Adam Smith's Lectures on Jurisprudence
Adam Smith, in his Lectures of Jurisprudence, makes an argument for the necessity of marriage through biological mechanisms. While superficially similar, his arguments seem to differ greatly from the modern notion of how labor is distributed within the household. Instead of examining the comparative advantages in production between the husband and the wife, Smith seems to focus on the importance of lineage and, more specifically, inheritance.
The foundation of Smith’s argument for the necessity of marriage is rooted in children. He begins with examples contrary to the human experience. He finds that in mammals, since “the support of the young is no burthen to the female” any further relation is seen as unnecessary (Smith 438). Birds, however, “some such thing as marriage seems to take place” (438). He quickly counters with: “but whenever the young can shift for themselves all further inclination ceases” (438). The essential piece of this argument here is the demands made on the parent by the child. According to his argument, th...
Is marriage really important? There is a lot of controversy over marriage and whether it is eminent. Some people believe it is and some people believe it is not. These opposing opinions cause this controversy. “On Not Saying ‘I do’” by Dorian Solot explains that marriage is not needed to sustain a relationship or a necessity to keep it healthy and happy. Solot believes that when a couple gets married things change. In “For Better, For Worse”, Stephanie Coontz expresses that marriage is not what is traditional in society because it has changed and is no longer considered as a dictator for people’s lives. The differences between these two essays are the author’s writing style and ideas.
In Wade F. Horn’s article “Promoting Marriage as a Means of Promoting Fatherhood,” Horn discusses how having a child and being married is better for children because the father is more involved in the child’s life. Kathryn Edin and Maria Kefalas’s “Unmarried with Children,” on the other hand, takes the reader through Jen’s story about getting pregnant at a young age and deciding not to marry the father of her son. While both sources make appeals to emotion, reason, and character, Edin and Kefalas’s article makes more successful appeals and thus is the stronger argument.
In the presidential election of 1800, Thomas Jefferson defeated John Adams to become the third president of the United States. The Judiciary Act of 1801 was passed which modified another act in 1789 that established ten district courts, six circuit courts, and the addition of judges to each circuit giving the president authority to appoint federal judges. The Marbury v. Madison was a landmark case in 1803 in which the court formed the basis for the exercise of judicial review. The landmark decision defined the boundary between separate judicial and executive branches of the American form of government. The Marbury v. Madison case of 1803 played a key role in making the Supreme Court a separate branch of government.
Adam Smith was one of the most inspirational economists back in the 18th century and now. Adam Smith’s date of birth was never known but he was baptized on the date of June 5th, 1723 in his hometown of Kirkcaldy, Scotland. Unfortunately, Adam Smith’s Dad passed away prior to his birth in Scotland. When Adam Smith was at the age of three, he was abducted by some gypsies in front of his house when he was playing. However, John Smith was left alive in a forest by a few gypsies. Twelve years later, Adam Smith had enrolled in Glasgow University with a scholarship taking the major of Moral Philosophy. After Adam Smith was in Glasgow University, he later enrolled in a college in Oxford named Balliol College but later went back to Glasgow University as a professor in 1751. Adam Smith’s major that he taught in Glasgow University was logic. In 1752, Adam Smith later received the position of being the chair of his major of Moral Philosophy.
An overview of the Orwellian world of 1984 will give some context for comparison between what is happening in our world today, how it mirrors the situation in the novel, and the implications that it carries regarding what is happening within our society...
In the novel 1984, George Orwell elaborates on the idea of an autocratic government. This novel describes Orwell’s views on the dark, twisted form of government that he believes will develop in future years. The culture he created for this story was the most horrifying, troubling place a person could reside. The goals of the Party consisted of keeping the citizens squared away and oblivious to the unethical actions taking place around them. This unrealistic society gave Orwell the opportunity to create a vision of what a future communist nation might resemble. The purpose of this work is believed to be informative to citizens of how the government impacts our way of thinking, living, and believing. Fear from the citizens is used as manipulation by the government; this means the government shapes the citizens that will not conform to their society. Throughout this writing, the author remains in a dark, cold mood; thus, creating the feeling of negativity and opposition to the government. Ethical appeal is revealed in this
In efforts to examine how genealogy evolved into its modern manifestation, Weil’s, Family Trees: A History of Genealogy in America is a “genealogy of genealogy.” Family Trees is a study of genealogy in America and its reciprocal effects on society. Weil divides his book into four chronological regimes of genealogy in America, each presented with their own set of problems. These problems did not just disappear after each
According to Congressional Digest, electronic commerce has enjoyed unfair advantage for many years by not having to acquire some taxes. The government is mainly responsible for this one-sided playing field toward online sellers. Many authorities believe that the Internet is essential to high productivity and economic growth and that preservation of the Internet potential is important. Indeed, president Bill Clinton signed the Internet Tax Freedom Act law in 1998 to prohibit any Internet access taxing – extended by succeeding presidents ever since.
Tommy Jones begged, pleaded, and hoped beyond hope for that new touch screen phone that would immediately move him up the social ranks at his school. His wish was granted on Christmas morning. He was rewarded with that sleek, black phone with 4G capabilities. Two months later the next phone in that series is out, an exact clone of the orginal with the most moderate changes, and suddenly Tommy’s phone is obsolete. There was no great improvement when compared to the old model, no; the corporation knows that it will sell, no matter how small the improvement. This model of constant obsolescence has become the norm in the economy today; companies reap profits with mediocre products, completely uncaring of the consumers. To put the economy back in the hands of the consumers, a system of deregulation must be enacted to allow the marketplace to be run once again by consumer interest.
The book “1984” by George Orwell is a fictional work that was penned as a discourse on Orwell’s views of what it would be like to live in a totalitarianism society. It is my belief that his views were based on his personal life experiences as he witnessed first hand many of the violent crimes perpetuated by those in positions of authority. Often, these crimes against one segment of society were carried out by other members of the same society in the name of political advancement or at other times out of fear for one’s life. Due to his experiences, Orwell began to write of his hatred of political power and the concept of a totalitarianism society. “1984” serves as a warning to readers of how a government can become abusive when seeking total control of it’s population. Furthermore, it showcases in great detail how a society can allow itself to be controlled through a series of psychological abuses and manipulation of historical information.
Serial killers have many frightening facets. The most frightening thing about them is that experts still do not know what makes a human become a serial killer. Many experts believe serial killers become what they are because they have a genetic disposition or brain abnormality while other experts believe that a serial killer is created by childhood abuse; and some other experts believe that it is a combination of both brain abnormalities and abusive childhood experiences that creates a serial killer. A murderer is considered a serial killer when they “murder three or more persons in at least three separate events with a “cooling off period” between kills” (Mitchell and Aamodt 40). When defining a serial killer, their background, genes, and brain are not mentioned; perhaps one day those aspects of the serial killer can be included.
In the 1970’s, Robert Ressler, who was the previous director of Violent Criminal Apprehension Program with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), coined the term “serial killer”. He did so because when he was a child, the police in England used to refer to murders such as this as “crimes in a...
The outlook to the future is usually one filled with hope. When failures of the past and present problems collide together, the future is often seen as a place of hope. This mindset was no different in Britain during the mid 20th century, especially in the late 1940’s. World War II had finally ended, the days of fighting Nazi Germany was behind everyone but present circumstances were bleak. Britain was still recovering from the effects of World War II and handling the transition of a new socialist democratic government. From the east there loomed Stalin’s Soviet Union with its communism government and Totalitarian ruling mindset. Many were oblivious to the facts surrounding communism and looked hopefully to it. The reason for this was as Mitzi Brunsdale states because of “all kinds of personal and social inadequacies” (139). Many in the west were discouraged with present conditions and looked to Stalinism for hope. Many of the “Western support for Stalin often took the form of neo-religious adulation” (Brunsdale139). On the other hand, George Orwell stood in direct opposition. This resistance against the Totalitarian rule of Stalin was especially expressed in one of his most popular books called 1984, which “brings home to England the experience of countless who suffered in Totalitarian regimes of Eastern Europe” (Meyers 114). George Orwell through his life experiences and through the accounts of others had seen the dangers of Totalitarianism. In 1984, George Orwell exposed three dangerous aspects of Totalitarianism by showing the oppression of the individual's in the story in order to show the true nature of Totalitarianism.
(2) Emily Bronte’s purpose in writing Wuthering Heights is to depict unfulfilled love in a tragic romance novel and hence the theme of Wuthering Heights is love is pain. Emily Bronte reveals an important life lesson that love is not sufficient for happiness and if anything, stirs up more agony. This message is important because, although it is difficult to accept, the message is devastatingly honest. In Wuthering Heights, two characters named Heathcliff and Catherine loved each other immensely. However, their pride and adamance disabled them from making any progress on their romantic relationship. In fact, Heathcliff and Catherine purposely hurt each another through reckless and cruel actions. The author is exemplifying a recurring theme in history that love is associated with pain. The message allows readers to be aware that love is not constant perfection and happiness.
The division of labour described by Adam Smith in The Wealth of Nations is a product of individual self-interest. This is representative of Smith’s methodological individualist interpretations of human nature. Adam Smith deduces that the division of labour is beneficial to the individual, as it is in one’s own interest to work less whilst still engaging in tasks that are to their own specialities. Highly specialized work is beneficial for nations to grow economically whilst allowing individuals to further pursue their own rational self-interest. To further explain the concepts that Smith proposes I will first explain what rational self-interest in regards to human nature and how the division of labour emerges from self-interest. Secondly, I