Bulgars, Bulgaria and Bulgarians

Bulgars, Bulgaria and Bulgarians The Bulgars were an early people of eastern Europe. The word bulgar derives from an Old Turkic term denoting a mixed background, so some historians think they may have been a Turkic group from central Asia, made up of members of several tribes. Along with the Slavs and the Thracians, the Bulgars were one of the three primary ethnic ancestors of present-day Bulgarians.   The Early Bulgars The Bulgars were noted warriors, and they developed a reputation as fearsome horsemen. It has been theorized that, beginning in about 370,  they moved west of the Volga River along with the Huns. In the mid-400s, the Huns  were led by Attila, and the Bulgars apparently joined him in his westward invasions. After Attilas death, the Huns settled in the territory north and east of the Sea of Azov, and once again the Bulgars went with them.   A few decades later, the Byzantines hired the Bulgars to fight against the Ostrogoths. This contact with the ancient, affluent empire gave the warriors a taste for wealth and prosperity, so in the 6th century they began to attack the nearby provinces of the empire along the Danube in hopes of taking some of that wealth. But in the 560s, the Bulgars themselves came under attack by the Avars. After one tribe of Bulgars was destroyed, the rest of them survived by submitting to yet another tribe from Asia, who departed after about 20 years. In the early 7th century, a ruler known as Kurt (or Kubrat) unified the Bulgars and built a powerful nation that the Byzantines referred to as Great Bulgaria. Upon his death in 642, Kurts five sons split the Bulgar people into five hordes. One remained on the coast of the Sea of Azov and was assimilated into the empire of the Khazars. A second migrated to central Europe, where it merged with the Avars. And a third disappeared in Italy, where they fought for the Lombards. The last two Bulgar hordes would have better fortune in preserving their Bulgar identities. The Volga Bulgars The group led by Kurt’s son Kotrag migrated far to the north and eventually settled around the point where the Volga and the Kama rivers met. There they split into three groups, each group probably joining with peoples who had already established their homes there or with other newcomers. For the next six centuries or so, the Volga Bulgars flourished as a confederation of semi-nomadic peoples. Although they founded no actual political state, they did establish two cities: Bulgar and Suvar. These places benefited as key shipping points in the fur trade between the Russians and Ugrians in the north and the civilizations of the south, which included Turkistan, the Muslim caliphate at Baghdad, and the Eastern Roman Empire. In 922, the Volga Bulgars converted to Islam, and in 1237 they were overtaken by the Golden Horde of the Mongols. The city of Bulgar continue to thrive, but the Volga Bulgars themselves were eventually assimilated into neighboring cultures. The First Bulgarian Empire The fifth heir to Kurts Bulgar nation, his son Asparukh, led his followers west across the Dniester River and then south across the Danube. It was on the plain between the Danube River and the Balkan Mountains that they established a nation that would evolve into what is now known as the First Bulgarian Empire. This is the political entity from which the modern state of Bulgaria would derive its name. Initially under the control of the Eastern Roman Empire, the Bulgars were able to found their own empire in 681, when they were officially recognized by the Byzantines. When in 705 Asparukh’s successor, Tervel, helped restore Justinian II to the Byzantine imperial throne, he was rewarded with the title caesar. A decade later Tervel successfully led a Bulgarian army to assist Emperor Leo III in defending Constantinople against invading Arabs. At about this time, the Bulgars saw an influx of Slavs and Vlachs into their society. After their victory at Constantinople, the Bulgars continued their conquests, expanding their territory under the khans Krum (r. 803–814) and Pressian (r. 836–852) into Serbia and Macedonia. Most of this new territory was heavily influenced by the Byzantine brand of Christianity. Thus, it was no surprise when in 870, under the reign of Boris I, the Bulgars converted to Orthodox Christianity. The liturgy of their church was in Old Bulgarian, which combined Bulgar linguistic elements with Slavic ones. This has been credited with helping to create a bond between the two ethnic groups; and its true that by the early 11th century, the two groups had fused into a Slavic-speaking people who were, basically, identical to the Bulgarians of today. It was during the reign of Simeon I, the son of Boris I, that the First Bulgarian Empire achieved its zenith as a Balkan nation. Although Simeon evidently lost the lands north of the Danube to invaders from the east, he expanded Bulgarian power over Serbia, southern Macedonia and southern Albania through a series of conflicts with the Byzantine Empire. Simeon, who took for himself the title Tsar of All the Bulgarians, also promoted learning and managed to create a cultural center at his capital of Preslav (present-day Veliki Preslav). Unfortunately, after Simeons death in 937, internal divisions weakened the First Bulgarian Empire. Invasions by Magyars, Pechenegs and Rus, and reignited conflict with the Byzantines, put an end to the sovereignty of the state, and in 1018 it became incorporated into the Eastern Roman Empire. The Second Bulgarian Empire In the 12th century, stress from external conflicts reduced the Byzantine Empires hold on Bulgaria, and in 1185 a revolt took place, led by the brothers Asen and Peter. Their success allowed them to establish a new empire, once again led by Tsars, and for the next century the house of Asen reigned from the Danube to the Aegean and from the Adriatic to the Black Sea. In 1202 Tsar Kaloian (or Kaloyan) negotiated a peace with the Byzantines that gave Bulgaria complete independence from the Eastern Roman Empire. In 1204, Kaloian recognized the authority of the pope and thus stabilized the western border of Bulgaria. The second empire saw increased trade, peace, and prosperity. A new golden age of Bulgaria flourished around the cultural center of Turnovo (present-day Veliko Turnovo). The earliest Bulgarian coinage dates to this period, and it was around this time that the head of the Bulgarian church attained the title of patriarch. But politically, the new empire wasnt particularly strong. As its internal cohesiveness eroded, external forces began to take advantage of its weakness. The Magyars resumed their advances, the Byzantines took back portions of Bulgarian land, and in 1241, Tatars began raids that continued for 60 years. Battles for the throne among various noble factions lasted from 1257 to 1277, at which point peasants revolted due to the heavy taxes their warring overlords had imposed on them. As a result of this uprising, a swineherd by the name of Ivaylo took the throne; he wasnt ousted until the Byzantines lent a hand.   Only a few years later, the Asen dynasty died out, and the Terter and Shishman dynasties that followed saw little success in maintaining any real authority. In 1330, the Bulgarian Empire reached its lowest point when Serbs slew Tsar Mikhail Shishman at the Battle of Velbuzhd (present-day Kyustendil). The Serbian Empire took control of Bulgarias Macedonian holdings, and the once-formidable Bulgarian empire began its last decline. It was on the verge of breaking apart into lesser territories when the Ottoman Turks invaded. Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Turks, who had been mercenaries for the Byzantine Empire in the 1340s, began attacking the Balkans for themselves in the 1350s. A series of invasions prompted the Bulgarian Tsar Ivan Shishman to declare himself a vassal of Sultan Murad I in 1371; yet still the invasions continued. Sofia was captured in 1382, Shumen was taken in 1388, and by 1396 there was nothing left of Bulgarian authority.   For the next 500 years, Bulgaria would be ruled by the Ottoman Empire in what is generally viewed as a dark time of suffering and oppression. The Bulgarian Church as well as the empires political rule was destroyed. The nobility either were killed, fled the country, or accepted Islam and were assimilated into Turkish society. The peasantry now had Turkish lords. Every now and then, male children were taken from their families, converted to Islam and raised to serve as Janissaries. While the Ottoman Empire was at its height of power, the Bulgarians under its yoke could live in relative peace and security, if not freedom or self-determination. But when the empire began to decline, its central authority could not control local officials, who were sometimes corrupt and at times even downright vicious.   Throughout this half a millennium, Bulgarians held stubbornly to their Orthodox Christian beliefs, and their Slavic language and their unique liturgy kept them from becoming absorbed into the Greek Orthodox Church. The Bulgarian peoples thus retained their identity, and when the Ottoman Empire began to crumble in the late 19th century, the Bulgarians were able to establish an autonomous territory.   Bulgaria was declared an independent kingdom, or tsardom, in 1908. Sources and Suggested Reading The compare prices links  below will take you to a site where you can compare prices at booksellers across the web. More in-depth info about the book may be found by clicking on to the books page at one of the online merchants. The visit merchant links will take you to an online bookstore, where you can find more information about the book to help you get it from your local library. This is provided as a convenience to you; neither Melissa Snell nor About is responsible for any purchases you make through these links. A Concise History of Bulgaria(Cambridge Concise Histories)by R. J. CramptonCompare prices The Voices of Medieval Bulgaria, Seventh-Fifteenth Century: The Records of a Bygone Culture(East Central and Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages, 450-1450)by K. PetkovVisit merchant State and Church: Studies in Medieval Bulgaria and Byzantiumedited by Vassil Gjuzelev and Kiril PetkovVisit merchant The Other Europe in the Middle Ages: Avars, Bulgars, Khazars and Cumans(East Central and Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages, 450-1450)edited by Florin Curta and Roman KovalevVisit merchant Armies of the Volga Bulgars Khanate of Kazan: 9th-16th Centuries(Men-at-Arms)by Viacheslav Shpakovsky and David NicolleCompare prices The text of this document is copyright  ©2014-2016 Melissa Snell. You may download or print this document for personal or school use, as long as the URL below is included. Permission is   not  granted to reproduce this document on another website. For publication permission,  please   contact  Melissa Snell. The URL for this document is:http://historymedren.about.com/od/europe/fl/Bulgars-Bulgaria-and-Bulgarians.htm

Mentoring vs. Induction Programs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Mentoring vs. Induction Programs - Essay Example An induction program facilitates complete and persistent improvement to school customs and the new teachers. It generally adds on the quality of training, support and retention of newly hired or employed teachers. The new recruits become qualified as a result of the induction thereby making them more competent, able and more helpful. Mentoring on the other hand involves a more specific and personal and long term support for new teachers. The newly hired teachers are assigned to experienced fellow teachers who are able to guide and support them. Mentoring programs are limited to resources while in induction there is massive investment that is used to make the program successful. Mentoring is therefore part of the induction process. It however does not have much clear cut goals to be accomplished and it fails to provide substantiation of relationship between professionals, communities and students. Nevertheless, it is important to note that both programs help to reduce first time grind ing down. According to Department of Education (2006), wear and tear among the teachers has reduced by a huge percentage because of mentoring and induction programs that help in supporting sustainability. Induction is more effective and critical because it consists of internships, workshops and clarification that help new students to understand and face new challenges. Induction also seeks to meet the long term teachers’ needs for as long as it is possible. In order to ensure success of both programs there must be a multi-faceted framework that views critical components and it is also quite important to assess the challenges so as to put in place adjustments that meet the challenges wholly and for an extensive period of time. Different adjustments have been put in place to support the new teachers who participate in these programs. Supporting the new teachers is a critical strategy that integrates new teachers into the qualified way of life. Proper implementation attracts sup port and retains effective educators. This program ensures that there is excellence in teaching because it enhances student achievement and builds supportive environment within schools. The support available to new teachers would ensure there is increased scope in regards to their welfare and promotion of personal well being. This supports the new teacher all the way by providing orientation to ascertain that they become self reliant. The Grand Wood AEA Mentoring and Induction program is intended to train mentors so as to ensure service delivery to new teachers. The training provides mentors with improved knowledge and skills that are interactive and full of opportunities for learning and practice; these support the new teachers in their growth and development. This ensures that the mentor and the new teachers finish mentoring assignments in between the sessions thereby ensuring the goals of mentoring are achieved. These support the new teachers and ensure that there is reduced teac her turnover since mentoring ensures new teacher retention. Wong (2004) explores the fact that high quality mentoring and ind

How Virtue Ethics Informs Medical Professionalism Assignment

How Virtue Ethics Informs Medical Professionalism - Assignment Example From the onset, it is important to understand that doctor have singular duty to care for patients, who need to earn their trust. In this regard, while treating or diagnosing patients the welfare of the patient is a priority. In order for the doctors to earn the essential trust, they should exercise humility while undertaking their duties, knowing to well that patients have trusted them with their lives; trust that must be earned (Pozgar, 2012). Throughout the history of health professional practice, patients are given the freedom of seeking a second opinion. As a result of that second opinion, they get confidence. Patients are entitled to make choices regarding their lives and health, and to make those decisions they must have the liberty to make informed choices after consulting the experts they trust. On the same note, doctors and other healthcare givers are privileged whenever patients come to seek for their services. Patients have the choice of picking the doctors of their choice. On this note, they should be treated with humility and respect that they deserve. From the discussion above, it is clear that patients are at liberty to seek opinions of other doctors as a second opinion (Moeller, et al 2012). The second question is whether Dr. Z acted ethically when told the patient, while in a state of agitation, to seek the second opinion but, did not think that the response would be any different from his. Whereas Dr. Z is human and may be provoked and whereas he felt that he had done the diagnosis well, code of ethics requires restraint from him. Health professionals are in a demanding industry that requires strict observance of ethical standards (Pozgar, 2012). One of the essential ethical requirements in the health profession is humility and restraint, even when provoked by clients.  

Evaluating the human resource development in public and private sector Dissertation

Evaluating the human resource development in public and private sector IN Oman - Dissertation Example The overall aim of evaluating the human resource development in public and private sector in Oman cannot be achieved in the absence of a benefiting research design. The researcher shall therefore use the case study research design to conduct the present study. With the case study research design, the researcher shall be offered the opportunity to select specific scenarios and cases for both the private and public sectors in Oman to investigate in. The case study shall also offer the opportunity of meeting and interacting with the most suitable and appropriate respondents whose inputs would affect the research positively. In the course of the case study, the researcher shall select specific institutions, companies and organizations that fall under both the private and public sectors. These institutions, companies and organizations shall also have different industrial background so that a well balanced and comprehensive view of human resource development as it cuts across different qua rters of Oman shall be seen. This is to say that the case study shall not be limited to specific industries or service providers. The researcher shall build a sample size that shall be made up of two hundred (200) respondents. These two hundred (200) respondents shall be solicited from as many as forty (40) different organizations and institutions. This means that there shall be five (5) respondents from each company. Among the companies, there shall be twenty (20) from the private sector and twenty (20) from the public sector.

Unfair trade between developed and undeveloped countries

Unfair trade between developed and undeveloped countries I come from Burma, where market economy has not developed much yet. So the country is in pristine beauty. The country is poor but it has a charm with which nothing can compete because it still possesses wide area of forests, the water in the rivers is pure and it smells very much like nature. This situation cannot be described to one hearts content; one has to see for oneself. When I came to Thailand, I was pleasantly surprised to see that the whole economy was fully open and people can go shopping for every product one can possibly want (not-need). The Bangkok city is vibrant and skyscrapers are everywhere. For one instant, it is very impressive. Looking into the deep scene will present another story. Thailand has integrated itself into the world economy. In another world, it has been assimilated into the international trade system. Thailand imports a lot of products from different countries and exports varieties of products back. Trading is an important aspect of this developing country. When someone goes shopping, sometimes it is hard to distinguish which product is from which country. Not long ago, the phrase made in a country is an important part of a product. For example, made in Thailand, or made in India matters. However, it does not matter anymore with the advance of globalization trade network. The whole economic system is netted so confusingly. An American product will come from China and Japan product from Malaysia. Some people argue that this is the result of free trade. Anti-globalization protesters argued that the volume of world trade has increased significantly since 1950 from $320 billion to $6.8 trillion. The amount of money invested in the trade has surged to the extent that the real money cannot be implied in the financial transactions. Digital numbers are represented as money instead of conventional one. Some people assert that trade lifted peoples lives from poverty. People usually point to China where millions of people rose out of poverty line, even though Chinese government is still criticized for the stark contrast that exists in China between rich and poor. Some people still hope that trade will lift peoples lives out of poverty. However, when we talk about trade, we have to observe the bigger picture, which means international trade. Looking at one country will not give us a clear picture of actual happenings. The whole world is trading among nations under the concept of free trade. So what actually is free trade? Britannica Online Encyclopedia defines free trade as a policy by which a government does not discriminate against imports or interferes with exports by applying tariffs (to imports) or subsidies (to exports). (Free trade, BOE) It also explicitly emphasized that a free-trade policy does not necessarily imply that a country abandons all control and taxation of imports and exports. However, no matter how much people argue that the economic system established by the United States by the end of Second World War brings the concept of free trade and prosperity, there is a serious setback that affects the majority of the people in the world. International trade may bring about prosperity for the people in the rich countries but deepen the poverty in the poor nations. As Global Ministries Organization argues Most free trade agreements are not equal and result in unfair trade practices by giving some countries, such as large industrial countries like the United States, Canada and some countries in the European Union, more opportunities than others and putting some countries, such as ones in Latin America, Africa and Asia, at risk.   Free trade is trade without restrictions while fair trade is an equitable and fair partnership between trading countries. (Global ministries organization, fair trade vs. free trade)   In the past, the British established unfair trade treaties with the countries across the globe. One of them would be the famous Bowring treaty that was forcefully established between Britain and Thailand in 1855. Nowadays there were various forms trade agreements.   These include bilateral free trade agreements (FTA) between two countries and larger multilateral agreements such as the World Trade Organization (WTO), which is an agreement among 135 nations.   There are also regional trade agreements which encompass the establishment of a free trade zone among many countries in the same region.   Countries across the globe establish several different kinds of trade agreements to support their economies. However, the rich countries are the ones that pursued aggressive trade negotiations with the other poor countries. Office of the United States Representative states on its homepage that Trade Agreements can create opportunities for Americans and help to grow the U.S. economy. At this moment one might want to stop for a while and think. U.S. economy is the biggest economy in the world and it is also three or four times bigger than the second economy in the world now China, formerly Japan. Still, the U.S. is seeking to grow its economy which is a bit irony, because if this phenomenon is not affecting others, it is deemed to be appropriate; however, as we will see in the later part of this paper, a lot of trade activities are not fair in relation to poor nations. The gap between developed countries and developing countries is very big and some scholars conclude that this gap exists due to the unfair practices that are inherent in the system. For example, the U.S. controls their tariff system very high for other countries while forcing other peoples economies to open up so that American goods can be imported. In one mockery of US unfair trade practices, one analyst from Newsweek magazine outlines Fair (unfair) trade often consists of some politician or bureaucrat picking a number out of thin air and imposing it on foreign businesses and American consumers. Fair (unfair) trade means that Jamaica is allowed to sell the United States only 950 gallons of ice cream a year, that Mexico may sell Americans only 35,292 bras a year, that Poland may ship us only 350 tons of alloy tool steel a year and that Haiti is allowed to sell the United States only 7,730 tons of sugar. Fair (unfair) trade means permitting each American citizen to consume the equiva lent of only one teaspoon of foreign ice cream per year, two foreign peanuts per year and one pound of imported cheese per year. Fair (unfair) trade means that the U.S. Congress can dictate more than 8,000 different taxes on imports, with tariffs as high as 458 percent. As we can see here, many developing countries are finding themselves unhelpful amid the American economic imposition. Most developing countries produce agricultural products and these products do not find any way out of their country to sell in other countries. In fact, they face hardship to sell them in the developing countries because of high tariffs walls of the developed countries on the agricultural and manufactured goods they seek to sell.   Worst of all, developed countries practice subsidizing game on their agriculture at a rate of $1 billion a day, which is a whole lot of money while developing countries spend very little money for agriculture even if it is their main economic sector. Therefore because of this money, agricultural producers in the developed countries can produce their goods below production cost and with access to the markets of developing countries they are able to sell their produce at extremely low prices.  This selling and exporting is ensured through trade agreements and trade negotiations. This unfair competition forces international prices to drop in an artificial manner and causes rural farmers in developing countries to collapse.  This was how the U.S. defeated Burma in the rice market while Burma in 1960 was the biggest rice exporter in the world. U.S. now is still one of the biggest rice exporters in the world along with Thailand and Vietnam. At some point U.S. gave out free rice to people in Asia as development aid. This is a major blow to rice exporting countries. How can these countries negotiate with U.S. if they are this aggressive? Moreover, the US exports wheat at 46% below the production cost and corn at 20% below production.  In May 2003, World Bank President James D. Wolfensohn stated that the average European cow receives more subsidies than the entire average income of a person in Africa.   This means that local producers can not compete in their own domestic markets and the result is major losses in income. Another major agricultural product is Coffee and again U.S is involved in this issue. It is stated that coffee is the worlds second most valuable traded commodity.   There are about 25 million farmers and coffee workers in over 50 countries that produce coffee.   The United States largest food import and second most valuable commodity is coffee.   The U.S. imported 2.72 billion pounds of coffee from September 2001 to September 2002.   The U.S. imports coffee mainly from Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Guatemala and Vietnam. Unfortunately, many coffee farmers receive less money for their harvest than the cost of its production, forcing them into a cycle of poverty and debt.   Why is that? The reason lies behind the corporations that sell and buy coffee from local people. In Guatemala for example, coffee pickers have to pick a 100-pound quota in order to get the minimum wage of less than $3/day. A recent study of plantations in Guatemala showed that over half of all coffee pickers dont receive the minimum wage, in violation of Guatemalan labor laws. Who is responsible for all these unfair practices? The root causes will lie in the trade and the concept of comparative advantage. Why do not these people farm paddy or wheat in the first place? It is because the idea of cash crop forces them to seek out dollars instead of survival crops. One major area against free trade and multinational companies is the issue of HIV medicines. Patent law in the international trade system is affecting dying people in the developing world. Pharmaceutical companies are producing HIV medicines with a high price so that people in the developing countries cannot afford it. Oxfam, a British NGO is trying to combat this issue. At an international level, they continue to challenge trade organizations, governments, drug companies, and others to make decisions that will help to improve the health of millions of poor people by providing access to affordable generic medicines. The patent issue is a major problem in the trading system. I am going to mention one specific story about US patent on the use of turmeric in wound healing. Graham Dutfield (2002) argued that the US Mississippi medical center received the above mentioned patent on the method of using turmeric in wound healing. As people would imagine, this patent laws have gone a bit too far. One point they did not know is that Indians have used this method to heal wounds since time immemorial. The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research of India had to request the US patent and Trademark Office to revoke the patent on the basis that turmeric powder is widely known about and used in India for its wound-healing properties, and that a great deal of scientific research has been carried out by Indian scientists that confirms the existence of these properties. Finally, the patent was revoked. (p-65) As mentioned above, there are varieties of unfair trade practices in the international trading system. To address these issues require someone to have a look at the underlying philosophy of the whole economic system. The concept of comparative advantage has pushed a lot of countries to produce things which they do not actually need and afterwards trading has to be done. A case in point would be the coffee production, cotton production and tobacco production. In some instances, a lot of countries trade their produce at the expense of local population. Frances Moore Lappe and Joseph Collins (1988) argues that Brazil produced and exported soybeans to feed Japanese and European livestock at the cost of Brazilians hunger. (p-77). Likewise, Thailand traded cassava, frozen fruit and poultry products with the west and the rest of the world while Thai preschools are undernourished. (Lappe and Collins 1988: 76-77) Most of the times, the national governments are involved in the exploiting the poor while engaging in the international trade. They exported food while people were hungry at home. It seems to me that these governments are orchestrating with the international economic system while ignoring the poor people. Encouraging the fair trade needs reconsidering a number of factors such as scrutinizing the trade treaties, pressuring the governments through civil networks groups and resisting the American hegemony when it comes to unfair trade.

Comparative Analysis of Cultural Ideologies in Norway and the United St

Comparative Analysis of Cultural Ideologies in Norway and the United States The intent of this paper is to examine individualistic and communitarian cultural ideologies within two distinctly different political environments. The first challenge in comparing two nations is deciding which approach is most appropriate. There are several approaches in political science that have proven most beneficial when making comparisons. This study will use a comparative government approach to examine the political institutions, processes, constitutions, and functions of government within each of the two countries selected. The countries that have been chosen for this study are United States and Norway, respectively. Gregory Scott believes that the fundamental aspects of human interaction in society are the need for community (unity) and the need for individuality. The argument is that the entire history of politics is largely the story of how communities and nations resolved the inherent conflict between the universal needs for community and individuality. With that, the topic that this paper tends to address has emerged, within the study of politics in this class and others, as the single most dynamic in scope and in implication. Freedom, equality, and justice combine to build a substantial argument for the individualistic ideology. Authority, order, and democracy are all building blocks for the argument of the communitarian. Scott notes that much of what motivates individualist is a strong desire for freedom. This author also argues that we are all interdependent and authority is justified by the need to bring order to societies competing values and thoughts. In studying the history of humanity, the battleground that has been formed between the need for individuality and unity is undeniable. A person’s view of the nature of humanity is fundamental to their view of government, and its scope. If people are seen as dangerous, then a government to protect people from that danger is most appropriate. If people are viewed as capable of fulfilling their own creative potential, you may want a government that protects individual liberties (Scott, 47). These are all examples of core values for the entire foundation of government and of politics. This argument, for the use and scope of government, is divided into many different arguments that address basic issues o... ...hild benefit scheme, and the increase of taxes in electricity and heating oil consumption. Community Statistics v Official Name: The Kingdom of Norway v Population: 4,504,000 as of Jan. 2001 v System of Government: Constitutional Monarchy v Geographical Area: 385,155 sq. km. v Monetary Unit: Norwegian kroner, NOK v Coastline Length: 21,192 km. v Economic Indicators: Inflation rate (2000) 3.1%; Gross Domestic Product (1999) 1,192,826 million NOK; Gross Domestic Product per capital (1999) 267,328 United States of America According to political scientists, the United States is considered and â€Å"individualistic† society. A society that is quite capable in operating on its own, and not really relying on others to instruct them in ascertaining the very essentials of having a functional, independent, way of living. To fully understand the depths of the United States’ individuality, several ideas must be explained. First, one must understand the role of government in the United States. Secondly, there has to be an understanding of the evolution of the United States as a society, and the formation of its political structure and ideologies. Next, an

Home Deferring Dreams in a Raisin in the Sun

In Lorraine Hansberry’s play, â€Å"A Raisin in the Sun,† she does a great job of intertwining Langston Hughes’ poem â€Å"Montage of a Dream Deferred,† to incorporate her underlying theme of dreams. In his poem, Hughes asks â€Å"What happens to a dream deferred? † and then goes on to list the different things that might happen to a person if his dreams are put â€Å"on hold. † His overall point is that whatever happens to a postponed dream is never positive. Meanwhile, the question Hansberry poses in her play is, â€Å"What happens to a person whose dreams grow more and more passionate — while his hopes of ever achieving those dreams grow dimmer each day? Dreams get put on hold for many different reasons but in the case of the Youngers, it was their home environment that ensured that none of them would be able to accomplish their ultimate dreams. Lena, Walter, Ruth, and Beneatha Younger were a poor African American family that share d a small one-bedroom apartment in the south side of Chicago. Each person had vastly different goals and dreams. Being the head of the household, Lena dreamed the dreams of her children and would do whatever it took to make those dreams come true.Walter, Lena's oldest son, set his dream on starting his own business with a liquor store. He had the basic â€Å"American Dream† of starting from the bottom before ultimately working your way to the top with his entrepreneurial spirit. Beneatha, on the other hand, wanted to become a doctor when she got out of college and Ruth, Walter's wife, wanted to be wealthy. While trying to reach these dreams, each member of the the Younger family had their own dreams postponed and put on hold at some point or another for various reasons.Lena was a widow in her early sixties who devoted her life to her children after her husband's death. Retired from working for the Holiday's family, she was waiting for her husband's insurance money to arrive. With the ten thousand dollar check in her hand, Lena decided to buy a three thousand dollar house in Clybourne Park and she was also going to put some of the money in the bank for Beneatha's medical school. She realized this money was a one-way ticket for her family to get out of their environment and improve their lives and believed buying a house in a different neighborhood was the best way to do this.However, Walter was upset when he heard his mother had spent the insurance money on the house and thought it wasn't fair that Beneatha got some of it for her medical school while he got nothing for his liquor store business. Lena, who always wanted her son to be happy, trustingly gave the rest of the insurance money to Walter. However, he then gave the money to Bobo and Willy, two of his friends with questionable character, to help him get his liquor license. Unsurprisingly, Willy betrayed Walter, taking off with the money and causing his dream to crumble to pieces.Walter was deceive d by his friend Willy but the reality is his dream was never going to happen anyway, and the rest of the family knew this. Living where they lived, the environmental pressures were extremely high. There were five people living in a tiny, run-down, roach-infested one-bedroom apartment, with two families sharing a bathroom. Everyone was looking for a way to improve their lives and Walter wanted to be the one to do it with his liquor store. â€Å"Sometimes it’s like I can see the future stretched out in front of me – just plain as day. The future, Mama.Hanging over there at the edge of my days. Just waiting for me – a big, looming blank space – full of nothing. Just waiting for me† (980). Walter knew there was no future ahead of him if he continued on his life path and he knew he needed to get out. Living in this type of environment, your dreams will always be put on hold until you can finally get out. Ruth, Walter's wife, was pregnant at the time her husband was trying to start up his liquor store and she realized her dream of being wealthy and having a fine family was simply just that – a dream.To her, it was a consolation that her husband had come back to reality after his goals fell through. The problem Walter faced and the reason he was so unsuccessful was that his main goal was not to escape their environment, but merely to improve it. Due to where they lived, the family was destined to fail unless they made a move to get away from it. A lot of the family realized this but Walter didn’t. As Kristin Mathews says in her article â€Å"The Politics of â€Å"Home† in Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, â€Å"Walter’s failing is his acceptance of the capitalist economic system that necessarily excludes him from ascendancy† (par. ). She says that Walter doesn’t wish to change the system but merely change his position in it and until the very end of the play, he is willing to â€Å"surrender his will to this system and exchange his dignity for whatever ‘life’ it might offer him and his family† (7). Unlike Walter, Beneatha, on the other hand, knew that she wanted to escape the system altogether. This is why she was extremely upset when she found out Walter didn't put anything in the bank for her medical school because she knew that was her way out.She gave up hope and her dream of becoming a doctor seemed to fade away with Walter’s liquor store business. Fortunately, her friend Asagai came over and took her out of her environment. By marrying him and moving to Nigeria to practice her medical career, she found her new ticket out of the environment and system that was setting her up for failure. Lena was also well aware of the difficulties of living where they did. She knew moving away was the best decision for the family which is why she bought the house in Clybourne Park with some of the insurance money she received.However, pr ior to the family moving, Mr. Lindner, a representative from Clybourne Park, offered to pay the Youngers to not go into his neighborhood. Lindner, along with the rest of the community, didn’t want a black family living in their neighborhood. Taking the money would have been immoral in the family's eyes, and prioritizes money over human dignity. They understand that moving is the best choice for the family but once again, Walter did not. He was willing to push all his ethical beliefs to the side to take the money and improve his life within his system before ultimately changing his mind.Even though the road ahead will be difficult, they know that they have made an honorable choice and have finally gotten out of the environment that has been holding them back this whole time. They didn’t just improve their lives within the system, they got out of it. Lorraine Hansberry had successfully described the four main characters in the story as human beings with desires, dreams, aspirations, conflict, foibles, and strength. It was â€Å"A Raisin in the Sun† that expressed those dreams and desires and how they ended up as â€Å"dreams deferred. Once the family was finally able to leave their home environment in the south side of Chicago, their dreams began to form into more of a reality. A major underlying theme of the book is to not give up on your dreams and do whatever it takes to accomplish those dreams as soon as possible. It is very rare that putting your dreams on hold turn out in a positive way so you need to seize the moment at all times and push aside anything that holds you back. The Youngers realized that what was holding them back was the system of their home environment and they got away from it as soon as they could and they were happier for it.Works Cited Hansberry, Lorraine. â€Å"A Raisin in the Sun. † The Norton Introduction to Literature. By Alison Booth and Kelly J. Mays. New York: W. W. Norton &, 2011. 950-1021. Print. Hu ghes, Langston. â€Å"What Happens to a Dream Deferred? † The Norton Introduction to Literature. By Alison Booth and Kelly J. Mays. New York: W. W. Norton &, 2011. 950. Print. Kristin L. Matthews. â€Å"The Politics of â€Å"Home† in Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun. † Modern Drama 51. 4 (2008): 556-578. Project MUSE. Web. 14 Mar. 2013. .