Abstract This paper explores the fundamentals of the faith-based scientific ideology, scientific realism. The author takes a close look at the ideas and opinions of realists and anti-realists concluding that anti-realists, though many of their criticisms are valid, are often as likely to fall prey to the same lack of critical evaluation that they claim to plague scientific realism.
From the Paper "Mach's argument could have been improved if he failed to accept contemporary arguments for the existence of sub-molecular particles until evidence existed that proved him wrong. In doing so, he would evoke a methodology in modern thought that many find credible: that which holds that scientific realism lacks the weight of true evidence and is more the matter of opinion than of critical inquiry and objective thought.
Scientific realism is a faith-based scientific ideology, one that maintains that we are warranted in believing in the unseen if it is posited by best explained and most popular scientific theories, which dominate by sheer weight of authority. In this sense it creates a mutualistic error - in trusting the consensus of beliefs among others were are most likely to emulate their mistakes. While mired in dogma, we can?t purport to achieve paradigm changes in thought or in reaching a new and better methodology with which to evaluate and comprehend phenomena both material and immaterial. Although the discourse of empiricists remains of interest to us, it must be remembered that every new scientific idea that is posited as contrary to existing beliefs of the nature of science and existence faces not only critical inquiry but also the inertia maintained by generations of adherents that revere even the least factually justifiable ideologies."
Tags: mach, anti-realist, van, frassen, science, critical, thinking
This paper discusses Sandra Cisneros' collection of short stories "Woman Hollering Creek", which examines the lives of Mexican-American women on both sides of the border.
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Abstract This paper explains that each story of Sandra Cisneros' "Woman Hollering Creek" is a lesson in introspection. By using an approach similar to Anton Chekhov, Cisneros uses reflection to create a better life for her double minority Hispanic women. The author points out that Cisneros blends realism and anti-realism throughout her writings, which is an affective approach to obtain an objective outlook. The paper relates that, by showing just what may be needed to endure and overcome thus creating a better life, Cisneros uses Hemingway's theme of endurance and, in a style similar to Franz Kafka's writings, uses negative aspects of her characters and their situations to remove this image from her readers.
From the Paper "Cisneros' story "Eleven" uses expression through anti-realism more than many of her other works. Using the idealism of an eleven year old child, she projects the childlike belief that life will flow smoothly and be nearly perfect when adulthood is obtained. The antithesis of this ideal belief is that circumstances and scenarios change but the same situations can and do arise in adulthood along with the same feelings of inadequacy experienced by a child. Cisneros uses age progression to relate the theme of her story in much the same way that Hemmingway used age digression in some of his writings. Telling the story of embarrassment from the point of view of a child is an effective way to gain sympathy for the character and identity for the reader. The setting of a classroom is an excellent symbol for American society. While school is supposed to be a great equalizer to children just as our contemporary society is viewed as a racial and gender equalizer, in actuality both fall far short."
Abstract This paper explores Realism in terms of both its classic assumptions and its contemporary revisions in the context of other theories of international relations and in particular that of Liberalism. It is argued that while there are challenges to Realism as the dominant theory of international relations, the flaws in Realism revealed by some of these challenges do not require the overall rejection of Realism and its assumptions. Rather, as is shown in this paper, no single theory can explain every situation in the international political environment.
From the Paper "The development and analysis of theories of international relations are necessarily complicated by the social and political context in which they are developed. Although international political theory is, of course, an intellectually autonomous field of study, historically the discussion of international relations "theories are largely shaped by what happens in the sphere of practical world politics" (Haque 135). For example, while the dominant theory of international relations during the Cold War - Realism - fell into abeyance in the 1990s with the end of the Cold War, after the events of September 11, 2001 variations on Realism reasserted their predominance in the field of international political theory."
Abstract This paper examines a host of issues in order to identify the main lines of argument that writers utilize in the criticism of realism, but the core issue of the ongoing debate between realism and its critics is the foundational realist assessment that the primary task of international relations is to secure relative peace and stability. For forty years, this basic realist position has influenced every aspect of the debate between advocates of realism and their critics, for it has generated justifications and objections to nearly every aspect of realism derived from it.
Abstract This paper explains that Larry Lauden in his article 'A Confutation of Convergent Realism' formulates an argument against scientific realism from the perspective of pessimistic induction. The author points out that Lauden rightly states that other philosophers' suggestions that epistemological realism is an empirical hypothesis, which is authenticated by its ability to explain the workings of science, is becoming a significant problem. The paper presents Lauden's methods of attack from which he tackles this assumption of reference and demonstrates how the historical, empirical evidence simply does not exist to support the realist claims. The author concludes that Lauden's debunking of scientific realism via their epistemological dependence on reference and retention is a useful and effective method of philosophical analysis.
From the Paper "Scientific realism is, most basically, the idea that "[m]ature scientific theories are (approximately true." Lauden delves into the meat of this basic statement by dissecting realism into bite-sized chunks that can be more easily analyzed and (in this case) refuted. While Lauden does debunk various aspects of scientific realism, one aspect of it with which he is particularly concerned is the matter of reference. Lauden lists five characteristics of convergent epistemological realism, which he has aggregated from the available resources on scientific realism."
Abstract Realism is an approach to the study and practice of international politics. It emphasizes the role of the nation-state and makes a broad assumption that all nation-states are motivated by national interests, or, at best, national interests disguised as moral concerns. This paper discusses Realism and the intricacies involved in this detailed topic. Theory development is also addressed as well as the critical limitations of Realism.
Abstract The paper examines the presence of realism in fiction and uses Russell Banks' novel "Sweet Hereafter" as an example. The paper defines realism in literature and includes the development of characters.
From the Paper "Realism in fiction presents the reader with the unreality of fiction wrapped in an illusion of reality. Characters, plots and settings are plausible, suggesting that they could actually exist in real life. In most cases, realist authors have derived their stories from actual experiences and issues, so the ring of truth permeates them. Realism enables the reader to engage fully in the story because he perceives it as true."
Tags:Realism, fiction, Russell Banks, Sweet Hereafter, grief, loss
Abstract Seven page look at two American plays: Tennessee Williams' "Suddenly Last Summer" and Eugene O'Neill's "Desire Under Elms" examples of Realism in Drama.
Abstract This paper explores Theodore Fontane's famous work of German literature and examines the ways in which Effi's fate is anticipated in the descriptions of the natural landscape. The paper also demonstrates the ways in which these descriptions reinforce a nontraditional realism. It describes aspects of the text that make it fundamentally realist, focusing, in particular, on several scenes from the novel, such as the scene describing the "Slough", and some of the scenes describing the vacation taken after Instetten is promoted.
From the Paper "Theodor Fontane's Effi Briest is an example of realism from a time when the genre was falling out of favor. This accounts for some of the elements in the text that are inconsistent with the genre, such as the subtle foreshadowing of events. Key to this foreshadowing are the landscape descriptions, which both anticipate the events of the novel and reflect the characters? psyches. This represents a break from traditional realism."
Abstract The paper defines the short story, "A Jury of her Peers" as a work of realism and naturalism. The paper defines and explains the two genres, including the theme of the story and the determinist philosophy.
From the Paper ""In A Jury of Her Peers" Susan Glaspell describes ordinary people living ordinary lives. This is a major tenet of the realistic movement in literature and will serve as a basis for defining "A Jury of Her Peers" as a work of realism. That said, the argument can certainly be made-and it will-that the story is a work of a particular genre of realism known as naturalism."
Tags: a jury of her peers, susan glaspell, realism, naturalism
Abstract This paper discusses how and why Mark Twain's short story "Jumping Frog" can be said to be an example of both realism and naturalism. The paper cites examples from the text and discusses the ideas of other critics about these two literary genres.
From the Paper "Literary Genre Study Proposal. While doing preliminary research for my paper, the statement in the instructions that kept coming into my mind was "Do not worry if the fit isn't exact" for genres are not pigeon holes into which authors force their imaginative creations. I intended to write on "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" because I like Twain and the story is fun and easy to understand."
Tags: naturalism, realism, Twain, Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, literary analysis
Abstract This essay argues that Ernest Hemingway's "The Sun Also Rises" is anti-Semitic in terms of its treatment of the character Robert Cohn. Cohn is painted in a negative light and none of the characters like him. Cohn is the anti-hero, yet he has Jewishness intentionally imposed upon him. In this respect, "The Sun Also Rises" involves anti-Semitism.
Abstract The following assignment is for a third year sociology course. The topic discussed is collective social behaviour. The collective social behavior examined in this assignment is anti-war demonstrations. The writer uses social contagion theory and emergent norm theory in order to examine the nature of anti-war demonstrations.
From the Paper "Collective behavior is a very broad area of study. For example, in Collective Behavior Erich Goode states, 'Rumors and legends, fads, and collective protest- these and other social phenomena make up the subject matter of the field of collective Behavior'. Collective behavior is the relatively spontaneous, unstructured, extra institutional behavior of a fairly large number of individuals. The fact that collective behavior is such a diverse area of study means that many activities can be used to examine it. For this paper, demonstrations against the war in Iraq or anti-war demonstrations as they are commonly called will be used to examine many of the theories about collective behavior."
Abstract This paper summarizes the debate between the Federalists and Anti-federalists of the constitutional congress. It suggests some ongoing problems in American public life which demonstrate the main issues which drove that debate, far from being resolved during the constitution's ratification, continue to resonate in current events. This paper discusses the Ratification Debate and the major issues which drove the debate between the Federalists and the Anti-federalists: Distribution of power, protection of rights, limitations of institutions and the ongoing Relevance.
From the Paper "In the last few days of September in 1787, the Confederation Congress met to debate and construct a new Constitution of the United States. The document they wrote and sent for ratification to the thirteen states that made up the newly-formed country was intended to replace the Articles of Confederation that had ordered the nation since its inception. The nation was reaching a crisis point, as the experiment had been going poorly. Surprisingly, perhaps, the problem was not one of the many possible economic problems that new nations are likely to experience when reconstructing after a long and difficult war. As Gordon Wood (1969) argues, the general economy was running well and people felt comfortable and even prosperous (p. 395). Rather, the concerns that brought the nation's leading politicians together were primarily political. "
Abstract This paper discusses how in terms of ideologies, actions, and goals that exist, or should exist in order for the anti-globalization movement to develop into a successful global social movement, there is general agreement that there must be a greater emphasis on social and political issues such as gender equality, and economic issues such as product music and entertainment product copyright protection. The paper further discusses that these are only two of a multitude of important issues that need to be addressed, but they reflect the anti-globalization movement's fundamental goal of protecting the social, political, and economic rights of individuals, groups, and societies as globalization expands. For example, globalization has presented many challenges and opportunities for the transnational women's movement.
