Eddie Vedder Is A Vampire :: essays research papers

Eddie Vedder Is A Vampire Although at first he may seem to be just your average angst ridden lead man for a popular rock and roll band, Eddie Vedder, the vocalist and lyricist for Pearl Jam, may very well be a vampire. Although it is impossible to tell, everything points to his being an immortal. An in depth analysis of his lyrics shows that Pearl Jam's second album, â€Å"Versus†, has been used by Vedder as sounding boards for the complex emotions and change of perspective that come with one's transition to vampirism. Other lyricists have used vampiric images before - for instance Sting, in Moon Over Bourbon Street, which was written in first person - but Vedder is unique in that his lyrics evolve over time as being indicative of his vampiric state. Either he has become a vampire, he believes himself to be a vampire, or he is leading a fictional double life, from which he draws inspiration for his lyrics.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What exactly is a vampire? Numerous myths, folk tales, and works of fiction exist on the matter of what makes up a vampire, but if they do exist, vampires have been incredibly careful to conceal their presence from most people (supposedly following a law known as the Masquerade), and very little is known about them definitively. However, some basic facts are common to most sources. These are: vampires drink blood, vampires live forever if not killed, and vampires undergo grievous bodily harm if exposed to sunlight; this normally kills them.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Many other things about vampires, such as their aversion to garlic, their superhuman abilities, and their prohibition on entering abodes unless invited, are mentioned in some sources and not others, and so it is unclear as to how much of this applies to real vampires, and how much is pure myth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Eddie's vampiric tendencies became apparent in the lyrics to â€Å"Versus†, Pearl Jam's second album. Pearl Jam's first album, â€Å"Ten†, contains no real evidence of vampirism, and his lyric writing style is subtly different from that in â€Å"Versus†. In â€Å"Ten†, the lyrics are often in ballad form, generally relating tales of normal people. The songs Jeremy, Alive, Deep, and Black were all number one hits in the U.S. from â€Å"Ten†. Eddie was not writing about himself in these songs, and was only assuming personas for the narrative, a standard device for composers of fiction of any kind. Thus, the lyrics were simply Eddie's view of the world around him, incorporating characters and situations which he could relate to.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Eddie's lyric writing style had change considerably in the second album, â€Å"Versus†.

Is Mark Twain a Racist?

Is Mark Twain A racist? Many believe certain things about Twain's â€Å"Great American novel,† makes it a racist book, like the overuse of the word, â€Å"nigger,† and the given depiction of the black slave, Jim. However, there is a substantial amount of evidence that this book was not written out of hate, but in hope that Twain could change the ideals of skin color of the white people around him. The first and foremost question most people ask when they read the novel is, â€Å"was Mark Twain a racist? There are assumptions that because of Twain's use of edgy language and writing in the point of view of racists, that he was a racist himself. Much of the article is Twain going into detail about the type of environment and adults this young boy has been raised with, and how racism against the Chinese is commonplace. For example, the Chinese are taxed twice as much as all the other races to mine for gold. Also, when they are caught stealing from a mine, they are hung. Ho wever, when the same happens to the other races, they are only asked to leave the mining camp (Galaxy).In one part, the narrator shares, â€Å"†¦ [the boy] found out that in many districts of the vast Pacific coast, so strong is the wild, free love of justice in the hearts of the people, that whenever any secret and mysterious crime is committed, they say, â€Å"Let justice be done, though the heavens fall,† and go straightway and swing a Chinaman. † (Galaxy) The reason why Twain lists these observations is to show the city of San Francisco that it is not the boy who's at fault, because, â€Å"What had the child's education been? How should he suppose it was wrong to stone a Chinaman (Galaxy)? In fact, in one part of the article, the boy says, â€Å"†Ah, there goes a Chinaman! God will not love me if I do not stone him (Galaxy). † With this article, Twain hoped that he could allow the adult of the city to see how foolish they have been acting towards the Chinese and it was not the boy who is acting childish, but it is the men whom the young boy looked up to. This is the same scenario with the controversy surrounding, â€Å"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. † In both stories we see a young boy who lives in a society that is racist against a certain race only because they were raised that way.An example of this in, â€Å"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,† is one of the first things we hear from Huck's father and his feelings about black people who have done well in the country. He refers to an African-American college professor who wore nice clothes and was intelligent. Also, since the man was from Ohio, he was also allowed to vote. It's interesting how Huck's father says, â€Å"It was ‘lection day, and I was just about to go and vote myself if I warn't too drunk to get there†¦ (37)†.The irony in this is how Huck's father, a man who is obviously morally, financially, socially, and intellectuall y inferior to the professor he met, believes he is superior to the man because of their difference in skin colors. This confirms that Huck was raised in a racist environment, which means that things Huck says or does probably isn't out of hate, but because that's the way he's been raised in his home and society. Something very risky that Twain did to show others his position on slavery and racism was when he volunteered to help pay for one of the first black student's tuition at Yale University.In his letter do the Dean of the university explaining why he wanted to do this, he said, â€Å"We have ground the manhood out of them, and the shame is ours, not theirs, and we should pay for it (Fishkin). † This act and quote shows that Mark Twain felt personally convicted about slavery as a terrible mistake towards the black society and wanted to give something back to those affected. Therefore, with all his negative experiences with slaves and racism, why would this man write a boo k that goes against the ideals he so boldly defends?This book should not be looked at as an attack against African-Americans, but as another way Twain tried to repay the debt he felt he owed the slaves and their families (Fishkin). When the book first introduces Jim, it seems that the slave is almost superstitious to the point of idiocy. In chapter two, Jim falls asleep when looking for Tom and Huck in Mrs. Watson's yard. Tom takes Jim's hat and places it on a branch above his head, and when Jim wakes up he tells the other slaves a group of witches, â€Å"rode him all over the world, and tired him most to death, and his back was all over saddle-boils (14). Two chapters later, Jim pulls a hairball out of an ox's stomach and claims an all-knowing spirit lives inside (26). Many people find Jim's superstitions very offensive and racist because it emphasizes the idea that slaves had no hope in having a good life. Some believe that since the slaves were treated so poorly and had little c hance of escaping their sentence, they made up superstitions as a way to escape from their cruel reality. Most African-American advocates of anning Twain's novel from schools don't think their children should have to read about a time in their family's history where so much pain, suffering and dignity was lost. The fact that Twain makes Jim an extremely superstitious character, is interpreted by many as a racist action (Wolfson). However, who's to say that Jim's superstitions are not just a creative way for him to take advantage of certain things for his own personal gain? It's possible that Jim used the witch story from chapter two because he knew he'd gain popularity throughout the slave world.It even says later that slaves traveled from far places to hear Jim's witch story. As with the hairball, Jim could have just used it to get a quick â€Å"buck† from Huck, or other customers who wanted some questions answered, since Jim pretended the spirit wouldn't work unless it was paid. If Jim's superstitions are viewed in this light, he should be looked at as a very clever human being, rather than a hopeless slave, and no one with the same skin color as him should be offended (Fishkin). Another big issue people have with the book is its seemingly overuse of the word, â€Å"nigger. Throughout the book, the word is mentioned an overwhelming two hundred and fifteen times, something that many see as unnecessary, since the word comes with such a negative, degrading implication in today's world. However, there is much debate whether or not the term carried the type of negative connotation it has today, but even if people did use the name as an insult, there are still reasonable explanations as to why Mark Twain would use this word. First of all, Twain strived to make this novel as realistic as possible.If he had not used the language of his time or depicted characters the way they were in his time period, then no one would have taken his book seriously. It's poss ible that there were other names that were less offensive that he could have used, but doing so would not have been as effective in exposing the ugliness of racism as, â€Å"nigger† does. The word reinforced the book's idea that the societies of the southern United States lived in constant racism. Though it's unclear whether Shelley Fisher Fishkin supported this idea, she says in her book, A Historical Guide to Mark Twain: †¦ â€Å"nigger†] was integral to the project of presenting and indicating a racist society, whose illegitimate racial hierarchy was embodied in the use of that word, because it was central to dramatizing the failure of everyone in that society (black and white) to challenge the legitimacy of the status quo and of the word that cemented and reinforced it, and because the diction was realistic to the time and characters. (137) The relation between, Disgraceful Persecution of a Boy, and the novel at hand must also be analyzed.The young boy who sto ned the Chinese man didn't commit the crime because he hated the Chinese, he did it because that's what he was taught to do. When Huck referred to the slaves as, â€Å"niggers,† it's not out of hate that he uses the word, but because he was taught that's just what you call slaves. Another issue people have with this book is the overall depiction of the slave's intellect. In parts of the book, it's hard to even understand what Jim is trying to say because he hasn't been educated. People believe that making Jim sound intellectually inferior to every other character in the book is a racist move on Twain's part.However, when reading the novel, the reader must also realize that the author and the narrator are two different voices. The author, Twain, is an adult who is very against the idea of slavery. The narrator is a young boy who has been raised by a society who sees nothing wrong with enslaving black people. Thus, it is not Twain voicing his opinions through the thought proces ses of Huck, but it is Twain trying to portray an accurate, historical point of view from a young, white boy (Fishkin). Unfortunately, this young boy has been raised with certain biases against slaves, and Twain must honor that bias.If he doesn't then the book would be historically inaccurate. Also, one must remember that people living today were probably not Twain's target audience. Twain wanted to change problems in his generation, and in order to create a story that applied to the reader of his day, he would have to make the story as realistic as possible. Lastly, the most obvious argument is that it just wouldn't make sense to create a slave character who was as smart as the white people. If slaves were not allowed any formal education, how realistic would it be to write about a smart, literate slave?Finally, at the end of the novel, it seems Huck is thinking about running away from his home again, only because, â€Å"Aunt Sally she's going to adopt me and sivilize me, and I ca n't stand it (307). † For this quote to truly hold any meaning, the reader must realize a â€Å"sivilized† person in the societies of the southern states back then would probably have owned and mistreated slaves. Hearing Huck say that he's sick of society teaching him how to be â€Å"sivilized,† could be his way of expressing the newfound feelings he has against slavery (Fishkin).To say that, â€Å"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,† is a racist novel should be considered a ridiculous idea. Why would an anti-slavery and anti-racist man write a racist book? Twain wrote books and articles to justify his ideas to his reader, even if the ideas were absurd, like the idea of the black man being on equal ground with the white man. Though by the time the book was completed slavery was abolished and African-Americans were free, the mindsets of the southern white families did not change. These types of families were to whom Mark Twain was directing this book.He hop ed they would see the ugliness of racism and slavery, and see people past the color of their skin. One of Mark Twain's well known quotes on racism is, â€Å"One of my theories is that the hearts of men are about alike, all over the world, whatever their skin-complexions may be (Everett). † Twain probably never realized his novel about young Huck Finn would have gained so much popularity and attention so long after it's original publishing, but throughout every generation, his message of anti-racism should not be banned for its racist interpretations because it is relevant for any race, people, or community.

The Offer Contract Agreement - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 8 Words: 2495 Downloads: 5 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Law Essay Type Case study Tags: Contract Law Essay Did you like this example? Offer Contract Agreement Peter acquired a Degas painting. On 2nd May, he sent a telex message to Manjit that he was prepared to sell the Degas painting to her for  £240,000, but that he must receive an answer within seven days. Manjit replied immediately by telex, stating that she was willing and that she would pay for it in monthly instalments of  £20,000 each. On 3rd May, Manjit received a telephone message from Peter that he would prefer six monthly payments of  £40,000 for the painting. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Offer Contract Agreement" essay for you Create order The following day, Manjit sent a letter to Peter which stated, I agree to pay monthly payments. Please arrange for the delivery of the painting on 10th May. Unfortunately, her letter reached Peter on 12th May. On 11th May, in response to a magazine advertisement Manjit contacted the seller Victoria over the phone and left a message on her answering machine, stating that she would buy the Van Gogh painting for  £201,000. On 15th May, both Peter and Victoria arrived at Manjits office, each claiming that she was contractually bound to buy their respective paintings. As Manjit had received a letter from her accountant that morning warning that her business was in some difficulty, she now states the she does not wish to buy either painting. Advise Manjit. In English Law in order to form a contract, the following elements have to be present: A valid offer has been proffered by the first party to the other party or parties. The offer has been accepted unchanged by the second party or parties and this has been communicated to the offeror. There is an intention by all parties to create legal relations, when they enter into the contract and the parties have the capacity to contract. The promises made within the contract are for valuable consideration. The terms of the contract are certain. An offer is defined as an expression of willingness to contract on certain terms, made with the intention that it shall become binding as soon as it is accepted by the person to whom it is addressed, the offeree. The expression referred to in the definition can have various forms, such as a letter, newspaper, fax, email, conduct (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offer_and_acceptance), etc., and the main criterion is that it has to perforce communicate the basis on which the offeror is prepared to contract. The courts will judge the aspect of intention, referred to in the definition, objectively. In Smith v. Hughes it has been emphasized that the important thing is not a partys real intentions but how a reasonable person would view the situation (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offer_and_acceptance). This is attributable to the reason that in accordance with common sense neither party would wish to breach their side of the contract if it would make them culpable to damages. Accepta nce is a final and unqualified expression of assent to the terms of an offer (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offer_and_acceptance). A defendant cannot claim that it was never his intention to be bound by the agreement if it is established during trial that his action served to communicate to the other party or parties that he had in fact agreed. Assent may be exhibited in a variety of ways and one of them is by the signing of a contract or it might consist of a promise to pay someone if the latter performs certain acts and may be accepted by the requested conduct instead of a promise to do the act. The performance of the requested act confirms that the party has agreed to the terms of the offer. What is required, without fail, is that there should be evidence that each of the parties had, from an objective perspective, engaged in conduct manifesting their assent. This requirement of an objective perspective gains importance in cases where one of the parties claims that an offer had not been accepted and thereby takes advantage of the performance of the other party. In such instances the test of whether a reasonable bystander would have perceived that the party has impliedly accepted the offer by conduct is relevant. The rules of acceptance are: The acceptance must be communicated, this implies that depending on the construction of the contract, the acceptance may not have to come until the notification of the performance of the conditions in the offer, in as in Carlill v. Carbolic Smoke Ball Company (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offer_and_acceptance), where the defendants, the proprietors of a medical preparation called the carbolic smoke ball, issued an advertisement to the public, in which they offered to pay  £ 100 to any person who contracted influenza after having used one of these smoke balls in a manner specified by them and for a specified period. However, it is important to note that this offer was unilateral or open to the whole world to accept. In the absence of such an unilateral offer advertisements are nothing more than an invitation to treat. In Partridge v. Crittenden it was held that the offer for sale of certain wild birds, which was illegal, was deemed to be, by the High Court as an invitation to treat and not offers for sale. An offer can only be accepted by the offeree (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offer_and_acceptance). An offer is not bound if another person accepts the offer on his behalf without his authorisation (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offer_and_acceptance) . It may be implied from the construction of the contract that the offeror has dispensed with the requirement of communication of acceptance (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offer_and_acceptance). If the offer specifies a method of acceptance then such acceptance must be made using a method that is no less effective than the method specified (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offer_and_acceptance). Silence cannot be construed as acceptance, as held in Felthouse v. Bindley(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offer_and_acceptance). The power of acceptance is always terminated by rejection or counter offer by the offeree, revocation by the offeror prior to acceptance, lapse of time, debt or incapacity of the offeror or offeree. In Carlill v. Carbolic Smoke Ball Company there was an advertisement that consumption of a smoke ball in the prescribed manner would protect the consumer from influenza. The plaintiff believing in this advertisement bought one of these carbolic balls and used it in the prescribed manner and for the prescribed period but nevertheless contracted influenza. The court held that the plaintiff was entitled to recover the promised amount. However, the acceptance must be communicated and before acceptance, an offer can be withdrawn. In our present problem, Peter an art dealer was in possession of a Degas Painting which he offered to sell to Manjit, another art dealer for  £ 240,000/-, with the condition that acceptance had to be communicated to him within seven days. To this Manjit replied by telex that she was willing to purchase the painting and that she would pay in monthly installments of  £20,000/-. Manjità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s telex message cannot be considered to constitute acceptance since she had made a counter offer to Peter. From the above it is evident that legally, Manjit had made a counter offer to Peter and not an acceptance of his offer according to the provisions of the contract act. An offeror can revoke an offer before it has been accepted, but such revocation has to be communicated to the offeree. After receiving Manjità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s counter offer, Peter again made an offer to pay for the painting by six monthly installments of  £ 40,000/- each by telephone on the 3rd of May. Manjit indicated her acceptance by a letter, which she posted to Parker on the 4th of May. The letter was correctly stamped and addressed but nevertheless it was received by Peter only on the 12th of May. An offer will remain in force until: First, its revocation by the offeror any time before acceptance and such revocation is communicated to the offeree. Second, it is rejected by the offeree due to a counter offer. Third, the offer lapses due to the expiry of a stipulated time limit. Fourth, a contract condition has failed. Finally, if the offeror has expired and notice of such demise is received by the offeree. In Hyde v Wrench , Wrench offered to sell his property for  £1200 to Hyde. When Hyde rejected that offer, Wrench made a further offer to sell for  £1000. Hyde replied that he would buy the property if offered for  £950, but Wrench refused to sell for this amount. Subsequently, Hyde wrote to Wrench that he would buy this property for  £1000. The Court of Chancery held that Hyde had rejected both offers made by Wrench and that an offer, once rejected, cannot be revived. Accordingly, there was no contract in existence and consequently, the action was deemed to have failed. These facts clearly indicate that Hyde made a counter offer and also tried to accept an offer which he had previously rejected. Therefore, in accordance to the case law discussed above, an offer which was rejected in the first instance by the offeree cannot be accepted later on in order to create a legally binding contract. In our present case Peter made an offer to Manjit for selli ng the painting for a specified amount. Manjit made a counter offer in which she offered to pay by installments. Peter was not agreeable to the number of installments and accordingly, he made another in which the number of installments was reduced. Manjit accepted this offer but according to the Hyde v Wrench decision, Manjit cannot rely on the original offer since she made a counter offer subsequently, therefore there is no valid contract between Peter and Manjit. If the offeree rejects the offer, the offer has been destroyed and cannot be accepted in the future. Even otherwise, she had posted her letter of acceptance on the 4th of May, which reached Peter only on the 12th of May, in which she had made a time stipulation for the delivery of the painting by the 10th of May. However, since the letter, which was correctly stamped and addressed, was received only on the 12th of May, i.e. after the 10th of May by Peter, the contract is invalid. Consequently, Manjit is under no legal obligation to purchase the Degas painting from Peter. In respect of Victoria, on the 11th of May, Manjit saw a magazine advertisement in which Victoria had offered to sell a Renoir painting for the first offer above  £200,000. Manjit contacted Victoria over the phone and left a message on her answering machine, stating that she would buy this painting for  £201,000. The legal aspects to be considered are whether an advertisement constitutes a valid offer or not. Advertisements are termed as an invitation to treat and hence they do not constitute an offer, but only an indication of a personà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s willingness to negotiate a contract. In Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain v Boots , Boots were prosecuted for selling drugs in the absence of a qualified pharmacist. The procedure was that a customer, on entering the store was given a shopping basket and this customer after having selected which medicines to purchase, would place them in thi s basket and take them to the cash desk. In the vicinity of the cash desk a registered pharmacist would be available. The statute has made it unlawful to sell any listed poison unless the sale was effected under the supervision of a registered pharmacist. The Plaintiffs allegation was that the display of goods was tantamount to an offer which could be deemed to have been accepted when the customer put these drugs in the shopping basket, therefore, if the drugs were poisons then their sale took place at an instant of time which was prior to the pharmacistà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s intervention. The Queens Bench and the CA rejected this argument, because they held that the offer to purchase originated from the customer only when the article was placed in the shopping basket and that the defendants had the choice to accept or reject this offer. Whenever, this purchase offer was accepted it was at the cash desk, where a registered pharmacist was available. Therefore, the courts hel d that there was no breach of the Act. In Harvey v. Facey, an indication by the owner of the property that he might be interested in selling at a certain price was regarded as an invitation to treat (ITT). Similarly, in Gibson v. Manchester County Council the words à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“may be prepared to sellà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ were held to be a notification of price and therefore not a distinct offer. The courts have taken a consistent approach in respect of the identification of invitation to treat, as compared with offer and acceptance, in common transactions. The display of goods for sale, either in a shop window or on the shelves of a self service store, is ordinarily treated as an invitation to treat and not an offer, this was held by the judges in Fisher v. Bell. In Entores Ltd v. Miles Far East Corporation the contract was entered into when and where the acceptance was received. Lord Denning confirmed that the same principles also applied to acceptances by telephone. In resp ect of answering machines and voice mail the maximum delay for receipt of acceptance would be the next working day. Faulty hardware, lack of link paper or slipshod business practices, such as not checking the fax for days, does not stop or delay the acceptance of an offer. In our case Manjit in response to the advertisement given by Victoria for sale of the painting, placed a message in Victoriaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s answering machine stating that she would buy the painting for  £ 201,000/-. Victoriaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s magazine advertisement constitutes an invitation to treat and the message left by Manjit constitutes an offer to purchase the painting. This message was left on the answering machine by Manjit on the 11th of May. Victoria did not respond to this message but went on the 15th of May to Manjità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s office and insisted that Manjit should purchase the painting as there was a contract between them. Since, in this case there is no acceptance by Victo ria, there is no binding contract. Therefore, Manjit need not buy the painting from Victoria. In this manner Manjit is not under any legal obligation, whatsoever, to perform these contracts as demanded by Peter and Victoria. Bibliography P.S Atiyah à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Consideration: a restatementà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ in Essays on Contract, Oxford University Press, 1986. P.S Atiyah à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"An introduction to the law of contractà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ 5th ed., Clarendon Press Oxford, 1995. H.G Beale, W.D Wishop, M.P furmston, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Contract: cases and materialsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ 4th ed., Butterworth, 2000. M. Cope à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Duress, undue influence and unconscientious bargainsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, Monash studies in law, The law book company Ltd, 1985. E. McKendrick à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Contract lawà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, 4th ed., Palgrave law masters, 2001. G.H Treitel à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"The law of contractà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ 10th ed., Sweet and Maxwell, 1999.