Thursday, November 28, 2019

In What Sense Is Oedipus a Tragic Hero in Aristotle Definition free essay sample

A tragic hero is meant to define his fate by himself, usually by actions that he inflicts on himself which then lead him to wreck his own life. Aristotle is considered as one of the many ancient influential philosophers there is and therefore his view of Oedipus being an ideal tragic hero is considered as highly powerful In the world of literature. Aristotle defines tragedy as the conflict between humans being good yet being defeated by reality as their actions done with good Intentions can actually bring back outcomes that were not Initially wanted. In the play Oedipus by Sophocles, Oedipus is classed as a classic tragic hero by Aristotle for many of the characteristics he possesses. According to Aristotle definition of a tragic hero; the tragic hero has to be realistic, true to life, consistent and true to themselves, consistent within the context of the narrative and has to make errors of Judgment throughout the play but the results of what has been done should be the opposite of what was initially intended. We will write a custom essay sample on In What Sense Is Oedipus a Tragic Hero in Aristotle Definition or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page A tragic hero should be able to arouse feelings of pity ND fear; this is because, the feeling of pity is aroused by our deep sympathy for someone whose life is falling out of place whereas that person is neither too good nor too evil to have deserved such a misfortune, and the feeling of fear is aroused by the sheer horror that such a tragedy can fall upon anyone regardless of their stature. According to Aristotle definition Oedipus Is a tragic hero because he Is a man of great power and Influence over the city he rules and his life begins to deteriorate In front of everyones eyes as he goes on a quest to find out who he ;s.Aristotle says that a tragic hero must be the one to cause their own downfall in which Oedipus persistently decides to carry on asking questions about his origins. Also, the tragic heros fate is not deserved and his punishment exceeds his wrongdoings and that a tragic hero must be someone important and influential and he must be someone who makes an error of judgm ent. This error of Judgment is seen when Oedipus forces Thirties in anger to answer his questions of who his parents are, Who? Wait; who are my parents? It Is Oedipus own mistake in forcing answers in which he does not wish to hear or know. In What Sense Is Oedipus a Tragic Hero in Aristotle Definition? By fringe The word tragedy is when an event ends in misfortune. However, when the word tragedy is put in context within a play or a story it is a story circling around a protagonist who is of high power and stature. A tragedy is usually the development of a protagonist whose in conflict with a more superior force; the superior forces that powerful in the world of literature.

Sunday, November 24, 2019

The Architecture of El Tajin

The Architecture of El Tajin The once-magnificent city of El Tajin, which flourished not far inland from Mexicos Gulf Coast from roughly 800-1200 A.D., features some truly spectacular architecture. The palaces, temples and ballcourts of the excavated city show impressive architectural details like cornices, inset glyphs and niches. The City of Storms After the fall of Teotihuacan around 650 A.D., El Tajin was one of several powerful city-states that arose in the ensuing vacuum of power. The city flourished from about 800 to 1200 A.D. At one time, the city covered 500 hectares and may have had as many as 30,000 inhabitants; its influence spread throughout Mexicos Gulf Coast region. Their chief God was Quetzalcoatl, whose worship was common in Mesoamerican lands at the time. After 1200 A.D., the city was abandoned and left to return to the jungle: only locals knew about it until a Spanish colonial official stumbled across it in 1785. For the past century, a series of excavation and preservation programs have taken place there, and it is an important site for tourists and historians alike. The City of El Tajin and its Architecture The word Tajà ­n refers to a spirit with great powers over the weather, especially in terms of rain, lightning, thunder and storms. El Tajà ­n was built in the lush, hilly lowlands not far from the Gulf Coast. It is spread out over a relatively spacious area, but hills and arroyos defined the city limits. Much of it may once have been built of wood or other perishable materials: these have been long since lost to the jungle. There are a number of temples and buildings in the Arroyo Group and old ceremonial center and palaces and administrative-type buildings in Tajà ­n Chico, located on a hill to the north of the rest of the city. To the northeast is the impressive Great Xicalcoliuhqui wall. None of the buildings is known to be hollow or to house a tomb of any sort. Most of the buildings and structures are made of a locally available sandstone. Some of the temples and pyramids are built over earlier structures. Many of the pyramids and temples are made of finely carved stone and f illed with packed earth. Architectural Influence and Innovations El Tajin is unique enough architecturally that it has its own style, often referred to as Classic Central Veracruz. Nevertheless, there are some obvious external influences on the architectural style at the site. The overall style of the pyramids at the site is referred to in Spanish as the talà ºd-tablero style (it basically translates as slope/walls). In other words, the overall slope of the pyramid is created by piling progressively smaller square or rectangular levels on top of another. These levels can be quite tall, and there is always a stairway to grant access to the top. This style came to El Tajà ­n from Teotihuacan, but the builders of El Tajin took it further. On many of the pyramids in the ceremonial center, the tiers of the pyramids are adorned with cornices which jut out into space on the sides and corners. This gives the buildings a striking, majestic silhouette. The builders of El Tajà ­n also added niches to the flat walls of the tiers, resulting in a richly textured, dramatic look not seen at Teotihuacan. El Tajin also shows influence from Classic era Maya cities. One notable similarity is the association of altitude with power: in El Tajà ­n, the ruling class built a palace complexes on hills adjacent to the ceremonial center. From this section of the city, known as Tajin Chico, the ruling class gazed down upon the homes of their subjects and the pyramids of the ceremonial district and the Arroyo Group. In addition, building 19 is a pyramid which features four stairways to the top, on in each cardinal direction. This is similar to el Castillo or the Temple of Kukulcan in Chichà ©n Itz, which likewise has four stairways.   Another innovation at El Tajà ­n was the idea of plaster ceilings. Most of the structures at the top of pyramids or on finely built bases were constructed of perishable materials such as wood, but there is some evidence in the Tajà ­n Chico area of the site that some of the ceilings may have been made of a heavy plaster. Even the ceiling at the Building of the Columns may have had an arched plaster ceiling, as archaeologists discovered large blocks of convex, polished blocks of plaster there. Ballcourts of El Tajn The ballgame was of paramount importance to the people of El Tajà ­n. No fewer than seventeen ballcourts have been found so far at El Tajà ­n, including several in and around the ceremonial center. The usual shape of a ball court was that of a double T: a long narrow area in the middle with an open space at either end. At El Tajà ­n, buildings and pyramids were often constructed in such a way that they would naturally create courts between them. For example, one of the ballcourts in the ceremonial center is defined on either side by Buildings 13 and 14, which were designed for spectators. The south end of the ballcourt, however, is defined by Building 16, an early version of the Pyramid of the Niches. One of the most striking structures at El Tajin is the South Ballcourt. This was obviously the most important one, as it is decorated with six marvelous panels carved in bas-relief. These show scenes from the ceremonious ballgames including human sacrifice, which often was the result of one of the games. The Niches of El Tajin The most remarkable innovation of El Tajà ­ns architects was the niches so common at the site. From the rudimentary ones at Building 16 to the magnificence of the Pyramid of the Niches, the sites best-known structure, niches are everywhere at El Tajà ­n. The niches of El Tajà ­n are small recesses set into the exterior walls of the tiers of several pyramids on the site. Some of the niches in Tajà ­n Chico have a spiral-like design in them: this was one of the symbols of Quetzalcoatl. The best example of the importance of the Niches at El Tajin is the impressive Pyramid of the Niches. The pyramid, which sits on a square base, has exactly 365 deep-set, well-designed niches, suggesting that it was a place where the sun was worshiped. It was once dramatically painted to heighten the contrast between the shady, recessed niches and the faces of the tiers; the interior of the niches was painted black, and the surrounding walls red. On the stairway, there were once six platform-altars (only five remain). Each of these altars features three small niches: this adds up to eighteen niches, possibly representing the Mesoamerican solar calendar, which had eighteen months. Importance of Architecture at El Tajin The architects of El Tajin were very skilled, using advances such as cornices, niches, cement and plaster to make their buildings, which were brightly, dramatically painted to great effect. Their skill is also evident in the simple fact that so many of their buildings have survived to the present day, although the archaeologists who restored the magnificent palaces and temples surely helped. Unfortunately for those who study the City of Storms, relatively few records remain of the people who lived there. There are no books and no direct accounts by anyone who ever had direct contact with them. Unlike the Maya, who were fond of carving glyphs with names, dates and information into their stone artwork, the artists of El Tajin rarely did so. This lack of information makes the architecture that much more important: it is the best source of information about this lost culture. Sources: Coe, Andrew. . Emeryville, CA: Avalon Travel Publishing, 2001. Ladrà ³n de Guevara, Sara. El Tajin: La Urbe que Representa al Orbe. Mexico: Fondo de Cultura Economica, 2010. Solà ­s, Felipe. El Tajà ­n. Mà ©xico: Editorial Mà ©xico Desconocido, 2003. Wilkerson, Jeffrey K. Eighty Centuries of Veracruz. National Geographic 158, No. 2 (August 1980), 203-232. Zaleta, Leonardo. Tajà ­n: Misterio y Belleza. Pozo Rico: Leonardo Zaleta 1979 (2011).

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Performance Appraisals Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Performance Appraisals - Research Paper Example Performance appraisal is also used in performance management where subordinates are given a chance to appraise their employer’s performance in meeting their expectations and relaying such expectations to employers (DeNisi & Pritchard, 2006). Performance management is used to manage and align organization’s resources so as to achieve the targeted goals. Therefore, the way performance appraisal is managed in an organization is a determinant of whether the organization will fail or succeed. DeNisi and Pritchard (2006) advise that every organization that plans to attain a competitive edge should put performance appraisal among its top priorities. This competitive advantage is highly depends on the way communication skills of the reviewer will guide that of the reviewed.McLean (2010) has outlined the way business communication should be fashioned when doing performance appraisal and other business undertakings. He analyzes that a business communicator should take the respons ibility of preparing several facets such as clarity, conciseness, punctuality and organization before the communication starts. In this case, if the business communicator is preparing for a performance appraisal exercise all these facets are significant so as to attain all set goals of the assessment. When all these facets are considered, the business communicator is said to be well prepared. This preparation involves selecting an appropriate topic to the goals and objectives of the appraisal, doing research on the needed information and covering the topic., putting the information in a logical sequence, and preparing for the best presentation of the interviews for appraisal. From the classical perspective, Mclean (2010) used the Aristotelian model of organization of a communicator. For Aristotle, the organization of a communicator is referred to as logos or logic. This involves making the communication and assessment logical so that it clearly leads to the intended end (Manasa & Re ddy, 2009). This process may involve filtering the needed and unwanted information based on the objectives of the whole exercise. This way, a logical performance appraisal assessment is understood by the reviewed, and they are able to offer their logical responses as well. The second part is that the message should be clear. Vague and wandering communication is not interesting listening or