Science Fiction Explored in Frankenstein, Dr Jekyll and...

The Legacy of Science Fiction Explored in Frankenstein, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and The Invisible Man Science Fiction is a branch of literature that explores the possibilities of human scientific advances, especially technological ones. Mary Shelleys Frankenstein (published in 1818) was a precursor of the genre which was established by Jules Vernes novels of the late 1800s. HG Wells at the turn of the twentieth century brought more scientific rigour in his works, such as The Time Machine, The Invisible Man and The War of the Worlds. Isaac Asimov and Arthur C Clarke are among the most familiar writers of science fiction of the modern era (Cambridge Encyclopaedia, 1994). However, works from an earlier time, Frankenstein, Robert Louis†¦show more content†¦Critics believe that Shelley was reacting to the science of her time when scientists studied the elusive boundary between life and death, through experiments which tried to restore life to persons who had recently died by using electricity (US National Library of Medicine 2002). The model for Frankenstein may be the Scottish scientist James Lind, a school mentor to Shelleys husband; Mary became intrigued with tales of his experiments (SMH 2/5/02). Tim Marshall (1995) gives a different perspective: just after the publication of Frankenstein the science of anatomy aroused controversy because of the infamous case of Burke and Hare [found guilty in Edinburgh of murdering at least 15 people to obtain bodies for dissection]. In 1832, the Anatomy Act granted anatomists access to unclaimed bodies from the workhouses. Before this time, dissection was a feared and hated punishment for murder but the Anatomy Act, according to Richardson (1989, cited in Marshall 1995) successfully redefined poverty as crime. The ensuing publicity made Frankenstein even more popular. Relation between God and humanity is another issue. Joyce Carol Oates (1987) believes that no one in the novel is evil. The universe is emptied of the concept of God and assumptions of good and evil, and this constitutes the novelsShow MoreRelatedVictorian Novel9605 Words   |  39 Pagesframe the period of Victorian literature, it is commonly accepted that it was the reign of Queen Victoria (1837-1901) that saw the novel emerge and flourish, all the more that the 1937 was the year when Dickens’ Oliver Twist, the first major work of fiction. The first readers of both, Dickens and Eliot were not conscious they lived in the ‘Victorian period’. They thought that this was a modern era marked with turbulent transition. However, the most crucial writers of the period grew up in the earlier

Understanding The Difference of Living Standards Standard of Living Free Essays

The American life style has been very much shaped by their economy. Nearly all aspects of American, and for that matter the rest of the world†s, life have been changed by their economy†s in some way, shape or form. Everything from the beds we sleep on, to the food we eat, to the jobs we aquire to make ends meet is continuously shaped by the different economies each respective country has. We will write a custom essay sample on Understanding The Difference of Living Standards Standard of Living or any similar topic only for you Order Now So what is quality of life anyway? There are probably a thousand different answers to that question, but they all point in the same direction. Quality of life means how happy you are with the lifestyle you have. Are you unhappy because you don†t have the belongings you want, or are you perfectly happy being without them, and believe in just enjoying life for what it is. Quality of life is a measure of your social, economic and mental well being. Standard of living is something totally different from quality of life. Although they sound the same and the meanings of the separate words are similar, each phrase has it†s own meaning. The standard of your living may affect your standard of life though. Standard of living means the material possessions you have. It is the degree you are able to satisfy your material wants and needs. First, to understand how the fact that the United States is a market economy affects the quality of life there, it helps for you to know some history on the subject. When the United States first started there was practically no secondary industry, this was because there hadn†t been a need for it before then. All the States did was â€Å"harvest† the raw goods from the land and sell them back to the mother country. There wasn†t any need to have any secondary industry. This all changed when they became a separate country. Later on when the British industrial revolution was about at it†s midriff the American revolution kicked in. this changed the secondary industry from a cottage based industry to a factory based industry with the introduction of machines that could do the work of several men. The farmers started to move out of the country and in to the big cities, where all the work was. Eli Whitney can be credited with the mass production of interchangeable pa rts. Unfortunately, this system created a feeling of alienation. The workers in the the factorys were in a totally different social class than the managers. This gap along with the fact that they didn†t feel like they were part of the coroporation, a corporation acts as a single fictcios person, the workers didn†t feel like they were part of this person. The quality of life of the workers at these factories went down. They felt alienated at work, then they went home to poor housing conditions, malnutrition and virtually no social mobility. Although they weren†t nearly as bad as in Britain. The producers were happy though; they were making lots of money and more and better products than ever before. This leads to the next issue of the relations between the labor force and management. This affects how people get the products, and how some people work, thus affecting the quality of life of many American citizens. Labor and management often have disagreements because the two groups have different views on how things should work. Management wants to keep production costs at a minimum, and therefore giving workers a low wage, while labor workers want high wages and lots of benefits for themselves. When the two groups have a disagreement and go into talks they try to find the answer to one simple question, â€Å"what should be the terms and conditions of employment?† and depending on their respective answers, they agree or disagree. These decisions determine the relationship of these two groups. There are many risks in business, especially if you are the proprietor behind a proprietorship. This kind of business means you stand to lose or gain the most. If this fact is causing too much stress, your quality of life may â€Å"go through the floor.† But if you are the kind of person who values money very highly, your quality of life may go up when you have the knowledge that you may be able to make that much money. There are always ways to get around the risks of business; there are exemptions to every rule. There is always to lose too though. Since the great depression, government has had much more to do with the economy than it used to. The government has much more to do with the American citizen†s life since the great depression. This bothers some people, but others like the security of being under the government†s protective wing. The government has decided to exert more controll because they want to limit the fluctuations of the business cycle. The government now makes laws and regulations to restrain the country. There are also many more social programs now, which some people couldn†t live without. These were developed because people were losing money and jobs over things which they didn†t have control over, like market fluctuations. The consumer has a very important role in the economy, and so in there own standard of living, and even in there own quality of life. Some people are only happy when they have the material possessions, while others have no need of material things to make them happy. The people who need the possessions put a high regard to what the role of an American consumer is. Things like complaining when something is unsatisfactory, and becoming informed about which products to buy. Every country has an economic system, and economic systems affect lifestyles, quality of lives, and standards of living. An economy can affect life much the way a climate can. In fact, an economy is actually a kind of climate. An economy can change, fluctuate and cause harm much the same way a weather climate can. The united states has used all levels of government and private enterprise to ensure an adequate quality of life for all of it†s citizens. The market economy is allowed to function by the government as long as it supports the common good, or quality of life. How to cite Understanding The Difference of Living Standards Standard of Living, Essay examples

Cb Prepartions free essay sample

Social character traits have shown that inner and other-directed consumers may have different preferences in terms of promotional messages. Inner-directed people prefer advertisements that stress personal benefits while other-directed people seem to prefer advertisements that feature social acceptance. (a) HIGHLY DOGMATIC CUSTOMERS: It is a personality trait that measures the degree of rigidity (versus openness) that individuals display towards unfamiliar and towards information that is contrary to their own established beliefs. Dogmatism: general tendency to be open or closed to new ideas and innovations. A person who is high in dogmatism approaches the unfamiliar defensively while the person who is low in dogmatism will rarely consider unfamiliar or opposing beliefs. * more receptive is Ads for new products or services that contains an appeal from the authoritative figure. Marketer uses celebrities and experts to their new product advertising for making it easier for the potentially reluctant customers. * Highly dogmatic consumers are likely to respond favorably to a new product when the advertising message is presented in an authoritarian manner (e. g. celebrity endorsement or expert testimonials). * prefer traditional or established products rather than innovative ones. close minded towards unfamiliar and untoward information that is contrary to their own established beliefs * approach such information with considerable discomfort and uncertainty. promotional message most suitable would be endorsement or appeal from an authoritative figure. * New products need to be presented in an authoritative manner and that celebrities could be employed to reach dogmatic consumers who are more closed minded. For example: Colgate Dental Cream with Doctors and Experts endorsements. Anti-Polio Campaign featuring Amitabh and Sachin Tendulkar also useAuthoritative statements. The Cadbury’s brand took a beatng in sales after the worms were found in somepackets. Dogmatic Consumers stopped purchasing the Brand. Amitabh Bacchhanwas then used as Authority figure to reestablish Brand. b) Inner-directed consumers * tend to use their own values and standards in evaluating a new product * ads aimed at them should depict the attainment of personal achievement and satisfaction. ads that stress product features and benefits, which enable them to usetheir own values and standards in evaluating products * rely on their own inner values or standards in evaluating new products and are likely to be the consumer innovators. * other directed customers tend to look to others for guidance as to what is appropriate or what is inappropriate. * be prefer ads that stress product features and personal benefits ( enabling them to use their own values and standards in evaluating products whereas the other * For example: Surf Ad showing Shabana Azmi saving two buckets of water is an example of the same. The latest from Surf Excel is currently running on television. This is the ad where many people are seen walking with two buckets full of water. They then pour it into a large reservoir. At this point none other than Shabana Azmi informs you what a great thing thissaving of water is for the country and implores you to use Surf Excel. * manufacturer of cameras who advertises to inner-directed consumers should stress the ability to take better pictures and the resulting personal satisfaction. c) Consumers with a high optimum stimulation level * more open to risk-taking, more likely to be innovative have a greater willingness to take risks, try products with many novel features, and shop in new retail outlets. * likely to respond favorably to promotional messages stressing more rather than less risk, novelty,or excitement. * to seek purchase related information and to accept new retail facilities. * For example: The exciting and exotic Vacation Campaign of Malasia-Truly Asia is position ing of  Airways to sell the Asian Adventures. These enjoy thinking. They are responsive to that part of Ad that is rich in Information. The individuals representing this group are adventurous and often related to entrepreneurial environments. The innovators run the risk that the innovation does not catch on, and thus subject themselves to a potential loss they must be prepared to absorb. Therefore innovators have to live with the uncertainty about the potentials of the technology, which can be viewed upon as the price to pay for being pioneers in a new field catalyzing the diffusion of new technologies. The early adopters are ready to adopt a new technology when they observe that other individuals has started adopting, and sees the potential for being some of the first adopters of a new and promising technology. These individuals are often a more integrated part of the local society than the innovators, and their adoptions are crucial for the technology to take off and get hold of the broad public. For the early adopters the uncertainties about the merits of the new technology are strongly diminished, and can therefore adopt the new technology without running the risk of buying a young and untested technology. This group accounts for about one third of the total number of adopters, and provide the link between the progressive early adopters and the more skeptical later adopters. In the latter half of the spectrum the late majority also represent about a third of the adopters. This group is skeptical to new innovations, and is not willing to adopt, until a lot of other people have adopted before them ensuring the success of the technology and possibly massive network effects. The last 16 % of the adopters, the laggards, often focus on traditional values and base their decisions on past events. They are suspicious of any new inventions to change the way life are traditionally lived, and must be 100 % certain that the technology will prevail before they are willing to adopt. From a consumers’ point of view it is essential to think about the decisions of future adopters when choosing what technology to go with. The decisions of previous adopters are on the other hand a know factor and plays a role for the decision also. So does the structure of the market, i. e. which technologies are available at the time of adoption, compared to potential superior technologies that could be available in the future. Recent findings indicate that there is a lack of willingness to wait by the early adopters. 11 This high priority of being among the very first users of a new technology is said to inflict negative externalities on the later adopters. These later adopters can be forced to adopt an inferior technology to make sure that they are compatible with the technologies of the early adopters, or they might be forced to give up compatibility to get a superior technology. That said the diffusion of new technologies is often strongly dependent on the choices of the early adopters.