Category: humanity

Notably, since the beginning of digital era commenced in the 1970s with the emergence of programmable computers that can take directives from command control and act upon this directive without any human intervention, people have been anticipating the doom of humanity since this time. Studies have been done to explore the potential threat the machines that can operate on their own with less human intervention has on the course of humanity. So far, the most anticipated and proclaimed doomsday where machines have taken over the world does not occurred. So now, humanity is enjoying the bountiful benefits accrued from machines that have made work more comfortable and made impossible tasks possible to achieve. Currently AI systems are surpassing most activities in human lives from big data management, infrastructure control and management, future forecasting and celestial exploration and all automotive operations (Mateescu and Madeleine 17). There are critics and prophets of doom who have failed to notice the unfathomable benefits and achievements that have been attained due to the use of AI system and only foresee the imminent threat that a superintelligent system poses on humanity. I strongly oppose this view that distorts human advancement in technology and science and advocates that AI is safe and is there to facilitate the growth of humanity.

Disruptive technologies such as AI have transformed and augmented human capacities and have also altered the aeons of human activity from mechanical to automated operations. Nowadays, systems that are driven by written computer codes and algorithms have dominated ambient information and connectivity that humanity relies on to derive information and use a platform of socialization and interaction, thus providing unprecedented opportunities and opening up potential breakthrough that the human mind has not yet conceived. As algorithm-driven Artificial Intelligence progresses in traversing through the scope of human activity, it is evident that it will make the life of people even much better than they were in the previous years.

How AI will enable humanity to grow can be seen through the convention of 979 technology pioneers, developers, researchers, activists, innovators and policy leaders in the canvassing of experts that was conducted in the summer of 2018 (Makridakis 57). In this convention, experts predicted that that networked artificial intelligent would greatly amplify the effectiveness of human capabilities. The experts spoke of the increased possibilities that AI would avail to humanity where computers would match or exceed human intelligence and capacity. Thus, they would be able to handle the complex problem and decision making that requires too much labour and time conduct sophisticated analysis and pattern recognition, do visual acuity, language translation and speech recognition. As a result, there will be automation system in the society, in buildings, in utilities, in business processes and farms. These systems will save on time, money and lives offering better opportunities for people to have access to a more customized experience which human effort cannot realize on its own (Koenitz-Hartmut 369). As a result, people will move away from mass production and consumption to customized production where the products produced are tailored to a particular need and demand which will increase the satisfaction of people and reduce wastage of resources

The greatest minds of our times like Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk and scientist Stephen Hawkins have warned humanity against relying on machines to conduct primary crucial functions in human life such as controlling the operation and management of power grids and conduction distribution of water in urban areas. The warning is directed to humanity since AI system are vulnerable to attacks and establishing these crucial infrastructures in AI system pose a significant risk of attackers infiltrating these systems and interfering with these sensitive structures. Despite this dire warning, the aspect that AIs can support these infrastructures is a vital aspect which relieves humanity from the constant worry of the structures failing to operate properly or be faulty in its function. Human intervention in these systems entails so many variables that pose huge threats such as human errors and insufficient effort eating supplied due to human beings getting tired or exhausted and being impeded by environmental factors interfering with the operation of these facilities. Human intervention and resources that were channeled in these areas were found to be limited. Hence, the emergence of AI system such as SCADA resolved the problems that limited human effort posed in the operation of these infrastructures. Distribution of power across region and supply begun to be comfortable and cheap to maintain. This is because the distribution channels were operated remotely from a central system, and the whole channel was monitored from a monitor of a computer as compared to the previous one the required workers to be on the field to conduct physical assessments of the systems (Gherhes and Ciprian 3066). The supply and distribution of power have become seamless and growth and development of humanity economically and socially have been nourished due to the increased accessibility of resources that has spurred economic and social growth.

The robust economies of developed countries that boast of increased supply and reach of electricity, advanced industries with efficient production and manufacture, improved education and healthcare, effective security system and also elevated civilization owe these successes to the widespread use of AI system in these areas. The primary area that has incurred significant improvement due to the introduction of AI has been in the medical sector. The healthcare sector has made significant advancement in terms of disease exploration and medicine discovery in biotechnology due to the use of AI (Millen 112). Diseases were hard to detect, like genetic diseases and psychological diseases are currently being discovered and being properly mitigated earlier because of the AI system. The secondary and tertiary care that were once impossible to carry out such as radiotherapy due to the amount of risk that it posed on the patient are now being carried out due to proper implication of AI devices that regulate the utilization of radiation therapy in human bodies. Hence, doctors can suppress the malignant growth of cancerous cells and increase the survival chances of patients that are faced with these chronic diseases. Besides, AI has granted an efficient system such as EH that stores the medical history of the patient making it easy to access patient information and improve healthcare education and treatment provided in a healthcare facility. Therefore, it is evident that the progress in medical sectors such as faster medical delivery and improved healthcare delivery that is patient-focused has been attained due to the intervention of the AI into healthcare sector. Industrialized nations also depend on big data management in most of its sectors for proper communication and flow of information. The banking sector manages big data through the use of AI systems. Banks employ AI devices that connect it to the central bank of various countries where their reserves are monitored keenly to avoid the economy facing inflations and recessions accruing to the economic crisis. Banks also have a seamless connection and transfer of information with its numerous branches through the AI system. Marketing banking products have been made easy, and platform for undertaking banking services has increased due to the advanced platform that AI offers such as mobile and internet banking as well as for cryptocurrencies. The whole banking sector owes its success to the AI system.

AI system can also be associated with the increased connectivity between people and nations as well as improved relations between countries. The internet that has been a significant hub of socialization is a product of AI where devices are connected through Arpanet connectivity. The internet contains various servers that people utilize different to serve particular functions such as interacting, studying, exploiting certain elements to serve specific purposes and many other uses. The internet has made the world to be one global village where a person can connect with another person from a different continent just in second. This is also established a global market where multinational companies have managed to breach the geographical constraints and conduct their business operations in oversea markets. Cloud computing has contributed significantly in ensuring that geographical domain is not a constraint to business operation for organization by facilitation business transactions to be done in any place at any time (Dohler et al. 122). Nations have managed to foster amicable ties due to capabilities that AI has guaranteed to them, such as intellectual property transfer either through security or business operations. Countries of been benchmarking against each other and facilitating each other’s development through sharing their intellectual property. As a result, stronger bonds between nations have been formulated, and more concrete pacts formed.

Conversely, AI is predicted to be the destruction of humanity. This is because humanity has become overly dependent on AI system such that every aspect of human life reflects the widespread use of AI. From healthcare, industrial area, security, social platform and other field exhibits how deeply humanity is entrenched into the AI system. Humanity no longer relies on its intellectual capability of appropriate assessment and navigation, decision-making and logical analysis that can only be derived from human conscience to being dependent on automated computation, quick assessment and probable choices that are products of AI system. As a result, inventors are pursuing a course of developing superintelligent AIs that are fully autonomous with the intellectual capacity that is far that one of a human being. Such a device will be hard to control as most experts has indicated and there is the probable threat of such a system turning against humanity to retaliate due to being overworked and misused as humans are known to do.

As a result, AI that can think beyond human IQ is a catastrophe waiting to happen. Currently, there are imminent threats that AI has brought along such as security systems being open to uncensored infiltration of cyber-attacks which were not an issue before the emergence of AI (Poola 573). Most attacks have been carried out, and companies and government institution have been jeopardized due to these vulnerabilities that an AI system is susceptible to due to the system being open since it is accessible to the internet. Banks been defrauded millions of dollars, institutions have been destroyed, and even some states have been destabilized due to these vulnerabilities (Lawrence, Cesar and John 255). However, there is nothing that is overly good without some setbacks in it. There are threats that AI has posed to the growth of humanity, such as increased vulnerability to critical infrastructure and expanding cyber-crime activities. Still, the benefits that it has provided to humanity in its technological revolution has been remarkable. It has transformed human lives in a more significant proportion. If people advance in the use of AI with the caution that most critics call for, then the unmerited shortcoming of AI can be surpassed, and its full benefits garnered.

“Railway Station” and “Flying Man” are poems that depict humanity’s bond with nature and how modernization destroys it. “Railway Station” addresses the constant changes in life in relation to time. Tagore expresses how humans are puppets to time, they are trapped in a constant cycle of movement controlled by time. “Flying Man” depicts mankind’s unchecked ambition and how its desire to conquer skies can lead to humanity’s doom. These two poems illustrate the bonds within nature and how modernization disrupts the harmony. This essay will explore the use of imagery to highlight aspects of humanity, nature, and God in these poems.

Railway Station is a poem that seeks to replicate and explore aspects of human lifestyles, using the metaphor of a ‘Railway Station’. The idea of a railway station suggests constant movement, which could drown and disguise our own emotions and thoughts. This metaphor could also insinuate the idea that humanity never reaches its destination and end-point. The trains may symbolize opportunities given to us, but our inability to make use of them due to the hustle bustle in society. Tagore implements juxtaposition to emphasize the repetitive and cyclical nature of humanity. The use of phrases such as ‘morning and evening’ and ‘coming and going’ imply a routine that humanity has accustomed itself to. These phrases are written in the present perfect progressive tense, which reiterates continuity and flow. This idea insinuates the concept of how life has become a meaningless sequence which ultimately, leads to the destruction of nature and our own kind. To further reiterate the idea of constant commotion, Tagore creates a fast pace and draws the reader into the cycle of movement using the phrases “Hubbub” and “Pressing”. The use of plosive alliteration and onomatopoeia in “Hubbub” creates an abrupt and sharp effect, reinforcing the idea of movement. The idea of aggressive behavior and desperation is introduced by the phrase “pressing”. This suggests that humans are slowly losing their sense of morality and concern for others.

Throughout the poem, there are various instances wherein Tagore uses imagery in relation to nature to insinuate how humanity’s lifestyle is against nature’s cycle. The writer repeatedly references nature to suggest how this continuous routine has become a natural part of life. The use of similes such as “ebb and flow like an estuarine river” and “rapid as storms” imply the power and influence of nature on mankind. The reference to “an estuarine river” suggests the idea of fluctuating tides and how the routine of life is a continuous but irregular pattern. The idea of life being “rapid as storms” connotes a fast and unstoppable force of nature. “Storms” also imply chaos, destruction and symbolize foreboding omens; this indicates that this everlasting cycle will eventually result in doom for mankind.

The poet uses several techniques to build a rhythm, and references divisions of time to suggest how humanity is controlled by time in “Railway Station”. This evokes a feeling of within the reader. This is seen through the quotations “changing direction every moment” and “by the minute”. These quotations reference small divisions of time, which connotes the control of time over humanity. Another interpretation of this phrase is the idea of a timeless cycle of no relief. Tagore implements enjambment to create a rhythm and a sense of continuity in the poem. Enjambment is also used to express the idea of a repetitive circle beyond the limitations of one line. These techniques are effective at altering the rhythm of the poem and drawing the reader into a feeling of motion.

“Flying Man” depicts compatibility between aspects of nature and uses imagery to suggest how man-made technology are the root cause of destruction. In the first stanza, Tagore uses the phrase “Satanic machine” as a metaphor for airplanes. This implies that technology such as airplanes are instruments used by Satan, connotating the evil and ungodly feature of modernization. On the other hand, the poet uses phrases such as “from the flash of feathery line” and “spiritual joy springs” to suggest beauty and harmony in nature. Both these phrases are examples of unvoiced sounds and fricative alliteration, the soft ‘F’ and ‘S’ sounds imply grace and elegance. The use of the adjective “spiritual”, which connotes God or higher power, is juxtaposed against “Satan” in the first stanza. This insinuates that purity and beauty reside only in the realms of nature. The affinity and bonds within nature are represented in this phrase “birds are companions to the clouds”. The use of syndetic listing (‘birds’, ‘clouds’ and ‘blue space’) further emphasizes the connections and compatibility in nature.

Tagore implements several auditory techniques to create a peaceful atmosphere for the reader, such as Terza Rima. This rhyme scheme allows the reader to draw together the lines that rhyme and consolidate the images and ideas explored. Another technique that is used is enjambment, which is used to establish a continuous rhythm in the poem, as if to replicate the cycle of nature. The flow of this rhythmic pattern also suggests grace and elegance in nature. In stanza 8, the diction of the poem changes dramatically changes from a peaceful and harmonious lexical field to a harsh and negative word choice. This abrupt change in mood and tone replicates how man-made technology disrupts nature’s flow. The lexical field pre-Volta consists of monosyllabic, positive words which relate to nature. This relates happiness with a simplistic, undeveloped lifestyle suggesting that lack of technology does not correlate with one’s happiness. However, the lexical field post-Volta consists of harsh and complex words. The use of the phrase “…incompatibility with sky” implies the opposite to companionship between nature. This phrase shows that technology destructs nature; it suggests that airplanes are an anomaly in the natural world, implying disharmony and disruption.

There are several references to religious concepts in “Flying Man” to suggest the correlation between nature and God, and how technology disrupts the harmony. The use of the phrase “this thing has not been blessed by the life-divinity, the sun disowns it, neither does the moon feel any affinity” symbolizes how God refuses to accept and acknowledge their connection with man-made technology like airplanes. The use of the phrase “life-divinity” symbolizes God, and reiterates how modernization is against the natural flow of humanity. “Sun” and “Moon” is juxtaposition and represents the entire natural realm, referring to the entire natural realm as an entity, symbolizing the aversion to modern developments. The use of personification in “blasphemous grating laughter” to describe the “brutal roaring” of airplanes extends the metaphor of “Satan”. “Blasphemous” indicates how the poet thinks that modernization and technology are impious and against God.

The ideas explored within these poems depict aspects of the relationship between nature and humanity, highlighting the impact modernization has had on this relationship. Tagore describes modernization as an impious act, going against the will of God and nature. The poet clearly highlights the implications of rapid developments and modernization will be destruction for nature and humanity. This is further emphasized by showing the contrast between the harmony in nature and dissonance in humanity using imagery.

Technology is ascending fast more than people could ever grasp. The fall of the human race has been feared. Artificial Intelligence has been discussed and predicted for over decades to be more useful and more knowledgeable than humans. Now, everything has come into reality. The point is, as super AI machines and such become more and more innovative, the future is at stake as it slowly replaces humanity.

As human as people are, greed of things is not inevitable. There are three major reasons as to why the dominance of AI can be threatening to human kind. Firstly, domination of machines over humans. Secondly, slothiness and decrease of critical thinking among individuals. Lastly, in the near future, AI is set to create something destructive.

According to a Mckinsey Global Institue report, 375 million jobs worldwide will vanish by 2030 and it is due to the advancement of technology. Also, 95% of the jobs will be taken by machines and robots. Subsequent to the Industrial Revolution, machines began taking the place of manual workers. With this, people became less physically active resulting to a sedentary lifestyle. People are becoming slaves of modern technology (Katina Michel, 2014). As innovations became more advanced, our skills in critical thinking and analysis have also declined. AI being the end of human race has been prophesied by Physicist Stephen Hawking, Microsoft founder Bill Gates and SpaceX founder Elon Musk. ‘Success in creating AI would be the biggest event in human history. Unfortunately, it might also be the last’ (Hawking, 2014).

Hawking also believed that as time comes, AI such as OpenAI could outwit financial markets, out-invent human researchers, out-manipulate human leaders, and evolve weapons people could not even fathom. The scope of the benefits of AI may be big, but it will never be in moderation as people take use of it. Although the invention of machines make work faster and easier for people working in medical fields and such, AI has replaced the sense of purpose of humans. With the help of technology, lessons and information can be obtained with just one click, but what people get from it are not absorbed thoroughly. The advancement of technology has lead to the creation of super smart AIs that is foretold to cause perishing of humans. The actual essence of every individual has changed. Human reasoning and thinking has been declining as computers possess more data.

The possibility for a ‘dystopia industry’ has been envisioned as more indecipherable innovations come to life. With these threats to human kind, the only key to survive is to interrupt AI learning processes but not changing the way the machines learn and ultimately, the use of AI devices with restrictions. By now, humans should be looking for ways in preventing the supremacy of AI as disadvantages start to interfere with people’s lives. Everything innovated within the planet is a product of a man’s intelligence. As creators, would we let these creations destroy us?

Around 1700 B.C. the code of Hammurabi was formed. It was made by the a Babylonian king named Hammurabi, he ruled around 1792 to 1750 B.C. It was the most complete legal codes with 282 rules. It was stolen from the king but rediscovered in 1901. Hammurabi’s code was written onto a big finger-shaped black stone pillar. It was around two and a half feet tall weighing over four tons and made of diorite. One of the rules was like “an eye for an eye”. Which meant if someone does you wrong then you get to do them wrong.

Confucianism is like a way of life, like religion basically. They say it the chinese way of life but it is more complicated. It has to deal with education, society, and government. Confucian values have been here for over 2000 years , centuries and a source for people to be inspired by them in the sintic world. They belief that people are kind hearted, able to learn and grow and improve and become perfect.

The neolithic revolution began around 10000 B.C. in the middle east where people started to farm their used stone tools and started to use agriculture. The stone Age began to use agriculture. The Neolithic human made emmer wheat cereal. Thats was the first crop made by them. They hunted pigs boar anything meat they hunted it. It was like a diet for the neolithics.

Iron weapons was part of life back in those days. They used swords knifes anything that would melt and become sharp they used it. People where very violent back in the stone age and iron age. Where they mostly used iron as a main resource. They say violence solves nothing, well back in those times they did. They would slotter each other just bacuase they took a piece of food or something. They would fight and argue for anything.

Trade has been important since the stone age, maybe longer. When you trade in the lunchline so you could the bag of chips you want and you wit your friends who want the cookies you have. Just a compromise. Trade is fair because everyone wins and you get want and so the other. And as people come to an agreement less wars happen, violence stuff like that. Trade is to get what you need from someone that you don’t have. If i don’t have any trees in my state. Would ask another state who doesn’t have stone even though i have i can give them stone ad give me wood. It all an compromise.

Kazuo Ishiguro’s book “Never Let me Go” and Ridley Scott’s “Blade Runner” Film both explore a dystopian world which features its main characters as clones/replicants of real humans. But what does it mean to be human? Is it to obtain the characteristics of human features; skin, hair, eyes, a heartbeat? Or is it to show emotions of kindness, love, forgiveness? This concept of humanity will be challenged in Kazuo Ishiguro’s book “Never Let me Go” and the film “Blade Runner” through analysing the depth of characters in both texts. Demonstrated by the emotions of the characters in the Book “Never Let me Go” and the film “Blade Runner”, it is clear the concept of humanity is established through the direct relationships displayed. In both texts the concept of humanity has been reflected through the replicants/clones emotional characteristics of love, hate, guilt, sympathy and compassion. This is supported by the development of romantic relations between characters such as Kathy and Tommy in “Never let me go” and “Deckard and Rachel” in Blade Runner. Although the concept of humanity amongst the replicants will be analysed, this discussion will determine to what extent of “humanness” the characters have displayed. During this, the concept will be determined through the critical human experiences, symbolism and scene descriptions evidence in both texts.

Throughout both the film and novel, we explore the relation between replicants and what it means to be human. The norm of being a clone/replicant shaped by society is normally to lack possession of any sort of human emotion. However is perfectly capable in Ishiguro’s novel and is seen in Kathy and Tommy’s relationship when he is “pleased” she found the tape, but wished “he had found it” for her. Throughout the novel, Kathy describes this tape in depth, implying that it was very important to her. The song “Never let me go” in the tape, where the title of the novel originated from symbolises the depth of human love and the fear of losing loved ones based off Kathy’s interpretation of lyrics. Love and the fear of letting go loved ones are all apart of human emotions. The theme of ‘Never let me go’ occurs frequently in the novel, especially at the end when Kathy awaits for Tommy by the fence over the horizon, suggesting she never wants to ‘let him go’. This signifies the depth Kathy’s humanness through her genuine love for Tommy. Like Ishiguro, Scott portrays the love between Deckard and Rachel in the film, not to add a touching love story but to help communicate their human emotions and feelings for one another. In the film, Deckard was commanded to kill all replicants including Rachel. However recognised her human like qualities and fell in love with her instead. However not only were Rachel’s emotions recognised as her humanity, the film hints Deckard being a replicant himself. This theory is shown when Gaffe leaves an origami unicorn outside his apartment after Deckard had dreamt about a unicorn earlier in the film. This suggests that Gaffe had access to Deckard’s dreams which further suggests he is not human. Although Deckard was given the false hope of being human, he still managed to accept Rachel for the way she is and recognised her worth by letting her live. We learn from this that if we strip society’s influences on the impression of clones and replicants in our in-just society, there is still a soul capable of loving just like any other normal human being.

So what is it that makes someone human? Based in Ishiguro’s novel, it is the ability to show and feel emotions. Whether that is love, hate, jealousy, sympathy or even happiness. The coming of age narrative style in “Never let me Go” allows the readers to watch the protagonist’s character development grow throughout the novel. Arguably, the replicants show more “human” emotions than the real humans do throughout both texts as they are experiencing everything for the first time, they are more likely prone to their emotions. This is demonstrated in the novel by Tommy’s hot headed temper and struggle to let go of anger, which he comes to terms with for his relationship with Kathy. His transformation from his anger temper reflects as growth as a person of maturity. Tommy also demonstrates frustration with his lack of ability of creative artistic drawings in Hailsham, making him-self-conscious and embarrassed of his drawings. Although others mock Tommy, it is Kathy who still loves Tommy for his flaws, this is shown from the very start of the when she approaches him on the football field about his muddy shirt in attempt to calm him down. From the novel title “Never Let me Go”, this book reflects a deeply human need to hold onto, and be held onto by loved ones. Emotional attachment is the most significant sign of humanity one can possibly experience. Revolved around the complication of a love triangle and friendship between Kathy, Ruth and Tommy, we see their true humanity and emotions such as heartache, jealousy and compassion that they experience in Hailsham. At the start of the novel, Ruth is jealous of Kathy’s and Tommy’s relationship but later admits that kept them perusing their true feeling for each other intentionally (Appendix 1). As flawed as Ruth may be, her humanity was clear through her decency and goodness within her as a friend for Kathy. As replicants, they experience the depth of human emotions like any other normal being would. This is also demonstrated in the film by Roy Batty’s character growth of compassion and his humanity. Roy reveals his fear of death when he drives a nail through his hand, which may symbolically represent the suffering and frustration he has experienced through his life as he accepts his fate and shows mercy upon Deckard, saving him from death. Ultimately, from being a crazy maniac throughout the film, Roy has fulfilled his humanity to its fullest. He has become more human than human.

The novel itself is deemed sad under the circumstances of the children; no parents, surrounded by strict guardians and no personal freedom or future of a life outside of Hailsham. It was often difficult for the kids to grow up thinking they were “modelled from trash. Junkies, prostitutes, winos, tramps” (166). With no sense of identity, it was hard for the clones to accept the fact they are not human and were seen in a lower social status, as Ruth felt, “clone models” are often undesirable. However this didn’t mean they didn’t dream and have hopes for their future. Batty’s plea to Tyrell was simple, “I want more life father!” The desire of life, to live and experience life’s qualities is a defining moment of humanity regardless of their genetic makeup. This is shown when Ruth and Kathy see the office in the magazine. The Open-Plan Office becomes a part of Ruth’s sense of possibility for the future, her desire to work on the outside world, a symbol of hope. The nature of hope is restless, it is what keeps us reaching out for a future towards which we are not satisfied with yet. It’s the longing to achieve great things in life and is important to our human existence. Although the Open-Plan Office is represented as Ruth’s hopes, it also becomes a part of Tommy’s and Kathy’s hope as Ruth gives them a chance to prove their love for one another to peruse a deferral. Like Scott’s “Blade Runner” and Ishiguro’s “Never Let me Go”, the replicants humanity is reflected through their motivation to live and desire to create an identity to be someone; a human.

In Never Let Me Go and Blade Runner, the clones are seen as more human than human. It is in their expression of love for each other and emotions, as well as their desire to live a human experience. Identified in the love Deckard has for Rachel and the love between Kathy and Tommy, those emotions go beyond the fundamentals of being human. Being capable to love someone in such depth to see their human-like qualities portrays every shade of human emotion one could possibly obtain. The character development in both texts from emotional rage to acceptance, anger to remorse, and hate to compassion amongst the replicants explores how their values and priorities change during their journeys of discovering their identity. No different from normal humans, we can see the human emotions and hopes and dreams the replicants share with another, expressing their fulfilment of humanity.

Macbeth, once an honorable character, loyal to his kings and friends. Always praised by everyone around him because of his positive demeanour. However, as the play continues, Macbeth soon falls victim to the witches’ prediction and suffers from his fatal flaw which is the desire for power and position. Macbeth murders his King who sees Macbeth as a loyal soldier and even bestows the title Thane of Cawdor on him, but because of his striving ambition, he finds himself trapped in a void where he can see no escape.

Macbeth is a unique character who experienced a sense of change throughout the play. In the play Macbeth there are examples of internal and external conflict. The external conflict in the play when Macbeth decides he no longer wants to murder King Duncan. “’We will proceed no further in this business”. Lady Macbeth becomes irritated with her husband and criticise his manhood by calling him a coward, ‘…woulds’t thou have that which thou esteem’st the ornament of life and live a coward in thine own esteem”. She continues to attack his ego by stating that if he killed King Duncan he would be an example of a true man. ‘…when you durst do it, then you were a man and to be more than what you were, you would be so much more the man”. Macbeth trying to prove his manhood of his wife, he eventually murders King Duncan. Another internal conflict within Macbeth occurred after he had banquo murdered. ‘Avaunt, and quit my sight! Let the earth hide thee! Thy bones are marrowless, thy blood is cold; thou hast no speculation in those eyes which thou dost glare with!” He becomes agitated and guilty that he starts to see Banquo’s ghost, “the times have been,that, when the brains were out, the man would die, and there an end, but now they rise again, with twenty mortal murders on their crowns, and push us from our stools: this is more strange than such a murder is.” Though as the play progresses, he realises that his crime is pursuing him, “It will have blood; they say, blood will have blood”. The importance of these conflicts is the decisions that people make to resolve these issues. So how did Macbeth resolve these issues? Macbeth blinded with ambition has impacted his life profoundly. The consequences of his actions are that he led to multiple deaths, his relentless feeling of guilt, and the change of Kingdom leaders. His ambition to stay king has brought out the tyrant within him and shows the evil side of Macbeth, letting his ambition take over. His growth of ambition throughout the play eventually leads to his tragic death.

Shakespeare has explored many things in this play such as the corrupting power of unchecked ambition and the darker side of humanity appearance vs reality. Ambition is an important theme as this disrupts the natural order of things throughout the play. Not only Macbeth but also his wife, Lady Macbeth, is very ambitious too. The banquet scene shows how his ambition has completely taken over and manipulated Macbeth. Macbeth goes too far and decides to have his best friend Banquo killed, ‘Tis’ better thee without than he within. Is he dispatched?’ To Macbeth, Banquo stands in the way of his ambitions and must be eliminated. The theme of ambition is portrayed very negatively in this scene, which has made Macbeth power hungry. Another scene that shows Macbeth’s negative aspirations is when he finds out that Banquo’ son Fleance has escaped the murderers. Macbeth feels threatened saying as the result of Fleance’s escape, he feels like his position is under threat. Appearance vs reality is an important theme as the witches’ predictions lures him and the reality behind them destroys Macbeth. Macbeth is praised by everyone for his bravery and faithfulness to King Duncan. However, he secretly desires to become king through the murder of King Duncan. Macbeth’s paradoxical mind before he murders Duncan causes him to go insane and see a dagger in the air,’Is this a dagger which I see before me…’. It is elusive as Macbeth reaches out for it. He assumes that it is the result of his mind thinking about murder.

Elie Wiesel’s 1956 book ‘Night’ and Roberto Begnini’s 1996 film ‘Life is Beautiful’ both share very powerful messages about humanity through significantly different styles. Both of these texts show compassion and dehumanization through the characters, the inmates and Nazi’s and also using different tones and choice of language. Begnini chooses to show more humanity in his characters more than Wiesel does as he mainly focuses on the love between his main characters, whereas Weisel describes the horrors that his characters experience.

In the book Night, by Elie Wiesel, Hitler’s main objective was to make the Jews feel inhuman. The Jews were tortured everyday for no reason other than for the entertainment of the SS officers. They treated the Jews like animals and felt no remorse for the repulsive things they did to them. They killed people for no reason without feeling guilty and even went to the sickening extent of burning them alive. All of these things led up to the Jews feeling as though they were not human. Elizer talks about how “one day when Idek was venting his fury, I happened to cross his path. He threw himself on me like a wild beast, beating me in the chest, on my head, throwing me to the ground and picking me up again, crushing me with ever more violent blows, until I was covered in blood.” [pg 53] His father was dying, yelling out to him and was told to shut up by one of the officers and then was beat repeatedly for talking until he fell unconscious and later died. Another way that the Jews were dehumanized was by taking away their identity. When they first arrived at the camp, they took away the things that made them who they were, giving them the same haircut, clothes and even tattooing a number on them. “I became A-7713. From then on, I had no other name. Therefore, in Wiesel’s choice to show inhumanity by describing the savagery that the Jews had to experience, it shows the impact of trauma and sends a message that humanity relies on hope.

In the movie ‘Life is Beautiful’ by Roberto Begnini, shows that even in a time of Nazi Germany, Joshua and Dora were still able to keep going because of the love of Guido, protecting their humanity and giving them hope. Throughout the movie, Guido only went through the Nazi’s toutures because of his confidence in hope and kept his son alive by showing him hope in every situation. The love of this father is an escape for his child from all of the horror around him and is able to make life beautiful.

In both texts, they show humanity and inhumanity in some very different and similar ways. Night uses the horrible experiences that the characters in the story went through to show how their humanity slipped away. Life is beautiful shows that no matter the situation, there is always a way to find hope and keep yourself from losing your humanity. In Night, the characters relied on hope in order to keep their humanity whereas Life is Beautiful showed that love is powerful enough to keep that. The characters in the two texts each went through being tortured and treated badly by the Germans and Nazi’s.

Overall, in Elie Weisels novel, ‘Night’ and Roberto Begnini’s film, ‘Life is Beautiful’, despite their contrasting styles, the two texts both use powerful ways in showing the message of humanity. Weisel shows more inhumanity in his text through the pain of his characters and their experiences, whereas Begnini’s film shows how even in the hardest situations, your humanity doesn’t always slip away. Therefore both texts use different text features to emphasise inhumanity and humanity.

The Animal Legal defense fund has a petition for increased protection for the rights of animals established in 1979. Animals have been mistreated by humanity by researchers who test beauty products on animals to ensure that they can be sold and use by humans. Society uses these beauty products without regret to the damage done to animals, torturing animals each year by experimenting on them and causing them pain and suffering by injecting harmful toxins. When the toxins enter their bodies and get sick they must be sacrificed.

Experiments should be with a purpose, and there should be a limit on experiments done to each animal. Humanity should consider the consequences of our actions and treat animals with consideration. In other words test on animal chemicals that we wouldn’t mind exploring on our infants and family members. These animals are being kept away from their native habitat and parents to be hurt and exploited under cruel circumstances. We need to come up with better ways of preserving life. If we protect animals, we are protecting the earth and everyone on earth. Earth is becoming extremely fragile with all the pollution as humans continue dumping trash and expect fish to continue reproducing so we can consume them. The sea is home to fish and other sea creatures that have the right to a better quality of life and by dumping trash into the ocean we are mistreating them. In “Hooked on a Myth” by Victoria Braithwaite (Par 3). She talks about fish having nociceptors as humans do. Fishes have the same sensory nervous system that responds to harmful and painful situations. Can you imagine what they feel when fishermen fish for them on a daily basis? Perhaps there is a better way of fishing so we don’t trap them and stress them out. If humans start thinking of the world rather than making profit earth would be more fitting not only for humans but wildlife. Animals have the right to live and be happy just like humans do, Animals have suffered enough and its time to advocate and stand up for them.

The Animal Bill of Rights would protect our future by minimizing the number of animals that we kill and hurt. Jeremy’s Rifkin’s “A Change of Heart about Animals” (Par 4). The article provides evidence on a study of pigs. For example, pigs crave attention and are easily depressed if isolated or denied playtime with each other. The lack of physical stimuli results in the deterioration of health. Animals crave attention, eat, play and feel pain like humans do. If humans isolate themselves and have no support system or other outlets of socializing, they would become depressed and if not treated it could become a mental illness. Mental illness on humans causes problems. Some examples are attention deficit, anxiety, and eating disorders. Having anxiety is a big problem the basic tasks become overwhelming, you get insomnia and you worry too much. Let’s be honest having any type of mental issues or problems with your health is hard. Imagine how this affects animals? If animals become too sick for the studies, we kill them because they aren’t healthy enough to continue working with.

Unhealthy animals’ equal unhealthy meat that is being sent nationwide for human consumption. Have humans ever stopped to think before eating a piece of steak at a fine restaurant? how the animal was treated prior to being slaughter and sent to the restaurant? shouldn’t we at least give them and offer them a good quality of life so that they stay healthy for human consumption. Humanity takes advantage of animals for hunting purposes, that’s not humanitarian that’s injustice, not only to the animal but to the world. We depend on animals to live and therefore we have an obligation to implement rights to protect them from wrongdoing. We have so many stray animals roaming the streets and in animal shelters with nowhere to go. Street animals are sustaining themselves by eating garbage and consuming unsanitary water which in return makes them sick and eventually they end up dying and stay on the side of the road or on the street smelling for days until Animal Control has the time to come and pick them up. In addition, small children and sensitive populations get sad and children are too small to understand what is happening.

This unhealthy for everyone. I believe we need to control animals’ reproduction and hold everyone accountable for the treatment of animals to prevent animals from wandering the streets without a home. The more we protect animals and humanity the better and brighter our futures could be.

I am a proud cat owner and I can say my cats make me happy. When I come home my cats greet me at the door. When I am either doing homework or sitting down on the couch, they come around me and want attention. By petting my cats after a long day I forget all my frustrations and just focus all my attention on making sure my cats are loved. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t grow up with cats in my home and I disliked cats because of the cat litter smell but after doing some research and babysitting one, I found that what was stopping me from loving them was all the misinformation I had. Cats are smart and if I had the resources, I would adopt them from shelters and provide for them the life they deserve.

Welcoming animals and giving them rights to avoid all the mistreatment and suffering for research purposes would be beneficial to the environment and to all human life. We all share this planet and humans need to treat everyone with respect and dignity. This is why I strongly support the animal bill of rights. The best way to hold us humans accountable for making sure animals live their best lives and not suffer and show future generations that animals shouldn’t be hurt but instead be cautious because if we take care of them we are essentially taking care of ourselves. The fewer animals we hurt during the process the better chances we have of survival. Humans need to unite and educate each other on the consequences of the road of destruction we are headed too by creating new ways of exploring medicine and experimenting with human-like animals.

Fictional stories play an important role in our lives, they allow the audience to experience things that are thought to be impossible as well as provide a deeper understanding of many life questions which non-fictional stories can’t seem to cover. Throughout this term, we have covered multiple fictional stories with many forcing the audience to think outside what we know to be true, think outside our own personal experiences and imagine a world, unlike anything we are familiar with. This type of story allows the audience to experience what life would be like in many different scenarios which ultimately introduces many important questions about humanity and life as a whole. Two stories from our readings this term which I believe best represents this idea includes The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas by the author, Ursula LeGuin and The Library of Babel by the author Jorge Luis Borges. These two fictional stories explore two very different realities from our own all while giving the reader a deeper understanding of our own personal lives.

In the case of The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas the narrator describes a perfect town, a utopia described by being located by a beautiful “shimmering sea”(LeGuin 424) with “the air of morning was so clear that the snow still crowning the Eighteen Peaks burned with white-gold fire across the miles of sunlit air, under the dark blue of the sky.”(LeGuin424) The narrator further continues to describe the perfect town of Omelas all while including the reader’s imagination by urging them to picture what the town of Omelas really looks like. This allows the reader to truly picture Omelas as the perfect town, a utopia filled with everything that makes a town, a society and a person filled with nothing but happiness living in a perfect world. The Library of Babel is a universe, also known as the Library, described by the narrator as, ‘indefinite, perhaps infinite'(Borges 113) which is made up of a series of identical hexagonal-shaped rooms. Each room has four walls and is filled with books, there are also small closet-like spaces for sleeping and using the bathroom. The only other part is hallways that lead to the other hexagons. The hallways have spiral staircases, which lead to the other perfectly identical levels. Unlike the city of Omelas which is showcased as a utopia with endless possibilities and prosperity, the library is a limiting and hopeless place because of the fact that nobody, no matter their efforts can find or understand the meaning of the place that they are in. This hopeless and bleak attitude is expressed when the narrator states, “There are official searchers, the “inquisitors.” I have seen them about their tasks: they arrive exhausted at some hexagon, they talk about a staircase that nearly killed them-some steps were missing-they speak with the librarian about galleries and staircases, and, once in a while, they take up the nearest book and leaf through it, searching for disgraceful or dishonorable words. Clearly, no one expects to discover anything. That unbridled hopefulness was succeeded, naturally enough, by similarly disproportionate depression. The certainty that some bookshelf in some hexagon contained precious books, yet that those precious books were forever out of reach, was almost unbearable”(Borges 116). This quote expresses the idea that nobody within the library truely has hope for finding what they’re looking for and it is causing a very bleak and depressing mood throughout the library. The narrator also states, “In earlier times, there was one man for every three hexagons. Suicide and diseases of the lung have played havoc with that proportion. An unspeakably melancholy memory: I have sometimes traveled for nights on end, down corridors and polished staircases, without coming across a single librarian”(Borges 114). This quote further shows how the library is a depressing, hopeless place with many people resulting in suicide to rid themselves of the torture they are experiencing. These two fictional societies despite having many differences from our own society also have many similarities which help the readers better understand their own lives.

First of all, fictional stories do a fantastic job teaching the reader’s how to approach and solve many different types of problems. As reader’s we observe how different characters respond to adversity, learn from these different scenarios and use what was learned in order to solve many of our own problems. Overall fictional stories do a great job in teaching readers to be creative and to better be able to tackle different types of problems. We can see this idea first hand through reading both, The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas as well as The Library of Babel. The major dilemma within the story The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas which is that the entire good fortune and prosperity of the town of Omelas is built on the suffering of a young child. A young child, who is not known to be a boy or girl is locked in the basement of one of the beautiful looking buildings in the town. Everyone in the town knows that this child is there, they know that the child is alone, terrified and on the brink of death from the horrible treatment and abuse but yet nobody in the town does anything to help the child. Although the scenario of a perfect utopia built on the suffering of a young child is impossible, the main premise of this scenario is very relevant within our own society. There are countless examples within our own society of people profiting and prospering off of the mistreatment of others, and being able to read a fictional story of this type of scenario, even though it is indeed fictional still brings great insight into what it would be like to be in this type of situation. This story allows the reader to think about what they would do in a situation like the one proposed all while showing what characters within the story are choosing to do. This story expresses the idea that the mass of people within the town of Omelas do nothing about the mistreatment of the child, they all allow this very negative thing to keep happening in order for their own lives to stay happy and prosperous. This story shows the reader more about their own lives by making them think about what they would do if they were a resident in the town of Omelas or other possible scenario’s within our own reality. The Library of Babel introduces an entirely different scenario in which the reader can dissect and bring what they have learned into their own lives. This story shows the devastating effects of thinking you have no purpose in life. The world of the “Library” is a hopeless and bleak place due to the fact that many of the remaining people within the “Library” have given up on what they believed in and are seen to have no more purpose within their lives. This fictional reality shows the reader the dark and negative effects of a world without hope and allows the reader to better prevent this type of scenario from happening within their own lives since the narrator went in great depth about what caused their own despair and loss of hope. As shown in both stories, The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas and The Library of Babel fictional stories, especially ones relating to realities unlike our own have the ability to help us, as the reader’s in better understanding our own lives and preparing us for possible scenarios in the future.

Another way that fictional stories such as The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas and The Library of Babel impact our own lives is that we, as the reader’s get to see an insight into different characters lives and personal thoughts which in turn, allows us to understand more about human thought, decision making, and overall psychology. This premise is evident within The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas since the entire conflict within the story is based on the decision making and personal thoughts of the residents of Omelas. “Why don’t they stay and fight? Why don’t they play Samson and bring down their world in ruins around them? Because, after all, we need not stop the world when we have merely decided to get off”(Knapp 80). This quote expresses the main psychological dilemma within the story, what to do about the young child locked away. The residents of Omelas know what is happening as seen when the narrator states, “They all know it is there, all the people of Omelas. Some of them have come to see it, others are content merely to know it is there”(LeGuin 427). The people of Omelas may feel bad for the child, they know what is happening is wrong but nobody is willing to lose everything they have. What was described as the perfect town would be gone, everything they love, gone. The only other option for these people is to leave Omelas all together, leave their “perfect” town and everything they know, the child will still be locked in that dark basement, still being horribly mistreated and ignored but to leave Omelas is to stop living by this horrific rule, to stop being complicit to this way of life, however it will still change nothing. This is the psychological insight the readers are given which makes us think hard about our own decisions and thought process throughout reading this story, overall impacting our own lives.

In conclusion, fictional stories play a very important role in our lives, they provide us with many different experiences and insight that without these types of stories would be impossible to experience. Both The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas by the author, Ursula LeGuin and The Library of Babel by the author Jorge Luis Borges do a fantastic job in proving this idea by forcing the audience to think outside of what they are familiar and comfortable with and urge them to think and learn new things about themselves and society as a whole.

In the article How-and How Not-to Love Mankind, Theodore Dalrymple interprets and explains the welfare of humanity and how philanthropic sentiment takes a variety of forms. Dalrymple introduces his argument with two nineteenth-century writers, Ivan Turgenev and Karl Marx. Although some aspects of Turgenev and Marx’s lives were usually similar to each other, the two shared distinct views on human behavior, nature, and welfare. For instance, according to Theodore Dalrymple, Marx viewed human beings as ‘snowflakes in an avalanche,’ or ‘general forces.’ Turgenev perceived humans as individuals who embodied feelings, character, moral strengths, and consciousness.

Marx focused less on the lives of individuals and more on vast numbers because he felt focusing on men was more interesting rather than observing individuals. The difference in the ideologies and beliefs of Karl Marx and Turgenev supports the argument that intellectuals can have different viewpoints and perspectives on the welfare of humanity. Dalrymple uses the articles, “Mumu,” written by Turgevev and “Communist Manifesto,” written by Marx, to help differentiate their views about humanity.

In his article, How-and How Not-to Love Mankind Dalrymple mainly argues individuals claim to care for and possess the welfare of humanity, but in reality, sometimes that is not true. To acquire the welfare of humanity, people must truly serve humanity with a pure heart and true nature. Although people serve humanity differently, one must be sincere, loving, and dedicated, to possess the welfare of humanity. Dalrymple supports his idea by using the stories Mumu and Communist Manifesto. First, Dalrymple introduces the story Mumu written by Ivan Turgenev, to represent the ideologies of Turgenev’s views of human beings and humanity. The story Mumu depicts the purest form of love between a man and his dog companion, Mumu. Mumu narrates the absence of love that’s driven by a selfish, manipulative human being out of spite and jealousy. A deaf, serf, by the name of Gerasim, seeks love throughout the story. Gerasim undergoes the cruelty of serfdom due to arbitrary power. His wicked, manipulative, landowner seeks to abuse her power and destroy everything that makes Gerasim happy. The selfish landowner deprives Gerasim of his lover, a peasant named Tatyana, and his companion, a dog named Mumu. The story Mumu revealed the dark cruelty of arbitrary power and the reality of serfdom. Whether the classes are different, the absolute power over one person or another leads to cruelty. The story Mumu aligns with Turgenev’s belief that humans are hopeful, saveable, and humanity will be blissful without selfishness, absolute power, and serfdom.

In the next story, to support his argument, Dalrymple uses Communist manifesto written by Karl Marx. Unlike the compassion depicted in the story of Mumu, the Communist manifesto represents hatred, anger, bitterness, and encourages violence among humanity. One distinct difference between Marx and Turgenev is the interest in the lives of individuals. Marx, according to Dalrymple, in Communist Manifesto, does not mention the individual lives of humans. Instead, Marx speaks only in categories. For instance, he uses words such as bourgeois and proletarian, because he believes vast numbers share the same relations in the economic system. In How-and How Not-to Love Mankind, Dalrymple uses Marx’s quote from the Communist Manifesto to support this idea. In this quote, Marx stated,” In bourgeois society, capital is independent and has individuality, while the living person is dependent and has no individuality.’ This quote written by Karl Marx means, the ‘bourgeois society capital,’ is supposed to serve the interest of the people, by giving it ‘individuality.’ A person is dependent on the capital because it fulfills interest. For instance, it provides the working class with jobs due to ongoing production. There is no’ individuality’ of that person because the capital shares the common interests of the capital bourgeois. Marx mentions individuality because he believes the working class should unite and overthrow capitalism by replacing it with communism. Like Marx, I also disagree with the ‘bourgeois society capital’ because it exploits the working class for wealth and production. The capitalist bourgeois uses the power of labor to expand their businesses and production by paying the working class little wages. If people were to make their own decisions, there will be more satisfaction, than perhaps depending on the ‘bourgeoisie society capital’ because not everyone’s interest becomes fulfilled. In some aspects, I agree with Karl Marx’s beliefs. For instance, capitalist bourgeois exploits the working class, however, I disagree with some factors in production and economic equality. Because of his beliefs, a tremendous amount of people hated Marx because of his lack of sympathy towards humanity. The remaining people found his beliefs interesting and beneficial and would go on the spread them. According to Dalrymple, hardly anyone came to Marx’s funeral, while thousands mourn the death of Turgenev. To many people, Turgenev was well-respected because of his love, hope, and respect for humanity. Although Marx and Turgenev’s ideologies and beliefs differed and were extremely distinct from one another, they both have impacted the world.

Overall, I agree with Theodore Dalrymple’s article How-and How Not-to Love Mankind. As seen with the evidence Darymples used to support his claim, individuals do claim to care for and possess the welfare of humanity, but in reality, sometimes that is not true. Sometimes people serve humanity differently because philanthropic sentiment takes a variety of forms. I agree with his statement because he supports it using the evidence of two nineteenth-century writers with similar yet distinct paths. I agree that the world needs to treat humanity with a pure heart. We must be sincere, loving, and dedicated, and then we shall possess the welfare of humanity. As said by Thomas Hobbes, we must seek peace and follow it. We can not always rely on violence because we need to respect and love each other. Hobbes is relevant to the topic How-and How Not-to Love Mankind because to obtain the welfare of humanity, we must first seek peace with each other. We must prevent violence and love each other regardless of our economic class, race, gender, and, etc. We should treat each other fairly and as individuals. According to Marcus Aurelius,’ in the second discipline of stoicism, ‘our nature is fundamentally unselfish,’ and we must treat people with respect and dignity. If we put aside our differences, we can learn to love humanity.