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The film produced in 1987, Ethnic Notions directed by Marlon Riggs portrays many social issues that America have before the Civil War and throughout the Civil Rights Movements. The film showcases different social issues such as sexuality, appearances, and servility that many African American faced during that era. The media deeply enhanced these issues that affected the African American communities. The media was responsible for different stereotypes that were labeled on African American by the white comedians, minstrel acts and the cartoons that were shown to the public.

The media used “blackface” and minstrel acts as ways to defend slavery. The idea of servility was created by the different characters that were created by the media. Characters such as the “Happy Sambo” and the “Mammy” were created in order to defend slavery. The media painted this image of African American as being happy and willing wanting to work for slave owners. Happy Sambo was portrayed as a happy, dancing, lively African American man who was delighted to work for the slave owners. The Mammy was usually portrayed as an older woman who was happy and obedient to serve her masters. These characters were not only use to defend the idea of slavery but it also created falsified ideas of African American being happy and willingly wanting to work under somebody else control.

Minstrel shows was another way for the media to spread falsify ideas about African American. The white performers would paint their so call “blackface” on and mimic African Americans stereotypes. Zip Coon was another character created in order to portray African Americans who were free as not being able to fit into society. This is similar to the media representation of Abraham Lincoln. Many people see Lincoln as the president who abolished slavery. We only see this representation of him because the media only show us this image of him. Lincoln stated that, “If I could save the Union without freeing any slave, I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves, I would do it” (Morgan, 3). Like me, many people didn’t know that he only wanted to persevered the Union. This shows that the media can have major influence on society and how it can shape our views.

The film also touches on the issue of sexuality and gender when it comes to African American women. The film showed many representations of how African American women were portrayed as inferior to white women when it comes to their appearances. The film provided different images of the “Mammy” with characteristics like large, motherly, docile and friendly, which is different on how white women were portrayed. Even in the media today, many women are sexualized to a certain standard such as, a woman should have a nice body, which you don’t really see in the Mammy character.

Before watching Ethnic Notions, I didn’t have a lot of knowledge on blackface or the minstrel shows. I believe this is still happening today with social media being a huge part of our lives. Social media provides a platform for racism because people are constantly comparing different races against each other. Racism like “black face” can still be seen in today society. For example, instead of hiring Asian actor and actress to play the Asian roles, they would hire Caucasian actor and actress doing yellow face to play those roles. Like the African American communities, Asian American communities are also underrepresented in the media. Many times, Asians are the center of racist or stereotypical jokes, but the media never talks about it. For example, reporter Jess Watters, showed racist behaviors when he went around Chinatown in New York and interviewed the Asian communities. Not only did he interview them, he also made fun of them with Asian stereotypes. This story was not cover on the news as much compared to when racism is target at other minorities groups. These images of African Americans are not as prevalent today but they still exist in the media.

Ethnomusicology provides a vital research model for ethnographies in music education. The main difference is that ethnographies in music education revolve around educational issues which are directly related to the training and education of music. Virginia Garrison (1985) conducted a study to find out the varying forms of fiddle instruction of folk music in Cape Breton. The folk musicians of Cape Breton felt that their tradition was in danger of becoming extinct, in order to avoid that they organized a program to teach and learn fiddling through fiddle classes. The main research issue of the Garrison study was whether or not the uniqueness of traditional teaching methods and learning practices in an instrumental folk music tradition can be maintained when these are practiced in formal, non-traditional contexts.

In order to answer this general question, Garrison had to answer two related sub-questions:

1. What are the features of traditional teaching and learning procedures and contexts as recognized by carriers of the tradition?
2. What features of traditional teaching and learning procedures are preserved and which are lost and/or replaced as the folk music tradition shifts into more modern contexts?

Since the researcher is the key catalyst, her expertise, qualifications, and background, were important factors in the shaping of the study. Garrison was a music educator with 20 years of experience in teaching music in the schools. Apart from teaching, she was keen in knowing the phenomenon restoration and protection of folk music, and she had wide background in ethnomusicology and educational anthropology.

Since the study required examination of teaching and learning practices in their natural social contexts it required face-to-face and widespread observation and communication with the people actually involved in these practices. In a short span of six years, Garrison conducted 72 observations of fiddlers who were practicing and 49 fresher’s (students) in a range of contexts, including fiddler classes, house parties, social gatherings, selected concerts, etc. at which the fiddle was being played. The entire observations were audio taped, photographs were taken. Garrison also conducted interviews, questionnaires were also administered by her to some of the participants and in addition Garrison maintained a personal dairy to document all the findings.

Data analysis of interviews revealed characteristics of successful fiddle learners of the past like passion of the fiddle, sense of responsibility for learning on their own and self-motivation.

Interviews provided data on different stages of being initiated into the process of playing in the past. The results suggested that the learner’s characteristics was not automatic, however the cultural context in which the learner resided provided the rich environment which motivated them to enhance their characteristics. The results also revealed some of the differences from previous to present traditions, for example,(1) included emphasis on discipline rather than intrinsic motivation; (2) individual learning rather than community based learning; (3) extremely developed music reading skills rather than only audio learning skills; and (4) the ratio of female learners were more compared to male learners.

Ethnographers give more importance for understanding rather than taking action. Based on Garrison’s study the following research implications were identified:

1. Self-motivation. In traditional learning, the craving to compose music comes from motivational catalyst which is provided by the musicians and situations which are prevailing in the learner's home and community. If the learner’s home and community have not provided the context necessary for such motivation, then the teacher is obligated to do so in the non-traditional context of the school classroom.
2. Passion of the music. We cannot have passion for music which we are not familiar with. In folk society, the passion for the society's traditional music grows out of the learner's unified experiences not only with the sounds of the music, but also with the people and contexts in which those sounds are emanated. So, it is the duty of the teacher in non-traditional teaching and learning contexts to find ways to give these unified experiences to guarantee the required artistic pleasure.
3. Accountability for one's own learning: the confidence of performance in folk society is associated to the folk musician's approval of the accountability for their own music learning. The musician might have, intentionally or reflexively, learnt music through participation, observation, and experimentation which have, over time, been mainly optimistic and pleasant. Whereas in nontraditional contexts, the music learners needed lot of opportunities to experiment, observe, and hear and execute the folk music in pleasing real-life situations.

Ethnographic study elucidates the center on culture and its inherent, shared values and messages where all facets of culture and music are potentially pertinent. It provides a rich description of practices, cultural scenes, and beliefs. Triangulation techniques were used by the researcher in concluding on a variety of sources, contexts, and techniques. Most notably, it reveals the hidden meanings held by the participants about specific music practices (formal and informal).

Best Buy, a leading U. S consumer electronics retailer, headquartered in Richfield, Minnesota, was interested in exploring the feasibility of expanding its selection of health and fitness departments within its stores. They were interested to know how well customers would accept this brand expansion with a particular focus on creating a health and fitness shopping experience that would appeal to female shoppers.

The researcher conducted a sequence of in-home groups of female shoppers who had recently purchased the equipment. The aim of the researcher was to understand the decision making process and also to recognize the motivation for investing in equipment. During the research work, the researcher recorded the stories said by the female participants about stores which they often visited and also their experiences with the shopkeepers Best Buy was also included.

The researcher provided Best Buy with numerous updates all through the discovery phase to help Best Buy in the progress of three uniquely staged in-store fitness departments. The researcher recruited participants conducting interviews at the residence of the participants, as part of that consumer engagement, conducted shop-alongs (refers to one-on-one, in-depth interview which examines actual shopping behavior instead of behavior that is recalled and reported after the event is over. Topic areas for discussion may be based on: The product: packaging, shelving, displays, branding, pricing and labeling) to the Best Buy sample fitness departments and also an extra retailer within each area to get assorted data points.

USA Swimming, a National Governing Body for the sport of swimming in the United States headquartered in Colorado, wanted to understand the perceived benefits and challenges, from the parents’ point-of-view, of a child’s participation in organized swimming programs.

The researcher conducted poolside intercept interviews with parents of recreational and club swimmers. These short interviews took place when children were either working on their strokes or splashing around in the pool as part of a prearranged swim practice.

The researcher discussed with the parents on the overall experience of being a “swim parent” together with how that experience is in evaluation to other sports their children have tried or may be vigorously participating in concomitantly with swimming. Prominently, the researcher explored how the parents’ perceptions of swim team were inveterated once their children began keenly participating in swimming and the benefits of joining a team meant for swimming. With the children’s the researcher discussed their perceptions about organized swimming: who participates, perceived time commitment, benefits for children, availability in local areas, and comparison of swimming to other organized sport options.

It is recommended that an ethnographic methodology of data collection may be beneficial in the early stages of a user-centered project that deals with an intricate design challenge. This is because ethnographic research methods allow a principally profound understanding of a design problems, audience(s), field, processes, context(s) and goals of use. The above mentioned ethnographic methods are useful in exploring and discovering issues which are not known to the common man.

The other crucial decision within an ethnographic study is the selection of ethnographic researcher. Because the individual will design the data collection procedure, collects the data and also does analysis of the study’s findings, therefore it is important that they have the experience and skill to ensure the study is representative of the population and precise.

1. 1. What are the pros and cons of ethnographic study?

Answer: The following are the benefits of ethnography:

1. 1. • Ethnography is Persistent and Engaged: ethnographic study normally involves prolonged fieldwork in which the researcher gains entrée to a social group and carries out intensive observation in natural settings for a period of months or years. To understand what those participants under study are doing and saying.
      • Ethnography is Minute and Holistic: ethnographers often move toward broad interpretations and abstract analyses from the study of daily actions and routines. To make sure that the generalizations made are culturally suitable, they must be grounded in gathering of the specifics of everyday life and the participants’ reflections of them. However only describing what is seen and heard is not enough. To assign meaning to observations of specific activities and behaviors, one must engage in a process of interpretation that is called thick description.
      • Ethnography is Flexible and Self-corrective: unlike experimental and quasi-experimental research where the procedures are strictly controlled, ethnography study is dialectical or feedback method in which the ethnographer has the options of changing the questions during the course of enquiry.
      • It Builds Relationship by Immersing the Project Team in Participants’ Lives: while carrying out ethnographic research the researcher gets immersed in the lives of the participants, this helps them to maintain very good relationship with the participants.
      • Provides Rich Source of Visual Data: ethnographic research provides very rich source of visual data, which helps in carrying out the research very efficiently.
      • It Captures Behavior (Emotional Behavior) in the Different Contexts of Everyday Life: the ethnographer captures the emotional behavior which is the mental state of the participant that arises spontaneously rather than through conscious effort and is often accompanied by psychological changes.
      • It places a human face on data through real-life stories that teams can relate to and remember.
      • It helps to identify discrepancies between what people say they do and what they actually do.
   2. What are the Issues in an ethnographic research?

Answer: Following are the issues of ethnography:

1. 1. • It helps to identify discrepancies between what people say they do and what they actually do.
      • It is time consuming and requires a well-trained researcher.
      • It takes time to build trust with informants in order to facilitate full and honest discourse.
      • Not useful for short term studies.
      • Bias on the part of the researcher can affect both the design of the study and the collection and interpretation of data.
      • Too little data may lead to false assumptions about behavior patterns, while large quantities of data may not be processed effectively.
   2. List the various risks relating to ethnography

Answer: Following are the various risks relating to ethnography:

Keep in mind:
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1. 1. • Researcher: Ethnographic researchers need to be very highly-skilled in order to overcome all the potential pitfalls of an ethnographic study. Some of these include the detail & completeness of observations, as well as potential bias (and mistakes) in data collection or analysis.
      • Subjects: It is important that in any studies’ subjects are as a true representation of the population as possible. It is also important that the participants are honest with the researcher. Of course, both of these issues are related to the quality of the researcher themselves and their role in the study’s design.
   2. How can the researchers check for quality in ethnographic study?

Answer: Following are the ways in which the researchers may check for quality in ethnographic study:

1. • Responsiveness: Responsiveness refers to the degree to which the researcher’s presence influences the behaviors of others since they know they are being observed. This may lead to participants to act differently. The effect of responsiveness can be reduced if the researcher is inconspicuous and familiarizes himself with the lives of others before he starts the fieldwork.
   • Reliability: Reliability refers to consistency and credibility. Data are internally consistent when the researcher records behaviors that are consistent over time and in different social contexts. If the researcher cross-checks the data collected by verifying with other sources then internal consistency can be achieved. Since ethnographic researchers depend on what others opinion the credibility of the source of information received needs to be assessed. The information shared by others could be in the forms of omissions, propaganda, evasions, and dishonest (Neuman, 2002). Reliability in field research will depend on the researcher’s knowledge, awareness, questions put forth to the participants and also observing the behaviors and events from diverse perspectives and angles.
   • Validity: Validity refers to the confidence placed in the researcher’s ability to collect and analyze data precisely, representing the lives or culture under study (Neuman, 2002). Ecological validity considers the degree to which the data collected and explained by the researcher reflects the world of those under study (Neuman, 2002). Natural history is a full description and disclosure of the researcher’s events, justifications, and procedures for others to evaluate. Natural history is achieved if it is credible to others inside and outside the field site. The researcher can also conduct member checks for validating the results by showing the results to those under study to judge for adequacy and accuracy from their perspectives (Neuman, 2002). In addition, the researcher should perform well in the group and interact with all the members of the group. Finally, nomological validity can be achieved if the study results and conclusions have relevance beyond the study itself (Angrosino, 2007).

Table of contents

1. What is Eugenics
2. History
What About AustraliaModern Times
3. References

What is Eugenics

Eugenics is recognised as a science that involves controlled breeding within a population to improve the occurrence of desirable traits and decrease the inheritance of genetic diseases and undesirable traits. The origin of the term eugenics derives from the Greek word ‘eu’ meaning good and the word gen?s which means ‘born’.

History

Eugenics has a rich history with it being a prominent player in science and politics during the late1800’s through to the 1950’s and 60’s. The idea of eugenics was based off of the science of the time (late 1800’s). At this time scientists were grappling with the idea of specific genes and their phenotypes being passed from parents to their offspring. Scientists struggled explain how this occurred but they knew it somehow happened. This basic knowledge then lead to the assumptions that all of a person’s physical and mental traits could be passed on. This assumption is what Henry Goddard based his famous ‘scientific’ experiment on (The Kallikak family).

The Kallikak family was a research experiment into intelligence and whether or not it is hereditary. Goddard decided to study supposedly feebleminded children at the Vineland Training School. Goddard in his experiment performed an early version of an IQ test on the children. The results enabled him to categorise them into either normal or a variety of so-called feeble mindedness categories. After the completion of the study Goddard decided to research why these children were feebleminded. To do this he turned to genetics and began looking at the family tree of one of the children named Emma Wolverton. Upon investigation Emma’s family tree revealed a split that backed up Goddard’s belief. Emma’s great great great grandfather had children with two women. One of these women was believed to be feebleminded and the other normal. In Goddard’s eyes this then proved that feeblemindedness is passed on genetically, as the side of the family that Emma was a part of contained a large number of people who we were feebleminded. The other side didn’t have any. This then lead Goddard to the question how can we decrease the amount of feebleminded people? The answer to this lay with eugenics. Eugenics in America was beginning to gain support, the idea of selectively breeding to decrease the occurrence of undesirable traits seemed the perfect way to remove feeblemindedness from the population. This idea was gaining popularity around the globe and was gradually making its way into politics. This resulted in some laws being passed in certain countries enforcing sterilization of citizens that weren’t considered to be normal. This idea gradually faded out however due to some concerning ethics.

What About Australia

Australians jumped aboard the eugenics train in the early 1900s. The hub for Australia’s eugenics movement would be Victoria and its uprising all began with a man named Richard Berry. Richard Berry was a Professor of Anatomy at Melbourne University from 1903 to 1929. Berry raised awareness of this movement throughout Australia delivering talks to the general population as well as those with higher authority (politicians etc.). Berry proposed laws to people in higher places that eventually lead to a bill almost being passed in parliament that stated that citizens who were considered to have undesirable traits, were to be institutionalised and sterilised. Some of those that fell into the undesirable category include:

• Individuals with low IQ’s
• Homosexuals
• Slum Dwellers
• Indigenous people
• Anyone carrying a hereditary disease.

Another interesting eugenics project that occurred in Australia happened in 1928, when William Ernest Jones conducted his national mental deficiency survey (Jones, 2011). This survey returned results that seemed to support the thought that the lower socioeconomic class had higher rates of mental deficiency. However, Jones didn’t take into account that this may have been due to a lack of education opportunities because of a lack of money. He instead pointed to genetics and claimed that mentally weaker people are incapable of producing mentally stronger offspring. This is another ethical issue as the other variables that contribute to a person’s mental capacity such as education availability and the environment they live in were ignored.

Modern Times

These days the science that is incorporated into eugenics is more conserved and well monitored, there are no longer rash decisions and laws passed to sterilise a percentage of people within a population just because they have a lower IQ than what is considered average. The ethics have definitely improved, however there are still ethical issues surrounding eugenics that can be very scary if not dealt with cautiously.

With ever advancing technology a new ethics debate is gathering steam, the concept of genetic engineering is already very real in many ways however it has the capacity to explode and become an ethics minefield. Genetic engineering/manipulation exists already in the food we eat (rapid growth salmon, long-life tomatoes etc.) and the animals we keep as pets (cross breeds) just to name a couple. The recent harnessing of CRISPR which is a component of DNA along with Cas9 (a protein) has opened a door that can never be shut in regards to what is possible with genetic engineering. Cas9 is an incredibly precise protein which can cut out parts of a DNA sequence that aren’t wanted. This can lead to all sorts of positives in regard to curing genetic diseases such as Huntington’s as well as other diseases such as HIV and even cancer. This is one of the many positives about CRISPR. However, it may have negatives.

As CRISPR and Cas9 can alter genes to eradicate disease, it also means they can change other genes as well. This may lead to designer babies, which could alter the gene pool of humans. It can do this as a person’s genes are passed on to their children and over time if genes have been edited it can lead to large changes. This has both a for and against argument for it. By editing a gene to remove an unwanted trait a can of worms is opened that may lead to excessive changes to the human gene pool, however not removing these unwanted genes or traits such as diseases can also be considered to be unethical as the individual still has the risk of obtaining such diseases. Either way preselecting humans before birth can be seriously unethical, so the question still remains how far is too far?

References

1. Jones, R. (2011, September 21). Eugenics in Australia: The secret of Melbourne's elite. Retrieved from The Conversation: https://theconversation.com/eugenics-in-australia-the-secret-of-melbournes-elite-3350
2. Shiel, W. (2018, 4 12). Definition of Eugenics. Retrieved from MedicineNet: https://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=3335
3. Williams, G. (2006). A Civic Biology and eugenics. Journal of Creation 20(3), 123-127.

Table of contents

1. Introduction
2. Why is euthanasia good?
3. References

Introduction

Introduction: Euthanasia is newly introduced in this chaotic world. “Euthanasia is an act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals (such as persons or domestic animals) in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy. The term is derived from the Greek word euthanatos which means easy death” (BBC, 2014). With this act, rather than dying every day, it will be a single shot, which can give relief to the suffering ones.

Background: Euthanasia is one of the most debatable topics all over the world in medical terms. In some countries, for example, the UK, euthanasia is illegal to practice whereas, at the same time in a number of countries, it is legal to practice, for example, Canada, Netherland, etc. Thesis statement: This argumentative essay will argue that euthanasia should not be banned because it is better to end a person’s life in piece instead of a brutal one.

Why is euthanasia good?

Topic sentence: Euthanasia has a positive influence. There are a number of reasons to support this statement. First and Foremost, if a person is suffering from unbearable pain and it can be clearly seen that the person is not going to survive for long, then instead of making the person suffer every day till the person die naturally, it is better to help him die in dignity with the help of some medicines. Evidence & citing: In a survey in 1994, Seale founded that “82% in 1994 agreed that ‘doctors should be allowed by law to end the patient’s life if someone with a ‘painful incurable disease’ makes such request (compared with 75% ten years earlier)”.

Commentary: This results simply states that majority of the people are in favour of Euthanasia as they simply feel that if a person’s end time is near then the person must die in piece. Moreover, Friedrich Nietzsche, one of the greatest philosophers of all time said that 'One should die proudly when it is no longer possible to live proudly”. It clearly states that in some specific times, death is a kind of relief from unbearable pain.

Topic sentence: Secondly, by using euthanasia, family and friends will also be spared from the pain that they have to suffer by seeing their loved ones suffering from brutal pain every day. A more recent prospective study, by anthropologist Norwood from 2005, also based on a limited number of families, takes the subject of families and patients-with-a-request-to-die a step further (2005). Sometimes, I wonder that, is there any people in this world who want to see their loved one’s suffering?

Evidence & citing: The BMJ had founded that “189 bereaved family members and close friends of terminally ill cancer patients who died by euthanasia and 316 bereaved family members and close friends of comparable cancer patients who died a natural death between 1992 and 1999”. Commentary: This Statics clearly highlights that the love’s ones of person who died through Euthanasia had suffered less as compared to the family and close friends of naturally died person.

Topic sentence: Last but not the least, if a person wishes to die through Euthanasia instead of suffering from pain regularly, then no one has the right to oppose his/her decision. In a book it is mentioned that “Euthanasia is simply to be able to die with dignity at a moment when life is devoid of it”. Moreover, as citizens of democracy, the person has the right to decide whether they want to die through euthanasia or want a natural death.

Evidence & citing: Even Christian Barnard, a cardiac surgeon in 1984 has stated that “I believe often that death is good medical treatment because it can achieve what all medical advances and technology cannot achieve today, and that stops the suffering of the patient”. Commentary: Many patients suffering from chronic illness, do not want to be a burden on their family members, so they have the right to uphold the “Right of life” by honouring the “Right to die” with dignity.

Conclusion paragraph: In conclusion, as seen from this argumentative essay, euthanasia has absolute significance in society, and it should be declared legal in all the countries as it is very helpful for those who are suffering from an incurable disease, who don’t want to be a burden on their family members and close friends and want to die in dignity instead of a horrifying death.

References

1. BBC (2004). Retrieved form www.bbc.com/ethics/euthanasia/overview/introduction.shtml
2. Hausmann, E. (2004). How press discourse justifies euthanasia. Mortality, 9(3), 206- 222. Retrieved from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13576270412331272798
3. Swarte, N. B., Van Der Lee, M. L., van der Bom, J. G., Van Den Bout, J., & Heintz,
4. A. P. M. (2003). Effects of euthanasia on the bereaved family and friends: a cross sectional study. Bmj, 327 (7408), 189. Retrieved form https://www.bmj.com/content/327/7408/189.short
5. Christian Barnard, cardiac surgeon September 24, 1984 – Nice France – Presentation at Federation of Associations for the Right to Die. Retrieved from https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Euthanasia
6. Norwood F. (2005). Euthanasia talk. Euthanasia discourse, general practice and end-of-life care in the Netherlands. Dissertation: University of California. Retrieved from https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10730-007-9048-z?LI=true
7. Friedrich Nietzsche, The Twilight of the Idols and The Anti-Christ, 1889.
8. DeMarco, D. (1999). The Sacredness of Human Life in a Desacralized World.
9. The Linacre Quarterly, 66(1), 49-55. Retrieved from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/20508549.1999.11877529

Introduction

Should follow an “upside down” triangle format, meaning, the writer should start off broad and introduce the text and author or topic being discussed, and then get more specific to the thesis statement.

Background

Provides a foundational overview, outlining the historical context and introducing keyinformation that will be further explored in the essay, setting the stage for the argument to follow.

Thesis statement

Cornerstone of the essay, presenting the central argument that will be elaborated upon and supported with evidence and analysis throughout the rest of the paper.

Topic sentence

The topic sentence serves as the main point or focus of a paragraph in an essay, summarizing the key idea that will be discussed in that paragraph.

Evidence & citing

The body of each paragraph builds an argument in support of the topic sentence, citing information from sources as evidence.

Commentary

After each piece of evidence is provided, the author should explain HOW and WHY the evidence supports the claim.

Conclusion paragraph

Should follow a right side up triangle format, meaning, specifics should be mentioned first such as restating the thesis, and then get more broad aboutthe topic at hand. Lastly, leave the reader with something to think about and ponder once they are done reading.

Table of contents

1. Introduction
2. Arguments
Arguments for this practice:1. A patient has an option to self-assurance.2. It is an empathetic activity.3. It is working in the Netherlands and in Oregon, so we ought to permit it somewhere else, as well.Arguments in go against of this practice:
3. Conclusion
4. Bibliography:

This Professional assignment is for critically analyzing and presenting thoughts on the matter of one of the given topics. Here, I select 'Physician-Assisted Suicide: Pros and Cons' to shape this paper.

Introduction

Physician-assisted self-destruction (PAS) can be characterized as an act of purposefully finishing life by managing a deadly substance straightforwardly or by implication assisted by a physician. In such practice, the physician gives the essential substance, and the patient carries out the demonstration while in euthanasia the physician plays out the demonstration that at long last closures life. In numerous wards, helping an individual pass on by self-killing is wrongdoing. Individuals who backing sanctioning physician-assisted suicide need individuals who aid a willful demise to be absolved from criminal arraignment for homicide or comparable violations. Physician-assisted self-destruction is legitimate in certain nations, in specific situations, including Canada, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, portions of the United States (California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, New Jersey, Oregon, Vermont, Washington and Washington, D.C.) and Australia (Western Australia and Victoria). The Constitutional Court of Austria and Colombia legitimized assisted self-destruction, yet their legislatures have not enacted or directed the training yet. New Zealand legitimized assisted self-destruction in a submission in 2020, however, it will come into power on 6 November 2021. The parliament of Portugal passed the sanctioning of assisted self-destruction, however, is currently getting looked at of the Constitutional Court.

Arguments

The morals of euthanasia keep on being bantered for long time. Some frequently contend that this practice is moral because it very well might be a judicious decision for an individual who is deciding to kick the bucket to get away from terrible misery. Moreover, the physician's obligation to lighten enduring may, now and again, legitimize the demonstration of furnishing help with passing on. These arguments depend on an incredible arrangement on the idea of individual self-governance, perceiving the privilege of able individuals to decide for themselves the course of their life, including how it will end. Others have frequently contended that physician help in biting the dust is exploitative on the grounds that it runs straightforwardly counter to the customary obligation of the physician to protect life. Moreover, many contend whenever hurried passing were legitimate, misuses would occur. For instance, a large number dishonestly guarantee poor people or older may be secretively constrained to pick physician-assisted passing on over more intricate and costly palliative consideration alternatives.

All the more plainly,

Arguments for this practice:

1. A patient has an option to self-assurance.

This point expounds that a patient has the option to acknowledge or decline any treatment regardless of whether that refusal prompts. They proceed to keep up that the patient should then reserve the option to demand any therapy they need, even clinical help with achieving demise. Despite the fact that a patient has a negative option to be left alone, I accept this doesn't convert into a positive right (a qualification) to whatever the person in question needs. In the event that that was the situation, there would be no requirement for laws to control doctor-prescribed drugs; a patient could simply purchase whatever the person felt was suitable. The U.S. High Court has found there is no established right to assisted Suicide.

2. It is an empathetic activity.

Enduring methods more than torment; there are other physical and mental weights. It isn't generally conceivable to mitigate languishing. Permitting critically ill individuals to decide the circumstance and way of their demise is an empathetic reaction to horrendous anguish. It resembles we shoot ponies to make them liberated from their sufferings. Subsequently, this point presumes that 'There's no ethical contrast among creature and human.'

3. It is working in the Netherlands and in Oregon, so we ought to permit it somewhere else, as well.

Numerous physicians support PAS as It is legitimate in the Netherlands and in Oregon showing that in 2015, many people were executed without their express assent or due to mental sickness, dementia, or just 'mature age. Subsequently, PAS ought to be sanctioned somewhere else as well. Be that as it may, the truth of the matter is in almost 20% of cases accessible palliative measures were declined by the patient; 60% of cases were not revealed honestly; half of the cases didn't have the necessary counsel; and ‘generally troubling of all’ 25% of patients who were given a deadly infusion didn't demand euthanasia.

Arguments in go against of this practice:

1. Rule-based arguments: PAS conflicts with longstanding expert excellence and would change the idea of the patient-physician relationship, maybe in any event, cheapening endeavors at palliative consideration.

2. Outcome-based arguments: PAS would be awful open approach since guidelines can't forestall misuses and extensions of the 'signs' to incorporate forced 'willful' PAS, proxy non-deliberate PAS for the individuals who have lost dynamic limit, demands from patients who are enduring (however not critically ill), and surprisingly unfair compulsory euthanasia as an expense control measure.

Conclusion

Physicians should help mend a patient and not to execute. The general public regards the privilege to life thus should the physicians. Medicalizing passing significantly further, with a physician giving a terminal remedy, doesn't address the necessity of kicking the bucket on patients and their families. What is required is care that stresses minding in the last period of life. In the event that I was a physician in the present circumstance or in this matter. I would have given psychosocial support: does the patient have an arrangement of psychosocial support, and has she talked about the arrangement with them? The precision of visualization: each thought ought to be offered to gaining subsequent input to check the analysis and guess. In the event that a patient's solicitation for help with kicking the bucket continues, every individual clinician should choose their own position and pick a strategy that is morally reasonable. Associations exist which can give directing and direction to in critical condition patients. No physician, in any case, should feel compelled to supply help in the event that the person is ethically against assisted passing.

Bibliography:

1. Kamm, F. M. (2015). Physician-assisted suicide, euthanasia, and intending death. Physician Assisted Suicide, 28-62. https:doi.org10.43249781315811369-4
2. Stefan, S. (2016). Assisted suicide in the states. Rational Suicide, Irrational Laws, 124-178. https:doi.org10.1093acprof:oso9780199981199.003.0003
3. Jochemsen, H., & Keown, J. (1999). Voluntary euthanasia under control? Further empirical evidence from The Netherlands. Journal of Medical Ethics, 25(1), 16-21. https:doi.org10.1136jme.25.1.16
4. Thorns, A., & Sykes, N. (2000). Opioid use in last week of life and implications for end-of-life decision-making. The Lancet, 356(9227), 398-399. https:doi.org10.1016s0140-6736(00)02534-4
5. Moore, B., & Parker, R. (2016). Critical thinking (12th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.

The bodies of two elderly siblings has been uncovered in the area of Gowinna, Bulathsinhala, where the youngest of the two (aged 75) had supposedly ended the life of his bed ridden sister (aged 80) prior to ending his own. The police had confirmed this to be an act of mercy killing once discovering a suicide note to support it. Euthanasia is essentially the termination of the life of a person who’s suffering from an incurable illness in order to relieve them from pain. While the current position with regard to this topic remains unclear, it is important to look at how the legality of this deliberate termination of life may vary contextually.

Despite the opaqueness of the situation, attempts have been made in order to arrive at a decision. For instance, this issue was at the apex of discussion on a debating floor organized by the ‘Mid Country Psychiatrists’ which took place in 2017. Dr Priyani Ratnayake, a member from the proposing team pointed out that although ‘easy death’ tends to be a rather complex issue, if it’s a process intended to reduce retractable pain, it should then be legalized. One of its’ other members also pointed out that passive euthanasia however is in existence to ensure good medical practice, for when there’s no point in resuscitating a patient.

Certain countries around the world such as Netherlands and Belgium have now opted to resort to euthanasia as a viable method when lowering the growing elderly population. Whist it may be unseemly to discriminate individuals based on their age, as evinced above it is a known fact that the elderly would undoubtedly be affected the most through the legitimization of such a procedure. They, just as any other individual should have the right to live and die with dignity.

There are nevertheless those individuals who would prefer to end their lives the moment they come to terms with the fact that once diagnosed, would have to live with misery, decline and agony. Legitimization would enable the procedure to be carried out in a manner that is in compliance to proper regulation i.e. by giving heed to appropriate medical practice which ultimately enhances the ethical nature of the procedure together with the willingness of the individual.

Another salient resultant of legalization is the prevention of those events that may take place in secrecy or those that may take place in a rural landscape, such as the one which took place in the locality of Bulathsinhala. Had the procedure been conducted in compliance to its’ conventional specifications, the complexities associated with it could have been avoided effortlessly.

On the contrary, it is of vital importance that the relevant authorities keep such procedures in check whenever they do take place. For without which individuals would tend to take matters for granted and engage in acts that are inessential and improper. In the incident which took place in Bulathsinhala, the elderly woman was stabbed to death several times, before the man took his own life. Such atrocities would therefore be inevitable in the absence or proper guidance, hence placing society’s vitality under immense risk and jeopardy.

Young adults although boisterous and lively, often constitute mindsets that are constant roller coasters of emotions, which causes them to make defiant and incautious decisions that may result in unruly outcomes. Police statistics reveal that there have been more individuals within the category of 17-35 years of age who have ended their lives in comparison to those that fall within other age groups. Legalization of euthanasia would undoubtedly escalate its availability, thus further aggravating an already existing issue. In 2015, a 24 year old Belgian female who was suffering from depression was granted the right to euthanasia, despite the fact that she was otherwise perfectly healthy. Euthanasia should ideally be available to an individual who is terminally ill, without any possibility of being cured. Therefore as evinced in the Belgian case, the risks associated with it are limitless whilst the absence of proper regulation would make it uncontrollable, hence narrowing down any future prospect of legitimization.

Active euthanasia was first legalised in Netherlands together with the introduction of a strict set of rules, such as the patient having to suffer unbearable pain, illness being incurable and patient being fully conscious when making the decision. Sources suggest that this has widened its horizons as people are comfortable now more than ever to discuss their issuess openly with various institutions and foundations. These foundations assist individuals to recollect their thoughts and contemplate their decisions. "Most of the people who contact us feel reassured by the information we provide and do not take their life away," says Ton Vink, head of one such foundation.

Similarly, Belgium went onto become the second country to legalise active euthanasia. It is nevertheless rather exceptional for it has completely stripped off the age requirement, making it readily available for minors seeking to end their lives. Despite this, it is worthy to note that other factors such as the nature of the illness and future recovery are of paramount importance.

Whilst a majority of the states including Sri Lanka remain uncertain and quiet on the legality of assisted suicides, the domestic jurisdictions of Australia and New Zealand have condemned its’ practice and have pronounced it illegal.

Conclusion

Euthanasia is a highly sensitive topic which requires close assessment and careful deliberation. Its legalization would act as a pedestal for individuals to voice their thoughts, opinions and decisions, enabling them to engage with and obtain help from those with the requisite expertise and knowledge. Additionally, if an individual still wished to have their life to come to an end, not only would legalization respect individual rights and freedoms, but also the assure that conventional procedures and methodologies have been complied with. This ultimately diminishes the recurrence of highly controversial and unfortunate incidents such as that which took place in Gowinna, Bulathsinhala. However, a majority of Sri Lankan individuals are currently instilled with values and morals that vehemently oppose the very confines of euthanasia. Sri Lanka’s rich multiculturalism heightens such perceptions even more, thus doing little or nothing to uplift it from its evident peril.

Table of contents

1. Eutrophication Definition:
2. How It Happens
3. Causes:
4. Effects
5. Ways to Overcome:

Eutrophication Definition:

Eutrophication is when the environment becomes enriched with nutrients.

All living things need specific nutrients to live. Because too many or too few can cause problems, nature does a good job of providing the right amount of nutrients. This is true in aquatic ecosystems because aquatic ecosystems are so dynamic. The water is oligotrophic when too few nutrients are present. It makes sense that serious problems will arise when there is not enough nutrition available for the variety of organisms living in an aquatic environment.

However, problems can also arise when the aquatic system has an overabundance of nutrients. We get eutrophication when this happens. When too many nutrients, like nitrogen and phosphorous, are present a eutrophic stream, river or lake occurs usually as a result of runoff from the surrounding land. Algae, plankton and other microorganisms love these types of nutrients, and when they are plentiful, these aquatic organisms can take over. It can have serious negative effects on other organisms like birds, fish and even people, when river, lake or other aquatic system becomes eutrophic.

How It Happens

Excess of fertiliser from agriculture land washed away by the rain water to the nearby pond or water. The nutrient level in water increases when accumulation of fertilisers in the water happens. This phenomena is called eutrophication. This causes phytoplankton to grow and reproduce more rapidly. This will result in algal blooms. The aquatic plants cannot carry out photosynthesis because the sunlight is blocked by the algae. Sediment at the bottom of the pond is formed when the aquatic plants and the algae die. This effects the pond’s ecosystem and encourage the growth of detritus. All the oxygen the water s used up by the detritus by carrying out decomposition. This causes the biochemical oxygen demand(BOD) increases. Lack of oxygen in water causes many aquatic organisms to die. Toxic bi-product that can poison the ecosystem of the pond are produce by some species of algae.

How to Determine Bod:

1. A sample of water is taken from a pond.
2. If the amount of oxygen required for the decomposition of organic matter in the sample is high, then BOD is high. This means the water sample from the pond is very highly polluted.
3. BOD increases when the water is very highly polluted by bacteria pollution.
4. BOD decreases when the water is very highly polluted by toxic pollution.

Causes:

1. 1. Fertilizers

Human actions causes eutrophication. Human likes to depend on the usage of nitrate and phosphate fertilizers. Lawns, golf courses, farm and other fields are to be heavily fertilized by people. These fertilizers run off into streams, rivers, lakes and oceans when it rain. The hungry algae, plankton and other aquatic plant life are fed well. This increases the rate of photosynthesis activity. This causes dense growth of plant life such as the water hyacinths and algal blooms in the aquatic environments.

1. 1. Concentrated animal feeding operations

Main contributor of nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients responsible for eutrophication is the concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs). The concentrated animal feeding operations normally discharge high scores of the nutrients. It somehow finds way into lakes, streams, rivers, and oceans where they accumulate in very high concentrations. By recurring cyanobacterial and algal blooms, thereby plaguing the water bodies.

1. Industrial waste into water bodies and direct sewage dischargeIn the developing nations, sewage water is directly channel into water bodies such as oceans, lake, and rivers. This results in, high amounts of chemical nutrients introduced. This stimula the dense growth of other aquatic plants and algal blooms which threatens survival of aquatic life in a lot of ways.
2. Aquiculture
3. A technique of growing fish, aquatic plants without soil and shellfish in water containing dissolved nutrients is known as aquiculture. Aquiculture it also qualifies a top ranking contributor to eutrophication as it is highly practice in the recent times. The unconsumed food particles together with the fish excretion will increase the levels of phosphate and nitrogen in the water if aquiculture is not properly managed. This will result in dense growth of microscopic floating plants.
4. Natural events
5. Eutrophication can also cause by natural events. If a lake, river, or stream flood, it may wash away any excess nutrients off the land and into the water. However, in areas that are not surrounded by fertilized lands, eutrophication is less likely to occur.

Lake Erie was the most publicized example of eutrophication in the 1960s and 1970s. it was called the “dead lake”. From heavily developed agricultural and urban lands, the smallest and shallowest of the five Great Lakes was swamped for decades with nutrients. Plant and algae growth choked out most other species living in the lake as a result. It left the beaches unusable because of the smell of decaying algae that washed up on the shores.

Effects

1. 1. Alarm the survival of other aquatic life forms and fish

The other photosynthetic plants and phytoplankton grow explosively when aquatic ecosystems experience increase in nutrients. This is commonly known as algal blooms. This causes the algal blooms to limit the amount of oxygen dissolved which is required for respiration by other plant and animals species in the water. When the algae or plant life die and decompose, oxygen depletion will occur. When hypoxic levels is reached by the dissolve oxygen, the plant and animal species under the water such as fish, shrimp, and other aquatic species suffocate to death. In extreme cases, the growth of bacteria is encouraged by the anaerobic conditions that produce toxins which are dangerous to the marine bird and mammals. Light penetration into the lower depths of the water is reduced because of the growth of phytoplankton. This causes loss of aquatic life, aquatic dead zones and it also lessens biodiversity.

1. 1. Bound access to safe drinking water and deterioration of water quality

Algal blooms are highly toxic. The growth of more toxic bacterial is promoted when the water reaches the anaerobic condition. This causes decline in the availability of clean drinking water and extensive deterioration of water quality. Water systems is block because of the dense growth of photosynthetic bacteria and algal bloom on the surface of water. Hence, this limit the availability of piped water. Toxic algal blooms have shut down many water supply systems across the world. For example, in 2007, more than 2 million residents of Wuxi, China could not access piped drinking water for more than a week because of the severe attack by algal blooms on Lake Taihu. (refer appendix 9)

1. 1. Imperil fishing

Increased growth of minute floating plants such as photosynthetic bacteria and algae and the growth of extensive and dense mats of floating plants such as water hyacinths and Nile cabbage is one of the main characteristic of eutrophication. Fishing is endangered whenever this happens on a water body. It will become difficult to set the fishing nets in water when the plants are floating on water. This will also limit the movement of boats and other fishing vessels.

1. 1. Mortification of recreational opportunities

The blooming of other aquatic plants and algal that float on an extensive area of the water surface is the main problem of eutrophication. It reduces the navigation and transparency in the water which lessens the recreational values and opportunities of the lakes, especially for swimming and boating. Water hyacinth, algal blooms, and Nile cabbage can spread over an extensive area along the shores. It can sometimes float over the whole surface into the land area.

1. 1. Contaminate and impact on human health

Dinoflagelates which generates red tide is also referred as cyanobacteria, which release very powerful toxins with high poison levels in the water. Explosive plant growth in the water creates anaerobic conditions which also results in the doubling of the toxic compounds. Even at the least concentration when ingested in drinking water, it causes death in animals and humans. Various negative health impacts such as cancers can be caused when the toxic compounds can also make their way up the food chain. Biotoxins are linked to increased diarrhoetic shellfish, paralytic and incidence of neurotoxic in humans. This can lead to death. The poison is accumulated in their muscles by shellfish and then poison humans upon consumption. The ability of inhibiting blood circulation in infants is associated with high nitrogen concentration in drinking water. This is a condition known as blue baby syndrome.

Ways to Overcome:

1. 1. Composting

Use of nitrate and phosphate fertilizers is the main cause of eutrophication. Composting can be used as a solution, in a bid to address the phenomenon. The practice of converting organic matter such as decaying vegetation and food residues into compost manure is known as composting. The high concentration of phosphates and nitrates that feed the other microbes and algae in water bodies are the deficient caused by the nutrients present in the compost manure. All the essential elements are synthesized and broken down by the plants in compost fertilizer thereby not creating the cycle of eutrophication. Nutrient limitation is a term for this method of controlling eutrophication.

1. 1. Decreasing pollution

Limiting pollution is an effective and easy method of cutting back on the amount of phosphate and nitrogen discharged into water systems. Municipalities and big manufacturing companies ought to desist from discharging waste into water systems and reduce pollution. So this will reduce the amount of nutrients and toxins ending up in the waters that feed the other microscopic organisms and algae. Nutrient content will be reduced in the water systems if municipalities and industries can cap their waste discharge and pollution to a lower level which can subsequently control eutrophication.

Keep in mind:
This is only a sample.

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1. 1. Ultrasonic Irradiation

The use of ultrasonic irradiation is one such mechanism which has been exploited as an alternative solution to manage and control algal blooming when it comes to eutrophication. Cavitations are used to produces free radicals that destroy algae cells in this process. To determine the uniqueness of its use in controlling the eutrophication problem, research is still underway.

Abortion

In some cases people think that abortion is wrong. They think that killing an innocent a baby is like committing murder. In this paper I will be talking a little bit about partial birth abortion. And a little about the Roe V. Wade court case.

Abortion is the ending of a pregnancy before birth (World Book Encyclopedia A, pg. 15). Usually when people have an abortion they want to get rid of the baby because they feel that they can't handle it, or they are afraid of what their parents would say (if they are teenagers and aren't married).

There can be some complications in abortions. The longer a woman has been pregnant the greater the risk she has for complications. A serious complication is the puncturing of the uterus by a surgical instrument. That only happens in 1 of every 1,000 abortions. In some cases other organs can be injured in the process. Some people bleed during or after the procedure. That occurs in 6 of every 10,000 abortions. The most common complications are bleeding caused by part of the placenta remaining in the uterus, infections, and blood clots in the legs.

Two thirds of women in the world have access to a legal abortion. In some countries abortion is completely prohibited and about one twelfth of the women in the world live in those countries. In the United States, abortion was only used in requested situations, only if the woman was in her first 3 months of pregnancy.

In the United States about 30 percent of pregnancies end in abortion because the mothers can't handle it or they just don't want the child. Abortion has become one of the most common procedures done in this country.

Arguments that people have over abortion are that people believe that abortion is the unjustified killing of baby that is not born yet. People that aren't for abortion believe that the life of the baby had begun when the sperm fertilizes the egg.

People agree with abortion if the pregnancy is endangering the mother's life or if the child is likely to be born with a mental or physical disability. Another reason some people may look at abortion in a good way is if the woman got pregnant by rape or incest.

In the early 1970's most the United States prohibited abortion unless it was in the best interest of the mother. In 1973 Roe V. Wade made abortion legal. You could only have an abortion during the first trimester. If you would get an abortion in the second trimester it would only be to protect the health of the mother.

Roe V. Wade started when a girl named Norma McCorvey got pregnant by a man on the street. She was working for a carnival and she was walking back to her motel room after work one night and she got raped on the side of the road. Unfortunately she got pregnant from that man.

Norma went looking for an abortionist in Texas; however, abortion was illegal in Texas at that time. So she went to court to make abortion legal.

There are several different ways to perform an abortion. In the first trimester you can use a method called suction curettage or vacuum aspiration. Those kinds of performances are when you use suction to suck the fetus out of the woman's body, kind of like a vacuum. This process is performed during the first four to six weeks of pregnancy. During the second trimester they can use a process called dilation and evacuation. During that process the fetus is dismembered in the uterus and then removed. This process is used in about 97 percent of abortions during pregnancies of less than twelve weeks. A different type of method is by injecting a salt like solution into the amniotic fluid that surrounds the fetus. The solution then kills the baby. The baby passes through the woman's body.

There is another abortion process that is called partial birth abortion.

Partial birth abortion is done during the second or third trimester. The process of this type of abortion is what I would call the most brutal and most inconsiderate thing anyone could ever do. In this process the abortionist takes the unborn child and turns it to the breech position and pulls the child from the mother until all but the head is showing. The abortionist then forces a scissors into the base of the skull and inserts a catheter to suction out the child's brain.

I personally think that partial birth abortion is the worst kind of abortion that anyone could have because the baby is more than half way out and it's moving and you can feel the child moving, it' s alive and healthy. Then all of a sudden you have someone kill it and you can't feel it moving anymore. I would feel so guilty if I ever had that done. I would never be able to forgive myself for doing that.

There were a lot of people that were upset about partial birth abortion because it's the killing of child that is already fully developed. Why not just go all the way with the labor and then put the child up for adoption?

Some people don't understand how this type of brutal procedure can be legal. Well, it's legal because President Clinton vetoed the bill that would have banned partial birth abortion. Since Clinton doesn't think that abortion is wrong he vetoed it.

On one of the Internet sights that I went on I found a sight that had other peoples sights on abortion. One of the people said this " What more can be done to stop partial birth abortion? That baby is a living baby how can they justify it by saying it is not alive? People, who believe partial birth abortion is right, must also believe that murder is right. I just don't understand how any one could kill a baby so helpless and innocent. ( www.askjeeves.com/main /metaanswer.asp)

I agree with what that person is saying. I feel that if you can kill a little innocent baby then you are able to kill someone that has been living for any number of years.

I'm going to give my full opinion on abortion. If I were a woman that got rid of my child by abortion, I would never be able to forgive myself. I guess the reason why I feel so strongly about the subject, is because I love children. I can't wait until I can have children of my own. Then I look at people who can have kids and that are pregnant with children and they don't want them. I say if you don't want the risk of having a child, don't have sex. I'm not ripping on people that are pro choice I just don't agree with it. Well, I hope in the future there are fewer abortions and more adoptions or, women choosing to keep their children. Please think before you get pregnant. Just think about what you are bringing into the world, a new life.

Through themes of depersonalization, scientific development and death; Aldous Huxley’s satirical novel ‘Brave New World’ critiques modern society. Brave New World is a totalitarian novel, free from war and greed, where Huxley manipulates many techniques to deliver the ideas that hypnopedia brainwashes society to control them, drugs are used to influence an individual’s emotion and thought and death is an inconsequential event that should not be mourned. The main idea that Huxley endeavors to deliver to readers is that they must be cautious of how much power they give their government over new influential technologies and science.

Through setting, Huxley’s novel ‘Brave New World’ set 500 years into the future, shows themes of depersonalization of society through the use of Hypnopedia and conditioning. The connection of Aldous Huxley’s ‘Brave New World’ and modern day society is seen when both views see consumption with a holy connotation. The world state constantly consumes because of the conditioning and brainwashing. Hypnopaedic teachings such as the quote, “Ending is better than mending. The more stiches, the less riches” (Huxley, chapter 3, page 27), ensure that the world state continues to consume and that happiness is found by owning merchandise. Conditioning also create humans with no individuality; “that is the secret of happiness and virtue-liking what you’ve got to do. All conditioning aims at that: making people like their unescapable social destiny”. (The director, chapter 1, page 8) People don’t choose their jobs or career and are given the job based upon their birth, each person is conditioned to behave exactly like each other and are happy with what they are given. The hypnopaedic teachings and conditioning is similar to the media, TV and advertisements that influence civilization to consume and act obediently without question. Huxley claims that media consumption is brainwashing society to control them.

Aldous Huxley’s dystopia expresses scientific development as a factor contributing to the dumbing down of mass population. Huxley uses symbolism in the form of the narcotic ‘soma’ to control the masses; the therapeutic drug soma is used to tranquilize while sedating any extreme human emotion and stops the characters of ‘Brave New World’ from questioning their controllers. Soma causes characters to escape any moments of discontent and for the government to reinforce control on characters; “Eyes shone, cheeks were flushed, the inner light of universal benevolence broke out on every face in happy, friendly smiles.” (Huxley, chapter 5, page 42) Soma is distributed by the government in masses, in order for people to consistently work, without complaints and to become monotonous drones for the World State. Soma directly relates with modern day chemical treatments of clinical depression or Anti-anxiety pills, where the drug is used to stop a person from emotional duress or analytically thinking. The narcotic represents a powerful form of influence that science and technology has on contemporary society because if the masses are content, people will be unable to question what the government does.

In the novel, Huxley showcases death as a natural event in which the death of an individual is of no importance. There is no aging and people stay youthful. Huxley uses understatements to show readers that death is inconsequential. The differences between Brave New World and modern day society is that the death of an individual in modern society is grieved and mourned while Brave New World celebrates it. Death changes perspective, creates spontaneity, urgency and the need to accomplish things before death. Huxley’s novel shows death in an inconsequential manner so that society will not fear it and therefore go against the World State; “Undoing all their wholesome death… as though anyone mattered as much as all that! It might give them the most disastrous ideas about the subject, might upset them into reacting in the entirely wrong, the utterly anti-social way”. (The nurse, chapter 14, page 110) Huxley claims that since death is not something to fear, the people of the World State will continue to work and consume until death. This contrasts strongly as death for modern society will only prompt the desire to act with creativity and impulsiveness.

Thus, Aldous Huxley’s novel ‘Brave New World’ is a satiric novel which criticizes the consumption of modern day society. Brave New World is seen as the imminent form of current humanity’s economic values of supply and demand, where society mainly consumes and works under the control of government. Through media consumption that aids to stupify and control people, narcotics that act to avoid reality and sentiment and death that is not mourned; Huxley’s dark prophetic novel is cautionary to those who believe and rely on their government without any questions against their actions.

References

1. Firchow, P. E. (1984). The End of Utopia: A Study of Aldous Huxley's Brave New World. Lewisburg, PA: Bucknell University Press. (https://searchworks.stanford.edu/view/1558132)
2. Diken, B. (2011). Huxley's Brave New World—and Ours. Journal for cultural research, 15(2), 153-172. (https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14797585.2011.574056)
3. Frankel, M. S. (2003). Inheritable genetic modification and a brave new world: Did Huxley have it wrong?. Hastings Center Report, 33(2), 31-36. (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.2307/3528152)
4. Meckier, J. (1979). A Neglected Huxley" Preface": His Earliest Synopsis of Brave New World. Twentieth Century Literature, 25(1), 1-20. (https://www.jstor.org/stable/441397) 5
5. Nicol, C. (2007). Brave New World at 75. The New Atlantis, (16), 41-54. (https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/brave-new-world-at-75)

Abstract

This paper discusses contract law and forming contracts on the Internet. It summarizes the basic tenets of forming a binding contract, as well as the appropriate method for achieving this on the web. The case Hines v. Overstock.com is also referenced, with an analysis of what Overstock.com could have done to avoid litigation.

It is common knowledge that binding contracts were usually signed by hand before the Internet. The rise of the Internet led to legislature such as the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act to be adopted by a majority of states, and the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act federally, both essentially making electronic contracts just as enforceable as written ones (Craig, 2013, p. 71-72). As expected, making contract law apply to an entirely new medium (where both parties usually are not physically present) raised some new questions and issues. Even though the requirements of creating a binding contract stay the same, how would one do this effectively over the Internet? In the context of Hines v. Overstock.com, Overstock.com lost the case due to failing to sufficiently exercise the answer to the question. What Overstock.com could have done, in addition to a brief overview of contract law and what’s required on the Internet will be covered in the following sections of this paper.

There are 2 basic requirements in contract law to enter into a contract, whether it is formed online or not. According to Craig (2013), “The basic requirements for an agreement are mutual agreement and consideration” (p. 73). Craig continues to explain that both parties’ capacity to enter a contract and a legal purpose for the contract is needed, as well (p.73). Those requirements, although important, will not be discussed further as this paper focuses primarily on the mutual agreement requirement. That being said, the concept of mutual agreement by offering and accepting contracts electronically – especially when there is a large entity forming hundreds of thousands of binding contracts per day in the form of end users or customers – needs a way for this to be done efficiently. It could be argued that both large and small online retailers can’t offer and look over a specific contract every time a customer makes a purchase. According to Craig, this is addressed by using clickwrap agreements and browsewrap agreements to establish the mutual agreement in an electronic contract (p. 77). Summarizing Craig, clickwrap agreements are when a program or website prompts a user with a contract (often called an End User License Agreement or Terms of Use Agreement), and the user must purposely click a button that says “I Agree” to continue. This paper, however, is more concerned with browsewrap agreements, and will be discussed in the next section.

An alternative to clickwrap agreements, browsewrap agreements are also used to form mutual agreement between the website and user. According to Craig (2013), “With a browsewrap agreement, users do not need to “click” to accept the website terms. Instead, browsewraps indicate in some fashion that use of the site constitutes acceptance of its terms of service” (p. 78). This initially presented an issue to the courts, as at first glance, a website could seemingly hide away their terms of use. However, there is one primary consideration that the courts use when determining the validity of a browsewrap. According to Craig, the visitor needs to have either actual or constructive notice of the browsewraps’ terms prior to using it and entering into a contract (p. 78). Craig continues to explain that a browsewraps’ terms must give actual notice to users by prominently displaying it (p. 78).

The issue of browsewrap agreements was brought up in the case Hines v. Overstock. Craig elaborates that the Plaintiff in the case purchased an item from Overstock.com and subsequently returned it, and was charged a restocking fee (p. 78). Craig continues to explain that the Plaintiff sued, claiming a breach of contract in imposing the fee, and Overstock.com lost the case because the Plaintiff did not have actual notice of the terms and conditions of the sale. In my opinion, Overstock could have easily avoided this by prominently displaying the terms of the sale and return policy when the Plaintiff placed the order. That way, they would have had actual notice of the restocking fee if returned.

Conclusion

As usual, the Internet brings new rules and complications to a facet of law – this time, contract law. By using clickwrap and browsewrap agreement, websites can satisfy the mutual agreement requirement of forming a binding contract online. Attention needs to be paid to using browsewrap agreements correctly, however, as the user needs to have actual notice of the terms for it to be enforceable.