Mosaic Dietary Laws Essay -- Moses Old Testament Christianity Essays

Mosaic Dietary Laws Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Mosaic dietary laws, the laws imposed by the directives of Moses on the Israelites, extended from earlier restrictions that had been placed on the eating habits of the human race. The Old Testament is full of directives regarding food consumption and God’s law, and even Genesis addresses limitations imposed on certain types of food consumption.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Primarily, the restrictions placed on the consumption of certain types of meat, a limitation that continues in rules for maintaining a Jewish kosher home, relates directly to what is viewed as the rules for the holy people of God. The people of God, then, are expected to recognize that â€Å"God is to be obeyed, concluding that circumcision and the prescriptions of Mosaic law are still obligatory† (1). In understanding the Mosaic dietary laws maintained in the books of the Old Testament, it is necessary to consider the early restrictions placed on certain types of food consumption, the restrictions outlined by Moses for the people of God, and the implications of these eating restrictions both then and in the modern era. What must be recognized is that â€Å"To this day, these rules—with variations, but always guided by Mosaic laws—are followed by many orthodox Jews† (2). Jewish religious practices, then, are based not only in their ancestral ordinances, but in the specificity of Mosaic law in terms of dietary limitations and circumcision (3). Relating the significance, then, of early restrictions and their application to Mosaic law, as well as an understanding of the role of Moses, are elements important in understanding Mosaic dietary laws. Early Restrictions   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Early restrictions prior to the initiation of Mosaic dietary laws related directly to the belief that the human race originally consumed just vegetable products, and that it was not until the Flood and the prescriptions relative to Noah’s animal ownership that individuals were pushed to consume animal flesh (Genesis 9:3-4). Initially, it was recognized that animal slaughter was an unclean process, and further, from a historical perspective, it can be argued that the consumption of some animals was just unsafe. The lack of refrigeration and the prevalence of bacterial infection in the flesh of animals determined a lack of safety and the people of this region often saw illness related to meat consumption as ... .... Paperback, New York. Green, J. (1999). Jesus and Moses: The Parallel Sayings. New York. Green, Peter. (1996). Hellenistic History and Culture. Paperback: New York. Grimm, V. (1996). From Feasting to Fasting, the Evolution of a Sin: Attributes to Food in Late Antinquity. New York. Kretzmann, N. et al (1989). The Cambridge History of Later Medieval Philosophy : From the Rediscovery of Aristotle to the Disintegration of Scholasticism, 1100-1600. Paperback: New York. Leviton, Richard et al (2000). Outposts of the Spirit. Paperback: New York. Lobban, Richard, Jr. (1994, February). Pigs and Their Prohibition. International Journal of Middle East Studies 25(1), 57. Martin, R. (1996). Word Biblical Commentary Vol. 40, 2 Corinthians. New York. McAuliffe, J. et al (2003). With Reverence for the Word: Medieval Scriptural Exegesis in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. New York. Metzger, B. (1997). The Canon of the New Testament: Its Origin, Development, and Significance. New York. Reilly, Kevin. (1999). Worlds of History: A Comparative Reader: To 1550. Paperback: New York. Wittmayer, Salo (2000). Social and religious history of the Jews. Volume 5. New York.

A Good Idea :: essays research papers

A Good Idea   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I have lost my faith. At times I even call myself an atheist. I do not believe in god and have not since just recently. My mother was a kind, strong willed, caring individual. She also had cancer. My mother became a symbol of fighting this disease because she fought off six reoccurrences in eight years. God decided she should die. If there was a â€Å"God† then why would he let someone who was an inspiration to so many, leave us? I just do not understand. This movie however was able to reach that little part of me that still wonders if there is a being out there that watches us all. Writer/director Kevin Smith accomplishes this by doing away with all the religious jargon and approaches it in a whole new way in his latest comedy Dogma. This work of comedic genius follows Bethany, a Planned Parenthood employee who has lost all faith in god, on her holy crusade to save the world from being blinked out of existence in of all places, New Jersey. Smith takes a new approach to an old subject with Dogma. His ability to transform ideas into scripts and plotlines makes him one of the most brilliant and artistic writer/directors of his generation. Smith takes the religion of Christianity and explains it in ways that seem to bring it to life. Jesus is no longer just a character in a bible story; he appears to us as man who suddenly carries the weight of the world on his back. The holy icon is given friends, personality, and even a sense of humor. Smith is able to accomplish all of this without actually presenting Jesus as a character. The main idea of this movie is presented in a scene that unfolds in a strip joint of all places. Serendipity, a muse, explains to Bethany the explicit argument of the movie: I have issues with anyone that treats God like a burden instead of a blessing like some Catholics. You people don’t celebrate your faith, your morn it. It's not about who's right or wrong. No denomination's nailed it yet, because they're all too self-righteous to realize that it doesn't matter what you faith in, just that you have faith. Your hearts are in the right place, but your brains gotta wake up. This statement encompasses everything Smith wanted to say. I happen to agree with him.

Evaluating the Economy of Austria Essay -- Business Marketing Manageme

Evaluating the Economy of Austria   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In 1995 Austria joined the European Union (EU), and in 1999 they joined the European Monetary Union. The use of a common currency the â€Å"Euro† has facilitated trade and promoted economic stability for U.S. companies to manage pricing, balance accounts, and move products into Austria and throughout the EU member nations (â€Å"globaledge†, 2003). An unfavorable exchange rate for U.S. exporters turned positive in 2003 making the U.S. able to compete on more favorable terms in the near future. Current economic reforms in Austria are increasing the attractiveness of foreign investment. There are several advantages to conducting business in Austria that will be particularly relevant in the year 2004. Austria is an international crossroads bordering on eight European countries which include Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Slovenia, Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic, and Liechtenstein. Austria’s eastern neighbors, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Hungary will join the EU in May of 2004. The impact of this is that Austria will become more centrally located.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Austria’s market is well diversified and resilient. Government is seeking to remain competitive by pursuing investment in high potential industries such as telecommunications and electronics (â€Å"globaledge†, 2003). United States companies that are in the telecommunications and electronics industries have a great opportunity for exporting, joint venturing, and investment in Austria.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The U.S. is Austria’s 3rd largest supplier of imports and largest trade partner outside of Europe (â€Å"CIA†, 2003). U.S. companies entering the market for the first time can benefit from the already established trade lines between the two countries. Austria’s market is highly competitive with high demands placed on quality, service, and price. This type of market is ideal for supporting the favorable reputation of high quality American made technological and electronic products. A US company would be able to compete with EU member nations products by exporting these products to Austria.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  US companies looking to export products to Austria are able to employ the services of the Commercial Services of the United States Embassy in Vienna (CS Vienna) acquire the information necessary to begin its operations (â€Å"globaledge†, 2003). The following services would be offered to such compa... ... Austria’s market are very favorable to a US company that is looking to export goods. It is important to remember that while tariffs and value added taxes exist, most many goods do not have tariffs and consumers are willing to pay more for products that they see as inferior to all others. CONCLUSION   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ultimately, Austria’s market is very appealing to US companies looking to export technology-based products. This is clear after examining several factors including: marketing and management forces, physical forces, economic and socioeconomic forces, and cultural forces. It is necessary that any company entering the Austrian market be familiar with the pros and cons of all of these forces. Additionally, there are a few key barriers which exist, including the potentially weak Austrian economy, the high tax burden, and new EU members. While these barriers may seem intimidating it is necessary that any US company seek out and employ all of the resources which are available, including the Commercial Services of the United States Embassy in Vienna. In conclusion, Austria appears to be an untapped gold mine for United States companies which are looking to export technological goods.

A Personal Practical Theory

Trends in education have grown through the years, technology advances as well as principles and theories were developed for education to cope with the changing world.There have been criticisms about the teachers’ apparent lack of understanding of what is really happening in their own territories, and that classroom researchers fail to impart the findings and results of their studies and therefore building gaps between them and the teachers.â€Å"Teachers have been represented as theory builders who continually construct, elaborate, test and refine their own practical theory.† (Busher (1998) as cited in Mangubhai 4) This must be the reason, among other reasons why teachers are encouraged to document their personal experiences in forms of practical theories to be able to share these personally proven and tested principles and thus influence the system of education.Practical theory, as defined by Sanders and McCutcheon (1986) are the conceptual structures and visions that provide teachers with reasons for acting as they do, and for choosing the teaching activities and curriculum materials they choose in order to be effective. They are the principles or propositions that undergird and guide teachers’ appreciations, decisions and actions. (pp. 54-55 as cited in Ritchie p. 2)These practical theories are most commonly tacit, and must be documented. Batten et.al. (1993) explains that it â€Å"demystifies the teaching process† (as cited in Ritchie p.4) and was supported by Cooper and McIntyre (1996) claim that â€Å"successful teaching does not depend on the application of recipes, but rather a kind of flexible responsiveness to students and other circumstances.† (as cited in Ritchie p.4)Sources of my readings are in agreements that indeed, the actual experience in teaching makes a good resource for benchmarking of better techniques and styles and more effective teaching methods, if only these are documented.This paper is my response t o this need and my contribution to the education community. Is a detailed documentation of the personal practical theory developed in the course of my teaching Public Speaking in English language. The paper, which is presented in a first person storyline, is in two (2) parts.Part A – presents my teaching profile and analysis of literature as background to the discussion on my personal practical theory. This part also includes a structural framework of the theory.Part B –   presents an evaluation or assessment of the theory, its strengths, areas of concern and possible areas for improvement.Part A. Components and StructureMy Teaching ProfileMe as a TeacherI grew up with the dream of becoming a teacher, convinced that it is the most noble and relevant profession that will fulfil. So I amply prepared myself and completed a masters degree in Education specializing in Teaching English as a Second Language. I then worked as full-time teacher in one of the local colleges in our community, teaching Public Speaking to eight graders.In the duration of my five years working experience as an English Communication Arts teacher, I was given different subject assignments, mostly in oral communication. I taught Speech and Phonetics, Drama, Oral Expression and Public Speaking. I was also assigned moderator of the different student theatre organizations and speech clubs and was frequently asked to train contestants in oratorical and extemporaneous speech contests.My interest and enthusiasm was sustained and I have grown to love my career more and more through the years. Armed with my youth, dynamism and innovative ideas, complemented with training opportunities to develop my teaching capabilities, I was able to efficiently and effectively deliver results.

Last Sacrifice Chapter Thirty-two

SYDNEY AND HER FRIENDS weren't happy that we weren't going to take them with us. â€Å"I would,' I told her, still reeling from what I'd learned from Ian. â€Å"But getting us in and out has been hard enough! If we step outside with you, we'll all be busted. Besides, soon it won't matter. Once we tell everyone at Court what we know and clear my name, the guardians won't need you anymore.' â€Å"It's not the guardians I'm worried about,' she replied. She used that blase tone of hers, but I could see a glint of legitimate fear in her eyes–and I wondered who she was referring to. The Alchemists? Or someone else? â€Å"Sydney,' I said hesitantly, despite knowing Mikhail and I needed to get out of there. â€Å"What did Abe really do for you? There has to be more than just the transfer.' Sydney gave me a small, sad smile. â€Å"It doesn't matter, Rose. I'll deal with whatever comes. Just go now, okay? Go help your friends.' I wanted to say more †¦ to find out more. But Mikhail's expression told me he agreed with her, and so, with brief farewells, he and I left. When we got back to where the others were waiting in the parking lot, I saw the situation hadn't changed much. Dimitri was pacing, no doubt restless at being out of the action. Jill still stood near Sonya, as though seeking protection from the older woman, and Adrian stayed away from all of them, barely sparing a glance when Mikhail's car pulled up. When we told the group what we'd learned, however, that got a reaction from Adrian. â€Å"Impossible. I can't believe that.' He stamped out a cigarette. â€Å"Your Alchemist pals are wrong.' I could hardly believe it either, yet I had no reason to think Ian would lie. And honestly, if Adrian was having a hard time with this, there was no telling what he would have thought if we'd told him who our previous suspect was. I stared off into the night, trying to come to terms with who had murdered Tatiana and framed me. It was hard even for me to believe. Betrayal was harsh. â€Å"The motives are there †¦' I said reluctantly. Once Ian had described whom he'd seen, a dozen reasons for the murder clicked into place. â€Å"And they arepolitical. Ambrose was right.' â€Å"Ian's ID is hard evidence,' said Dimitri, as shocked as the rest of us. â€Å"But there are a lot of other holes, a lot of pieces that don't fit into it.' â€Å"Yeah.' One in particular had been bothering me. â€Å"Like why I was set up for the fall.' No one had an answer for that. â€Å"We need to get back to Court,' Mikhail said at last. â€Å"Or I'm going to be missed.' I cast Jill what I hoped was an encouraging smile. â€Å"And you've got to make your debut.' â€Å"I don't know which is crazier,' said Adrian. â€Å"The killer's identity or Jailbait being a Dragomir.' His words to me were cold, but the look he gave her was gentle. Crazy as the news was, Adrian hadn't had that hard of a time believing Jill's parentage. He was jaded enough to believe in Eric's infidelity, and those telltale eyes sealed the deal. I think hearing what Ian had told us was hurting Adrian more than he was letting on. Finding out the person responsible for his aunt's murder was someone he knew had to intensify the pain. Finding out about me and Dimitri couldn't help matters either. Much to Mikhail's dismay, Sonya offered to stay behind while the rest of us went to Court. We couldn't bring both cars, and his only held five. She considered herself the least useful in this endeavor. With much hugging, kissing, and tears, she promised Mikhail they'd see each other again, once this mess was sorted out. I hoped she was right. My charm would obscure my face enough to get me through the gate. But Jill was a trickier problem. Her kidnapping was hot Moroi news, and if she was recognized by any of the gate guardians, we would be stopped then and there. We were gambling that the guards would be too harried to notice her like they would Dimitri and me. That meant Dimitri took priority for disguising–requiring Adrian's help. Adrian wasn't quite as adept with illusion as Sonya was, but he understood enough of it to make Dimitri's appearance altered to the eyes of others. It was similar to how he'd used spirit during my jail escape. The question was whether or not Adrian would actually do it for us. He hadn't said a word to anyone about what he'd seen between me and Dimitri, but the others must have felt the sudden rise in tension. â€Å"We have to help Lissa,' I told him, when he didn't respond to the request. â€Å"Time's running out. Please. Please help us.' I wasn't above groveling, if that was what he needed. Fortunately, it wasn't. Adrian took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a brief moment. I was certain he wished he had something stronger than cigarettes. At last, he nodded. â€Å"Let's go.' We left Sonya with the keys to the second car, and she stood there with shining eyes, watching as we drove off. Dimitri, Mikhail, and I spent most of the journey analyzing the our data collection. The woman Ian had described couldn't have done everything we'd been pinning on the murderer. I was sitting in the backseat with Adrian and Jill, leaning forward and checking things off on my fingers. â€Å"Motive? Yes. Ability? Yes. Paying off Joe? Yes. Access to Tatiana's chambers †¦' I frowned, suddenly thinking of what I'd overheard while with Lissa. â€Å"Yes.' This earned me a surprised glance from Dimitri. â€Å"Really? That was one piece I couldn't figure out.' â€Å"Pretty sure I know how she did it,' I said. â€Å"But the anonymous letter to Tatiana doesn't make sense. Not to mention obscuring Lissa's family–or trying to kill her.' Or trying to frame me. â€Å"We might be dealing with more than one person,' said Dimitri. â€Å"Like a conspiracy?' I asked, startled. He shook his head. â€Å"No, I mean, someone else had a grudge against the queen. But not someone who'd go as far as to kill her. Two people, two agendas. Probably not even aware of each other. We're mixing up the evidence.' I fell silent, turning over his words. It made sense, and I picked up on the nuance that by someone, he meant Daniella. We'd been right about reasons she'd dislike Tatiana– the trainings, the age law not being hardcore enough, encouraging spirit †¦ But that hadn't been enough for murder. An angry letter, bribery for her son's safety? Those were the kinds of actions Lady Daniella Ivashkov took. Not staking. In the ensuing silence, I heard soft words between Jill and Adrian, who'd been having a conversation while the rest of us plotted strategy. â€Å"What do I do?' Jill asked him in a small voice. His answer was swift and sure. â€Å"Act like you deserve to be there. Don't let them intimidate you.' â€Å"What about Lissa? What's she going to think of me?' Adrian hesitated only a moment. â€Å"Doesn't matter. Just act the way I told you.' My stomach sank, listening to him give her such earnest, kind advice. Rowdy, smug, and flippant †¦ he was all those things. But his heart was good. The heart I'd just broken. I knew I was right about his potential. Adrian was great. He could do great things. I just hoped I hadn't set him back. At least I hadn't had to tell him his mother was a murderer †¦ but still. All of us grew quiet when we reached the gate. The line of cars was still there, and we became more and more nervous as we crept forward. A flip to Lissa's mind told me we weren't missing anything in the Council. The chaotic situation was pretty much the same as before, though the exasperated look on Nathan's face made me think he'd call a close to proceedings soon and continue tomorrow. I wasn't sure if that was good or bad. The guardians recognized Mikhail, of course, and while still vigilant, their initial instincts didn't suspect him of nefarious deeds. He vaguely said he'd been sent to pick up some people. The guardian looking in the car scanned over Dimitri, me, and– thankfully–Jill. Adrian, a well-known figure, got us added respect. After a mandatory check of the trunk, we were sent on through. â€Å"Oh my God. It worked,' I breathed, as Mikhail drove over to the guardians' parking area. â€Å"Now what?' asked Jill. â€Å"Now we reestablish the Dragomir line and call out a murderer,' I said. â€Å"Oh, is that all?' Adrian's sarcasm was palpable. â€Å"You know,' remarked Mikhail, â€Å"that the instant your illusions are dropped, you two are going to be jumped by guardians and thrown back into jail. Or worse.' Dimitri and I exchanged looks. â€Å"We know,' I said, trying to ignore the memories of that terrible, claustrophobic experience. â€Å"But if everything works out †¦ we won't have to stay there for long. They'll use what we've found out and then eventually set us free.' I sounded more optimistic than I felt. Once parked, our party headed toward the ballroom's building, which could have been seen miles away with all the people around it. How strange. Not long ago, I'd made this same journey, with nearly the same people, hurrying away from Court. We'd worn spirit disguises then, too, and had been seeking escape. Now we were knowingly walking into peril. I was convinced if I could make it in undetected and deliver my news, everything would work out. Sonya's charm had worked perfectly when I saw the Alchemists. I had no reason to doubt it, but the fear still lurked in the back of my mind: what if it stopped functioning? What if the disguise failed and I was spotted before even getting into the building? Would they arrest me? Or would they simply shoot first? The doors were barred to spectators, but guardians were allowed access, so once again Mikhail talked us in–using a sullen Adrian as the reason. The late queen's nephew could hardly be refused, and with the chaos inside, more guardians–which Dimitri and I appeared to be–were welcome. Adrian kept an arm around Jill as they entered, and the guardians let her pass. We slipped into the ballroom, completely unnoticed. I'd seen the arguing through Lissa's eyes, but it was totally different in person. Louder. More grating. My friends and I exchanged looks. I'd braced myself for a big confrontation with the audience–hell, it wouldn't be the first time–but this was a test of even my skills. â€Å"We need someone to get the room's attention,' I said. â€Å"Someone not afraid to make a spectacle–I mean, besides me, of course.' â€Å"Mikhail? Where have you been?' We turned and saw Abe standing before us. â€Å"Well, speak of the devil,' I said. â€Å"Exactly what we need.' Abe peered at me and frowned. Charms could be seen through when others knew one was being used. Charms were also less effective if others knew the wearer well. It was how Victor had recognized me in Tarasov. Sonya's was too strong for Abe to fully break through, but he could tell something wasn't right. â€Å"What's going on?' he demanded. â€Å"The usual, old man,' I replied cheerily. â€Å"Danger, insane plans †¦ you know, the stuff that runs in our family.' He squinted his eyes again, still unable to fully see through the charm. I was probably blurry. â€Å"Rose? Is that you? Where have you been?' â€Å"We need the room's attention,' I said. I wondered if this was what it felt like when parents busted their kids for breaking curfew. He looked very disapproving. â€Å"We've got a way to settle this whole argument.' â€Å"Well,' observed Adrian dryly, â€Å"we've at least got a way to start another one.' â€Å"I trusted you at my hearing,' I told Abe. â€Å"Can't you trust me now?' Abe's expression turned wry. â€Å"You apparently didn't trust me enough to stay put in West Virginia.' â€Å"Technicalities,' I said. â€Å"Please. We need this.' â€Å"And we're short on time,' added Dimitri. Abe studied him too. â€Å"Let me guess. Belikov?' There was uncertainty in my father's voice–Adrian was doing a good job in keeping the illusion over Dimitri–but Abe was clever enough to deduce who would be with me. â€Å"Dad, we have to hurry. We've got the killer–and we've got Lissa's †¦' How did I explain it? â€Å"A chance to change Lissa's life.' Not much startled Abe, but I think my earnest use of â€Å"Dad' did. Scanning the room, his eyes landed on someone, and he gave a small jerk of his head. Several seconds later, my mother squeezed her way through to us. Great. He called; she came. They were awfully chummy lately. I hoped Lissa remained the only one with a surprise sibling. â€Å"Who are these people?' my mother asked. â€Å"Guess,' replied Abe flatly. â€Å"Who would be foolish enough to break into Court after escaping it?' My mom's eyes widened. â€Å"How–‘ â€Å"No time,' Abe said. The sharp look he got in return said she didn't like being interrupted. Maybe no siblings after all. â€Å"I have a feeling half the guardians in this room are going to be all over us soon. Are you ready for that?' My poor, law-abiding mother looked pained, realizing what was being asked of her. â€Å"Yes.' â€Å"Me too,' added Mikhail. Abe studied us all. â€Å"I guess there are worse odds.' He headed up to where Nathan Ivashkov was leaning against his podium. He looked weary and defeated–and utterly at a loss on what to do with the mess before him. At our approach, the monarch candidates glanced over curiously, and I sensed a sudden jolt of surprise through the bond. Lissa could see right through the spirit charms. I felt her breath catch at the sight of us. Fear, shock, and relief played through her. And confusion, of course. She was so glad to see us that she forgot all about the elections and started to stand at our approach. I gave her a quick shake of my head, urging her to keep our cover, and after a moment's hesitation, she sat back down. She was worried and puzzled–but trusted me. Nathan came to life when he saw us, particularly when Abe simply shoved him out of the way and grabbed the microphone. â€Å"Hey, what are you–‘ I expected Abe to yell for everyone to shut up or something like that. Of course, Nathan had been trying that for a while with no results. So, I was quite shocked–as was everyone else–when Abe put fingers to his lips and let out the most ear-piercing whistle I had ever heard. A whistle like that through a microphone? Yeah. It hurt my ears. It had to be worse for the Moroi, and the screeching feedback in the speakers didn't help. The room quieted enough for him to be heard. â€Å"Now that you have the sense to keep your mouths shut,' said Abe, â€Å"we have †¦ some things to say.' He was using his confident, I-control-the-world voice, but I knew he was taking a lot on faith here. â€Å"Act fast,' he muttered, extending the microphone out to us. I took it and cleared my throat. â€Å"We're here to, uh, settle this debate once and for all.' That brought grumbles, and I hurried on loudly before the room erupted again. â€Å"The laws can stay the way they are. Vasilisa Dragomir is entitled to her Council vote–and eligible to be a full candidate for the throne. There's another member in her family. She isn't the only Dragomir left.' Murmurs and whispers broke out, though it was nothing like the roar earlier–most likely because the Moroi loved intrigue, and they had to know how this would play out. In my periphery, I could see guardians forming a very loose perimeter around us. Their concern was security, not scandal. I beckoned Jill forward. For a moment, she froze; then I wondered if she recalled Adrian's words in the car. She stepped beside me, so pale that I worried she might pass out. I almost felt like I could too. The tension and pressure were overwhelming. No. I'd come too far. â€Å"This is Jillian Mastrano Dragomir. She's Eric Dragomir's illegitimate daughter–but she is his daughter and officially part of the bloodline.' I hated usingillegitimate, but in this case, it was a necessary fact. In the heartbeat of silence that followed, Jill hastily leaned toward me and the microphone. â€Å"I am a Dragomir,' she said clearly, despite her trembling hands. â€Å"Our family has its quorum, and my s-sister has all her rights.' I could see another explosion building, and Abe jumped in between Jill and me, grabbing the microphone. â€Å"For those who don't believe this, a DNA test will clear up any doubts about her lineage.' I had to admire Abe's audacity. He had only learned this information sixty seconds ago and was already advocating it with certainty, as though he himself had performed the necessary tests back in his home genetics lab. More faith–and an advantage he couldn't pass up. My old man loved secrets. The news triggered the reaction I'd expected. Once the audience had processed the information, a flurry of shouted commentary began. â€Å"Eric Dragomir didn't have any other children, illegitimate or not!' â€Å"This is a scam!' â€Å"Show us the proof! Where are your tests?' â€Å"Well †¦ he was kind of a flirt †¦' â€Å"He did have another daughter.' That last one shut the crowd up, both because it was spoken with authority and because it came from Daniella Ivashkov. She had stood up, and even without a microphone, she had a voice that could carry in a room. She was also an important enough person in our society to draw attention. Many among the royals were practically conditioned to listen to her. In the now quiet room, Daniella continued speaking. â€Å"Eric Dragomir had an illegitimate daughter, with a woman named Emily Mastrano–a dancer, if I recall correctly. He wanted it kept secret and needed certain things done– things he couldn't do himself–to help with that. I was one of the few who helped.' An uncharacteristically bitter smile turned up her lips. â€Å"And honestly, I wouldn't have minded it staying secret either.' Pieces clicked in my head. I knew now who had broken into the Alchemists' records. And why. In the room's silence, I didn't need a microphone to respond either. â€Å"Enough that you'd make certain papers disappear.' Daniella fixed that smile on me. â€Å"Yes.' â€Å"Because if the Dragomirs faded, spirit might too. And Adrian would be safe. Spirit was getting too much attention too fast, and you needed to get rid of any evidence about Jill to kill Vasilisa's credibility.' Daniella's expression confirmed as much. I should have left it at that, but my curiosity wouldn't allow it. â€Å"Then why admit it now?' Daniella shrugged. â€Å"Because you're right. One DNA test will show the truth.' There were gasps of awe from those who took her word as gospel and wondered what this meant. Others people refused to believe and wore looks of scorn. Daniella, undoubtedly disappointed the truth had leaked, nonetheless seemed resigned and willing to accept it. But her smile soon dropped as she studied me more closely. â€Å"What I'd like to know is: who in the world are you?' A good portion of the audience appeared to want to know this as well. I hesitated. Sonya's charmed disguise had gotten me pretty far at this point. We had a fragile acceptance of Jill and the Dragomir line. If we let the system run its course, and if Lissa won like I now wanted–I'd have a queenly advocate to help in the case to clear me. But staring at the crowd–full of people I'd known and respected and who had still condemned me without question–I felt anger burn within me. Spirit-induced or not, it didn't matter. I was still outraged at how easily I'd been accused and tossed away. I didn't want to wait for this to be settled in some quiet guardian office. I wanted to face them. I wanted them to know I was innocent–of killing the queen, at least. And so, surpassing my own records for dangerous, reckless behavior, I ripped off Sonya's bracelet. â€Å"I'm Rose Hathaway.'

Paul`s Missionary Tactics in Acts Essay

From the beginning Almighty God has been using his saints by the power of Holy Spirit and accomplished several of His purposes. Jesus Christ instructed all His disciples to work by the power of Holy Spirit who is a representative of mighty works of God. â€Å"And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; â€Å" (John 14:16) â€Å"Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you† (John 14:17) Introduction Over the centuries men and women who have accepted Christ as personal savior, the Holy Spirit came as a counselor, comforter, sanctifier, guide and witness. Believers walk with God was more powerful through trials and persecutions giving an experience and presence of Holy spirit in the lives of God’s people. The first Christian martyr Stephen’s death brought a great disturbance in the lives of believers in Jerusalem. Stephen’s was a Jew with Greek language had great piety and faith. The persecution of church began in Jerusalem with the passing away of Stephen of which Saul (later called as St. Paul) stood as a witness. After the death of Stephen, Roman authorities elected Saul as a member of Sanhedrin Council and Saul was mightily working for Satan to perform rebellious actions against God. Saul began to enter synagogues and churches in the regions of Judea and Samaria putting men and women into prison. â€Å"I verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. Which thing I also did in Jerusalem: and many of the saints did I shut up in prison. . . . And I punished them oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto strange cities. † That Stephen was not the only one who suffered death may be seen from Saul’s own words, â€Å"And when they were put to death, I gave my voice against them. † Acts 26:9-11. Acts Chapter 9 discusses a great miracle in the city of Damascus which transformed the life of Saul to St. Paul. And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutes thou me? † (Acts. 9:4) â€Å"And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. † (Acts 9:5) â€Å" Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do. †(Acts 9:6) To another disciple called Ananias, the Lord appeared in a vision and said â€Å"enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth. (Acts 9:11) Ananias answered â€Å"’Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem: â€Å"(Acts 9:13) The Lord said unto him â€Å" Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel for me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:† (Acts 9:15) . When Ananias, laid his hands on Saul and prayed, Saul received his lost eye sight and was filled with Holy Ghost. Saul returned to Jerusalem and began to preach in synanogues with more strength that Christ is the Son of God. Many Jews were surprised by the very fact that Saul began to preach the word of God and laid several plots to kill him. In the areas of Judea, Galilea and Samaria, the power and comfort of Holy Ghost was present in the churches with the prevailing fear of God. In these times, Peter, Cornelius, Barnabas, Nicodemus were also powerfully working for God lead by Holy Ghost. There was an increasing work of Holy Ghost which was pouring spirit on chosen people to preach the word of God in Jerusalem. â€Å"And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch† (Acts 11:27) Barnabas began to search for Saul who became good friends by the fact of being Apostles of God. Paul began to perform miracles of lifting the cripple, casting evil spirits and spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ among Jews, Gentiles in Antioch, Iconium, Pisidia and Pamphylia. On several occasions, Paul himself being a Roman, was imprisoned and was ill-spoken of by Jews and Greeks. The Lord spoke to Paul â€Å"Be of good cheer, Paul,: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome. (Acts 23:11). God had blessed abundantly the works and mission of Paul and Barnabas in Antioch. Methods Paul’s missionary journeys are classified into three parts discussed in Acts. The first journey between 47-49 A. D was in Iconium discussed in Act 13 and 14 chapters, the second journey was between 50-53 A. D in Thessalonica discussed in Acts 15 and the third journey was between 53-57 A. D in Mitylene discussed in Act chap 18. Paul’s first official missionary journey began in 47-49 A. D, at Antioch in Syria which was an important place for early church. . â€Å"While they were worshipping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them. So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off† (Acts 13:1-3). Paul endeavored and persuaded to preach the word of God to both high and low societies of Syria. It was the work of Holy Spirit which lead Paul and Barnabas to take the journey where Jesus never preached. The second journey of Paul was in churches of Galatia (Acts 16-18) In every city Paul preached the gospel of Jesus Christ and was imprisoned for Paul’s unenduring efforts of taking the word of God to the unreached places. God directed Paul also to visit new territory of Macedonia along with friends. The third journey of Paul ended in Jerusalem (Acts 19-21) Paul was never allowed into the temples to worship in spite of several appeals to Caesar. The third journey of Paul was in Asia Minor and in Europe which Paul covered extensively with the power of Holy Spirit. The success of Paul as a missionary was a very hard effort in bringing up the church as a human institution on one side. On the other side, the Gospel of Jesus Christ as a Savior and redeemer of the world, was spread in Asia and Europe primarily by the creditworthiness of Paul. There were several opponents in missionary work which Paul faced whereas with the fasting and prayer and by the guidance of Holy Spirit, Paul endured and withstood among all the trials that God’s people come across. Results The book of Acts completely describes about the missionary work of Paul and the friendship with Barnabas and Apostles. Many sorcerers, magicians and several others were frightened with the power of Paul and some refuse to accept the message of Jesus Christ and the concept of Christian faith. Apart from missionary journeys which were described in Acts, Paul has also put effort in writing letters to Corinth, Thessalonica, Philippians, Ephesians to develop faith among people of such urban areas. These letters depict another kind of inspirational missionary work that people received from Paul. Throughout Paul’s missionary work, there were political threats, societal problems, emotional disturbances and differences between Paul and Barnabas. Paul continued the faith work by prayer and fasting and also under the guidance of Holy Spirit. The power of Pentecost, descending of gifts of the spirit, spreading of gospel in Samaria, exaltation of cross, proclaiming Jesus Christ as the Son of God were some of the greatest achievements which in later centuries have been taken care of by the believers and followers of Jesus Christ, which lead to the development of Christianity around the world irrespective of geographical region, language or any other barrier. Paul was certainly lead by the power of Holy Spirit and clearly there were no tactics that Paul as a missionary performed to the development of early Church in Jerusalem. The entire book of Acts clearly gives an evidence in each chapter, how Paul suffered in imprison, traveling from place to place and how he faced people who were scheming to put Paul to death. The book of Acts also reveal that the Lord lead Paul out of every trouble and rescued to continue the missionary work. Discussion Paul’s missionary work was executed completely under the guidance and leadership of Holy Spirit. Saul which it was the name given as Pharisee was converted into Roman name as Paul and humility and simplicity of a little child were the armor of Paul given by God. Paul had to bow before God disclosing demerits and unworthiness of personal traits. For many it was difficult to believe that Paul who was destroying churches could become a sincere follower of Jesus. It was all to the credit of Barnabas who brought Paul to the Apostles in Damascus and how God lead Saul being called as Paul to proclaim the name of Savior Jesus Christ. The Lord was very pleased with the labor of Paul and gave a commission to enter broad missionary field of Gentile world. The missionary journeys Paul were extensive walking through every corner meeting Jews and Gentiles. There were different kind of experiences for Paul such as acceptance and rejection of the word of God. Paul maintained a good relation with friends and Apostles who were with Paul in missionary journeys. Barnabas, aquilla, Priscilla and even with government officials of Rome Paul maintained a lawful order and discipline in spread the word of God. Paul had to face some of the cruelties of king Herod who sentenced James to death, imprisonment of Peter and the grief and pain of believers who spent most of time in fasting and praying. The missionary work of Paul has enabled Christian church to enter an important era. The strength and power of Holy Spirit has enabled Paul first to know the will of God and consider the power of God in carrying missionary work. Paul believed and relied solely on the grace of God with pure thoughts and carrying noble deeds. Paul stated in speeches that Jesus is the source of power and by following the words of Jesus, people experience a touch of His living power. Paul prepared believers and preachers in missionary work and also practiced several proper strategies in performing missionary work and there are evidences of Paul considering own decisions in visiting places or in preaching the word of God. Paul came across Sadducees and Pharisees where the former believed that there is no resurrection, neither angel, nor spirit whereas the latter believed in both (Acts 23:7,8). Some of the statements made by Paul have caused a great disturbance among Pharisees and took oath to put to Paul to death. (Acts 23:12) God praised the success and achievement at every stage of Paul’s missionary work. And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou has testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou hear witness also at Rome† (Acts 23:11) Paul as a chosen vessel of God, performed all the activities of missionary work under the true guidance of Holy Spirit which Paul received and in fact the power of Holy Spirit has enabled excessive strength and courage to Paul to stand before Roman Governors and even the authorities were surprised by the accusations made against Paul and on several occasions rescued Paul from death. (Acts23:27) When Paul was arrested and was brought before Porcius Festus to question Paul for the allegations made Jews of Jerusalem, Festus said â€Å" Wilt thou go up to Jerusalem, and there by judged of these things before? † (Acts 25:9). Paul immediately replied â€Å" I stand at Caesar’s judgment seat, where I ought to be judged: to the Jews have I done no wrong, as thou very well knowest†. (Acts 25:10) â€Å"For if I be an offender, or have committed any thing worthy of death, I refuse not to die: but if there be none of these things whereof these accuse me, no man may deliver me unto them. I appeal unto Caesar†. (Act 25:11) Paul’s missionary work rendered a great warmth and satisfaction personally to Paul whereas Paul invited negative remarks of Jews which brought Paul to the altar of judgment before King Agrippa. Festus informs King Agrippa â€Å" It is not the manner of the Romans to deliver any man to die, before that he which is accused have the accusers face to face and have licence to answer himself concerning the crime laid against him†. (Acts 25:16) Paul justifies before king Agrippa â€Å"My manner of life from my youth, which was at the first among mine own nation at Jerusalem, know all the Jews; Which knew me from the beginning if they would testify, that after the most straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee†. And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers: Unto which promise our twelve tribes, instantly serving God day and night, hope to come. For which hope’s sake, king Agrippa, I am accused of the Jews. (Acts 26:4-7) Paul was obedient to the heavenly visions and testifies to king Agrippa that with the help of God, have been witnessing both to small and great that Christ Jesus suffered, died and rose from dead in order to show light and redeem people from sin. (Act 26:23) Conclusion In the final chapter of Acts, Paul is freed from Romans and enters into a hired house where Paul lived for two years and continued to preach about the kingdom of God and no man has ever forbidden Paul to do so. Paul says â€Å" who, when they examined me, would have let me go, because there was no cause of death in me†. ( Acts 27:18) Paul was a chosen apostle of God who inspite of severe persecutions, arrests made by Paul’s own people, worked stringently and untiringly in carrying the gospel of Jesus Christ in a professional manner which is clearly explained in the book of Acts. Paul faced allegations from several segments of society and from the Government of Rome who indirectly supported Paul for the sincerity that is evident in Paul’s works and words.

Laurence Olivier Essay

The original classification of Shakespeare’s plays – ‘Comedies’, ‘Tragedies’, ‘Histories’ and ‘Roman plays‘ – don’t adequately describe all of Shakespeare’s plays, and scholars have come up with more names to do so. The most widely used categories are ‘Romance Plays’, ‘Problem Plays’, and Shakespeare’s ‘Tragicomedy Plays’. The plays in those categories have much in common, but there are enough differences to prevent some of them to fall into all three. The Winter’s Tale, for example is a play that does have the features of all three, however. A tragicomedy is a play that is neither a comedy nor a tragedy, although it has the features of both. Tragedies are usually focused almost exclusively on the central character, the tragic hero (although Shakespeare’s tragedies can sometimes be a double tragedy, with two tragic heroes, like Romeo and Juliet). The audience has insights into his mind and goes deeply in, as he does in Macbeth or Hamlet. Comic plays, on the other hand, remove that focus and the concerns are diversified so that the action is made up of the stories of several characters, particularly pairs of lovers. The shadows in human emotions are usually minor in the comedies: they are such things as misunderstandings, playful deceptions and so on. Plays that fall between the two stools of tragedy and comedy are sometimes referred to as ‘Problem Plays. ’ so the whole area of classification is a very difficult one. It shouldn’t be necessary to classify them but scholars need a language in which to talk about the plays. The Merchant of Venice can be seen as a tragicomedy. It has a comic structure but one of the central characters, Shylock, looks very much like a tragic character. The play has a comedy ending with the lovers pairing off but we are left with taste in the mouth of the ordeal of Shylock, destroyed by a combination of his own faults and the persecution of the lovers who enjoy that happy ending. The feeling at the end of the play is neither joy nor misery. The play has a decidedly comic structure but there is also a powerful tragic story. It can therefore be called a tragicomedy. Shakespeare’ tragicomedies usually have improbable and complex plots; characters of high social class; contrasts between villainy and virtue; love of different kinds at their centre; a hero who is saved at the last minute after a touch-and- go experience; surprises and treachery. The Winter’s Tale and Cymbeline are two plays that fit that tragicomical pattern. Shakespeare’s plays generally accepted as tragicomedy plays are: * Cymbeline * The Winter’s Tale Shakespeare’s Tragedy plays One of the main features of Renaissance art is that it was inspired by classical art and philosophy. This is evident in the work of such artists as Michelangelo who, caught up in the spirit of Humanism that was sweeping across Europe, focused on the human form. Focusing on the human form during Mediaeval times would have been impossible as it would have been a distraction from the necessary focus on God. The essence of Humanistic art was that human beings were created in God’s image so it was possible for Michelangelo even to portray God – as a beautiful and physically powerful man with realistic human features, presented as perfection – in fact, the human form at its most beautiful. Artists became anatomists, going as far as buying human bodies for dissection. The result was a new realism in the representation of human beings in art. Shakespeare is, in a way, the Michelangelo of literature. That he could, in one play, Othello, written four hundred years ago, represent what we can recognise as a modern psychopath and a modern alcoholic, in Iago and Cassio respectively, is incredible. Iago is a fully realised physochological character just as the David is a fully realized man physically. Greek drama was an important model for Renaissance drama after the flat, unrealistic morality plays of the mediaval centuries. The Greek philosopher, Aristotle, defined tragedy and asserted that it was the noblest and most serious, dignified and important form of drama. Many of the plays of the Renaissance resembled those Greek tragedies. In several of Shakespeare’s plays there is a central protagonist who undergoes a harrowing experience as he is brought down from his lofty height, ending up dead. There is also a special feeling created in an observer of those Shakespearedramas, similar to the feeling described by Aristotle as the effect of tragedy on an observer. Critics thus thought of those Shakespeare plays as tragedies and that notion has remained with us to  this day, although many of those interested inShakespeare are now thinking differently about the plays. There are still teachers, though, who teach the ‘tragedies’ as though they were Aristotelian tragedies and miss a great deal of what those plays are doing. In his Poetics Aristotle outlines tragedy as follows: The protagonist is someone of high estate; a prince or a king. He is like us – perhaps a bit different in his level of nobility so that we can both identify with him and admire him as a man as well as respect him for his high estate. The protagonist has a ‘tragic flaw’ in his character which makes him contribute to his own destruction. This can take the form of an obsession. The flaw is often part of his greatness but it also causes his downfall. The flaw causes the protagonist to make mistakes and misjudgments. That in turn begins to alienate him from his supporters so that he becomes isolated. He begins to fall from his high level. He struggles to regain his position but fails and he comes crashing down. He eventually recognises his mistakes, but too late. An important aspect is the suffering he undergoes, which the audience observes and identifies with. We experience ‘pity’ and ‘terror’ as we watch what seems to us an avoidable suffering. At thend the air is cleared by the restoration of the order that existed before the events of the story and we experience what Aristotle calls ‘catharsis’ – a feeling of relief and closure. Using the term ‘tragedy’ about Shakespeare’s plays invites attempts to fit them to the Aristotelian pattern but none of them fits. Othello seems to conform to the pattern but when one thinks about it, Othello, superficially resembling a tragic hero, doesn’t even seem to be the main character in the play. It can be seen as a modern psychological drama about a psychopath who manipulates everyone around him just for fun – just because he has nothing better to do – and destroying other human beings gives him pleasure or is necessary because they get in his way. Othello may seem to have a fatal flaw – too trusting, gullible – but so do all the other characters, because Iago has deceived them all with his psychopathic charm and a deliberate effort of making himself appear trustworthy. Every misjudgment Othello makes is the hard work of Iago. Easily manipulated? Jealous? Does he have all those ‘tragic flaws’ as well? The feeling at the end is not quite Aristotle either. Perhaps it is more of a disgust for Iago than pity for Othello, who comes across as more stupid than tragic. And to make things more complicated, our feeling of pity is directed more to Desdamona. And yet some teachers miss the meaning of this play by their insistence on teaching it as an Aristotelian tragedy. Antony and Cleopatra is sometimes called a ‘double tragedy’. While Othello appears to fit the Aristotelian pattern because of the huge charisma of Othello at the beginning of the play Antony and Cleopatra cannot fit it in any shape or form. In tragedy the focus is on the mind and inner struggle of the protagonist. The emotional information comes to the audience from that source. In comedy the information comes from a variety of sources and the comic effect is produced by a display of many different points of view, coming at the audience from different angles. That is exactly what happens in Antony and Cleopatra , so we have something very different from a Greek tragedy. What we have is a miracle – a tragic feeling coming out of a comic structure. So what is Shakespearean tragedy? Perhaps there is no such thing. And yet we can identify a tragic feeling and even a cathartic effect in some of the plays. We must be very careful not to insist on fitting them to any pattern because that wouldn’t help us understand the plays. We must look elsewhere for our understanding of them. Moreover, all of Shakespeare’s plays have elements of both tragedy and comedy, sometimes very finely balanced, creating effects that Aristotle could never have dreamt of. List of Shakespeare’s Tragedy Plays * Antony and Cleopatra * King Lear * Macbeth * Othello * Romeo & Juliet * Titus Andronicus. Shakespeare’s Comedy Plays Early Greek comedy was in sharp contrast to the dignity and seriousness of tragedy. Aristophanes, the towering giant of comedy, used every kind of humour from the slapstick through sexual jokes to satire and literary parody. Unlike tragedy, the plots didn’t originate in traditional myth and legend, but were the product of the writer’s creative imagination. The main theme was political and social satire. Over the centuries comedy moved away from those themes to focus on family matters, notably a concentration on relationships and the complications of love. Such a universal theme was bound to survive and, indeed, it has travelled well, from Greece through Roman civilization and, with the Renaissance preoccupation with things classical, into Renaissance Europe, to England and the Elizabethans, and into the modern world of the twentieth and twenty first centuries, where we see Greek comedy alive and well in films and television. Shakespeare’s comedies (or rather the plays of Shakespeare that are usually categorised as comedies), just as in the case with he tragedies, do not fit into any slot. They are generally identifiable as the comedies of Shakespeare in that they are full of fun, irony and dazzling wordplay. They also abound in disguises and mistaken identities with very convoluted plots that are difficult to follow (try relating the plot of A Midsummer Night’s Dream to someone! ), with very contrived endings. Any attempt at describing these plays as a group can’t go beyond that superficial outline. The highly contrived endings are the clue to what these plays, all very different, are about. Take The Merchant of Venice for example – it has the love and relationship element. As usual there are two couples. One of the women is disguised as a man through most of the text – typical of Shakespearian comedy – but the other is in a very unpleasant situation – a young Jewess seduced away from her father by a shallow, rather dull young Christian. The play ends with the lovers all together, as usual, celebrating their love and the way things have turned out well for their group. That resolution has come about by completely destroying a man’s life. The Jew, Shylock is a man who has made a mistake and been forced to pay dearly for it by losing everything he values, including his religious freedom. It is almost like two plays – a comic structure with a personal tragedy imbedded in it. The ‘comedy’ is a frame to heighten the effect of the tragic elements. The Christians are selfish and shallow and cruel beyond imagination and with no conscience whatsoever. This is the use of the comic form to create something very deep and dark. Twelfth Night is similar – the humiliation of a man the in-group doesn’t like. As in The Merchant of Venice, his suffering is simply shrugged off in the highly contrived comic ending. Not one of these plays, no matter how full of life and love and laughter and joy, it may be, is without a darkness at its heart. Much Ado About Nothing , like Antony and Cleopatra (a ‘tragedy’ with a comic structure) is a miracle of creative writing. Shakespeare seamlessly joins an ancient mythological love story and a modern invented one, weaving them together into a very funny drama in which light and dark chase each other around like clouds and sunshine on a windy day, and the play threatens to fall into an abyss at any moment and emerges from that danger in a highly contrived ending once again. Like the ‘tragedies’ these plays defy categorisation. They all draw our attention to a range of human experience with all its sadness, joy, poignancy, tragedy, comedy, darkness, lightness, and its depths. Shakespeare’s Comedy Plays * All’s Well That Ends Well * The Comedy of Errors * As you Like It * Cymbeline * Love’s Labours Lost * Measure for Measure * The Merry Wives of Windsor * The Merchant of Venice * Twelfth Night * Two Gentlemen of Verona Shakespeare’s History Plays Just as Shakespeare’s ‘comedies’ have some dark themes and tragic situations while the ‘tragedies’ have some high comic moments, the Shakespeare’s ‘history’ plays contain comedy, tragedy and everything in between. All Shakespeare’s plays are dramas written for the entertainment of the public and Shakeseare’s intention in writing them was just that – to entertain. It wasn’t Shakespeare, but Shakespearian scholars, who categorised his plays into those areas of tragedy, comedy and history – as well as ‘problem‘ and ‘Roman‘. Unfortunately, our appreciation of the plays is often affected by our tendency to look at them in that limited way. Most of the plays have an historical element – the Roman plays, for example, are historical but scholars don’t refer to those Roman plays (Julius Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus etc.) ashistory plays. The plays that we normally mean when we refer to the ‘history’ plays are the ten plays that cover English history from the twelfth to the sixteenthcenturies, and the 1399-1485 period in particular. Each play is named after, and focuses on, the reigning monarch of the period. In chronological order of setting, these are King John, Richard II, Henry IV Parts Iand II, Henry V, Henry VI Parts I, II and III, Richard III and Henry VIII, although Shakespeare didn’t write them in that order. The plays dramatise five generations of’ Medieval power struggles. For the most part they depict the Hundred Years War with France, from Henry V to Joan of Arc, and the Wars of the Roses, between York and Lancaster. We should never forget that they are works of imagination, based very loosely on historical figures. Shakespeare was a keen reader of history and was always looking for the dramatic impact of historical characters and events as he read. Today we tend to think of those historical figures in the way Shakespeare presented them. For example, we think of Richard III as an evil man, a kind of psychopath with a deformed body and a grudge against humanity. Historians can do whatever they like to set the record straight but Shakespeare’s Richard seems stuck in our culture as the real Richard III. Henry V, nee Prince Hal, is, in our minds, the perfect model of kingship after an education gained by indulgence in a misspent youth, and a perfect human being, but that is only because that’s the way Shakespeare chose to present him in the furtherance of the themes he wanted to develop and the dramatic story he wanted to tell. In fact, the popular perception of mediaval history as seen through the rulers of the period is pure Shakespeare. We have given ourselves entirely to Shakespeare’s vision. What would Bolingbroke (Henry IV) mean to us today? We would know nothing of him but because of Shakespeare’s plays he is an important, memorable and significant historical figure. The history plays are enormously appealing. Not only do they give insight into the political processes of Mediaval and Renaissance politics but they also offer a glimpse of life from the top to the very bottom of society – the royal court, the nobility, tavern life, brothels, beggars, everything. The greatest English actual and fictional hero, Henry V and the most notorious fictional bounder, Falstaff, are seen in several scenes together. Not only that, but those scenes are among the most entertaining, profound and memorable in the whole of English literature. That’s some achievement. Finally, although adding this at the end of the article and leaving it in the air, several questions are begged: what we see in the plays is not mediaval society at all, but Elizabethan and Jacobean society. Because although Shakespeare was writing ‘history’, using historical figures and events, what he was really doing was writing about the politics, entertainments and social situations of his own time. A major feature of Shakespeare’s appeal to his own generation was recognition, somethingShakespeare exploited relentlessly. List of Shakespeare’s History Plays, Henry IV Part 2,Henry V,Henry VI Part 1,Henry VI Part 2,Henry VI Part 3,Henry VIII,King John,Richard II,Richard III. 2) Tragedy; Hamlet, King Lear, Macbeth, Othello. King Lear Play: Overview & Resources The King Lear play is set in the BCE period, somewhere in England, usually thought of as being what is Leicestershire today. The action in the first two acts shifts among the castles of Lear, Gloucester, and those of Lear’s two daughters, Goneril and Regan. The rest of the action takes place in the frozen countryside, mainly on a blasted heath with violent weather, symbolising the state of Lear’s mind. Date written: 1603-1606 Genre classification: King Lear is regarded as a Tragedy Main characters in King Lear: King Lear is the king of pre-Christian Britain. He has three daughters – Goneril, Regan andCordelia. The Earl of Gloucester is a senior duke in Lear’s kingdom. He has two sons, Edmund, an illegitimate son and Edgar, a legitimate son. The Earl of Kent is a fiercely loyal nobleman, sticking by Lear in spite of Lear’s atrocious treatment of him. The Fool is the court jester, developed well beyond the jesters that appear in Shakespeare’s and other writers’ earlier plays. King Lear themes: This is a play about family – a thorough exploration of family relationships, particularly filial ingratitude, where the cruelty and disregard for their father by Goneril and Regan are contrasted with those of the love and loyalty of Cordelia in spite of the ruthless treatment she has experienced at her father’s hands. There is also a deep exploration oflegitimate versus illegitimate offspring. Good versus evil is presented through the evil of the two older sisters against the saintliness of the youngest. Other themes are those of old age and authority. and attitudes to those; pain, justice, and the ever present theme in Shakespeare’s plays: appearance and reality. King Lear Plot Summary The Earl of Gloucester introduces his illegitimate son, Edmund, to the Earl of Kent at court. Lear, King of Britain, enters. Now that he is old Lear has decided to abdicate, retire, and divide his kingdom between his three daughters. Each will receive a portion of the kingdom according to how much they love him. Goneril, Duchess ofAlbany, the oldest, and Regan, Duchess of Cornwall, the second, both speak eloquently and receive their portion but Cordelia, the youngest, can say nothing. Her declaration that she loves him according to a daughter’s duty to a father enrages him and she is disowned. One of Cordelia’s suitors, the Duke of Burgundy, rejects her once she is dowerless but the King of France understands her declaration and takes her as his wife, while the Earl of Kent is banished for taking Cordelia’s part against the King. The kingdom is shared between Goneril and Regan. Lear tells them that he intends to live alternately with each of them. Meanwhile, Edmund is determined to be recognised as a rightful son of Gloucester and persuades his father that his legitimate brother, Edgar, is plotting against Gloucester’s life, using a deceitful device. Edmund warns Edgar that his life is in danger. Edgar flees and disguises himself as a beggar. Goneril becomes increasingly exasperated by the behaviour of Lear’s hundred followers, who are disturbing life at Albany’s castle. Kent has returned in disguise and gains a place as a servant to Lear, supporting the King against Goneril’s ambitious servant, Oswald. Lear eventually curses Goneril and leaves to move in with Regan. Edmund acts as a messenger between the sisters and is courted by each in turn. He persuades Cornwall that Gloucester is an enemy because, through loyalty to his King, Gloucester assists Lear and his devoted companion, the Fool, when they are turned away by Regan and told to return to Goneril’s household. Despairing of his daughters and regretting his rejection of Cordelia, Lear goes out into the wilderness during a fierce storm. He goes mad. Gloucester takes them into a hut for shelter and seeks the aid of Kent to get them away to the coast, where Cordelia has landed with a French army to fight for her father against her sisters and their husbands. Edgar, pretending to be mad, has also taken refuge in the shelter and the Fool, the mad king and the beggar are companions until Edgar finds his father wandering and in pain. Gloucester has been blinded by Regan and Cornwall for his traitorous act in helping Lear. Cornwall has been killed by a servant after blinding Gloucester but Regan continues to rule with Edmund’s help. Not recognised by his father, Edgar leads him to the coast and helps him, during the journey, to come to an acceptance of his life. Gloucester meets the mad Lear on Dover beach, near Cordelia’s camp and, with Kent’s aid, Lear is rescued and re-united with Cordelia. Gloucester, although reconciled with Edgar, dies alone. The French forces are defeated by Albany’s army led by Edmund, and Lear and Cordelia are captured. Goneril has poisoned Regan in jealous rivalry for Edmund’s attention but Edgar, disguised now as a loyal knight, challenges Edmund to a duel and wounds him mortally. Seeing no way out, Goneril kills herself. The dying Edmund confesses his crimes, but it is too late to save Cordelia from the hangman. Lear’s heart breaks as he carries the body of his beloved daughter in his arms, and Albany and Edgar are left to re-organise the kingdom. Hamlet Play: Overview & Resources for Shakespeare’s Hamlet Shakespeare sets his Hamlet play in the cold, dark isolation of Elsinor a bleak, snow-covered region of Denmark. It’s the royal court of the King of Denmark. The atmosphere is established on the cold, windy battlements of the castle. Most of the action takes place in theinterior rooms and corridors of the castle and one scene is set in a nearby cemetery. Date written: 1601 Genre classification: Hamlet is regarded as one of Shakespeare’s tragedies. Main characters in Hamlet: Hamlet, the son of the recently murdered King is the heir to the throne. Hehas had the crown stolen from him by his father’s villainous brother, Claudius whom thelate king’s widow, Gertrude – Hamlet’s mother – has married. Hamlet’s father’s ghost tellshim on the battlements that Claudius murdered him. Hamlet is continuously spied on by Polonius, the garrulous Lord Chamberlain of Denmark. His eavesdropping results in his being accidentally killed by Hamlet. Ophelia is Polonius’ daughter. Led on to a possible relationship by Hamlet, then rejected, she commits suicide by drowning. Her brother, Laertesseeks revenge by plotting with Claudius to kill Hamlet. Other characters are Hamlet’s friend, Horatio, in whom he confides, Rosencranz and Guidenstern, Hamlet’s fellow university students, who spy on Hamlet for Claudius, a troupe of strolling actors and a pair of gravediggers. See a full list of characters in Hamlet. Hamlet Themes: The play falls into the genre of the Revenge Tragedy, which was very popular in the Jacobean era with its taste for violence and intrigue. Revenge is the most obvious, and one of the main, themes of the play. Although explorations of the idea of appearance and reality are present in all Shakespeare’s plays, it’s more fully developed in Hamlet, with all it’s plotting, intrigues, deceit and hypocrisy. Other themes are the question of what a human being is; death and mortality and suicide. In common with several other Shakespeare plays, there is a clear Christian parallel. Hamlet Plot Summary Prince Hamlet’s student friend, Horatio, goes to the battlements of Denmark’s Elsinore castle late at night to meet the guards. They tell him about a ghost they have seen that resembles the late king, Hamlet. It reappears and they decide to tell the prince. Hamlet’s uncle, Claudius, having become king, has now married Hamlet’s widowed mother, Gertrude. In the court, after envoys are sent to Norway, the prince is dissuaded from returning to university. Hamlet still mourns his father’s death and hearing of the ghost from Horatio he determines to see it for himself. Laertes, son of the courtier, Polonius, departs for France, warning his sister, Ophelia, against thinking too much of Hamlet’s attentions. The ghost appears to Hamlet and tells him that he was murdered by Claudius. The prince swears vengeance and his friends are sworn to secrecy as Hamlet decides to feign madness while he tests the truth of the ghost’s allegations. He rejects Ophelia, as Claudius and Polonius spy on him seeking to find a reason for his sudden strange behaviour. Guildenstern and Rosencrantz, former student friends of Hamlet, are summoned by Claudius and their arrival coincides with that of a group of travelling actors. The prince knows these players well and they rehearse together before arranging to present Hamlet’s choice of play before the king and queen, which will include scenes close to the circumstances of the old king’s death. At the performance Hamlet watches closely as Claudius is provoked into interrupting the play and storming out, resolving to send the prince away to England. Hamlet is summoned by his distressed mother and, on  the way he spares Claudius whom he sees kneeling, attempting to pray. To kill him while he is praying would send his soul to heaven rather than to the hell he deserves. Polonius hides in Gertrude’s room to listen to the conversation, but Hamlet detects movement as he upbraids his mother. He stabs the concealing tapestry and so kills the old man. The ghost reappears, warning his son not to delay revenge, nor to upset his mother. As the army of Norway’s King Fortinbras crosses Denmark to attack Poland, Hamlet is sent to England, ostensibly as an ambassador, but he discovers Claudius’s plan to have him killed. Outwitting this plot Hamlet returns alone, sending Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to their deaths in his stead. During Hamlet’s absence Ophelia goes mad as a result of her father’s death and she is drowned. Hamlet returns and meets Horatio in the graveyard. With the arrival of Ophelia’s funeral Hamlet confronts Laertes who, after attempting a revolt against Claudius, has taken his father’s place at the court. A duel is arranged between Hamlet and Laertes at which Claudius has plotted for Hamlet to die either on a poisoned rapier, or from poisoned wine. The plans go wrong and both Laertes and Hamlet are wounded, while Gertrude unwittingly drinks from the poisoned cup. Hamlet, in his death throes, kills Claudius, and Horatio is left to explain the truth to the new king, Fortinbras, who returns, victorious, from the Polish wars. Macbeth Play: Overview & Resources The main source for Shakespeare’s Macbeth play was Holinshed’s Chronicles. Holinshed in turn took the account from a Scottish history, Scotorum Historiae, written in 1527 by Hector Boece. Shakespeare, flattering James 1, referred to the king’s own books, Discovery of Witchcraft and Daemonologie, written in 1599. Some of the main ideas of Macbeth are Nature, Manhood and Light versus Dark. In Macbeth, the murder of a king by one of his subjects is seen as unnatural and the images ofthe play reflect this theme, with disruptions of nature, like storms – and events such as where the horses turn on their grooms and bite them. In Macbeth Shakespeareexplores what it is to be a man. Lady Macbeth accuses Macbeth of being unmanly because of his hesitation in killing Duncan, but Macbeth says that it’s unmanly for a man to kill his king. Shakespeare plays with that paradox. Duncan is a good king and a good man, and he is surrounded by images of light. Macbethand Lady Macbeth turn their surroundings into a picture of hell, blanketed in darkness. Those images of light and dark interact throughout the play. Traditionally, there is a curse on Macbeth. Actors and productioncrews perpetuate the superstition by avoiding using the play’s title, Macbeth, which is considered bad luck. It has to be referred to as â€Å"The Scottish Play†. Date written: 1605 Read the full Macbeth text Genre classification: Macbeth is regarded as a tragedy. Macbeth Characters: The hero, Macbeth, the Thane of Glamys and later Thane of Cawdor, murders the king, Duncan, and is elected as king in his place. Lady Macbeth, his wife, is his co-conspirator in the murder. Duncan’s sons, Malcolm and Donalblain, themselves in danger, flee. Banquo, Macbeth’s friend, is also murdered by Macbeth. Macduff, the Thane of Fife, suspects Macbeth and his whole family is massacred. Macduff is the man who finally kills Macbeth. There are three witches, who plant the idea of murdering Duncan in Macbeth’s mind, and they lead him on to his destruction. Their queen is Hecate. Other characters are the Scottlish noblemen, Lennox and Ross, and the English general, Siward and his son, Young Siward. See a full list of Macbeth characters. Themes in Macbeth: The main themes in Macbeth are ambition and guilt. Macbeth’s ‘overweening ambition leads him to kill Duncan and from then on until the end of the play he suffers unendurable guilt. Another theme is that of appearance and reality. Of all Shakespeare’s characters, Macbeth has the most difficulty in distinguishing between what is real and what is not. Macbeth Plot Summary King Duncan’s generals, Macbeth and Banquo, encounter three strange women on a bleak Scottish moorland on their way home from quelling a rebellion. The women prophesy that Macbeth will be given the title of Thane of Cawdor and then become King of Scotland, while Banquo’s heirs shall be kings. The generals want to hear more but the weird sisters disappear. Duncan creates Macbeth Thane of Cawdor in thanks for his success in the recent battles and then proposes to make a brief visit to Macbeth’s castle. Lady Macbeth receives news from her husband of the prophecy and his new title and she vows to help him become king by any means she can. Macbeth’s return is followed almost at once by Duncan’s arrival. The Macbeths plot together and later that night, while all are sleeping and after his wife has given the guards drugged wine, Macbeth kills the King and his guards. Lady Macbeth leaves the bloody daggers beside the dead king. Macduff arrives and when the murder is discovered Duncan’s sons, Malcolm and Donalbain flee, fearing for their lives, but they are nevertheless blamed for the murder. Macbeth is elected King of Scotland, but is plagued by feelings of guilt and insecurity. He arranges for Banquo and his son, Fleance to be killed, but the boy escapes the murderers. At a celebratory banquet Macbeth sees the ghost of Banquo and disconcerts the courtiers with his strange manner. Lady Macbeth tries to calm him but is rejected. Macbeth seeks out the witches and learns from them that he will be safe until Birnam Wood comes to his castle, Dunsinane. They tell him that he need fear no-one born of woman, but also that the Scottish succession will come from Banquo’s son. Macbeth embarks on a reign of terror and many, including Macduff’s family are murdered, while Macduff himself has gone to join Malcolm at the court of the English king, Edward. Malcolm and Macduff decide to lead an army against Macbeth. Macbeth feels safe in his remote castle at Dunsinane until he is told that Birnam Wood is moving towards him. The situation is that Malcolm’s army is carrying branches from the forest as camouflage for their assault on the castle. Meanwhile Lady Macbeth, paralysed with guilt, walks in her sleep and gives away her secrets to a listening doctor. She kills herself as the final battle commences. Macduff challenges Macbeth who, on learning his adversary is the child of a Ceasarian birth, realises he is doomed. Macduff triumphs and brings the head of the traitor to Malcolm who declares peace and is crowned king. Othello Play: Overview & Resources The Othello play begins in Venice where there is a wealthy, well ordered, well behaved community, controlled by strong laws and established conventions.