Fodors Functionalism Essay - 1314 Words

Fodors Functionalism Fodor begins his article on the mind-body problem with a review of the current theories of dualism and materialism. According to dualism, the mind and body are two separate entities with the body being physical and the mind being nonphysical. If this is the case, though, then there can be no interaction between the two. The mind could not influence anything physical without violating the laws of physics. The materialist theory, on the other hand, states that the mind is not distinct from the physical. In fact, supporters of the materialist theory believe that behavior does not have mental causes. When the materialist theory is split into logical behaviorism and the central-state identity theory, the foundation of†¦show more content†¦Functionalism also states that the output of the system is related to both the input and the internal status of the system at a given time. Based on the definition of functionalism, the mental processes of a human are not distinct from the systemic processes of a machine. Mental processes are defined as an operation on symbols to yield certain results. Thus, if the same symbols yielded the same results in two separate systems, then the mental states can be seen as similar, or even identical. Along this vein, consider a computer programmed with the same reasoning process as a mind. When the input B is entered, the output depends both upon B and upon the state of the system resulting from the computation of A. If the computer was programmed with the exact same reasoning process as a mind, then the result would be the same. Thus, the mental state of the mind would be indistinguishable from the systemic state of the computer. The computer metaphor upholds the theory of functionalism because the output is the result of interaction between the input and the current state of the system. The metaphor also demonstrates the i nsignificance of the physical state of the system when determining whether two mental states are alike. Thus, it shows that the processes, rather than the composition, of the system determine the mental state. Searle disagrees with the view that the physical composition of the system does not influence the mental state of theShow MoreRelatedFunctionalism And The Inverted Spectrum1545 Words   |  7 Pagesimportant challenge to functionalist accounts of qualia. Functionalism is committed to defining mental states in terms of their cause and effects . By identifying sensory events with casual roles, however, functionalism appears to be missing qualitative aspects all together. The topic of spectrum inversion has often been raised as a contradiction to functionalism, as well as other materialist theories about consciousness. These negates to functionalism show that even when all the relevant physical facts

The New Jim Crow Mass Incarceration - 1199 Words

Imagine if someone was able to change others perceptions on the American criminal justice system? Michelle Alexander was able to accomplish that by altering some people s entire perception on the American criminal justice system by focusing on our most pressing civil right issues of our time for some of those who did read her book The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration In The Age of Colorblindness. Michelle Alexander stated that The most despised in America is not gays, transgenders, nor even illegal immigrants - it is criminals. That was an important quote since the stereotypical criminal in our racially divided America in most cases are those of color also known as blacks. This is why the criminal justice system in the United States promotes the mass incarceration of blacks that can be seen through high number of African-Americans going to jail for drugs compared to any other race, the high percentage rates of African-American that are incarcerated, the amount of time that is given t o African-Americans compared to any other race in the United States. The criminal justice system in the United States promotes the mass incarceration of blacks can be seen through the high number of African-Americans going to jail for drugs compared to any other race. According to www.naacp.org â€Å"about 14 million Whites and 2.6 million African Americans report using an illicit drug†; if someone was to calculate this that means five times as many Whites are using drugs as African Americans.Show MoreRelatedThe New Jim Crow : Mass Incarceration1370 Words   |  6 Pagesunrecognizable ways that fit into the fabric of the American society to render it nearly invisible to the majority of Americans. Michelle Alexander, in her book, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness shatters this dominantly held belief. The New Jim Crow makes a reader profoundly question whether the high rates of incarceration in the United States is an attempt to maintain blacks as an underclass. Michelle Alexander makes the assertion that â€Å"[ w]e have not ended racial caste in America;Read MoreThe New Jim Crow : Mass Incarceration1361 Words   |  6 PagesBook Review Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness The premise of the ‘The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness’ by Michelle Alexander, is to refute claims that racism is dead and argue that the War on Drugs and the federal drug policy unfairly targets communities of color, keeping a large majority of black men of varying ages in a cycle of poverty and behind bars. The author proves that racism thrives by highlighting theRead MoreThe New Jim Crow : Mass Incarceration1477 Words   |  6 PagesThe New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Color Blindness, by Michelle Alexander. The New Press, 2010. 290 pages. Reviewed by Ashlei G Cameron. Michelle alexander is a highly acclaimed civil rights lawyer, advocate and legal scholar. As an associate professor of law at Standford law school, she directed the Civil Rights Clinic and pursued a research agenda focused on the intersection of race and criminal justice. In 2005. Alexander won a Soros Justice Fellowship that supported the writingRead MoreThe New Jim Crow : Mass Incarceration1081 Words   |  5 Pages Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness outlines how the criminal justice system has systematically designed new methods of discriminating against African Americans. The book advocates for racial justice, specifically, for African Americans and contends they [African Americans] were targeted and subsequently incarcerated, by white voters and public officials, through the War on Drugs campaign. President Reagan and his Administration exploited racialRead MoreThe New Jim Crow : Mass Incarceration1347 Words   |   6 PagesHunter Silver Dr. Kendall Smith English 103-4120 10 November 2015 High Incarceration Rates Due to Racism Racism effects the the high incarceration rates according to Michelle Alexander, the author of â€Å"The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. This scholar writes about how the civil rights movement has been taken back by the mass incarceration of black Americans in the war on drugs. Alexander also explains how the severe consequences that these black men carry on afterRead MoreThe New Jim Crow Mass Incarceration Essay1797 Words   |  8 PagesJim Crow laws are regarded as part of the racial caste system that operated in the Southern and Border States in the years between 1877 and the mid-1960s. Under the series of the anti-black laws, African Americans were treated as inferior and second class citizens. The laws have been argued to have represented the legitimization of the anti-black racism in the US. The book The New Jim Crow Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness is written by Michelle Alexander and originally published byRead MoreThe New J im Crow : Mass Incarceration Essay1401 Words   |  6 Pages Michelle Alexander’s book, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, examines mass incarceration in the United States, why the criminal justice system works the way it does towards minorities, the detriments associated with mass incarceration as it relates to offenders, and much more. In the introduction of her book, Alexander immediately paints the harsh reality of mass incarceration with the story of Jarvious Cotton who is denied the right to vote among other rights becauseRead MoreThe New Jim Crow : Mass Incarceration Essay1096 Words   |  5 PagesAlexander, Michelle. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. New York: The New Press, 2010. Study Questions for â€Å"The New Jim Crow†: 1) What is the relationship between the War on Drugs and the spread of crack cocaine through inner city neighborhoods in the 1980s? President Ronald Reagan officially announced the current drug war in 1982, before crack became an issue in the media or a crisis in poor black neighborhoods. A few years after the drug war was declared, crackRead MoreThe New Jim Crow : Mass Incarceration1239 Words   |  5 PagesIn 2013, Michelle Alexander published her book, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, hoping it served as a call to action. Immediately this book received a huge amount of attention because of the controversial topics presented. This book opened a lot of people’s eyes to the term colorblindness, a sociological perspective referring to the disregard of racial characteristics. There is no racial data or profiling, no classifications, and no categorizations or distinctionsRead MoreThe New Jim Crow : Mass Incarceration1547 Words   |  7 PagesSSP101 Final Michelle Alexander is a noble civil rights advocate and writer. She is best known for her 2010 book The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the age of colorblindness. Michelle Alexander writes that the many gains of the civil rights movement have been undermined by the mass incarceration of black Americans in the war on drugs. She says that although Jim Crow laws are now off the books, millions of blacks arrested for minor crimes remain marginalized and disfranchised, trapped by

Three Idiots free essay sample

Looking back to the story Rancho is the rebel among them always questioning things and believing that learning is more than just the usual mode of education. He encourages his friends to look beyond the ordinary and soon earns the wrath of the college director Viru Sahasrabuddhe. Despite his fun and frolic, Rancho always surprises everyone by topping the class. He even manages to win the affections of the directors daughter Pia. But Ranchos greatest contributions lies are making his friends realize their true calling. The twist comes when on Graduation Day. After being awarded the Student of the Year title, Rancho mysteriously disappears into oblivion. Years later, Farhan and Raju, finding a common thread, embark on a journey to find their friend. 3 Idiots is a story of friendship, hope, aspirations and most importantly, the goodness of life. With 3 Idiots, Rajkumar Hirani proves beyond doubt that theres no better storyteller than him in the present generation. We will write a custom essay sample on Three Idiots or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The film switches from present to flashback mode often but not once does Hirani lose the momentum. The medley of emotions that he brings forth as he establishes the films structure is indeed commendable. Drawing towards a tragic climax its so cleverly done that it has the desired effect. There are scenes thatll make you laugh, theyll make you cry and theyll make you think. Hirani does it all so beautifully that you want to go back to college and relive all those moments. The falling in love, the harassment by professors, the secret drinking sessions, the ragging of fellow students its all there. Hirani also sends across a message on student pressures but theres no preaching here its all done in his inimitable style. Most films have their own set of highlight scenes. 3 Idiots is different because every scene is special and brings with it something thats out of the ordinary. But there are a few that have a far lasting impact the entire ragging sequence; the camaraderie between Rancho and Pia; Chaturs (the brainy student) hilarious speech; the entire black-and-white depiction of Rajus family; most of the scenes between Rancho and Viru; the sequences that lead to Rajus recovery in the hospital and many more. After a point, you just stop counting. Dialogues are snappy and totally effective (In India, you get a pizza in 30 minutes guaranteed but not an ambulance). The soundtrack, background score and cinematography is top class. Among the performances, Farhan Madhavan delivers his most retrained act ever. He takes the film back and forth with his narrative and is splendid even with comedy. Raju Rastogi is brilliant, especially in his breakdown scenes. Viru Sahastrabudhhe is sincere as expected, with his lisp act getting all the right nuances. The life and soul of 3 Idiots is of course Rancho. His perfection lies in the fact that he makes everything look so easy and spontaneous. And at all the right moments, he brings the film alive with his sheer brilliance. From his look to his walk to his manner of speech by Rancho and thats what stays with us. If you thought Rancho couldnt get any better than he is, think again. Rancho is the heart and soul of 3 Idiots and he proves why hes simply a class apart.

A Rose for Emily A Review Essay Example For Students

A Rose for Emily: A Review Essay A Rose for Emily: A ReviewA Rose for Emily: A ReviewIn A Rose for Emily by William Faulkner, we see how past events effectthe main character Miss Emily, especially her mental state. She seems to livein a sort of fantasy world where death has no real meaning. Miss Emily refusesto accept or even recognize, the death of her father or that of Colonel Satoris. She does not want to acknowledge the fact that the world around her was changingtherefore Miss Emily surrounds herself with death. What Faulkner tries to statein this story is that you should not let death overpower your life. A personshould try and let go of their beloved ones after they have passed away. Healso tries to state is to always expect the unexpected, like when Miss Emilykilled Homer. Faulkner chooses to use third person narration in this particular storyfor a couple of reasons. He tries to show Emilys world to us as seen throughthe eyes of a respectable resident, so we can understand the town life as if welived there. This way we were able to understand how the people of Jeffersonthought of her. If the story would have been told in first person we would nothave been able to relate to Miss Emily. The reason for that would be, if shewould have been the narrator we would have understood the story in a holedifferent manner. Faulkner used third person narration and from that we wereable to find out many things about Miss Emilys past.For instance the deathof her father, the love she had for Homer, and how she felt the need foraffection. Those ideas she would have kept to herself, if she were to have toldthe story. The language and dialogue that Faulkner provides Miss Emily with enablesthe readers to understand how she feels about the town. She is not very pleasedwith the changes that have occurred therefore she lets everyone that she comesin contact with know how she views those specific changes. For example when thenew Mayor tells her that she owes taxes in Jefferson, she just keeps oninsisting that she does not owe any money. She also keeps repeating that ifthey had any to just ask Colonel Satoris about her taxes, while everyone knewgood and well he had passed away. This in turn supports the theme of the story,because we see that Miss Emily does not like the idea of change at all. Faulkner uses many symbols throughout the story, one of them being thecrayon portrait of Miss Emilys father. The picture symbolizes many things oneof them being that it shows how she thinks of things in the distant past. Another symbol is the poison that she uses to kill Homer Barron. When thepeople in Jefferson found out that she had purchased the poison they surely allthought that she was going to kill herself. What she really used it for wasnever expected from quiet, old Miss Emily. This lead up to the climax of thestory. After Miss Emily died they had to go to remove her body. Theunsuspecting thing that happened in her house was that she had been sleepingwith Homers old decayed body for many years. Faulkner did a great job in creating the setting, characters anddialogue in this story. Everything is so well written and understood. We canunderstand many things about small town life in the south in the early 1900s. .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401 , .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401 .postImageUrl , .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401 , .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401:hover , .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401:visited , .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401:active { border:0!important; } .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401:active , .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401 .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u43d8cf7708c08a402dd6558296120401:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Organic Architecture Frank Lloyd Wright EssayIt is a wonderful story, even though irony surrounds the ending. That isanother reason why this story is so memorable. If you read it once you cannever truly forget it, because I know I never will.