The period of absolutism

The period of absolutism refers to the exercise of monarchial power which was never questioned by other social institutions like the legislature and the church. The monarchs mainly reigned from the early period of the seventeenth century up to the end of the nineteenth century.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The period of absolutism specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Absolutism entailed ending the feudal partitioning, emergence of state power, harmonization of state laws, and there was also a decline in the power of the nobility. Many scholars contend that the French Revolution marked the end of the monarch in Europe or the early modern European period. This paper seeks to analyze the monarchy with specific reference to France and Mughal Empires respectively. The paper will explore the development of absolutism in each case after which there will be a conclusion to contrast the practice of absolutism in both cases . The exercise of absolute monarchy in the French territory began in the16th century, and it was preceded by the era of renaissance monarchy that was exercised on the basis of political consensus among the social classes and the monarch. France during the sixteenth century experienced numerous conflicts that occurred due to the establishment of Calvinism. During this period, French kings struggled to increase their power and this culminated to the rise of royal absolutism. In 1661 Louis XIV took over the French monarchy. He was in power from 1643 till 1715. During his reign, France became the most influential nation in the whole of Europe after supplanting Spain. The long reign of Louis XIV marked the pinnacle of royal absolutism, and he encouraged other monarchs to embrace his way of leadership. The beginning of French absolutism is associated with Henry IV’s reign. He ruled from 1589 to 1610. Before 1589, France had been plagued by a series of religious conflicts especially between the Catholics and their Protestant counterparts. Other political factions also engaged in these wars. These wars greatly affected the stability of France. Therefore, when Henry started exercising his authority, he was determined to end the chaos and restore stability in France. In this regard, Henry IV formulated new plans that would foster social economic prosperity. He also made arrangements on how to secure France from external aggression. Nonetheless, he was assassinated in 1610 when he was planning to attack his rivals.Advertising Looking for essay on history? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Marie de Medicos’, who was Henry IV’s wife reigned for several years as a regent for Louis XIII who was then their young son. Marie was able to challenge her opponents, but she did very little to strengthen the monarchy. In 1624, Cardinal Richelieu was appointed chief minister and he soon begun wielding his auth ority behind the throne. He had a twofold plan for developing a supreme royal power and also to make France occupy a dominant position in Europe. With his full control of the royal army, he destroyed all the king’s opponents. In order to destabilize local units of political authority, Richelieu came up with thirty administrative districts and each was ruled by an authoritative intend ant that was answerable to the throne. Finally, he subjected France to thirty years of conflict with Germany. In this case, he aimed at weakening Habsburg. Richelieu managed to have a firm grip on the royal power by 1642 when he died. Besides this, he managed to fulfill his dream of elevating France to a dominant position in Europe. Cardinal Jules Mazarin succeeded Richelieu. In order to elevate his status, Louis XIV introduced several construction projects that led to the popularity of his government. His new palace was one of his greatest architectural projects. In 1682, he relocated to Versail les. Initially, it was not easy to exercise absolutism monarchy in France due to the following reasons. First, the nobles had the chance to build private armies and fortifications. Secondly, lesser kings who were literate had the chance to become agents of the king. They dispensed justice and collected taxes on behalf of the king, and this gave them some authority. In order to consolidate his power, Louis XIV employed the following strategies in his administration. He limited the authority of the nobles by ensuring that they at least stayed in Versailles for a period of time annually. He used this as a strategy to closely monitor the nobles so that they could not conspire to topple him. In addition to this, he also abolished Protestantism.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The period of absolutism specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This led to the migration of Protestants to other places which still allowed the prac tice of Protestantism. As they migrated, they spread their civilization in other territories. Louis XIV was also determined to expand his frontiers in Europe. Absolutism became very strong during the reign of Louis XIV. The Mughal Empire occupied a dominant position in India from the second phase of the 16th century until the first half of the 18th century. It was established from 1526 and it survived up to 1858, when the British Raj supplanted it. â€Å"While many monarchs strived to centralize their powers, authoritative rulers emerged in Asian territories†. With time, the emperors became stable enough to challenge western powers. Even though the Mughals never focused much on international trade, they however allowed business revenue into their treasuries. Mughal Empire reached its height during Aurangzeb’s leadership. Following his death in 1707, his regime was weakened by a series of several military campaigns, corruption, and killing of the Hindus. â€Å"As the M ughal Empire disintegrated his rivals quickly took over power and by mid 18th century, the land controlled by Aurangzeb’s successors had dwindled to Delhi†. The Mughal Empire had remarkable contributions in art and architecture. From the above discussion on the Empire of France and Mughal, it can be concluded that that they were both ruled by authoritative kings who were mainly concerned with consolidating their power and influence over their subjects. These two societies were both stratified with the nobles occupying the administrative positions. Most of the kings in France were keen on expanding their territories, and this always subjected them into a series of military campaigns with their neighboring countries. However, the Mughal Empire under the governance of Aurangzeb was not keen on territorial expansion as compared to France under the rule of Louis XIV.Advertising Looking for essay on history? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Even though absolute monarchy existed in France and Mughal Empires, it was more entrenched in the former than in the latter. â€Å"The end of the early modern is usually also associated with the industrial revolution which began in Britain in the mid 18th century†. The history of the early modern period as a whole therefore enables us to have a better understanding of the social and political developments of various European societies. Works Cited Cameron, Euan. Early Modern Europe: An Oxford History. London: Oxford University Press, 1999. Sherman, Dennis and Joyce Salisbury. The West in the World, Volume II: From 1600. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2010. This essay on The period of absolutism was written and submitted by user Giselle Marsh to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

death peanalty essays

death peanalty essays Capital punishment is defined as the legal infliction of the death penalty and has been part of the criminal justice system since the earliest of times. Over the years, there have been many standards for the execution of the death penalty. In modern law the death penalty is corporal punishment in its most sever form. Today, the common arguments for the death penalty are that, it is a deterrent. It goes along with the bible. It satisfies the publics need for retribution. Popular author John Grisham even states that the death penalty can relieve the anguish of the family. However, because it does not do these things, the death penalty is racist, barbaric, and in violation with the United States constitution, as cruel and unusual punishment. Although laws governing the death penalty have undergone many changes since the biblical times, the punishment stands, and controversy has never been greater. The first main thing that I am going to argue is that the death penalty serves as a deterrent. This is perhaps, for advocates of the death penalty, their favorite argument. Just the thought that you could receive the death penalty is supposed to be enough to stop someone from murdering another individual. In a report for congress, Suzanne Cacanaugh said that many people have attempted to prove this theory, but there is no evidence to show that capital punishment deters crimes any more than long prison terms do. In another argument advocates of the death penalty also refer to the bible. Genesis 9:6 states, whoever sheds mans blood, by man shall his blood be shed. This classic argument in favor of the penalty has usually been interpreted as a proper and moral reason for killing a murderer. Those who are for the death penalty, also often quote An eye for an eye. Both of these quotes imply that it is the murderers own fault for being on death row and he or she deserves to die. Supp...

Selective Media Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Selective Media - Lab Report Example Selective media has a limited number of microorganisms it can support in growth because the particular component inhibits most other microorganisms by either limiting their growth or production of toxic substance that inhibit growth of non-selected microbes hence appropriate in the selection of target microorganisms during diagnosis. Diagnostic procedures utilising growth characteristics of enteric microorganisms is one of the cheapest and the easiest microbiological protocol that can be adopted in any low-income laboratory or a facility with high throughput diagnostic equipments. During the diagnosis of enteric medical conditions, use of growth media in the diagnosis of microorganisms gives reliable information that guides subsequent diagnostic studies that aims at targeting a particular pathogen. However, the growth of microorganisms is a characteristic of the media used in the assessment of growth. All media do not support the growth of all pathogens. In fact, only nutrient agar can support the growth of most microorganisms. Therefore, utilising a particular media that targets an individual pathogen is a crucial phenomenon in bacterial culture laboratory practices. Media are made selective for a particular microorganism by the incorporation of growth enhancement component that targets a particular pathogen as well as growth limiting component that inhibits the growth of unwanted organisms. Such media is referred to as selective media because it either enhances or inhibits the growth. Using selecting media makes it easy to discriminate most unwanted pathogens that arise from environmental contamination and likely to give false positive diagnosis. This report assessed the growth, morphology characteristics, differential colony features of the four selected microorganisms (E. coli, Salmonella tyhimum, Shigella flecked, and Staphylococcus spp) on five selected selective media (Phenylethyl alcohol – PEA; Hektoen enteric agar- HEK;

Economic Interdependence and the Emergence of Globalization Research Paper

Economic Interdependence and the Emergence of Globalization - Research Paper Example Mexico, a developing country in the Western Hemisphere and member of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), will be used as a case study to explore the ramifications of realist-inspired neoliberalism and the effects of globalization on a country in the developing world. Furthermore, the effects of the international economic system will be discussed with reference to China, a formerly socialist state in the processing of liberalizing its economy and opening up to the global economic community. Globalization, as it exists today, rests largely on the shoulders of neoliberal economics and the global entrenchment of capitalism as the dominant economic system in the world. Inspired by Realist ideological doctrine, neo-liberalism is the belief in laissez-faire economics and its early proponents were Margaret Thatcher in the United Kingdom and Ronald Reagan in the United States in the 1980s. US President Ronald Regan famously remarked, "government was not the solution but the problem" (Hobsbawm 1994). Neo-liberals put all of their faith in the distributive capabilities of the invisible hand of the free market, and believe that business was inherently good and that government bad. The government was longer interested in the provision of welfare but existed to stimulate the capitalist economic market. The United States under Ronald Reagan was thus described as the "greatest of the neo-liberal regimes" (Hobsbawm 1994).   How did neoliberalism, the dominant political and economic ideology of the West since the Reagan years make inroads around the world and into the formerly Communist countries of Eastern Europe' The Second World, consisting of the global Communist community during the Cold War, was severely undermined by economic and political crises which began in the late 1960s. The result was a political and economic disorder. Economic crises undermined the political foundations of states like China and the USSR - particularly after the deaths of men such as Mao & Brezhnev - and the centrally planned economic systems of these countries remained under stress and increasingly precarious. The Soviet world was also not immune to global economic crises as evidenced by the effects of the OPEC crisis of 1973. These aftershocks paved the way for perestroika and glasnost in the USSR, the implosion of Yugoslavia and popular Chinese dissent expressed in Tiananmen Square and captured live on camera. The political and economic fragilities of the Second World were exposed following 1968 and slowly led to political decay, leading to the eventual implosion of the Soviet Union.  

History of Musical Films Essay Example for Free

History of Musical Films Essay By 1928, Hollywood was invaded by sound theater. Silent films made an honorable exit. Vaudeville was also being wiped out. It signaled a phenomenon Tinseltown was not quite prepared for. It was the time of sound facilities and infrastructures. Later on Broadway composers were hired to write screen musicals (â€Å"History of Musical Film†, 2004). The first picture to make a transition from silent film to sound was Warner Bros. ’ 1927 The Jazz Singer starring Al Jolson who mostly did the singing in the movie (â€Å"Musical Film†, 2006). One MGM musical hit opened the doors to the musical film genre. This was the 1929 Broadway Melody with a score by Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed. The story was about two sisters fighting over their love of a song and dance man. It cost $379,000. 00 and grossed for $1. 6 million in its first release. Its title tune is â€Å"You Were Meant for Me. † It was the first sound film to win an Academy Award for Best Picture. MGM’s production chief Irving Thalberg was credited for bringing in a string of musical hits since Broadway Melody. (â€Å"History of Musical Film 1927-1930 Part II†, 2004). Love Parade from Paramount followed on the same year by silent screen director Ernst Lubitch. It is a lighthearted operetta inspired by Broadway to fit the screen starring soprano Jean Macdonald as a young royalty and Maurice Chevalier as the French playboy diplomat. (â€Å"History of Musical Film 1927-1930 Part II†, 2004). The 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s were considered the golden age of musical films. Following are some of the popular musical films: Hollywood Revue of 1929 with Joan Crawford from MGM, Cecil B. Demille’s Madam Satan (1930). 932 mid-Depression saw the making of Love Me Tonight, a collaboration of Richard Rogers, Lorenz Hart, and director Rouben Mamoulian. Rogers and Hart continued with Hallelujah, I’m a Bum (1933) with Al Jolson. (â€Å"History of Musical Film 1930s: Part I†, 2003). Forty Second Street by dance Broadway director Busby Berkeley choreographed the dance sequences while composer Harry Warren and lyricist Al Dublin created the score. It was a million dollar hit for a $400,000 production. It was followed by Footlight Parade (1933), The Gold Diggers (1933) and Hollywood Hotel (1937). â€Å"History of Musical Film 1930s Part II† 2004). Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers entered the musical scene in 1933 through Flying Down to Rio, The Gay Divorcee (1934), Top Hat (1935) with a score by Irving Berlin. It was also the time of Shirley Temple in movies such as Stand Up and Cheer (1934), The Little Colonel (1935), among others. Disney produced Fantasia (1940). MGM revived its musical genre with the release of The Merry Widow (1934) (â€Å"History of Musical Film 1930s Part IV† 2004). The 1940s saw Warner Brothers’ Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) with James Cagney in his Oscar-winning performance. Then independent producer Samuel Goldwyn found Danny Kaye and made Up in Arms (1944, Wonder Man (1945), among others. It was also the time of Bing Crosby (Road Series, Going My Way, Holiday Inn) and Bob Hope (â€Å"History of Musical Film Screen 1940s: Part I† 2003). Judy Garland starred in Little Nellie Kelly (1940), Ziegfeld Girl (1941), Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) directed by Vincente Minneli, her future husband. She appeared in sixteen MGM musicals. Gene Kelley also was a big MGM star in musical movies like For Me and My Gal (1942), On the Town (1949), among others (â€Å"History of Musical Film 1940s Part III† 2004). The 1950s was the decline of the musical film genre and the emergence of television. Some of the musicals produced from 20th Century Fox were Richard Rodgers Oscar Hammerstein IIs. Oklahoma (1955), Carousel (1956), King and I (1956). South Pacific (1958). Warner Brothers released some Doris Day films, Love Me or Leave Me (1955), The Pajama Game (1957). Paramount produced What Christmas (1954) while Walt Disney released musical animations such as Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Sleeping Beauty. MGM released Kiss Me Kate (1953) and High Society (1956) (â€Å"History of Musical Film Screen 1950s†, 2003).

The Correct Response to Abortion :: Persuasive Essay, Argumentative

The Correct Response to Abortion    Psalm 139 has often been noted as a beautiful expression of the value of human life. Taken as a whole, it is a prayer reflecting on God's intimate knowledge of who we are - a knowledge stretching to the moment we were conceived in the womb and before. The theme of continuity is striking. Notice how the author uses personal pronouns with reference to himself both before and after his birth. Past (v.1), present (vv.2-3), future (v.10), and the pre-natal stage as well (v.13). The psalmist is clearly aware of no discontinuity in his existence. He was, is, and will be the same person...again both during his pre-natal and post-natal life.    Recognizing this, how should we respond to those who would advocate aborting such a life? It's at this point we need to read a little further through Psalm 139 and take a look at vv.19-24. As always, God's Word tells us not only what is right, but also how to do the right thing in the right way. Reflecting on what we've seen so far, the psalmist finds himself filled anew with a zeal for this God who knows him so completely. And he then turns this zeal both to those around him as well as towards himself.    As the psalmist looks at others around him, he recognizes that not everyone responds to God with faith and love. Some respond with blasphemy and hate. And this leads him to use some strikingly harsh language...words that really take us back (READ v.22). How ought we to understand such words? And is it ever appropriate for us to say the same thing? Well, in order to answer these questions, we need to clear some things up...    Who are the people being cursed? (READ v.19a and b) How are they characterized? (READ v.20a and b, v.21a and b) So what then are the curses? We need to recognize that in Hebrew poetry, we often find the usage of vivid and graphic language. Used here, it is not intended to be expressions of a desire for personal vengeance. Rather, the psalmist is filled with moral indignation and a desire for God to exercise justice.    So in terms of application, we need to remember that these words are the prayer of the psalmist, not actions he carries out.

Gun Control in Canada

A national conversation on gun control in Canada has instigated the demand for stricter government control of weapons. Canadians have a strong belief in the established practice of â€Å"peace, order and good government†. Our nation is culturally conditioned with the general cultural norm of non-violence. However, with recent news on the increase of gun violence happening in the country, the need to tighten the guidelines on the use of guns is an urgent matter. Recently, the mayors in Toronto and Montreal have asked the federal government to put in place a ban on handguns and assault weapons, and many people are in support of this concept. However, with close ties and the sharing of a border with the United States, the problem of banning guns would not completely go away. The problem with gun control is that these guns can conveniently be smuggled into the country. Either that, or owners with registered guns may legally sell these weapons to people who cannot purchase guns, hence enabling them to use the weapons for criminal purposes. Furthermore, we see the idea of strong regionalism with an urban-rural divide in the country. People living in these rural areas would be more concerned with the ban of these weapons, mainly because the use of their weapons is for hunting purposes. Certain parts in Canada have strong regionalism due to how gun policy is constructed in that area. For example, if we look at Alberta, the province is more open to the ownership of guns, hence a cultural approach to the issue. A potential solution to the problem of gun violence would be to implement a multi-layered system that filters out anyone that may pose a threat to society. The government should place a restriction on gun sales via a program that controls and tracks the number of guns and holds the owner responsible for any damages caused by the weapon. Background checks and criminal record history should be verified for every individual that wants to purchase a gun. Doing so will ensure civilians that their right to own a weapon is not under threat as long as they accept responsibility/hold themselves liable for whatever danger may come through their property (weapon). This way, guns will not be owned by people with a potential of abusing them, so the person is less likely to use it for the wrong reasons. When compared to the United States, where you can buy guns without any background check, this solution should prove to be much more effective. Lastly, to maintain integrity of these policies, a series of checks should be set in place to ensure the weapon is not being sold privately. A suggestion is a weapons check-in system. Gun owners would get a safety check every few years to make sure they still own and are maintaining their weapons. This will ensure that the weapon is being accounted for and has not been sold. It would be a better way to track firearms, which in return, would help in the reduction of gun crimes. In addition, the owner of the gun would be required to renew their license and ensure that their weapon has not been sold without a record. If the following measures are taken, I am certain gun violence may be minimized.