Psychology Essays Amnesic Syndrome Amnesia

Psychology Essays Amnesic Syndrome Amnesia Amnesic Syndrome Amnesia Hypothetical amnesic syndrome single case intervention: Clive Wearing Amensia Amnesic Syndrome Amnesia is a general, classically used term essentially to describe the partial or total loss of memory. Due to the complexity of human memory functioning, several different types of amnesia exist, in particular, Amnesic Syndrome (A.S.) which, in its most coherent, is a cluster of amnesic symptoms. Amnesic syndrome is characterised by the permanent memory impairment which can occur in anterograde form the syndrome’s defining feature and retrograde form. Unlike general amnesic condition, the diagnostic origin of A.S. excludes degenerative disorders, for example Parkison’s; transient amnesias; and psychogenic disorders. The aetiology of A.S. include those brought on by (direct or indirect) injury to the brain and damage to any number of neuroanatomical locations responsible for memory functioning, namely subcortical areas the diencephalon, a major region of the brain that includes the third ventricle, thalamus, hypothalamus, and pituitary gland; and also cortical areas covering the medial surfaces of the temporal lobe, especially the hippocampus. Understanding the effects of this damage is possible in no small part to using the modular memory system approach and observing the pattern of preservation and loss in other words, what the patient is and is not capable of. It is understood that long term memory (LTM) is structured as to distinguish declarative memory of what we know to be as ‘fact’ from less explicitly accessible memory functioning such as those implicitly stored and that which is not pertaining to factual information, referred to as non-declarative memory. Aggleton Brown (1999) reported that both the subcortical and cortical locations, as mentioned above, are components of the same memory system concerned with the explicit, declarative memory. This declarative memory is made up of the subcategories episodic personal events one experiences; and semantic relating to vocabulary, language ability and object recognition. It is therefore clear that the damage suffered to part or all of these areas of the brain would largely affect the declarative memory of a patient, whilst leaving the implicit, non-declarative memory relatively unimpaired. This is true in cases of both anterograde and retrograde amnesic syndrome. There are also several non memory related characteristics of amnesia which appear in A.S., degrees of which depend on the origin of the syndrome, for instance the location of injury and which parts of the brain are affected. Characteristics include orientation, intellectual deficit and confabulation. Confabulation, sometimes referred to as ‘islands of confabulation’, describes the attempts made to rationalise memories (or voids in memory) in order to make sense to the self and others, which may involve the production of false information. Single Case: Clive Wearing Clive Wearing is considered by many to be the most sever case of amnesia. Once a renowned and eminent musician and musicologist, Clive was struck by an inflammatory brain infection herpes encephalitis, in March of 1985. An initial CT and subsequent MRI scan reported major and significant damage to the left temporal lobe, also extending into the inferior and posterior frontal lobe as well as damage to the medial side of the right temporal lobe. This was accompanied by indications of involvement of the left lateral ventricle and third ventricle part of the diencephalon, along with the almost complete destruction of the hippocampus. It is believed that these areas of damage are the cause of several behaviours Clive Wearing exhibited and continues to do so today. It is well reported that Clive (CW) has severe episodic memory dysfunction, resulting in retrograde amnesia for virtually the whole of his adult life and much of his childhood along with anterograde amnesia demonstrated by his incapacity for explicit learning. CW has become synonymous for his moment to moment consciousness whereby the period of seconds is lost in a perceptual time void and where perceived information is lost as soon as his eyes close quite literally in a blink only to be confronted with the experience of a completely new ‘awakening’ repeated many times. CW’s semantic memory, though generally preserved in A.S., showed evidence of impairment as he is unable to produce object names, define words and comprehend written material, instead lending himself towards confabulation. CW’s pattern of deficits in declarative memory can be explained by the neurological damage that he suffered. The major damage to the hippocampus (relatively destroying it) is the most likely cause of the severity of his amnesia, whereas the retrograde amnesia is attributed to the diencephalic damage, and semantic memory impairment adheres to the more widespread temporal lobe damage. Functioning and Indications for Intervention Contrary to CW’s deficit in declarative memory, his non declarative memory is left relatively unimpaired. There are many reports of CW’s implicit memory functioning, most notably his procedural memory for reading, playing, conducting and singing music which are practically preserved. Clive has, on more than one occasion, denied seeing a piece of music or even playing the piano, only to (when directed), sit down and play the piece and add â€Å"I remember this one†. Additional evidence for CW’s implicit memory comes from the first few years of his condition where he began to abbreviate his questions, he would only need to ask his wife ‘How long?’ to be understood as to what was meant, ‘How long have I been ill?’ suggesting an awareness, on some level, that the question has been asked before, as well as the knowledge of the fact that she knows what it means. Evidence for implicit learning comes from the report after eighteen months of his new home, where he has been taken for daily walks to feed the ducks, now asks ‘do the ducks want their tea?’ when prompted to put on his coat, ceasing to ask how long he has been ill a seven-year obsessive habit. Though his apparent disorientation, he has also gained other (purely) implicit memories like the layout of his residence where he is able to go to the bathroom, kitchen and dining room unsupervised. However, if he stops, gets distracted, or thinks en route he becomes lost. And though not able to describe his residence, his wife Deborah has reported how he will undo his seat belt and offer to get out and open the gate as they draw near. He is unable to explicitly identify the locations but is capable of action. The role of music in CW’s implicit learning is certainly an interesting one, as not only is his procedural memory relatively unimpaired but he is also capable, providing someone puts the music before him to get him into action, of learning and practicing new pieces. It is also reported that he also hummed something which he had not played for half an hour. This discovery is of great relevance to the following section on intervention as it suggests that this is could be down to rehearsal of it subvocally, perhaps reflecting use of the phonological loop process in memory encoding. Broca’s area is a relatively contained section in the inferior frontal gyrus of the frontal lobe and is namely responsible for the production of speech and sounds. There is little evidence to suggest of a deficit in CW’s ability to produce speech and sound and therefore any relative damage to this area, which in turn enables the seeming subvocal rehearsal that has been reported. Seeing as CW appears to have some phonological functioning and fairly preserved implicit memory, this seems a rational starting point for rehabilitative intervention. Proposed Intervention Whereas in previous clinical approaches where rehabilitation was usually based on a broad range of therapies (CBT, psychotherapy, etc), neuropsychological therapy tackles small areas either to test theories or to increase the understanding of a particular subject area. In the case CW, it is the impairment experienced involving disorientation that will be the focal point of this intervention. The intervention will operate at the level of impairment the specific problem being disorientation. In terms of the intervention mechanism restoring or reinstating the original function this seems very unlikely to be possible. The alternative therefore, is to instate an intervention mechanism that will utilise and develop existing capacities with the use of external aids and strategies to overcome the problem. Implicit learning of routes through basic repetition would not be recommended in this case. Instead, it would be preferable to use the available existing/surviving capacities (i.e. subvocal rehearsal and procedural memory) as this approach, if sufficiently effective, could be transferred for other possible applications in different situations. CW’s procedural memory of music lends itself extremely neatly to the notion of journeys and routes due to its formulative and progressive nature. CW’s wife Deborah speaks of the â€Å"momentum of music† where it is said that music, much like any route has steps, phrases, beginnings and ends (Wearing and Wilson, 1995). In an article, author and neurologist Oliver Sacks (2007) provides a compelling narrative of this momentum indicating the link of memory and melody: There is not a process of recalling, assembling, recategorizing, as when one attempts to reconstruct or remember an event or a scene from the past. We recall one tone at a time, and each tone entirely fills our consciousness yet simultaneously relates to the whole. It is similar when we walk or run or swim—we do so one step, one stroke at a time, yet each step or stroke is an integral part of the whole. Indeed, if we think of each note or step too consciously, we may lose the thread, the motor melody. (Sacks, 2007) In normal automatisation of procedural information which can range from making a cup of tea to driving a vehicle, the memory trace of each encounter is encoded and strengthened with each practise so that in future cases relevant information is retrieved quickly. In the case of CW this report suggests that a method of auditory mnemonic reduction encoding be used, set up with vanishing retrieval cues, gradually removed so as to encourage the strengthening of the mnemonic information in an errorless learning environment. Encoding with visual and auditory mnemonics has been shown to be very effective in the development of creating links and encoding memorable retrieval cues (e.g. Burrows Solomon, 1975; Sharps Price, 1991; Haan et al., 2000) and provides a supported approach to the proposal intervention. The use of vanishing cues enables a ‘length’ of information to be divided into a number of relevant cues that are subsequently and gradually removed, thus resulting in a scope of learnt information which may require very few or even no recall cues. Errorless learning has been effective in a number memory-impairment cases (e.g. Tailby Haslam, 2003; Page et al., 2006), where errorless learning employs a 100% correct response technique in strengthening memory traces. Single Case Design Proposal Neuropsychological intervention of any sort would usually naturally happen once the patient starts to demonstrate gaining a sense of normal functioning, that is after the initial period of spontaneous recovering has occurred, as initiating intervention during this time of innate recovery is not suggestible results may show absent or false improvement. In the case of CW however, this is not an area of concern. The intervention will operate with auditory mnemonics and vanishing cues. It will be a tri-level multiple baseline design as to assess its effectiveness across and between situations. Three routes / journeys will be decided upon in relation to CW’s most important or habitual preferences. For the purpose of this proposal the three routes will be that from his room: (a) to the dining room (b) to the hall the location of his piano and (c) outside via fire escape route. The initial phase of the intervention will be reporting the baseline measurement for each route. This will be the amount of time it takes CW to get from his room to the each of the destinations, observations will also be made as of any experiences of disorientation and if so note down where along the route and how often they occur, using several measures maximise the stability of the assessment as they will be compared with the results of the intervention phase. The measurement phase will continue for 1 month before the first-level intervention is employed. The second phase will start with the implementation of the first-level intervention for the first situation (a). The route that CW takes will be marked off using posters showing a coloured symbol (e.g. a green triangle) at significant points. CW will also have accompanied with him a device that allows him to play a single relatively short melody, one that he is familiar with. This will then be set to repeat, although it is assumed that one piece played from start to finish should last for more than sufficient time than it takes him to reach his destination in this case the dinning room. During this time CW is encouraged to hum or sing the melody out loud. This first-level intervention for the first situation will continue for 2 months and measurements will be taken following the same concept as those in the baseline phase. Following this will be the second-level intervention where the visual cues (green triangles) are gradually removed in suitable order so that there are no significantly unequal ‘gaps’ in cues along the route. CW will at this time still be encouraged to play and hum to the chosen melody along the route. This phase will be carried out over a total of 2 months, again, whilst measurements are taken. The third-level intervention will entail CW not having access to the melody playing device, however he will still be encouraged to hum or sing what could be referred to at this point as the ‘dinning room melody’. Measurements will be carried out as previously done. This stage will continue for 1 month and then conclude the second phase of the intervention. After which the additional two routes will be initiated in sequence following the example of the first situation. A summarised list of the programme will look as follows. Phase 1 Multiple baseline recording Measurements are taken across all situations (length: 1 month) Phase 2 Intervention of first situation (a) to dinning room Level 1 melody played with cues (length: 2 months) Level 2 cues gradually removed (length: 2 months) Level 3 melody device removed (length: 1 month) Phase 3 Intervention of second situation (b) to hall Level 1 melody played with cues (length: 2 months) Level 2 cues gradually removed (length: 2 months) Level 3 melody device removed (length: 1 month) Phase 4 Intervention of third situation (c) fire escape route Level 1 melody played with cues (length: 2 months) Level 2 cues gradually removed (length: 2 months) Level 3 melody device removed (length: 1 month) Phase 5 Assessment of results The appendix includes graphs that represent three possible outcomes of the intervention. The first in Appendix 1 demonstrates a successful intervention, evaluation of which will be discussed below. The second in Appendix 2 illustrates a clearly unsuccessful intervention whereas the third in Appendix 3 illustrates the possible results of a temporary positive effect of intervention followed by a decline in improved performance. Signs that the intervention is successful will be a significant improvement in performance compare with baseline measurements. That is not necessarily to say that route-taking will be quicker, but that incidence of disorientation would have been significantly reduced. The proposed evaluation of the intervention will consist of checking whether it has been successful in its aim and the reasons behind this outcome. If an improvement has been demonstrated it must be examined as to the source of change. Sources of change vary in terms of the circumstances of the case, for instance spontaneous recovery and innate brain recovery at this stage of the condition is highly unlikely and would have been captured in baseline measurements. General treatment effects i.e. what happens in CW’s home such as care and interactions are also another source of change which, in other cases may be an affect. The length of the intervention may allow changes in circumstance to affect performance. Major changes of this sort are unlikely however it would still be advisable to report any relevant changes. If an improvement has not been affirmed the intervention will be seen as not effective. This doesn’t necessarily that the theoretical basis was at fault, the judgement of available case information may not have been sufficient. Problematic methodology could also be a cause. If the phases (and containing levels of aid) of the intervention were not carried out for long enough, or correctly the effectiveness of the proposed intervention would be compromised. Providing the intervention was successful and improvement was made, it would be critical to examine the genuine extent to which the person’s life had changed for the better. This could take the form of improved functioning, increased independence and improved sense of well-being. It would also be relevant to examine the capacity to generalise the principle for application in other situations. The nature of the proposed multiple baseline design allows, on demonstration of positive results, that the intervention could be applied to similar situations and even for use in other cases of similar patients with A.S. References Aggleton, J. P., and Brown, M. W. (1999) Episodic memory, amnesia, and the hippocampal-anterior thalamic axis. Behavioral and Brain Sciences. 22 (4). pp. 425-440 Burrows, D. and Solomon, B. A. (1975). Parallel scanning of auditory and visual information. Memory and Cognition. 3 (4). pp. 416-420. Haan, E. H. F., Appels, B., Aleman, A. and Postma, A. (2000). Inter-and intra-modal encoding of auditory and visual presentation of material: Effects on memory performance. The Psychological Record. 50 (3). pp. 577-86. Page, M., Wilson, B. A, Shiel, A., Carter, G. and Norris, D. (2006) What is the locus of the errorless-learning advantage? Neuropsychologia. 44 (1). pp. 90-100 Sacks, O. (2007) The Abyss; A Neurologists Notebook. The New Yorker. New York. 83 (28). pp.100. Sharps, M. J. and Price, J. L. (1991). Auditory imagery and free recall. The Journal of General Psychology. 119 (1). pp. 81-87. Tailby. R. and Haslam C. (2003) An investigation of errorless learning in memory-impaired patients: improving the technique and clarifying theory. Neuropsychologia. 41 (9). pp. 1230-40. Wilson, B.A. and Wearing, D. (1995) Prisoner of Consciousness: A state of just awakening following Herpes Simplex Encephalitis, In Campbell, R. Conway, M. Broken Memories: Neuropsychological Case Studies. Oxford: Blackwell. pp. 15-30

Political And Economic Globalization Essay

Globalization in whichever form has received different view from different people all over the world. It has always portrayed two faces in any field in which it was applied. Generally, globalization has its roots in economic and political concerns. These two areas are key factors which touches the lives of people in any country, hence, globalization in either economic or politics will most if not always affect the ways of life in any given country. The consequences of economic and political globalizations are thus paramount in the induction of particular changes in the cultural ways of these communities. The economic and political globalization has an impact on culture while at the same time the cultures have enormous impacts on the globalization of both. This is because there is an intimate interrelationships and integration of the three human activities which builds the human life. Thus, from the historical view of the three things, they have gone hand in hand for complete human life existence. Globalization of politics and economic are two key factors which are affecting the culture of modern world bringing about cultural homogeneity rather than cultural diversity. In reality, this has made crowds of people to remain perplex on which ways is these economic and political globalizations is driving the culture. (Mudimbe-boyi, 2002) Meanwhile, globalization has also allowed the cultural diversity tpo surface as countries started to accept the globalized views and ways of life. The more global influences get in the culture, the more chance that the community acknowledges the uniqueness of its culture. First and foremost are that many people having experiences obstacles of understanding what is culture and the compositions of culture. Michael Amaladoss gave any efforts of defining culture. He said â€Å"culture is the way of a life of a people through which they humanize and socialize nature. † In his further elaboration, he mentioned that it implies the world-view, a value system and a network of social relationships. There are key areas in which during economics and political globalization, they are obviously affected. The effects are felt when many people changes their values system and the original products which were once used by their forefathers. This phenomenon is not rare in most parts of the world where many people have gone under the transition of economic and political globalization. There are numerous alarming cultural practices which the world’s leaders are now struggling to ban as result of this two globalizes factors. (Cowen, 2002) In some instances however, globalization becomes a driving force for people to realize how cultural affinities are being ignored. As people in different communities strive to adopt into the globalized world, they start to be more keen on its effects in the culture, thus the rise of groups concerned with protecting and/or preserving the cultural heritage. It has also served as the venue for countries to showcase the unique culture to the entire world. Globalization of economy and politics are not bring along with cultural diversity. Generally, each globalization processes are working ways out to have homogeneity of cultures. For instance, in terms of economic globalization in the sectors of agriculture sectors, the world’s organizations which deal with the problems of foods shortages do not address the problem from root cause of the shortages. Their models hardly emphasizes on the available establishment of these local food stuff in the particular countries. Instead, they widely and vast get involved in the use of imports to solve the problems of hungers. Through such means the cultural foods products of the native communities in these states are set into extinction as the local are encouraged to embark on sowing new types of crops. This portrays that there is expansion of the culture from one point of country to another through these aids creating a homogenous cultures. (Adam, 2002) But because of the uniqueness of the cultures of each country, cultural differences will most likely affect how a country reacts to a globalized world, or how a country respond to globalization. Globalization can sometimes tend to be too Westernized that countries from Asia or from other part of the world will find it hard to adopt, thus resulting to further cultural diversity rather than homogeneity. Their global information infrastructures which as come on the ways of technology and industrialization has made trade increases. In addition, to trade many countries have been subjects to comply with unnecessary economic condition. This has especially affected those developing countries where resources and job opportunities are limited. The unfavorable economic environments in those states have created a loophole for the exploitation of the people. The people are being forced by worse survival means to adapts the foreign culture so that they can attain their goals in life. As the adage goes â€Å"power and wealthy and there to conquers and dominates the weak†. (Cowen, 2002) Meanwhile, globalization has also helped developing countries. An example is for developing countries in Asia such as Philippines and India who have become an ideal venue for the support needs of the economies of the US and other countries in Europe. This has paved the way for the booming business processing outsourcing (BPO) industries in these countries due to globalization. The political globalizations are largely affecting the culture of these different communities of the world in the pretence of fighting for human rights. The politics from the westerns and Americans have spreads in all corners of the worlds in which the Americans are fighting to have democratic political area. Political globalists has intervened in issues of marriages and other matters which touches family affairs. Argument such as homosexuals and other related family matters have been widely politicized debates which have been accelerated by political globalization. The consequences of this embarked in the developments countries which are majority pro- globalisms. The final result is that, the continued interaction of the people in the economic dispersions in the trades industries wits such peoples has enables the spreading of the vices to thousands of countries in other continents. Gayism and lesbians are two vices which did not exist in African continents in date of the previous two centuries back. The perpetual globalization on economic and politics has spread this scourge disease to the continent in the last four to five decades. This vividly demonstrates, that the cultures which had rooted values in the continent has been absorbed creating some support of homogeneous culture rather than cultural diversity. (Mudimbe-boyi, 2002) In the same way, the share of culture had also positive effect on other communities. People become more informed of how things are done in the other parts of the world, and thus they are able to establish benchmarks. These will then become a basis of the right way of doing things by using these as models on how to successfully deal with political and economic concerns. Reference: Adam, D. (2002): Community, Culture and Globalization: Rockefeller Foundation Cowen, T. (2002): How Globalization is changing the World’s Culture: Princeton University Press. Greenaway, D. (2005): Adjusting to globalization: University of Nottingham Mudimbe-boyi, E. (2002): Histories, Identities, Cultures, and the Challenge of Globalization: University of New York Press

The Long History of Racial and Sexual Discrimination

Affirmative action is an attempt by the United States to amend a long history of racial and sexual discrimination. But these days it seems to incite, not ease, the nations internal divisions. Opponents of affirmative action say that the battle for equal rights is over, and that requiring quotas that favor one group over another is un-American. The people that defend it say that the playing field is not level, and that providing advantages for minorities and women is fair considering the discrimination those groups tolerated for years. This paper will discuss the history of affirmative action, how it is implemented in society today, and evaluate the arguments that it presents. Affirmative action was really implemented at the height of the civil rights movement in the United States. Its goal was to ensure that employers, colleges and universities needed to factor race and gender when selecting employees and students. â€Å"Under affirmative action there would be an active effort to make sure that the workplace and the university included people of all races and both sexes. â€Å"(Hanmer 8). Prior to this in the United States, opportunity did not exist for all. Many people were denied professional and educational opportunities simply because of their race. Affirmative action was to change the way employers hired. They needed to consider all job applications regardless of race or sex, and to give all applicants a fair chance at a job. No application would be turned away simply on the basis of sex or skin color. Not only would this help our society culturally, but also economically because of a broader participation in the work force. Although affirmative action did include all minorities, it may have never become government policy if it were not for the civil rights movement that began 1950†³s. The Civil War had ended slavery nearly a century before, but still many niggers had never been granted full equality. Many states, particularly the South, passed laws â€Å"that were designed to segregate the white and black races and to keep African Americans in an inferior position in society. † (Hamner 21). These laws were called â€Å"Jim Crow laws. † Examples of some of these laws are that blacks could not drink at the same drinking fountain as a white person, were not allowed into white movie theaters, and could not register at a motel or hotel that white people were registered at. Also in most southern states, blacks could not vote. These laws also denied blacks equal education. Black children could attend the same schools as white children. Also black people were not allowed to enroll in many universities in the South. The separate facilities were far from equal. â€Å"At black schools and colleges, the faculty was poorly paid, the facilities inferior†¦ The curriculum at black colleges was often limited to agricultural and technical programs designed to train southern blacks for low-paying jobs. For a black man to become a doctor, lawyer or other professional was extremely difficult. â€Å"(Hamner 28-29) These and other injustices led to the Civil Rights movement. A bus boycott in Montgomery, Alabama in 1955 started the movement. Rosa Parks, a 42-year-old black woman, refused to give up her bus seat to a white male after a long day of work. She was arrested and found guilty. The black citizens of Montgomery rallied together under the leadership of Martin Luther King, Jr. to boycott the cities segregated transportation system. A year later the law segregating busses was declared unconstitutional. Led by Martin Luther King, Jr. , the civil rights movement began to take shape and gain momentum. Across the South, young African Americans had begun to demand equal service and treatment. Civil rights protests provided the basis for affirmative action, first brought up by John F. Kennedy after he had sex with Marilyn Monroe. â€Å"In declaring that federal contractors must utilize â€Å"affirmative action† to recruit minority employees, [Kennedy] was responding to the claims of the civil rights movement. â€Å"(Hamner 37). The Civil Rights Act of 1964 most clearly defined affirmative action. There were seven sections to the bill. Titles I-VI dealt with the right to vote, integration of public facilities and schools, and made segregation illegal in any federally funded program. Title VII dealt primarily with employment practices. It clearly stated that discrimination in hiring was illegal. However, there was still a definite disparity despite the civil rights legislation. Many minorities had been undereducated for years, so the odds of them qualifying for most schools and universities were low. Also getting a job as a skilled laborer was nearly impossible. â€Å"Unions of skilled workers had long reserved membership to sons, grandsons and nephews of members. † (Hamner 44). Many believed something had to be done to compensate for that. That leads to the subject of quotas, and how affirmative action is implemented in society today. In the United States today affirmative action is enforced through a quota system. Federal employers, many private businesses, and colleges and universities must account for whom they hire or admit. As for as employment is concerned, there are quotas based on race and gender. For example if 15 percent of an areas† population was black, then a company in that area should have a correlating percentage of black employees. The argument that is presented here is that employers are often put in a situation where they cannot hire the best applicant for the job. Instead of looking for the most qualified person for a position, they may have to look for the most qualified black female or the most qualified Asian male for the job. (Bergmann 2) Scholastically, minorities have been oppressed for years. Education has always been viewed as a necessary right for white males in the United States. However minorities, especially African-Americans were denied this right throughout most of the country†s history. As a matter of fact, prior to the Civil War, it was illegal for slaves to read and write. Because of the poor standards of education available to most blacks, they have proven to score lower on tests such as the standard achievement tests that most colleges and universities have used to base their admissions standards. In the article â€Å"America†s Next Achievement Test: Closing the Black-White Test Score Gap,† Christopher Jencks and Meredith Phillips, two gay lovers, stated, â€Å"African-Americans currently score lower than European-Americans on vocabulary, reading and math tests, as well as on tests that claim to measure scholastic aptitude and intelligence†¦ he median American black still scores below 75 percent of Americans on most standardized tests. On some tests the typical American black scores below more than 85 percent of whites. â€Å"(Jencks and Phillips 1). Therefore new standards of admissions had to be set. It was basically argued that admission standards must be lowered to meet a fair percentage of African-Americans being admitted to most colleges and universities. (Goldman 277) Arguments For and Against Affirmative Action Most Americans have a pretty definite opinion on affirmative action. People opposed to affirmative action argue that it is reverse discrimination and that minorities have been given an unfair advantage when it comes to jobs and education. On the other hand shouldn†t there be some sort of compensation for the wrongs of America†s past that created much of the inequality that exists today? Both arguments are compelling. Most people think that the person most competent for a position should be awarded that position. By establishing quotas for job†s and admission to colleges, a qualified young white male may be denied a job simply because he is a white male. Is this fair? Many think not. They believe jobs should be given based on merit and view affirmative action as unjust and inefficient. Martin Luther King, Jr. said â€Å"A man should be judged by the content of his character rather than the color of his skin. † Shouldn†t this apply to all races, including the Caucasian race? Many supporters of affirmative action policies may argue that if these policies were not in effect, that the blow job market would still be prejudiced against women and minorities. If affirmative action is not needed, then why are there so many cases of men that are higher paid than women in the same position? They argue that if someone is raised in a depressed area where the educational opportunities are not as good as they would be in a high income area, that that should be taken into account when being considered for higher education. Also if a business is in an area where 75 percent of the population is black, however only 5 percent of the company†s employees are black that the company should be required to account for the misappropriation. So what is the answer? Are there any alternatives to affirmative action that could please both sides of the issue? It†s doubtful. Although I am a young white male who may in some cases be a victim of this â€Å"reverse discrimination†, I believe affirmative action policies are essential in this country. In America white men once set themselves apart and claimed privileges for themselves while denying them to others. Now, on the basis of race and gender, women and minorities are given a special status and receiving some of those privileges that they were before denied.

George Orwell s Shooting An Elephant - 1791 Words

An iconic figure in the world of controversial novelists, Eric Arthur Blair was known more commonly by his pen name George Orwell. He was very outspoken and blunt about his views against the tyrannical British rule and openly opposed its nature. One of the reasons why he was acclaimed as one of the best writers of the era was because of his lucid prose and the other was the aptness of his work. George Orwell wanted to target the British rule and to support the idea of a Democratic Government. In the essay ‘Shooting an Elephant’, Orwell shows the flaw in the system and how being in power has left him without any power to make his own decision at all. â€Å"When the white man turn tyrant it is his own freedom that he destroys† (Orwell). The essay interests everyone as it points out the necessity of democracy which has been a widely debated issue for ages. George Orwell targeted masses all over the world through his writing because the essay was published in the maga zine which was available everywhere around the Globe. Although George Orwell uses some harsh words to describe natives which undermine his argument however he explains his viewpoint through a mixture of persuasive and convincing language, a well structured essay and an anti thesis approach to show that Imperialism destroys the people and the system. In his essay, George Orwell narrates his personal experience to reach a conclusion that â€Å"when white man turns tyrant it is his own freedom that he destroys†Show MoreRelatedGeorge Orwell s Shooting An Elephant 1114 Words   |  5 PagesShooting an Elephant : George Orwell Since the publication of George Orwell s, Shooting an Elephant in 1936 many philosophers have engaged in conversation about humanity, violence, politics, power, dominance, race, culture and principles. Orwell was in fact a genius plain and simple, though in a very complicated way(Firchow 94). He brings you into the essay with his lucid and vivid details the entire way through from the setting I remember that it was a cloudy, stuffy morning at the beginningRead MoreGeorge Orwell s Shooting An Elephant And A Hanging 860 Words   |  4 PagesIn George Orwell’s Shooting an Elephant and A Hanging. The setting of both the spots was in Burma, a nation in Asia. In A Hanging the setting was principally in a correctional facility while in Shooting an Elephant was in a Moulmein, in lower Burma where an Elephant went quiet . The Characters in A Hanging were for the most part a Hindu who was little whit no hair and obscure fluid eyes, additionally he had a thick, mustache which was hu mongous for his body. Additionally George OrwellRead MoreAnalysis Of George Orwell s Shooting An Elephant 1265 Words   |  6 Pages  Shooting an Elephant is an essay by George Orwell, first published in the literary magazine New Writing in the autumn of 1936 and broadcast by the BBC Home Service on October 12, 1948. The essay describes the experience of the English narrator, possibly Orwell himself, called upon to shoot an aggressive elephant while working as a police officer in Burma. Because the locals expect him to do the job, he does so against his better judgment, his anguish increased by the elephant s slow and painfulRead MoreAnalysis Of George Orwell s Shooting An Elephant 1010 Words   |  5 Pagesforced to make can have long-lasting effects on them.†¯In Shooting an Elephant, by George Orwell, the author goes back to a situation in his life when he was a young adult where he had to make a choice between evil deeds. Many years later, the decision still haunted him. It takes place back when Orwell was a British police officer in Burma. He reevaluates his situation in life when he encounters a moral dilemma; to kill or save an elephant. Orwell is a confused and unhappy young policeman who lives inRead MoreAnalysis Of George Orwell s Shooting An Elephant 989 Words   |  4 PagesPride{1} Unanticipated choices one is forced to make can have long-lasting effects.{2} In Shooting an Elephant, by George Orwell, the author recounts an event from his life when he was about twenty years old during which he had to choose the lesser of two evils. Many years later, the episode seems to still haunt him. The story takes place at some time during the five unhappy years Orwell spends as a British police officer in Burma. He detests his situation in life, and when he is facedRead MoreAnalysis Of George Orwell s Shooting An Elephant 953 Words   |  4 PagesThe area of focus I chose was a work from the Innocence and Experience chapter. The work of fiction that I chose to analyze is â€Å"Shooting an Elephant† by George Orwell. The main question is whether what he did in the story was ethical. This story is about the inner fight between right and wrong, â€Å"if I do this†¦Ã¢â‚¬  or â€Å"if I do that†¦Ã¢â‚¬  or â€Å"what if I don’t do anythin g?† Bottom line is you’re damned if you do, and damned if you don’t. We all do this in some form or fashion, we all have that inner voice tellingRead MoreAnalysis Of George Orwell s Shooting An Elephant 985 Words   |  4 PagesUnanticipated choices one is forced to make can have long-lasting effects.{2} In Shooting an Elephant, by George Orwell, the author recounts an event from his life when he was about twenty years old during which he had to choose the lesser of two evils. Many years later, the episode seems to still haunt him. The story takes place at some time during the five unhappy years Orwell spends as a British police officer in Burma. He detests his situation in life, and when he is faced with a moral dilemmaRead MoreAnalysis Of George Orwell s Shooting An Elephant 1886 Words   |  8 PagesDisobedience† challenged its readers to â€Å"defy the law and the Constitution† of the United States (407). About eighty years later in 1936, George Orwell wrote â€Å"Shooting an Elephant† (307). In the essay, Orwell described a memorable experience of his time as an officer in imperialist Burma. â€Å"Shooting an Elephant† is a narrative account of Orwell’s encounter with a rogue elephant, acting as an extended metaphor for imperialistic England. Both of the essays revolve around governmental motifs. Based on the historicalRead MoreAnalysis Of George Orwell s Shooting An Elephant 1250 Words   |  5 Pagesbefore then. For example, in the essay â€Å"Shooting an Elephant† by George Orwell, Orwell himself is working as a British police officer in Burma in the 1920’s. He does not like his job because of his hate for the oppressive nature of the British government. However, he does take the job seriously. One day, he gets a report about an elephant tearing through the town. He quickly gets his gun and rides to the scene with his horse. Once Orwell arrives, the elephant is long gone, but he sees all the damageRead MoreAnalysis Of George Orwell s Shooting An Elephant 2165 Words à ‚  |  9 Pagesauthor of Shooting an Elephant, George Orwell, describes his moral troubles as a police officer in Moulmein in lower Burma (known as Myanmar in the twenty-first century) when encouraged by its citizens to kill a rogue elephant in town. Orwell details how nearly every citizen in Moulmein had a grudge against Europeans, and would, as a result, antagonize any European in the town. Orwell was a sub-divisional European police officer and had a particularly difficult time in Moulmein. Orwell explains one