Reaction Paper IV
FGM: Female Genital Mutilation
Female genital mutilation has been practiced in country's around the world for thousands of years, and will continue to be practiced, until those that practice it decide to stop.
Many people who live in country's that are more industrialized, like the U.S.A., tend to think that no ones believes on right and wrong is correct, except their own. That is what comes up in conversation about FGM. Personally, I am not pro-FGM when it comes to its practice. However, I believe people who want to practice it, should be allowed to, without a bunch of "activists against the practice of FGM" telling them to stop, or even "informing" them about the potential health risks. The reason I am against even explaining the health risks to the people that practice this is, because whenever you have people that believe enough in something to base their entire life around it, there is nothing you can do or say that will get them to change; it would be like talking to a wall. They will only change when the people themselves that live by these traditions get fed up with all the side-effects caused by the practice of FGM. It is every person and community's right to decide for themselves, without the intervention of outsiders, to decide to do whatever they want to do to their bodies and minds.
I know, "these women that are being circumcised, aren't freely deciding on this to be done to them, they don't know any better, they've been brainwashed". I have two responses to this. The first is, if they have grown up in this culture all their lives, and this procedure has been done to their mothers, sisters, great grandmothers, etc. on the fear that if it is not done, something tearable will happen, there is no way they would not want it done; no matter how much pain it causes, and besides those that are able to break away from the thought of why it must be done, will do so with or without the help of outsiders. But if they're that committed to the tradition, they will change for no one. The second point is, when you decide you are going to educate these people about how their traditions are wrong and unhealthy, that is saying you know better. You may think they are stupid for preforming FGM, but you must remember, they think you are just as stupid for not performing it. Perhaps, these people that perform FGM have philosophy classes too, where they decide if they should try and make the western countries, like the U.S.A., see the great health risk they are taking when they do not perform these circumcisions; "after all that is probably why babies die and men are impotent in those countries".
That is why I believe it is wrong to intervene, in any way when it comes to FGM. These people believe what they are doing is right and OK, thus, what we do is wrong and not OK; to them we are just as wrong, as they are to us.
Tuesday, 1 January 2013
Existentialist Darwism and Neoisolationist Rejection in Camu
Camus's The Stranger is a grim profession that choice and individual freedom are
integral components of human nature, and the commitment and responsibility that accompany
these elements are ultimately the deciding factors of the morality of one's existence. Meursault
is placed in an indifferent world, a world that embraces absurdity and persecutes reason; such is
the nature of existentialist belief, that rationalization and logic are ultimately the essence of
humanity, and that societal premonitions and an irrelevant status quo serve only to perpetuate a
false sense of truth.
Meursault's virtue, as well as his undoing, lies in his unique tendency to choose, and
thereby exist, without computing objective standards or universal sentiment. His stoic, de facto
existentialism is a catalyst for endless conflict between his rationalization- and logic-based
existence and that of others, which focuses on an objective subscription to "the norm" ; such is
evident in heated discussions with the magistrate and prison minister, who are seen as paragons
of invalid logic and the quixotic, quasi-passionate pursuit of hackneyed conformity.
No windmills are slain1 in this simulated existence; absurdity of a different ilk dominates
the popular mentality, one which would alienate a man based on his perceived indifference
towards the mundane, and try, convict, and execute a man based on his lack of purported
empathy towards the irrelevant. Attention to the trial sequence will reveal that the key elements
of the conviction had little to do with the actual crime Meursault had committed, but rather the
"unspeakable atrocities" he had committed while in mourning of his mother's death, which
consisted of smoking a cigarette, drinking a cup of coffee, and failing to cry or appear sufficiently
distraught. Indeed, the deformed misconception of moral truth which the jury [society] seeks is
based on a detached, objective observation of right or wrong, thereby misrepresenting the ideals
of justice by failing to recognize that personal freedom and choice are "...the essence of
individual existence and the deciding factor of one's morality.2"
The execution of Meursault at the close of the novel symbolically brings forth
outpourings of emotion, as Meursault confronts his nothingness and the impossibility of justifying
the [immoral] choices he has made; he realizes the pure contingency of his life, and that he has
voided, in essence, his own existence by failing to accept the risk and responsibility that the
personal freedom of an existentialist reality entails.
1 From Don Quixote (1605, trans. 1612), a satirical Spanish novel by Miguel de Cervantes
Saavedra.
2 Soren Kierkegaard, Nineteenth-century Danish philosopher, on "Moral Individualism and
Truth."
integral components of human nature, and the commitment and responsibility that accompany
these elements are ultimately the deciding factors of the morality of one's existence. Meursault
is placed in an indifferent world, a world that embraces absurdity and persecutes reason; such is
the nature of existentialist belief, that rationalization and logic are ultimately the essence of
humanity, and that societal premonitions and an irrelevant status quo serve only to perpetuate a
false sense of truth.
Meursault's virtue, as well as his undoing, lies in his unique tendency to choose, and
thereby exist, without computing objective standards or universal sentiment. His stoic, de facto
existentialism is a catalyst for endless conflict between his rationalization- and logic-based
existence and that of others, which focuses on an objective subscription to "the norm" ; such is
evident in heated discussions with the magistrate and prison minister, who are seen as paragons
of invalid logic and the quixotic, quasi-passionate pursuit of hackneyed conformity.
No windmills are slain1 in this simulated existence; absurdity of a different ilk dominates
the popular mentality, one which would alienate a man based on his perceived indifference
towards the mundane, and try, convict, and execute a man based on his lack of purported
empathy towards the irrelevant. Attention to the trial sequence will reveal that the key elements
of the conviction had little to do with the actual crime Meursault had committed, but rather the
"unspeakable atrocities" he had committed while in mourning of his mother's death, which
consisted of smoking a cigarette, drinking a cup of coffee, and failing to cry or appear sufficiently
distraught. Indeed, the deformed misconception of moral truth which the jury [society] seeks is
based on a detached, objective observation of right or wrong, thereby misrepresenting the ideals
of justice by failing to recognize that personal freedom and choice are "...the essence of
individual existence and the deciding factor of one's morality.2"
The execution of Meursault at the close of the novel symbolically brings forth
outpourings of emotion, as Meursault confronts his nothingness and the impossibility of justifying
the [immoral] choices he has made; he realizes the pure contingency of his life, and that he has
voided, in essence, his own existence by failing to accept the risk and responsibility that the
personal freedom of an existentialist reality entails.
1 From Don Quixote (1605, trans. 1612), a satirical Spanish novel by Miguel de Cervantes
Saavedra.
2 Soren Kierkegaard, Nineteenth-century Danish philosopher, on "Moral Individualism and
Truth."
Existentialism
Existentialism
Existentialism is a concept that became popular during the second
World War in France, and just after it. French playrights have often used
the stage to express their views, and these views came to surface even
during a Nazi occupation. Bernard Shaw got his play "Saint Joan" past the
German censors because it appeared to be very Anti-British. French
audiences however immediately understood the real meaning of the play, and
replaced the British with the Germans. Those sorts of "hidden meanings"
were common throughout the period so that plays would be able to pass
censorship.
Existentialism proposes that man is full of anxiety and despare
with no meaning in his life, just simply existing, until he made decisive
choice about his own future. That is the way to achieve dignity as a human
being. Existentialists felt that adopting a social or political cause was
one way of giving purpose to a life. Sartre is well known for the "Theatre
engage" or Theatre 'commited', which is supposedly commited to social
and/or political action.
On of the major playwrights during this period was Jean-Paul
Sartre. Sartre had been imprisoned in Germany in 1940 but managed to
escape, and become one of the leaders of the Existential movement. Other
popular playwrights were Albert Camus, and Jean Anouilh. Just like
Anouilh, Camus accidentally became the spokesman for the French Underground
when he wrote his famous essay, "Le Mythe de Sisyphe" or "The Myth of
Sisyphus". Sisyphus was the man condemned by the gods to roll a rock to the
top of a mountain, only to have it roll back down again. For Camus, this
related heavily to everyday life, and he saw Sisyphus an "absurd" hero,
with a pointless existance. Camus felt that it was necessary to wonder
what the meaning of life was, and that the human being longed for some
sense of clarity in the world, since "if the world were clear, art would
not exist". "The Myth of Sisyphus" became a prototype for existentialism in
the theatre, and eventually The Theatre of the Absurd.
Right after the Second World War, Paris became the theatre capital
of the west, and popularized a new form of surrealistic theatre called
"Theatre of the Absurd". Many historians contribute the sudden popularity
of absurdism in France to the gruesome revelations of gas chambers and war
atrocities coming out of Germany after the war. The main idea of The
Theatre of the Absurd was to point out man's helplessness and pointless
existance in a world without purpose. As Richard Coe described it "It is
the freedom of the slave to crawl east along the deck of a boat going
west". Two of the most popular playwrights of this time include Samuel
Beckett, who's most famous piece was "Waiting for Godot", and Eugene
Ioensco with "Exit the King". Most absurdist plays have no logical plot.
The absense of the plot pushes an emphasis on proving the pointless
existance of man. Quite often, such plays reveal the human condition at
it's absolute worst.
Absurdist playwrites often used such techniques as symbolism, mime,
the circus, and the commedia dell'arte, which are quite evident in the more
popular plays of the time, such as Waiting for Godot, The Bald Prima Donna,
and Amedee.
Existentialism is a concept that became popular during the second
World War in France, and just after it. French playrights have often used
the stage to express their views, and these views came to surface even
during a Nazi occupation. Bernard Shaw got his play "Saint Joan" past the
German censors because it appeared to be very Anti-British. French
audiences however immediately understood the real meaning of the play, and
replaced the British with the Germans. Those sorts of "hidden meanings"
were common throughout the period so that plays would be able to pass
censorship.
Existentialism proposes that man is full of anxiety and despare
with no meaning in his life, just simply existing, until he made decisive
choice about his own future. That is the way to achieve dignity as a human
being. Existentialists felt that adopting a social or political cause was
one way of giving purpose to a life. Sartre is well known for the "Theatre
engage" or Theatre 'commited', which is supposedly commited to social
and/or political action.
On of the major playwrights during this period was Jean-Paul
Sartre. Sartre had been imprisoned in Germany in 1940 but managed to
escape, and become one of the leaders of the Existential movement. Other
popular playwrights were Albert Camus, and Jean Anouilh. Just like
Anouilh, Camus accidentally became the spokesman for the French Underground
when he wrote his famous essay, "Le Mythe de Sisyphe" or "The Myth of
Sisyphus". Sisyphus was the man condemned by the gods to roll a rock to the
top of a mountain, only to have it roll back down again. For Camus, this
related heavily to everyday life, and he saw Sisyphus an "absurd" hero,
with a pointless existance. Camus felt that it was necessary to wonder
what the meaning of life was, and that the human being longed for some
sense of clarity in the world, since "if the world were clear, art would
not exist". "The Myth of Sisyphus" became a prototype for existentialism in
the theatre, and eventually The Theatre of the Absurd.
Right after the Second World War, Paris became the theatre capital
of the west, and popularized a new form of surrealistic theatre called
"Theatre of the Absurd". Many historians contribute the sudden popularity
of absurdism in France to the gruesome revelations of gas chambers and war
atrocities coming out of Germany after the war. The main idea of The
Theatre of the Absurd was to point out man's helplessness and pointless
existance in a world without purpose. As Richard Coe described it "It is
the freedom of the slave to crawl east along the deck of a boat going
west". Two of the most popular playwrights of this time include Samuel
Beckett, who's most famous piece was "Waiting for Godot", and Eugene
Ioensco with "Exit the King". Most absurdist plays have no logical plot.
The absense of the plot pushes an emphasis on proving the pointless
existance of man. Quite often, such plays reveal the human condition at
it's absolute worst.
Absurdist playwrites often used such techniques as symbolism, mime,
the circus, and the commedia dell'arte, which are quite evident in the more
popular plays of the time, such as Waiting for Godot, The Bald Prima Donna,
and Amedee.
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