Emersons self reliance :: essays research papers

R.W. Emerson’s Self-Reliance The essay has three major divisions: the importance of self-reliance (paragraphs 1-17), self-reliance and the individual (paragraphs 18-32), and self-reliance and society (paragraphs 33-50). As a whole, it promotes self-reliance as an ideal, even a virtue, and contrasts it with various modes of dependence or conformity. â€Å"Self-Reliance† Paragraphs 1-17. The Importance of Self-Reliance. Emerson begins his major work on individualism by asserting the importance of thinking for oneself rather than meekly accepting other people’s ideas. As in almost all of his work, he promotes individual experience over the knowledge gained from books: â€Å"To believe that what is true in your private heart is true for all men—that is genius.† The person who scorns personal intuition and, instead, chooses to rely on others’ opinions lacks the creative power necessary for robust, bold individualism. This absence of conviction results not in different ideas, as this person expects, but in the acceptance of the same ideas—now secondhand thoughts—that this person initially intuited. The lesson Emerson would have us learn? â€Å"Trust thyself,† a motto that ties together this first section of the essay. To rely on others’ judgments is cowardly, without inspiration or hope. A person with self-esteem, on the other hand, exhibits originality and is childlike—unspoiled by selfish needs—yet mature. It is to this adventure of self-trust that Emerson invites us: We are to be guides and adventurers, destined to participate in an act of creation modeled on the classical myth of bringing order out of chaos. Although we might question his characterizing the self-esteemed individual as childlike, Emerson maintains that children provide models of self-reliant behavior because they are too young to be cynical, hesitant, or hypocritical. He draws an analogy between boys and the idealized individual: Both are masters of self-reliance because they apply their own standards to all they see, and because their loyalties cannot be coerced. This rebellious individualism contrasts with the attitude of cautious adults, who, because they are overly concerned with reputation, approval, and the opinion of others, are always hesitant or unsure; consequently, adults have great difficulty acting spontaneously or genuinely. Emerson now focuses his attention on the importance of an individual’s resisting pressure to conform to external norms, including those of society, which conspires to defeat self-reliance in its members. The process of so-called â€Å"maturing† becomes a process of conforming that Emerson challenges. In the paragraph that begins with the characteristic aphorism â€Å"Whoso would be a man, must be a nonconformist,† he asserts a radical, even extreme, position on the matter.

Evils of War Essay

There is no doubt that war is an evil one. It is the greatest catastrophe that can befall human beings. It brings death and destruction, merciless slaughter and butchery, disease and starvation, poverty and ruin in its wake. A particularly disturbing side of modern wars is that they tend to become global so that they may engulf the entire world. But though war is an evil, we must recognize the fact that it is a necessary, inescapable evil. A glance at the past history of the world will show war has been a recurrent phenomenon in the history of nations. We have had wars of all types wars lasting for a year or so and a war lasting for hundred years. Clashes of arms have always occurred. In a world war has ways been waged. War has indeed, been such a marked feature of every age and period. This has come to be regarded as part of The normal life of nations. Poet and prophets have dreamt of a millennium – an utopia in which war will not exist and eternal peace will reign on earth, but these dreams have not been fulfilled. The occurrence the Second World War however, conclusively proved that to think of an unbroken peace’s to be unrealistic and that no institution or assembly can ever ensure the presence of peace. The United Nations Organisation, with all the good work that it has seen doing, is not proving as effective as was desired. A large number of wars, The most recent ones behind the one in Vietnam, the other between India and Pakistan, or Ind-China war, Iran-Iraq war or Arab Isreal war. The fact of the matter is that, fighting is a natural instinct in peace. It is, indeed, too much to exact so many nations to live in a state of eternal peace. Besides, there will always be wide differences of option between various nations, different angle of looking at matters that have an international importance, radical difference in policy and ideology and they cannot be settled by mere discussion so that resort to war becomes very necessary in these cases.

Sociocultural Factors that Lead to Eating Disorders in...

Sociocultural Factors that Lead to Eating Disorders in Young Women According to the DSM-5, anorexia nervosa is characterized by â€Å"distorted body image and excessive dieting that leads to severe weight loss with a pathological fear of becoming fat† while bulimia nervosa is characterized by â€Å"frequent episodes of binge eating followed by inappropriate behaviors such as self-induced vomiting to avoid weight gain† (DSM-5, American Psychiatric Association, 2013). These two disorders most often affect adolescent girls and young women. There are many factors that can cause body dysmorphia such as behavioral, genetic, and sociocultural. These factors can ultimately onset eating disorders. According to a study by Emily A. Young, James R. Clopton,†¦show more content†¦There are a few ways in which family members can contribute to eating disorders such as, â€Å"communicating to young women that thinness is highly valued, modeling problematic eating behaviors, a nd criticizing weight and body shape†. Finally, Young concluded that â€Å"bulimic behavior may be most pronounced in women who report both high levels of peer pressure to be thin and high levels of socially prescribed perfectionism- belief one must meet the excessively high expectations of others† (Young et al, 2004). A larger sample was used by The McKnight Investigators to assess the risk factors for the onset of eating disorders in adolescent girls. This is a longitudinal study that used 1,103 girls in school districts in California and Arizona. The girls started the study in sixth grade and ended it in ninth grade. This was to measure risk associated with puberty and the change from youth to early adolescence. Among interviews and height and weight measurements over a course of four years, the girls were also given the McKnight Risk Factor Survey IV. This survey consists of â€Å"103 questions that assess demographics, age at onset of menstrual period and dating, appearance appraisal, effect of body changes, confidence, depressed mood, emotional eating, media modeling, concern with weight/shape, parental and peer concern with thinness, teasing,Show MoreRelatedThe Media s Influence On Eating Habits876 Words   |  4 Pagesdisturbed eating habits from suppressing food to binge eating, especially in college-aged young adults. We seem to point our fingers at the media and society for a lot of the social issues in the world today. But is the media really to blame for disturbed eating behaviors that lead to eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa? There has been quite a bit of research done in the psychology field relating several social, mental and psychographic characteristics to disturbed eating behaviorsRead MoreA Study Of Unusual Thoughts, Feelings And Patterns Of Behaviors1672 Words   |  7 PagesElements that affect disorders classified under abnormal psychology can include one s genetics, one’s environment, and their economic stability. Eating disorders are a prime examples of what abnormal psychological disorders are. Eating disorders (ED) are defined as illnesses that causes serious disturbances to an individual’s everyday diet, such as eating extremely small amounts of food or severely overeating regardless of actually having appetite.This specific type of dis order is not only focusedRead MoreThe Religion Of Thinness : An Spiritual Hungers Behind Women s Obsession With Eating Disorders1452 Words   |  6 PagesUnrealistic body images are promoted in the media and entertainment resulting in greater numbers of women and men who feel ‘too fat’ and suffer from eating disorders’† (Shell 1). Eating disorders are characterized by abnormal or disturbed eating habits such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating. Eating disorders have several causes including behavioral, psychological, and social factors, and they frequently appear during adolescence or early adulthood, but it may also develop earlierRead MoreEating Disorders : Eating Disorder Essay1524 Words   |  7 Pagesthat eating disorders are a lifestyle choice. However, eating disorders are a group of serious conditions in which a person is preoccupied with food and weight that they often cannot focus on anything else. Amongst all the eating disor der the main types are anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder, which are all psychological illnesses. The disorders vary between eating extremely small amounts of food, to not eating at all, or to severely overeating. Each of these eating disordersRead MoreBulimia Nervos A Psychological Disease1186 Words   |  5 Pagestry remove the excess food from body or sometime person do the long fasting and excessive amount of exercise (book). However, many author describe bulimia nervosa as a psychological disease (Rushing, Jones, Carney,2003). This disorder more frequent present in young female particular when female reaches as puberty time. Classification Bulimia nervosa can be classified into two major sub type (Rushing, Jones, Carney,2003) which is described below here 1. Non-purging 2. Purging Non-purging:Read MoreThe Role Of Nature And Nurture : Adolescence Eating Disorders1735 Words   |  7 PagesTHE ROLE OF NATURE AND NURTURE IN ADOLESCENCE EATING DISORDERS Written for Portage Learning Developmental (Lifespan) Psychology Introduction Eating disorders are complex of medical and psychiatric disorders, it can affect individuals of any age, sex, race, gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic level. The majority of the Eating disorders discovered during adolescence, but clinicians and psychologists have found an increasing number of young children, old adults diagnosed with these illnessRead MoreThe Influence Of Media Reporting On Society s Perception Of Beauty1730 Words   |  7 Pagesan image that is unrealistic and unattainable for teenage girls. As such, based upon a macro perspective, the societal roles, status and expectations of young women have been impacted negatively. This paper will analyze how the combination of media reporting, socioeconomics and sociocultural factors contribute to the development of eating disorders as well as how society s perception of beauty has been distorted. This paper will further support the notion that societies perception of a female’s beautyRead MoreThe Eating Disorder And Anorexia Nervosa1555 Words   |  7 PagesThe eating disorder anorexia nervosa is one of complex nature that is caused and sustained by many interconnected factors of life. Characterized by strict dieting, an unrealistic perception of body image, excessive exercise, depre ssion, and OCD, this disorder has the ability to boycott the lives of many individuals (Pinel, 2014). In order to understand the effects that this disorder has, it is essential to look at the socio-cultural, psychological, and physiological factors this disorder can entailRead MoreThe Prevelence of Eating Disorders2839 Words   |  11 Pagesto varying factors shaping these patterns (Mcleod). One of the topics that is an ongoing challenge, particularly in young adolescent females, is eating disorders. As with most mental illnesses, eating disorders are not caused by just one factor, but rather by a combination of cognitive, sociocultural, and biological factors. There are many psychological causes and personality traits that may predispose people to developing eating disorders. Most people that suffer from eating disorders can be describedRead MoreFemale Body Image and the Mass Media Essay2272 Words   |  10 Pagesand has negative thoughts, Emily seems to have negative body image. This perception of her physical appearance is known as body image which is the way a person feels about his or her body. It affects both men and women, young and old. The definition of beauty is defined by many factors family, friends, peers, the media, and puberty and development. Often the definition of beauty is a narrow thing that includes only a select group of people. Days are filled with images and other depictions of beauty