Essay Free

Essay Free Will Essay â€Å"Free Will† takes one of the central questions of any religious realm. Whether a human has a freedom in his choice? Whether a human can make a personal, independent decision such us what he should do in each situation? Or are all of his actions predetermined, and the possibility of making a free choice an illusion? Since the time of the Greek philosopher Socrates to modern times, philosophers, theologians, scientists have tried to prove the existence of â€Å"Free Will† or its absence, and as well have to answer to the question do people have real control over their actions? The question, about existence of â€Å"Free Will†, appeared in ancient Greek philosophy. Socrates and his followers believed that the dependence of the lower sensual impulse is an equivalent to slavery, but responsible subordination which was inspired by human mind, means a â€Å"Free Will†. Socrates argued that all humans are looking for the good behavior, but not all equally know what good behavior is. If a person really knows what the true goodness is, then this person wants to do it, but one, who doesnt know, usually takes imaginary goodness instead of real goodness. Then rushes to reach the imaginary goodness and makes mistakes. This then produces evil deeds. No one is willing to be bad on their own will. This way, moral evil reduced to thoughtlessness, that equal to a lower needs level, and goodness for Socrates, according to Aristotle, expresses of the intellect, which is an equivalent to a â€Å"Free Will†. Which means, only human who doing good things can have â€Å"Free Will†. Based on the foregoing, it is possible to make a conclusion, that by the term â€Å"Free Will†, Socrates understands the qualities that exceptional people have, rather than an integral part of every human being. The idea of â€Å"Free Will† gets a new interpretation with the development of Christianity. If we trace the history of â€Å"Free Will† in the Bible, it is necessary to start with the character of God, who decided on his own and created the universe and all that fills it. The Bible says that man was created in the image and likeness of God. This means that a human is equal to God, and has a consciousness, feelings and will, and has the ability to think and make decisions. Suppose a person is really free in his choice. In such a case, two problems appear right away. According to religious beliefs, everything in this world happens only by the will of God. God makes, all he wants, in heaven and on earth. And no one, including human can’t resist God’s will. How, then, can a person can have any â€Å"Free Will†? If a person is not free, another ethical problem appears. According to Christianity (as well as Islam and Judaism) God rewards man for good behavior and punishes him for his bad. However, if a person cannot choose what he should do in each case, if his actions were predetermined and even corresponded to the will of God, how and why in this case, it is possible to punish humans? And what then is the â€Å"Free Will† for a man? Scientists consider issues related to the freedom of will. With development in science particularly genetic engineering, neuroscience and psychiatry; human view the presence of â€Å"Free Will† has changed. Scientists believe that people do not choose the genotype and the environment, do not choose the other factors affecting their lives. People do not choose in which family to be born, therefore they do not choose hereditary genes that are the most meaningful way determine our lives. Some genes predisposing to a human disease, some genes determining appearance, behavior, intellectual abilities all of them affect our lives. According to scientists, human body is as a kind of machine, established and acting at the direction of the external forces that cause it to work in certain way. This point of view is a concern because it is mean that people cannot be responsible for their behavior in any situation. No one has found the answer to the question of whether people have the â€Å"Free Will† or is it just an illusion. But in any case, a human has the right to follow the path of good or choice the path of evil. All humans exist like cells in a single large organism called the universe. World created from all its parts or elements. Each element contributes to the world their personal characteristic; effects and change world’s destiny. It may be weak and insignificant in the overall system of the world, but it is exists. It operates within certain limits on domestic fundamentals essence and nature. Without any of these elements would be a different world.

The Mother-Daughter Relationship in Toni Morrisons Beloved Essays

The Mother-Daughter Relationship in Toni Morrison's Beloved In Toni Morrison’s Beloved, 124 can be thought of as a character with human characteristics that are brought about by the spiritual presence of Sethe’s deceased daughter. It is almost as if the house is the physical element of this spiritual force, and the naming of the house as simply 124 immediately allows â€Å"readers to unconsciously register the unseen number three in 1-2-4† (Washington 175). This idea becomes relevant because after registering this, we can see a reoccurring pattern of this concept throughout the text. First of all, there were three females in Sethe’s family, and after murdering her eldest daughter, there was left a â€Å"triad of grandmother, mother, and daughter† (Washington). In Washington’s article she elaborates heavily on this idea of the missing number three as the number suggests a spiritual element. Aje, defined as â€Å"a controlling matriarch who uses her power, forcefully or gently, to guide her family and often the community† (Washington 172) is overwhelmingly present at 124, and is an Africana theoretical perspective concept that Washington attempts to define in her article while also interpreting the intricacies of the mother-daughter relationship in Beloved (172). However, it seems that there are also major ideas that play a part in this concept of Aje. Through Toni Morrison’s Beloved and Teresa Washington’s â€Å"The Mother-Daughter Aje Relationship in Toni Morrison’s Beloved,† it seems that the Aje relationship can be defined by several reoccurring themes which consist of the idea of unification through the act of violence, male presence, or the lack thereof, and the concept of Sethe’s self in comparison to her â€Å"best self.† There seems ... ... my theory, Beloved understands that her mother put her in a safe place, but at the same time she does not fully understand why she was placed there alone, and for this she is angry, and in turn takes her anger out on her mother in an attempt to destroy her, so evidently, Washington is contradicting herself. Through Beloved and Washington’s article, the concept of the Aje mother-daughter relationship becomes prevalent. This concept is emphasized by unification through violence, male absence, and the idea of Sethe’s â€Å"best self.† Washington says, â€Å"Beloved revolves around a mother and daughter’s desire to enjoy perfect unity† (Washington 174). Clearly, we see this concept and ultimately what happens as a result of Sethe’s desire, and the destructive path it leads her down, as of course, destruction is a characteristic of the mother-daughter Aje relationship.

Persuasive paper on video game violence Essay

Today’s youth live in a time where video games are a fixture of entertainment. Video game consoles are found in almost every home, including a child’s bedroom. I believe that the portrayal of violence in video games is not the reason for the increase of violent acts committed by and against youth. Parents and the government should understand it is not the fault of the game itself. Modern parents should be engaged in the messages their children are receiving from video games and the images they are allowing them to witness. Creating more laws and legislations surrounding the sale and content of video games will not provide the protection that parents think they will. I believe that parents who refuse to engage in the content their children are exposed to must educate themselves actively and be aware of what their children are observing when they play video games. They need to actively seek out information about the game and what types of content it contains before their children start to play. Parents should not solely rely on the rating provided by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), an independent board that provides ratings to video games. Games with the rating of Everyone, or â€Å"E†, contain mild violence. According to a study from the Journal of the American Medical Association where 55 video games were played, â€Å"27 games (49%) depicted deaths from violence† (Thompson and Haninger). Parents who do not take the time to learn about a game first risk their children killing in the game that is rated for â€Å"Everyone†. Children need their parents to talk with them and explain that what they are seeing is not real and that violence like that is not appropriate behavior. A study by the American Psychological Association found that game players self-reported that â€Å"game playing was found to elicit more fear than anger, depressed feeling, or pleasant relaxation, and respectively; however it elicited more joy than fear† (Ravaja, Saari and Turpeinen). Desire to commit violence was not one of them. Parents also need to set clear boundaries on what is appropriate and what is not for their children, based on their own beliefs. The violence portrayed in video games exists without a call to action. The games do not command players to go outside of the game and commit the same acts. It is also not the duty of lawmakers to limit accessibility or ban content all together because they fear that the violence could incite an incident. The British Medical Journal originally published findings from the United Kingdom Millennium Cohort Study. The study was conducted over 10 years and included more than 11,000 children. It â€Å"did not find associations between electronic games use and conduct problems, which could reflect the lower exposure to games and/or greater parental restrictions on age-appropriate content for games† (Parkes, Sweeting and Wright). Parents should determine what is right for their children and what is not. The boundaries of every family are different and need to be enforced by the parents. The creators and retailers of video games often become the scapegoat for lawmakers and government officials when a violent act occurs that involves or is perpetrated by youth. Parents rely on their legislators to take up their causes and seek out laws that will promote their cause. Regulating video games on their behalf is one of those causes. Legislative bodies across the country are looking for ways to prevent incidences of violence, especially gun violence like what occurred in Sandy Hook Elementary in Newton, Connecticut and the movie theater in Aurora, Colorado. The state of New Jersey outlined a plan last year that included measures to limit and restrict how retailers merchandise games in retail outlets and would require parental consent for kids to purchase games rated â€Å"Mature† or â€Å"Adults Only† (Friedman). The state of Massachusetts also considered legislation that would assemble a group to â€Å"investigate the influence of violent video games and to find if there is a connection with real world violence† (GamePolitics Staff). However, these, and other laws being debated across the country, face a significant legal road block. Video game retailers already take precautions and preventative measures to keep certain games from being purchased by children and further regulation on a legal level is not needed. The Supreme Court heard Brown v. EMA, a case against California’s laws that restricted the sale of certain games to teenagers based on state’s determination that they were violent. The basis of the case came down to a First Amendment issue because California’s specifically singled out video games and no other form of media. The Court struck down California’s law and ruled â€Å"the games, like books and movies, are protected under the First Amendment’s guarantee of freedom of speech. The Supreme Court also said it found no convincing link between the games and real world violence† (Friedman). Justice Antonin Scalia stated, â€Å"Psychological studies purporting to show a connection between exposure to violent video games and harmful effects on children do not prove that such exposure causes minors to act aggressively† (Friedman). Regulation by the government is a clear-cut defense for parents who battle with their kids about certain games being purchased and played. It is easier to tell a child that they cannot have something because someone else restricts it and not because the parent forbids it. It means the child is not upset with the parent and diverts their displeasure. Parents do not have to be the â€Å"bad guy† because a law takes care of that for them. I have personally witnessed parents telling kids that they cannot purchase a particular game because it is too graphic or not for their age. Most of the children are less than pleased by the response and show it. I imagine most parents want to avoid that reaction from their child in a store. Creating legislation that the Supreme Court found infringes on the collective’s First Amendment rights or circumventing the current self-regulation of the video game retailers is not the solution. Today’s parents should stop seeking a solution for interference outside of their own decisions as a parent by increasing legislation on games. Parents to the next generation are severely taxed by the demands of day to day life. The one item that they cannot be relaxed about is the entertain they choose for their children. Buying a video game console and unleashing a child into the world of gaming is almost a rite of passage for parents, especially parents that grew up playing Super Mario Bros. It is unwise to do so without rules, boundaries, and some due diligence on their part. They should be educating themselves on the games and need to be reviewing game content information available from web sites like IGN. com. Parents should be supervising their kids playing the games that they may not be familiar with yet many do not. They should also be looking at what they can control in their own home, including utilizing parental control settings on the consoles themselves and restricting online and downloadable content. Parents should not lean on lawmakers to establish those confines for them nor does not lie in society’s hands. The ultimate responsibility lies with parents who are willing to unplug what video game content they do not want their child to play. Works Cited Friedman, Matt. â€Å"Game over? Christie’s plan to restrict video games would likely be overturned, experts say. † 24 April 2013. NJ. com. Web. 3 March 2014. GamePolitics Staff. Massachusetts State Senator Proposes Study on Violent Video Games. 14 November 2013. Web. 3 March 2014. Parkes, Alison, et al. â€Å"Do television and electronic games predict children’s psychosocial adjustment? Longitudinal research using the UK Millennium Cohort Study. † British Medical Journal (2013). Web. Ravaja, Niklas, et al. â€Å"The Psychophysiology of James Bond: Phasic Emotional Responses to Violent Video Game Events. † American Psychological Association (2008): Vol. 8, No. 1, 114-120. Thompson, ScD, Kimberly M. and Kevin Haninger. â€Å"Violence in E-Rated Video Games. † Journal of the American Medical Association (2001). Web.

A Survey of Behavioral Finance Summary - 1332 Words

A Survey of Behavioral Finance Nicholas Barberis and Richard Thaler In this handbook, Barberis and Thaler define the differences between traditional finance and behavioral finance. Traditional finance is rational.Rationality means two things; correct Bayesian Updating and choises consistent with expected utility. On the other hand behavioral finance assumes that market is not fully rational and analyzes the facts when the some of the princibles are loosen up. This essay also discusses about two main topics; limits to arbitrage and psychology. These two topics are known as the two buildings blocks of the behaviour finance. In the normal markets security prices equal to fundamental value.In this†¦show more content†¦Ambigutiy aversion is defines risk as a gamble with known distribution and uncertainty as a gamble with unknown distribution, and suggests that people dislike uncertainty more than risk. The experiments about ambigutiy aversions shows that people do not like sitiuations where they are uncertain . Aversion changes based on preceived competence at assessing relevant distribution. US stock market is a good research area for the facts about its behaviour. The most three important behaviours are equity premium , high volality and predictable returns. Risk preium seems to high and possible explanations are under prospect theory. Rational approches must focus on changing risk aversion to explain volatility. Volatiliy explanations under beliefs are overreaction to dividend growth, overreaction to returns, confusion between real and nominal rates. All three of these facts are known as eqity puzzles. Both the rational and behavioral approaches to finance have made progress in understanding the three puzzles singled out at the start of this section. The advances on the rational side are well described in other articles in this handbook. 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