran through the forest intent on being triumphant for the valiant and brave leader of his army. James’ death had bought out a new and innovative side of Jack. He was now more courageous and fearless of what lay ahead. Jack had now thankfully come to the end of the merciless wood. Here there was a great clearing, and the bright intense colour of the sun dazzled Jack momentarily. Jack chafed his eyes leisurely, and tried to adjust his eyesight to come to terms with the new brightness. Jack had survived the most awful part of the strenuous journey, but now his expertise and capability would be put up to the test. He now had to assault the isolated deadly enemy cabin, situated in the middle of the vast clearing. Jack plucked up his courage and sprinted towards the cabin. The sheer adrenalin made him run increasingly faster than he ever had. Jack could almost touch victory with his leading hand before it was cruelly taken away from him, with one fatal bullet into his open chest. He fell to the ground powerless in distress and agony. His face was screaming with agony and he revolved around the floor in pain and torture. He clutched his chest in anguish and he knew the game was over. Back at James’ team hut the rest of the army were slumped depressed and miserable in their padded comfortable seats. They were exchanging opinions on how they could have thrashed the opposition team. James and Jack were absent from the conversation and people started to be concerned about their location. They started to consider the most appalling of feasible occurrences when James and Jack walked in!

3 functions of law Essay

What is a law? A law is a rule of conduct, established by government, for society to follow and obey. Laws have been around in civilizations for many, many years. The first know set of laws was written by King Hammurabi. Hammurabi ruled in Babylon, from 1792- 1750 B.C.E. The Code of Hammurabi which is the first written set of laws known to mankind, set the stage for all laws written, even today. You may ask why do we need laws in our society? The meaning, and function of laws in a democratic society is to establish rule of conduct, protect the rights and freedoms of citizens, and to provide protection for society. In society we live with, and interact with others, and we need laws to stop, and to control unavoidable conflicts and problems that occur every day. That is why we need to establish rules of conduct. The Highway Traffic Acts make a minimum driving age, speed limit, mandatory seat belts, these laws control problems because they make the roads safer for all of us and therefore many lives are saved. The Copyright Act also prevents conflicts and problems because it prevents other people from ‘copying’ other peoples or groups work. Therefore there are many less cases that go to court because of the Copyright Act, and that prevents problems. We need laws to protect our rights and freedoms. Laws are needed to protect our most cherished thing, and that is our rights, and our freedom. We need to have our rights and freedom protected by others, because we cannot do it ourselves, that is why we have the RCMP, and the provincial police to protect us. The police guarantee public safety and protection of life. Criminal law also protects our rights and freedoms because they make it illegal for others to do things like assault and harass us. The criminal code protects us the best of all because others know what is wrong, and if they disobey the criminal code, then they will be punished for it. Lastly we need laws to provide protection in society. This means that we need laws to protect ourselves from others who try to take advantage of us. For example there are contract laws, they protect us form storeowners and managers who might try to take advantage of young people, and make them work with no brakes. There are also labor laws, they assure us that we will work  in safe and clean working conditions, and that we make a minimum wage. There are also laws that protect handicap people, and assure them the necessities of life. The meaning and function of law in society is to establish rules if conduct, protect rights and freedoms, and to provide safety for society. The charter of rights and freedoms says, â€Å"Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of the person and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice.† What this means is that everyone is free, has rights, and cannot be deprived of that by anyone. The laws are made to protect us, and our rights. Laws are necessary in society so that we can live our lives in peace and happiness.

Natural Resources Essay

Natural resources are useful materials or substances that exist in the environment like land, water, sun, trees, oil, minerals, etc. Natural resources are generally classified as renewable resources and non-renewable resources. Resource depletion means exhaustion of natural resources in a certain region. When the rate of consumption of these resources exceeds the rate at which they are restored, depletion of resources occurs. The utilization of natural resources has increased considerably due to the rapid growth in population. Improvements and advancements in science and technology have resulted in overutilization of natural resources. Some of the major causes of depletion of natural resources are as follows: Overutilization or exploitation of resources. Partial allocation of resources. Population growth. Advancements in technology. Deforestation. Soil erosion. Mining. Depletion of non-renewable resources (water, minerals, oil, and gas) has a serious impact on world economy and can c reate an imbalance between different nations. Overutilization of resources can cause disruption and destruction of the ecosystem. Overexploitation of water has caused drying of water bodies like lakes and streams. Therefore, we must utilize these resources carefully to maintain a balance between nature and mankind and also for the sustenance of life on earth. – Overutilization of natural resources has caused serious imbalance in nature. Various environmental issues like Greenhouse gases, global warming, and pollution have cropped up due to overuse of natural resources. According to the environmentalists, some of the non-renewable resources like oil, petroleum and gas will be completely extinct in the near future if we do not carefully use and conserve them. Conservation of the natural resources is not an easy task especially due to the fact that we are heavily dependent on these resources for our daily needs. However, we can adopt the following simple ways and strategies to save our environment: We should use paper products that are recycled and also practice recycling of paper. Unnecessary use of paper should also be prevented. Read more:  Essay on Conservation of Resources We should plant a tree and take part in plantation programs organized by the Government. Reforestation should be encouraged and practiced. We can save water by fixing any nozzle or tap that is broken or cracked. When bathing it  is better to use a bucket or tub than the shower. We should employ proper waste disposal techniques like composting. Dumping of wastes in lakes, rivers and the seas should be stopped. We can harvest rain water by installing rain water harvesting systems in homes and offices. The rain water is useful for gardening and cleaning purposes. We should try to restrict the use of vehicles as much as possible. If possible we can choose to walk or use a cycle. In this way we can save oil and gas. A hybrid car is always a better option because it runs on both electricity, and small quantity of gas. We can save energy by switching off all the electrical appliances that are not in use and also by using those products that consume lesser electricity. We can save electric ity and natural gas by using solar energy. Many appliances like solar cookers, solar heaters use solar energy instead of electricity. Photovoltaic can be used to generate electricity from solar energy.

Women Entrepreneurship

INTRODUCTION The emergence of women entrepreneur & their contribution to the national economy is quite visible in India. Women have become aware of their existence, their rights & their work situations. The number of women entrepreneur has grown over a period especially in the 1990s. Women have owned & operated business since the beginning of American history & much earlier in other part of the world. They rarely were recognized or given credit for their effort. Often women were invisible as they worked side by side with their husband in businesses & may have only stepped into the leadership position when their husband died. Many recognized business today are owned & operated by the wife or daughter of the founder. Due to gender discrimination & bias many women choose the option of starting & managing their own business that can impede women’s success in the corporate world. Women entrepreneurship need to be studied separately for two main reasons. the first reason is that women’s entrepreneurship has been recognised during the last decade as an untapped source of economic growth. Women entrepreneurs create new jobs for themselves & others by being different also provide society with different solution to management , organization & business problem as well as to the exploitation of entrepreneurs opportunities. The second reason is that the topic of women entrepreneurship has been largely neglected both in society general & in social science. Not only have women lower participation rates in entrepreneurial then men but they also generally choose to start & manage firms in different industries then men tend to do. Industries choosen by women are often perceived as being less important to economic development & growth then high technology & manufacturing further more research tend to be men streamed & too often do not take in to account the specific need of women entrepreneur. Why women become entrepreneur:- Women often leave the corporate world by starting their own business, to provide additional flexibility & life balance in managing their traditional responsibilities as wife & primary care taker of children. Different theories suggest that there is no set & standard profile that can be practically applied. For every women who is an entrepreneurs or wants to become one they each have their own set of reasons, motivation & many can not be categorized. Female & male Difference:- In comparing the management style of women & men entrepreneurs women display distinctive features & abilities. Women entrepreneurs shows transformational style of leadership. this style encourages positive interactions & trust based relationship with subordinate with whom they also share power & information. Women in non traditional industries value many both as a motivator and the preferred out come yet Buttner & Moore’s research finding indicate that women’s important goals are for professional growth, development, challenge & self fulfilment while men’s are preferred higher income. Barriers against women entrepreneurs:- Capital Finance :- There are many barriers for women entrepreneurs when falling the prospects of starting a new business research finds the primary barriers is the access to capital finance. This could also include start up financing & credit, cash flow management in the early operation & financial planning. Lack of network :- Another prominent barrier that women entrepreneurs face is the lack of network of information, assistance & mentors. Networking is a set of interrelated relationship that mutually benefit or that are involved, through sharing & giving resources, information & data and personal referrals set. Due to the gender difference in access to network women was excluded from many of the formal & informal networks in organization. Apart form that there are various obstacles that women entrepreneurs face some of these are Low risk bearing ability Male dominated society Lack of Education Scarcity of raw material Role of women Entrepreneurs in the global economy Entrepreneurship emerges from an individual’s creative spirit in to long-term business ownership, job creation & economic security. Women bring commitment and integrity because they care about economic empowerment, entrepreneurial development & innovation. As owner of small & edium size enterprise women can supply multinational companies with ideas, inventions, technology, raw materials supplies components & business services, ultimately female business owner will be recognized for who they are, what they do & how significantly they impact global economy. The global impact of women entrepreneur is just beginning to gain intensity. Worldwide the no. of female business owner continues to increase steadily & recent on report concluded that economic de velopment is closely related to the advancement of women. In nation where women have advanced economic growth has usually been steady. By contrast, in countries where women have been restricted the economy has been stagnant. Thus we can say entrepreneurship is the core of economic development. It is a multidimensional task & essentially a creative activity. Entrepreneur is key factor of entrepreneurship in the process of entrepreneurship. Women have to face various problems associated with entrepreneurship & these problems get doubled because of her dual role as a wage earner & home maker. Women in India constitute a larger proportion of total unemployed population & hence it is imperative to find out the entrepreneurial constraint faced by them. In Rajasthan situation of women entrepreneur is very critical they face more problems because they are less educated & not aware of govt. supports. In brief the thrust of the study is as follows To ascertain the various constraint faced by women in their enterprise. To identify different strength and weakness of women entrepreneur. To identify various psychological characteristics of women entrepreneur. To know the problems faced by women entrepreneur in setting their enterprise. To know the opportunities and threat faced by women entrepreneurs in Rajasthan.

Capital Punishment Is Always Wrong, Do You Agree?

Capital Punishment is always wrong, do you agree? A Christian would agree as they believe all life is sacred and only god can choose when your life ends, he will punish you in hell for your sins and it is not the place of the government to decide whether you are killed or not. This is because in the bible it says â€Å"Do not kill† which is one of the Ten Commandments which are not to be disobeyed, they also believe in forgiveness and love which are the fundamentals of their religion therefore criminals should be forgiven and given a chance to change.A Buddhist would agree because they believe in the sanctity of life. This is because they believe in karma – that you will accumulate bad karma for the bad things you do in your life and will pay for them in your next life and so therefore we should leave people to be punished in their next life and not kill them because all life is sacred and if we kill them we will accumulate bad karma.A Muslim would disagree because they believe that punishment is needed to protect the welfare of society and serve justice to the victims family, they believe that if you take a life then you should die because you have taken away something sacred and sinned, this is because in the Qur’an it says â€Å"take not life, which God hath made sacred, except by way of justice and law† which permits the death penalty if it is to bring about justice.Another Christian would disagree because they believe that god has appointed the king/queen who has then appointed the government to serve justice on his behalf, this means that they can punish people in the means they feel appropriate and in the bible there are examples where people were killed for their sins so therefore it must be alright to kill people in today’s society.This is because in the bible it says â€Å"show no pity, life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot† which shows that we should have no mercy and shoul d give the same punishment as the crime done for example if someone kills then they should be killed. I disagree as I believe sometimes it could be right because some criminals never reform and in killing them we would be preventing them from killing again and possibly deterring other criminals as they would be afraid of the punishment they would receive.

Should organisations always try to hire employees with high levels of Essay

Should organisations always try to hire employees with high levels of Agreeableness - Essay Example In a real work environment, employees have unique character traits that in one way of the other influence teamwork, cooperation, innovation and problem solving abilities that affect their adaptation to the work environment. Management of organizational behaviour has identified five giant characters that including openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, Agreeableness and Neuroticism (OCEAN), all which contribute to the development of the organization. However, they have recognized that all these characters have their dark and light side to the organization. Agreeableness, just like any other organizational behaviour, has its positive and negative sides to the firm. All in all, organizations should strive to obtain employees with the highest level of agreeableness. Agreeableness is a trait that has generated mixed reactions among many organizational behaviour analysts with some expressing a high regard for it and other pin pointing the weaknesses of this trait. Slocum and Hellriegel l defined agreeableness as the virtue of an employee to be warm, tactful, cooperative, tolerable and humble and portraying minimal coldness and rudeness1. In the general, these traits are advantageous to an organization although at times they are accompanied by elements that may be consequential to organizations. 1D., Hellriegel, and W. Slocum, Organizational Behaviour. Mason, OH, South-Western Cengage Learning. 2009. P. 45 The advocates of this trait argue that agreeableness is the source of harmony, peace, excellent team work, accommodating leadership and loyalty in a business system. On the other hand, critics have criticized this trait on the ground that employees with these traits show weakness in exercising confidence, criticizing wrong organization behaviour and conflict resolution in times that demand critical decision making. Teamwork is one of the valuable elements of an organization that binds employees to the collective goals and objectives of an organization that define its end task. Team work ensures that employees remain cohesive and cooperative during the project implementation process to execute all the designated roles. An agreeable person is friendly, sociable and warm while associating with their colleagues in the organization2. Consequently, an agreeable person will find it easy to get along with the other employees and will form part of a concrete team that will ensure a smooth progress of the business operations, hence the success of the organization. For instance, an agreeable person will avoid conflicts that arise during the period of work preferring peaceful situations rather than aggravating the conflicting. Conflicts are sources of tensions in the workplace, which slows the progress of the work and misaligns the employees from the organizational goals. From this point of view, the ability of management to select agreeable employees will form part of the role of team building. In leadership, agreeable people create a conducive work e nvironment that motivates employees to remain active and focussed in their duties in the organization. Competent leaders have a role to maintain a peaceful working environment by engaging employees in a constructive exchange of ideas. 2A., Neal, G., Yeo, A. Koy, T. and Xiao. Predicting the Form and Direction of Work Role Performance from the Big 5 Model of Personality Traits. Journal or Organizational Behaviour, vol. 33 , 2012. Pp. 175-192 Agreeable persons will encourage employees to contribute and raise their concerns more