Instrument of oppression Essay Example for Free

Instrument of oppression Essay To what extent is any state an instrument of oppression. (50 marks) Anarchism holds the primary view that the state oppresses its citizens. They believe that we are all capable of living together peacefully in a society without authority. According to anarchists, the state is oppressive because humans are naturally free and equal but the state takes this away from them and therefore oppresses them. The belief is that true freedom can only be obtained with the abolishment of the state and the rejection of power. Furthermore, the fact that we did not consent to the state (we were simply born into it) then we have no political obligation to obey the laws and uphold their society. Two other main views that the state can be an instrument of oppression are held by Marxists and Liberalists. The Marxist view is that the superstructural features of the state (e.g. legal and political institutions, social consciousness, morality, religion etc.) only serve the interest of the dominant class and reinforce the oppressive power structures. Furthermore, Liberalism states that the role of the state should be limited to protecting the life, liberty and property of the individuals (Locke’s Law of Nature) and this can only be achieved when the state is a neutral umpire in affairs. If the state ever goes beyond this then its power becomes oppressive. The anarchists criticise the state by saying that it is, by its nature, authoritarian, it employs centralised power structures and claims a monopoly on legitimate violence (this means that if anyone else apart from the state were to use violence to, for example, protect themselves then this is classed as illegitimate and they can be punished for this). Anarchism outlines the following reasons as to why the state should be abolished and replaced by social organisations: the state is sovereign and claims complete authority to define the rights and obligations of the citizens, the state is compulsory and all citizens are forced to oblige and the state is a distinct body (which means that its roles and functions are separated from others) and those who make up the government tend to form a distinct class. This forms the most fundamental reason why the state should be abolished with is that the state violates and undermines liberty. One could argue that the state is useful because they provide protection from individuals against  others and co-ordinate productive work. Furthermore, Hobbes puts forward the view that because human nature is naturally egotistic, anarchy would give free reign to exploit each other and that without laws human society would descend into a war of all against all with everyone serving their own interests and not co-operating. However, anarchists argue that for both of these essential functions, we do not need the state. We need some form of collective body or bodies, but these need not claim sovereignty and need no more power than what is required for their specific function. They can be voluntary, with people allowed to join or leave as they choose. There need not be just one body providing these functions as these could be competition between associations and they could be run by everybody together. Overall, the anarchist view is not entirely convincing. They seem to have misunderst ood human nature and think too highly of how humans would behave and co-operate with a governing body to direct them. Marxism holds a similar view of the state as an instrument of oppression but proposes another way around this. It states that the state and its superstructural features only serve the interests of the dominant class and it reinforces oppressive power structures. They believe that liberal and conservative ideological justifications of the state only reflect the dominant class’s interests. Marxists believe that oppression stems from exploitation. They say that the state exploits its subjects in two main ways: it extracts profit from workers by paying them less wages than what their labour is worth and they alienate individuals from the means of production, products of their labour and any sense of community or private ownership. They believe that this stops genuine freedom and therefore the state becomes oppressive. Furthermore, the exercise of political power is against our natural rights. We all have natural right to freedom which the state removes. Nobody can justly subordinate to another’s authority without their consent and since we were either born into the state and therefore did not ask to be involved and do not have to obey the laws or because no state can obtain the consent of all the citizens then its use of power must therefore be illegitimate and oppressive. The solution proposed by Marxists is that of communism. Pure communism states that there will be no state, no money, no private property and no crime. They believe that humans are  malleable and can grow, develop and realise their potential through their relationships with each other. The view is that humans will live co-operatively in a society without the state. However, Marxism seems to have an idealistic view of human nature and misunderstands that people would not work together and live peacefully. Furthermore, history has shown us that communism simply doesn’t work as a leader will always be needed to start a revolution and from then on they will become the state which we would have consented to and therefore would not be oppressive. Overall, the Marxist view makes good points on how the state is oppressive but the alternative of communism would simply bring us around to a state that we have consented to through our support of the revolution and therefore this state would not be oppressive. Liberalism believes that the state should be limited to protecting the life, liberty and property of individuals (Locke’s Law of Nature). They propose that the state should become a neutral umpire which is only there to stop you causing harm to others. Anything beyond this and the state becomes oppressive. The state becomes oppressive when it legislates within the private sphere (e.g. when it becomes concerned with our moral improvement, when it adopts a paternalistic concern for the welfare of the citizens, when it over-regulates the economy or when it outlaws freely chosen economic transactions. They believe that the use of coercion by the state goes beyond what is needed to ensure good order as their laws are excessive and punitive. Furthermore, the way that the state intervenes in the private life of its citizens (by, for example, criminalising private affairs such as drug use) means that it does not act as a neutral umpire and is oppressive because it restricts the individuals freedom to do what they want with their private life. In conclusion, the state is naturally oppressive to the individual’s freedom and the fact that we haven’t consented to it yet still have to follow its laws further restricts this. However, the alternatives to the state would not work (as history has shown us with Marxism, for example). Furthermore, Hobbes seems to have an accurate view on human nature (that we are all self-interested) and therefore, regardless of whether the state is  oppressive, we need it to protect us from harming each other. In this sense, the state is not oppressive because it actually protects our life, liberty and property (even if we haven’t consented to it and do not want to live by its rules it is still there to help us).

Overview of Cryptographic Techniques

Overview of Cryptographic Techniques Gunasekaran, Priya Dharshini Cryptographic Techniques The backbone of many organization is the electronic communications. Most of the information are communicated online. Hence the important informations are to be maintained confidentially. To maintain the highly confidential information, a secure and robust system is required. Som and Banerjee (2013, p. 1) states that â€Å"Cryptography is the science of making communication unintelligible to everyone except the intended receiver(s).† Message secrecy and reliability, sender verification are the main feature provided by cryptography. The major functionality of cryptography are encryption and decryption. Encryption is a process of changing the simple text into a cipher text. Decryption is the reverse process, changing the cipher text into a simple readable text. The encryption and the decryption are processed based on the key shared between the sender and the receiver. Sender uses the key to encrypt the information, whereas the receiver uses the key to decrypt the encrypted inform ation. Kester and Danquah says that symmetric and asymmetric are the two main cryptographic algorithms. Symmetric key algorithm exchanges the public key which is used to encrypt and decrypt the message. Asymmetric algorithm provides more security than the symmetric algorithm since it uses both public and private keys for generating the cipher text. Various cryptographic techniques have been discovered based on the symmetric and asymmetric algorithms. This paper discuss the three major cryptographic techniques, square matrix algorithm, public key exchange algorithm using matrix, and asymmetric key algorithm using arithmetic equations. The most basic cryptographic technique is square matrix algorithm. Som and Banerjee says that in this technique the data is placed in the square matrix as in Figure 1 (2013, p. 1). The authors says that a matrix is considered based on the size of the simple text and the letters in the simple text are placed diagonally in the matrix (2013). Som and Banerjee explains that the key is generated by adding the position values of the letters in the diagonal position (p. 1).The author explains that the letters in the square are read serially and the position values are added with the key value obtained. Som and Banerjee says that for the each of the position value obtained the chipper text is generated (p. 2). Som and Banerjee explains this algorithm taking the simple text as â€Å"DIFFERENTIATIONS† (p. 2). Figure 1. Plain text are placed into a square matrix (Som, Banerjee, 2013, p. 2) Som and Banerjee describes that the key is generated as addi ng the position value of ‘D’, position value of ‘E’, position value of ‘T’, position value of ‘S’ which results as 38, the value of the each letters are like A being1 up to Z being 26 (2013, p. 2). Som and Banerjee states that the intermediate chipper text generated by adding the key value with the each of the position value is â€Å"PURQRQZMDFFAUUZE† as in Figure 2 (p. 2). Figure 2. The matric table of the intermediate cipher text (Som, Banerjee, 2013, p. 2) According to Som and Banerjee intermediate chipper text is converted into binary form and the sub sectioned (2013, p. 3). Som and Banerjee says that the binary converted data is combined with the next set of blocks (p. 3). This procedure is followed for all the sub sectioned blocks. In this way the each of the block is formed resulting in the actual cipher text. In this example the actual cipher text is 640 680 656 2592 2624 2592 180 152 24159191040 20401094936 70 260 680 680 720 517. Som and Banerjee explain that the decryption of the cipher is converting the number into its binary form (p. 3). The authors also explains that the binary data is then divided into a set of blocks and the individual letter for the each block is obtained (2013). Som and Banerjee states that the plain text is obtained by subtracting the position value of the intermediate text with the shared key value (2013). This method is one of the easiest method to secure the information. Public key exchange algorithm using matrix is another cryptographic techniques. Kester explains the algorithm with help of two parties A and B. According to Kester an individual private key will be chosen for the parties A and B as APVK and BPVK respectively (2012). The author syas that the public key of the party A and B, APUK and BPUK is obtained from the private key using an algorithm, considering the algorithm being CGN as shown in the Figure 3 and Figure 4 respectively (2012). Figure 3. Public key generation for the party A (Kester, 2012, p. 79) Figure 4. Public key generation for the party B (Kester, 2012, p. 79) Kester also says that the public key, APUK and BPUK, is shared between both the parties (2012, p. 79). According to author the private key is not exchanged between the parties (2012, p. 79). Kester describes that the plain text is encrypted by the party A and sent to party B (2012, p. 79). The author also says that the encryption is performed using the private key of party A and the public of the party B, since the public is shared with the party A (2012). Kester explains that the encrypted text is sent to the party B (2012, p. 79). Kester states that the message received by party B is decrypted using the private key of the party A (2012, p.79). The author describes that the public key is primarily used for authentication and private keys are used for encryption (2012). According to Kester, â€Å"The decryption of the message of a particular cipher text will only be possible if and only if the message sent is intended to be read by that recipient† (2012, p. 80). This algorithm is the basic functionality for all encryption and decryption methods. Asymmetric key algorithm using arithmetic equations is a mathematical cryptographic technique. According to Kester and Danquah (2012, p. 71), the intermediate cipher text is generated using twelve equation and the main cipher text is generated using the shared key. Kester and Danquah state that there are two keys for a complete cryptographic procedure which are public key for authentication, private key for encryption and decryption (2012). Kester and Danquah describes that a software was developed based on the public key and the private key (2012). Kester and Danquah also states that only eight string of data can be used by the software (2012). Therefore this algorithm is explains the method to generate the chipper text using the software. According to Kester and Danquah, a constant value a chose between which below the number of letter of the plain text (2012).The authors state that the public key if the indivual part is generated by applying the mod function on the constant value (2012). The authors also say that the private key is any value chose below the number of letter in the plain text (2012). The authors state that the cipher text is generated using on the private and the public keys using the mod function (2012). The authors state that the public key is shared between two users and the private key is generated for individual users (2012, p. 71). Kester and Danquah says that the decryption is the reverse process of the encryption following the algorithm form the step 12 to the step 1 (2012). The authors also say that the public generated id unique for sender and the receiver and is dependent on the private key of the sender and the receiver (2012, p. 72). Kester and Danquah state that â€Å"The cipher for the public key from the private key and vice versa depends on the function used to generate keys† (2012, p. 73). This algorithm is an arithmetic cryptographic techniques generating the cipher text based on the position of the text place. Square matrix algorithm, public key exchange algorithm using matrix, and asymmetric key algorithm using arithmetic equations are the three major cryptographic techniques. They are several different cryptographic methods to secure the message delivered through the internet. Mukesh and Subashini says that biometric algorithm has been implemented widely and is proved that the data is secured effectively (2012, p. 19). References Kester, Q. A., (2012). A Public-Key Exchange Cryptographic Technique using Matrix, IEEE, 978-1-4673-4789-1/12, 78-81. Kester, Q. A., Danquah, P., (2012). A Novel Cryptographic key technique, IEEE, 978-1-4673-4789-1/12, 70-73. Mukesh, R., Subashini, V. J., (2012). Fingerprint based Authentication system using threshold visual cryptographic technique, IEEE, IBSN: 978-81-909042-2-3, 16-19. Som, S., Banerjee, M., (2013). Cryptographic Technique by Square Matrix and Single Point Crossover on Binary Field, IEEE, 978-1-4673-2821-0/12, 106.

Portrayal Of Women In Chronicle Of Death English Literature Essay

Portrayal Of Women In Chronicle Of Death English Literature Essay Women, generally play many roles in their lives and their portrayal of their character differs from different narratives. We see various personalities of women characters in the novel chronicle of a death foretold and the Theban play Antigone. The main characters I would be analyzing are Antigone, Ismene and Angela Vicario. Although ancient Greece was a male dominated society, Antigone written by Sophocles portrays women as being strong and capable of making wise decisions on their own without any support from men. In this famous tragedy, Sophocles uses the characters Ismene and Antigone to show the different characteristics and roles that woman is typical of interpreting. Traditionally women are characterized as weak and inferior and Ismene is portrayed in this way. Through the character of Antigone, women finally get to present realistic viewpoints about their character. The stereotypes presented in this tragedy address many perspectives of men at this time. Antigones spirit is filled with bravery, passion and rebellion; which allow her to symbolize the very essence of women. She is strong enough to do what her conscious tells her despite the laws of the land, set by the king. Many examples in the play prove that Antigones character is very capable of making her own decisions in the name of justice. First, Antigone opposes Creons law and buries her brother Polyneices because in her mind it wasnt right to accept this discrimination. She does this because she is compassionate and loves her brother very much. Creon believes that his laws must be obeyed and would do anything to prevent any type rebelling against them, especially by a woman. He is even more infuriated when he learns that a woman has broken his laws, this was highly an unexpected task done by a woman, this showed that the woman were portrayed as weak characters incapable of even thinking to break the laws set by the land. Secondly, Antigone shows how determined she is by accepting her consequences with pride. She does not try to hide that she is responsible for breaking Creons laws; moreover, she takes all the credit for her doings. All the while she maintains her strength because she truly believes in her actions. These sorts of actions ultimately prove that Antigone is courageous and willing to stand up to men, which was completely against the norm at this time. Her spirit refuses to submit to the role of a helpless woman like her sister Ismenes character does. Ismene is described to be a coward and refuses to help her sister because she feared men. Her character is a close representation of the viewpoints of the male gender regarding women. She is subordinate and weak-willed. She refuses to stand up to Creon due to her fears even though in her heart she knows that his laws are morally wrong and unacceptable. This type of behavior in famous works of art is very common for women to behave like this. Ismene proclaims, We are only women, we cannot fight with men, Antigone! this proves that she is unwilling to do the right thing if it means standing up to a man. Another example of how cowardly Ismene is portrayed is when she tries to take credit for burying her brother with Antigone. She is so scared that she will be left all alone without Antigone that she is willing to die with her. Then when he realizes she had no part in the crime does he describes her as, .she never had a mind at all. (Sophocles, pg.208) The play is also filled with instan ces of a sexist male viewpoint. Creon states,1If we must lose, lets lose to a man, at least. Is a woman stronger than we? This is evidence that Creon does not see women as equals to men. He feels that women have no rights to break the laws and therefore, must be punished for their irrationality. He eventually realizes that he has offended the Gods with his actions as ruler of Thebes. It is not until his own wife kills herself because of his tyranny against humanity does he realize his mistakes. This is way too late to redeem his lost loved ones or take back his disrespect toward women. The Greek tragedy Antigone by Sophocles is one of the dramatic plays that display the different roles women play in society. The two sisters Ismene and Antigone portray major female characteristics. While Antigone plays the role of a strong and sensible woman, Ismene portrays the typical submissive and mild role. The character of Creon demonstrates through his tyrant rule, the sexist male viewpoint of the ancient Greek world. This play proves that gender disparity has always been present in society since many centuries ago. In the novel chronicle of a death foretold the main female character we encounter in the book is Angela Vicario, who is the bride of the groom named Bayardo san Roman. She is in many ways one of the main characters in the story, and has the strongest narrative voice. In addition, she is center of the mystery that the narrator is trying to unravel, since she is the only one who knows whether or not Santiago was truly the one who took her virginity, and she remains mysterious at the end of the story because she never reveals whether or not he was guilty.

The Psychological Journey of the Narrator in Atwood’s Surfacing Essay

The Psychological Journey of the Narrator in Atwood’s Surfacing  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   In Surfacing, a novel by Margaret Atwood, the narrator undertakes three basic journeys: a physical quest to search for her lost father, a biographical journey into her past, and most importantly a psychological journey. The psychological journey allows the narrator to reconcile her past and ultimately leads to the conclusion of the physical journey. In this psychological voyage into her innerself, the narrator, while travelling from cognizant rational reasoning to subconscious dissociated reality progresses through three stages. In the first stage, the narrator is in touch with reality; she lives and exists in a state of mind known in Freudian psychology as the Ego. The Ego is defined as "the element of being that consciously and continuously enables an individual to think, feel and act." (Barnhardt, 667). The ego is based on a reality principle, in which, a person reacts in "realistic ways that will bring long term pleasure rather than pain or destruction" (Meyers, 414). The narrator's inability to cope with disagreeable thoughts such as her father's possible death is evidenced early in the novel. The narrator states: "nothing is the same, I don't know the way anymore. I slide my tongue around the ice cream, trying to concentrate on it, they put seaweed in it now, but I'm starting to shake, why is the road different, he shouldn't have allowed them to do it, I want to turn around and go back to the city and never find out what happened to him. I'll start crying, that would be horrible, none of them would kno w what to do and neither would I. I bite down into the cone and I can't feel anything for a minute but the knife-hard pain up the side of my face... ...to reality: "The lake is quiet, the trees surround me, asking and giving nothing" (Atwood, 224). Thus, the narrator has completed a psychological journey from snaeness to madness and then again in a fullcircle, travelling through three distinct stages: the Ego, the Superego, and the Id. The narrator by completing the psychological journey into the subconscious is able to resolve the biographical and physical journeys. Therefore, with the past and present conflicts resolved, it can be most likely assumed that the narrator will assimilate herself back into reality. She may have a chance to become human again. Works Cited Atwood, Margaret. Surfacing. Simon and Schuster: New york, 1972 Barnhardt, Clarence L. Ed. The World Book Dictionary, Field Enterprises Publishing Co: Chicago, 1975. Meyers, David. Psychology. Worth Publishing:U.S.A., 1992   

Teacher-Student Relationship :: Democratic Education, teaching, teachers

Discussing the teacher-student relationship, Freire (1995) advocates that liberating education consists in acts of cognition, not transfers of information (p. 57). Throughout the text, he classifies two kinds of educational ideologies—the banking concept of education and â€Å"problem-posing† education. In the book, he lists several characteristics of banking theory. He argues that one feature of this educational ideology is that the teachers work as narrators in the classroom, which leads students to memorize mechanically the narrated content (1995, p. 53), and eventually turn students into receptacles and depositories. Apart from inquiry, this ideology projects an absolute ignorance onto others (1995, p. 57). As a result, banking theory and practice minimize students’ creative power and to stimulate their credulity servers the interest of the oppressors who neither to have the world revealed nor to see it transformed (1995, p. 58). On the other hand, taking th e people’s historicity as the starting point, problem-posing education emphasizes the equal and positive relationship between teachers and students, in which teachers are no longer the ones who teach, but ones who are in dialogues with the students who in turn while being taught also teachers (1995, p. 65). In line with Freire’s belief, Greene, in 1988, writes from a more specific perspective, suggesting that teaching for â€Å"conscientization† is an awareness that might make injustice unendurable (p. 6). He maintains that teachers should overcome internalized oppression, in order to teach not only what they believe, but also teach for the sake of arousing the kinds of vivid, reflective and experiential responses that might motivate students to come together to understand what social justice actually means (1988, p. 3). Providing a more specific situation, he asserts that teaching for social justice demands openings to all sides: to that of persons desirous of telling their stories or picturing them in some fashion; to that of new comers striving to make sense of the very notion of consensus or mutuality; to that of children and young people, familiar with the languages used at home (not standard English) or with the language of the street (1988, p. 16). This article makes me recall my prior educational experiences in China where people value teaching and guiding base on textbook contents. It is also being used in Chinese family education. Students perceive knowledge by listening to what the parents have told them and by reading textbooks which parents ask them to read.

Assignment Organizational Behavior Essay

Situational Leadership provides a simple and logical framework with four basic decision-making styles – authoritative, consultative, facilitative, and delegative. Briefly describe these styles and describe when they are appropriate to use. Our textbook states that authoritative decision-making style, â€Å"applies in situations where the manager has the necessary experience and information to reach a conclusion and followers do not possess the ability, willingness, or confidence to help† (p. 295). This would be appropriate when you are the only source of information or expertise. According to p. 296 of our textbook, consultative decision-making styles are a â€Å"valuable strategy when the manager recognizes that the followers also possess some experience or knowledge of the subject and are willing but not yet able to help†. This style is appropriate when there is more time to make a decision on important issues and requires input from people who can be directly impacted by those decisions. Facilitative decision-making, as stated on p. 96 of our textbook as well, â€Å"is a cooperative effort in which manager and followers work together to reach a shared decisions†. This approach would be useful when dealing with an able, but not confident follower. Delegative decision making, covered on p. 297 of our textbook, is used â€Å"when follower high in readiness who have the experience and information needed to make the proper decision or recommendation†. This style is appropriate when â€Å"the manager can look forward to a high level of performance by saying, ‘You know this subject. Work on it and let me know what you come up with’† (p. 297).

Edna come back from amrecia Essay

What do you think motivates Muriel to identify June as Edna? Does she act on the spur of the moment when she sees June at the water’s edge, or has she been searching for some time for someone who can solve her problems for her? Do you think she really believes that June is Edna? Muriel has been searching for some time for someone who can solve her problems for her because she was at her wits ´ end, but when June appeared Muriel understood that June was the perfect person to take care her family members who were mentally ill. To illustrate, her brother was a violent alcoholic, her niece was a mentally ill girl and her mother had Alzheimer ´s. There are many facts to support that supposition. First, June was left with nothing by Alastair ´s wife, and then when she was on the train on her way to the place where she had once been happy with her father, a friendly youth had stolen her handbag with all her belongings, so June did not have any documents which would identify her. This suspicious fact I think was prepared by Muriel. Second, perhaps Muriel had been following her because she knew that June was homeless without money and hopes. Coincidently, June was going to commit suicide when Muriel suddenly had appeared like her rescuer to offer June her help, and also she told her that she was Edna who had been in America. Third, in Muriel ´s house June was introduced to Ted, Muriel ´s husband, who studied June seriously and closely as if she was an examination paper before giving his acceptance to Muriel about June. Fourth, Muriel had convinced June to revert her new style to the old style which includes her hair and clothes because that is how Edna had dressed before. Fifth, also to convince June more easily that she was Edna, Muriel told June that her mother had passed on, but she had left a bit of money and a house for her. Finally, when Muriel gave June Edna ´s handbag, she found a snapshot, which showed June that she had also had a husband and a little daughter. All these facts were used by Muriel to convince June to accept that she is Edna and not June, but really Muriel knew that June is not Edna.