King Arthur Essay -- Essays Papers

King Arthur If the name of King Arthur is mentioned, I suppose what comes to mind is not so much one person as a whole array of characters and themes, a montage so to speak. Of course we do think first of the King, the magnificent monarch of a glorified or idealized medieval realm. But we think also of his Queen, of the fair and wayward Guinevere, we think of his enchanter, Merlin, who presided over his birth, who set him on the throne, who established him there in the early and traveled days of his reign. There were the knights of the Round Table, vowed to the highest ideals of chivalry, and the greatest of them, Sir Lancelot, who, of course, has a tragic love affair with the Queen. There is another great love story, that of Tristan and Isolde, the theme of Wagner's Opera. We think of the place where these people assembled, Camelot, Arthur's magnificent, personal castle and capital and then, there are stranger things; the story of the quest for the Holy Grail, giving a spiritual dimension to the whole story and there is magic. Not only the magic of Merlin but the magic also of his strange, ambiguous student, the women, the enchantress, Morgan LaFay. And at the end is the tragedy of Arthur's downfall, his passing away at the isle of Avalon and another mystery that we do not know what really happened to him that he was said to be immortal, that one day he would return and restore the golden age in his country. I suppose, the version we know best is the one that was composed in the 15th century. This is the great English version of the story, compiled out of earlier versions by the creative genius of a rather mysterious and cryptic figure, the knight, Sir Thomas Malory. But the story doesn't end there. The whole thing revives in the time of Queen Victoria, with Tennyson's "Idylls of the King." As a result of this great work on the Arthurian Cycle by England's Poet Laureate, the story became known to everybody. Other poems, novels and plays in our own time, and almost a rebirth of it yet again in T. H. White's novels, "The Sword and the Stone" and "The Once and Future King" and other plays and musicals and films based on these works. There are Rosemary Sutcliff, Mary Stewart, Marian Bradley, Pat Godwin and others, who have gone off on another line and tried to imagine the Britain of King Arthur as it might really have been. What I have personally ... ... like that than the resplendent kingdom that we see in a film like "Camelot" or "First Knight." Well, of course, you may say I've been rather begging the question here. What was the real setting? And the modern novelists I've spoken of, have been moved to their work partly by the fact that there is a very slowly growing awareness of what it was and when it was, through historical study and through the work of archaeologists. And if we look at that period we can ask, and I think this is a better way of putting the question, not did King Arthur exist, but how did this legend originate, what fact(s) is it rooted in? Then, of course, we must ask what period? Well the medieval writers with all their fancy did know, more or less, that they were being a bit vague. They don't give us many real dates but they place King Arthur somewhere in the period from about 450 A.D. to 550 A.D. That, of course, is longer than any one man could have reigned, but they see him as living somewhere about that time, and they were right. This, in fact, is where the story we know began its career, but the foundations for the medieval romances had been laid a little before, in the old legends about Arthur.

Positive Attitude Essay

As we all know people love to be around positive people. Negative people always bring you down and usually do not accomplish goals they have set. In the work world, you do not want anyone on your team be negative. It can rub off on anyone in the group, or the whole group. However, it is also true for a positive attitude and self-concept. Those who are positive tend to be more driven and have a better self-concept. This paper discusses the importance of having a positive attitude and self-concept as a leader. It discusses steps and way to develop these traits. How to Develop a Positive Attitude and Self-Concept as a Leader Attitude is a mental position relative to a way of thinking or being; a leaning toward that which you believe (Purkey, 1988). A positive attitude is the inclination to generally be in an optimistic state of mind. Positive attitude, positive thinking, and optimism are all characteristics that will make a leaders life more positive and increase their self worth. A leader will most likely be more successful when using all of these characteristics to their full potential. Let’s focus on how a positive mind-set can help leaders overcome life’s challenges. There are just some people in the world that cannot look past all the negative and start looking at the positive things in life. If you cannot get past the negative and start concentrating on the positive you cannot succeed as a great leader because your mind will be elsewhere. To accomplish a task a leader must have full concentration on the objective. Any dev iations can hinder the team and objective (Campbell & Martinez-Perez, 1977, pp. 455-459). A positive mind set gives the leader the ambition and drive to accomplish the goals your organization as given you. Everyone has goals. Some may be bigger and more advanced than others but every leader has a goal. To accomplish these goals, a leader must â€Å"focus on putting their life out there and risking it for success† (Campbell & Martinez-Perez, 1977, pp. 455-459). To have a positive way of thinking you must have healthy self-esteem or self confidence. â€Å"The self-esteem is the part of you self-concept that determines your self-worth† (Campbell & Martinez-Perez, 1977, pp. 455-459). Websters dictionary define self-esteem as â€Å"a confidence and satisfaction in oneself† (â€Å"Self-esteem,† 2010). Many leaders have low self-esteem due to many  reasons. Some leaders compare themselves to other leaders. You cannot compare yourself to another leader because their motives and objective are usually different than your own. Some leaders allow the people who surround them influence their ideas. For example, if you are developing a new concept for a company. However, your team mates do not like the concept or idea you probably will give in due to peer pressure. You have allowed others to influence your decision. This is neither good nor bad, just depending on the situation. When you receive support and encouragement from signi ficant people than that is when you start to appreciate yourself (Campbell & Martinez-Perez, 1977, pp. 455-459). You may be thinking â€Å"no one ever appreciates you,† however, may be you should be the first to complement others. You are the leader, so lead. The author believes everyone is created for a special reason. We all have different talents and a way of thinking. You also have the choice on who you hang out with as well as who influences you. Not hanging around people who have bad influences in your life will likely be the first step to having a better outlook on life. You are more likely to succeed in a leadership position if you surround yourself with supportive people (Campbell & Martinez-Perez, 1977, pp. 455-459). The author believes there are two types of self-esteem. You have positive self-esteem and negative self-esteem. Positive self-esteem is having an ‘I can accomplish this task.’ Positive self-esteem people are usually fun to be around because they have a ‘cup half full’ outlook on life. A negative self-esteem person has a â€Å"cup half empty’ outlook on life. They are always down and can even have a negative influence on the people they surround themselves with.

Muslim Women Essay - 943 Words

The American media has a tendency to portray Muslims in a negative light. Some pity Muslims while others feel pure disdain for them. This statement made by Ann Coulter (2001) following the September 11th terrorist attacks demonstrates the disdain for Muslims, â€Å"We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity† (as cited in Arab American National Museum, 2011). While this particular statement was directed at all Muslims, there are also many misconceptions directed solely at Muslim women. In this essay, I will discuss the issue of Muslim women and some of the ways in which their reality contradicts the common media representations of women in that area. The first common media representation of†¦show more content†¦A second common assumption of the Muslim women is that they are forced into marriage. While it is true that arranged marriages do still take place in the Muslim world, the marriages are not forced upon anyone (Ahmed , 1999). Before an arranged marriage takes place, parents and older relatives discuss different possible matches, but the person, for whom they are searching a mate, is always involved in the discussions (Ahmed, 1999). Then before the marriage can take place, both future spouses must agree to the marriage in front of witnesses (Ahmed, 1999). A third common media stereotype of Muslim women is that their sole purpose is to please their husbands. Geraldine Brooks author of the book, Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women wrote that Muslim â€Å"women are expected to sacrifice their comfort and freedom to service the requirements of male sexuality; either to repress or stimulate the male sex urge (as cited in Arab American National Museum, 2011). This stereotype is heightened by the fact that Islam allows polygamy. While Islam does allow men to take four wives, it is only advised that they do so under extreme circumstances (Ahmed, 1999). In fact, the Quran recommend s that one wife is best because one who marries multiple wives must treat all of them completely equal and that is a difficult task (Ahmed, 1999). Muslim women like Muslim men play a part in the family, but their part goes way beyond simply pleasing theirShow MoreRelatedMuslim Women Essay571 Words   |  3 PagesIn today’s society women are given ample opportunity just as much as men. In some countries, such as middle-eastern nations that is not the case. Muslim women are often perceived to be submissive to Muslim men and unequal. Mohammed never taught for women to be treated as lower class citizens. Nonetheless, the blame is pointed towards the religion of Islam. The Islamic religion began as all monotheist religions representing a belief in one God and moral standards. In the following essay I will discussRead MoreThe Issue Of Muslim Women2059 Words   |  9 Pagesthe topic of Muslim women. 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