Saturday, October 5, 2019
MPH502 - Introduction to Public Health Module 1 - Case Essay
MPH502 - Introduction to Public Health Module 1 - Case - Essay Example d consequences on public whereas, personal health weighs the consequences and significance of health activities and effects of interventions as they impact an individualââ¬â¢s life and health conditions. The health awareness programs are of great significance for public health stability. The health interventions and awareness programs are making life of people healthier and better since knowledge about disease and epidemics empower them to abstain from health risking habits and attitudes. The awareness programs further work and benefit for a longer time period as the knowledge once gain profits people for an extensive time period. The information, education and awareness about health issues is being publicized by a number of programs including Safe and drug-free School programs, Letââ¬â¢s Move (obesity awareness program), Sex and HIV educational programs and so on. These programs help people realize the impact of certain dietary, intake and routine habits on their health and life. The information about the devastating effects of certain activities, stop them from repeating such habits and enable them to adopt healthier life style. Hence educational and awareness programs are of g reat importance in controlling and stabilizing the public health. The greatest reduction in morbidity and mortality is resulted as a decline in deaths from coronary disease. The reduction in coronary disease is accompanied by a reduced smoking population, a decline in blood pressure levels, improved medical care facilities and better dietary habits. Reduced smoking, better dietary habits and enhanced health care facilities did not only reduce the mortality rate by coronary disease but have also helped in stabilizing the worsening health conditions of public. However, alcoholism, obesity and stress are increasing the risk of coronary disease (AHA). Increasing trend of fast food, unavailability of healthy food and increasing stress level due to competition in the society and industry lead to
Friday, October 4, 2019
Feminism and Kate Chopin's The Storm Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words
Feminism and Kate Chopin's The Storm - Essay Example Louis, Missouri, all of whom were women of determination and intellect. This probably pointed her towards the path of feminism. Chopin lived and wrote her impressive repertoire of short stories in the second half of the nineteenth century, when the still patriarchal society revolved around the firmly rooted tenet that the ultimate goal of a fulfilled womanââ¬â¢s life was to be the ideal wife and mother and to adhere to the glorified virtues of submission and sacrifice. The feminist movement was very much in itsââ¬â¢ nascent stages and centered round the demand for equal rights for women in the legal, political and educational spheres. Even before these issues could be resolved, Chopinââ¬â¢s stories delved into the complex threads of a womanââ¬â¢s life, including love, marriage, sex, womenââ¬â¢s alcoholism, motherhood and autonomy. She was ââ¬Å"a pioneer in her own time, in her portrayal of womenââ¬â¢s desires for independence and control of their own sexualityâ⠬ (Emily Toth, cited in Kate Chopin, n.d.). The concept of freedom for women, let alone their freedom to explore their own sexuality, was far beyond the comprehension of that age. Chopin wrote ââ¬ËThe Storm,ââ¬â¢ in 1898 but, perhaps anticipating a ââ¬Ëstormââ¬â¢ of protest and condemnation, the story was published only after her death. In this portrayal of a womanââ¬â¢s extramarital affair, beautifully orchestrated to match the cadences of the storm raging outside, Chopin boldly asserts a womanââ¬â¢s freedom to explore and delight in her own sexuality, to participate in the sexual act as an equal partner and to fearlessly adhere to the same standards of sexual morality as a man. ââ¬ËThe Stormââ¬â¢ begins itsââ¬â¢ depiction of itsââ¬â¢ protagonist, Calixta, as a woman who conforms to the mother and wife stereotype of that period. Her life, confined within the four walls of her house, is apparently quite satisfactorily filled with domestic chores like sewing and the laundry. She
Thursday, October 3, 2019
Barclays Bank PLC Is A Multinational Company Essay Example for Free
Barclays Bank PLC Is A Multinational Company Essay Amenities to attract highly skilled and creative persons at all important levels ? Tradition of closeness to key customers and target customers A business can differentiate itself by performing its existing value activities or reconfiguring in some unique ways. And the sustainability of that differentiation will depend on two things: a continuation of its high perceived value to buyers and a lack of imitation by competitors. There are many alternative strategic directions in which Barclaycard could implement in their current strategy of differentiation. These may include technology innovation or product/ service differentiation. Product/service differentiation Product differentiation occurs when, owing to differences in physical attributes, ancillary service, geographic location, information, and/or subjective image, one firms products are clearly preferred by at least some buyers over rival products at a given price (, 1990, ). For firms seeking to make their demand curve less elastic, successful differentiation provides an insulated position against competitors by enabling firms to sell a larger quantity at a given price or by allowing the firm to create brand loyalty in customers resulting in lower sensitivity to price. This uniqueness may build an entry barrier for competitors to overcome (, 1992; , 1980). However, being unique may require a trade-off with investment if achieving differentiation requires costly effort such as extensive research, product design, high quality materials, or intensive customer support. Thus, the firms employing the differentiation strategy cannot ignore costs and risk (, 1980). Horizontal product differentiation focuses on differences in attribute variety among competing brands. It occurs when one brand contains more of some attributes but less of some other attributes in comparison to another brand (). Consumers different tastes will exploit differing strong and weak points among brands given identical prices (, 1992). The shift towards consumerism is accelerating with significant implications in many of the markets in which we operate. Fundamentally, our view is that consumerism involves a shift in power from institutions towards consumers. The rapid transformation of the credit card industry ââ¬â first with the severing of the traditional tie between bank accounts and credit cards and second, with the emergence of credit as a true commodity in the credit card industry illustrates this so well. Consumers in the past were grateful if they received credit it was seen as a right granted to a special few by a bank and hence banks held power over individuals. The value proposition was the availability of credit. Technology Innovation In the case of Barclaycard, it is could improve its operations and competitive advantage through real time design data driven tools. This tool would improve their credit limit strategies and increase their interest earning balances. A Fair, Isaac Model Builder for the decision trees may be used as this tool uses historical data to assist in identifying optimal account management strategies. Fair, Isaac Model Builder for Decision Trees is a PC Windows based application designed specifically to support data driven strategy design. It gives lenders the power to rapidly create new strategies in real time using multiple performance dimensions, to process large datasets rapidly so strategies at any point for greater understanding of the portfolio and transfers strategies to and from production application with ease, putting new strategies into production faster. This real time, highly interactive approach dramatically shortens the time between strategy creation and roll out. With Barclaycard objectives of the new strategies to increase interest bearing balances, increase turnover, control bad debt, and address attrition, Fair, Fair Isaac can be a big help for the organization. While the average number of cards in a personââ¬â¢s wallet has increased over the last five years, the value to an individual of having multiple cards will diminish in an environment where credit is a commodity.
Actus Reus In Recklessness And Common Assault Law Essay
Actus Reus In Recklessness And Common Assault Law Essay Maxim actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea means that the guilty act on its own will not make a person criminally liable unless it was done with a guilty state of mind. The majority of crimes are brought about by a mixture of actions and are referred to as the guilty acts these represent the physical elements of a crime (actus reus).The mental elements are the thoughts or guilty state of mind (mens rea). If actus reus and mens rea are known and there is no valid defence, the defendant will be found guilty. It is the task of the prosecution to demonstrate together the actus reus and the mens rea of the offence beyond a reasonable doubt to the agreement of the judge and jury. If the proof is not found then the defendant will be acquitted. The actus reus covers all the exterior elements of an offence and consists of conduct, circumstances, and consequences. These are divided into two categories: Conduct crimes and Result crimes Conduct crimes consist of conduct and circumstance and are those in which the actus reus is concerned with prohibited behaviour in spite of its consequences, an example of this would be to drive when you have been disqualified. Result crimes are those where the guilty act requires proof that the conduct caused the outlawed consequence, for example, the actus reus of criminal damage is that the property owned by another person is damaged, and another example is the act of killing someone or committing murder. As result crimes are concerned with causing the consequences the prosecution must show that it was the defendants behaviour that caused the result or circumstances to occur, they have to provide a clear, unbroken causal link. Causation requires a two stage test: Factual causation, the defendants act must be a sine qua non of the prohibited consequence. This simply means that the consequence would not have occurred without the defendants actions. R v.White (1910) 2 KB 124(CA) this case deals with but for test. The test establishes multiple factual causes of death. Legal causation can be established by showing that defendants act was an operating and substantial cause of death. It may not be the sole or main cause but it must make a significant contribution. R v. Cheshire (1991) 1WLR 844 (CA), R v. Pagett (1983) 76 Cr App R 279 (CA). R v. Smith (1959) Legal causation also deals with fault, assigning blame, and responsibility. The defendant will be liable for the all foreseeable consequences or results of their actions. R v. Roberts (1972) 56 Cr App R 95 (CA), R v. Marjoram (1999) (CA). There is no liability in criminal law for omissions unless that failure to act was whilst you are under a duty to act. The duty to act can arise in several ways: Duty arising from statute for example s.170 (4) of the Road Traffic Act 1998 places a duty on the driver involved in an accident to report it to the police or provide details to of the other people involved. Contractual duty, if someone fails to so something under a legally binding contract that they are contracted to do they may be criminally liable if any harm or injury occurs as a result of their failure to act. R v. Pittwood (1902) 19 TLR 37 (Assizes) concerned a duty to act, contract Parental duty to act and a duty towards family members, this is a common law duty that members of a family owe to each other to care for each others welfare. R v. Gibbins and Proctor (1918) 13 Cr App Rep 134 concerning duty to care, R v. Harris and Harris (1993) Reliance or voluntary assumption of care, R v. Stone and Dobson (1977) CA Supervening fault or dangerous situation, this is where the defendant does nothing to avert a dangerous situation resulting from their conduct. R v. Miller (1983) 1 All ER 978 in relation to situation created by the defendant. The mens rea deals with the guilty state of mind. There are two states of mind which either together or separately can form the necessary mens rea for a criminal offence. These are Intention and Recklessness. Direct intention is where the defendants purpose is to cause death, mens rea of murder is the intention to kill or cause grievous bodily harm. Indirect intent which is also known as oblique or foresight intent is where the unlawful consequence as a result of the defendants conduct is foreseen by the defendant as virtually certain although its not the defendants purpose. R v. Woollin (1999) 1 AC 82 (HL) oblique intention, virtual certainty. Recklessness is where the defendant takes an unjustified and unreasonable risk. There are two known types of recklessness, subjective and objective. The law tends to concentrate on subjective tests. R v. G (2004) 1 AC 1034 (HL) subjective recklessness, criminal damage R v.Cunningham (1957) 2 QB 396 (CA) subjective recklessness and interpretation of malicious. The Cunningham test applies to all offences other than criminal damage. Coincidence of actus reus and mens rea When the defendant commits the actus reus of an offence, for liability to occur it must be shown that they also had the correct mens rea at the time the actus reus was committed. The guilty act and guilty state of mind must coincide. Problems have cropped up where the actus reus has been performed, then the mens rea comes into play, and also where the mens rea is present first and then the actus reus follows In order to overcome these problems the courts have used several approaches in order to secure a conviction where the actus reus is complete prior to the mens rea being present, and with the mens rea occurring before the actus reus. The approaches that they have used are called continuing acts and a chain of events. Continuing act is where the actus reus is committed over a period of time and the mens rea is present at some point during it commission. Continuing acts Fagan v. Metropolitan Police Commissioner (1969)1 QB 439 (DC) The defendant accidentally stopped his car on a policemans foot, (actus reus) when he realised this he didnt take it off (mens rea).It was a continuous act as he had actus reus when he ran over his foot and this only stopped when the car was moved and then the mens rea when he refused to move it. The defendant was subsequently found guilty of assault. R v. Kaitamaki (1985) AC 147 He penetrated the victim (actus reus) and when he realised she objected to the penetration he did not withdraw at which point mens rea was present. It was held that the actus reus of rape was a continuing act, and when he realised she objected he formed the mens rea the actus reus was still continuing and so there was coincidence. The defendant was found guilty of rape. R v. Miller (1983) 2 AC 161 (HL) The defendant fell asleep on a mattress in a house whilst smoking a cigarette. When he woke up he noticed that the mattress was smouldering he left it and decided to go to another part of the house. He made no attempt whatsoever to stop the damage and due to this the house caught on fire. The act which caused the (actus reus) dropping of the cigarette happened when the defendant was asleep and the (mens rea) recklessness, damage to property occurred when he awoke. It was held that the defendants failure to do anything about putting the fire out was the actus reus and this coincided with the appropriate mens rea. Chain of events This is the second approach that deals with the mens rea occurring before the actus reus. The defendant will be found to be criminally liable if the guilty act and guilty state of mind are present even if they do not coincide during the series of events. R. v Church (1966) 1 QB 59 (CA) The defendant took the victim to a van in order to have sex with her. The victim made fun of him so the defendant knocked her unconscious (mens rea). The defendant believed she was dead so he threw her into a river in order to get rid of the victim. The victim then died (actus rea). The defendants conduct was viewed as a series of acts designed to cause GBH or death. The actus reus and mens rea were present during the chain of events. The defendant was found guilty of manslaughter R v. Thabo Mali (1954) PC (South Africa) The defendants took the victim to a hut and beat him over the head intending to kill him. They believed they had killed him so they rolled him over a cliff. The victim did not die from the beating or being rolled of the cliff but died of exposure. It was held that the actus reus and mens rea was present throughout. The actus reus consisted of a series of acts and the mens rea was present at some time during the chain of events. They were found guilty of murder. R v. Le Brun (1991) CA The defendant knocked the victim (his wife) unconscious. Whilst he was moving her she knocked her head on the kerb and this fractured her skull. She later died of the injury. It was held that the original unlawful act and the act causing death (actus reus) and the (mens rea) were all part of the same chain of events. The defendant was found guilty of manslaughter. My own example Im employed as a female plasterer on a building site. After finishing work one evening and on my way home I realised that I had left something behind, so I head back too the site. The site has never been secured properly and the workforces have been complaining about this for some time. Whilst back on site a stranger approaches me and threatens to cause me some harm. As he is coming towards me I deliver a powerful kick into his stomach which causes him to fall back and trip over an item on the floor. He bangs his head on the ground and I also use my hawk to batter him over the head several times to ensure he does not get up again in a hurry. There is a great deal of blood on the floor and he does not appear to be breathing. I feel that he may be dead. I drag his body too the back of the worksite and hide it amongst some very tall weeds. I go back to the area where the blood is, clean up, and then leave the site. This example illustrates how the actus reus and mens rea are all part of the same chain of events and were present throughout Task 1(b) Common assault does not involve physical contact. It is an offence under s39 of The Criminal Justice Act 1998. The actus reus of common assault is when the defendant causes the victim to apprehend (expect) immediate unlawful violence. This can be carried out by conduct, deeds, menacing silence, words, or a failure to act. R v. Ireland (1998) AC 147 (HL) The defendant made several silent calls to the victims, these occurred during the evening. They eventually suffered from psychiatric illnesses (depression, stress, anxiety). The House of Lords decided that words can amount to an assault and that silence calls could be seen as communicating a threat. The defendant was found guilty of assault. R v. Constanza (1997) 2 Cr App R 492(CA) The defendant stalked the victim by following her home, turning up to her home address uninvited, writing offensive words on her front door, making several silent phone calls and sending her over 800 letters. The last letter was hand-delivered and this led to the defendant being found guilty of assault. The victim suffered psychiatric illness as a result of the defendants actions. The mens rea of common assault is the intention to cause apprehension of immediate violence or subjective recklessness as to the assault. Battery involves the use of physical force. The actus reus of battery is the infliction of force or violence, this includes slight touching. The actus reus is made up of three elements which consist of direct and indirect physical contact, non-consensual and physical contact. R. v Haystead (2000) 3 All ER 890 (DC) This case concerns indirect contact. The defendant punched a mother holding her baby. The baby dropped and the defendant was convicted of battery on the baby. Battery requires non-consensual touching, the victim can consent to contact (express) or contact is implied, day to day contact. Battery deals with minor physical contact resulting in minor injuries for example grazes, minor bruising, slight cuts, and black eyes. Collins v Wilcox (1984) 1 WLR 1172 (DC) this case gave examples of implied consent, agreed back slapping, seizing a hand in friendship and jostling on the underground. The mens rea of battery is exactly the same as assault, intention to make physical contact or subjective recklessness as to such contact. Unlawful malicious wounding or causing grievous bodily harm with intent is the most serious of all the non-fatal offences and is found in s18 OAPA 1861. Section 18 covers GBH by omission. The actus reus is that the defendant must have unlawfully wounded a person or caused grievous bodily harm. It involves deep repeated cuts, minor cuts, bones penetrating the skin. Serious injury includes mental injury and most recently the transmission of diseases. R v. Ireland, Burstow (1998) AC 147 (HL) As in Ireland above. Both defendants stalked the victims with unwanted attention for over 3 years. The victims suffered from psychiatric injuries as a result of the ongoing acts. The house of lords in both cases concluded that harm to a persons mind that amounted to a recognised medical condition would fall under the category of bodily harm. R v Dica (2004) QB 1257 (CA) The defendant who was HIV positive had unprotected sex with several women. The defendant was fully aware that he was infected but he did not inform the victims of his condition. The court of appeal accepted that a person could be liable for recklessly infecting another person with HIV. The mens rea of GBH with intent is that the defendant must have intention to wound or cause GBH. Recklessness as to causing GBH or wounding (malice) and intention to resist or prevent arrest. Strict Liability offences are those in which the defendant may not have intended or known about the consequences of their actions or the circumstances. The defendant does not need to have a guilty state of mind in relation to all parts of the actus reus (guilty act). Strict liability cases make up half the cases appearing before the courts. Defences for strict liability are those that are applicable to actus reus.à Defences that are probably relevant to actus reus include automatism and duress and also foreseeability is quite important as well. Strict liability offences are mainly created by statute and regarded as regulatory offences and public safety/public interest offences. The offences that are covered are quite extensive and include parking offences, road traffic offences, health and safety, dangerous drugs, dangerous weapons, sexual offences, environmental pollution, possession and the control of dangerous and non-dangerous animals. Sweet v Parsley (1970) HL This case is an important case on strict liability where the need for mens rea in most criminal cases was spelt out and where it was suitable for the presumption for mens rea to be dispensed with. Harrow LBC v. Shah (2000) 1 WLR 83 (DC) The defendant was found guilty of selling a lottery ticket to a young person under the age of 16. The defendant was unaware of the persons age when selling the ticket. R v Marriot (1971) the defendant was found guilty after police searched his home and found a tiny amount of cannabis on a knife. His defence told the court that he had not been aware of what the substance on the blade was, he appealed against the decision and was still convicted. It was held that the accused was guilty if he knew that there was a substance on his knife even if he did not know what the substance was. R v Deyemi (2007) CA the defendants were caught with a stun gun, which they believed to be a torch. It was held that the prosecution only had to prove that they possessed the stun gun, and the stun gun was forbidden by the act. The prosecution did not have to prove that the defendants knew that it was an illegal weapon Alphacell v Woodward (1972) HL the defendants were charged with causing pollution to a river. The pollution occurred as a result of a pipe becoming blocked from their factory and the waste product entered a nearby river. FJH Wrothwell v Yorkshire Water Co. (1984), the defendant who was the director of the companyà carelessly poured 12 gallons of herbicide into drains. These drains led into a river. Smedleys v Breed (1974) AC 839 A big manufacturer of tinned peas was convicted under the Food and Drugs Act (1955) (now Food and Safety Act 1990) when some tins were found to contain a caterpillars The arguments in favour of strict liability are: They help to prevent environmental pollution People may be prevented from owning unlawful weapons and drugs The public is protected against unsafe structures Helps to encourage people to really improve standards so they will not be prosecuted for committing a criminal offence
Wednesday, October 2, 2019
Summary and Analysis of The Knights Tale Essay -- The Knights Tale E
Summary and Analysis of The Knight's Tale The Knight's Tale, Part I: The Knight begins his tale with the story of a prince named Theseus who married Hippolyta, the queen of Scythia, and brought her and her sister, Emelye, back to Athens with him after conquering her kingdom of Amazons. When Theseus returned home victorious, he became aware that there was a company of women clad in black who knelt at the side of the highway, shrieking. The oldest of the women asked Theseus for pity. She told him that she was once the wife of King Cappaneus who was destroyed at Thebes, and that all of the other women with her lost their husbands. Creon, the lord of the town, simply tossed the dead bodies of the soldiers in a single pile and refused to burn or bury them. Theseus swore vengeance upon Creon, and immediately ordered his armies toward Thebes. Theseus vanquished Creon, and when the soldiers were disposing of the bodies they found two young knights, Arcite and Palamon, two royal cousins, not quite dead. Theseus ordered that they be imprisoned in Athens for lif e. They passed their time imprisoned in a tower in Athens until they saw Emelye in a nearby garden. Both fall immediately in love with her. Palamon compares her to Venus, and he prays for escape from the prison, while Arcite claims that he would rather be dead than not have Emelye. The two bicker over her, each calling the other a traitor. This happened on a day in which Pirithous, a prince and childhood friend of Theseus, came to Athens. Pirithous had known Arcite at Thebes, and on his request Theseus set Arcite free on the promise that Arcite would never be found in Theseus' kingdom. He now had his freedom, but not the ability to pursue Emelye, and lamented the cruelty of fate... ...ructure of the tale gives priority to certain values. Theseus, the arbiter in the conflict between Arcite and Palamon and thus the character in the tale who determines the moral significance of the characters' actions, places great emphasis on honorable codes of conduct; he sets specific rules for the battle meant to ensure justice, and even orders that no soldier shall die in the battle (which then descends from a contest among gladiators to a rough approximation of modern sports). Compounding these values is a tendency toward displays of wealth and power. Each of the final events in the story are punctuated by great pageantry. On the orders of Theseus, the simple duel between Arcite and Palamon transforms into a gala event requiring the construction of a massive coliseum for two armies to wage war on one another, even bringing in the kings of two foreign nations.
Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Benito Mussolini: A Destined Failure Essay -- Italian History, Politic
Absolute power and influence, is and has always been something extremely difficult to obtain, and as we have seen throughout the course of history such authority and control left in the hands of a single person can quickly crumble at their very feet. As with most, this often happens in part by self-destructive means. Case and point, Benito Mussolini, a man who at one point held total power over the entire Italian population; seemingly overnight he lost all control and eventually found himself hanging from the end of a meat hook. Now knowing just who he was as a person, what actions he took, and the decisions he made, some might argue that his reign in the end was preordained for catastrophe. Myself, I would tend to agree with this statement. Nevertheless, let us take a few steps back and revisit the periods of Mussoliniââ¬â¢s life leading up to his ultimate demise. The stages of his life in which he was influenced by loved ones and strangers alike. In essence, the moments in time that sculpted the intellect, opinions, beliefs, even ideologies of the man who was. Starting from the beginning and working forward, I want to dissect Mussolini in a way that helps us understand why and how he was shaped into the person he became. How was Mussolini influenced by his father and mother? What drove Mussolini to eventually create and promote Fascism as we know it? Then, with a freshly painted portrait of the man we knew as ââ¬Å"Il Duceâ⬠, we can pinpoint the flaws of his being to see what went wrong in, or rather how Mussolini went about, implementing the fascist idea incorrectly. Moreover, with these questions in mind we can evaluate my perceived notion that Mussolini was simply destined for failure. Benito Mussolini was born the son of a blacksmit... ...ists) (Gregor 95). This was the first step of many that would take Mussoliniââ¬â¢s small, organized group of followers and himself to their futures as ruling fascists. Once more Mussolini completely reinvented himself and his ideology in the years to come. On March 23, 1919, Mussolini founded the Fasci Italiani di Combattimento, welcoming civilians and veterans alike in the fight for Fascism (Hoyt 113). Fascism in itsââ¬â¢ early state spread under the values of nationalism and unity, despite ones class. However, Mussoliniââ¬â¢s idea of fascism was not what it turned out to be. He took philosophies and ideologies alike and blended them to his approval. Mussoliniââ¬â¢s fascism opposed democratic rule, protected the class system, rejected egalitarianism, encouraged militarization, and demanded civic duties for the states wellbeing; fascism was action and with action came results.
Why Do People Talk About Others?
I have written my first essay. It took me hours and hours, and I just gave up. Please provide some constructive feedback. I know nothing beats practise, practise, practise, but some guide in the right direction would be muchly appreciated. Thanking in advise. Here goes: ââ¬â We cannot control the evil tongues of others; but a good life enables us to disregard them. Cato the Elder (234 BC ââ¬â 149 BC) There is so much good in the worst of us, And so much bad in the best of us, That it hardly behooves any of us To talk about the rest of us.Edward Wallis Hoch (1849 ââ¬â 1925), Marion (Kansas) Record Never tell evil of a man, if you do not know it for certainty, and if you know it for a certainty, then ask yourself, ââ¬ËWhy should I tell it? ââ¬Ë Johann K. Lavater A rumor without a leg to stand on will get around some other way. John Tudor Scandal is gossip made tedious by morality. Oscar Wilde (1854 ââ¬â 1900), Lady Windermere's Fan, 1892, Act III Why do we talk ab out other people? Oscar Wilde's statement ââ¬Å"Scandal is gossip made tedious by moralityâ⬠shows something of the reason we talk about other people.Gossip relieves boredom. Gossiping carries such a negative connotation that few will proudly own to have done so, but few can say that they have not. Even John Tudor suggests that gossiping is a wide spread method of relieving boredom, when he said ââ¬Å"A rumour without a leg to stand on will get around some other way. â⬠For this reason, I somewhat agree with Cato the Elder's quote ââ¬Å"We cannot control the evil tongues of others, but a good life enables us to disregard them. â⬠For gossip is so common as to be navoidable. If gossip causes one discomfort, one will be living with discomfort all their life. Is it not a good life's phillosphy to accept this fact and not let other's ââ¬Ëevil' tongue bother you? While accepting gossiping is a part of life, others attempt to advise us against gossiping. Edward Willis Hoch's quoteâ⬠There is so much good in the worst of us, and so much bad in the best of us, that it hardly behooves any of us to talk about the rest of us. â⬠suggests that there is not much point in gossiping.Also against gossiping is the the ââ¬Ëthink before you speak' phillosophy because as Tudor implies, rumour will spread and Lavater's ââ¬Å"Why should I tell it? ââ¬Å". These advice stem from the morality of giving respect for other's privacy, but they do not consider that the reason people gossip: the innate craving for learning, the comfort of having company and connection with other people. While some may say, there must be better things to learn about. Having company doesn't require talking about other people, there are other ways to connect. Yes, but why must we NOT talk about others?When talking about other people, we can: State facts: He has gone to London for a holiday. Give Opinion: They are married. What a bad match! Lie: She didn't do anything today! When we say facts, we are passing information. However, the same fact said can mean different things depending on the intent of the speaker. A child saying a by-passer is fat is simply stating an observation. Another person my say the same thing it to demean others. When we lie, it can be done with good intent. Thus it is the intent of the speaker that people are concerned about, not the gossip itself.It is through knowing one's action that one can learn from their mistakes, but one can only do so much! To learn from other's mistake is to not step in it yourself. If we do not talk about others, then one can only learn by doing things themshelves. Would this perhaps defeat the purpose of the education system? Does the benefit of learning not outweigh the intrusion into other's ââ¬Ëprivacy'? Not all gossip invades privacy. Gossip is a way people communicate, and learn. Gossip itself is not the immoral act, it is the intent of the gossiper that makes the act immoral or otherwise.
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