Edward Gein Essays - Human Trophy Collecting, Free Essays

Edward Gein Essays - Human Trophy Collecting, Free Essays Edward Gein All through history there have been stories of death and killing. There have been many murders in America. Some killers have had odd practices that they inflict on their victims; however, few have gone to the extent of Edward Gein. Because of his obsession with women and odd practices committed on the bodies of his victims, Edward Gein is considered to be the most bizarre murderer in America's history. Ed Gein was born in La Crosse, Wisconsin on August 21, 1906 (Woods 8). His father later moved the family to Plainfield, Wisconsin (Woods 9). Gein had one brother named Henry (Woods 6). Their father was an alcoholic and their mother was a strict believer in God and doing the right thing. Their mother impressed on them the importance of marriage before sex. In 1940, Ed's father died. Even though he was thirty-four, Gein was still living on the farm with his mother and brother (Woods 22). In 1944, Henry Gein asked Ed to help him do some controlled burning on a marsh on the family's property. Ed had taken care of his part of the burning and went looking for his brother, but could not find him. Ed organized a search party, but they found nothing. On his way back to the house, Ed found Henry laying on a brush pile, dead. Ed attributed the death to heart attack or smoke inhalation, and the idea of an accident was accepted by all. No autopsy was performed. Some people believe that this may have been the beginning of Ed's killing spree(Woods 23). The next year, 1945, Ed's mother suffered a stroke. Ed says it was because of the way his neighbors constantly argued and how much it upset his mother. Ed was in charge of taking care of his mother. He took care of her for a period at the farm but could not handle it and was forced to put her into a hospital. Soon after, she had a second stoke and died (Woods 34). This left Ed alone. He began reading books about the female anatomy and became very interested in adventure stories involving head hunter and cannibals. At one point, a well-meaning person brought him back two shrunken heads from the Philippines. Ed found them very interesting and showed them off to many people in the community. As time went on he also became interested in the preservation of the human body after death and read books on the subject (Gollmar 74). In 1947, Ed began robbing graves in three local cemeteries. Sometimes he would take the whole body and sometimes just parts. His favorite part was usually the head of the dead person (Gollmar 58). He would cut it from the body in the cemetery and take it back to his house. When there, he would make a death mask. He would remove the skin from the bone and stuff the skin with tissue paper and saw dust. When the police searched his house, they found approximately ten of these masks scattered around the home of Ed Gein (Portrait of a Killer 40). In 1954, Ed committed the first murder he admits to. Mary Hogan, the owner and operator of a local tavern was killed. She was shot and her head was possibly cut off at the scene. At the scene, the police found a large pool of blood but no drag marks. Therefore Mary Hogan had been carried from the bar. After Gein had been caught, the police realized he was too small too carry the large stature of Mary Hogan from the scene and believed he may have had an accomplice for this murder and the grave robbings, but Gein constantly denied this (Gollmar 89). Ed Gein had few close friends. However, after he was caught a man who was believed to be Gein's best friend became violently mentally ill and was committed to a mental hospital. He died in the hospital a short time later. The police think he may have been Gein's accomplice in the murder of Mary Hogan (Gollmar 45). Ed Gein's final victim was a local shop owner named Bernice Worden. The killing took place on November 16, 1957. It was

10 literary terms (hyperbole, onomatopoeia, interjection,imagery, dialogue, alliteration, allusion, personification, simile, metaphor Essay Example

10 literary terms (hyperbole, onomatopoeia, interjection,imagery, dialogue, alliteration, allusion, personification, simile, metaphor Essay Example 10 literary terms (hyperbole, onomatopoeia, interjection,imagery, dialogue, alliteration, allusion, personification, simile, metaphor Paper 10 literary terms (hyperbole, onomatopoeia, interjection,imagery, dialogue, alliteration, allusion, personification, simile, metaphor Paper Essay Topic: Literature allusion A reference to another work of literature, person, or event personification attributing human qualities to something non-human, 2. acting as an example of simile A comparison using like or as metaphor figure of speech comparing two different things onomatopoeia A word that imitates the sound it represents. interjection A word that shows strong emotion or surprise imagery Description that appeals to the senses (sight, sound, smell, touch, taste) hyperbole An exaggeration dialogue Communication between two or more people alliteration Repetition of initial consonant sounds

What You Should Know About Kants Ethics in a Nutshell

What You Should Know About Kants Ethics in a Nutshell Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) is, by common consent, one of the most profound and original philosophers who ever lived. He is equally well known for his metaphysics–the subject of his Critique of Pure Reason-and for his moral philosophy which is set out in his Groundwork to the Metaphysics of Morals and the Critique of Practical Reason. Of these last two works, the Groundwork is by far the easier to understand. A Problem for the Enlightenment To understand Kant’s moral philosophy it is crucial first of all to understand the problem that he, like other thinkers of the time, was trying to deal with. From time immemorial, people’s moral beliefs and practices had been based on religion. Scriptures like the bible or the Koran laid out moral rules that were thought to be handed down from God: Don’t kill. Don’t steal. Don’t commit adultery, and so on. The fact that the rules came from God gave them their authority. They were not just somebody’s arbitrary opinion: they gave humanity an objectively valid code of conduct. Moreover, everyone had an incentive to obey them.  If you â€Å"walked in the ways of the Lord,† you would be rewarded, either in this life or the next. If you violated His commandments, you would be punished. So any sensible person would abide by the moral rules that religion taught. With the scientific revolution of the 16th and 17th centuries, and the great cultural movement known as the Enlightenment which followed, a problem arose for this way of thinking. Simply put, faith in God, scripture, and organized religion began to decline among the intelligentsia–that is, the educated elite. This is the development that Nietzsche famously described as â€Å"the death of God.† And it created a problem for moral philosophy. For if religion wasn’t the foundation that gave our moral beliefs their validity, what other foundation could there be? And if there is no God, and therefore no guarantee of cosmic justice ensuring that the good guys are rewarded and the bad guys are punished, why should anyone bother trying to be good? The Scottish moral philosopher Alisdair MacIntrye called this â€Å"the Enlightenment problem.† The problem is to come up with a secular–that is, a non-religious–account of what morality is and why we should be moral. Three Responses to the Enlightenment Problem 1.  Social Contract Theory One response was pioneered by the English philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679). He argued that morality was essentially a set of rules that human beings agreed upon among themselves in order to make living together possible. If we didn’t have these rules, many of which are laws enforced by the government, life would be absolutely horrible for everyone. 2.  Utilitarianism Another attempt give morality a non-religious foundation was pioneered by thinkers like David Hume (1711-1776) and Jeremy Bentham (1748-1742). This theory holds that pleasure and happiness have intrinsic value. They are what we all want and are the ultimate goals that all our actions aim at.  Something is good if it promotes happiness, and it is bad if it produces suffering. Our basic duty is to try to do things that add to the amount of happiness or reduce the amount of misery in the world.   3.  Kantian Ethics Kant had no time for utilitarianism.  He thought that in placing the emphasis on happiness it completely misunderstood the nature of morality.  In his view, the basis for our sense of what is good or bad, right or wrong, is our awareness that human beings are free, rational agents who should be given the respect appropriate to such beings.  Let’s see in closer detail what this means and what it entails. The Problem With Utilitarianism The basic problem with utilitarianism, in Kant’s view, is that it judges actions by their consequences.  If your action makes people happy, it’s good; if it does the reverse, it’s bad.  But this is actually contrary to what we might call moral common sense.  Consider this question.  Who do you think is the better person, the millionaire who gives $1,000 to charity in order to look good in front of his girlfriend, or the minimum wage worker who donates a day’s pay to charity because he thinks it is is duty to help the needy? If consequences are all that matter, then the millionaire’s action is better.  But that’s not what most people think.  Most of us judge actions more by their motives than by their consequences.  The reason is obvious: the consequences of our actions are often out of our control, just as the ball is out of the pitcher’s control once it has left his hand.  I could save a life at the risk of my own, and the person I save could turn out to be serial killer.  Or I could kill someone in the course of stealing from them, and in doing so might accidentally save the world from a terrible tyrant. The Good Will The first sentence of Kant’s Groundwork states: â€Å"the only thing that is unconditionally good is a good will.† Kant’s argument for this is quite plausible. Consider anything you think of as good: health, wealth, beauty, intelligence, etc. In every case, you can imagine a situation in which this good thing is not good after all. A person can be corrupted by their wealth. The robust health of a bully makes it easier for him to abuse his victims. A person’s beauty may lead them to become vain and fail to develop their talents. Even happiness is not good if it is the happiness of a sadist torturing his victims. A good will, by contrast, says Kant, is always good in all circumstances. But what, exactly, does he mean by a good will? The answer is fairly simple. A person acts from a good will when they do what they do because they think it is their duty: when they act from a sense of moral obligation. Duty v. Inclination Obviously, we don’t perform every little act we do out of a sense of obligation. Much of the time we are simply following our inclinations, acting out of self-interest. There is nothing wrong with this. But no-one deserves any credit for pursuing their own interests. That comes naturally to us, just as it comes naturally to every animal. What is remarkable about human beings, though, is that we can, and sometimes do, perform an action from purely moral motives. E.g. a soldier throws himself on a grenade, sacrificing his life to save the lives of others. Or less dramatically, I pay back a debt as I promised to do even though this will leave me short of money. In Kant’s eyes, when a person freely chooses to do the right thing just because it is the right thing to do, their action adds value to the world; it lights it up, so to speak, with a brief glow of moral goodness. Knowing What Your Duty Is Saying that people should do their duty from a sense of duty is easy. But how are we supposed to know what our duty is? Sometimes we may find ourselves facing moral dilemmas where it isn’t obvious which course of action is right. According to Kant, however, in most situations are duty is obvious. And if we are uncertain we can work it out by reflecting on a general principle that he calls the â€Å"Categorical Imperative.† This, he claims, is the fundamental principle of morality. All other rules and precepts can be deduced from it. He offers several different versions of this categorical imperative. One runs as follows: â€Å"Act only on that maxim that you can will as a universal law.† What this means, basically, is that we should only ask ourselves: how would it be if everyone acted the way I’m acting? Could I sincerely and consistently wish for a world in which everyone behaved this way? According to Kant, if our action is morally wrong we would not b able to do this. For instance, suppose I’m thinking of breaking a promise. Could I wish for a world in which everyone broke their promises when keeping them was inconvenient? Kant argues that I could not want this, not least because in such a world no-one would make promises since everyone would know that a promise meant nothing. The Ends Principle Another version of the Categorical Imperative that Kant offers states that one should â€Å"always treat people as ends in themselves, never merely as a means to one’s own ends. This is commonly referred to as the â€Å"ends principle.† But what does it mean, exactly?   The key to it is Kant’s belief that what makes us moral beings is the fact that we are free and rational. To treat someone as a means to your own ends or purposes is to not respect this fact about them. For instance, if I get you to agree to do something by making a false promise, I am manipulating you. Your decision to help me is based on false information (the idea that I’m going to keep my promise). In this way, I have undermined your rationality. This is even more obvious if I steal from you or kidnap you in order to claim a ransom. Treating someone as an end, by contrast, involves always respecting the fact that they are capable of free rational choices which may be  different from the choices you wish them to make. So if I want you to do something, the only moral course of action is to explain the situation, explain what I want, and let you make your own decision. Kant’s Concept of Enlightenment In a famous essay entitled â€Å"What is Enlightenment?† Kant defined enlightenment as â€Å"man’s emancipation from his self-imposed immaturity.† What does this mean? And what does it have to do with his ethics? The answer goes back to the issue of religion no longer providing a satisfactory foundation for morality. What Kant calls humanity’s â€Å"immaturity† is the period when people did not truly think for themselves.  They typically accepted moral rules handed down to them by religion, by tradition, or by authorities like the Bible, the church, or the king. Many people have lamented the fact that many have lost their faith in these authorities. The result is viewed as a spiritual crisis for Western civilization. If â€Å"God is dead,† how do we know what is true and what is right? Kant’s answer is that we have to work these things out for ourselves. But this is not something to lament.  Ultimately it is something to celebrate. Morality is not a matter of subjective whim. What he calls â€Å"the moral law† –the categorical imperative and everything it implies–can be discovered by reason. But it is a law that we, as rational beings, impose on ourselves. It is not imposed on us from without. This is why one of our deepest feelings is reverence for the moral law. And when we act as we do out of respect for it–in other words, from a sense of duty–we fulfill ourselves as rational beings.

Legal advice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 6000 words

Legal advice - Essay Example Winter Ltd is a company which sells books on the internet and is now willing to expand its business by selling CD’s & DVD’s, but for this purpose it needs capital and now has approached Spring Bank for a loan of 2 Million. For Spring Bank, just like all other banks, it is an opportunity to grasp and on the same time it has to be very careful about the collaterals and security offered by Winter Ltd. as to repayment of the loan because every loan has an inherent risk of default. In case of intangible assets the risk involved might be of some other nature as compared to loans which are secured against some physical asset. In order to avoid any risk Spring Bank would have to be very careful of all the circumstances and financial condition of Winter Ltd. before extending loan facility to them. It would be appropriate that before reaching a decision as to loan for Winter Ltd, we must consider the types of loan which can be offered to them by the bank. There are commonly two major types of loans which are being offered to commercial entities to support their business and the same can be considered in case of Winter Ltd, too. These are Overdraft Facility or Term Loan. Overdraft is an arrangement between client and its bank in which continues flow of cash is guaranteed in a bank account; bank agrees to provide a facility of loan to an agreed limit. In such a case this overdraft facility might be one time relaxation or may be a permanent feature of account operation with the client. In such case this overdraft may be created and paid off in continues manner. Customers credit cards are also useful links for his credit worthiness.2 This facility, however, is not flawless and involves risk on part of bank mainly. Bank is providing this facility on the basis of client’s reputation and is without any collateral which means it is an unsecured loan and hence invites a lot of caution on part of bank to allow

What public Sector Bodies can expect from their Auditors Essay

What public Sector Bodies can expect from their Auditors - Essay Example Auditors often provide added value by noting an opportunity for cost-efficient improvements which may arise from the auditors’ investigation and bring these issues to the attention of the management. Thus, it is expected that public auditors should endeavor to promote better decision making and management wherever possible, in order to effect a more efficient use of public resources. Proper auditing in the public sector is essential for maintaining the confidence of the general public during any tenure of managing public funds, and should be carried out to ensure accountability of those entrusted with public funds. On their own part, Malaysian public sector auditors should be accountable for their performance, and it is the duty of public sector auditors to undertake their auditing work in an objective, cost-effective and professional manner, with due regard to the needs of the public sector bodies that they audit. The primary audience of the public sector auditors includes the local electorates, the taxpayers and the parliament, as their statutory functions are executed on behalf of the taxpayers. It is essential for public sector auditors to thoroughly plan each audit with a good understanding of the operational environment. The major value of financial statement auditing comes from the assurance provided to taxpayers due to objective and rigorous auditing. The service provided by public sector auditors also provides value by causing an improvement of financial management. It is important for auditors to endeavor to promote better decision making and management whenever possible, so as to enable better and more effective use of public resources (Kamaruzaman Jusoff 2010). This can be achieved by the dissemination and highlighting of good practice and the provision of technical assistance which will help to promote efficiency in corporate governance arrangements in the public sector in Malaysia. As set down by the statement of auditing 100,

Employee Reward and Recognition Systems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Employee Reward and Recognition Systems - Essay Example The compensation strategy offered by the company for its employees must be fair and without any biases. The company must have compensation policies wherein it would reimburse or compensate the full amount for the employees for any accident or any such condition faced during the working hours. However, the company will have to ensure that such situations have not arisen out of any negligence on the part of the worker. These would include fatal accidents within the company premises only. Every employee desires to be awarded and appreciated for his work and efforts. The company needs to make sure that it addresses this need of the employee from time to time so that it retains the interest and morale of the employee. Rewarding the employee financially by providing different sorts of benefits is essential in this respect. However, the company needs to ensure that it forms its financial reward system by remaining unbiased and transparent. The company needs to evaluate its internal as well as its legal formalities while forming such a system for awarding its employees. Intangible or non-financial benefits can also be given but it has been seen that it is the tangible or precisely the financial form that makes more impact on the employee performance. In the case of Electra Pvt Ltd, the company is on a growing spree. It wishes to expand its business. As such it would include more manpower and sources. It thus becomes all the more crucial to retain as well as absorb new recruits which can be done by appreciating their work on a regular basis. The company must be impartial and fair while rewarding its employees.

Question is in the instruction part Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Question is in the instruction part - Essay Example In relation to architecture, it may be useful to define the concept of ‘Gothic’, which first belonged to the medieval period in Europe, from about 12th to 16th centuries. The characteristics included the pointed arch, large ribbed vaults and large, high windows, and later the flying buttress. The style was applied mainly to churches and cathedrals, therefore having religious and ecclesiastical connotations, though stately homes, convents and monasteries also adopted it. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, its revival coincided with the popularity of the Gothic genre in English fiction, often quoted as having originated with Horace Walpole’s ‘The Castle of Otranto’ (Walpole 1764). The underlying ethos seems to be one of highly charged emotional content, thrilling sensationalism and a rejection of the rational and classical clarity with determined the Enlightenment. Gothic fiction and architecture would seem to seek to extend beyond normal, ratio nal boundaries in society and to find instead, a more exciting form of expression and stimulation – almost taking reader and characters to the brink of insanity through the alteration of perceived reality. Certainly, the Gothic literary conventions call up childhood fears, myths, legends and superstitions, and in so doing, overturn common perceptions and distort reality. Just as it is impossible to fully understand the workings of the human mind, the environments created in the fiction are difficult to grasp, alien and mysterious and possibly reflecting, in the form of the deep, dark pits and dungeons, an allegorical picture of psychic depths beyond our conscious knowledge. Robert Barry (1995) states that: In ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’, Poe creates an atmosphere of increasing tension and doom, launching into a description which engages the