Abstract
The paper first looks at "King Richard the III" and his charade of love, bewitching personality and the dominance of women and their gullability. The paper then examines "Huckleberry Finn" where Huck decides for himself the difference between right and wrong, morality and immoral nature. The paper turns to William Blake's "Songs of Innocence" that describes a society where people were free of the plague of knowledge but then become aware of their actions and their free will. Finally, the paper looks at Woody Allen's characters in "Crimes and Misdemeanors" and their epiphanies of self-identity and retribution for their crimes. In this way, the paper shows how each work portrays the human struggle for morality.

Outline:
King Richard the III
Finn
Songs of Innocence
Crimes and Misdemeanors

From the Paper
"Huckleberry Finn is a character whose main purpose seems almost like a young tale of the Iliad in which fate seems to simply happen to Huck Finn. The events leading up to his stay with the widow Douglas he accounts are no fault of his own, as the metaphor of the story is found with the great Mississippi River so does Huck Finn's life simply flow along until he makes a conscious choice. This choice comes into being when Huck decides that 'sivilised' life is not for him.
"Jim gives advice to Huckleberry Finn about the disappointments found in the world and how a man may be able to handle himself by making conscious choices. . Jim states similarly to Finn that he should experience what life has to offer and decide for himself the difference between right and wrong, morality and immoral nature."

Tags:characters, right, wrong, retribution, self-identity

Abstract
This paper offers the argument that civil RICO actions have gone beyond reasonable bounds and constitute an unreasonable burden on the American civil justice system.

From the Paper
"This research paper discusses the state of the law concerning civil causes of actions brought under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, RICO, part of the Organized Crime Control Act and then examines some of their broad ramifications for American society."

Tags:racketeer, influenced, and, corrupt, organizations, act, (RICO)

Abstract
This paper is a detailed analysis of the passage in Book 8 of "The Odyssey" by Homer, where Odysseus outwardly heaps praise upon the bard Demodokos, while rhetorically suggesting differences between those who sing of others' excellence and those who actually achieve it. The writer explains how the words used by Odysseus as well as the structure of the sentences work together to elevate him and his achievements above Demodokos. The writer shows how this passage presages the content of the subsequent four books of the poem, and how Odysseus' actual experiences, which he recounts in those books, give him an authority in storytelling that Demodokos could never have.

From the Paper
"On the other hand, applying his own cunning, exercising his own stamina, and bearing his own motivation, Odysseys achieves glory. With little divine intervention, Odysseus "filled [the stratagem] once with men" (line 494), "brought it to the upper city" (lines 494-495), and "sacked Ilion" (line 495); unlike the syntax surrounding Demodokos, all three of these active verbs describing Odysseus mirror the Greek warrior's self-sufficiency and do-it-yourself approach. Because commas separate the individual achievements from one another, forming a list of everything Odysseus has accomplished, his feats seem even greater in number. The joint effect of the active verbs and list form of the sentence creates a succession of aretae examples that reinforce Odysseus's spoken kleos with a history of action."

Tags:rhapsode immortal Circe, Trojan War, gods Greek meaning diction

Abstract
This paper discusses a question raised in Mill's utilitarianism with reference to the works of that thinker and also Kant. After defining what is meant by the "rightness" or "wrongness" of an action, the paper discusses the phenomenon of assigning motives to agents in making a moral judgment. The difference between expected and actual consequences and its importance to the debate is emphasized. The paper ends with a discussion of the philosophy of Kant, which is found to be inadequate, as is the "motive-utilitarianism" of Singer.

From the Paper
"The question of whether an agent's motive in performing an action affect any possible moral judgment of it is a deceptively complex one. At first glance it seems quite straightforward, mainly because people in general spend much time debating, and generally concentrating on, others' motives. A good example is the multitude of detective stories over the years which reveal as a shocking climax the motive for the murder: a bogus insurance claim or a crime of furtive passion. These things have conditioned people to keep in mind the motives of others as they go about their lives, although many philosophers have argued that the motives and actions should be considered independently, as part of different categories. There is a much more complex relationship between the two than may be expected. The question also links quite closely with some others, extremely important to moral philosophy, and utilitarianism in particular."

Tags:bentham, fairness, happiness, justice, kant, mill, moral, morality, pain, pleasure, utilitarianism, utility

Abstract
The paper relates that one of Jesus' disciples, James, posed the following question some 2,000 years ago: "What good does it do, my brothers, if someone claims to have faith but does not prove it with actions?" (James 2:14, Bible, International Standard Version). The paper relates that the debate over faith versus actions (also referred to as faith versus deeds) has raged on ever since; some of the greatest thinkers have come down on the side of actions, and have striven to live their lives in accordance with this conviction, while others have seen no need to demonstrate their faith with actions. This paper compares and contrasts the implicit stances of three great thinkers on the issue of faith versus actions: Albert Schweitzer, Leo Tolstoy, and Simone Weil.

From the Paper
"One of Jesus' disciples, James, posed the following question some 2,000 years ago: "What good does it do, my brothers, if someone claims to have faith but does not prove it with actions?" (James 2:14, Bible, International Standard Version). The debate over faith versus actions (also referred to as faith versus deeds) has raged on ever since. Some of the greatest thinkers have come down on the side of actions, and have striven to live their lives in accordance with this conviction. Others have seen no need to demonstrate their faith with actions. This essay..."

Tags:tolstoy, schweitzer, weil

Abstract
This paper shows that the danger of tyrannical abuses of power that had once so deeply concerned the Anti-Federalists was realized by Abraham Lincoln's abuses of his executive power that took place during the American Civil War. The paper argues that the most important of these was his suspension of the writ of habeas corpus. Other actions that may have exceeded the limits of presidential authority included the closing of mail services to publications considered to be treasonous, the imprisonment of individuals who had merely exercised their First Amendment rights to free speech by publicly opposing the war and Lincoln's actions, and several financial arrangements in support of the war, such as paying civilians a total of $2 million to assist in military recruiting. The paper explains that under the Constitution, Congress rather than the president has the authority to declare war and to control the mails, the military and the purse.

From the Paper
"During the critical formation stages of our government, several issues on which many of the Founding Fathers disagreed still demanded to be resolved. One of the major problems that bothered the Anti-Federalists was the amount of power provided to the executive, which they believed was too extensive and far-reaching. They feared that this excessive authority might eventually allow the executive to become tyrannical, and a tyrannical executive power was exactly what these men had managed to escape from in England through the Revolutionary War. Less than a century after the Founders had abandoned the Articles of Confederation and the states had ratified our Constitution, the executive did in fact demonstrate this dangerous foray into tyrannical abuses of power that had once so deeply concerned the Anti-Federalists."

Tags:federalist, Framer, Madison, John, Merryman, Confederacy

Abstract
This paper explains that self-regulation, defined as self-generated thoughts, feelings, and actions for attaining academic goals, is a primary tool, according to this research, in determining efficacy in student development because it involves personal initiative, resourcefulness, persistence, and sense of responsibility, which are tools for self-motivation. The author points out that the research posits that self-regulatory approaches for studying may be particularly well-suited for attaining the goal of self-education throughout life. The paper relates that the researcher came up with a cyclical model that illustrates the dynamic process between the social and psychological processes involved in self-regulation; the cyclical model of self-regulated learning is an overlapping process in which one process may occur spontaneously with another process.

From the Paper
"Thus, Zimmerman conducts this research based on two grounds: (1) there has been little literature on the topic of self-regulation among students, especially when applied in the educational setting; and (2) the potential of self-regulation as the primary determinant that explains a student's academic performance and "learning ability". Using the method of structured and in-depth/focused interviews of students, data collection involved a sample of students, categorized into two groups: the academically successful and regular students. Analysis involved a content analysis of the interviews, where coding and codes are identified based on the dimensions of academic self-regulation, also identified by the author."

Tags:research, self-generated, tool, self-motivation, cyclical

Abstract
The paper shows how repetition is a key element in Dostoevsky's "Crime and Punishment" and how certain colors are continuously repeated as an indication of a character's mental or moral state, as in yellow, which indicates mental or moral decrepitude. The paper notes that, throughout the book, certain phrases and also structural patterns are repeated. The paper also discusses how the use of repetition brings forth subtle details in our understanding of the protagonist Raskolnikov's road to redemption and that, until the very end, Raskolnikov continually goes through similar cyclical, repetitive attempts at justifying his actions.

From the Paper
"With this in mind, the immediate regression reflects the level to which Raskolnikov is entrenched within his own moral theory. Even Sonya, the character that is meant to symbolize the hopeful and benevolent nature, can only change this Raskolnikov for a few moments. For the rest of the meeting, Raskolnikov deviates very little from his cynical state."

Tags:assumed, arrogance, helpless, cynical, state, defiance, confession

Abstract
This paper examines how, in the story "Love" by Jesse Stuart, the author uses the images of birth and death to emphasize the themes of suggested emotion and the common nature in animals and people. The paper discusses how the author first uses emotion in the title and then continues to suggest emotion through images and action to humanize the animals in the story. The paper also looks at how the narrator mentions many comparisons between animals and people, suggesting a common nature. Through both of these themes, the ideas of life / birth and death are included since everything is connected and nature is cyclical.

From the Paper
"Emotion is clearly related to the themes of life and death in the story. When the narrator thinks first of a human female and then the snake fighting to save her babies, there is both guilt and sorrow in the tone of the passage; the words "agony" and then the narrators admittance, "it was silly of me to think such thoughts" show that he does not know what he should feel (291). The reader also sees the father's hate for the snake, when he calls it his enemy and then encourages the dog to kill it. Yet, when he sees the male snake seemingly grieving for his mate, even the father cannot hate it. The human emotion of grief that is projected onto the male snake makes it impossible for even the father to kill it. In sparing it, he is showing that he has gained some respect for nature, life, and death."

Tags:life, birth, death

Abstract
This paper explains that vengeful acts, especially in Renaissance drama, are often countered by a more heinous act of violence as seen in the climatic scene of William Shakespeare's "Titus Andronicus" in which a mother is forced into cannibalizing her children. The author demonstrates that the mode of this final vengeance is inevitable because every act of revenge within this play involves consumption and cannibalism either through its language or through a connection to the play's parent story in Ovid's "Metamorphoses". For example, the bloody head of a son being returned to father in "Titus Andronicus" is extremely reminiscent of Ovid's "Metamorphoses". The paper concludes that the theme of both plays is that one ill cannot cure another.

From the Paper
"While Itys is not personally responsible for the dishonor caused to his mother and her family, he reminds his mother enough of his father that she justifies her killing of him. This is then reminiscent of Lavinia's treatment by the Goths. In a similar way, Lavinia seems to be "the scapegoat for Andronici violence," while also playing a role in the cyclic revenge of the play due to her "intrinsically polluted condition" as a woman. With Lavinia's rape (rather the panning thereof), there too is the characteristic language of consumption that is present in all the play's acts of revenge."

Tags:marked mother hunger, cyclic actions, language