On the Verge of Lunacy

Full title: Persian Literature Comprising the Shah Nameh, The Rubaiyat, The Divan and The Gulistan Various authors; with introduction by Richard J.H. Gottheil, PhD As the title says, this anthology features four of the best of Persian literature. Each section has introductory notes that provide the background of each author and the piece, the social climate in which the work was created, and its reception. The following are included in the two volumes of the e-book version*: Volume 1: The Shah Nameh (Book of Kings) by Firdusi (Abul Kasim Mansur), translated by James Atkinson The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam , translated by Edward Fitzgerald The Divan by Hafiz (Khwajeh Shams al-Din Muhammad Hafez-e Shirazi), translated by H. Bicknell Volume 2: The Gulistan (Flower-Garden) by Sa'di (Muslih-al-Din), translated by James Ross The book may seem like a challenging read at first glance but the translators did a good job and the introduction in each section w...

The book can be divided into several parts which discuss the sources, application, and influence of Bushido. According to Nitobe, Bushido is a "code of moral principles which the samurai were required or instructed to observe." It is made up of maxims which are discussed thoroughly in the book. Before proceeding to the discussion of the maxims, Nitobe cited the possible influences in the development of the codes. He then goes on to tell the reader of the maxims by citing examples and comparisons. There is also a section on the education and training of the samurai, the samurai's sword, and the training and position of the samurai woman. The first two are just overviews and do not elaborate the training of the knights. Finally, Nitobe contemplates the status of Bushido and its uses in the future. The book is very easy to understand, however, Nitobe cites names and events that may not be familiar to the average reader. Still, his other examples will suffice. Alth...

Note: This was my paper for Prose Styles (COMA 109) Do I really know who I am and what is my life’s purpose? Oftentimes this question pops up in my head. I mean, I can only wonder what the point is for all of this. I go to school and travel an hour and a half to get home and back, eat and sleep, make friends and enemies, fail and succeed, for what? Does it really matter to anyone if I get hit by a car one day on my way to school? Surely, it would not make any difference to the world. Perhaps my family and friends will be concerned about me, but just like me, their existence is also a mystery. Who am I? The first idea that comes to mind when somebody asks us this is our name. But the name is just like a label. It is not who I really am. A name is given for the sake of identification. It does not include the details of my life and furthermore, there are a lot of other people who have the same name. So, who am I? Besides the name, I will probably list my hobbies, dislikes and interests....

Comment on the movie "In the Mood for Love" based on Laura Mulvey's "Woman as Image, Man as Bearer of the Look" "The presence of a woman is an indispensable element of spectacle in normal narrative film, yet her visual presence tends to work against the development of a story line, to freeze the flow of action in moments of erotic contemplation." Personally I never liked women in movies. Most of them are fragile, foolish and always in need of another person for help. I don't want to think of myself as that kind of woman and so I cannot identify with most of the female characters. * * * Women always have to look good. Li-zhen's sexuality is emphasized through close-up shots of erotic zones. The angles in some of the scenes have that voyeuristic quality. The viewers intrude their lives.Like most female characters, she is a passive counterpart to Chow. The male protagonist provides the actions of the story to keep it going. In the end, the...

I guess what makes art Art is that it is a level above or below reality. It either enhances the image of the object to give more essence to its existence or the artist strips down ordinary things to make them look more ordinary. I think this what Aristotle meant by the "essence of the ideal". Whatever that ideal image is, it can only be seen or felt by looking at how and why the object was made. And by that he pertains only to the physical appearance of the object because the the truth itself can only be seen through its physical manifestation. He was trying to say that although we only imitate the ideal, the essence, even it is much farther removed from the truth as Plato claimed, is still within that object. If that is the case then we should look at art as to how it is imitated. There must be something in a piece of work that we do not like that we must have overlooked. Just like what the director did to the story in the movie "Tuhog". To him the story is more ...

People vary in responses and opinions on what is beautiful and not so pleasing to the eyes. Not everyone finds Brad Pitt attractive and not everyone likes dark skin. These judgments reflect familial, cultural, religious or political conditioning. But even people in the same background vary in their preferences. Most girls like me do not consider guns as works of art. Not everyone likes the sound of it. For most people it symbolizes violence, cruelty and death. But to me, they are no different from paintings or music or literature. So what do people look for when they judge its aesthetic value? There are two things or categories that people use to evaluate objects. It can be what most would label the “objective” perspective where the person looks at the elements like lines and colors in a painting for example. The others try to attach meanings and compare them to experiences and memories of people, objects or events that appeal to the emotions. It was this emotional part that Plato ...