Critical History, Myth,Propaganda and History an Example of the Topic History Essays by

Critical History, Myth,Propaganda and History Critical history is history that is carefully and fairly judged, portrayed and presented so that it's bad and good attributes are clearly seen. Myths can be said to be a fallacy, something that people believe that does not exit or did not happen. Propaganda on the other hand, is statements that may have been exaggerated or falsified so as to gain political millage. Need essay sample on "Critical History, Myth,Propaganda and History" topic? We will write a custom essay sample specifically for you Proceed "The American Holocaust" a book by David Stannard is a critical history of the act of genocide committed against the indigenous American population from the time Christopher Columbus set foot in the island he renamed Hispaniola to date. It dispels some of the myths that were associated with the forced extermination of the "Indians" as Columbus chose to call them. Stannard estimates that about eight million indigenous Americans were butchered by 'violence, disease, and despair' in a span of a single human generation. Within this time the vast majority of the Western Hemisphere's native peoples had been exterminated. The pace and magnitude of their extermination varied from place to place and from time to time. Historical demographers analyzing the change of population then have uncovered 'post-Columbian depopulation rates of between 90 and 98 percent' (Stannard, 1992) According to Stannard, the comparison, if it is to be made in ratio of the native survivorship in the Americas following European contact has been found to be less than half of what the human survivorship ratio would be in the United States today if every single white person and every single black person died. Making the destruction of the Indians of the Americas by far and away, the most massive act of genocide in the history of the world. He argues that even today there is a continuation of genocide in the Americas, and in other places where the world's indigenous peoples survive. A Commission on Human Rights of the Organization of American States released a research in 1986 that observed that '40,000 people had simply "disappeared" in Guatemala during the preceding fifteen years. Another 100,000 had been openly murdered (Stannard, 1992) the propaganda that 'the American holocaust' ended ages ago he says is false because even as late as 1980s there has been reports (by a survivor) of "Children, two years, four years old, being grabbed and torn into two. This was the case in Guatemala in 1982 of a military massacre as witnessed by a victim. Some more grisly cases are recounted of the assault on the Indian encampment. A victim"s confession recorded portrays the pain undergone by such people. 'With tourniquets they killed the children, of two years, of nine months, of six months. They killed and burned them all.... What they did [to my father] was put a machete in here (pointing to his chest) and they cut open his heart, and they left him all burned up. This is the pain we shall never forget ... Better to die here with a bullet and not die in that way, like my father did "(Stannard, 1992) The reports state that almost 10,000 unarmed people were killed in the assault on the 440 Indian encampments in Guatemala. References Stannard. D. E ( 1992). American Holocaust: Columbus and the Conquest of the New World. New York: Oxford University Press US.

“the Apple-Tree” by John Galsworthy Essays

â€Å"the Apple-Tree† by John Galsworthy Essays â€Å"the Apple-Tree† by John Galsworthy Paper â€Å"the Apple-Tree† by John Galsworthy Paper The extract under consideration is a piece of a third person narration. However, it is not just a matter-of-fact account of events. You can find not a few pieces of description throughout the story. Thereby the finely wrought delineation of the characters and scenery is gained. Also there are quite a lot of dialogues in the story which are important in revealing a person’s inner state and overall atmosphere. On the whole, the prevailing tone of the extract appears to be rather romantic and elevated. This effect is caused by the description of the two friends Frank Ashurst and Robert Garton. The former is an idealistic and romantic young man full of absence. And the latter stands in contrast to his friend, being too practical. The author depicts him in a rather amusing way which can’t but evoke a smile on the reader’s face which adds to the gay atmosphere. Yet there is a suggestive symbol – a cuckoo which is a kind of warning of imminent tragedy. The author uses such stylistic device as foreshadowing. He drops a clue about what is to come in the story, which builds tension throughout the book. Thus the plot development is suggested by the word â€Å"pity†. It appears all of a sudden in the very first utterance and is very eloquent as well as its second repetition in Megan’s speech. All that creates a dramatic sense, In sum the plot of the story centres around two friends Frank Ashurst and Robert Garton who are on a tramp. They are on a rest and are about to set off and find some farm to put p but suddenly they see a girl coming down to them. The fiends ask her to put them up and she agrees to lead them to the farm she lives at. There they meet her aunt, she allows the young man to stay for the night and they go to a stream to bathe. The story proves to be very symbolic. The two friends are on a trip. Apart from its literal meaning it represents the life’s journey. Frank and Robert are at the beginning of it, what is to come in store for the men? Let’s take a closer look at them. Ashurst is romantic and idealistic young man. The scene in which the action takes place reveals his inner state as the author uses somewhat high-flown style in depicting it: â€Å"he had plucked a blue foweret, and was twiddling it against the sky†. As if opposed to his friend, Robert is matter-of-fact and barren of imagination. There is a remarkable peculiarity about the way Garton’s appearance and actions are depicted. I mean metaphors and similes of which the author is lavish. They are sharp and facetious and can’t but evoke an ironic smile, for example: â€Å"Garton queer, round-the-corner, knotted, curly, like some primeval beast†, â€Å"Gartons was a kind of dark unfathomed mop†, â€Å"Robert was talking through his hat! † As to Megan, her portrayal is very laconic. She doesn’t appear to be beautiful but her eyes are wonderful. Their delineation is symbolic – they are the reflection of her soul dewy as if opened for the first time that day. And girl looks at Ashurst without shyness in an open manner, she is inartificial and naive. Megan feels pity for Ashurst because of his knee, and her attention pleases him. Once again this feeling is recurrent in the story and it definitely has symbolic significance. It creates the mood of the approaching disaster. And Megan’s aunt seems to forebode it. The author portrays her by several sharp strokes. Mrs. Narracombe had a quick, dark eye, like a mother wild-ducks, and something of the same snaky turn about her neck. † She appears to be very strict and acute woman and distrusts the strangers but finally Ashurst gains her confidence by a jesting remark. As the extract ends we find the two friends at the stream. Frank is sitting under the apple-tree waiting for Robert. And this is another symbol used by the author – the apple-tree – so expressive and meaningful that it becomes the title of the story. Now it is in leaf, and all but in flower – its crimson buds just bursting. It stands for the feeling which is about to burst between Ashurst and Megan in a little while. What is in store for them? Frank doesn’t think about it, his feelings and meditations are ambiguous and idle and he feels absurdly happy. We can only guess what is to happen with them but for the time being â€Å"every bough is swinging in the wind, every spring bird calling, and a slanting sunlight dapples the grass†. The story afforded great pleasure to me, I enjoyed every minute of it. I give the author his due for brilliance of style. The foundation of Galsworthys talent lies in a remarkable power of ironic insight combined with an extremely keen and faithful eye for all the phenomena on the surface of the life he observes. Galsworthys realism lies in his capacity for making his hero part and parcel of his surroundings and convincing the reader of his typicality: he is a fine artist in reproducing the individual workings of his characters mind.

Strategic Management Unit 5 DB week two Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Strategic Management Unit 5 DB week two - Essay Example This made InBev, which is originally Brazilian, the largest beer maker. In 2007 the new company boasted $36.4 billion in net sales. The company became in charge of 300 independent brands once the two had sealed the deal. Although the company was bought out, Anheuser Busch was well involved in the new management as its director and CEO were given positions in management, which business wise was sure to give it longevity. The acquisition was majorly successful owing solely to the fact that InBev did their research into the weaknesses their target company had, painted a clear picture of how they could be faced with so many hurdles in the case that they turned out to be long term and this could result in bankruptcy (Ross, Westerfield, & Jordan 2006). $580 million is the stunning price that News Corp put on the table in its desire to purchase MySpace. The purchase proved to be fruitful up until 2008 when Facebook completely took over the networking world as the leading social site completely displacing MySpace (Ulijn 2010). The downward trend continued until the company sold MySpace off to Specific Media at $35 million, which was as good a deal as they would get. This acquisition failed solely because NewsCorp was a little rush in its purchase and did not fully consider the possibility of harsh competition and as such had little to no preparation for the

Computer technology and the networked organization (Case) Essay

Computer technology and the networked organization (Case) - Essay Example Geographical area coverage of the business has a strong impact on the choice of network selection. Moreover, the computer networking structure classification depends on its physical topology (Bonaventure, 2011). In this paper, the focus has been rendered on the networking structure and the technologies suitable for a medium sized food store to run its business facing minimum communication hurdles. The choice of network structure and its link with the technology used plays a vital role to keep a track of the business progress, without much human intervention and distortion. Discussion Networking Architecture In today’s world, computer network system is not just an interconnected device. It is widely used to bridge the gap between the two ends of a communication channel, i.e. the communicator and the receiver. The choice of the network design depends on the business structure and its underlying intention. The network configurations used by organizations commonly include peer-to- peer or the client/server frameworks (Bakardjieva, n.d.). The peer-to-peer network is used when there are less than ten computers connected with each other in a workplace to share the files, word documents, printers, and access to internet within a small geographical area i.e. in a same floor. It has no server; hence, the computers connect with each other in the form of a workgroup to share files (Bakardjieva, n.d.).

World Luxury Goods Industry Essay Example for Free

World Luxury Goods Industry Essay Luxury goods have more than the ordinary and necessary characteristics compared to other products of their category. Their characteristics can be divided into 6 parts Symbolism, Price, Extraordinariness, Rarity, Aesthetics and Quality. The global market size for the industry has been at a growth rate of 9% per annum. This trend has been seen in the market since 1995 till 2000. The luxury market took a hit from 2000 to 2004 when incidents like the September 11 and SARS epidemic took place during those years. The market was at a standstill till 2005 when it caught pace again until the subprime financial crisis. Recent years the growth rate has been at 11% average and this has been happening since 2009. At 2013 the market is sized at Euro 212 billion and has great potential going forward. The 10 % growth estimated for the market in 2013 represents the fourth straight year following the great recession that luxury goods revenues will grow annually by double-digits. Americas region is also projected to benefit from the market, with revenues growing by 13 percent by year’s end and Asia-Pacific sales particularly driven by China India are projected to grow by 18 percent. Growth in Europe is expected to be at 5 percent this year showing that the economic trends in these areas have affected the market for luxury goods. It is estimated that the luxury goods market will grow, in real terms by 4-6% per year between 2013-2015 increasing the market to between â‚ ¬240 and â‚ ¬250 billion by 2015. There has been a shift towards online sales in this segment with this medium continuing to grow faster than the rest of the market, at 28% annual growth for the year and reaching close to 10b Euros, nearly 5% of total luxury sales which larger than the luxury revenues of Germany. In online sales, shoes are the top-performing category. This level of online penetration is when brands have to treat their online channel as a integral part of their competitive strategy, rather than an an extra source of revenue. When we see the different products types in the industry it is seen that the Accessories highlights the best performance over the period 2007-2011 led by the emerging markets customers preferences with respect to luxury accessories. We see a shift in the market trend in apparels where the mens luxury sales increased by 16% in 2011 surpassing sales to woman. Mens luxury goods in 2011 accounted for 40% of the global luxury market up from 35 % in 1995. As you can see in figure above that the accessories and hard luxury goods have seen an increase in segment. In the luxury goods market the Italian brands have increased to gain the largest market share of luxury sales, moving from 21% in 1995 to 24% in 2013 almost equalling French brands market share of 25%. But in a consolidating market, French conglomerates are a driving force, owning 29% of the market compared to 25% in 1995. Key Figures Category Revenues Growth Forecast. 2012 (est) 2012 Leather Goods â‚ ¬33bn 16% Shoes â‚ ¬12 bn 13% Men’s Apparel â‚ ¬26 bn 10% Women’s Apparel â‚ ¬27 bn 9% Fragrances â‚ ¬20 bn 4% Cosmetics â‚ ¬23 bn 5% Jewelry â‚ ¬11 bn 13% Watches â‚ ¬35 bn 14% Total â‚ ¬212bn 10% The different players in this market are different for different product types like in the luxury watches segment it is Rolex, Omega etc, mens and womens apparels segment it is Armani, Burberry etc and leather goods segment it is LVMH, Ralph Lauren etc. Similarly many more in other segments and below are the different luxury goods brand with LVMH leading in revenue terms. Porter’s 5 forces model. THREAT OF NEW ENTRANT: Capital Requirement: The capital requirements for manufacturing, setting up stores and maintaining them are all very high. The break-even for these brands is very high. Their marketing and management costs such as rent, high salaries for craftsmen, heavy promotional activities etc. are very high too. A study indicated that they need to have 400 stores to develop a truly global presence. Brand Loyalty: The brand image associated with luxury brands and the loyalty created through CRM programs and exceptional service levels is very high for existing brands in the market space. However, the industry has been experiencing declining brand loyalty in emerging markets since their purchases are driven by status and show off motives and hence brand switching between brands perceived to have similar status is increasing. Nevertheless it takes considerable amount of time and expenditure to build its brand loyalty. Scale economies: It has been observed that consolidation of brands in the luxury market help in achieving higher economies of scale. Consolidation helps in increasing bargaining power with suppliers, obtaining operating synergies say in advertising etc., better financing options and risk management through diversification in the brand portfolio of the companies. LVMH, PPR (Gucci), Prada Group, Richemont have all undergone consolidation. Exclusive access to suppliers and distributors: Many brands in this segment have acquired their suppliers or have exclusive arrangements to protect their competitive advantage and insulate against rising costs in future. Also the numbers of distribution points are increasing as emerging markets are growing and luxury malls are coming up. For instance, LVMH acquired Leman Cadran and ArteCad SA- watch dial manufacturers and Delos Bottier, French artisan shoemaker. Retaliation from existing Cos- The powerful established brands tend to retaliate against the smaller and newer brands by say preventing them from having access to multi-brand retailers. Therefore we see that the threat of new entrant is high. THREAT OF SUBSTITUTES: Middle price brands: The growing mid ranged, high street brands pose as a possible substitute to the luxury brands. During economic crisis consumers tend to â€Å"trade down. † Counterfeit goods: The manufacturing and sales of counterfeit goods from Countries like China is growing. Quality design: increased internet accessibility and online shopping has made is easy for fast fashion brands to replicate designs and fashion trends of luxury brands within days/weeks of the fashion shows. There are no monetary switching costs to customers. However, there is a loss of prestige which is important to luxury brand buyers. Therefore the threat of substitutes is moderate. BUYER’S BARGAINING POWER: Decreasing buyer concentration: The number of buyers relative to suppliers is increasing. Only 50% of the 1. 6 MN wealthy were as rich 4 years ago. Level of dependency on buyer: The industry is heavily dependent on top-tier customers, mostly on a small super affluent population. Celebrities etc. being early adopters can drive consumption but single buyers cannot determine prices. Switching costs: There are emotional switching costs involved. With introduction of loyalty programs and associated privileges, the switching costs have increased. Possibility of backward integration by customers is very low. So on the whole, the bargaining power of buyers is low. SUPPLIER’S BARGAINING POWER: Number of suppliers: The raw materials are limited and exclusive. There are limited high skilled workers and there is also growing shortage since not many youngsters are willing to learn. For instance, Couture-level embroiderers in France have dropped from 10000 in 1920 to 200 in 2013. Level of Dependency: Some key components and materials are outsourced. For eg: LV outsources its monogram leather, in 2012, Chanel ordered large chuck of leather from a supplier in case they wouldn’t find more. Supply substitutes: Most materials are highly specialized and difficult to substitute. Switching costs to new suppliers are high since the quality is at risk and there is a past coordinating experience which is important. Forward integration possibility is very low since the luxury groups are much more experienced and wealthier than their suppliers. Thus, the bargaining power of suppliers is moderate to high. COMPETITIVE RIVALRY: Competitive structure: The industry has an oligopoly structure since it is dominated by few large independent players. LVMH, Richemont and PPR Gucci are the big three. Demand conditions: The demand is growing and will grow at a relatively high pace as China and Hong Kong markets grow further. Exit Barriers: Some brand exist despite the fact that they do not make any/much profits due to emotional reasons. For instance, Christian Lacroix hasn’t made any profit in 22 years. There are some highly specialised supply chain components that may be very difficult to sell. Chanel has 6 atelier d’arts under it which has no alternative usage. The rivalry among existing competition is high. Luxury Goods-Developed Countries Overview. There is so much talk about China, Brazil and other emerging markets as the future of luxury market while there is some truth to it we cannot ignore the developed markets. The current growth and hot spot for luxury goods is still in the developed countries. American region is the king of luxury spending; it grew at 4% in 2013 compared to 2012. There has been growth in the number of new store opening in tire two cities in these developed countries going to show that companies see potential in the smaller region and there is increase of disposable income in the smaller cities. Visitors from developing countries still prefer to buy luxury goods from the developed countries; this has also led to an increase in the demand of luxury goods in the developed countries. According to Luxury Goods Worldwide Market Study Spring 2013 there are significant regional differences in the luxury market developed countries and all of them have their unique differences. Some of them are: Europe will see 2% growth in the luxury spending in the next few years, with increasing spending by tourists even though there is lower spending by European nationals. Tourist spending is driving half of revenues in Italy, 55% of revenues in the U. K. , and 60% of revenues in France. Japan has experience a decline in luxury spending by 12%. Although in real terms, the consumption has increased as the country has emerged out of stagflation. The Middle East continues to be relatively strong, with a 5% growth. The demand for Luxury goods remain strong in Dubai, while Saudi Arabia is also gaining share to become the region’s second largest luxury market. As these countries are oil rich they like the flamboyance and luxury. Online sales, of Luxury goods have gained popularity in the last few years in the developed countries. They are growing faster than the brick and mortar stores, turning in 28% annual growth for last year and reaching close to 10 billion Euros. In online sales, shoes are the top-performing category. With online penetration high, brands should treat their online channel as an integral part of their overall channel strategy, rather than an just an another source of additional revenue. According to the â€Å"Luxury Goods Worldwide Market Study† finds accessories, including leather goods and shoes, have definitively become the largest segment, growing 4% for 2013 to reach 28% of the total revenues. Apparel is now a quarter of the market, growing at 1%, Apparel was very popular couple of years ago. Perfumes and cosmetics had a 2% growth in 2013. Luxury cars, wine and spirits, hotels, in-home and out-of-home food, home furnishings, and yachts all show growth, with luxury cars, wine and spirits, and hotels outpacing personal luxury goods and leading to an overall 2013 market of â‚ ¬800 billion of affluent spending, up 6% over 2012.compared to 25% in 1995. The luxury goods market in the developed countries is becoming very complex and in some areas is starting to look like the fast-moving consumer goods Industry. Brands have to adapt themselves by bringing in the level of detailed customer insight to standout of the clutter. While this Industry is still showing steady but not extravagant growth, brands need to adjust to a new set of scientific tools in order to keep up with other markets. CAGE Framework for Developed Countries Cultural Luxury Goods Industry in Developed countries over the years have matured and have formed definite distribution channels where most of the time they try cross selling to their existing buyers. However new customers enter the market, they account to an addition of 1%-3% of the total population involved in the luxury goods instry In Developed countries Culture is often considered with income level to follow a trend related to luxury goods. Considering a people with zero income level when shifts to a income level and wants to buy a luxury good his decision is dependent upon the income he is currently earning and the culture he is following in the ratio of 3:2. Administrative Initially as taxes were collected in the form of luxury tax from the customers in developed countries, they were indifferent to it as they had a considerable large amount of disposable income. Over the years as people entered the luxury market they got affected by such high rates. The government how of such countries depend on these taxes as they generate a large amount of revenue. Geographical Most of the developed countries are the manufactures of these luxury goods they tend to be cheaper in these countries. As the demand of the countries is very high they tend to acquire the fixed costs at an early stage, later just trying to recover the variable cost making it cheaper. Most of these developed countries have access to superior products used in manufacturing these products thus making the end products to be easily manufactured and thus slashing the rates, thus inducing more customers to buy the product Economic Differences GDP and per capita income of the developed countries is high compared to other emerging countries. Thus showing they have a higher disposable income and standard of living is high proving that they can afford luxury goods as their basic necessities of life is fulfilled. Luxury Goods-Developing Countries Overview. When we talk about developing economies we will be taking into account Brazil China and look at the luxury goods market in these two economies. Almost half of the luxury goods produced worldwide are sold in the emerging markets with China leading the way. The luxury goods market has seen tremendous growth in China whereas the same growth hasn’t been replicated in India Brazil because of some regulatory issues (high import duties). Looking at China, the GDP has been growing at almost 10% y-o-y which has been increasing the denomination of wealthy Chinese in the country. When you look at the Luxury market, the Asia-pacific region has been the best performer with a growth rate of 25% in 2011 and accounting for about 29% of the worldwide revenues. The growth of this market in China has been tremendous which can also be put down to the fact that many e-commerce players have come in to fray which give the digital consumers a chance to make use of the price advantage. The market has been helped by the fact that there has been a shift in the mentality of the Chinese people wherein they want the real stuff now rather than settling for the counterfeited goods. In addition to this due to the weakening Euro and the increase in the number of upper class citizens the Chinese people have been undertaking more and more overseas trips which in turn has increased the revenues for the Luxury market. Now coming to Brazil, the luxury goods market was about 2. 7 billion dollars in 2012, and the expected growth rate was estimated to be about 15-25% for the next five years which was put down to the fact that it has become the 7th largest economy in the world the purchasing power and the income rate for an average Brazilian is growing. Brazil now has 36 billionaires 165,000 millionaires out of which about 50% are below the age of 35, which will help boost the luxury goods market in the country. Now because of the unique services that are being provided to the consumers in Brazil, also the payment plan by installments and also the fact that a huge number of showrooms are being opened in the country the consumers are willing to buy the luxury goods for which they had to go abroad in the earlier days. STRATEGY – STRUCTURE PERFORMANCE STRATEGY: Strategic approach to product offer and price positioning. Focusing on the E-commerce platform as well in order to cater to the increasing number of digital consumers Opening up of new stores and availability of quality products easily. Focus on the retail chains in order to aid the distribution as this is the highest grossing medium (Omni-channel Retailing). Increase of scale in order to improve margins. Shift towards the accessories sector as this has the highest growth rate amongst the Luxury goods market. Store experience. Real time communication between the brand and the consumer via blogs communities. Off-price outlets. Consolidation. Diversification. STRUCTURE: Oligopoly: Very few luxury groups dominate the market. Large number of small individual brands. Individual brands being introduced by the large market players. Big Three LVMH Richemont PPR Gucci PERFORMANCE: A CAGR of +25% in China for the luxury goods revenues over the period 2008-11. A CAGR of +18. 3% in China for E-commerce buys during the period 2007-10. 31% increase in constant value terms for Brazil, 72% for China 86% for India over the period 2008-13.

Do You Have What It Takes? A Breakdown Of The Educated Person Essay

Do You Have What it Takes? A Breakdown of the Educated Person An educated person is a well rounded person. To be educated is to knowledgeable in many areas. Diversity is essential in the sense that many different things inspire thought, which then derive permanent conclusions from these experiences. Anyone who has the audacity to call themselves educated needs to have a firm grasp of many different areas. These categories span through Science, Technology, Language, Art, Feelings and Values. All of these are building blocks that help make up an educated person, but just as important, these are the same qualities that form an individual. One of the most important concepts that a person learns from Science is a fundamental thinking process. This process starts with curiosity, asking the question," Why does that work?" It then moves on to theorizing or guessing. Next, this person takes his or her theory and puts it to the test by conducting various experiments. Finally this individual will draw a final conclusion from those findings. Science also helps a person look at things objectively, which means there is no feelings influencing experiments that can lead to fraudulent conclusions. This can be a double edged sword however, because in many instances when a scientist is emotionally removed from the experiments performed, the question, "Should I?", is never asked. For instance under the reign of Hitler many cruel medical experiments were preformed. In The Medical Experiments by William Shirer the author states,"Prisoners were placed in high pressure chambers and subjected to high-altitude tests until they ceased breathing. They were injected with lethal doses of typhus and jaundice. They were subjected to 'freezing' experiments in icy water or exposed naked in the snow outdoors until they froze to death." This also deals with the subject of values and will be discussed detail later. Probably the most positive way to utilize Science would be to take it to the next level, Technology. This is were an educated person takes what laws and theories he learns in science and integrates them into everyday life, finding ways to make life easier and arguably better. I say arguably because many educated people are against technological advancement. These... ...m any language. Susanne K. Langer in her article The Cultural Importance of Art states,"There is, however, an important part of reality that is quite inaccessible to the formative influence of language: that is the realm of so-called "inner experience," the life of feeling and emotion. All of these attributes lose power without an individual set of values to focus this energy. Adolf Hitler influenced millions by being a masterful orator. Hitler also was very innovative in science and many other areas. However do to his grossly warped sense of personal values he was labelled by leaders and peers as a madman. It is very difficult for any person to be a master of all of these categories, but to be truly educated, there needs to be at least a small concentration of everything in that individual's background. For the one reason that it is so difficult to posses all of these traits, it is also that same reason that makes all of the truly educated people of our past stand out in history as heros and leaders. This is also the biggest reason that so many people admire them and strive to be like them.

Destiny and Henley Essay

â€Å"Invictus† was written by Henley when he was in the hospital with tuberculosis. While in his twenties he contracted a tubercular infection that led to his leg being amputated below the knee. Later he developed the same infection in his other leg and was told it would have to be removed as well. Henley refused to have it amputated and sought the help of a doctor who had developed antiseptic medicine. Twenty months later Henley had finally recovered and was able to leave the hospital. It was during this dark time in his life when he wrote â€Å"Invictus†. When you read the poem you can see how passionate he felt: â€Å"I thank whatever gods may be / For my unconquerable soul†(Henley). Instead of falling into despair, Henley was able to be thankful that, though his body was beaten, his soul wasn’t. Even in the highest of his horrible circumstances, Henley refused to let life defeat him, but instead he rose up and fought back: â€Å"In the fell clutch of circumstance / I have not winced nor cried aloud† (Henley). He did not waste his time despairing over what he had lost, but instead focused on getting better. You can also see how desperately determined he was: â€Å"I am the master of my fate / I am the captain of my soul† (Henley). He refused to give into the idea that someone else was in control of his life. In the poem he cites â€Å"the bludgeonings of chance,† which shows he felt it was simply fate that this happened to him, and yet he went on to defiantly state that he was in control of his own destiny (Henley). By looking closely at â€Å"Invictus†, you can clearly see the struggles that Henley went through in his own life. The powerful tone in â€Å"Invictus† is gloomy and dark although Henley remains optimistic and with the help of the three types of figurative language the dark tone is constantly seen throughout the poem helping readers truly feel the misery the author is going through . Invictus could be taken as a hopeful poem for those suffering, constantly being reminded that you are the â€Å"Captain of your soul† and that it is you choosing to live in pain or be brave when facing a challenge. â€Å"Beyond this place of wrath and tears† refers that the writer has hope for the after life. Finds, and shall find, me unafraid† refers to the fearlessness of the writer â€Å"My head is bloody, but unbowed. † refers to his courage to fight. The use of imagery in â€Å"Invictus† provides readers with deeper sense of the poem and connects them to the author’s true feelings. Henley uses strong relevant adjectives to paint a picture of the horrors of misery he feels in the beginning and towards the end of the poem he allows readers to grasp that it was his bravery that helped him overcome the impossible. The theme of â€Å"Invictus†is one that appeals to most people. It is the idea that you control your fate more than anyone else ever will. In a world that cares nothing for us and often seems to be trying to destroy us, we can overcome all odds and be victorious because we, and we alone, are masters of our own fate. This is proven through the circumstances that the poem was written under. Instead of submitting to the original prognosis of the doctors and having his other leg removed, Henley chose to take charge of his life, find a new doctor, and ultimately change the course of his life (Invictus: A Study Guide). The theme is one of triumph and survival. Despite all odds, despite all expectations, Henley took control of his destiny and came out victorious. The fact that Henley wrote this during a dark time in his life added a wealth of emotion to the poem; he was writing from his heart and it was obvious. The overarching theme of the poem is relevant to everyone because when it comes down to it, we all want to feel like our life actually has meaning and is not just a sum of chance circumstances and happenings. The use of imagery in â€Å"Invictus† provides readers with deeper sense of the poem and connects them to the author’s true feelings. Henley uses strong relevant adjectives to paint a picture of the horrors of misery he feels in the beginning and towards the end of the poem he allows readers to grasp that it was his bravery that helped him overcome the impossible.