Women Behaving Like Men in Antigone, Electra, and Medea Essay

Women Behaving Like Men in Antigone, Electra, and Medea Throughout Antigone, Electra, and Medea, many double standards between men and women surface. These become obvious when one selects a hero from these plays, for upon choosing, then one must rationalize his or her choice. The question then arises as to what characteristics make up the hero. How does the character win fame? What exactly is excellent about that character? These questions must be answered in order to choose a hero in these Greek tragedies. In historic Greece, the characteristics of a hero were for the most part left only for men to achieve. Heroes were viewed as those who were kind to friends, vicious to enemies. They were also men who risked their lives regularly everyday, fighting for not only their country, but also treasures such as women, gold, and armor, among other things. Women, however, rarely accomplished such things, for what made a good woman was her obedience to her husband, her loyalty to her family, and, for the most part, other functions that a housewife is usually considered to perform. In order to win renown, however, a woman was forced to commit actions normally left to men. Antigone, Electra, and Medea, do not attempt to be what was considered a â€Å"good† women in ancient Greece; rather, their actions become masculine, instead. This is why they were known in the ancient world. For example, the character Antigone attempts several times to bury the body of her beloved brother, Polyneices, despite the mandate of her uncle, King Creon, that anyone who does so would immediately be put to death. Through this action, her fame, or kleos, was achieved. Her rebellious nature to the king put her at risk of death... ... were performed because of wholesome motivations. Her love for Jason was for someone outside of her family, and according to the laws of pietas, her father should have come before Jason. In conclusion, it becomes obvious by these three plays that for a woman to achieve kleos in ancient Greece, she usually had to become more man-like in her role. The murders committed by Electra and Medea, the bravery of Antigone—all three of these were fulfilled by what would have normally been considered a man’s role. A woman could rarely be considered a hero unless she became like a man in her actions. Otherwise, she would be only a simple woman. Works Cited Euripides. Medea and Other Plays. Trans. Philip Vellacott. England: Penguin Books, 1963. Sophocles. Antigone, Oedipus the King, Electra. Trans. H. D. F. Kitto. New York: Oxford University Press, 1962.

Johnson’s Dictionary and the language of learning Essay

Codification refers to the methods and process by which a language is standardized. These specific methods include the creation and the use of style and language guides, dictionaries and the grammar textbooks. It is important to realize that codification is an ongoing process. The most important period in the codification of English, is the 18th century that was characterized with the publication of hundreds of grammar and dictionary. These included dictionaries such as â€Å"Samuel Johnson’s Monumental Dictionary,† in 1755 among other dictionaries (Johnson & Lynch, 2003). History of English Codification in Dictionary and Grammar books Codification of English language can be traced back in Britain, in the 18th century. During that time, perspective norms were stipulated by authors such as John Walker and Thomas Sheridan. On the other hand, in the United States, the codification of English was mainly initiated and undertaken by Noah Webster, on an orthographic and lexical level. Britain attributes its present lexicographical work of Samuel Johnson (Hickey, 2011). When analyzing the English’s recent history, it is important to distinguish between the actual term standard and the notion of standard. It is important to understand that the earliest reference to the term Standard English in the Oxford English dictionary dates back in the year 1836 (Hickey, 2011). Standard English in the codified sense refers to the development of the 18th-century development. There are several reasons as to why the English could have risen then, however, there were precursors to the 18th-century notion of English. Some researchers argue that the earliest codification of English began in the 16th century via the publication of grammars and dictionaries most of which are intended to teach the English language to the rural squires mainly after the Union Act of 1536 between Wales and England. The Standard English was mainly codified between the 16th and 17th centuries. Ascertaining and improving the English tongue began in 1712, Bishop Lowth’s grammar in 1762 and the Samuel Johnson first appeared in 1755. The codification process was characterized with three main influences which were paramount (Kemmer, 2009). †¢ The kings English in the form of legal and administrative language. †¢ Literary English which was in the form of acceptable language that was mainly used by great literature and for the purposes of printing and publishing. †¢ The English of education and church or commonly referred to as â€Å"Oxford English†. There was no point in which the state was involved. The Codification process also greatly affected the spoken form of the English standard language. The Received Pronunciation was mainly codified through education influence especially that of nineteenth-century public schools, followed from the 20th Century by television, radio and cinema. It is perceived that about 3 to 5 percent of the British tend to speak Received Pronunciation today (Kemmer, 2009). Commissioning of Dictionaries The growing use of written language created the need for materials that presented the need for materials that portrayed the aspect of the language, in a way that could be looked up by all the individuals that desired information about the English language. This was initially meant for the non-native speakers, however, later on the English native speakers that wanted to know about the new and developed part of the language also looked for such materials. The initial dictionaries were mainly a list of hard words. This mainly involved, the list of new â€Å"loan† words that were from the classical language and the new British colonies overseas. By the eighteenth century, dictionary writing was mainly a recognized activity and the learned men and scholars were being commissioned by various publishers to write such materials (Kemmer, 2009). Other places in Europe, language academies were being established so as to codify and also normalize all the aspects of the language. However, this trend was not adopted in the English-speaking lands and there was never a recognized academy for standardization in either United States or Britain. The publication of Samuel Johnson’s Dictionary which was of the English language was a significant milestone in the development of a dictionary and other reference materials (DeMaria, 1986). The dictionary adopted more or less a descriptivist stance that is very modern and was at odds with the former prescriptive view of the earlier dictionary producers. Johnson recognized change as a normal process and refused to see change as a degeneration (Hitchings, 2005). By the time the Johnson dictionary was developed, the spelling system was already in place and recognizably the same as that of the modern English with relatively few orthographic peculiarities (Reddick & Johnson, 1990). On the other hand, political independence in the United States led to the push for distinguishing cultural factors. As a result, Noah Webster, came up with a dictionary that contained regional, American based definitions so as to distinguish it from the British English (Kemmer, 2009). Noah Webster went to the extent of creating his own dictionary which contained some American-dialect definitions. This provides the required orthographic distinction without changing significant mutual intelligibility. He mainly incorporates the use of â€Å"ize† instead of â€Å"ise† for the verbs and the elimination of suffix u in the suffix â€Å"–our† (Kemmer, 2009). The criteria for including words in the dictionary Every year, numerous English words and expressions develop and thus the major dictionaries do keep track of such words so as to determine those to add and those that are not acceptable. We are going to analyze how the Oxford dictionary carries out this initiative (Oxford University Press, 2014). The Oxford University Press has one of the largest and vast languages research program in the world (Oxford University Press, 2014). Their most important resource are the Oxford Reading Programme and the Oxford English Corpus. The Corpus mainly entails documents that have been sourced from the internet whereas the reading program refers to an electronic collection of extracts and quotations mainly drawn from a variety of popular fiction, songwriting and scientific journals (Oxford University Press, 2014). This is mainly based from the contributions of the network of readers based across the globe who are constantly on the lookout for new words and meaning and also other languages. The Oxford University Press, continually keeps track of the two programs so as to be able to track new words that come into the English language. Upon having evidence that a new term is used by various sources and not just by one individual or writer, the word therefore becomes a candidate for the inclusion into one of the Institution’s dictionaries (Oxford University Press, 2014). In the previous centuries, most dictionaries were confined to a list of words that most writers thought would be useful, even when there was no proof that individuals had used the words before. It is important to note that this does not work in the same manner in today. Personal inventions are not allowed in the modern dictionaries and only terms that have been utilized for a period of time and by a wide group of people, can be accepted into the dictionary (Oxford University Press, 2014). Distinction between Prescriptive and Descriptive Dictionary Prescriptivism refers to the enforcement and the assertion of a specific set of rules by an institution or a person. With regards to dictionaries, prescriptivism refers to the situation where the dictionary explains the language rules that should be followed and the norms and usages that should also be avoided (Barrett, 2012). Prescriptions and proscriptions are traditional and generally represent receipt of wisdom. On the other hand, descriptivism in a lexicographical context refers to the language usage and behaviors. The fact is that basically all the English language dictionaries are descriptive in nature. The main editors always refer to it as recording the language and how the words are spelled and used. Descriptive languages, thus describe the language and include words that are commonly used even those that are non-standard and often include non-standard spelling. Prescriptive dictionaries are more concerned about the standard or correct English. In other words, they prescribe the proper spelling and usage of words (Barrett, 2012). From the analysis above, it is right to state that the prescriptive dictionaries tend to promote Standard English, unlike the descriptive dictionaries which mainly describe the language. Conclusion The paper effectively analyses the codification of English, history of how English was codified in dictionaries and grammar books, reasons why the dictionaries were codified, and criteria used for including words in the dictionary and the extent to which dictionary is considered to be either descriptive or prescriptive. References   Barrett, G. (2012, September). Comparing and Arguing About Dictionaries. Retrieved from Way Word Radio: http://www.waywordradio.org/how-do-you-rank-dictionaries/ DeMaria, R. (1986). Johnson’s Dictionary and the language of learning. Oxford: Clarendon. Hickey, R. (2011). Standard English and standards of English. 1-31. Hitchings, H. (2005). Defining the world : the extraordinary story of Dr. Johnson’s Dictionary. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Johnson, S., & Lynch, J. (2003). Samuel Johnson’s dictionary : selections from the 1755 work that defined the English language. New York: Walker & Co. Kemmer, S. (2009). The History of English. Retrieved from Rice University: http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~kemmer/Histengl/spelling.html Oxford University Press. (2014). How do you decide whether a new word should be included in an Oxford dictionary? Retrieved from Oxford Dictionaries: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/words/how-do-you-decide-whether-a-new-word-should-be-included-in-an-oxford-dictionary Reddick, A. H., & Johnson, S. (1990). The making of Johnson’s dictionary, 1746-1773. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Source document

Jerry Springer vs. Oprah Winfrey - 846 Words

Jerry Springer vs. Oprah Winfrey In the world of entertainment, TV shows have without a doubt has flooded all of daytime television. It all started with the simple and exploited topics on Sally Jessy Raphael and Geraldo. Anyone who tunes in to these talk shows know that they are very similar but vary in style and format. Many have enjoyed the trashy subjects that come on Jenny Jones (no longer airing), while others may like to watch more serious and light topics on the Maury Povich Show. This may be but no two shows can be on such opposite ends of the scale as far as content other then the Jerry Springer and the Oprah Winfrey show. Jerry Springer is and has been for many years, known as the king of â€Å"trash talk.† Every topic on his show†¦show more content†¦These are your 18 -21 year-olds whose main troubles in life involve love, relationship, sex, pregnancy, money, peers and influence. They are the ones who see some value and lessons to be learned underneath th e shows exploitation. While these two talk shows are as different as night and day, both have ruled the talk show circuit for many years now. Each one caters to a different audience while both have a strong following from many of their fans. Ironically, both could also be considered pioneers in the talk show world. Jerry Springers crude and vulgar topics may be looked down upon, but no other talk show comes close to the raw exposure of its guest. Oprah Winfrey was able to break away from the pack and create a unique and highly successful talk show. Only time will tell if anyone will follow in her footsteps. Even as these to talk shows stand on opposite sides of the spectrum, both have managed to stand alone to their highest extremes and are considered the best at what theyShow MoreRelatedEssay on Portrayal of Black Women in Media1635 Words   |  7 Pagesprominent women that opened the door, such as Hattie McDaniel, Nina Mae McKinney, Oprah Winfrey, Patti Labelle and Cicely Tyson. Elaborate on some of negative and positive stereotypes that the media has put out, and our own personal opinions. Also using view points from certain critics and prominent figures in the media world. According to journalist Tionna Smalls, she exclaimed in her article entitled â€Å"Dark Skinned Vs. Light Skinned: The Black Mans Dilemma†, the slave owners would divide the slaves