Ideal Actions and Outcomes - Literature Essay Samples

Heroes are supposed to embody society’s ideals as an individual, but they do not always manage to live up to expectations. There are numerous circumstances that cause a person to act in a way that is dissonant to what he or she believes. The short story, â€Å"Sir Gawain and the Green Knight,† translated by Y.R. Ponsor, is centred on Sir Gawain’s conflict with himself that peaks when he breaks the code of chivalry that he swore to follow. The epic poem, Beowulf, translated by Lesslie Hall, is focused on a hero who has to save the morose King Hrothgar’s mead hall from a monster named Grendel. Lastly, the ballad Robin Hood and the Three Squires, recorded in the anthology â€Å"McDougal Littell Literature and Language: English and World Literature,† by Richard Craig Goheen, is about a man who saves three squires from execution but murders a sheriff in the process. While the characters in these stories are supposed to be heroic and act ideally by societ y’s standards, it is clear to see that they waver in their morals. Overall, acting outside of ideals can benefit a person in certain situations. A hero may need to act outside of ideals if his or her life is in danger. Sir Gawain, as an honourable knight, has an obligation to not steal. When Gawain steals the scarf from the green knight to protect himself from the green knight’s strike, he breaks his code of conduct. What Gawain does not see after he is shamed by the green knight is that straying from what is considered right, by stealing the scarf, was the best thing he could have done in his situation. The action of stealing falls short of society’s ideal but it was necessary for Sir Gawain to keep his life as it protects him from the green knights strike. Furthermore, King Arthur and the people of his kingdom do not see Gawain as any less because he stole; they are just happy he is alive. This is evidence to say that the fears Gawain had about the consequences of dishonour are not concrete in his society. Fear can influence a person to act in a way that is not ideal. King Hrothgar is supposed to be a hero and, before the Grendel crisis, he was. This is evident in how Hrothgar’s mead hall was popular before Grendel started causing trouble. Hrothgar was certainly a man who acted by society’s ideals but, after he saw what Grendel did, he lost his confidence as a king. Hrothgar sat in qualm and did not act against Grendel while his men were murdered. While cowardice is not characteristic of a king, acting against Grendel would have resulted in more damage to Hrothgar and his people. Any attempt made by Hrothgar and his men would have been futile and resulted in a net loss greater than what they experienced during the twelve years of Grendel’s guerilla assaults. Furthermore, Hrothgar’s failure as a king is what leads to Beowulf’s arrival. Making a king act so far outside of society’s ideal would have been enough to say that the threat of Grendel wa s worthwhile for a stronger hero to intervene. Hrothgar’s instinct to wallow in fear was what saved his life, and the lives of his men, from Grendel. A person may act outside of society’s ideals if it is easier than following them. Robin Hood is a unique hero. All heroes are villains through some other perspective and Robin Hood is a perfect example. After freeing the three squires, Robin Hood murders the Sheriff who had the squires in custody. The murder of the Sheriff is certainly wrong by society’s standards and it is done without consideration of whether or not the man may have had value to his life. The sheriff could have had a family and been important to others. Robin Hood has his men kill the sheriff regardless. This act, that is uncharacteristic for a hero, was most likely done because it was the easiest option. Robin Hood would may not have wanted some sheriff telling his colleagues about the trickery he used when he disguised himself as a common peasant. It would have been far easier for Robin Hood to kill the sheriff, and it was probably of his own benefit to do so. The sheriff may have come back and eith er arrested or killed Robin Hood in the future. Even if Robin Hood just killed the sheriff for fun, or because he knew his men wanted to, he avoided potentially having information about him leaked. Acting in questionable ways can have unforeseen benefits. By stepping outside of ideals, a person may put his or her self in a favourable position. Gawain saved his life by stealing from the green knight, Hrothgar did not get murdered by Grendel, and Robin Hood may have saved his own life if the sheriff potentially could have come after him in the future. The most common motive for acting outside of ideals is fear. Fear was certainly the motivation for Gawain and Hrothgar to act how they did, and a strong case can be made to say the same for Robin Hood. Intuitively, it seems like a purely negative thing to act outside of ideals. However, it is evident that this is not reality. Gawain and Hrothgar faced no consequences for their cowardice and Robin Hood was a villain to high society as soon as he freed the squires. In the end, acting in an unideal manner can be beneficial in some circumstances.

Code Of Ethics Of Ieee. Computer Society - 1597 Words

1Introduction Today, established ethical frameworks play a vital role in companies and organisations, espe- cially in big ones. Ethical framework, also known as code of conduct and code of ethics, is a set of guidelines, recommendations and rules, which specify expected behaviour and possible options how to make ethical decision, under different circumstances. It is crucial for every institution to set up ethical framework in order to prevent specific problems and to have es- tablished policy to find right and unambiguous solution for them if such occur. This report provides the analysis of all decisions made by the various individuals mentioned in the Killer Robot case study applying the Code of Ethics of IEEE Computer Society for†¦show more content†¦The third principle is related to management in software engineering. It states that software engineering managers and leaders must subscribe to and promote an ethical approach to the management of software development and maintenance. This, in turn, inludes the following responsibilities for managers and leaders: they must provide duly management for any project on which they work; they must be certain that potential software engineers are knowledgeable about the employment conditions; they must offer rightful salaries; they must provide appropriate teaching of this Code for all engineers; they must not ask engineers to do anything contradictory with principles of this Code and must not punish anyone for expressing any concerns about a project. The fourth principle reviewed in this report is called Self. ItShow MoreRelatedCode of Ethics for Computer Professionals1134 Words   |  4 PagesMost professions have codes of ethics and for the same reasons computer professionals need a code of ethics. Professions that have been in existence for many more years than the information profession have had time to recognise their ethical responsibilities. 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Protection under the law are usually accepted as ethically accurate along with legitimate considering that a substantial or even lording it over populace gives all of them. Folks may also give proper rights upon others as long as they have the opportunity along with means to accomplish this. An important problem in thisRead MoreWhat Changes Would Be Made For Engineering Be A Profession More Like Medicine Or Law?1784 Words   |  8 Pagesmedicine or law? Unlike the medical and law fields, engineering does not have a nationally established organization. Engineering is such a broad field that each specific engineering field has its own society. And very few practicing professional engineers belong to their corresponding professional societies. The style or way engineers would be educated would change. 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Business ethics is a social science, whose primary point is to characterize and analyse the obligations of organizations and their operators as a piece of the general good environment of a given society. The results of this field of examination are sets of guidelines and codes of behaviour’s, which serve as a method for security from the conceivable encroachments of good codes therefore from the general exercises and obligations

Racism and Mens Power Over Women in Alice Walkers The...

The novel, The Color Purple by Alice Walker was set in the post â€Å"World War I American South and the story takes place in Georgia between 1910s and 1940 (BookRags, 2009). In this novel there were four main characters and the novel is based on a woman that is treated as a slave involving racism and unfair gender roles of women by man in society. The four main characters of â€Å"The Color Purple† novel are Celie, Nettie, Mr. Albert, and Shug Avery. Celie is the protagonist and also the narrator of the story. â€Å"According to Celie’s stepfather, Celie was dumb, poor, and an ugly black girl† (Book rags). As a child, she was abused and had a low self-esteem, especially by her stepfather and then by her husband Albert. Mr. Albert is very harsh and†¦show more content†¦Nettie is Celie’s younger sister and when Celie got married she decided to go and spend some days with her sister, she also taught Celie how to read; then her husband wanted to seduce her and when she said no, he told Celie and Nettie that Nettie needed to leave and when Nettie was leaving out of anger he told her that her and Celie will never hear from each other again. Shug Avery is a blues singer and she became a big influence in Celie because she helped her to think of herself and with her help they found the letters that Nettie send Celie and after this, Celie decides to finally leave Albert with Shug’s help. 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El Lar de Idosos free essay sample

The first time I am called beautiful by someone outside of my family is in an elderly home. I’m eager to find a volunteer position, but as there are too many working in the local Sao Paulo orphanage, I reluctantly agree to spend two hours every Wednesday in a Brazilian elderly home. I don’t like old people, I tell my mother, because I simply don’t know how to act around them. Even so, I soon find myself in a cramped seat on a bus on my way to the lar de idosos. The first day I am terrified. Crinkled old women with baby faces speak to me in Portuguese. Their whispered words whiz over my head and I glue my eyes to the ground in humiliation as their cackles ignite the room. Ela nao fala Portugues, they announce loudly, so I bow my head and live up to their expectations by pretending that I don’t speak Portuguese. We will write a custom essay sample on El Lar de Idosos or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page When they turn to look for the television remote, I scurry into the kitchen to prepare drinks, and successfully evade conversation. I make a silent vow not to return the next week. But as Wednesday rolls around, I once again find myself bouncing down the unevenly paved road that leads to the elderly home. To my surprise, the trips fly by, and I suddenly find myself looking forward to my weekly visit. I begin to speak to the ladies. Though colloquial phrases and slang are often lost in my vocabulary, their crinkled mouths move with such passion that I cannot help but be mesmerized. It is not the words that cause laughter to bubble out from between stretched lips, but it is the feeling that accompanies such. To them, it seems that life itself is not as important as the manner in which we embrace it. Recently, my father’s job transfer resulted in my trading the Brazilian lar de idosos for an elderly home in Connecticut. Here, everything is different. The room is new and full of new faces, but strangely the people I came to know in Brazil are the same people here. The elderly in Connecticut, though incapable of shopping online or utilizing the latest technology, teach me lessons that could never be found on Google. A woman named Jane shows me her ankle that has grown to the size of a small cantaloupe, and tells of how it was broken at her grandson’s baseball game. I make note to avoid foul balls at such sporting events. A small, weathered man from China speaks to me in broken English about his own experience on a track team. I examine his quivering figure and cannot help but imagine him flying down a maroon colored track, his fingers wrapped snugly around a slick baton. Relating to these people does not come easily to me, but the more time I spend with them, the better I become at listening. A few weeks ago, as I enter the dining hall I am called â€Å"beautiful† by a 102 year-old man who is seated in his usual red plush seat, drinking his usual small cranberry with ice. I match his toothless smile with a grin of my own. I say, â€Å"Thank you.†