Glimpse Of The Indian Society Media Essay

Glimpse Of The Indian Society Media Essay Media today presents a glimpse of the Indian society that is filled with images of tradition, romance, nationalism and familial love. Teeming with energetic music, vibrant colors and heavenly portrayals of Indian families, the audiences are easily cajoled into believing that these depictions are accurate representations of attitudes and beliefs of the Indian life. However, many times, the realities of life do not always approximate the images presented by the media. As a result, media sometimes start affecting the society in an ominous manner. One such issue that is distorted by the media is the dowry system. In the process of raising alarm bells, Bollywood films, TV shows and news media have exploited this issue too much and consequently, worsened its effect. The insatiable greed of the in-laws, which ultimately leads to torturing of brides, has been highlighted so many times by the media that the viewers minds no longer recoils from such phenomenon. Moreover, with the rising consum erism, higher standards of living and exposure to the masses through media, the desires of people for material wealth have also gone up, aggravating the malevolent system of dowry. The dowry system, the custom of making payments from the brides family to the grooms family at the time of marriage, has a long history in India. It stems out from the traditional upper caste practices of kanyadaan or gifting the virgin bride (). Traditionally, these gifts could range from anything significant to even small token of good wishes. Historically, the dowry system could have been established as a form of inheritance for women, because only men inherited the family property. Furthermore, it could have been a way of compensating the grooms family for the economic support that they would give to the new bride as women has little role as bread earners for the family, making them dependent on the in laws. However, in recent times with exposure to mass media, these tokens of gifts or dowry have transformed into substantial transfer of wealth from the grooms family to the brides family, becoming an important factor in marriage proposals. Most of the marriage decisions nowadays a re based on how much dowry is the brides family ready to give. Even if the bride and groom do not suit each other, their marriage is arranged based on the exchange of dowry between the families. (). However, in the current society, where even women act as economic contributors to the family, this system becomes trivial. Yet, it has only inflamed with time. Consequently, the Government of India could not do much to alleviate this issue. Even with the changes brought about by the Hindu Succession Acts of 1956, which gave women legal rights of inheritance, and Dowry Prohibition Act of 1961, which legally outlawed dowry respectively, this practice still continues mainly because of two reasons. Firstly, even though in recent times, the exposure to media decreased the support for dowry among women, it appears that women have started valuing the resources that their dowries bring to their families. The exposure to mass media increased the desirability of consumer goods, causing the newly wed couples to view dowry as a way of obtaining them (). The other reason is that parents of daughters still believe that a large dowry will ensure better treatment of their daughters by her in-laws. They believe that the dowry will increase their daughters standing in her new household as it will act as a signal of parental support of the bride. However, thi s belief is largely baseless and stems from medias misrepresentation of this issue through its different outlets. Dowry is a hot topic that many Bollywood films tried to address. Films like Lajja and Lage Raho Munnabhai try to create awareness about this issue by depicting extreme sequences. However, this path taken by the directors sometimes backfires. In Lajja, Maithilis parents give everything to fulfill the dowry demands put up by their in-laws. They lose their land, saved money and even take on loans for the dowry. Though, Maithili rebels and calls off the wedding, seeing her father being humiliated by the grooms family for dowry. Even in Lago Raho Munnabhai, Simrans father Lucky Singh goes on to appropriating an old age house, leaving 20 old men homeless because the grooms parents wanted the land on which house was built. These acts by the brides family do not take place in the real world. However, they are able to distort the views of audiences, who then start believing strongly in this system. Vivah A journey from Engagement to Marriage, another mainstream Bollywood film, also presents a distorted vision of the dowry system but towards the other extreme. In the film, the grooms father wants nothing more for his son than a virtuous and beautiful wife dowry is unimportant and unwanted (). As Poonams father is asked for a mere token, the viewers are assured that a dowry is unnecessary when two families are as well suited as these. These films, as a result, distort the way the society views the dowry system. The reality of dowry demands in India is quite different from its portrayal in Bollywood films. The images of the dowry system presented in these films are not usually what comes to pass for a woman after her marriage and the giving of her dowry. In Lajja, Maithilis parents tried to call of the wedding because Maithilis father could not fulfill all but one of their demands. This would never happen in the real world. Similarly, what Lucky Singh did in Lage Raho Munnabhai to fulfill the dowry is unlikely to be seen today. However, one would also not find someone like Poonams father- in- law, who declined the dowry given by Poonams father. There are still many Indian marriages, where the brides treatment at the hands of her in-laws is often tied to the amount of dowry they receive. Moreover, theses dowry demands sometimes do not end with the wedding (). The shameless greed of the grooms families in the form of dowry demands continue for years after the wedding, with suggestions of furth er gifts to be made-for celebrations of the birth, naming and initiation of grandchildren. Most of the Bollywood fail to show this aftermath of a dowry induced marriage. According to Bedi, the ever-increasing demands for dowry have led to an increase in dowry-related violence and death among young married women in India, with 8391 dowry death cases in 2010 alone. The violence that the women have to undergo, despite giving dowry, has increased exponentially with the demands of the every-growing dowries. This dowry-related violence is mostly prearranged attacks within the grooms house. Many of these attacks include severe burnings, poisonings, hangings, gunshots, sharp objects, and jumping from height, generally resulting in the immediate deaths of the women (). Furthermore, the victims do not report this due to fear of another attack. They have to accept this cruelty as the price of keeping their families intact (). In some of the dowry-induced marriages, women try to commit suicides in a bid to escape the abuse from her in-laws. However, other families try to take advantage of these cases by reporting the death caused by dowry violence as suicides an d protect themselves from trials. Media, in such cases, immediately tries to capitalize on them through films and TV shows. A recent Bollywood film, Teen Behenein is based on the real-life incident of combined suicides by three sisters, which occurred in Kanpur in 1988. Though this film has flaws in every technical aspect, including script, direction and acting, it still managed to receive praise merely because of the issue that it takes up. Teen Behenien seeks to make an important point about the kinds of sexual, social, psychological and physical violence that continues to be encountered by women. This film only takes the seed of its story from real-life incidents of combined suicides by three sisters, and then builds a narrative around it (). The director was able to influence the society by combining the fictional and non-fictional worlds. In order to profit, the director exploited the issue of dowry system by exploiting it. Satyamev Jayate, a reality TV, also tried hard to create awareness about dowry. Aamir Khan, a famous Bollywood actor, is the protagonist who reveals social issues that are prevalent in India which need to be addressed. In the dowry-focused episode, Aamir delineates that every hour one bride in the country dies due to dowry harassment. This certainly is not true. Consequently, he invites a few women who have been victims of the dowry system to speak about their torture. For instance, Komal Sethi spoke about how after being tortured to pay a hefty amount to her in-laws and husband, she was left to die in the US. Lecturer Nishana, who underwent a cosmetic surgery to please her husband, succumbed to the dowry demands of her in-laws and ended up committing suicide (1.5 million rupees that were given by her parents. Though, these cases depict the extremes that this system can go to, they leave a mark of the audience who begin to consider girls as burdens. Furthermore, the fact that Satyame v Jayate commercialized such sensitive issues to profit from them only undermines the validity of its claims. In a country, where film stars are considered as ideals, the distorted depiction of their personal lives can have a profound effect on society. Through the creation of superstars, media distorts the view of the Indian society on dowry. In India, film is the principal form of entertainment, and therefore, film stars are accorded a respect otherwise offer only to family elder and men of God(). An average of ten million people a day spend the equivalent of a days wages just to enter into a fantasy world of images of bad landlord, greedy industrialist, corrupt politicians and traditional virtues of virginity, devotion to God and family and service to men (). The protagonists, therefore, become the saviors of mankind and the actors start to be revered by the Indian public. According to Gokulsing and Dissanayake, star worship offer a mental escape from the pressures and poverty of everyday life and statements or actions made by big Bollywood stars, like Amitabh or Shahrukh, can have great effects on public attitudes. In high profile and star-studded marriages, the dowry worth fortunes are given; however, just as a custom. Millions of rupees in cash, gold, along with luxurious cars are given by the brides family, but this is not a compulsion and is given just out of generosity. However, the masses get influenced when they see this on the televisions and their desires increase many- folds. They start dreaming of lavish wedding and end up making brides lives miserable, ruining their families and turning the concept of marriage has been turned into a transaction, without any importance placed on the people or the relationship (). As a result of the societys distortion view of the dowry system, in many parts of the country, the birth of a girl is not seen as an event to celebrate. Unlike the loving parents of Poonam in Vivah, the thoughts of many Indian parents are not positive at the birth of a daughter (). The lyrics of an old Indian chant used in Punjab Eat the jiggery, spin the cotton, you should not come, send your brother suggests that the birth of a girl is seen as an event of sorrow. There is no singing or celebration, as the parents have to start worrying about the dowry. Girls become a drain of familys money, unlike boys who create income for the family and stay to take care of his parents in their old age (). This belief has skewed the sex ratio in India, fostered by sex-selective abortions and infanticides. Matrubhoomi, a Bollywood film, is set in a hypothetical village in India without women. The film tries to bring forth the message that if the rampant female infanticide and feticide were to cont inue, then there would be a time where there will be no women left. However, this film failed in its goal. The film is so extreme that the audience could not digest it and the film only succeeded at undermining the seriousness of this issue. The numerous representations of dowry system on both big and small screens, it seems to be distorting to an extent. Since the introduction of mass media in the Indian society, views of the people on the dowry have change significantly. The system, which was initially meant as a form of inheritance for women, changed over time because of its misrepresentation by media. The increasing exposure to media coupled, which increased the desirability of consumer goods, transformed this system into a substantial transfer of wealth from the brides family to the grooms and made dowry an important factor determining marriage decisions. Furthermore, recent films like Lajja, Vivah or Teen Beheinen only distorted the societys view on dowry by showing extremes situation that are highly unlikely to occur. On the other hand, TV shows like Satyamev Jayate tried to commercialize this issue; however, undermined its validity in the process. In addition, medias depictions of lavish weddings of media persona lities, increases the dowry systems prevalence as more and more people try to emulate their ideals. Dowry system, therefore, has become a big problem in India and has led to practices of female infanticide skewing the sex ratio in India. In drawing this paper to a close, it is clear that the problem of dowry is only intensified by media. Until media becomes more responsible in its depiction of the dowry system, leaving aside the monetary intentions, this problem will continue unabated.

Female Rebellion In Aurora Leigh and The Lady in the Looking-Glass Essa

Female Rebellion In Aurora Leigh and The Lady in the Looking-Glass   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Women of both the ages of Victorian and early Modernism were restricted from education at universities or the financial independence of professionalism. In both ages, women writers often rebelled against perceived female expectations as a result of their oppression. To lead a solitary life as a subservient wife and mother was not satisfactory for writers like Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Virginia Woolf. One of the most popular female poets of the Victorian era, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, illustrated "a woman's struggle to achieve artistic and economical independence in modern society" (Longman P.1858). Many Victorian critics were shocked by Barrett Browning's female rebellion, which was rare for the era. With her autobiographical epic poem, Aurora Leigh provoked critics who were "scandalized by its radical revision of Victorian ideals of femininity" (P.1859). In the age of Modernism, women were finally given the some rights to a higher education and p rofessionalism i n 1928 (p.2175). However, female poets of early Modernism, such as Virginia Woolf, were raised in the Victorian age. Rebellion toward "Victorian sexual norms and gender roles" (P.2175) are reflected in Woolf's modern literary piece, such as The Lady in the Looking-Glass: A Reflection. Also echoed in the piece, is how Woolf   "never lost the keen sense of anguish nor the self-doubt occasioned by the closed doors of the academy to women" (P.2445).      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Both of the female protagonists, Aurora of Aurora Leigh and Isabella of The Lady in the Looking Glass: A Reflection, represent the rebellion and self-doubt of their female writers. Aurora rebels against the Vi... ...r letters, they were all bills" (P.2456). The rebellion ultimately led to emptiness, as Isabella chose not to have relations to preserve her freedom.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Both Aurora Leigh and The Lady in the Looking Glass: A Reflection help define female rebellion from Victorian and Modernism eras.   The portrayal of the nature of the rebellion differs between the eras. The Victorian protagonist was more innocent in her struggle to gain independence. When that independence was achieved, it was like discovering a new religion. On the other hand, the Protagonists if the modernism era no longer were innocent in her rebellion. Forced to live a solitary life to seal her independence, she was hardened by the memories of the Victorian ideals for women.    Longman. The Longman Anthology of British Literature, vol. B. Damrosch, D. NY, LA: Addison Wesley Longman.

Kite runner redmption Essay

One of the main themes of the novel The Kite Runner Is redemption. Throughout the novel, the main character, Amir, seeks redemption for his sins. Amir states in the first chapter of the novel that he has a past of â€Å"unatoned sins. † Throughout the novel, The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini uses the following symbols to express the theme of redemption: The scar above Amirs lip, the lamb and the blue kite. The scar above Amirs lip represents the redemption Amir attained by rescuing Sohrab. Amir travels to Afghanistan to rescue Sohrab, who is being exploited by a Taliban leader. The Taliban leader turns out to be an old enemy from Amirs childhood, Assef. Amir must fight Assef in order to leave with Sohrab. During the fight Amir is beaten brutally until Sohrab shoots Assef with his slingshot. Amir is left with a scar above his right lip, strikingly similar to the one Hassan had after having surgery for his cleft lip. At the beginning of the novel, Amir watches Hassan get raped, but he did not intervene. The guilt from that day haunts him throughout the novel. At one point, Amir even tries to force Hassan to beat him up, as though the only thing that could redeem Amir was being beaten, but Hassan does not and Amir is even more ridden with guilt. When Rakim Khan calls amir, he says, â€Å"Come, This is a chance for you to be good again. † It is clear Rakim Khan understood the guilt that Amir was feeling, and realized that Amir had been searching for redemption all his life. Khan new that rescuing Sohrab was the only way Amir could truly find redemption. The rescue of Sohrab, was the rescue of an innocent, the rescue of a lamb. Throughout the novel, a reoccurring image of a sacrificial lamb represents a path to redemption. Amir tells the reader how during the Muslim holiday of Eid-Al-Ahda, the Mullah sacrifices a lamb. The look on the lamb’s face during the sacrifice stays with Amir for the rest of his life. When Amir witnesses Asseff rape Hassan, he remarks, â€Å"I caught a glimpse of his face. Saw the resignation in it. It was a look I had seen before. It was the look of the lamb. † Once more in the novel, Amir is reminded of the lamb, when he witnesses Asseff exploit Sohrab. The link between Hassan, Sohrab and the Lamb is their innocence; Because Amir betrayed an innocent Hassan, he must save an innocent to be redeemed, Sohrab is this innocent lamb. By ending the exploitation of this figurative lamb, Amir attains redemption for his sin. Finally, returning with the blue kite was an avenue of redemption for Amir. Every winter, in Kabul, there was a large kite-fighting tournament. The tournament was a big deal to the people of Kabul. Amir and Hassan won the tournament, but in order to truly be victorious, Hassan had to retrieve the blue kite so Amir could bring it home as a trophy. During the kite tournament Amir states, â€Å"All i saw was the blue kite. All i smelled was victory. Salvation. Redemption. † Specifically, redemption in the eyes of Baba. Amir had stated earlier in the novel how he thought Baba thought of him as weak, but this was Amirs chance to be strong in the eyes of Baba, and end Amirs longing for Baba’s love. In conclusion, the rescue of Sohrab, the sacrificial lamb and the blue kite represent redemption for Amir’s sins. Redemption is a main theme of the novel, and Khaled Hosseini uses the aforementioned symbols to tell the story of Amir’s quest for redemption. Amir’s quest makes one question whether sometimes the sinner, is also the victim. As a mere child, Amir betrayed his friend, out of fear, out of cowardice, and out of selfishness, but he did not know that decision would haunt him for the rest of his life. Did he really deserve the punishment befallen on him?

The Many Uses of John

The Many Uses of John The Many Uses of John The Many Uses of John By Maeve Maddox Although male names like Aiden, Jayden, and Santiago lead in popularity among various ethnic and social groups in the U.S., the name John comes only after James as the most popular in the total population according to 1990 census figures. The long-standing popularity of John has spawned numerous expressions in English, not all of them likely to please bearers of the name. Because the name is so common, it has served as a generic appellation for any man, rather like Mac, Jack, and Joe, as in Hey, Mac! Got a light?, Every man jack of them (meaning every single man), and G.I. Joe (any man serving in the military). In the days of the great English manors (think, Downton Abbey), â€Å"John† or â€Å"John Thomas† was used to refer to a man of the servant class such as a footman, butler, or waiter. In time, â€Å"John Thomas† became a euphemism for penis. Another word for the same male body part is â€Å"Johnson.† An anglicized version of French gendarme gave â€Å"johndarm† or â€Å"john,† a slang word for a policeman. â€Å"John Doe† originated in English law as a fictitious name to describe one of the people in person a certain type of litigation. The name has come to be used to refer to an ordinary or typical citizen. A 1941 Frank Capra movie starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck, Meet John Doe, focuses on the suffering of homeless and unemployed U.S. citizens. Viewers of police dramas know that â€Å"John Doe† is often used to refer to a corpse whose identity is unknown. A female victim is called a â€Å"Jane Doe.† The word john to refer to a W.C. or toilet may derive from the name of its inventor, Sir John Harington/Harrington (1561-1612), a member of Queen Elizabeth I’s court. The use of john to refer to a prostitute’s client may have something to do with one of the meanings of â€Å"John Thomas.† The word john also occurs in a few noun compounds. A demijohn is a large bottle usually encased in wicker, like a bottle of Chianti, only much bigger. The wicker casing has one or two handles to make the bottle easier to carry. A John boat is a small, flat-bottomed boat used on inland waterways in the U.S. It is also spelled jon boat. A johnny cake in the U.S. is a cake made of cornmeal and toasted before a fire. In Australia, a johnny cake is made of wheat meal and baked on the ashes or fried in a pan. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Comparative Forms of Adjectives50 Nautical Terms in General UseHow Do You Fare?

Essay on What Was the Factors Tah

Essay on What Was the Factors Tah Essay on What Was the Factors Tah | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Topic 4.3 | | | |ACIDS AND BASES | | | |Bronsted-Lowry theory | |Acids and bases in water | |Calculating pH | |Buffer solutions | |Acid-alkali titrations | |Indicators | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

Company Law - See attachment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Company Law - See attachment - Essay Example 1 Liquidation can voluntary or even compulsory. It is said to be voluntary when it is initiated by the will of the company through a resolution of the equity holders. It is said to be compulsorily carried out when the order of the court becomes the cause of the winding up of the company. 2 In a nut shell, there are two basic kinds of Liquidation procedures whose nature is explained in detail below: Voultary Winding Up In this kind of liquidation the company goes on to willingly wind up the affairs of the company and distribute the assets of the company after paying off the liabilities of the company. ... nding up Creditors’ voluntary winding up is usually due to the company becoming insolvent and unable to pay off its liabilities in due course and the company is perused by the creditors in order to prevent further debts accruing and to receive the due liabilities through the realization of the assets of the company in a process of liquidation. 3 Compulsory Winding up This kind of winding up takes place when the company is ordered to be wound up by an order of the court. There are numerous potential ways of this procedure to institute however the most general one is through the petition filed by the creditors on the argument that the company is unable to pay off its liabilities in due course and since it has not been deemed likely to arrive at a voluntary agreement on liquidation, the compulsory winding up via the court is instituted. The nature of the compulsory winding up is such that the company comes under the process of liquidation under an order from the court on grounds of inability to pay the debts or where the company has certain going concern issues which cannot be resolved through a successful surgery of the company’s affairs or the provision of cash inflows or bailouts where the company may be able to restore the balance of its affair on the positive side.4 However, a request to obtain a leave to prosecute a company which is being compulsorily wound up may be made to the Court who gave the order of winding up of the company. Consequences of Winding up When a company goes into liquidation, mainly due to the compulsory winding up process there is usually a cause of inability to pay its debts whereby the company has to face certain consequences during and after the liquidation and the victims of those consequences are mainly shareholders, employees and even

Analyze a website and present a case to the court Essay

Analyze a website and present a case to the court - Essay Example The area effect of explosive weapons causes death and injury not only to military combatants, but also to civilians, such as children, women and old people who clearly do not pose threat. This kind of harm is unacceptable because it has no justification. Although at present, there is no specific international treaty that prohibits the use of explosive weapons in densely populated areas, except perhaps for the use of cluster bombs which are banned by the Convention on Cluster Munitions, their use nevertheless, contravene basic human rights. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which should be abided by all members of the United Nations, proclaims that every person has the right to â€Å"life, liberty and security of persons.† Moreover, under the Geneva Convention of 1949, those who do not take direct part in a war are considered non-combatants and are therefore, must be, among others, free from violence to life and prison. Similarly, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court proscribes any attack against civilians. It is accepted principle under the international humanitarian law that the direct targeting of civilians violates the customary laws of war. The use of explosive weapons clearly breaches the principles enshrined in these treaties and customary laws.