Abstract This paper focuses on aspects of Stephen King's writing and life. The paper examines how others see Stephen King as a master of the macabre, but King himself has an aversion to being labeled by any single genre. It shows how, in all his novels, King seems to echo the 20th century obsession with horror, where, rather like in "Frankenstein", the initial progress brought on by the Industrial Revolution has waned, and its darker side, like the horrors of nuclear war, hang over the earth like a threatening sword with a kind of doomsday scenario. It discusses that, if we trace the evolution of King as a writer from his early macabre days to his later fantasy novels, he seems to echo deep fears within us all, as we ultimately struggle through the darkness to reach love and light.
From the Paper "Stephen Edwin King was born in September 21 st., 1947, Portland, Maine and soon after his birth his mother Nellie Ruth and his father Donald, separated. A product of a broken home, Stephen was brought up by his mother. His early life was spent shuttling between his father's family in Indiana and his mother's family in Massachusetts and Maine. The young Stephen graduated from high school in 1966 and showed early signs of his talent as a writer in the University of Maine from where he wrote a weekly column for the school newspaper. As a student, he became a supporter of the anti-war movement and supported a peaceful solution to the war in Vietnam. His mother encouraged him to be a writer, but she was also insistent that he get a teaching certificate, so that he could have a job to rely on, in case his writing career did not progress well. (The Observer, 17 September 2000). He married Tahita Bruce in 1971 and they both had to struggle hard for a livelihood. During this time he taught, worked as a janitor and wrote short stories-Later to be published in the book, ?Night Watch.?"
From the Paper "Under the rubric of the human sociological system, aggression and aggressive behavior are part of daily life. There are clear incidents of aggressive patterns of behavior within human relations on the micro level, as well as certain societal trends in the macro levels of human interaction. On a small level, humans act aggressively, much like nonhuman primates and other animals, in mating and sexual activity. On a more broad plane, human activities tend to conceptualize aggressive behavior when dealing with enemies, perhaps in order to so completely depersonalize the other side, as to be able to act out hostility and aggression, or perhaps to bring out the more animalistic human traits.
This paper will concern itself with one monograph on human aggression in the broadest and most political vein namely that of..."
Abstract Paul Krugman's book, The Return of Depression Economics, examines the economies of seven different countries that produce the majority of the economic output of the world, and how each has been affected by major economic slumps throughout the world. This interesting yet very complicated book offers a tour of the major economic crises which have spread across the world in the 1990s, including those of East Asia, Brazil, Mexico, and Russia. Paul Krugman provides brief accounts of the devaluation of Thailand's baht currency, the "financial doomsday machine" created by hedge funds, and the "liquidity trap" of the Japanese economy. Krugman's light journalistic style is easy to read for the most part and is well-targeted at his intended audience. Many of the nine chapters stand very well on their own as slightly extended versions of what is known in the US as op-ed pieces. For example, the chapter on hedge funds contains as clear an explanation of the operation of such funds as a layman could get anywhere. It also contains a number of brief, enlightening and well-written stories under sub-headings like 'The Legend of George Soros' and 'The Madness of Prime Minister Mahathir', and concludes with 'The Panic of 1998' which outlines the demise of Long Term Capital Management. In other chapters there are equally succinct and fascinating stories concerning Mexico, Argentina, Thailand and so on. Some of these extracts ought to make very useful reading to stimulate discussion on undergraduate macro, international or development economics courses. It is the purpose of this paper to examine the major themes of Krugman's book.
This paper discusses the anthropic principle, which asserts that the laws, constants, and basic structure of the universe are not completely arbitrary, but are constrained by the existence of intelligent observers.
Abstract The paper explains that proponents of the principle believe, if any of the constants of life were any different than the observer knows them to be, then life as he or she knows it would not exist. Basically, the anthropic principle questions the origin of everything in the universe. The author reports that Brandon Carter, who presented his ideas about the anthropic principle in 1974, claims that the principle was meant only to caution astrophysicists and cosmologists of possible errors in the interpretation of astronomical and cosmological data unless the biological constraints of the observer were taken into account. The paper relates that the anthropic principle presents no definitive answers, only the suggestion that everything in the universe is interrelated and interdependent, and perhaps there is some type of intelligent design, a fundamental core that holds all these variable together.
Table of Contents
Introduction
The Anthropic Principle
Thought Leaders
From the Paper "The most significant premise of the anthropic principle is that our place in the universe is special. Further, we occupy a unique segment of cosmic history. This of course is the controversy of the principle. Since the early days of scientific thought, it has been believed that there is nothing special about our place in the universe. Believers in the anthropic principle hope to disprove this. Theologically, the anthropic principle has led to a revival of the argument from design, which had lost its intellectual respectability when Darwin came along."
Abstract This paper examines the George R. Stewart book "Earth Abides". The book deals with a viral plague that wipes out most of humanity, leaving only a few scattered survivors who have the responsibility for rebuilding and reconstituting the human race. The paper examines how the main protagonist, Isherwood and the other few survivors have to start, as it were, from 'ground zero'. After retracing the novel's plot and critiquing the actions, motivations and symbolic significance of Isherwood and others, the paper then discusses the novel's many positive reviews by literary critics.
From the Paper "The novel is remarkable for a number of reasons. Firstly, it deals with relevant issues that pertain to contemporary society today. Secondly the work does not follow the conventions or stereotypical patterns of apocalyptic fiction. In essence the novel is a comment and a sociological and philosophical analysis of contemporary society. For example, the issue of racial differences and inequality were very prominent in the time that the novel was written. It is therefore a comment on society and the possible future of modern society when the main character chooses a black women for his wife. The book also makes it clear that he does not choose her for her looks or any other superficial reason, but for her character, good sense and intelligence."
Abstract This paper discusses the reaction when Al Gore won an Academy Award for his documentary film, "An Inconvenient Truth," directed by Davis Guggenheim. The paper contends that Al Gore's theories on global warming have led people astray and that Gore has employed rhetoric and bad science and has even deliberately misled the public in his claims. The paper attempts to understand what could be the underlying impetus for Gore's presenting global warming as an impending doomsday event that is just around the corner.
Table of Contents:
The Inconvenient Truth of Rhetoric
The Science
The Kyoto Protocol
Summary and Conclusion
From the Paper "The argument is made by both sides that they are not popular, and that powerful organizations and people back the opposition, such that their coming forward - both sides - in support of their moral conscience on global warming has earned them no amount of respect from the other side. One scientist in The Great Global Warming Swindle, a professor in Ottawa, claims that taking a stand against Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth, has brought death threats to his door. This scientist and others who appear in The Great Global Warming Swindle, again, do not disagree with Al Gore. They agree that the surface of the planet is warming. They do not agree that it is necessarily man-made emitted CO2 emissions that are producing the CO2 levels in the atmosphere, or that it is even CO2 as the cause of the warming. What they are suggesting is that if we embrace Gore's theories on global warming, then we will be ignoring the potentially real reason behind global warming. If anything can be done about global warming, it should at least be done in the direction of the real problem, the surface warming."
