The Sources of Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Sources of Law - Essay Example The federal and the state administrative regulations are set by the executive branch and are passed by the legislature. The constitution is the written rules that are agreed upon by the state union of people. This constitution remains in control until it shall be changed by the authority which created it. Though constitutions are long lasting and are not easily amended. It sets the parameters of the state and hence is formulated in a very general language. It’s composed of decisions that are made by courts in individual cases. It originates from specific facts and therefore the court resolves the disputes between the parties involved based on the individual facts. The judges make laws by applying and interpreting laws based on a case to another. A court uses an earlier and similar case to give a legal action in order to decide on an individual case. These sources may be given a lesser or a greater weight. These include writing of legal scholars which may either is in civil law jurisdictions or in academic writings and interpreting the legislation; it could be an edict from a ruler or from the king or even from Islamic religion like the Sharia

Oedipus Trilogy Essay Example for Free

Oedipus Trilogy Essay It was Sophocles who wrote the Oedipus Trilogy. Although Oedipus Rex has always been a common oral story to the Greeks, Sophocles added different dimensions in his rendition of the tragic story of Oedipus. Antigone was the epilogue of the trilogy and the last part of the story but it was the first play to be produced. Oedipus the King was the beginning of the trilogy, where the fate of Oedipus was prophesied, and the rise and fall of Oedipus was chronicled. And Oedipus at Colonus is the middle of the trilogy where Oedipus dies and his sons murder each other thus continuing the eventuality of the prophecy. In Antigone, the final pieces of the tragedy unraveled, thus completing the prophecy of the oracle to Oedipus. In Antigone, the play focuses more on the battle between opposing primary views and concerns. Actually, it was more on opposing pride. Antigone was determined to give his brother an honorable burial despite the fact that the current king blatantly forbids it. She maintains that love is above law and hegemony. Creon, on the other hand, although Polynices is his nephew, forbids the burial on the grounds that it is the law to refuse honorable funerals to traitors. Although the central characters have opposing views, their attributes are very much similar to each other. Both are blinded by their own pride in their decisions. Antigone, when confronted by Creon, refuses to back down despite the fact that Creon threatened her that her sister will be penalized together with her. Antigone, sees her action as a form of â€Å"martydom†. In a way she sees glory in what she had done by â€Å"sacrificing† herself for the sake of his brother, which somewhat preposterous because of the fact that his brother is already dead. Creon, likewise, refuses to change his decision despite his son’s threat of suicide if he condemns Antigone. Although he perceives that his son’s words were not empty threats, he still refused to change his decision. This is because he distinguishes his action as strength of leadership. He mistakes pride for decisive command. Antigone represents moral ascendancy over political law. Creon, on the other hand, symbolizes the primacy of the rule of law above all else. The play attempts to stir the audience to struggle on which side should prevail. Athens, during the time of Sophocles was in its golden age. Democracy has been the highest point of the era. However, there are certain rules of law that exist to govern the democratic state. The play seeks to arouse questions from among the audience. Whether certain personal morals and filial duty should take over the rule of law when the situation calls for it. Or whether the rule of law should always prevail to maintain order in the society. However, Sophocles drives home the point that there are no extreme grounds. Moral ascendancy and the rule of law are invariably intertwined and should be taken into consideration in making a decision. In the play it was the comical messenger that best manifested the careful weighing of consequences of his actions when he pondered to and fro on what to tell Creon. It was him that provided a middle ground. His action was the very reflection of the thoughts of the audience. Towards the end of the play, both Creon and Antigone became so blind of their pride in their decision that they were no longer fighting for what they believe is right. Antigone sees her suicide as a form of sacrilegious immolation as if she was giving herself up for the good of her brother. Likewise, Creon perceives his decision to condemn Antigone as strength of leadership. He thinks that if he pardons Antigone, then he had let Antigone â€Å"win†, that Antigone will emerge to be â€Å"the man† in the battle. Creon’s and Antigone’s greatest folly is their tendency to oversimplify the situation. Antigone reduced the circumstance to moral ascendancy and Creon to the rule of law. Their pride made them blind that their decision will lead to conflict and deliberation. Like all characters of the play, Oedipus’ tragic flaw is his pride. In Oedipus the King, the rise and fall of Oedipus was accounted to his pride. His killing of his father was brought about by his pride, his desire to seek the truth of his identity was driven by pride, his edict of severe punishment to the murderer of Laius was brought about by pride and even is in his lowest moment when he eventually discovered the truth he still clung to the last pieces of his trappings as king. However, there is a great difference in Oedipus’ pride and that of Creon’s and Antigone’s. Antigone claims that it was for her love of her brother that she disobeyed Creon but in reality she puts herself in a pedestal with greater morals than Creon could understand. She masked her pride with proclamations of sacrifice and martyrdom for filial love. Creon, on the other hand, asserts that his actions are but mere implementation of law. However, in truth, Creon revels at the power that he holds upon the kingdom. This is evident even in the play Oedipus the King when Creon demonstrated his newfound power by curtly cutting off Oedipus while he was still mourning his fate. Oedipus pride, however, was disguised as his earnestness. This was exposed when he declared that he would seek all means to end the plague in his nation. He was so earnest in his demonstrations to the people of his intentions to save his kingdom that he himself cemented his doom. Furthermore, in seeking the murderer of Laius, in his earnestness to punish the criminal, he unknowingly condemned himself. More over, when the truth of his identity was slowly untangling, he was so earnest in wanting to discover the whole truth that he made a way for his ruination. In truth, Oedipus was earnest because he wanted to set himself apart from the rest. He wanted to be a great leader in his nation. His exaggerated demonstrations of his intentions to save his nation were masked pride. He clearly wanted to be the â€Å"savior† of his kingdom. He celebrates at the power that he holds upon the people. This is obvious that he dares insult the oracle when he came to his presence. Moreover, being royals, Jocasta and Oedipus had the tendency to invalidate the fate the gods have in store for them. They have countless times declared that the oracle is false. This is clearly a sign of their pride that they could not fathom that there are any other being that is above them. At the end of the play, Oedipus took responsibility of his actions. But even in his broken state he was still proud. It was him who commanded Creon to bury Jocasta as he sees fit and to banish him from his nation. Although he no longer has any real power, he still managed to hold on to his last bits of power as a former king. Oedipus the King ended with Oedipus as a broken man banished from his kingdom and disgraced from the society. In Oedipus at Colonus, we find just that, a broken man. However, his brokenness should not be interpreted as newfound humility. Contrariwise, his decent into brokenness left him embittered. In the play, he again questions his fate. He even questions his sons’ decision in remaining adamant in his exile. The initial scene of the play rightly sets the tone for the story. Antigone was describing their trespass on holy ground that must be corrected with prayers and libation. It is ironing that Oedipus and Antigone, with full knowledge of the wrongness of their action still proceed to commit the deed then proceed to rectify the iniquitous. This is the theme all throughout the play, the characters all seemingly commit an action that they are fully aware that is not correct but still proceed to do so nonetheless. Again all of which is because of pride. When Creon abducts Oedipus’ daughters, Theseus proceeds to rescue them. He pretends that he did so because of honor and duty. However, in reality, Theseus’ primary objective is to save his own kingdom. In this play, most of the characters have hidden agenda. In the first two plays that Sophocles wrote, the characters were forthright with their motives. Antigone and Creon were so brash and obvious in their thoughts and beliefs in Antigone. In Oedipus the King, Oedipus lack of blunt motives led to his destruction. But in the third installment, the characters were more masked in their intentions. Even Oedipus, when he refused to go back to his city, he maintained that it was on the basis of his newfound holiness but in truth it was his pride that kept him from coming back. Why would come back to a city that shunned him? Or to the people that eschewed themselves from him? Moreover, in a confrontation with Polynices, he begins to questions his sons actions on why they were apathetic of his exile. He failed to realize that it was him who commanded Creon to exile him in the first place. Just as he was physically blind, he was also blind from the truth. Even in his deprivation he still was not able to fully see the extent of his mistakes and his pride. In the end, Oedipus’ death was inconsequential. For a character such as him, it is but ironic that his death was portrayed as merely peripheral with only Theseus as witness. Even the lamentations of Ismene and Antigone were not impassionate enough. Sophocles merely pointed out that no matter how great Oedipus was in his former glory, like everyone else, his end is just merely death – a fate that no great man can escape from.

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Ceramics are used extensively in dental restorations because of their superior aesthetics and biocompatibility compared to metals (1). However, the brittleness of ceramics can initiate crack propagation causing failure of the restoration (2). Resin cements are used for cementing ceramic restorations because of their excellent aesthetics and mechanical properties. The cement penetrates any defects or irregularities on the ceramic surface thereby preventing propagation of cracks (3, 4, 5). Optimal clinical performance depends on sufficient resin cement polymerisation. Degree of conversion (DC) is affected by the amount of light reaching the cement which in turn, is affected by the opacity and the thickness of the ceramic as well as the thickness of the resin cement layer. Insufficient polymerisation influences both mechanical properties and clinical performance of the restoration (2, 5). Aims of this study are to see how light transmission (LT) is affected by thickness or opacity of a ceramic and how resin cements thickness affects DC. Hypotheses are: (1) LT decreases with increasing thickness or opacity (2) DC would decrease with thicker cement samples. Method Shade A1, A2, A3 and A3.5 of Base Dentine VN7 powder (Vita, Bad SÃ ¤ckingen, Germany) were used. Ceramic disc thicknesses tested (measured using digital calliper) were 1.40, 1.00 and 0.60mm. Specimen preparation Twenty ceramics discs, five of each shade, were prepared by mixing 0.73g of powder with 0.29mL of Modelling Liquid (Vita, Bad SÃ ¤ckingen, Germany). The mixture was placed in a 1.60mm thick metal ring on a mould assembly and vibrated for 40 seconds. The surface was levelled using a razor blade before firing the discs in a furnace (Vita Vacumat 40, Bad SÃ ¤ckingen, Germ... ... the disc. LT through a ceramic disc would ultimately affect the polymerisation of resin cements. The second hypothesis that DC should decrease with increasing resin cement thickness layer is rejected as the graph showed that 1.00mm resin cement thickness had the greatest DC. A higher DC was seen with thinner resin cement specimens because there would be more LT and the photoinitiator in resin cements needs light to initiate the polymerisation reaction. A thicker resin cement layer would allow less light to reach the bottom so there would be less monomer to polymer conversion and resultantly, lower DC. However, very thin specimens may experience light reflectance which may affect the DC results. Conclusion LT through ceramics was measured and LT decreased with increasing thickness or opacity. DC appeared to increase when thicker resin cement samples were tested.

Christianity, the True Religion Essay -- Religion Christian Jesus

Christianity, the True Religion I was raised Catholic, at the insistance of my parents. After many years of drinking and partying, I got very bored and thought, Is this ALL there is to life?!?! I thought, If there really IS any truth to a life after death, I should at least TRY to find the answer. I started to do some research on science and religion to see if I could come up with any TRUTH about the meaning of life. In school, I was taught that mankind was evolving and getting better, but it didnt appear that way to me. It SEEMED as though modern science had proven that God didnt exist. As I did more research on my own, I found out that this just isnt the case. I learned that the Universe and ALL matter have a DEFINITE beginning. Most atheists and re-incarnationists believe that the Universe has ALWAYS existed, but this contradicts the fact. Cause and effect tells us that the Universe must have been caused. It is logical to believe that an invisible, non-material God had caused the beginning of the Universe. Some think that aliens and U.F.O.s have something to do with our existence, but even if they DID exist, THEY would need a beginning as well! The evolutionists believe that evolution is a FACT, and that the fossil record PROVES it. I learned that neither evolution NOR creation are FACTS, they are only THEORIES! There is NO way to PROVE either one because they CANNOT be re-created in a lab experiment. Whatever THEORY you believe, you MUST believe by FAITH. I learned that when something dies, it does NOT become a fossil, it rots away VERY quickly. Fossils are formed by RAPID burial and destruction , NOT over SUPPOSED billions of years! What the fossil record DOES prove, is that there was a TERRIBLE global disaster. Scattered across mountain tops all over the world are fossils of both modern & extinct ocean and land creatures ALL MIXED TOGETHER. This fact can ONLY be explained by a RECENT Creation and a WORLDWIDE FLOOD, and NOT by evolution. I thought that evolution was true just because the majority accepted it. The MAJORITY also used to believe that the Earth was FLAT!!! Then I was confused about all the different religions out there. Which God should I serve?!?! Does it REALLY matter as long as I am sincere and a GOOD PERSON I thought, What if I am sincerely WRONG!?!? I started to do some more research to try to find the TRUTH. ... ...ask questions. I am just writing this paper because I was SO surprised that I was able to find REALLY satisfying answers to all my questions, when I thought that no one could EVER really know the TRUTH for sure. I read some books on life after death and re-incarnation by people who have CLAIMED to have died. Then I thought If these people were REALLY dead, then they STILL would be!! I DONT expect anyone to just believe me or this paper, but I would HOPE that this article would at LEAST make people think about all of this on their OWN and do some of their OWN investigating!! I just wanted to share what I have learned and to give people a head start. I know how difficult it is to listen to someone else tell you about their religion, I was there. It all seemed so confusing to me, at first. Since Ive done all this research, I KNOW that the Bible is TRULY Gods Word to all mankind, and I believe it. I pray that THE LORD JESUS CHRIST uses this paper to open up the minds and hearts of everyone who reads this so that they may be saved from an eternity separated from GOD and in hell. Eternity is a loooong time to gamble with. If you died right now, do you know where YOU would go !?!?!

‘Ozymandias’ by Percy Bysshe Shelley Essay

Compare the way the central characters are presented in ‘checking out me history’ by John Agard and ‘Ozymandias’ by Percy Bysshe Shelley. The poems ‘Checking out me History and ‘Ozymandias’ both use a wide range of various language and structure techniques to explore in great detail the central characters as well as their thoughts and feelings. The poem ‘Checking out me history’ uses various structural techniques to present the main character and to show his views, which also explains his frustration about not having a personal identity. In contrast to this, the poem ‘Ozymandias’ uses more linguistic features to describe the deteriorating decline of the statue. In the poem ‘Checking out me history’ the language used in the poem helps to create a clear image to the audience that shows the characters frustration and aggressiveness by using nonstandard English. For example, ‘Dem tell me’ imp lies that no matter how much the character is told about English history, he will continue to rebel against English society to prove how proud he is about his own culture and background by using phonetic spelling. This may help the readers to empathize with his thoughts and feelings. The non – standard English that is used throughout the poem also conveys how the character is representing himself through the language he is using. The almost sarcastic tone he uses to display his lack of interest in British history suggests that believes that black people’s history should be taught just as well as other cultures. Due to this poem not being grammatically correct, the audience are assured that the main character is unhappy with the way he has been taught through English education. The phonetic spelling shows us a rebellious side to the character as he challenges society to balance out histories of many cultures equally. However, In the poem ‘Ozymandias’ the tone created by Percy Bysshe Shelley connotes the idea of past occurrences. It can create the image that power is only temporary, and it is not long before nature takes over. The use of the words ‘frown’ and ‘wrinkled’ suggest the decline of the power that Ozymandias once had, or even ‘believed’ that he had. The use of the language throughout the poem creates a negative effect almost suggesting the significance of Ozymandias has now gone, and all that’s left is a statue. The use of the ‘!’ in the phrase ‘ye mighty,and despair!’ connotes the emphasis in the poem which helps the reader to understand how Ozymandias once expected fear from society or even envy. The poetic device of imagery is a similar comparison between both poems. In Ozymandias, Percy Shelley creates a memorable image of the statue which was once so great. The words ‘half shrunk’ and ‘shatter’d’ create the image of something that now is useless and has no significance what so ever, showing the deterioration of the statue. In addition to this, the way the poet describes ‘Ozymandias’ in such detail reveals how the audience may feel no sympathy towards Ozymandias. ‘Sneer of cold command’ suggests the characters arrogance towards society and his disapproval of the public. In contrast to this, in the poem ‘checking out me history’ the main character speaks very highly of his culture and its past, unlike Ozymandias as throughout audience can understand how Percy Shelley believes it is wrong for society to be in favour and to follow of such a self -obsessed king. The stanzas in the poem ‘Checking out me history’ shows a strong link to imagery as the historical figures from the characters background have a strong effect on the reader. An example of this is when the character talks about someone he feels is inspirational in the 9th stanza. She is described as a ‘healing star’ and a ‘yellow sunrise to the dying’ which connotes how imp ortant this woman was, and how she is worth learning about.

Vanilla Sky essay essays

Vanilla Sky essay essays In the movie Vanilla Sky, Tom Cruise takes on two roles, his characters actual life, and his dream life. The bases of these two roles remain the same. Hes a well to do young man from upper manhattan who has just about everything he wants. Money, a promising career, good looks, and a great social life, but the one thing he is missing is experiencing true love, which he later discovers in his dream. Penelapie Cruz plays the object of his affection in this almost perfect dream, and completes the missing part of what he now feels is a perfect life. Until a glitch in the system forces him to realize that all it is, is a dream. The glitch is then fixed and the time has come for him to make a choice, either stay in the surreal life with his love, or be brought back to the reality. The only catch is he will no longer be living in the world he was once familiar with due to the fact that it is 150 years later. All of his friends and family are long gone, along with his wealth and every other aspect of his life from long ago. Nevertheless, he chooses to return to modern day living, and the movie ends with him being brought back to the real world. Being that he no longer has the same status as he did in the past, Im sure he will have a better appreciation of life from that point on, and will use the values he gained from living in his dream and apply them to his new lifestyle in the future. ...

Land Degradation essays

Land Degradation essays Land degradation is a decline in the quality of land. There are several major types of land degradation in Australia. Some of which are listed below: Soil erosion occurs when large numbers of trees are removed from a small area. Normally, soil is held together by tree roots. However, when these trees are removed, there is nothing to hold the soil together, so when the wind blows the rich, fertile topsoil is easily blown away. Once this has occurred, crops planted on this land are of lesser quality and quantity, as there are less nutrients present in the soil. Sometimes this problem is so severe that crops can not be planted at all. This is a big problem to farmers, as their profits are greatly reduced. The only solution is to plant trees with strong roots in an effort to hold the soil together, to prevent further damage, and, years later, to try to replant crops. The only way that we can resolve soil erosion is by leaving trees in a small area as is, and cutting down trees in big areas where trees arent really needed. If we can do this, Soil erosion will hopefully be kept to a minimum and farmers would be able to make more profit and provide us with food. Soil salinity is another problem related to the removal of trees. Underneath the soil is a layer of water called the water table. Normally, the level of this stays constant, as any rain is absorbed by the trees. However, when these trees are removed, rainfall causes the water table to rise, bringing with it dissolved salts from rocks deep under the earth. The water then becomes salty. As salty water cannot be absorbed by plants, the plant runs out of water, so its leaves fall off. Without these leaves, photosynthesis can not occur, so the plants die. This is called dieback. This can only be helped by planting one of a very few salt-tolerant trees, which help by: 1. Absorbing rainfall, preventing the water table from rising further. 2. Removing salt from the water, thi...