Positivism and study of society

Positivism and study of society Positivism was named by Auguste Comte in 19th century, which was influenced by early empiricism of Enlightenment- with achieve the targets which include make objective knowledge and formulate the universal laws. The Rationalism also contributed positivism to improve the human conditions but not God (Smith, 2003, p76). Positivism has three development stages after it was mentioned- the early positivism, the logical positivism and standard positivism (Smith, 2003, p77). This essay will discuss the early positivism and logical positivism. As a branch of empiricism, the broader sense of positivism is the true knowledge which should be based on sense experiences, and only can be advanced by observation and experiment, avoided all metaphysical or speculation (Urmson, 1960). Another definition in this essay which should be introduced is the contributions of positivism. In this essay, contribution means the positivism how to create knowledge than before but not only focus on any positivistï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½s theory or the contributions in any specific subject. Positivism affected the studies of society since early 19th century to now although some people point out positivism is not fitting for the development of society nowadays (Smith, 2003, p76). In this essay, the contributions of positivism are how the positivism creates knowledge. The methodology of positivism was complete the theory of empiricism in Enlightenment. Based on positivism methodology, the closed system was implemented in study of society by Positivists. The critical evaluation of these contributions will be stated in every section. This essay will also state using modern sight to review the contributions of positivism. Early positivism contributed to create a framework of research method and the basic principles of positivism. After early positivism, ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½Vienna Circleï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ developed the thoughts and created logical positivism. Positivists followed the same thought to find truth out no matter which stage of positivism. All of them had contributions in history. As mentioned above, positivism is a branch of empiricism. Comparing with empiricism in Enlightenment, the biggest contribution of positivism is complete the methodology on empiricism and lead the positivism nearly regard to scientific spirit today (Heidegren, 2006, p92). Through this methodology, new scientific methods will be completed and applied on social science. The ontology of positivism methodology is the world is external and objective, and the observers should be independent and be neutral in the researches (Smith, 2003). Under this situation, the epistemology of positivism is building hypothesises and then to find the relationships between limited facts in social phenomena, and formulate universal laws at last (Smith, 2003). Be ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½neutralï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ and ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½objectiveï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ were positivists insert in the positivism methodology and affect the whole society. Take an instance for the contribution of ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½neutralï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ and ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½objectiveï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ in positivism is the positivist approach in criminology. Before the positivism, criminal suspects could prove their own criminal behaviours and this lead some criminal suspects were suffering and had to admit the behaviours which were not existed. However, positivists thought this was not humanistic and criminal suspects should be avoid from evidences, that means the criminal suspects cannot prove their own criminal behaviours (Simon, 2006). However, the contribution of ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½neutralï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ and ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½objectiveï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ has been questioned. For example, legal positivism has begun to be questioned in recent years. Priel pointed out ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½Legal positivism is the thesis that one does not need to rely on evaluative considerations in order to identify what the law isï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ in his essay (2006). He had the question about the validity and content of legal positivism (Priel, 2006). Based on the positivism methodology, early positivists completed the scientific methods. As a representative of philosophers in Enlightenment, Bacon created ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½science of methodï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½, there were three steps in the scientific method. First, making observations and repeat the observations, which were based on experiments. Secondly, classify the observations. Finally, formulating the observations to laws through inductive reasoning (Porter, 2007, p21-22). Comte and Durkheim inherited the scientific method and completed this scientific method to six steps, 1) make an observation, 2) suggest a question, 3) formulate a hypothesis and except outline, 4) testing the hypothesis through experiment method, 5) to analyse the data and 6) formulate a universal law (Cohen el al, 2007). Positivism completed the procedure of scientific method, inserted ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½hypothesisï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ and ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½experimentï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½. ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½Hypothesisï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ in scientific method was the speculations of relationships between factors- the causes and effects (Cohen el al, 2007). The ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½experimentï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ means to make a test in a controlled artificial environment which had small number of variables, this system was named closed system and which will be discussed later (Smith, 2003). Hypothesis is not only the speculation of the research, but also the key of the research. Positivists mentioned this notion of hypothesis and lead the scientific method to become complete and more validity. Basically, the research is built on hypothesis, no matter in natural science or social science. For example, scientific method is applied in natural science such as biology, chemistry, physics, and other else. In social science, scientific method is also applied widely, such as economy, legal system, psychology and other subjects. Figure 1 is a good example to show the hypothesis has became one of the most important links in economic study. Applying the closed system in social science is another contribution of the early positivism, as the notion of ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½experimentï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ which is mentioned above. Before the positivism, people only applied scientific method in natural science. Comte and Durkheim believe the social science is similar as natural science and closed system can be applied and the truth and law in social science will be found. This thought provided a model for studying the social science and made people create more knowledge about the society. There are three closures in the closed system- experimental closure, theoretical closure, and statistical closure. Experimental closure is through the experiment methods in an artificial environment to get an empirical purpose (Smith, 2003). This kind of closure is usually applied in psychology and other similar subjects. Theoretical closure is usually building theory models to analyse the relationships between variables (Smith, 2003). Theoretical closure has been applied in economy widely. For example, economists anticipate the trend of national economy through the theory models. The last closure is statistical closure which means finding relationships between different variables through quantitative measurable data sets (Smith, 2003). This closure is used in economy, psychology, political science and other subjects widely. For example, customer satisfaction investigation, examination of electoral results and so on. Early positivists let people study and understand society better through applied scientific method and closed system in study of social science and tried to obtain definite objective knowledge. However, some disadvantages are existed when positivists applying scientific method and closed system in study of social science. There are too many other unpredictable variables exist outside of the boundary of closed system which can affect the results (Smith, 2003). In addition, some social variables cannot be measurable such as beliefs and scientific method maybe not suitable for this situation (Bryman Bell, 2007). Logical positivism is a development of early positivism and appeared in early 1920s (Smith, 2003). A group of philosophers who had informal discussions at the University of Vienna and they were named ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½Vienna Circleï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ (Smith, 2003). The logical positivism was promoted by ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½Vienna Circleï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½, the centre of the logical positivism was still avoid any kind of metaphysics and speculative attempts (Smith, 2003). According to Ganguly (1967), logical positivism is a kind of the empiricism which with a premise that the objects can be verifiable empirically and meaningful. Comparing with early positivism, logical positivism has ambition to all knowledge which cannot be verified (Smith, 2003). One of the contributions of logical positivism is the meaning of the theory should be communicable. Logical positivists proposed achieve this target through synthetic and analytic statement (Ganguly, 1967). Ayer was a famous positivist who contributed much in logical positivism, and he pointed out that the language which was used in science should simple, clear and free from mystification (Ganguly, 1967). Smith pointed out that this proposal ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½led many to refer to this new approach as the ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½linguistic turnï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ in the philosophy of the social sciences.ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ (2003) Another contribution of logical positivism is logical positivists provide verifiability principle. Combining with induction in logical positivism, logical positivists believed the real value-free could be achieved (Ganguly, 1967). Before the logical positivism, researches were based on designersï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ purposes, therefore, the researches would be disturbed by designersï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ opinions although they tried to avoid that. For example, in some marketing satisfaction investigations, the questionnaire will bring researchers subjective and leading the answers. Some theories such as physics theories which cannot be experiment directly should be proved by logic methods. Logical positivists tried to make absolute objective topic and find the real objective truth. Their strict method and serious scientific spirit lead people to treat natural and social sciences carefully, and the real truth can be found without any subjective. However, some experts pointed out there are problems on logical positivism. First, the language requirement of logical positivism makes people confuse about the truth. Indeed, it is hard to translate the language because this doctrine defined the language so exactly (Ritchie, 2009). Secondly, the logical positivists mentioned the knowledge should be verifiable and logical, however, some theories is hard to be proved but people cannot say that is metaphysics (Ritchie, 2009). Positivism contributed so much in history and still influencing the philosophies and study of natural and social sciences today. Positivists provided useful framework in its period and helped people to collect knowledge. Positivism is an ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½extremeï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½ philosophy which oppose to interpretivism, however, it is the time to combine them together to develop new framework for study of society (Ricciardi, 2009). As mentioned above, some weaknesses are existed when positivists applied scientific method and closed system in social sciences and obtained the knowledge, such as some hide variables are ignored by closed system when studying social sciences. Under this situation, the validity of the research will be questioned and it is not follow the principles of positivism. Therefore, new framework or new philosophy should be created to solve this problem and replace the positivism. To sum up, positivism was mentioned in early 19th century, Comte and Durkhaim were the founders of the positivism. The purpose of positivism is finding the absolute objective true knowledge, different stage of positivism followed this thought and tried best to avoid metaphysics and subjective. Early positivists who were influenced by empiricism in Enlightenment and completed the positivism methodology, new completed scientific method was created based on this situation. Early positivists developed the closed system and enhance the development of sciences as well. Furthermore, early positivists applied scientific method and closed system in study of society, this helped people to understand the world better in that period, although some disadvantages were exist, such as some variables in society were ignored. Vienna Circle developed the thoughts and methods in early positivism and created logical positivism. They applied more strict principles to find the objective truth. The most imp ortant contributions of logical positivism were using exactly accurate language to describe the theories and verifiable principle. These lead the sciences to be objective and more accurate. However, the weaknesses are still in logical positivism, for example, using exactly language will bring the barriers in communication in different languages. As the development of philosophy and sciences, positivism emerge more and more weakness and will be replaced by other new philosophies. Positivism has depth influence in history and the contributions cannot be eliminated. Bibliography Bryman, A. Bell, E. (2007) Business research methods, published by Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2nd Ed, 2007 Cohen, L., Manion, L. Morrison, K. (2007) The Scientific Method, Research methods in education, published by Routledge, New York, in 2007 Ganguly, S. (1967) Logical positivism- as a theory of meaning, published by Allied Publishers Private Limited, India, in 1967 Heidegren, CG (2006) Positivism before Logical Positivism in Nordic Philosophy, The Vienna Circle in the Nordic Countries, published by Springer, published in 2006 Porter, D. (2007) Baconï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½s Method and Coleridgeï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½s Empiricism, Knowledge broken: Empiricist method and the forms of Romanticism, Presented to the Faculties of the University of Pennsylvania in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy, published in 2007 Priel, D. (2006) TROUBLE FOR LEGAL POSITIVISM?, Legal Theory, Published by Cambridge University Press, published in 12/2006, p225-263 Ricciardi, F. (2009) Epistemology of Information Systems: Time for Something New? Positivism, Interpretivism, and Beyond, Information Systems: People, Organizations, Institutions, and Technologies, published on 03/10/2009 Ritchie, A. (2009) Errors of Logical Positivism, Philosophy, Vol: 12 Issue: 45, published in 02/2009 Simon, J (2006) Positively Punitive: How the Inventor of Scientific Criminology Who Died at the Beginning of the Twentieth Century Continues to Haunt American Crime Control at the Beginning of the Twenty-First, Texas Law Review, Vol: 84, Issue: 7, published in 06/2006, [accessed on 09/03/2010] Smith, M. (2003) Social science in question, edited, designed, and typeset by The Open University, published in 1998, reprinted 2002 and 2003 Urmson, O. (1960) The concise encyclopedia of western philosophy and philosophers, Urmson, O. edited, publisher: HUTCHINSON CO. London

Effective inroduction Essay

This essay will be assessing how this section forms an effective introduction to the play. Firstly Miller sets the scene. He begins with describing ‘the backyard of the Keller home, in the outskirts of an American town. ‘ (pg 3) Automatically from this we gather that the play is an American drama. Evidently if you had read previous playwrights by Miller or know his Nationality you would have all ready established the fact of an American play. If not then with-in the first line you are well informed. Next he states the particular time of year in which the play is set â€Å"august of our era† (pg 3) this suggests the weather would be â€Å"beautiful? Not a cloud† (pg 4). It also even goes into further detail informing you of the date and time â€Å"early Sunday morning† (pg 3) He then progresses into describing the house and garden here we can already begin to guess the state, and class of the family. â€Å"The house is two stories high, and has seven rooms† (pg 3. ) He then describes the arrangement of the garden. â€Å"Garden chairs and a table are scattered around† (pg 3) this is very affective as we can imagine a clear picture of where the main conversations and drama will take place. The atmosphere is very cheerful and friendly and suggests that the Keller’s are a popular family. This contrasts later on in the play, when we find out they dint always used to be a popular family due to Joe’s jail incident, and the fact that the neighbour thought he was a ‘murderer. ‘ Also the biggest contrast would be at the end of the play when the tension wouldn’t be calm anymore, instead it is full of resentment by Chris towards Joe, full of guilt on Joe’s behalf, and finally after Joe’s suicide the mood it is upsetting and dramatic. The characters are then introduced; Joe, Chris, and the neighbours. Joe’s character’s first impression is under educated. â€Å"To see what people want you know? † (pg 4/5), and from the stage directions at the beginning of act one: â€Å".. terrible concentration of the uneducated man†(page 3. ) also He asks Dr Bayliss if Frank is: â€Å"Talking sense†(pg 6) this suggests he don’t understand him, This shows us he doesn’t understand people’s ideas, and has a very narrow view of people’s jobs and lively-hoods â€Å"wanted old dictionaries†¦ what’s a man going to do with an old dictionary? † (pg 5) This links into him being very money motivated and materialistic. He cares about money a great deal and values everything by it’s monetary value: â€Å"You mean he’ll make a living out of that? â€Å"(pg 5.) Also we know Joe is very proud and takes good care of his business, this is proven when Miller sets the scene talks about the house â€Å"cost fifteen thousand in the early twenties when it was built† (introduction pg 2) this suggests the house is only about 28-30 years old, as it was built in the twenties, and this play was written around two years of WWII ending in 1945. Meaning Keller has bought this house, and is able to provide and support his family indicating he is a good at his job, and a wealthy business man this is backed up later in the book when he talks to Kate about how he was â€Å"put out† (pg 72) at ten and made to earn for a living. Overall Joe has come from a poorer background, and has managed to work himself up the social ladder. He is not just a serious business man, he is kind and friendly, popular with Bert a young boy he often plays detective games with. Chris is Joe’s son who is introduced on page 9. Together Joe and Chris have a conversation where Ann (Chris’s wife to be as we find out later on in the play) people describe her as a â€Å"beautiful girl† she is seen as mysterious, which draws in the audience. Also Kate (Joe’s wife and Chris’s mother) who is seen as optimistic and living in hope are referred to, however at the start of Act Three there is a contrast between Kate’s idealism and Jim’s practicality. â€Å"you’re so childish Jim† showing she thinks he nai ve and immature. This starts the build up of tension in Act Three. Miller describes Chris as a â€Å"man capable of immense affection and loyalty† (pg 9 stage directions) Before the character even speaks the audience already gets a feel that Chris is going to be the ‘good-guy’ in the play. The other characters introduced are Dr Jim Bayliss our first impression of Jim is that he cynical and realistic when talking to Keller about the rain he says he doesn’t believe in the papers â€Å"then it cant† (pg 4) Hr is critical and sarcastic of the weather. Jim is very against his son being a doctor â€Å"over my dead body† (pg 6) this shows he doesn’t enjoy his profession and we find out later that he had tried to follow his ambition helping humanity, but he couldn’t afford to provide for his family. â€Å"I would love to help humanity on a Warner Brother’s salary† (pg 7) Again another person who is realistic about money, already we get an impression that one of the themes of the play is money and materialism. This also parallels Joes actions, both men have had to compromise their occupation, and had to do things they regret to earn a living. However there is a huge contrast at the start of Act Three. Jim realizes moneys not everything â€Å"money. Money-money-money-money, you say it long enough it doesn’t’ mean anything† (pg 69) This is a sub-plot in the play. But could this need for money all be down to his wife sue? Sue comes in just as Jim talks about â€Å"not a damn thing to look at in the neighbour hood† (pg 7) an awkward moment to introduce a new character but miller purposely picked this so automatically we can get an idea of Sue and Jim’s uneasy relationship. Sue comes across as jealous â€Å"she enjoys it more when you tell her to lay down† (pg 7) implying one of her husbands clients fancies him. Her jealously is seen more stronger later on in the play when she speaks to Ann about trying to convince Chris in moving away, she can be quite harsh and nasty. She is very money obsessed. This is effectual.

Red Bull Situational Analysis - 769 Words

Red Bull is a privately owned company, producing and distributing the Red Bull energy drink to more than 165 countries worldwide. The company was founded by Dietrich Mateschitz in Austria in 1984 and launched Red Bull onto the Austrian market in 1987. Since then more than 35 billion cans of Red Bull have been consumed. Red Bull employs over 8,900 people throughout the world, its corporate headquarters are located in Fuschi am See, Austria. (N/A, 2012). This report focuses specifically on the New Zealand distribution and marketing of this product. Red Bull New Zealand Ltd. is the local unit of the international giant that is Red Bull. In 2010 Kiwi’s bought $30.3 million of Red Bull, this was up 7.5% from the previous year. In the†¦show more content†¦(Underhill, 2011). Red Bull as a product has many strengths, which increase buyer demand. Buyers feel the physical need to buy Red Bull such as when they are feeling sleepy behind the wheel of a car. Socially people feel the need buy Red Bull because of the many extreme sports red bull associates itself with. Red Bull receives a lot of publicity throughout the media, mainly to do with health issues. This causes controversy over the drink, and is considered a weakness. The media often report that Red Bull is unhealthy and damages your body. The media often targets parents, telling them that it is harmful for teenagers and children. This being Red Bulls target market has a very negative impact on the company. Potentially there are some future threats for Red Bull. Generation Y, their target market will before long grow older. This raises some concerning questions. Will generation Y still buy Red Bull when they have out grown Red Bulls target market? Will Red Bull be able to develop marketing strategies that will persuade the upcoming generation? Or will they find something else? 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The Divine Comedy And Dantes Inferno - 1079 Words

In the Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus is viewed as a brave and virtuous hero by most people, especially the Greeks. However, the poet Dante Alighieri shares a much different view within his book The Divine Comedy: Inferno. Dante was born and raised in Italy and therefore had a natural hate for everything Greek related. The Inferno was written thousands of years after the Trojan war, and yet Dante still had a burning grudge against the Greeks for the way in which they defeated the Romans. Dante also validated his hatred by claiming he had family ties to the ancient Romans. In The Inferno, the main character Dante meets with the Roman poet Virgil who was one of Dante’s biggest influences. Virgil guides Dante deep into the circles of hell and†¦show more content†¦In other words, Ulysses shortly realized after returning home from his ten-year adventure that being home was not what made him happy; it was experiencing the world and gaining knowledge through crazy adventures at sea. After spending most of his life on these crazy adventures, he realized that staying at home and doing nothing makes him bored. While many people would admire and celebrate Ulysses’ superheroic character, Dante saw this as irresponsible adventure seeking. Perhaps Dante believed that Ulysses took his family for granted and was immoral for choosing not to spend the rest of his life with them. Dante’s opinion on Ulysses’ character was likely influenced by his tragic love life experiences at youth. Maybe Dante losing his childhood dream girl Beatrice at a young age made him believe that people should spend as much time as possible with loved ones and cherish those moments. In Dante’s eyes, Ulysses was seen as a bad and cold-hearted person for choosing journey and adventure over love and family. About half a millennium after Dante’s Inferno, the British poet Alfred Lord Tennyson wrote a personal narrative from Ulysses that takes place before his final voyage after killing the suitors. This narrative serves to fill in the gap of the story between the end of Homer’s Odyssey and the beginning of Dante’s Inferno. In this poem titled â€Å"Ulysses,† Tennyson chooses to embrace the parts of Ulysses’ character thatShow MoreRelated Divine Comedy - The Trinity in Dantes Inferno Essay2097 Words   |  9 PagesThe Trinity in The Inferno      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Dantes Inferno, itself one piece of a literary trilogy, repeatedly deploys the leitmotif of the number three as a metaphor for ambiguity, compromise, and transition. 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New Developments in Management Accounting - 2268 Words

â€Å"The past 15 years have seen a series of new developments within Management Accounting to meet the ever changing needs of the organisation in the light of rapidly changing technologies†. The following will focus on new techniques and developments used in Management Accounting over the last 15 years, by looking at their origins and apparent necessity leading to their introduction within industry. Each development will be assessed individually providing its background, initiation, impact on the business environment and numerical examples of them in action, where appropriate. The developments will be Activity Based Costing (ABC), Throughput accounting (TA) and Just in Time (JIT). Activity Based Costing ABC is a developed costing system†¦show more content†¦Next the ‘cost driver’ needs to be established for each activity, commonly looked upon as the reason for the indirect cost to occur and be linked to the job, almost a variable cost of sorts, however it won’t necessarily be variable, it maybe semi-variable, either way it is seen as the major cause of the cost being incurred. Finally the finishing costs are assigned to activities based on the products demand per each activity, the higher the demand, the higher the cost. Here is an example of ABC in action: ABC Example COST CENTRE COSTS 250000 BROKEN DOWN INTO: VOLUME  £60,000 PURCHASING  £130,000 SET-UP  £60,000 ADDITIONAL INFO DIRECT LABOUR HOURS  £25,000 TOTAL PURCHASE ORDERS  £5,000 TOTAL NUMBER OF SET-UPS  £600 TOTAL MACHINE HOURS  £50,000 PER PURCHASE ORDER PLACED  £26 PER SET-UP  £100 PER VOLUME  £1.20 Therefore with product XYZ, we can allocate the indirect overheads like this: Basic information could be: MACHINE HOURS 100 LABOUR 150 SET-UPS 1 PURCHASE ORDERS 25 The overhead is made up of 3 aspects Purchase Order + Set-up + Productivity / volume Purchase order 25 X  £26 =  £650 Set-up 1 X  £100 =  £100 Productivity / volume 100 X  £1.20 =  £120  £870 Therefore total indirect overhead recoveredShow MoreRelatedResearch on the Influence of Informatization1698 Words   |  7 Pages 1 Research on The Influence of Informatization On The Accounting Theories and Practices and Real-time Control in China Yang Lu Fairleigh Dickinson University RESEARCH ON THE INFLUENCE OF INFORMATIZATION 2 Abstract The 21st century is an information age of rapid development and the computer is more and more widely used in every country. 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Lamb The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal Chapter 5 Free Essays

string(37) " might take the whole end of it off\." Chapter 5 Well, it worked, I finally got the angel to leave the room. It went like this: Raziel called down to the front desk and asked him to send Jesus up. A few minutes later our Latin pal stood at attention at the foot of the angel’s bed. We will write a custom essay sample on Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal Chapter 5 or any similar topic only for you Order Now Raziel said, â€Å"Tell him I need a Soap Opera Digest.† In Spanish, I said, â€Å"Good afternoon, Jesus. How are you today?† â€Å"I am well, sir, and you?† â€Å"As good as can be expected, considering this man is holding me prisoner.† â€Å"Tell him to hurry,† said Raziel. â€Å"He doesn’t understand Spanish?† Jesus asked. â€Å"Not a word of it, but don’t start speaking Hebrew or I’m sunk.† â€Å"Are you really a prisoner? I wondered why you two never left the room. Should I call the police?† â€Å"No, that won’t be necessary, but please shake your head and look apologetic.† â€Å"What is taking so long?† Raziel said. â€Å"Give him the money and tell him to go.† â€Å"He said he is not allowed to buy publications for you, but he can direct you to a place where you can purchase them yourself.† â€Å"That’s ridiculous, he’s a servant, isn’t he? He will do as I ask.† â€Å"Oh my, Jesus, he has asked if you would like to feel the power of his manly nakedness.† â€Å"Is he crazy? I have a wife and two children.† â€Å"Sadly, yes. Please show him that you are offended by his offer by spitting on him and storming out of the room.† â€Å"I don’t know, sir, spitting on a guest†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I handed him a handful of the bills that he’d taught me were appropriate gratuities. â€Å"Please, it will be good for him.† â€Å"Very well, Mister Biff.† He produced an impressive loogie and launched it at the front of the angel’s robe, where it splatted and ran. Raziel leapt to his feet. â€Å"Well done, Jesus, now curse.† â€Å"You fuckstick!† â€Å"In Spanish.† â€Å"Sorry, I was showing off my English. I know many swear words.† â€Å"Well done. Spanish please.† â€Å"Pendejo!† â€Å"Splendid, now storm out.† Jesus turned on his heel and left the room, slamming the door behind him. â€Å"He spit on me?† Raziel said, still not believing it. â€Å"An angel of the Lord, and he spit on me.† â€Å"Yes, you offended him.† â€Å"He called me a fuckstick. I heard him.† â€Å"In his culture, it is an affront to ask another man to buy a Soap Opera Digest for you. We’ll be lucky if he ever brings us a pizza again.† â€Å"But I want a Soap Opera Digest.† â€Å"He said you can buy one just down the street, I will be happy to go get one for you.† â€Å"Not so fast, Apostle, none of your tricks. I’ll get it myself, you stay here.† â€Å"You’ll need money.† I handed him some bills. â€Å"If you leave the room I will find you in an instant, you know that?† â€Å"Absolutely.† â€Å"You cannot hide from me.† â€Å"Wouldn’t dream of it. Hurry now.† He sort of shuffled sideways toward the door. â€Å"Don’t try to lock me out, I’m taking a key with me. Not that I need it or anything, being an angel of the Lord.† â€Å"Not to mention a fuckstick.† â€Å"I don’t even know what that means.† â€Å"Go, go, go.† I shooed him through the door. â€Å"Godspeed, Raziel.† â€Å"Work on your Gospel while I’m gone.† â€Å"Right.† I slammed the door in his face and threw the safety lock. Raziel has now watched hundreds of hours of American television, you’d think he would have noticed that people wear shoes when they go outside. The book is exactly as I suspected, a Bible, but written in a flowery version of this English I’ve been writing in. The translation of the Torah and the prophets from the Hebrew is muddled sometimes, but the first part seems to be our Bible. This language is amazing – so many words. In my time we had very few words, perhaps a hundred that we used all the time, and thirty of them were synonyms for guilt. In this language you can curse for an hour and never use the same word twice. Flocks and schools and herds of words, that’s why I’m supposed to use this language to tell Joshua’s story. I’ve hidden the book in the bathroom, so I can sneak in and read it while the angel is in the room. I didn’t have time to actually read much of the part of the book they call the New Testament, but it’s obvious that it is the story of Joshua’s life. Or parts of it, anyway. I’ll study it later, but now I should go on with the real story. I suppose I should have considered the exact nature of what we were doing before I invited Maggie to join us. I mean, there is some difference between the circumcision of an eight-day-old baby boy, which she had seen before, and the same operation on the ten-foot statue of a Greek god. â€Å"My goodness, that is, uh, impressive,† Maggie said, staring up at the marble member. â€Å"Graven image,† Joshua said under his breath. Even in the moonlight I could tell he was blushing. â€Å"Let’s do it.† I pulled a small iron chisel from my pouch. Joshua was wrapping the head of his mallet with leather to deaden its sound. Sepphoris slept around us, the silence broken only by the occasional bleat of a sheep. The evening cook fires had long since gone to coals, the dust cloud that stirred through the city during the day had settled, and the night air was clean and still. From time to time I would catch a sweet whiff of sandalwood coming from Maggie and I would lose my train of thought. Funny the things you remember. We found a bucket and turned it upside down for Joshua to stand on while he worked. He set the tip of my chisel on Apollo’s foreskin and ventured a light tap with the mallet. A tiny fragment of marble flaked away. â€Å"Give it a good whack,† I said. â€Å"I can’t, it will make too much noise.† â€Å"No, it won’t, the leather will cover it.† â€Å"But I might take the whole end of it off. You read "Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal Chapter 5" in category "Essay examples"† â€Å"He can spare it,† Maggie said, and we both turned to her with our mouths hanging open. â€Å"Probably,† she added quickly. â€Å"I’m only guessing. What do I know, I’m just a girl. Do you guys smell something?† We smelled the Roman before we heard him, heard him before we saw him. The Romans covered themselves with olive oil before they bathed, so if the wind was right or if it was an especially hot day you could smell a Roman coming at thirty paces. Between the olive oil they bathed with and the garlic and dried paste of anchovies they ate with their barley, when the legions marched into battle it must have smelled like an invasion of pizza people. If they’d had pizzas back then, which they didn’t. Joshua took a quick swipe with the mallet and the chisel slipped, neatly severing Apollo’s unit, which fell to the dirt with a dull thud. â€Å"Whoops,† said the Savior. â€Å"Shhhhhhhh,† I shushed. We heard the hobnails of the Roman’s boots scraping on stone. Joshua jumped down from the bucket and looked frantically for a place to hide. The walls of the Greek’s bathhouse were almost completed around the statue, so really, except for the entrance where the Roman was coming, there was no place to run. â€Å"Hey, what are you doing there?† We stood as still as the statue. I could see that it was the legionnaire that had been with Justus our first day in Sepphoris. â€Å"Sir, it’s us, Biff and Joshua. Remember? The kid from the bread?† The soldier moved closer, his hand on the haft of his half-drawn short sword. When he saw Joshua he relaxed a bit. â€Å"What are you doing here so early? No one is to be about at this hour.† Suddenly, the soldier was yanked backward off of his feet and a dark figure fell on him, thrusting a blade into his chest over and over. Maggie screamed and the figure turned to us. I started to run. â€Å"Stop,† the murderer hissed. I froze. Maggie threw her arms around me and hid her face in my shirt as I trembled. A gurgling sound came from the soldier, but he lay still. Joshua made to step toward the murderer and I threw an arm across his chest to stop him. â€Å"That was wrong,† Joshua said, almost in tears. â€Å"You are wrong to kill that man.† The murderer held his bloody blade up by his face and grinned at us. â€Å"Is it not written that Moses became a prophet only after killing an Egyptian slave driver? No master but God!† â€Å"Sicarii,† I said. â€Å"Yes boy, Sicarii. Only when the Romans are dead will the Messiah come to set us free. I serve God by killing this tyrant.† â€Å"You serve evil,† Joshua said. â€Å"The Messiah didn’t call for the blood of this Roman.† The assassin raised his blade and came at Joshua. Maggie and I leapt back, but Joshua stood his ground. The assassin grabbed him by the front of his shirt and pulled him close. â€Å"What do you know of it, boy?† We could clearly see the murderer’s face in the moonlight. Maggie gasped, â€Å"Jeremiah.† His eyes went wide, with fear or recognition, I don’t know which. He released Joshua and made as if to grab Maggie. I pulled her away. â€Å"Mary?† The anger had left his voice. â€Å"Little Mary?† Maggie said nothing, but I could feel her shoulders heave as she began to sob. â€Å"Tell no one of this,† the murderer said, now talking as if he were in a trance. He backed away and stood beside the dead soldier. â€Å"No master but God,† he said, then he turned and ran into the night. Joshua put his hand on Maggie’s head and she immediately stopped crying. â€Å"Jeremiah is my father’s brother,† she said. Before I go on you should know about the Sicarii, and to know about them, you have to know about the Herods. So here you go. About the time that Joshua and I were meeting for the first time, King Herod the Great died after ruling Israel (under the Romans) for over forty years. It was, in fact, the death of Herod that prompted Joseph to bring his family back to Nazareth from Egypt, but that’s another story. Now you need to know about Herod. Herod wasn’t called â€Å"the Great† because he was a beloved ruler. Herod the Great, was, in fact, a fat, paranoid, pox-ridden tyrant who murdered thousands of Jews, including his own wife and many of his sons. Herod was called â€Å"the Great† because he built things. Amazing things: fortresses, palaces, theaters, harbors – a whole city, Caesarea, modeled on the Roman ideal of what a city should be. The one thing he did for the Jewish people, who hated him, was to rebuild the Temple of Solomon on Mount Moriah, the center of our faith. When H. the G. died, Rome divided his kingdom among three of his sons, Archelaus, Herod Philip, and Herod Antipas. It was Antipas who ultimately passed sentence on John the Baptist and gave Joshua over to Pilate. Antipas, you sniveling fuckstick (if only we’d had the word back then). It was Antipas whose toady pandering to the Romans caused bands of Jewish rebels to rise up in the hills by the hundreds. The Romans ca lled all of these rebels Zealots, as if they were all united in method as well as cause, but, in fact, they were as fragmented as Jews of the villages. One of the bands that rose in Galilee called themselves the Sicarii. They showed their disapproval of Roman rule by the assassination of Roman soldiers and officials. Although certainly not the largest group of Zealots by number, they were the most conspicuous by their actions. No one knew where they came from, and no one knew where they went to after they killed, but every time they struck, the Romans did their best to make our lives hell to get us to give the killers up. And when the Romans caught a Zealot, they didn’t just crucify the leader of the band, they crucified the whole band, their families, and anyone suspected of helping them. More than once we saw the road out of Sepphoris lined with crosses and corpses. My people. We ran through the sleeping city, stopping only after we had passed through the Venus Gate, where we fell in a heap on the ground, gasping. â€Å"We have to take Maggie home and get back here for work,† Joshua said. â€Å"You can stay here,† Maggie said. â€Å"I can go by myself.† â€Å"No, we have to go.† Joshua held his arms out to his sides and we saw the bloody handprints the killer had left on his shirt. â€Å"I have to clean this before someone sees it.† â€Å"Can’t you just make it go away?† Maggie asked. â€Å"It’s just a stain. I’d think the Messiah could get a stain out.† â€Å"Be nice,† I said. â€Å"He’s not that good at Messiah stuff yet. It was your uncle, after all†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Maggie jumped to her feet. â€Å"You were the one who wanted to do this stupid thing†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Stop!† Joshua said, holding his hand up as if he were sprinkling us with silence. â€Å"If Maggie hadn’t been with us, we might be dead now. We may still not be safe when the Sicarii realize that three witnesses live.† An hour later Maggie was home safe and Joshua emerged from the ritual bath outside the synagogue, his clothes soaked and rivulets running out of his hair. (Many of us had these mikvehs outside of our homes – and there were hundreds outside the Temple in Jerusalem – stone pits with steps leading down both sides into the water so one might walk in over one’s head on one side, then out on the other after the ritual cleansing was done. According to the Law, any contact with blood called for a cleansing. Joshua thought it would be a good opportunity to scrub the stain out of his shirt as well.) â€Å"Cold.† Joshua was shivering and hopping from foot to foot as if on hot coals. â€Å"Very cold.† (There was a small stone hut built over the baths so they never got the direct light of the sun, consequently they never warmed up. Evaporation in the dry Galilee air chilled the water even more.) â€Å"Maybe you should come to my house. My mother will have a breakfast fire going by now, you can warm yourself.† He wrung out the tail of his shirt and water cascaded down his legs. â€Å"And how would I explain this?† â€Å"Uh, you sinned, had an emergency cleansing to do.† â€Å"Sinned? At dawn? What sin could I have done before dawn?† â€Å"Sin of Onan?† I said. Joshua’s eyes went wide. â€Å"Have you committed the sin of Onan?† â€Å"No, but I’m looking forward to it.† â€Å"I can’t tell your mother that I’ve committed the sin of Onan. I haven’t.† â€Å"You could if you’re fast.† â€Å"I’ll suffer the cold,† Joshua said. The good old sin of Onan. That brings back memories. The sin of Onan. Spilling the old seed on the ground. Cuffing the camel. Dusting the donkey. Flogging the Pharisee. Onanism, a sin that requires hundreds of hours of practice to get right, or at least that’s what I told myself. God slew Onan for spilling his seed on the ground (Onan’s seed, not God’s. God’s seed turned out to be my best pal. Imagine the trouble you’d be in if you actually spilled God’s seed. Try explaining that). According to the Law, if you had any contact with â€Å"nocturnal emissions† (which are not what come out of your tailpipe at night – we didn’t have cars then), you had to purify yourself by baptism and you weren’t allowed to be around people until the next day. Around the age of thirteen I spent a lot of time in and out of our mikveh, but I fudged on the solitary part of penance. I mean, it’s not like that was going to help the problem. Many a morning I was still dripping and shivering from the bath when I met Joshua to go to work. â€Å"Spilled your seed upon the ground again?† he’d ask. â€Å"Yep.† â€Å"You’re unclean, you know?† â€Å"Yeah, I’m getting all wrinkly from purifying myself.† â€Å"You could stop.† â€Å"I tried. I think I’m being vexed by a demon.† â€Å"I could try to heal you.† â€Å"No way, Josh, I’m having enough trouble with laying on of my own hands.† â€Å"You don’t want me to cast out your demon?† â€Å"I thought I’d try to exhaust him first.† â€Å"I could tell the scribes and they would have you stoned.† (Always trying to be helpful, Josh was.) â€Å"That would probably work, but it is written that ‘when the oil of the lamp is used up, the wanker shall light his own way to salvation.'† â€Å"That is not written.† â€Å"It is too. In, uh, Isaiah.† â€Å"Is not.† â€Å"You need to study your Prophets, Josh. How are you going to be the Messiah if you don’t know your Prophets?† Joshua hung his head. â€Å"You are right, of course.† I clapped him on the shoulder. â€Å"You’ll have time to learn the Prophets. Let’s cut through the square and see if there are any girls gathering water.† Of course it was Maggie I was looking for. It was always Maggie. By the time we got back to Sepphoris the sun was well up, but the stream of merchants and farmers that normally poured through the Venus Gate was not there. Roman soldiers were stopping and searching everyone who was trying to leave the city, sending them back the way they came. A group of men and women were waiting outside the gate to go in, my father and some of his helpers among them. â€Å"Levi!† my father called. He ran to us and herded us to the side of the road. â€Å"What’s going on?† I asked, trying to look innocent. â€Å"A Roman soldier was murdered last night. There will be no work today, now you both go home and stay there. Tell your mothers to keep the children in today. If the Romans don’t find the killer there’ll be soldiers in Nazareth before noon.† â€Å"Where is Joseph?† Joshua asked. My father put his arm around Joshua’s shoulder. â€Å"He’s been arrested. He must have come to work very early. They found him at first light, near the body of the dead soldier. I only know what has been shouted from inside the gate, the Romans aren’t letting anyone in or out of the city. Joshua, tell your mother not to worry. Joseph is a good man, the Lord will protect him. Besides, if the Romans thought he was the killer he would have been tried already.† Joshua backed away from my father in stiff, stumbling steps. He stared straight ahead, but obviously saw nothing. â€Å"Take him home, Biff. I’ll be along as soon as I can. I’m going to try to find out what they’ve done with Joseph.† I nodded and led Joshua away by the shoulders. When we were a few steps down the road, he said, â€Å"Joseph came looking for me. He was working on the other side of the city. The only reason he was near the Greek’s house is that he was looking for me.† â€Å"We’ll tell the centurion we saw who killed the soldier. He’ll believe us.† â€Å"And if he believes us, believes it was Sicarii, what will happen to Maggie and her family?† I didn’t know what to say. Joshua was right and my father was wrong, Joseph was not fine. The Romans would be questioning him right now, maybe torturing him to find out who his accomplices were. That he didn’t know anything would not save him. And a testimony from his son not only wouldn’t save him, but would send more people to the cross to join him. Jewish blood was going to be spilled one way or the other over this. Joshua shook off my hands and ran off the road into an olive grove. I started to follow, but he suddenly spun on me and the fury of his gaze stopped me in midstride. â€Å"Wait,† he said. â€Å"I need to talk to my father.† I waited by the road for nearly an hour. When Joshua walked out of the olive grove he looked as if a shadow had fallen permanently on his face. â€Å"I am lost,† he said. I pointed over my shoulder. â€Å"Nazareth that way, Sepphoris the other way. You’re in the middle. Feel better?† â€Å"You know what I mean.† â€Å"No help from your father, then?† I always felt strange asking about Joshua’s prayers. You had to see him pray, especially in those days, before we had traveled. There was a lot of strain and trembling, like someone trying to force a fever to break by sheer will. There was no peace in it. â€Å"I am alone,† Joshua said. I punched him in the arm, hard. â€Å"Then you didn’t feel that.† â€Å"Ouch. What’d you do that for?† â€Å"Sorry, no one around to answer you. You’re soooooooo alone.† â€Å"I am alone!† I wound up for a full-body-powered roundhouse punch. â€Å"Then you won’t mind if I smite the bejeezus out of you.† He threw up his hands and jumped back. â€Å"No, don’t.† â€Å"So you’re not alone?† â€Å"I guess not.† â€Å"Good, then wait here. I’m going to go talk to your father myself.† I tramped off into the olive grove. â€Å"You don’t have to go in there to talk to him. He is everywhere.† â€Å"Yeah, right, like you know. If he’s everywhere then how are you alone?† â€Å"Good point.† I left Joshua standing by the road and went off to pray. And thus did I pray: â€Å"Heavenly Father, God of my father and my father’s father, God of Abraham and Isaac, God of Moses, who did lead our people out of Egypt, God of David and Solomon – well, you know who you are. Heavenly Father, far be it from me to question your judgment, being as you are all powerful and the God of Moses and all of the above, but what exactly are you trying to do to this poor kid? I mean, he’s your son, right? He’s the Messiah, right? Are you pulling one of those Abraham faith-test things on him? In case you didn’t notice, he’s in quite a pickle here, having witnessed a murder and his stepfather under arrest by the Romans, and in all likelihood, a lot of our people, who you have mentioned on more than one occasion are your favorites and the chosen (and of which I am one, by the way) are going to be tortured and killed unless we – I mean he – does something. So, what I’m saying here is, could you, much as you did with Samson when he was backed into a corner weaponless against the Philistines, throw the kid a bone here? â€Å"With all due respect. Your friend, Biff. Amen.† I was never very good at prayer. Storytelling, I’m fine with. I, in fact, am the originator of a universal story that I know has survived to this time because I have heard it on TV. It begins: â€Å"Two Jews go into a bar†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Those two Jews? Me and Josh. No kidding. Anyway, I’m not good at prayer, but before you think I was a little rough on God, there’s another thing you need to know about my people. Our relationship with God was different from other people and their Gods. Sure there was fear and sacrifice and all, but essentially, we didn’t go to him, he came to us. He told us we were the chosen, he told us he would help us to multiply to the ends of the earth, he told us he would give us a land of milk and honey. We didn’t go to him. We didn’t ask. And since he came to us, we figure we can hold him responsible for what he does and what happens to us. For it is written that â€Å"he who can walk away, controls the deal.† And if there’s anything you learn from reading the Bible, it’s that my people walked away a lot. You couldn’t turn around that we weren’t off in Babylon worshiping false gods, building false altars, or sleeping with unsuitable women. (Although the latter may be more of a guy thing than a Jewish thing.) And God pretty much didn’t mind throwing us into slavery or simply massacring us when we did that. We have that kind of relationship with God. We’re family. So I’m not a prayer-master, so to speak, but that particular prayer couldn’t have been that bad, because God answered. Well, he left me a message, anyway. As I emerged from the olive grove, Joshua held out his hand and said, â€Å"God left a message.† â€Å"It’s a lizard,† I said. It was. Joshua was holding a small lizard in his outstretched hand. â€Å"Yes, that’s the message, don’t you see?† How was I to know what was going on? Joshua had never lied to me, never. So if he said that this lizard was a message from God, who was I to dispute him? I fell to my knees and bowed my head under Josh’s outstretched hand. â€Å"Lord have mercy on me, I was expecting a burning bush or something. Sorry. Really.† Then to Josh, I said, â€Å"I’m not so sure you should take that seriously, Josh. Reptiles don’t tend to have a great record for getting the message right. Like for instance, oh, let’s see, that Adam and Eve thing.† â€Å"It’s not that kind of message, Biff. My father hasn’t spoken in words, but this message is as clear as if his voice had come down from the heavens.† â€Å"I knew that.† I stood up. â€Å"And the message is?† â€Å"In my mind. When you had been gone only a few minutes this lizard ran up my leg and perched on my hand. I realized that it was my father giving me the solution to our problem.† â€Å"And the message is?† â€Å"You remember when we were little, the game we used to play with the lizards?† â€Å"Sure I do. But the message is?† â€Å"You remember how I was able to bring them back to life.† â€Å"A great trick, Josh. But getting back to the message†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Don’t you see? If the soldier isn’t dead, then there was no murder. If there was no murder, then there is no reason for the Romans to harm Joseph. So all we have to do is see that the soldier is not dead. Simple.† â€Å"Of course, simple.† I studied the lizard for a minute, looking at it from a number of different angles. It was brownish green and seemed quite content to sit there on Joshua’s palm. â€Å"Ask him what we’re supposed to do now.† How to cite Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal Chapter 5, Essay examples

Reasons For Euthanasia Essay Example For Students

Reasons For Euthanasia Essay The word euthanasia is derived from the Greek word eu for good and thantos which means death and originally referred to intentional mercy killing. But the word it euthanasia has acquired a more complex meaning in modern times. Proponents of euthanasia believe that a dying patient has the right to end their suffering and leave the world in a dignified manner. Those who contest euthanasia believe that man does not have the right to end another persons life no matter what pain they endure.Euthanasia is one of the most important public policy issues being debated today. The outcome of debate will profoundly affect family relationships, interaction between doctors and patients, and concepts of basic morality. The word euthanasia has acquired a complex meaning in modern times. There are several types of euthanasia and one must define them in order to avoid confusion. Passive euthanasia is the process of hastening the death of a person by withdrawing some form of support and letting nature take its course. Such a act would include removing life-support equipment, stopping medical procedures, stopping food and water and allowing the person to die. Active euthanasia involves causing the death of a person through a direct action in response to request from that person. This is also called mercy killing. Physician assisted suicide is the process of a physician supplying information and or the means of committing suicide to a patient. This would include writing a prescription for a lethal dose of sleeping pills or providing the patient with carbon monoxide gas. Euthanasia has been practiced in some form or another by many societies in our history. In ancient Greece and Rome helping others to die our putting them to death was considered permissible in some situations. In the Greek city of Sparta all newborns with severe birth defects were left to die. Voluntary euthanasia for the elderly was approved custom in several ancient societies. Although euthanasia is widely practiced in the Netherlands it remains technically illegal. In 1995 Australias Northern Territory approved a euthanasia bill. It went into effect in 1996 and was overturned by the Australian parliament in 1997. One may ask, what is the difference between euthanasia and assisted suicide? In euthanasia one person does something that directly kills another. For example a doctor gives a lethal injection to a patient. It assisted suicide, a person knowingly and intentionally provides the means or in some way helps a suicidal person killed himself or herself. For example, a doctor wri tes a prescription for poison, or someone who hooks up a face mask to a canister of carbon monoxide and then instructs the suicidal person on how to push a lever so that they will be gassed to death. For all practical purposes, any distinction between euthanasia and assisted suicide has been abandoned today. However passive euthanasia is different than other types of euthanasia. Passive euthanasia is the process of hastening the death of a person by withdrawing some sort of treatment. This includes removing life-support, stopping medical procedures and medications, stopping food and water to the patient and thus allowing him to die. Or not delivering C P R or other resuscitating treatment and allowing the person whose heart has stopped to die. Perhaps the most common form of passive euthanasia is to give a patient at large doses of morphine to control pain, in spite of the likelihood of the painkiller suppressing respiration and causing death earlier that it would otherwise have. Ma ny states in the United States and other countries engage in this type of passive euthanasia to what is known as a health-care proxy or do not resuscitate order. These procedures are usually performed on the terminally ill, suffering patients, so that natural death will occur sooner. It is also opted for persons in a persistent vegetative state, individuals with massive brain damage or in a coma from which they cannot possibly regain conscious. .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23 , .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23 .postImageUrl , .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23 , .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23:hover , .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23:visited , .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23:active { border:0!important; } .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23:active , .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23 .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u2e9bb19c6e7e25e08f125c4ca088cf23:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Have You Ever Seen Anything In Your Life That Just Seemed To Good To B EssayDuring the 20th century, major scientific and medical advances have greatly enhance the life expectancy of the average person. There are however many diseases that cannot be cured by modern medicine. Such diseases like AIDS, terminal cancer, multiples scalrosis. These conditions remain a certain death sentence. These diseases leave the patient in a constant state of pain sometimes lasting many weeks or months. There are however other reasons why a person may feel euthanasia is appropriate. These reasons include the patient feels that the their quality of life has shrunk to zero, they feel the indig nities of being cared for as if they were and infant, including being diapered and fed by nurses. Others simply want to die with the dignity before they become sick. Such an example would be a person was diagnosed with Alzheimers disease and would like to end their life before serious dementia overtakes their living. These people feel that they would rather die in full mind and body rather to let themselves live a few more years in a vegetative state or with debilitating dementia that does not allow them to recognize their closest family. Proponents of euthanasia believe that the patient has the right to end their life when it is known that there will not be any recovery and death is imminent. They believe that a human being has the right to die in dignity and a painless death rather than suffer endlessly knowing full well that they will not recover. Those are anti-euthanasia state many reasons for their position. One reason is because euthanasia is contrary to Judeo-Christian ethic s. Many religious groups within Christian, Muslim, Jewish and other religions believe that God gave life and therefore only God should take away a.life. Suicide would then be considered as a rejection of Gods sovereignty and loving plan. They feel that we are all masters of our own lives, but thats suicide should never be an option. Many other faith groups believe that human suffering can have a positive value for the terminally ill person and for their direct family. A Roman Catholic document mentions that some people prefer to moderate their use of painkillers, in order to accept voluntary at least a part of their sufferings and thus associate themselves in a conscious way with the sufferings of Christ at the time of crucifixition. Some Jews feel that pain and suffering in this world acts as atonement for sinss and transgressions and may benefit them in entering the world to come. The two main arguments offered by Christians and other religious groups are the following: life is a gift from God and that each individual is a gift. Thus only God can start a life and only God should be allowed to end it.Also, God does not send us any experience that we cannot handle. God supports people and suffering. To actively seek an end to ones life would represent a lack of trust in God. Those who are pro euthanasia offer the following arguments: each person has autonomy over their own life. If a persons quality of life is nonexistent, they should have the right to decide to commit suicide, and to seek assistance if necessary. Sometimes a terminal patients pain can cause an unbearable burden, death can represent a relief of intolerable pain. When one discusses euthanasia we must understand that this is a legal view. By passing legislation that allows euthanasia were getting the right to doctors and patients to end their lives. We will be allowing euthanasia to become a procedure practiced in the hospital or hospice. In the end it will just be a matter of procedure such as a blood transfusion or operation. One must ask, by denying the legislation of euthanasia are we in fact denying a person to end their life? The answer to this is no. People do have the power to commit suicide. Suicide and attempted suicide are not criminalized. Each and every year, and the United States alone, there are more suicides than homicides. Suicide is a tragic, individual act. There are several books on the subject of suicide such as Derek Humphreys Final Exit. Organizations such as the Hemlock Society have been established to give information on patients interested in ending their own lives. Euthanasia is not about a private act. Its about letting one-person facilitate the death of another. Euthanasia is not about giving rights to the person who dies, it is about changing law and public policy so that doctors, relatives and others can directly and intesinaly end another persons life. This change would not give rights to the person who is killed, but to the person who does the killing. In other words, euthanasia is not about the right to die. Its about the right to kill. Bibliography: