‘Angels & Demons’ is a novel by the American author Dan Brown, which tells us about the adventures of Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon in Vatican City. This work is not only an absorbing read but also provides examples of intercultural problems. First of all, the problem to which the whole novel is devoted is the interrelation between religion and science. "Since the beginning of history," Langdon explained, "a deep rift has existed between science and religion. Outspoken scientists like Copernicus--" "Were murdered," Kohler interjected. "Murdered by the church for revealing scientific truths. Religion has always persecuted science." The roots of this lie in the fact that the Church is afraid that scientific discoveries and innovations may lead people not to believe in God. For instance, nowadays, mankind has managed to highly develop medicine, which might be interpreted as humans’ superiority over any illnesses and even death. For religion, this view is a crucial question as, for example, the Bible says: ‘Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.’(Genesis; 3.16) These are the first lines where God talks about the sorrow a human being will have by His will. And today, people have invented such medicines that reduce sorrow or pain during childbirth, and even cesarean sections exist. This is only one of a million representations of why people might have doubts about God’s will because of scientific achievements. Let me introduce some examples from Russian history connected with the confrontation between the Russian Orthodox Church and science. In 1740, initiated by Mikhail Vasilyevi... ... in the middle of the text.
To wrap it up, African Americans lived an unfair past in the south, such as Alabama, during the 1930s because of discrimination and the misleading thoughts towards them. The Ku Klux Klan, Jim Crow Laws and the way they were generally treated in southern states all exemplify this merciless time period of the behavior towards them. They were not given the same respect, impression, and prospect as the rest of the citizens of America, and instead they were tortured. Therefore, one group should be never singled out and should be given the same first intuition as the rest of the people, and should never be judged by color, but instead by character.
Although many laws were passed that recognized African Americans as equals, the liberties they had been promised were not being upheld. Hoffman, Blum, and Gjerde state that “Union League members in a North Carolina county, upon learning of three or four black men who ‘didn’t mean to vote,’ threatened to ‘whip them’ and ‘made them go.’ In another country, ‘some few colored men who declined voting’ were, in the words of a white conservative, ‘bitterly persecute[ed]” (22). Black codes were also made to control African Americans. Norton et al. states that “the new black codes compelled former slaves to carry passes, observe a curfew, live in housing provided by a landowner, and give up hope of entering many desirable occupations” (476). The discrimination and violence towards African Americans during this era and the laws passed that were not being enforced were very disgraceful. However, Reconstruction was a huge stepping stone for the way our nation is shaped today. It wasn’t pretty but it was the step our nation needed to take. We now live in a country where no matter the race, everyone is considered equal. Reconstruction was a success. Without it, who knows where our nation would be today. African American may have never gained the freedoms they have today without the
Earl G. Graves said, “Fifty years after Dr. Martin Luther King expressed his dream that African Americans would someday be judged not by the color of our skin but by the content of our character, the line between the suspect is a black male and black males are suspect remains dangerously thin.” Our nation needs to follow the five-step plan outlined by ACLU to allow our members of society safety and equal rights for one another.
That is why Lincoln believed the birth of a new freedom was necessary: “that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” Securing the civil rights of African Americans has been a process, which has not reached its end. Supreme Court cases and Civil Rights acts needed to pass in order to guarantee the civil rights of blacks. Racial discrimination, although touched upon, is not fully addressed in these cases and acts. Therefore, I believe that the civil rights of African Americans are still not fully protected. The new birth of freedom has not been reached yet, not until the United States is not divided and everyone is fully equal. Before we reach that freedom, we are at risk of perishing, which is what Abraham Lincoln
African-Americans will never be able to experience equal rights if they are separate from the rest of society. It has proved to be more effectual for everyone to be together, as well as having equal
After putting up with political discrimination for decades, many African Americans were willing to “raise the terrible weapon of self-defense.” (The New Negro) Although they should have received equality promised to them after the Civil War, they were left empty handed and instead struggle against biased laws. Their demand for political progress itself is a step forward because white people supporting political equality were uncommon and groups such as the Ku Klux Klan intimidated them out of doing it. Their peaceful protests, and reasonable pleas were often overlooked and ignored. With their demands neglected and scoffed at they wanted to prove they were serious. By refusing to accept their problems forcefully they would not be thought of as bluffing. The problem with this is that even though there were African Americans demanding it, they were a minority and many white people did not want to help them because they benefitted from it and racism was still rampant. One evidence of white people benefitting from racism was when Wining Boy tells a story of how after an African American buys land with berries growing, the former white owner would “go and fix it with the law
After the abolishment of slavery at the conclusion of the Civil War in April of 1865, the United States saw an influx of new laws and policies that were meant to ensure the easy settlement of the freed slave. From earning the right to have full citizenship to gaining the right to vote, the decades after the Civil War proved to be essential for the African American especially for the men. Although there were many obstacles originated from deep rooted racism and classicism, a new legal race still managed to emerge. Yet, in order to fully understand how the African American race went from slave to a successful and free race, one must look at the political and social climate that was occurring after the Civil War. What laws were at the forefront
Although our present day society still questions whether the rights of the Individual should outweigh the public order or the social order of our country should outweigh the individual rights, it has enlightened me to a distorted vision and a compromised system and questionable Leadership. “African- American men comprise less than 6% of the U.S. population and almost one-half of its criminal prisons.” Quoted by the Bureau of Justice statistics. When research is conducted by someone other than yourself yields such great crippling results, it does hold true to that which began before our awakening.
...to any lengths necessary to get the rights the African Americans deserved. Both methods were going towards the same goal; they just went down different paths to receive equal rights. I agree with MLK, by saying it should be direct action but not destructive to the rights they are hoping to receive one day.
During this time of enlightenment and exploration however, the standards of Christianity and ethical thought challenged science and its moral reasoning. Despite the large progress in society, the church's vast power led the people to fear science. However the church's fear was not just for the salvation of their church, but that science would disprove the proof of God and take God's place in society. For this to happen would bring chaos to society and give little hope to people. The thought of a life without God is daunting to most, and would create an uneasiness to life and an immense fear of death. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein through Victor Frankenstein's perilous journey shows the destruction behind man's thirst for scientific knowledge and the ethical reasons as to why man should not play God.
This sentence, written in the Declaration of Independence, contains some of the most powerful words ever written. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal…” (US 1776). They invoke feelings of pride and integrity in the hearts and minds of most Americans. However, these magnificent, well-intentioned words that were written in 1776 are over-shadowed by feelings of shame, sorrow and betrayal for how men, women and children were rejected as human beings worthy of equality simply because of the color of their skin. While things have improved for African Americans in the past two hundred years, we still have not gotten it exactly right. The treatment of African Americans is still a source of frustration for those who truly want to believe in the power of the words “all men are created equal”.
Irving, Washington. “The Devil and Tom Walker”. Elements of Literature: Fifth Course. Austin: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2008. 175-185. Print.
African- Americans have a long and strenuous history in the United States. Even though today, our country seems for the most part, free of racial bias, this was not always the case. African- Americans were brought to this country to be sold and used as slaves. They endured horrible working conditions, and an even harder lifestyle that consisted of being treated like property instead of actual human beings. It was not until after the Civil War; the implementation of the Emancipation Proclamation of 1865, that African- Americans were legally freed of their duty to slavery. However, even after they were freed, life was not easy and they did not possess all the same freedoms as white Americans. This period from 1865 to 1903 was the objective for W.E.B' Du Bois to write his book, The Souls of Black Folk, which focuses on the experiences of African- Americans after they were granted freedom.
We believe that the congress of the United States should pass a Civil Right's Legislation for Black Rights. We have been freed from our slavery but that is not enough. The congress has passed the right to free us from slavery; why shouldn't they go the rest of the way and grant us all of our rights as a U.S Citizen? Currently, we are in limbo. We do not have the right to own property, to vote, or to become educated or any of the natural rights given to a citizen. We are free men and it means nothing. We are not protected from the Black Codes that the Southerners have made against us. Because of the Black Codes we can not enjoy the freedom we have been graciously granted. We need help in overcoming these new codes. President Lincoln has said on this topic: "And I do further proclaim, declare, and make known that any provision which may be adopted by such state government in relation to the freed people of such state, which shall recognize and declare their permanent freedom, provide for their education, and which may yet be consistent as a temporary arrangement with their present condition as a laboring, landless, and homeless class, will not be objected to by the National Executive" (Lincoln, 19). The African-American race is no less qualified as a person than anyone else. We can do jobs just as well as the whites, if not better, since we have been doing their dirty work for years. The Freedmen's says "His personal rights as a freedman once recognized in law and assured in practice, there is little reason to doubt that he will become a useful member of the great industrial family of nations. Once released from the disabilities of bondage, he will somewhere find, and will maintain, his own appropriate social position" (Final, 26).
Nearly three centuries ago, black men and women from Africa were brought to America and put into slavery. They were treated more cruelly in the United States than in any other country that had practiced slavery. African Americans didn’t gain their freedom until after the Civil War, nearly one-hundred years later. Even though African Americans were freed and the constitution was amended to guarantee racial equality, they were still not treated the same as whites and were thought of as second class citizens. One man had the right idea on how to change America, Martin Luther King Jr. had the best philosophy for advancing civil rights, he preached nonviolence to express the need for change in America and he united both African Americans and whites together to fight for economic and social equality.