Abstract
The author notes that the divisive issue of slavery and the passion in the South for state's rights presented the two major parties with challenges they proved unable to overcome and led to the breakdown of the two-party system, which became the principle cause of the Civil War. The breakdown of the two-party system was a slow development, but it was accelerated during the last decade before the Civil War by the weakness of the Whigs and the emergence of the new Republican Party in the North.

Abstract
This paper discusses three key arguments in the article 'The Mental Breakdown of a Roman Senator: M. Calpurnius Bibulus' from "Greece and Rome that the author, Michael J. G. Gray-Fow, uses to explain Senator Bibulus' irrational behavior during the Civil War of 49 B.C. between J. Caesar and Pompy. The paper explains that Gray-Fow supports these arguments with historical writings by Livy, Cicero, Caesar and others and details the events that led to Bibulus' fall. The paper points out, however, that there are no historical writings from Bibulus in existence today, only these biased second-hand reports.

From the Paper
"When Caesar crossed the Rubicon and began the Roman Civil War, Bibulus was recalled to Rome to help with the defense. He moved slowly and did not reach Rome in time, meanwhile, Pompy's army had moved to Brudusmin and Bibulus met up with him there. He was given command of Pompy's navy, which out numbered Caesar's fleet considerably. His orders were to prevent Caesar from landing in Greece where Pompy was regrouping. Caesar crossed the Adriatic during the winter, a move no one expected due to the storms common in that season."

Tags:hatred, second-rate status, death, short tempered, depression

From the Paper
"Psychological Breakdown: An Analogy


A person who experiences a psychological breakdown goes through dramatic shifts in structure and understanding that are as catastrophic as an office building falling down because of an earthquake. It seems as if some jolt comes from the outside, disrupting, or temporarily destroying the very makeup of the person's individual psychology, and at the time it happens, it appears that all is lost, just as after an earthquake, it seems the entire toppled building is lost.


The person's very foundation has crumbled or shifted, and various levels of reality and understanding have been removed. This can be as disorienting to the person who has the breakdown as it is to people who are near a building that has fallen, due to an earthquake. One comes to depend on various predictable..."

Abstract
This paper compares and contrasts the arguments made in the documents The Pinochet File: A Declassified Dossier on Atrocity and Accountability by P. Kornbluh, Toward an Alternative Conceptualization of South American Politics by G. O'Donnell, and Political Leadership and Regime Breakdown: Brazil by A. Stepan. The conclusion drawn in the essay is that none of the arguments made explain the ultimate cause behind the overthrow of the governments being discussed.

From the Paper
Breakdown in Democracy in Latin America Democratic breakdowns occurred throughout South America during the 1960s and 1970s. Political coups occurred in these countries, all for varying stated reasons for the collapse of their political systems. Guillermo O'Donnell posits a structuralist explanation for the collapse of the Brazilian and the Argentinean political systems, which created an imbalance between classes that was essentially insurmountable. Alfred Stepan, by contrast, effectively lays the blame on the leadership of the respective countries. Finally, Peter Kornbluh suggests that the reasons behind the collapse of these countries' systems came from external

Tags:brazil, argentina, chile

Abstract
This paper examines George Orwell's theme of how the tampering with language by the state project of power results in the emergence of double think as a form of the breakdown of rationality. The paper connects this to the popular acceptance of lifestyle advertising in capitalist society. What happens in this process is that a certain uniformity is molded and free choice is minimized.

Abstract
The paper argues that society's feeble minds are continuously being contaminated by popular media that is skewing our entire basis for human interaction and relationships. The paper looks at Chuck Palahniuk's film "Choke", and discusses how through compulsive behaviors, such as watching television, people forget their lives and focus on other people's problems. The paper contends that this media is brainwashing society with flawed and stereotypical ideas that then are associated into people's real lives. The paper refers to Plato's ideas and Eastern philosophy's teachings on not falling victim to the material world and calls for society to move beyond contemporary media.

From the Paper
"The contemporary state of our U.S. culture is outrageously flawed, undoubtedly much more than the majority of Americans realize. The reasons for this are many, complex and interconnected. One of the worst problems--perhaps even the unholy hub between these catastrophic spokes of our problematic nation--is the mass media. It truly is massive, and therefore is filled with a variety of problems that cause affliction in the form of mind destruction, quite unbeknownst to the masses. Most people today would rather sit in an alpha-trance receiving thirty second information bytes and devotedly following the unrealistic lives of envy-invoking people than engaging in a creative conversation or environment. Another favorite stimulant is music, a classic attention diverting technique. While people attempt to numb their minds, they are inadvertently causing much more harm than anyone used to believe."

Tags:human, interaction, brainwashing, stereotypes, associations, information

Abstract
This paper analyzes William Faulkner's complex short-story "The Bear" by seeing Faulkner as creating a world in which boundaries and assumptions are destroyed because they are limitations that hide the true meaning in in the story. The reviewer further discusses the lack of a strong plot in the story and Faulkner's use of pronouns. The reviewer describes in an organized manner the assumptions that the reader has that are broken in this work. These include time and morality. The paper concludes by stating that Faulkner's "The Bear" has so many layers and stories involved in the same story that it is impossible to touch on them all.

From the Paper
"Since there is no boundary of time, Ike can almost be any age at any time and so can the other characters. Even if Ike can be any age, there are moments in the text when time is specified. "then he was twenty-one" (243). It is with precision that Faulkner marks a specific moment in time, constructing this sense of time and again destroying it. Even with this distinct moment in time Ike as a character, as the narrative voice, has not changed. Ike's voice is the same because it is a story told in reflection and there is no actual display of a growth or change in character even if each of the discoveries are made at a precise moment in time. This boundary of time is used in a similar manner to the other boundaries. It is clearly defined as it is clearly destroyed. The time line is absent. Each of the characters acquires a certain level of maturity, a certain perfect age, and some do not mature beyond that. "

Tags:short story, Ike, stream of consciousness

Abstract
This paper discusses the sequence of events that happened in the United States during the mid-nineteenth century which would eventually lead to the Civil War. Key issues that led to the breakdown of the American Union such as slavery and the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment are examined. The author also hypothesizes that if the Civil War had taken place during the Nullification Crisis, in 1832, rather than in the 1860s, there may have been slightly different outcome.

From the Paper
"The Compromise of 1820, also known as the Missouri Compromise, attempted to appease the slave states as well as the abolitionist northern states. In this compromise, Missouri would enter the union as a slave state, and Maine would enter as a free state. The compromise also stated that all new states would have to enter in tandem--one free state along with one slave state. This compromise did allow for nearly thirty years of peace between the two sides of the issue, however it would need mending."

Tags:slavery, civil war

Abstract
This paper illustrates the specific idea that appears to be evident in a majority, if not all, of Shakespeare's works - that the works are mainly concerned with the concept of the disruption and restoration of order at various levels. Examples are provided of this "breakdown" at various different or parallel levels, including personal, intimate, political and spiritual. The paper examines several Shakespearean tragedies including "Hamlet", "King Lear" and "Macbeth".

From the Paper
"Hamlet at the very moment of killing Claudius and thus restoring both personal and political order himself dies. He then cannot take his rightful place on the throne, nor as head of his family. This has been denied him as the price for its very restoration. This also holds true for Lear. His kingdom is restored and those who sought to destroy him are no more. Yet it is Albany who now rules. In addition at the personal level, Lear finally discovers his love for Cordelia only just before her death. Having finally found her, she is now lost to him for eternity. Lear has also paid the ultimate price for restoration."

Tags:Claudius, Cordelia, Antony, Cleopatra

Abstract
A paper which identifies societal upheaval and the breakdown of the family as the integral causes of the moral decline of the society.

Tags:moral, deterioration, society