Themes In The Decline Of The West

Civilization: The West and the Rest, presented by Niall Ferguson, is a documentary in which Ferguson reveals what he calls the six killer applications which has helped Western civilization dominate over everyone else. These six applications are competition, science, property, medicine, consumerism, and work. Ferguson asks many questions over the course of the series as well as provides examples as to how Western civilization has surpassed other nations and empires. Ferguson’s main question in each episode is, “If we lose our monopoly over apps like these, could Western civilization be consigned to history.” This paper will analyze Ferguson’s questions and the examples he provides for the killer applications of competition, science, property, medicine, consumerism, and work, as well as his conclusions as to why the West has risen to the top, how the rest are passing up the West, as well as his conclusions to if the West can remain above the rest.

In this summary, Mike has his eyes opened to the world, and he explains his feelings and emotions. He wants to make the point that, no matter the struggle, if people only keep pushing for what they want, they will achieve excellence. Going to school was something big for both Mike and Anthony, and both learned some very important lessons from their experiences during their enrollment. Also, there is a lesson that Mike also learned about how people are not going to use their minds, unless they try to experience the lives of others. People in everyday life are more distracted than they lead on to be. They need to open their eyes, and see what is right in front of them

In the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe it is demonstrated how the Ibo culture slowly deteriorated from their own culture. The Western ideas influenced a different impact on certain characters, this also included characters like Okonwo and his son Nwoye. Many from the Ibo culture were confused by the merge of the European people slowly but subtly trying to enforce and covert their religion upon them. The books ending explained why the book was written in the first place, which was to “break the silence” that existed from the unheard side of the colonized people. The novel explained the impact Nwoye encountered with Western ideas was a clear and positive one. Nwoye felt like he resonated, was wanted, and more suited in the new culture

John Lee Hancock puts emphasise on the fact that Michael is poor and the Touhy’s are rich and juxtaposes these two central characters repetitively throughout the film. This is done to portray to the audience that a person’s socio-economic status can affects an individual’s capacity to learn and excel at the things he may be talented at, in Michael’s case football. Another aspect which is explored throughout the film is the fact that attitudes towards belonging can change of time this is evident in Michael because at first he was hesitant in staying with the Touhy’s but later transitions into part of their family, Michael makes many transitions throughout the film which include from Illiterate to educated and from disrespected to honourable, this movie has a very motivational aspect to it in that it inspires people to push past any barriers they may be faced with. Michael is quickly accepted as part of the family and creates a connection with them and has a sense of belonging with them this is also done at his school when his football coach strengthens Michaels sense of belonging by describing him as “his son” this makes Michael Ohers feel a part of the group and encourages him to excel without the fear in his mind that he is not accepted in the environment he is faced with.

In Two American Families, a documentary film which produced by Bill Moyers, it follows the two middle class families in Milwaukie, one black and one white, for over a decade as they struggle to achieve the “American Dream”. This documentary reveals the struggle of some American families who work hard and follow the social order in the society, but have fallen as a victim in a struggling economy to a series of policy decisions made. The hand of policy ineffectively steered the lives of the two families featured, the Neumann’s and Stanley’s, despite their hard work ethic and sincere determination to succeed. There are many policy implications that played a role in this documentary, including those around education, institutional racism, taxation, overseas jobs and social security. However, the main factors that drive those policy implications are minimum wage, health care, the foreclosure crisis, and debt dependency. In this essay, I will go into in more details about those main factors that both two American families suffered from the series of economic depression.

McCandless reconstructs himself to “Alex Supertramp” which is marked by his rejection of materialism, as well as his journey to live on his own in the wild. McCandless puts his money all together on the sand and “put a match to it, one hundred twenty-three dollars in legal tender was promptly reduced to ash and smoke” (29). McCandless burning his money was a way of his need to be fully on his own without the use of anything relating to modern. McCandless is showing his hatred and separation from material things because he can't buy the things he need throughout his journey. McCandless follows the non-materialistic lifestyle to heart and does not accept materials and comfort.

Mike’s grandmother also tunes into her own natural instincts rather than society’s given standards, which is what makes her

“Four Horsemen” is a documentary by Ross Ashcroft on the impending demise of today’s civilisation. “Four Horsemen” ends on a high note, an instruction – people should educate themselves and be aware of the government malversations that cripple economies, favour the wealthy and further repress the poor, and above all people should always question the system and look for ways to reform it. The documentary identifies the problem as the four horsemen of today’s modern apocalypse – the financial system, the rise of organised violence, the increasing poverty of billions, and finally the exhaustion of natural resources. The film presents itself as a recount of the fall of the ‘Western empire’ and how this situations demands reforms and action of

Back when they were in middle school the three boys met, after Mike’s family moved there from North Carolina. From the beginning, Roland and Slim picked on Mike and singled him out for being new. Mike did not play ball or gang bang so, fit right in for the fact that he was not of the “norm” in Inglewood according to Slim and Roland. Asking Mike numerous of questions Roland and Slim eventually took Mike under their wing and showed him how to survive life in The Wood using a series of rules. From that day forth the three made that brotherly bond and were inseparable. With the help of Roland and Slim, Mike soon came out of his shell and started to get the hang of how everyday life went in Inglewood, California went. Their brotherhood was powerful in

- This metaphor shows us how harsh the reaction from his gang are, so therefore shows how brave Mike was to stand up against them, hence the murderous response from his gang. However it is a true show that doing the right thing is always right, no matter what the consequences. This message is inspirational to readers and almost gives us the reassurance that we can do whats right, although it may have hard consequences, we need to be brave and do

Both the authors agree that the west is most certainly the main superpower in the world today. There were arguments worldwide, that the cause for the poverty in communist and/or third-world countries was the result of the rise in Western prosperity and the West was therefore able to dictate the rules of the game. These factors, both in Totalitarian and Authoritarian states, began to bring China and Latin America down one by one. It could be seen that there was only one successful factor left on the world stage, Liberal Democracies.

To begin, Mike becomes dependent on alcohol to mask the realities surrounding his financial crisis. He is introduced to the novel by his fiancé, Lady Brett Ashley, as a “ drunkard” and an “undischarged bankrupt”, immediately allowing the audience to create an image of him as an unstable, dependent character (Hemingway 85). As an individual with the status ‘legally bankrupt’, he is ineligible to obtain credit, he cannot “write checks” and has various restrictions on his financial status (233). Because Mike made careless decisions in his past, he as a result, jeopardized his future. He

The Navajo Indians emulated the pueblo. The shed their animal skin clothing for cotton and learned quickly how to farm. These people settled in between the Rio Grande and the Grand Canyon. They herded sheep and grew corn in the valleys. They were a peaceful group of people, and were one with their surroundings.

How can Western Civilization avert decline and promote happiness and justice? In a world of political and celebrity scandals from the raunchy to the greedy, our culture is full of corruption and an obsession with fame. Henrik Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler and Sylvia Plath’s “The Colossus” both explore the West’s moral blindness and our paralysis of feeling and thought in the twentieth century. Western civilization is becoming a wildfire fueled by tragic ignorance, societal norms and corruption. This must be exposed in order for any cultural epiphany to occur.

People around the country are living in a very hard economic crisis that they have experienced since 2008. This difficult situation has created circumstances that cause people to lose their jobs and companies taking the options of laying off employees, creating a big impact in many families around the country. This situation has not improved at all in the last three years, which makes it very hard for anyone to find a job. The consequences for all these changes are affecting families’ lives in different ways emotionally, socially, and financially. According to the United States Department of