The Plague Symbol in "La Peste"
The Plague Symbol in "La Peste" a) In assessing the plague's effectiveness as a symbol of the human predicament in general it must first be stated what exactly is meant by the human predicament. It can obviously be taken at many levels to mean many different things, such is the ambiguity of the phrase. In the context of La Peste however we must take it to mean the absurdity of existence. The fact that man has no control over his fate and the only thing he can be sure about is death. It is about the vulnerability of man, powerless against the forces of the universe, in which he is a stranger. There are many ways in which we can compare the plague to the human predicament. In Le Mythe de Sisyphe Camus wrote about the eternal struggle of man. Sisyphe had to push a huge boulder up a hill and every time he got to the top the boulder would merely roll down and Sisyphe would be forced to start again. The problem he faced is like the problem man faces in life, one continual uphill struggle. The comparison in La Peste is Rieux. The plague is the boulder and Rieux is pushing it, constantly battling against the plague and yet seemingly getting nowhere. In La Peste, as in many of his other works, Camus shows a strong preoccupation with death. Indeed his works have been described as "le monde du condamnes a mort". Death is prevalent throughout La Peste and can strike at anytime and
To what extent do the sources agree that there was no alternative for the Bolsheviks but to use brutal terror tactics and that this was the most important reason why they won the Civil War?
To what extent do the sources agree that there was no alternative for the Bolsheviks but to use brutal terror tactics and that this was the most important reason why they won the Civil War? The sources, when generalised in a group, seem to suggest that the Bolsheviks had to use force against the Whites and it is almost as if they had no other choice in the matter, as this was all they could do to ensure they won the Civil War. The Bolsheviks had to be ruthless and as efficient as possible at a time when the country was in great turmoil in order to establish their power and ensure that they would not be thrown out of power. Perhaps the only way that this was possible was with the use of brutal tactics, which would lead to many deaths, but would fulfil the aim of maintaining control over Russia. Lewin, the author of 'Lenin's Last Struggle' believes that only authoritarian procedures would give Russia the solutions it needed to the problems that it was currently experiencing. Whilst he thinks that Lenin didn't seek to rule in such a brutal manner, it appears that it was the only choice he had due to the state of the country. Pipes, the author of source B, also talks of the society in which 'extreme poverty and insecurity were the rule', making it sound like the country needed discipline and somebody to really take control of things so that at least some of the current
Revolutionary Terror - By the end of the year 1791, Europe was preparing to witness the end of a seemingly triumphant revolution in France.
Jay Sen Advanced Placement European History Mr. Eastwick 7 February 2003 Revolutionary Terror By the end of the year 1791, Europe was preparing to witness the end of a seemingly triumphant revolution in France. The country was restructuring its government in a forceful yet bloodless manner, while the tyrant King Louis the 16th agreed to the demands of the masses, although without much of a choice. However, due to the fanatical aspirations of men such as Danton, Marat, and Robespierre, it would be only months before the moderate stage of social and political reform was transformed into a radical phase of barbaric violence and force. In their quest for freedom, equality, and fraternity, the leaders of the Jacobins inadvertently turned the revolution into a sort of dictatorship that threatened to destroy all that was achieved in the previous two years of revolutionary peril. The French Revolution took a sharp turn on August 9th, 1792. The Municipal Government was overthrown in Paris and a Commune was established by the leaders of the radical forces. During this time there were continual food riots erupting in areas all over the country, and with the threat of war against Austria and Prussia looming, it was vital that ordered be maintained during such turbulent and riotous times (Sydenham, 156). Although the new constitution had already been written and implemented,
What was the Green Revolution in India?
Why Green Revolution The world's worst recorded food disaster happened in 1943 in British-ruled India. Known as the Bengal Famine, an estimated four million people died of hunger that year alone in eastern India (that included today's Bangladesh). The initial theory put forward to 'explain' that catastrophe was that there as an acute shortfall in food production in the area. Nevertheless, when the British left India four years later in 1947, India continued to be haunted by memories of the Bengal Famine. It was therefore natural that food security was a paramount item on free India's agenda. This awareness led, on one hand, to the Green Revolution in India and, on the other, legislative measures to ensure that businessmen would never again be able to hoard food for reasons of profit. However, the term "Green Revolution" is applied to the period from 1967 to 1978. Between 1947 and 1967, efforts at achieving food self-sufficiency were not entirely successful. Efforts until 1967 largely concentrated on expanding the farming areas. But starvation deaths were still being reported in the newspapers. In a perfect case of Malthusian economics, population was growing at a much faster rate than food production. This called for drastic action to increase yield. The action came in
Benjamin Franklin, born January 17 1706, had a life long pursuit of science and political interest. Benjamin was the fifteenth child of seventeen. After his attendance in grammar school Benjamin was taken into his fathers business.
Benjamin Franklin, born January 17 1706, had a life long pursuit of science and political interest. Benjamin was the fifteenth child of seventeen. After his attendance in grammar school Benjamin was taken into his fathers business. In 1721 his brother James Franklin established the New England Courant, and Benjamin was busily occupied delivering the newspaper during the day and composing articles for it at night. Shortly after Benjamin left Boston, and made his way to Philadelphia, arriving in October 1723. There he worked in trade. He then traveled on to London in 1724. He got employed at two of the foremost printing houses in London: Palmer's and Watt's. His appearance and accomplishments soon won him recognition of a number of the most distinguished figures in the literary and publishing world. Franklin engaged in many public projects. In 1731 he founded what was probably the first public library in America, the Philadelphia library. Franklin became clerk of the Pennsylvania General Assembly and the next year was appointed deputy postmaster of Philadelphia. About this time, he organized the first fire company in that city and introduced methods for the improvement of street paving and lighting. In 1747 Franklin began his electrical experiments with a tool he received from Peter Collinson in England. He advanced a theory of the Leydon jar and supported the
The Significance of the Storming of the Bastille Fortress.
The Significance of the Storming of the Bastille Fortress By Eddie Ho 24 November 2003 CHY4U1-14 Mr. J. Patsalides The Significance of the Storming of the Bastille Fortress by Eddie Ho Before the revolution, the Bastille was a symbol of power, a symbol of terror, the symbol that represents the absolute rule of the monarchy of King Louis XVI. It prevented what the people wanted: liberty, equality, and fraternity. The Bastille served as a ground for imprisoning prisoners that were never to be seen again. However, things changed on July 14, 1789 when the Bastille was stormed by the peasantry. The once powerful fortress of the Bastille was overrun by protesters within a few hours. The rule and control of the absolute king was weakened. The revolution followed, and the king was overthrown. It was because of the fall of the Bastille were the peasants able to realise that they can make changes to the country. The collapse of the powerful symbol that represented the absolute state showed that the king's power and control can be defeated. Its significance showed the people of France that they can attain their desires, and that they can no longer be controlled, and that they can govern themselves without the rule of absolutism. It was the ability of the people to attain their desires that fuelled the Revolution and its world-changing effects. On the eve of the revolution, the
The Seventeenth Century Scientific Revolution. There were three major scientific figures who contributed to the seventeenth century scientific revolution: Johannes Kepler, Galileo Galilei and Isaac Newton.
Who were the major scientific figures who contributed to the seventeenth century scientific revolution? What were their contributions? The seventeenth century marked the emergence of the new science. This century changed the way people think in the Western world and marked the opening of the new era with the scientific revolution (Hewitt et al., 1999). There were three major scientific figures who contributed to the seventeenth century scientific revolution: Johannes Kepler, Galileo Galilei and Isaac Newton. The first major scientific figure of the seventeenth century is Johannes Kepler. Kepler (1571-1630) was a German astronomist and natural philosopher. Kepler was the pupil of the Danish astronomer Tyco Brahe (1546-1601) (Olbrich, n.d.). He formulated laws of planetary motion. His major discovery was that he found out that the planets orbited the sun in an elliptical rather than a circular path. Moreover, he discovered that there was a precise mathematical relationship between the speed with which a planet revolved and its distance from the sun. Kepler deeply believed that the galaxy was heliocentric and that the heavens, like the earth, were made of matter that was subject to physical laws. This believes were completely new and a big breakthrough for the seventeenth because believed that the galaxy was Earth-Centric (Kishlansky et al., 2001). What Kepler demonstrated
In arguing for the Copernican system Galileo demonstrated he was well equipped in balancing church and science.
Galileo’s Trek Everyone knows the name Galileo Galilei now days and reveres it. His observations were astonishing to say the least. He was a spokesperson for logic, mathematics and most importantly, scientific methodology. As respected as he is now, almost five centuries ago this was not the case. What is now accepted knowledge was seen as heretical in his time. It was indeed an uphill battle for him. To prove the Sun was stationary and that in fact it was the Earth orbiting it went completely against a Church-dominated society where the Bible was the ultimate authority in all things and science came second. What Galileo did was an assault to their perfect reality. In those times everything was organized and perfectly explained. All objects outside Earth were perfect spheres held together in perfect symmetry. Galileo observed differently, in his letter The Starry Messenger he depicted our moon as he observed it. He observed features on it much like here on earth; there were craters and mountainous terrain, a far cry from perfect spheres. The moon was not the only heavenly body to be pull-down from perfection; the Sun has spots, it was not perfect as he described it on his Letters on Sunspots. Of course, his retractors brought up any number of possible conclusions to explain the imperfect away. The Moon and Sun had to be perfect; many proposed the telescope was faulty or
Why, and with what consequences did Charles I fail to defeat the Covenanters in 1639-1640?
Why, and with what consequences did Charles I fail to defeat the Covenanters in 1639-1640? In 1637 King Charles I's introduction of the Book of Common Prayer to Scotland sparked widespread social unrest and rioting in Edinburgh. This led to the formation of the National Covenanters which was an Scottish Presbyterian alliance who opposed Charles's religious reforms in Scotland. This resulted in two conflicts in 1649 and in 1640 fought between Charles and the National Covenanters, collectively known as the Bishops' wars. There has been much debate between historians such as Adamson and Gentles over the reasons and consequences of Charles's failure to defeat the Covenanters. The most significant reasons why Charles failed to defeat the Scots between 1639 and 1640 was a combination of lack of support from the Short Parliament, a chronic lack of funds and the superior quality of the Covenanters' Army. The significant consequences of Charles's defeat include destabilisation within Charles's three Kingdoms, rebellion in Ireland and the onset of the Long Parliament. This essay will be organised into two parts, the first section will examine the specific reasons why Charles failed to defeat the Covenanters while the second section will focus on the consequences of Charles's failure. Firstly it is important to assess Charles's failure to defeat the Covenanters in the First Bishops'
Which problem did most to undermine the stability of Louis XVIII's France?
Which problem did most to undermine the stability of Louis XVIII's France? After Louis XVIII had been restored as King of France in 1814, it was evident that he had inherited a difficult and divided legacy. This was the legacy of the "indigestible revolution" of the late 18th Century. He had taken over a country that had supported his enemy Napoleon, and the revolutionaries. Inevitably, this was bound to cause problems in a country, which had been exhausted by the harsh reality of war. However, ironically the most significant problem that was to face Louis, would come from within his own supporters, the Ultra- Royalists. France was battered and exhausted after a long and gruelling war. It had resulted in 1.5million deaths and the extermination of an entire generation. This is because 1 in 3 boys born between 1790-1795 were killed or seriously wounded. The British naval blockade caused enormous economic devastation, which was not helped by heavy taxation, inflation and requisitions. The war had drained the resources of France. Throughout the concluding years, food shortages were common and unemployment rates soared. Consequently, the health of the inhabitants of France, especially children, decreased significantly. The post-war years were also difficult. The employment sector was filled with unwanted soldiers, weapons manufacturers etc, who were searching for jobs. In