Abstract
This paper discusses the distortions in religion as they appear in the movie, Babette's Feast and the book, "For the Life of the World." The paper explains that there are three ways of practicing religion; religious, secular and sacramental. The paper goes on to explain why the sacramental view is the correct way to act and not the religious or secular views.

From the Paper
"In the film Babette's Feast, a major religious point is being shown to the audience through a fable. This fable consists of several different characters: a pastor and his two daughters, Martina and Philippa, several suitors for these daughters, townspeople, and a French housemaid. The fable deals with the way that the townspeople relate to their God through their extremely pious actions and attitudes, and how these views become changed by the end of the movie through a feast given by the French maid, Babette. The lesson being taught by this movie also deals directly with explanations of the Christian religion by Alexander Schmemann in his book, For the Life of the World. The main lesson being taught deals with the various different ways of leading lives dedicated to God, and how each one in its own way is either right and wrong. These different views are: the Secular, which says that the physical is all there is, so do the most with it, the Religious, in which people try to get closer to God by distancing themselves from material things, and the Sacramental, which says that we should be thankful for the things because they were made by God and know that they are not all that there is, and by doing such we are living in communion with God. The movie shows the audience that the Secular distortion and the Religious distortion are both incorrect, and that the Sacramental view is the correct path through the reactions of the various groups to Babette's feast. "

Tags:distortion, movie, religion, schmemann, babette, feast, sacramental, secular

Abstract
The paper illustrates the use of distortion in art, literature, and theater using the examples of expressionism in art, William Faulkner's 'The Sound and the Fury' and Samuel Becket's play 'Waiting for Godot', in literature.
The paper highlights that expressionism is an art form that exemplifies exaggerated distortion in an attempt to further understand reality. In the literary world distortion is used in much the same way by representing absurdity and using distortion to explain important deceptions that make up every day life.

From the Paper
"Expressionism was a movement in fine arts that emphasized the expression of inner experience rather than solely realistic portrayal, seeking to depict not objective reality but the subjective emotions and responses that objects and events arouse in the artist. It was an artistic style in which the artist sought to depict not objective reality but rather the subjective emotions and responses that objects and events arouse in him. The artist accomplished this through distortion, exaggeration, primitivism, and fantasy and through the vivid, jarring, violent, or dynamic application of formal elements."

Tags:subjective, personal, old, authoritarian, society, spontaneous, self-expression

Abstract
This paper relates that the main character of "The Great Gatsby" is Nick Carraway, who leaves Minnesota to travel to New York, believing that it is in New York where he can make his fortune and live the American Dream. The paper looks at how the values that Nick brought to New York from Minnesota are constantly challenged as Nick wends his way through the maze of relationships and deceit that snares him in his West Egg, New York life. The paper attempts to show that what Nick finds, instead of success and personal satisfaction, is disillusionment with the American Dream and a desire to return to the life that he knew at home.

Outline:
Quality of Distortion
Distorted People
Distorted Dreams
Distorted Values

From the Paper
"Nick has a similar past to that of Jay Gatsby. Like Gatsby, he comes from the Midwest. Like Gatsby, he desires to get ahead in life. And, like Gatsby, Nick believes that going to New York is the way to accomplish that goal. However, unlike Gatsby, Nick makes an attempt to retain his personal values instead of being caught up by the vortex that swept up Gatsby. For a short time, Nick finds himself tempted by the life that Gatsby leads. He briefly flirts with the fast life, enjoying his brief love affair with Jordan Baker. After Gatsby's death, however, Nick decides to return to the more grounded life he once led."

Tags:American, Dream, Nick, Carraway

Abstract
This research paper investigates the impact of instructional conditions on the scores of three parenting measures: the Adult/Adolescent Parenting Inventory, the Child Abuse Potential Inventory, and the Parenting Stress Index. It explores the ability of the measures validity indexes to detect response distortions. The paper states that most parenting-measure scores change significantly as a result of parents' attempts to distort their responses. The paper provides extensive information and statistics.

Table of Contents:
Abstract
Introduction
Method
Test Instruments
Procedure
Results
Validity Measures
Discussion
References

From the Paper
"In this study, we explored the impact of instructional conditions (fake good, be honest, fake bad, and respond randomly) on AAPI, CAP Inventory, and PSI scores. Because the assumption was that parents can distort their responses on parenting measures when they are asked or are motivated to do so, parenting-scale score differences were expected for both general-population and at-risk (for child physical abuse) parents across the instructional conditions. Scores indicating low risk on the three parenting measures were expected following the instruction to fake good, whereas scores indicating high risk were expected following the instruction to fake bad. Parents in the be-honest condition were expected to earn scores that fall between parents' scores in the fake-good and fake-bad conditions."

Tags:adolescent, adult, parent, stress, parenting, cap, aapi, psi

Abstract
The paper examines how the arguments provided by Postman reveal the major problems with the mass media through the medium of the television. The paper explains that the central argument for form over content is accepted because of the nature and influence of corporate entities that try and break down and fragment information that best suits an ideology that does not support a critical sense of self. The paper asserts that this problem is reflected in the way that education is affected by various technologies, but Postman is wrong to accede that television as a form of technology is to be solely blamed for its informational value.

Tags:postman, media, myth

Abstract
This case study examines the U.S.-China standoff from the perspective of three newspapers: the privately-owned "Washington Post" and "USA Today" in the United States; and the state-controlled "People?s Daily in the People's Republic of China".

From the Paper
"An event is a fact. It happens. People witness it. People talk about it. People report it. In today's world, the event may be recorded for posterity in a variety of ways. It may be capture on videotape. It may be captured in the voice recordings of an airplane's "black box." It may be tracked line by line through a printed transcript that contains the exact words of the participants. Recorded. Exact. Fact. We associate these words with what we read in newspapers, hear on the radio, or see on television. We assume that the news, as it is reported, is wholly truthful and accurate, but is it? Is the reportage of real-world events by the "unbiased" media free from the filters through which we all observe and analyze the world around us? Children play a game called "telephone." In this game, a group of children sit in a circle. One child goes first, whispering a message to one of the children alongside him. This child in turn whispers the same message to the child next in the circle, and he to the next, and so on, and on, until at length, the very last child to receive the message repeats it aloud to the entire group. The final result of this children's game is almost always uncontrollable laughter. Why? Because the message that is repeated aloud at the end of the game is almost always entirely different from the original message. Somewhere along the line, that message was changed. Whether intentionally, or accidentally, a fact " in this case the original message " was completely distorted by passing through the "filter" of different individuals. It is the same with events of world importance. The media and their governments present the news in ways that reflect their relative points of view. They fine-tune their representations in order to shape public opinion, carefully guiding it into the desired channels."

Tags:public, news, journalism, washington, post, usa, today, china

Abstract
In this article, the writer studies the novel "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The writer discusses that when the novel opens, Nick Carraway has a certain set of personal values that he first abandons and then, ultimately reclaims. This set of personal values included a healthy sense of morality. The writer discusses that although this sense of morality is constantly challenged by the Eggian crowd, he eventually tires of their behavior when he sees what happens to Gatsby as a result of their lack of morality.

From the Paper
"The main character of The Great Gatsby is Nick Carraway, who leaves Minnesota to travel to New York, believing that it is in New York in which he can make his fortune and live the American Dream. The values that he brought to New York from Minnesota are constantly challenged as Nick wends his way through the maze of relationships and deceit that snares him in his West Egg, New York life. What he finds, instead of success and personal satisfaction, is disillusionment with the American Dream and a desire to return to the life that he knew at home. Nick has a similar past to that of Jay Gatsby. Like Gatsby, he comes from ..."

Tags:values

Abstract
This paper analyzes the psychological distortion and obsession that the narrator exhibits in his love for Ligeia. The paper discusses the narrator's earlier obsessions with Ligeia to shed light on how he slowly becomes more delusional as the story continues into his second marriage. The paper then discusses how after his second wife dies from illness (as did Ligeia), it becomes apparent that he has a mental break down and delusional images of Ligeia become manifest in his thoughts.

Tags:poe, ligeia, insanity

Abstract
This paper examines the movie, "Braveheart," which tells the story of the thirteenth-century Scottish hero, William Wallace, who led his countrymen in a quest to gain freedom from the oppressive rule of King Edward I of England. It looks at how the movie distorts its two central characters and contains many inaccuracies, although it heroically depicts William Wallace and the conflict between England and Scotland. It analyzes how, although the basic plot of the film is historically accurate, it overly simplifies the characters of Wallace and Edward. It also shows how the film's representation of Wallace illustrates the attitudes and beliefs that the Scots have held for him throughout the years. Although William Wallace and King Edward were powerful and pivotal foes in the fight for Scottish Independence, Wallace's many faults are overlooked in the movie in order to depict him as a Hollywood hero. Additionally, Edward is villanized to the extreme, despite his legitimate actions as King.

From the Paper
"Despite the oversimplification of his character in Braveheart, King Edward was actually a practical and effective ruler. Although Edward was a strict ruler, he became king at a time when feudalism was breaking down in Europe. A firm hand was needed to maintain stability in England as social structures changed. Additionally, his attempted occupation of Scotland would have also benefited England as a whole. Like many logical rulers of the time, Edward wanted to expand his United Kingdom. Increased land holdings were equated with increased royal superiority and national power. It was the aim of many rulers, not just Edward, to protect themselves and increase their power. Edward was given the opportunity, by the nobles of Scotland, to further this aim and acted accordingly."

Tags:gibson, hero, scotland, longshanks

Abstract
The paper examines "The Green Peril to the Third World" and and "Environmentalists Surf Tsunami Tragedy" by Steven Milloy as well as "Eco-terrorists Recruit 2nd Graders" by Mark Morano. The paper shows how environmental groups are often narrow-minded, offer distorted views of significant issues and ignore evidence which opposes their main theses. The paper suggests that mainstream media groups should emphasize both sides of the debate, point out the fallacies in the arguments brought forward by environmentalists and stop ignoring the controversial activities of groups like Rainforest Action Network (RAN).

From the Paper
"The article, "The Green Peril to the Third World," shows how the proposed Kyoto Protocol endangers the economic well-being of developing nations insofar as dramatic reductions in greenhouse emissions will devastate their fledgling economies. The article also points out that there is no definitive proof that climate change is created by humans and a few passages are set aside outlining how environmental groups have established a de facto "veto" power over loans to developing nations which curry their disfavor - the example of Citigroup and its loan program being a good example (Milloy, para.1-13). As author Steven Milloy argues, ""....poor countries need economic development and environmental activists are blocking their way" (para.14)."

Tags:greenhouse, emissions, climate, change, narrow-mindedness, fallacies, agendas