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Feudalism was established in Europe by the 800s CE but appeared later in the 1100s in japan. European feudalism ended by the growth of a stronger political states in the 16th century, but Japanese feudalism held on until the meji restoration of 1868. Feudal Japanese and European societies were built on a system of heredity classes. The nobles were at the top followed by warriors, with farmers or serfs below. There was very little social mobility; the children of peasants became peasants, while the children of lords became lords and ladies.
Get original essayAt the top of the hierarchy was the king, the king or the monarch ruled the whole kingdom and owned all the land in the country. The king had all the control and he decides how much quantity of land to provide to the barons. The barons had to swear an oath before taking up the granted land, so they can stay faithful to their king at all times. The king still has the power to withdraw the granted land and give it to someone else in the baron class, since all the judicial power was in the hands of the king/monarch. As in japan their leader was called an emperor. The emperor has the supreme power among all the classes. The highest ranking nobles were the emperor and the shogun. During Japan’s feudal period the shogun held most power while emperor had a little power. The shogun was a military leader, his sword (aka: nihonto in Japanese) was a very important part of his attire.
After the king, the nobles/barons had the highest power. Both Europe and japan had similarities between their baron/nobles. These were people with powers and privileges were bestowed on them because of their blood relations. Nobles were people who were majorly responsible for ruling the provinces and arranging the fighting men (skilled knights) for the king during wars. They were also established in designing currency, establishing the legal hierarchy systems and also for framing the tax regulation schemes for class below them. The barons or nobles leased lands from the kings, which was known as a manor. The barons in the feudal social hierarchy were the second wealthiest class. They were called as lord of manor.
They established their own legal systems, designed their own currency and set their own tax regulation schemes. In return of the land that they have taken on lease from the King, the Barons had to serve the royal council, provide the king with knights to tackle with any form of war, provide food and lodging facilities to the king, pay rents and taxes. After the nobles were the knights and samurai, in both feudal Japan and Europe, constant warfare made warriors the most important class. Called knights in Europe and samurai in Japan, the warriors served local lords. Knights were supposed to follow the concept of chivalry, while samurai were to go by the precepts of bushido or the way of the warrior. In feudal japan they had a daimyo’s that were made up of samurai warriors, but samurai worked under the daimyo class. Samurais needed to have privileges that included being able to have a surname, a family crest, and carry two swords. People that had samurai family names are still treated with great respect in japan today. Even though most samurai were not well educated, they had a strict code of honour or the “way of the warrior”, known as the bushido in Japanese. If a samurai broke the bushido code and brought dishonour to him/herself they would be expected to commit seppuku (aka: ritual suicide). Women were also allowed to serve as a samurai but always served under a male leader.
In feudal Europe they were also called as vassals. These were the people who were given the lands on lease by barons or nobles in return of their military services to the king during the time of the war. These were also responsible for protecting the barons and their families. They used to distribute their land which they have got from nobles to the people on the lower levels of society in return of their services. They were allowed to set their rent and taxation guidelines pertaining to their distribution of their feuds or lands. In addition European knights gained land from their lords as payment for their military service; they had direct control of the serfs who worked that land. In contrast, Japanese samurai did not own any land. Instead, the daimyo used a portion of their income from taxing the peasants to provide the samurai a salary, usually paid in rice.
Under knights were the peasants, this class in japan consisted of occupations such as farmers, artisans and merchants. The farmers played an important part in feudal japan, especially for the shogun and emperor. They got most of their food from the Japanese farmers. This helped them avoid having to import much foreign produce. Merchants were also in the lowest class in feudal Japanese hierarchy. One of the reasons why people looked down on them was because they sold things that other people made, taking credit and money with dishonesty. Even though they were not popular with the others and were in the lowest social class, they were wealthy and therefore, were considered as one of the most benefiting classes of feudal japan. Europe’s peasants were the same as Japanese’s peasants, they had the lowest social rank in the Middle Ages were the peasants.
The peasant class included Freemen, who had some rights and land, serfs, who had no rights, and slaves, who were bought and sold. Were required to provide food to the superior classes in the society and hence they engaged themselves majorly into agriculture. Since they did not own the land and hence were required to pay certain taxes in both cash & kind to the people who gave them lands.
In conclusion even though feudalism in Japan and Europe has ended, the social hierarchy remain in both Japan and some European nations. Japan and Europe had a lot in common with their feudal systems, they had a lot of similarities and a bit of differences. European feudalism was a bit older than the Japanese system, having been established in the 9th and the 12th centuries.
Japan is one of developed countries in East Asia and be habituated by 128 million of people. Those people are very uphold toward many aspects related with their identity as Japanese people such as culture, politeness, discipline, dedicated, hardworking, and etc. However, Japan also has a wide range of social issues that affect the future of this country. Since, Japan has lost 700. 000 young-adult as if missing from the surface of the Earth. Those people did not go to work and socializing with people then hiding for months. The symptoms of this cases are depressed, afraid, frustrated and etc. For example, there was a young student went into university joined her test but the result was bad and she got really depressed on it since her failed to fulfill the expectation of her parents, then decided to lock herself in a room in long time. Then, this phenomenon known as social withdrawal or called as hikikomori.
Get original essayThis issues also be discussed on TheJakartaPost published on March 16, 2018 about an old man that issolated himself for 20 years and its categorize as hikikomori.
Hikikomori is a phenomenon that infected young – adult in Japan. Hikikomori defined where a person usually confines himself/herself in a room for very long time from society and they did not want to socialize with others. According to Japanese psychologist, Dr. Tamaki Saito said that “Hikikomori is a condition of seclusion where there is no social participation and it lasts at least six months ( social participation is defined as attending school, going to work or sustaining close relationships with people from outside of the person’s family). There is rather no possibility that a mental disease is the major reason of the problem”. Based on World Psychiatry and Cabinet Office of Japan, this phenomenon started since the late 1990s and known as Shakaiteki hikikomori (social withdrawal) and according to survey in 2010, people who suffer hikikomori approximately 1. 2% of Japanese populations then in 2016 its estimated about 541. 000 within age range 15-35 years. It will give impacts in Japan’s social life. Teenagers changed their habits from productive and become consumptive. Moreover, teenagers will give negative impacts toward society and Japan will lose their next generations. Because of hikikomori, many of young-adult become elderly and depend on their family then populations growth are decreasing. Since this phenomenon really common in Japan and some people which their relatives or friends suffer hikikomori, they show different perspective with this issue. In this case, this paper will discuss about perception of hikikomori in Japan society.
Hikikomori did not really familiar in our circumstances but this happen in Japan. Most people in Japan well-known this issues and pretend be fine either one of the family suffer hikikomori. They did not ask about the reason why they suffer, and there is a case which family did not want to help them to survive. Therefore, why there is some difference perceptions about this. Before people curious about something, they should now the reason behind it.
Someone will not directly infected by something. There are several factors why people become health, sick, happy, sad and etc. These causes also influence someone psychology and sometimes when he/she got bad experience then your psychology did not accept it. It will give a deep impact for him/her like hikikomori case that make people afraid to socialize with others and decide to keep themself saved in a room. Here are the reasons
A teenager who continue her study but she face a difficult time when her friends did bullying (Ijime) because her appearance was not pretty. However, the teenager did not feeling comfortable with the situation then she decided will not attend to class anymore and isolated herself in a room. Then, Tookoo kyohi is a situation when student want to continue their education into high level, they have to compete each other since Japan has high standar in education and its make students stress. Gogatsu-byo, it’s like a disease on spring and its a new season which make they hard to socialize themself into new environment or failed in test to enter a university.
In this cases, family is important but in Japan if it’s a boy, he carry big responsibilities toward his family especially for the eldest son. He should have high level education, continue family business and take care of their parents. But some family who suffer hikikomori be hidden by part of family in a room and provide the facilities so it makes people comfort become hikikomari. Then, amae it means depend on people kindness. So, when parent show their love, they tried to fulfill kind of facilities to make their child comfort in the house and unrealized it, it’s make a child become hikikomori. Hitorikko / single child, when father works and mother take care of their child, mother only teach her child to focus on education and did not let her kids to play with another kids.
Nowadays, everything been published on television or social media and sometimes tradition factors make people to isolated themself from society. So, when there is a person who suffer hikikomori, family will try to hide it than consultation to national authorities to rescue someone from hikikomori behavior. The reason it’s that because they will feel embarrassed if their neighbors hear that.
Mental condition can make people feel frustrated because he have to fulfill the demands and that’s make that person become stress and become hikikomori.
There are all factors that possible make person become suffers hikikomori.
People have many stereotypes toward hikikomori issues. Some people thinks become hikikomori are shameful because they did not do anything. They spend 24 hours daily life in a small room, they sleep at morning and do activities at night such as played a video game, access their social media, or watch anime and read manga, and because of technologies are developed hikikomori more getting used to stay at room and prepare ordered needs via online and this will exacerbate social life in Japan and it will make who age revenge 15 to 34 years old become NEET (Not in Education, Employment, or Training). According to the JapanTimes published on July 20, 2018, there is a women in their 50s being interview to discuss about hikikomori, she has a daughter in her early 20s, didn’t continue her study without sufficient conditions to graduate. Her daughter always said she had a fever and was sleeping at home and called her daughter as a NEET while looking disappointed. She blame herself because she thinks its an effect of her bad marriage and makes her daughter becomes like that. But in this case, this women support her daughter to recovery and can continue their life smoothly. However, there is a person who still hard to suffer this syndrome. According to the JakartaPost published on March 16, 2018, his name is Ikeida age 55 years who shut himself away from society for 20 years and never met his parents or his brother trough this time. In fact, he was the best graduate from Univeristy of Tokyo and all of his friends got a better job in prestigious company. He tried to survive trough social assistance funds and got some incomes from writing articles online.
The reason he becomes hikikomori because when he continue his study, its to fulfill his parents demands. He should do that to get a better job. After he graduate he feels empety and broken heart. He thinks it’s not suitable for him to work and meet people who did not make him comfortable, then he decided to shut himself away from society. Moreover, some people asks some questions, why these people did not try to survive. It’s not that hard to socialize with a lot of people. However, in Mr. Ikeida its different case. Actually, he tried so hard to recovery and ask his parents to accompanied him to a psychiatrist but they refused. He wants people change their stereotypes toward hikikomori which they were insane but obviously they were not. They are in pain and need people to heal it. And this phenomenon still happen in Japan even spread abroad such as United States, India, Europe and many more.
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Get custom essayFrom this discussion, I conclude that people who suffer from hikikomori cause by many factors which make them become like that. And most of things that impact them are social circumstances like in school, work environment, family even themselves. Hikikomori itself obviously a situation which make them afraid to socialize with others and assume a room is the best and safest place in the world. Hikikomori also impact our psychology and its make people frustrated, depressed, or pain which they cannot share with their own family. Since this phenomenon are common in Japan, people has different perceptions toward these. Like in the first case, a young girl suffers hikikomori but her closes family known the reason why she become like that but her mother treat her like a normal people and it makes her survive. While the other case, a man who suffers hikikomori only himself known why he become like that but his family try to hide him because feels embarrassing if one of family suffers these. It makes him harder to recovery and family did not want to accompanied him to a psychiatrist. If Japanese people want to erase this crucial phenomenon, they should guide them into the right ways, sharing about their problem, support them without staying away from them.
Iran and United States of America are one of the strongest countries in the whole world. They are known as threats to others because of their overpowered military equipment, trained soldiers and even invulnerable vehicles and jet fighters. According to The Sun Newspapers, one of the reasons the US-Iran conflict are in the brink of a war is because of the assassination of General Qasem Solemnai at the Baghdad airport in January 3, 2020. They claimed that he was killed by a US air strike, two missiles were fired by a MQ9 drone to be precise after he disembarked from an aircraft at Baghdad airport. The intention of US bombarding the general is because they said that he was “actively developing plans to attack American diplomats throughout the region”. This air strike happened a few days later after the Iran militia men and their strikers attacked the US embassy in Baghdad. This kind of confrontation of Iran and US isn’t very intriguing because this kind of conflict between them has already happened in the past years.
Get original essayBefore the 1979 Iranian revolution happened, Iran and US was the one of the most successful allies in the middle east and they were led by the US-backed Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi. In 2002, George W. Bush involved the Islamic republic in his speech and he called Iran as a “axis of evil” along with north Korea and Iraq. Furthermore, president Donald Trump withdraws from the Iran nuclear deal. Because of this sudden happenings, this puts the USA and Iran to a dangerous state that might conclude in declaring a world war 3 and this might cause a huge breakdown of every country in the world. In my perspective, Iran is a threat that we must avoid because of their large number of weapons and professional and intelligent soldiers. In my opinion on why the United states of America assassinated one of the most excellent soldier in Iran is because he has planned to attack the America’s diplomats and try to retaliate their embassy and put the American’s lives in danger. President Donald trump claims that he assassinated general Qasem so that he can “stop the war” and put piece in to the world because he knew that the general will be a dangerous man and he can put the people’s lives in great danger but for the people in Iran, they claimed that general Qasem Solemnai is a hero especially the fought that he had with the perilous group called the ISIS. They stated that many people of Iran attended the funeral of the deceased general although this figure has not been confirmed. Because of this tragedy that happen to one of the professional general of Iran, the people of Iran vowed to take vengeance to their fallen hero and proven themselves that this will not end without them taking their revenge. According to the CNN news, Maj. General Hossein dehghan, a top military adviser to the Iran’s supreme leader, told them that “they would even the score by targeting military sites”
For further information about the US and Iran conflict, according to Aljazeera, there was a saddened incident happen after the Iran launched missile attacks to the US forces. A passenger plane that was bound for Kyiv, Ukraine has crashed after it was takeoff in the Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran. They claimed that it happened an hour ago after the missile attacked of Iran. There were 176 passengers in the plane and it was said that sadly, there were no survivors in the tragedy that happen. Furthermore, the United States are certain that the Iran shot down the Ukraine plane with one of its launched missile. The Iranians admit that they were the cause of the plane crash accident that occurred and they immediately apologize for the incident that they have caused to others. In addition, the IRGC commander-in-chief was summoned to a closed door session of the parliament to explain about the incident that occurred during the launched of their missile attack on the US forces. He stated that they took full responsibility for what happen and said that “I swear to almighty God that I wished I were in that plane and had crashed with them and had burned but had not witnessed this tragic incident”, he also claimed that he will assure his forces will make up for the mistake that they have done but it will still not satisfy them to back down from the fight against the United states of America and the conflict that they have done their country. General Hossein Salami indicated the fact that the IRGC did not intended to aim and kill the US troops when it fired a wave of missiles at the Iraqi bases hosting US forces. The general told the parliament “our aim was not really to kill our opponent or any enemy soldiers. That was not important. The physical destruction was just because we wanted to say that we are far much more superior to the enemy”. On the second day of the protest over the Ukraine plane crash accident, the protesters erupted across Iran for a second day piling pressure on the leadership on Iran after the military admitted that they have mistakenly shot down the Ukraine passenger plane. They stated that “they are lying that our enemy is the Americans, the enemy is right besides all along and its right here in Iran”
For my perspective of this conflict that is happening between the Iran and US, I think that Iran is far too reckless and uncontrolled on the situation at hand and that is what causes the reason on certain incidents that were not involved in the conflict between them and the US. As for the US, they pick the wrong decision on assassinating the general of Iran because it’s no doubt that this will put both countries in the edge to declare a war they shouldn’t just went for the peaceful route and settle this by negotiation so that no further casualties are harmed and so that it will not affect the economy of every county in the world and not put us all in a dangerous and tragic state. The Iran and US conflict will surely be a huge breakdown to every one of us if some one might declare war and this would totally be end of our own society and the peace that we all wanted to see and experience will never be handed beneath our very own grasp.
This paper focuses on the issues raised during the development of Japanese automobile industry. It is an attempt stimulated by the underlying question as to whether the development of such industry has affected the environment or not. According to Flath, D (2014) Japan has one of the most elevated expectations for everyday comforts on the planet. Besides, is the world's third biggest economy. This monetary development started in the 1950s with a yearly development of 10%. This guaranteed a quick development in the GDP of the nation and furthermore expanded the spending and the way of life of the Japanese individuals (Iyoda, M. 2010). Different businesses were worked in this period to expand Japanese fares and the economy. It is notable about Japan being an all around created nation with one of the biggest businesses on the planet yet less is circled about the contamination and the rears of these ventures.
Get original essayConsequently, this paper might want to center around the contamination caused by the Japanese businesses. Japan's energy approach after World War II deeply affected nature from hydroelectric power-producing dams, and coal-and oil-controlled creating stations to stations creating atomic power. Each sort of creating station has numerous natural impacts and has caused numerous issues." One of the greatest social issues confronting present-day Japan is the issue of waste and waste transfer. Obviously, a significant number of the security perils that have come about because of the siting and direct of waste transfer destinations remain a present risk to the earth and to individuals. Three especially troublesome destinations are illustrative of these issues: (1) Teshima Island in the Seto Inland Sea, which is infamous for the illicit dumping of modern waste; (2) Mitake Town in Gifu Prefecture, which is utilized asa site for the transfer of mechanical waste; and (3) Hinode town in Tokyo, where the wellbeing of civil waste transfer has been called into genuine question.(Chengya, H 2014).
As of late, dust from destroyed autos has been dumped in one of the minimum controlled locales, while the most recent overview of the Environment Agency has uncovered that overwhelming metals, cancer-causing substances, and different unsafe materials have been identified in 33% of all the slightest controlled landfill destinations. The unlawful dumping of a monstrous measure of waste at Teshima Island in the Seto Inland Sea raised the issue of responsibility: that is, who ought to be considered in charge of the natural contamination caused by the illicit dumping of waste and who should bear the cost of cleaning it up?An examination by the Environmental Dispute Coordination Commission found that the waste dumped wrongfully at Teshima Island contained perilous materials, for example, lead, polychlorinated biphenyls, and dioxins . The zone of waste spreads 460000m2 and 87% of this territory falls outside the cutoff points set up for the allowed dumping of dangerous waste.
In the meantime, lead and PCBs, as well as found in the groundwater in amounts surpassing legitimately allowed levels It is said that 70% of all the world's junk incinerators are situated in Japan and that the incinerators that consume MSW are the main originators of dioxin. Japan is currently more polluted by dioxins and related mixes than some other nation on the planet. Dioxin can influence the human body in an assortment of routes, from intense to incessant poisonous quality, cancer-causing nature, and changes to the thyroid organ. In 1990, Japan conveyed the greatest volume of waste incite Taiwan anyway later, by virtue of a defilement issue, the volume dropped, and, in the 1990s, the volume of waste lead exchanged to Indonesia extended. Groundwater Pollution in Japan By Toshiba Components, Kimitsu In 1984, a child whose guardians lived near groundwater was conceived with genuine imperfections. Amid the mid year of 1987, lake carp started to swell and bite the dust.
These occurrences were recorded in Kimitsu, Chiba Prefecture, where groundwater contamination by a semiconductor plant was found amid the spring of 1987, yet was not made open until September 1988. Forty-three wells were explored; 10 wells were observed to be tainted by trichloroethylene in amounts over the direction level set by the WHO. These 10 wells incorporated a well to drink water, a metropolitan well and the well for the city swimming pool. The most noteworthy identified level of trichloroethylene was 10000 ppb. (October 1988), which was 330-overlap the control level (30 ppb.).
The wellspring of the contamination was Toshiba Components, Kimitsu, which is situated next to the upper compasses of the groundwater stream. Toshiba Components, Kimitsu (500 workers), is a maker of commutating semiconductors, and utilizations trichloroethylene for cleaning. Toshiba Components, Kimitsu, shares 25% of the world market for commutating semiconductors for cars. Toshiba utilized as much as 4.20 million pounds of trichloroethylene from 1972 to 1988, half of which was not recuperated. Wellbeing Injury Natives in the area had whined of different medical issues and required the City Hall to do a wellbeing review. For example, the tyke with a birth deformity was hospitalized and other individuals have encountered unsuccessful labors, and heart.
In 1988, three matured people kicked the bucket from obscure causes. A laborer who managed squander trichloroethylene at the Toshiba plant was blinded when the fluid squirted into his eye. Toshiba, Taishi Plan The first case of high-tech pollution caused by a semiconductor plant in Japan occurred at Taishi. The source of the pollution was Toshiba, Taishi (1200 employees). Opened in 1959, the company produces semiconductors and cathode ray tubes. Groundwater Pollution in Kumamoto Kumamoto City itself, which relies upon its groundwater, has discovered that a lot of its groundwater is presently contaminated by natural solvents. In 1982, a study of the Environment Agency distinguished groundwater contamination in Kumamoto out of the blue. In 1987, Kumamoto City identified defilement in 47 wells at levels that were over the control level. Contamination has just achieved a profundity of 300 ft. Indeed, even the wellspring of the metropolitan well has been dirtied by natural dissolvable, in spite of the fact that the level of contamination is still underneath as far as possible. Despite the fact that the City Hall has said that a large portion of the toxins originate from cleaning plants, the pathway of the contamination has not been altogether mapped.
According to a prefectural study, the gadgets business utilizes the biggest amount of natural solvents (24 plants; 1750000 pounds in 1986). NEC, Kyushu (Kumamoto City; 3000 representatives), is one of the greatest semiconductor plants in the world.
Mitsubishi, Kumamoto (1000 workers), is situated in Nishi-Gohshi City, north of Kumamoto City, and is sited specifically on the groundwater bowl. By Mitsubishi Mitsubishi Electric Kita-itami Plant utilizes 3000 individuals, isn't just the base of research, improvement, and preliminary creation identified with the semiconductor area of Mitsubishi Electric Company, but on the other hand is a nonstop large scale manufacturing base of concoction mixes and half breed semiconductors. At the Kita-itami Plant, as much as 440 tons trichloroethylene had been utilized yearly. (Yoshida,F. 2002) Nuclear Crisis of Fukushima The Fukushima emergency in 2011 was the aftereffect of tidal wave and the tremor that occurred at the time.Due to the powerlessness to supply cooling water to the reactor vessel, the rot warm created by the atomic fuel brought about a fuel failure.
During the mischance movement, radiological materials are discharged from the harmed fuel either in the reactor vessel or in the platform floor zone (Song, J.H. 2017). The pulverized plants still cannot be totally deactivated and the related individuals are looked with awesome issues both in money related and additionally specialized terms. The expenses of that occurrence is more than twofold of that evaluated, and the legislature is attempting to raise it through the general population, by expanding charges and so on. The legislature after the fukushima occurrence has closed down the majority of its other atomic undertakings, yet as of the new administration of head administrator Abe some of them are endeavoring to begin once more. Because of Japan having restricted power sources, the administration is thinking about building power plants even after the what occurred in fukushima. What's more, going to the general population, they have lost their confidence over atomic power. There is just a little gathering who needs atomic capacity to be managed once more. The iron and steel CO2 emissions The iron and steel industry produces noteworthy measures of vitality results: coke broiler gas, impact heater gas and essential oxygen heater. The Japanese iron and steel industry CO2 outflows identified with non-renewable energy source burning added up to 165 Mt in 1999. On the off chance that inorganic emanations and roundabout discharges are included, this amount increments up to 207 Mt .
The percentage averaged over 26 stations, including stations at which microbeads were not collected, decreased to 3.4%, but was still a non negligible fraction of microplastics collected in the coastal waters of Japan. This relatively large percentage results from the rapid decrease in abundance of microplastics smaller than 0.8 mm in the upper oceans, which are partly replaced with microbeads used in everyday life. These amounts speak to 13– 17% of the aggregate Japanese CO2 discharge. As an outcome the iron and steel industry can be influenced altogether by GHG outflow diminishment arrangements. (Moriguchi, Y. et.al. 2002). This demonstrates a colossal measure of carbon dioxide discharges by the Japanese business hence causing more contamination.
Microplastics in Japanese coasts As cited in Percentage of microbeads in pelagic microplastics within Japanese coastal waters by Atsuhiko, I. "Plastic litter that has degraded into fragments smaller than 5 mm in diameter is referred to as microscopic plastics." It is hardly possible to get these plastics back once they are out in the ocean. The source ot these plastics are mainly cosmetic products or care products from Japanese pharmacies. These will end up polluting marine biodiversity if it is not controlled. Minamata disease Minamata disease is a neurological disease that occurred in persons who repeatedly consumed fish and shellfish contaminated with methylmercury.
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Get custom essayThe mercury was discharged by the industries that were located at Minamata. According to Tamashiro et al. methylmercury affects not only the CNS, such as the cerebellum and the occipital lobe of the cerebrum which seem to be the direct target organs, but may also play a role in the acceleration of degenerative changes in adults, the progress or prognosis of complications present, the developmental impairment in a fetus, and the outcome of a pregnancy. More than 2500 people have been diagnosed with the disease. Conclusion The Japanese Industry was one of the fastest developing in the world, which took them to great heights and also made them the world's second largest economy at a time. As this paper sought to find out that these development were not without it consequences. There are numerous instances where the the industries failed and created massive amount of harm to the nature as well as its citizens. It has resulted in polluting rivers, land.
Though comics have been enjoyed by the general public for decades, it was not until the first official comic book was released in 1933 that the game changed. (South Florida Reporter) Since then, the world has been graced by the presence of comics in a much more centralized form, no longer relying on daily newspapers to enjoy the paneled sources of entertainment. With each country and artist contributing something unique and personal to the comic writing scene, it is expected to see the development of a variety of unique styles that bring something new to the table each time, which in turn allows them to transcend beyond the boundaries of literature and develop their own characteristics that distinguish them among the pool of such a widely celebrated form of entertainment. This also leads them to break off into their own respective subgroups with borderline cult-like followings. I found this particularly noticeable in the case of Japanese manga.
Get original essayAs a person who grew up fascinated with the versatility of the art world, ranging from an obsession with literature and graphic novels to a deep appreciation of stop animation, I discovered and became obsessed with anime. Captivated by the storylines and the emotionally evocative art styles of anime such as Sayo Yamamoto’s “Yuri!!! On Ice” and Shinichir? Watanabe’s “Cowboy Bebop,” I was immediately intrigued by the beauty and versatility of the world of Japanese entertainment, particularly the seemingly infinite varieties of anime.
This interest only deepened when I became an IB higher level art student, with this course allowing me to further explore the world of art from a much more holistic viewpoint and appreciate art beyond paintings and sculptures. Having been provided with a better understanding of visual art and its elements, I was deeply inspired by the artistic elements of anime and wanted to learn more about its origins and history, bringing me to the extensive world of manga.
Though I don’t necessarily read traditional Japanese manga that often, I can definitely say that it has heavily influenced my art style when drawing digitally, adding an expressionistic touch to my art while also adding a sense of movement and fluidity. It has also inspired me in the sense of storytelling, breaking me away from my typically verbose manner of speaking and instead enabling me to tell stories in a much more creative and succinct manner.
In this essay I will explore and define the aspects of manga determining where it lies in regards to the traditional (and non traditional) methods of categorization in the fine arts.
As this essay will focus on distinguishing manga as an art form, it is necessary to identify what exactly an art form is, which, according to Merriam Webster’s Dictionary, is “an unconventional form or medium in which impulses regarded as artistic may be expressed” or “a form or medium of expression recognized as fine art.” (Merriam Webster) This specific definition can be extended to any form of self expression thus establishing literature itself as an art form, however, I will be using the term “art form” to refer exclusively to visual arts. It is also important to note that one’s objective views and definitions of what art is are also crucial in determining what can “qualify” as art, therefore I will also be applying my own definition of an art form to determine the extent to which manga can be considered an art form in and of itself.
From my perspective, I would define an art form as an expression of something; be it emotion or any other message, through a nonverbal medium. It can serve as a way for the artist to “speak” using another voice and bring something to their audience’s attention, produce something exclusively for aesthetic purposes, or convey a powerful message. It can also serve as a tool to encourage and inspire the artist’s respective audiences and give themself or others a new voice in the face of injustice.
I believe that art can be found in all things and that it is an incredibly crucial part of both indigenous and modern cultures. This ties in especially with the manga’s pivotal role in the development and distribution of Japanese pop culture, being both easily identifiable and long-established. Though I might not be able to come up with a definitive answer, I aim to construct a more comprehensive definition of where manga stands within the art world.
Manga are Japanese comics that gained popularity in Japan after World War 2 that served as a source of entertainment and comfort for the Japanese public while recovering from the war. I found that it would be beneficial to investigate the origins of manga and potentially develop a deeper understanding of its development over time and the significant figures that aided in its creation and evolution into what it is today.
Machiko Hasegawa: Respectfully deemed the “Grandmother of Manga,” Machiko Hasegawa was a Japanese cartoonist born on January 30th, 1920 in Kyushu, Japan. Initially publishing her trademark series “Sazae-San” in a newspaper in 1946, Hasegawa is known as one of the first mangaka ever, having her work serve as a lighthearted source of entertainment for the public of the still recovering post Wold War 2 Japan. Providing a unique and unusual satirical portrayal of the common Japanese housewife, Hasegawa was able to break through Japan’s societal norms at the time, both by living what was deemed as an “unconventional lifestyle” and by giving herself a voice through her art and humor. Described in her obituary by The Independent as a somewhat antisocial woman who didn’t necessarily seek the company of others, having never married (which was uncommon in and of itself at the time), it is evident that Hasegawa might have used her art as an extension of herself and as a voice to critique and challenge the workings of her society, one of the innumerable functions of art.
Osamu Tezuka: Born in Toyonaka, Japan on November 3rd, 1928, Osamu Tezuka stands as one of, if not the most important figure in the development of manga to date. Honorably titled the “Grandfather of Manga and Anime,” Tezuka grew up as a passionately artistic person whose interests ranged from performing arts to the collection and drawing of insects. Deemed a natural storyteller from a young age, Tezuka put a lot of value on balancing a good story with good art and believed that beautiful illustration would never be able to save a terrible story, thus emphasizing their codependence. A very versatile artist, Tezuka made manga of all genres and went on to draw over 150,000 pages of manga in his lifetime. Much like Machiko Hasegawa, Tezuka started off by publishing his comics in a newspaper, however, he went beyond the scope of being published exclusively in newspapers and went on to create not only manga but fully fledged anime such as Astro Boy (1963). Due to the limited amount of frames per second, the animators had to put more emphasis on movement and emotion in the characters which is something that is still seen in both manga and anime to this day. In the present day, the manga industry is constantly expanding, ranging from iconic titles such as Akira Toriyama’s Dragonball to Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece. With interest in Japanese culture growing during the Heisei Era (January 8th, 1989 to April 30th, 2019), the creation and distribution of manga has become a very profitable business. Though it can be hard to generalize the sources of inspiration for every single mangaka, it can be assumed that a lot of the artists have influenced each other to a certain degree, with Naruto’s artist claiming that he was “completely addicted” to the popular boys’ series “Dragon Ball.” This further demonstrates the interconnectivity of the world of manga creation, something that is also present in the world of fine arts.
As was seen in Osamu Tezuka’s first full-length manga, the storytelling aspect is heavily reliant on imagery, as an overabundance in words can confuse the audience and does not necessarily construct a good story. Tying into the previously mentioned definition of an art form, this emphasizes art’s function of conveying a message to the audience through a nonverbal medium. Manga also has its defining characteristics, both aesthetic and written. One of the most notable is the art style which varies from artist to artist. Human characters in manga are typically drawn with exaggerated proportions, specifically in regards to the facial features which include larger eyes for an easier depiction of emotion. This allows for less reliance on dialogue and the voice of a narrator and creates better immersion for the audience.
As was constantly asserted by Tezuka, outstanding artwork could not save a poorly written story and would instead strive for more balance within his works. This balance is further explored in terms of storytelling by providing characters with a voice through dialogue, and occasionally, narration. By doing this, the mangaka is able to create a link between literature and art to provide enjoyment for their respective audiences. It is also important to note the tradition of publishing manga as books, automatically placing it in a gray area in terms of identifying its purpose. Generally, manga serves as a form of entertainment, much like most forms of literature, and is not typically created for the audience to exclusively admire the illustrations. By creating a greater sense of coherence in terms of accurately developing storylines and character, it increasingly emphasizes the role of storytelling in manga, since without the use of words there is a level of disconnect with the audience, almost entirely eliminating the entire purpose of manga.
The role that the literature visually plays in the composition of each panel is also an important area of focus. The dialogue is often deliberately placed in negative space, thus giving the overall piece a sense of unity while simultaneously retaining enjoyability for the readers.
This analysis is to identify the artistic elements of manga and justify its categorization as an art form. For this essay, I chose to analyze page 15 of the first volume of Masashi Kishimoto’s Naruto. I chose this manga specifically because I have two digital versions of the book, both with slight variations in terms of publication. One of them is a more raw, and most likely illegal, English version, and the other is an officially released copy. Though both editions effectively tell the same story using nearly identical imagery, the most notable difference is their language usage. Because one of the versions is a less refined publication that was translated directly from Japanese, the dialogue in this specific scene is a lot more direct and harsh in comparison to the official English translation. This creates a slightly different atmosphere than that of the officially published translation, further emphasizing the role of dialogue and language usage in manga’s storytelling, as the introduction of such a slight variation could possibly misinterpret the author’s original intentions.
The selected page is from the beginning of the book and is at a point where the main character, Naruto, is rejected once again in his quest to become a fully realized ninja. I used this scene in particular because of the emotional significance that it has to the main character which is further translated to the imagery that is presented to the reader. Though his failure is treated in a somewhat lighthearted manner, the audience manages to gain perspective on the main character’s struggles when pursuing his dream. This stood out to me particularly because Kishimoto’s method of expressing strong emotions within his characters in this scene heavily relied on the integrated illustration while using minimal dialogue.
In this particular panel, Kishimoto took care to integrate the words into the composition of the piece, serving as a background and not necessarily as a piece of focus for the reader. It is organized in a way that the black lettering provides balance within the piece, as the black lettering on both sides possess similar dimensions. The darker value being placed in the background also allows for more emphasis on the human figure in the foreground which is of a lighter value, creating greater contrast. Because the character is placed centrally, the black lettering frames the character in such a way that the audience can focus on the action in the foreground which is Naruto’s reaction to being failed yet again. The composition of this panel appears more balanced due to the symmetry of both the lettering and the character in the center.
The lettering featured in both versions makes use of bold and prominent lines that provide emphasis on the movement within the piece. With the depicted character being shown to have a direct impact on the movement of the rest of the setting, the artist made sure to show a variety of line and texture to both frame the character and illustrate his surroundings. Due to the somewhat simplistic art style, there is not much variation in texture demonstrated in this panel, save for the bits of debris flying up as a result of the character’s collision with the ground.
In an attempt to exclusively observe the illustrated elements of the specific scene that I selected, I removed every piece of writing on the featured panel , including those that were part of the background and was interested to see that the overall composition of the page became severely unbalanced and somewhat empty or incomplete. This emphasized the overall dependence on maintaining balance through the constant variation in values and using both words and images to tell a story. It also allowed me to see the variety of values used in the exclusively black and white piece, the black and white trademark being typical of manga due to both cheapness and efficiency when it comes to printing. Because the character is centralized, the imbalance wasn’t necessarily caused by asymmetry within the piece but it was instead caused by the lack of variation within the values of the piece. This is something that is typically provided by the differences in character design that the creator chose to add, but this was obviously absent in this panel, as there was only one character and the variation in values was instead provided by the background lettering.
Manga’s versatility is borderline impossible to keep track of. Ranging from box sets full of riveting plot-lines and stunning illustration to long-running series that invoke a longing sense of nostalgia, manga is undoubtedly impactful in the entertainment world. However, it is due to this versatility and impact that it is borderline impossible to define where it stands in terms of the fine arts. Undeniably, the creation and distribution of manga requires a drive and dedication that is true of all artists, only requiring an additional desire to write and tell stories. This indeed establishes at least some elements of artistic endeavor, and can, in turn, provide more clarity when it comes to categorizing it in traditional art terms.
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Get custom essayIn conclusion, though manga’s imagery cannot stand on its own in regards to its storytelling, it is still easily recognizable and can provide its narrative, in some cases even providing commentary in protest of social and political injustices. Allowing its artists to bring their contributions of beauty and creativity into the world, manga is extremely versatile with no fixed sense of what “true manga” is exactly. With the expansion of the world of manga, it is constantly being redefined by new approaches to storytelling and breaking itself away from the Western style of comic books, thus potentially allowing it to be defined as an art form in and of itself.
The oldest faith in Japan is Shinto, which means 'the way of the Gods'.?There is neither a?founder nor prophets and there is no major text that outlines its principal beliefs.?? Shinto is an ancient Japanese religion, beginning about five hundred BCE.?Its name was derived?from the Chinese words ' Shin Tao ' within the eighth Century CE. ? The Shinto religion is practiced by approximately 80-90% of Japanese?people.?An?approximated? 3,000,000 people worldwide practice?Shinto. ?
Get original essayBuddhism is a faith that was founded by Siddharta Gautama (“the Buddha”) more than 2,500?years ago in India. ? With about 470 million followers, scholars consider Buddhism one of the major world religions.? ?Its practice has historically been most prominent in East and Southeastern Asia, but its?influence is growing in the West.??
Prior to Buddhism in Japan, individuals had their own?arrangement?of spiritual beliefs and ritual practices.? First occupants of Japan were inspired by nature like?the magnificent rivers, mysterious forests and snow-covered mountains, which individuals began to believe?in the?kami?(spirit beings) of these places. ? Essentially, there was no?requirement?for special?buildings of worship, but later kami was venerated in a?chieftain’s palace or a shrine arranged over a sacred site. ?
Purity is symbolised by mirror since it?reflects precisely what it sees. It is found in?Shinto signs and it stands for purity and?honesty as well as the kami worshipped in?the shrine to enter. ?
Since the earliest times, unique entry gates?known as torii marked shrines. Prior forms of torii comprised two,?upstanding trees connected by a?crosspiece. ?The final piece of timber below held the?structure stable. ?This was viewed as an approach to bring?Kami to earth and separate the ‘real’ from?the spiritual worlds. ?
After Buddhism, worship of Kami was given a?conventional structure and was given the name?‘Shinto’,?meaning ‘way of gods’. ? Emperors utilized Shinto beliefs to support their?position, misleading minorities that they were?royal family descended from the sun goddess up?till World War II. ?
In the sixth century, Buddhism?came to Japan from China and?Korea, soon being adapted by?ruling families. ? A large Buddhist temple was?established in Nara during the?eighth century. ? Throughout the unsettled times of?Kamakura period (twelfth century),?Japanese adopted new Chinese?forms of Buddhism, like Zen?Buddhism. ?
Zen stressed self-discipline through meditation: ?buddhists sit silently like the Buddha in the Lotus position to control their breathing and?void their minds. ?This captivated numerous people, especially the warrior class as they were constrained?by the shogun, putting a lot of stress upon them. ? Zen Buddhism was frequently expressed through archery as one would have mastery?over a bow and arrow, hitting the centre point of the target unconsciously. ?
Tea drinking became a complex?ritual as it had soothing,?stimulating attributes that were?see as an acid to meditation. ? Zen Buddhism is unified with?Shinto as both share admiration?for the natural world; meditation,?landscape painting and garden?design are all interconnected. ? Paintings influenced by Zen would?have a few strokes to resemble a?landscape, the garden being?defined by the leftover. ? The Zen garden at?Ryoanji, Kyoto is?composed of a blend of white?stones, a few carefully placed?rocks and some moss.
Shinto is often cited alongside Buddhism as one of Japan's two main religions, and the two often differ in focus, with Buddhism emphasising the idea of transcending the cosmos, which it regards as being replete with suffering, while Shinto focuses on adapting to the pragmatic requirements of life.
It is an obvious statement to make that not all experiences of the Depression were the same. The 1930's are usually seen as a time of great suffering and poverty. In fact, an overview of the time in terms of economics shows a time of relative prosperity and this is especially true when compared to other nations such as the USA and Germany, who for a time suffered much greater problems than Britain did.
Get original essayThe first image that springs to most people's minds when they think of the Depression is the Jarrow marches. Jarrow is a useful case study. The town, which now lies in the county of Tyne and Wear was predominantly a shipping area before 1929. The Wall Street crash caused a ripple effect all over the world, and it eventually hit Jarrow. In her book "The Town That Was Murdered" Ellen Wilkinson tells of one of the main shipyards Palmer's and its closure. She puts forward the idea that it was "Financial weakness not technical inefficiency" that caused the closure of Palmer's. The closure caused 8000 redundancies! This area of the north suffered huge poverty, resulting in the march. It was a demand for something to be done by the government.
The north was not the only place that saw social issues develop as a result of the Depression. In London, out of work Welshmen were seen in the streets entertaining Londoners in order to make ends meet. On the whole there was a clear increase in the amount of begging and the level of crime in the major cities. The men that were unemployed were often employed for a long time. This caused a different problem. Many firms, even when they were recovering, would ideally not want to employ a man who had been out of work for more than a year. The men are likely to be less efficient as they will not be up to date with recent techniques.
Although unemployment was a major headache for the government there were many significant improvements to the quality of life of the nation. In the south there had been an influx of new industries, such as the introduction of the wireless (the BBC was created in 1922). The practice of mass production had also come across the Atlantic and car manufacture was growing rapidly (it was the best in Europe). There was also an increase in the electrical engineering market, which was aided by the formation of the National Grid. In terms of the social life of Britain, the cinema was a new, popular attraction (in Liverpool, it was so cheap even unemployed people could afford to go!) and theatres had a resurgence in numbers of ticket sales. New buildings were being built and they were not confined to the south, in Glasgow a 4000-seater theatre was constructed!
On the whole there was an improvement in the health of the nation. However in some areas infant mortality was poor, such as in Oldham where 10% of children died before they were three years old. Rowntree also calculated that 70% of unemployed families were under the poverty line and this led to malnutrition.
The north had been crippled by the collapse of the staple industries but the introduction of new industries in the south caused the overall economic picture to be quite positive. The growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was an impressive 2.1% on average. Unemployment was the major achilles heel. The level of unemployment was 22% in 1932! As most people had worked in one industry all their lives, it made their skills useless to other firms and this made re-employment even more difficult, especially for the older members of the workforce.
There were many signs of affluence, especially in the south and this gives the impression of a north/south divide. In the south there was a housing boom, showing that many families had a certain amount of disposable income.
On the whole the government policy was not overly helpful to the people of the working class. The school of thought at the time was a case of balancing budgets and not taking risks with high levels of state intervention. As tax revenues fell, so did the amount of money the government had to spend. They duly cut benefits and this had a negative multiplier effect that caused even more unemployment! This policy did aid the middle class, who found that low taxes allowed them to spend more money on goods.
At the time of the Depression there was a new political party in power. Labour had just been elected and it only their second spell in power. They were ineffective at solving the issues caused by the Depression. The National Government that followed Labour in 1931 adopted none too radical policies and therefore ignored the unusual ideas of John Maynard Keynes. Keynes saw that in a Depression the government should spend, in order to boost the economy. He believed that a budget deficit could be run, assuming that the benefits of taxes coming in due to increased profits and income tax revenues will eventually pay off any debts incurred in the short run. By today's standards, this is common practice and seems sensible, but in the 1930's this was something very different and the National Government did not want to risk disaster.
In conclusion there was a sort of north/south divide in Britain during the 1930's. This north/south divide appears to still remain today but it was definitely exaggerated after the Wall Street crash. The south was far more dynamic compared to the north, which was set in its ways and relied too heavily on the staple industries. The Depression was indirectly responsible for a great deal of upheaval in Europe (such as the rise of Hitler), in some ways Britain was very lucky. On the whole the economy was very sound and the lives of a large number of people were improving.
Thirteen Reasons Why, written by Jay Asher was easily the best book I have ever read. With bullying and suicide as the theme, the book takes you through the final straws of Hannah Bakers life, concluding with her suicide. This book takes you through the lives of teenagers in high school and the type of bullying we go through. Although many of the events were small and not too hurtful, Asher shows how they all build up to cause pain and problems. Every type of bullying, no matter how small is harmful. It can cause a person to become depressed, feel lonely, and in extreme cases like Hannah’s, it can result in suicide.
Get original essayThe book begins with Clay Jensen, who was one of Hannah’s classmates. He comes home from school one day to find a package on his doorstep with no return address. Curious, he opens it up and finds 7 cassette tapes inside. Each tape was narrated by Hannah herself. She recorded them before she took her life. The purpose of the tapes was for Hannah to explain the thirteen reasons why she killed herself. Before she died, she stuck a map in the lockers of the people on her cassettes. The map had points on it that they followed as the story went on with the tapes. The rules that Hannah tells them on the first tape is that they must listen to each and every tape, following the map, and once they are done with the tapes, they must anonymously mail it to the next person in line’s house. If they failed to follow the rules then the second set of tapes, who Hannah left with someone, would be released to the entire school. If that happened, that would mean that the whole school, including teachers, would know what these people did that caused Hannah to kill herself.
The first tape is sent to a guy who basically is the cause of everything else that happens to her. His name is Justin and he was her first kiss. Justin starts a rumor that it was more than a kiss. At the time, Hannah was the new girl in town and Justin was the popular, cool guy; of course everyone’s going to believe Justin over Hannah. Justin was not only reason number one, but he was reason number ten as well. He was the only one on the list to be named as two separate reasons. Besides starting the rumor, his other reason is that he allowed a girl to get raped at a party who was too drunk to even keep her eyes open. Hannah accidently got stuck in the room and had to watch the whole thing. She was too shocked and scared to stop the guy from raping her, but she was fully aware that Justin allowed him to do it. In fact, he watched the door to make sure no one knew.
The next reason is also a big reason for why everything else followed. Hannah was put on the “hot or not” list as “best ass” and was compared to her best friend who made the “not” list. She was the following reason because she slapped Hannah and dug her nails above her eyebrow, scaring her face. Another guy receives the tapes because he would peep into Hannah’s room at night and snap pictures of her. Hannah invites her friend, Courtney, over to help catch him in his action. The two girls gave each other massages and then planned on catching him while he took the pictures. Courtney was the reason after the “peeping tom” because she tells everyone that Hannah has dirty things in her room. After that, she uses Hannah just so she can transport her to and from a party. The rest of the reasons involve a guy who stands her up on a date, and then tries to take advantage of her, a guy who takes all of the slips of nice things that people wrote to Hannah, people mocking the poem she wrote, a car accident that knocks down a stop sign, causing another accident and the death of someone from their school, and a teacher/counselor that doesn’t do much to help Hannah when she reaches out about wanting to kill herself. There’s also Clay’s reason, but I won’t give that away as well.
Each reason may not have seemed so great, but as it all piles on, it becomes too heavy for Hannah to handle and you follow her as she explains it all, leading up to her breaking. I would for sure recommend this book to anyone. It is a good novel to be read by teenagers who can connect to it, and adults who should be aware of what takes place in high schools. It also opens your eyes to warning signs of someone who is depressed and thinking about suicide. By reading this book, it can completely change your views on people. It made me become aware of the things I say to people and about other people. Everyone should read Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, at least one time in their life.
It was literary critic Lionel Trilling who quite aptly described the collective entity Jay Gatsby when he wrote, "Jay Gatsby [stands] for America itself." Jay Gatsby lives his life entrenched in unfathomable wealth. His true roots are rather mysterious, but they revolve around an anti-Calvinistic attitude and what is Jay Gatsby essentially reinventing himself. Through Gatsby's modest upbringing, domineering drive, and his tragic demise, Gatsby truly is representative of America as a whole.
Get original essayFrom its very beginnings, America consisted of rather modest individuals who all led simple lives with accordingly simple goals (Bewley 13). Jay Gatsby, or James Gatz, began his life like the classic American ideal, through the idea of rebirth. Originally born to modest farmers, Gatsby receives his first taste of affluence from a man named Dan Cody (Mizener 182). As Fitzgerald himself puts it, "To young Gatz, resting on his oars and looking up at the railed deck, the yacht represented all the beauty and glamour in the world...Cody asked him a few questions (one of them elicited the brand new name). (Fitzgerald 106)" It is Gatsby's total reformation that aptly reflects America's reputation as the land of opportunity. Beyond his desire and ability to become reborn, Dan Cody also facilitates the growth of Gatsby's eternal drive for wealth and glory. Critic Marius Bewley asserts, "[Gatsby] sprang from his Platonic conception of himself. He was a son of God---a phrase which, if it means anything, means just that---and he must be about his father's business, the service of a vast, vulgar, meretricious beauty" (Bewley 15). Gatsby's life is dedicated to his pursuits of a lavish lifestyle that borders on, if not enters into, the arena of gaudiness. It is these immensely capitalistic goals that also parallel the pervading mindset of past, present, and future America. Through an effective blend of a personality naturally inclined towards success and the influence of others, Gatsby manages to reinvent his own image in the eyes of those around him, just as America has done in the eyes of the world time and time again.
Literary critic Marius Bewley stated, "The American Dream, stretched between a golden past and a golden future, is always betrayed by a desolate present" (Bewley 17). It is this "desolate present" that plagues Gatsby's life. Primarily, his modest upbringing shields him from the dishonesty present in those surrounding him (Mizener 190) and allows him to be blindly in love with Daisy (Bewley 20). Despite the seeming hopelessness of Gatsby's desire, this very inability to abandon one's goals also serves to represent America. Time and time again, America has been made glorious and has reached historic precedents through individuals who refused to abandon their goals. At one point in the novel, Nick states of Gatsby, "There was something gorgeous about him," but not only was this a catchphrase of the 1920's, it shows Nick's envy of Gatsby's riches and illustrates the American need for superiority and to be looked up to by the rest of the world (Bewley 26). Paradoxically, while striving for indescribable grandeur, Gatsby also inadvertently works towards humility. Most notably, in the scene where Gatsby shows off his imported shirts to Daisy and Nick, Gatsby's actions are the engenderment of what Marius Bewley refers to as an unconscious "inner vision" Gatsby is unable to formally recognize (Bewley 22). Finally, Marius Bewley asserts that, "Gatsby to us is less an individual than a projection, or mirror, of our ideal selves," this notion, that Gatsby is the embodiment of all that mainstream America strives for (24) absolutely reaffirms the fact that Gatsby represents America.
During an interview, F. Scott Fitzgerald said, "Show me a hero and I'll write you a tragedy." It is this quotation that embodies all that is Gatsby's fall and its parallel's to America. While lying in the pool, moments before his death, Nick aptly describes to the reader the desolate feeling surrounding the fall of the noble: "I have an idea that Gatsby himself didn't believe [the phone call] would come and perhaps he no longer cared. If that was true he must have felt that he had lost the old warm world, paid a high price for living too long with a single dream" (Fitzgerald 169). Just as with any hero, from John Fitzgerald Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. to America itself, all figures of great power and nobility eventually find their decline and consequent fall from grace. Gatsby felt alone and Gatsby felt alienated, all feelings of sorrow and failure that are not at all uncommon to the lives of many Americans. After the murder goes unnoticed by Gatsby's hired help, it seems life continues on a normal course for quite some time before the true gravity of Gatsby's death sinks in (Hindus 243). This mindset that doesn't accept change or sorrow is quite similar to the emotionless manner with which many Americans view their lives and the lives of people around them.
"[Future dreams] eluded us then, but that's no matter - tomorrow we will run faster, stretch our arms farther" (Fitzgerald 189). The idea aptly portrayed in these final lines of The Great Gatsby is the simple notion that people will forever seek certain goals, American goals. Goals such as power, freedom, love, and wealth; and it is the total amalgamation of these goals that truly represents and describes the vibrant spirit and being of Jay Gatsby.
Works Cited
Bewley, Marius. "Scott Fitzgerald's Criticism of America." F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby. Ed. Harold Bloom. New York/Philadelphia: Chelsea House, 1986. 11-27.
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1925.
Hindus, Milton. "F. Scott Fitzgerald and Literary Anti-Semitism." Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski, and Phyllis C. Mendelson. Detroit: Gate Research Company, 1978. 243-244.
Mizener, Arthur. "The Great Gatsby." The American Novel. Ed. Wallace Stegner. New York: Basic Books, Inc., 1965. 180-191.
Morris, Lloyd. "Postscript to Yesterday: America: The Last Fifty Years." Twentieth Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski, and Phyllis C. Mendelson. Detroit: Gate Research Company, 1978. 244-245.
Jazz music can always give audiences surprise about how could the music sound like, because jazz always shows its large flexibility of combining with other styles of music and its high acceptability about new ideas. “In its earliest form, jazz showed an ability to assimilate the blues, the rag, the march, and other idioms”. In the contemporary era, some of musicians combined jazz with rock, pop music, and free funk, etc. The works they created, started to emerge from 1960’s, belong to new genre called jazz fusion. Jazz fusion brought audience a new kind of aesthetic experience, and encouraged musicians in that era create many special pieces. In “Bitches Brew”, Miles Davis mix some rock elements in jazz music; in Freak out! and Weasels Ripped My Flesh, Frank Zappa created music that give people totally different feelings although both of them are jazz fusion albums; and in Weather Report’s album Heavy Weather, they combined jazz with funk and R&B music and gave every member opportunity to improvise. Jazz fusion, as a general concept, only shows people that the music that represents an idea of combing characteristics from two or more types of music to create new and special works that have musicians’ personal icon and can express musicians’ emotion better. If we explore each kind of combinations, we could find that each new type is so special in their focuses, the using of instruments, emotional expression.
Get original essayWhen jazz fusion is mentioned, people probably will think about Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew first, due to its importance jazz-rock fusion music and amazing composition and arrangement. The first time I listened to this song, I felt this song sounds like jazz since it includes lots of improvisations and some melodies sound disharmonic and chaotic. However, the beats of the song played by drum and bass are much powerful than the beats of the jazz music I heard before, and that reflects the influence of rock music on Bitches Brew. Bitches Brew probably could be the most remarkable album that mark the appearance of the jazz-rock music, and its characteristics of both rhythm and improvisation can be seen as innovations.
The musical instruments used in this song that response to the rhythm section include a guitar bass, a double bass, three drums, two electric pianos, and a percussion, were played at the same time during the recording. The rhythm section plays a large role in the whole music, just like a rock band’s music, and then the soloists, Miles and Wayne Shorter who played trumpet and soprano saxophone, could have more freedom and space to make their improvisations and express themselves. When the record was making, Davis focused on the spontaneous interaction between each player, instead of giving many instructions about what they would play. This decision also made the improvisation part of Bitches Brew very special.
Frank Zappa is also representative figure in jazz fusion that was active from 1960s to 1990s. However, his music gives people a feeling that significantly different from Davis’ music. As a musician who did not get much musical training, Zappa had a hybrid music style that is hard to be clearly categorized. Although his music usually gives people feeling of rock music, it also influenced by music styles like classical music and rhythm and blues. But his music style is not always same in his career.
Like what wrote by Gioia, “Zappa always chose to distance him from jazz”. When I listened to his band The Mothers of Invention’s early album Freak Out!, I felt that this album is a rock album because it includes the heavy beats played by drum and bass guitar. Also, beside vocal, the sound of electric guitar is the most notable one, and the guitarist, which is Zappa, even played some solos and improvisations at the middle of some songs. Different from Bitches Brew’s feeling of chaotic and disharmonic, The Mother of Invention’s this album makes listeners feel powerful without of feeling of nervous.
Later, Zappa’s music style changed a lot. “His music during the period 1969-72 was so permeated by the jazz fusion vocabulary that it sometimes seemed as if Zappa were on the verge of abandoning his rock root”. The Mothers of Invention’s album Weasels Ripped My Flesh could be considered as in a different music style compared with Freak Out! and Davis’ Bitches Brew. To make this album, the band used more saxophones and electric instruments than they used for preceding albums, so more different sounds of instruments, vocal noises, and chaotic improvisations can be heard. The elements of Avant-Garde jazz are included, and a mysterious and quirky feeling is expressed. The whole album contains evidences of many different types of music from jazz to rock, from pop to classical. Frank Zappa, as the bandleader, the producer, the person wrote the songs, and a representative personage of jazz-rock fusion, created music that much more complex than simple addition of jazz and rock.
Besides combing jazz with rock or classical music, some musician in the middle and late of twenty centuries also mixed jazz with R&B and Funk music. The band Weather Report is a group of people who were trying to create these new types of music. Developed from a Avant-Garde Jazz group, jazz is the central and basis of Weather Report’s music. When I listened to their album Heavy Weather, I can still hear many improvisations, which can represent the influence given by jazz. But this band focused on every member’s improvisations, which means that besides improvisation played by traditional instruments like trumpet and saxophones, people can also hear synthesizer, electric piano, bass guitar’s improvisations. When the keyboard player Joe Zawinul gradually took control of this band, the band made their music contain more funk and R&B sounds. For example, in their song “A Remark You Made”, the heavy and intensive beats they used and the slow tempo combined with the improvisation of synthesizers, express a feeling of relax and mysterious. So, instead of making listeners feel anxious just like Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew, the mixing of jazz R&B and Funk create a different atmosphere.
In conclusion, in the mid and late of twentieth century, jazz had gone through fusions with different music types: rock, R&B and Funk. As the representational figures for the fusion with rock, Miles Davis offered more opportunities for band members to improvise and interact with each other, and Frank Zappa comprehended multiple music types into his rock style. Furthermore, Frank Zappa added plenty of experimental elements into his later works. Weather Report was an American band that colligated R&B and Funk into jazz by frequently use synthesizer and strong beats, creating a unique musical trend.