Prostitution Essay

Analyse How Prostitution Is Represented In British Television from 2000 Onwards. In Britain paying for sex is not illegal. But there are many laws criminalising the activities of prostitution. For years people have been arguing over what to do with the laws on prostitution. Recently, there have been many debates over the legality of it, and eventually stricter laws have been put in place to try and stop the act of prostitution. Under the 2003 Sexual Offences Act, it is illegal to incite prostitution or control it for your personal gain, banning the running of a brothel, making it illegal to loiter or solicit sex on the streets and the act of kerb crawling. Trafficking is also illegal. Other laws such as public nuisance are used to target the sex trade. Stricter laws are looking are being put in place that will give police the ability to close down more brothels, and licensing rules will change in regards to lap dancing and strip clubs to try and halt their expansion. Despite the many thousands of women involved in the sale of sexual services, and even greater numbers of men who purchase these services, research and publications on prostitution for much of the post-war period has been relatively limited. For most of this period the street trade has been largely confined to certain red light districts and therefore out of sight to the general public† (Matthews, 2008, page 1). Prostitution has always bee n an issue, but as Matthews states, out of sight is out of mind. Prostitution was bought to the public’s attention in the late 1980s when growing concerns were acknowledged including; â€Å"The spread of HIV and AIDS, the growth of prostitute support, increased public demands to control street prostitution, the growing preoccupation with trafficking and the visible increase in the number of foreign women involved in prostitution†, (Matthews, 2008, page 1). As well as people worrying about the growth of prostitution and trying to enforce stricter laws to stop it, there were people campaigning to decriminalise the act. During the 1980s a number of groups emerged that were trying to promote the rights of prostitutes. The ECP (English Collective of Prostitutes) in the UK, set out to legalise prostitution and normalise the issue. Prostitution is becoming a fast growing phenomenon; â€Å"In London, where prostitutes mainly operate behind closed doors, the number of street customers is estimated at 7,620 a week (Home Office 2004)†, (Monzini, 2005, page 9). Prostitution seems to be about the problems of relations between men and women, as well as to satisfy male urges. In Britain the typical male client is a man aged about 30, married and quite well off. If the clients are usually married then why are they seeking prostitutes? ; â€Å"It has been argued that men who are unsure of their capacity for relations with the opposite sex can escape what they feel as a burden of responsibility†¦ recourse to commercial sex often can be seen as a kind of revenge of reaffirmation, however temporary, of men over women†, (Monzini, 2005, page 10). Monzini is stating that men go with prostitutes to regain power that they have lost elsewhere. A lot of the time being lost in their own relationship. The customer wants to have complete control over the prostitute to make themselves feel stronger and more powerful, this can sometimes lead to violence against the prostitute when they do not comply to the customers needs, mostly being their insistence that the customer wears a condom. It’s been argued that people use prostitutes to act out sexual fantasies that will ‘undo’ the traumas of childhood; â€Å"Sexual fantasies perform a similar function in adulthood to that performed by daydreams in childhood. This time the fantasist is in control, and can direct the scenario towards and ultimately satisfying outcome- orgasm† (O’Connell Davidson, 1998, Page 138). Prostitution is often seen as an escape from over complicated relations. When customers go with prostitutes they are trying to kid themselves that the connection is real; â€Å"Customers pick up street girls in their car, or go to places where they are given only a few minutes to do their business; there are even small hotels that rent rooms out not for an hour but for 5 minutes,† (Monzini, 2005, page 12). The sexual encounter is very short and suggests that in reality there is no connection between customer and prostitute. This can be seen in the television programme Secret Diary of a Call Girl, where Belle (Billie Piper) says; â€Å"Work out what the client wants as fast as you can and give it to him†, (Secret Diary of a Call Girl, 2008). Prostitutes are merely used for sex. There is no real connection or bond between them and the client. The client wants to have sex and feel wanted, while the prostitute just wants the money, so they try not to get involved. Trafficking has increased hugely in the recent years. Mainly women from across Europe are taken from their families and sent to other countries to work as various things, including sex workers. Data taken from the IOM (Anti-Trafficking Unit of the International Organisation for Migration) gave questionnaires to people that had been reported to the IOM to find out about their recruitment. 103 people trafficked themselves because of several reasons including, having been kidnapped, 5. 4%, through the use of the internet, television and newspapers, 7. 4%, sold by their family, 0. 5%, or personal reasons, 84. 1%. This data shows that most people began trafficking for their own reasons, but also shows that a huge number of them were forced into it one way or another. The Home Office estimates that there are between 6,000 and 18,000 trafficked women and girls being forc ed to work as prostitutes in the UK. An article found in the Telegraph newspaper tells of how young schoolgirls are being forced into prostitution; â€Å"The MP said he knew of cases in his Huddersfield constituency where girls first met young men, perhaps driving â€Å"flash cars† outside school who made the initial contact. They then took them out and introduced them to drink and drugs before embarking on a sexual relationship. The girl would believe they were with their first boyfriend but before long, older men would then take over, forcing them to have sex and selling them to others† (The Telegraph, 21st January 2009). Julia O’Connell Davidson suggests that people become prostitutes due to extreme, poor living conditions, and a bad way of life; â€Å"People will generally surrender such powers over their person to others only under very particular social, political and economic conditions- conditions which effectively limit their ‘choices’ to a set of alternatives which are not of their choosing. In some cases these relations present people with a stark ‘choice’ between abject poverty or prostitution, or between violence, even death, or prostitution†, (O’Connell Davidson, 1998, Page 3). O’Connell Davidson is saying that people are using prostitution as an escape. It is very much a last resort for many people, who turn to the business for help and for money so that they can survive. For a lot of girls prostitution is a better way of living then their normal lives, where some may get beaten by family members or other such things. Research by Karen Sharpe shows other reasons as to why girls begin prostituting themselves; â€Å"Women were introduced to the profession, or at the very least were directly influenced or encouraged to turn to prostitution, by friends or other members of the family who were either currently involved, or who had previously been involved in, the prostitution business,† (Sharpe, 1998, Page 41). This is a whole separate issue. It shows that many girls are not choosing the life of prostitution as an escape but because they are forced into it. Another reason for turning to prostitution is about money. Many young girls are getting into the sex industry to pay their way through university or college. An article in the TimesOnline shows a study undertaken by Kingston University, which shows a 50% rise in the number of students resorting to prostitution or other jobs in the sex industry over the past six years. â€Å"In a survey that asked 130 students whether they knew any friends involved in the sex industry, one in 10 said they knew of students who had stripped, lapdanced or worked at massage parlours and escort agencies to support themselves. Just over 6% said they knew students who worked as prostitutes,† (Times Online, October 2006). This is a frightening amount of young people getting into the industry to get themselves out of trouble. Prostitution is not really a choice for most people anymore, it’s a way to survive. Finally the problems surrounding prostitution are being taken seriously, with plans being made to put in more laws to try and stop prostitution. With all this being put into motion comes the release of Secret Diary of a Call Girl, glamorising sex work and giving the impression that being a prostitute can be a good career choice for young women. September 2008 saw this programme aired on our televisions. It is based on a book called Belle De Jour: The Intimate Adventures of a London Call Girl. The television show stars Billie Piper as Belle De Jour, the high class prostitute. The show bought in nearly two million viewers when the first episode was aired. Throughout the first series ratings fluctuated, ending the series with just under one million viewers. The second series never reached one million. So why the sudden drop in ratings? Only 8 complaints were filed after the show was first aired. Having watched the show it is clear to see that there is no real story line to it. Secret Diary only gives an insight into sex work through an agent; there is no realism to the show. Belle seems to live a very glamorous life. She was not forced into prostitution because she was homeless or poor like so many others are, but instead she chose the career path for herself; â€Å"So why do I do it? Well, because I love sex and I love money† (Secret Diary of a Call Girl, 2008). In a year Belle earnt over ? 100,000. Young girls watching the show with money problems or children to support could easily get the idea that being a prostitute is not such a bad thing. The show offers no realistic view of street prostitution and the dangers of it. While Belle has an agent who she checks in with after meeting every client it does not assure her safety. In episode 6 of series 1, she encounters a slight problem with a client. When she goes to call her agent he turns nasty; â€Å"I don’t want you to call anyone. I’ve paid for you. Please take your clothes off,† (Secret Diary of a Call Girl, 2008). Many researchers on the subject of prostitution suggest that one of the reasons men buy sex is to do with power; â€Å"Buying sex as an exercise of power for disempowered men,† (Sanders, 2008, Page 40). Sanders is suggesting that men are purchasing sex because they have lost power elsewhere in their lives and paying someone to do what you tell them to is a way for men to regain the power. This is a possible explanation for why the man in Secret Diary got angry because Belle was not doing as she was told, making the client feel belittled, as he no longer has the power. Secret Diary of a Call Girl is not a very good representative of the industry of sex work. It only gives an insight into the work of escorts and is based on the stories of one girl. Crimefighters- The Vice, was aired on television in 2008. It is a series following a vice squad around Nottingham who are tackling the problem of street prostitution. In one particular episode (23rd October) a man is caught with a prostitute in a park late at night. In another episode (27th September) a man is caught in an alleyway with a prostitute. The programme offers a realistic insight into the work of street prostitution and how bad it really is. Men are paying ? 10-? 20 to have sex with these women in dark, dingy parks, down grotty alleyways and even in front of people’s houses. One episode shows the vice squad interviewing everal prostitutes from around the area and finding out how they really feel about it. The general consensus from them is that they are ashamed of themselves and would rather be doing anything else but prostituting themselves. One prostitute has been in the industry for 15 years and has averaged 10-15 men a day. This being true she would have slept with over 75,000 men in her time as a prostitute. In respon se to this she says; â€Å"It is just a job,† (Crimefighters, 2008). She has been prostituting herself for so long now that she does not seem to have any real feelings towards the job in hand. After watching this episode it is clear to see that most of the women in the area began prostituting themselves because they are homeless and addicted to drugs or have children to support. But the money they do make goes straight on more drugs. These prostitutes are spending up to ? 200 a day on drugs and the money they are making is going straight on more drugs. It is a vicious circle that they will not get out of without help. Unlike Belle, these women hate their jobs; â€Å"They make my skin crawl. I’m not out here for fun. I can’t stand them touching me,† (Crimefighters, 2008). This shows that these prostitutes are selling themselves because they have no other choice. They become reliant upon the money they are making that they cannot get themselves out of it. Street prostitution is dangerous. Crimefighters helps to show that there are dangers to being a prostitute and that people can turn nasty. ; â€Å"I could get picked up one day and chucked out in a ditch†, (Crimefighters, 2008). One prostitute said this on the programme. Clearly there is a danger to selling your body on the streets, as there is no one looking after your well being. Research has shown that women get pushed into prostitution for one reason or another and are then too afraid to stop selling themselves because they are scared of being killed by whoever is controlling them; â€Å"[JP: Why didn’t you just stop giving him the money and stop seeing him? ] Coz he’d kill me. He’d beat the hell out of me. I know that. You just know it at the back of your mind. It’s easier to just do what he wants† (Margie, aged 32). [â€Å"JP: Why didn’t you go to the police about him? ] Coz I’ve felt his punches. Anyway, it doesn’t matter if I did, coz wherever I go he’d hunt me down† (Sammy, aged 18). If you haven’t got their money- the money they want- you’ve had it. You could end up dead† (Patsy, aged 42) (Phoenix, 1999, Page 162). These comments from former prostitutes in Phoenix’s book show just how dangerous prostitution can be. Secret Diary of a Call Girl does not show the dangers of prostitution and is a poor portrayal of what it is like to sell yourself. Research says that men have discovered that they can use their genitalia as a weapon of force. â€Å"Men discovered that they could rape and women discovered that they ‘could not retaliate in kind’,†(O’Connell Davidson, 1998, Page 119). Over 300,000 women are raped a year. Prostitutes are raped on average 8-10 times a year and are constantly at risk of violence. Men can get very nasty if they are not given what they want, which is the main danger for prostitutes. O’Connell Davidson goes on to argue that; â€Å"Rape became not only a male prerogative, but man’s basic weapon of force against women, the principal agent of his will and fear,† (O’Connell Davidson, 1998, Page 119. ) In conclusion, Secret Diary of a Call Girl is not a fair representation of prostitution. In a world where more laws are being put into place to stop the legality of paying for sex, there really is no room for television shows glamorising the work of the sex industry. Although the portrayal of working in the escort business is reasonably accurate, it does not account for street prostitution, an act of the sex industry that is growing bigger and increasingly more dangerous; â€Å"The client will participate in the sex market if his willingness to pay for the first unit of prostitution exceeds the price of prostitution,† (Giusta, 2008, Page 20). This shows that men are only willing to pay as much as is parallel to their want of sex. In countries with an uneven income distribution and discrimination in the labour market, where the clients are typically rich and the possible sex workers are poor, we should expect more sex sold at lower prices†, (Giusta, 2008, Page 32). Giusta is telling us that more men are likely to pay less for sex. Meaning that the number of c lients using street prostitutes is likely to incline, causing a massive problem for our society. In London alone there are 7,620 street clients a week. Unless it is made illegal to pay for sex, this problem is only going to get worse. Prostitution Essay Analyse How Prostitution Is Represented In British Television from 2000 Onwards. In Britain paying for sex is not illegal. But there are many laws criminalising the activities of prostitution. For years people have been arguing over what to do with the laws on prostitution. Recently, there have been many debates over the legality of it, and eventually stricter laws have been put in place to try and stop the act of prostitution. Under the 2003 Sexual Offences Act, it is illegal to incite prostitution or control it for your personal gain, banning the running of a brothel, making it illegal to loiter or solicit sex on the streets and the act of kerb crawling. Trafficking is also illegal. Other laws such as public nuisance are used to target the sex trade. Stricter laws are looking are being put in place that will give police the ability to close down more brothels, and licensing rules will change in regards to lap dancing and strip clubs to try and halt their expansion. Despite the many thousands of women involved in the sale of sexual services, and even greater numbers of men who purchase these services, research and publications on prostitution for much of the post-war period has been relatively limited. For most of this period the street trade has been largely confined to certain red light districts and therefore out of sight to the general public† (Matthews, 2008, page 1). Prostitution has always bee n an issue, but as Matthews states, out of sight is out of mind. Prostitution was bought to the public’s attention in the late 1980s when growing concerns were acknowledged including; â€Å"The spread of HIV and AIDS, the growth of prostitute support, increased public demands to control street prostitution, the growing preoccupation with trafficking and the visible increase in the number of foreign women involved in prostitution†, (Matthews, 2008, page 1). As well as people worrying about the growth of prostitution and trying to enforce stricter laws to stop it, there were people campaigning to decriminalise the act. During the 1980s a number of groups emerged that were trying to promote the rights of prostitutes. The ECP (English Collective of Prostitutes) in the UK, set out to legalise prostitution and normalise the issue. Prostitution is becoming a fast growing phenomenon; â€Å"In London, where prostitutes mainly operate behind closed doors, the number of street customers is estimated at 7,620 a week (Home Office 2004)†, (Monzini, 2005, page 9). Prostitution seems to be about the problems of relations between men and women, as well as to satisfy male urges. In Britain the typical male client is a man aged about 30, married and quite well off. If the clients are usually married then why are they seeking prostitutes? ; â€Å"It has been argued that men who are unsure of their capacity for relations with the opposite sex can escape what they feel as a burden of responsibility†¦ recourse to commercial sex often can be seen as a kind of revenge of reaffirmation, however temporary, of men over women†, (Monzini, 2005, page 10). Monzini is stating that men go with prostitutes to regain power that they have lost elsewhere. A lot of the time being lost in their own relationship. The customer wants to have complete control over the prostitute to make themselves feel stronger and more powerful, this can sometimes lead to violence against the prostitute when they do not comply to the customers needs, mostly being their insistence that the customer wears a condom. It’s been argued that people use prostitutes to act out sexual fantasies that will ‘undo’ the traumas of childhood; â€Å"Sexual fantasies perform a similar function in adulthood to that performed by daydreams in childhood. This time the fantasist is in control, and can direct the scenario towards and ultimately satisfying outcome- orgasm† (O’Connell Davidson, 1998, Page 138). Prostitution is often seen as an escape from over complicated relations. When customers go with prostitutes they are trying to kid themselves that the connection is real; â€Å"Customers pick up street girls in their car, or go to places where they are given only a few minutes to do their business; there are even small hotels that rent rooms out not for an hour but for 5 minutes,† (Monzini, 2005, page 12). The sexual encounter is very short and suggests that in reality there is no connection between customer and prostitute. This can be seen in the television programme Secret Diary of a Call Girl, where Belle (Billie Piper) says; â€Å"Work out what the client wants as fast as you can and give it to him†, (Secret Diary of a Call Girl, 2008). Prostitutes are merely used for sex. There is no real connection or bond between them and the client. The client wants to have sex and feel wanted, while the prostitute just wants the money, so they try not to get involved. Trafficking has increased hugely in the recent years. Mainly women from across Europe are taken from their families and sent to other countries to work as various things, including sex workers. Data taken from the IOM (Anti-Trafficking Unit of the International Organisation for Migration) gave questionnaires to people that had been reported to the IOM to find out about their recruitment. 103 people trafficked themselves because of several reasons including, having been kidnapped, 5. 4%, through the use of the internet, television and newspapers, 7. 4%, sold by their family, 0. 5%, or personal reasons, 84. 1%. This data shows that most people began trafficking for their own reasons, but also shows that a huge number of them were forced into it one way or another. The Home Office estimates that there are between 6,000 and 18,000 trafficked women and girls being forc ed to work as prostitutes in the UK. An article found in the Telegraph newspaper tells of how young schoolgirls are being forced into prostitution; â€Å"The MP said he knew of cases in his Huddersfield constituency where girls first met young men, perhaps driving â€Å"flash cars† outside school who made the initial contact. They then took them out and introduced them to drink and drugs before embarking on a sexual relationship. The girl would believe they were with their first boyfriend but before long, older men would then take over, forcing them to have sex and selling them to others† (The Telegraph, 21st January 2009). Julia O’Connell Davidson suggests that people become prostitutes due to extreme, poor living conditions, and a bad way of life; â€Å"People will generally surrender such powers over their person to others only under very particular social, political and economic conditions- conditions which effectively limit their ‘choices’ to a set of alternatives which are not of their choosing. In some cases these relations present people with a stark ‘choice’ between abject poverty or prostitution, or between violence, even death, or prostitution†, (O’Connell Davidson, 1998, Page 3). O’Connell Davidson is saying that people are using prostitution as an escape. It is very much a last resort for many people, who turn to the business for help and for money so that they can survive. For a lot of girls prostitution is a better way of living then their normal lives, where some may get beaten by family members or other such things. Research by Karen Sharpe shows other reasons as to why girls begin prostituting themselves; â€Å"Women were introduced to the profession, or at the very least were directly influenced or encouraged to turn to prostitution, by friends or other members of the family who were either currently involved, or who had previously been involved in, the prostitution business,† (Sharpe, 1998, Page 41). This is a whole separate issue. It shows that many girls are not choosing the life of prostitution as an escape but because they are forced into it. Another reason for turning to prostitution is about money. Many young girls are getting into the sex industry to pay their way through university or college. An article in the TimesOnline shows a study undertaken by Kingston University, which shows a 50% rise in the number of students resorting to prostitution or other jobs in the sex industry over the past six years. â€Å"In a survey that asked 130 students whether they knew any friends involved in the sex industry, one in 10 said they knew of students who had stripped, lapdanced or worked at massage parlours and escort agencies to support themselves. Just over 6% said they knew students who worked as prostitutes,† (Times Online, October 2006). This is a frightening amount of young people getting into the industry to get themselves out of trouble. Prostitution is not really a choice for most people anymore, it’s a way to survive. Finally the problems surrounding prostitution are being taken seriously, with plans being made to put in more laws to try and stop prostitution. With all this being put into motion comes the release of Secret Diary of a Call Girl, glamorising sex work and giving the impression that being a prostitute can be a good career choice for young women. September 2008 saw this programme aired on our televisions. It is based on a book called Belle De Jour: The Intimate Adventures of a London Call Girl. The television show stars Billie Piper as Belle De Jour, the high class prostitute. The show bought in nearly two million viewers when the first episode was aired. Throughout the first series ratings fluctuated, ending the series with just under one million viewers. The second series never reached one million. So why the sudden drop in ratings? Only 8 complaints were filed after the show was first aired. Having watched the show it is clear to see that there is no real story line to it. Secret Diary only gives an insight into sex work through an agent; there is no realism to the show. Belle seems to live a very glamorous life. She was not forced into prostitution because she was homeless or poor like so many others are, but instead she chose the career path for herself; â€Å"So why do I do it? Well, because I love sex and I love money† (Secret Diary of a Call Girl, 2008). In a year Belle earnt over ? 100,000. Young girls watching the show with money problems or children to support could easily get the idea that being a prostitute is not such a bad thing. The show offers no realistic view of street prostitution and the dangers of it. While Belle has an agent who she checks in with after meeting every client it does not assure her safety. In episode 6 of series 1, she encounters a slight problem with a client. When she goes to call her agent he turns nasty; â€Å"I don’t want you to call anyone. I’ve paid for you. Please take your clothes off,† (Secret Diary of a Call Girl, 2008). Many researchers on the subject of prostitution suggest that one of the reasons men buy sex is to do with power; â€Å"Buying sex as an exercise of power for disempowered men,† (Sanders, 2008, Page 40). Sanders is suggesting that men are purchasing sex because they have lost power elsewhere in their lives and paying someone to do what you tell them to is a way for men to regain the power. This is a possible explanation for why the man in Secret Diary got angry because Belle was not doing as she was told, making the client feel belittled, as he no longer has the power. Secret Diary of a Call Girl is not a very good representative of the industry of sex work. It only gives an insight into the work of escorts and is based on the stories of one girl. Crimefighters- The Vice, was aired on television in 2008. It is a series following a vice squad around Nottingham who are tackling the problem of street prostitution. In one particular episode (23rd October) a man is caught with a prostitute in a park late at night. In another episode (27th September) a man is caught in an alleyway with a prostitute. The programme offers a realistic insight into the work of street prostitution and how bad it really is. Men are paying ? 10-? 20 to have sex with these women in dark, dingy parks, down grotty alleyways and even in front of people’s houses. One episode shows the vice squad interviewing everal prostitutes from around the area and finding out how they really feel about it. The general consensus from them is that they are ashamed of themselves and would rather be doing anything else but prostituting themselves. One prostitute has been in the industry for 15 years and has averaged 10-15 men a day. This being true she would have slept with over 75,000 men in her time as a prostitute. In respon se to this she says; â€Å"It is just a job,† (Crimefighters, 2008). She has been prostituting herself for so long now that she does not seem to have any real feelings towards the job in hand. After watching this episode it is clear to see that most of the women in the area began prostituting themselves because they are homeless and addicted to drugs or have children to support. But the money they do make goes straight on more drugs. These prostitutes are spending up to ? 200 a day on drugs and the money they are making is going straight on more drugs. It is a vicious circle that they will not get out of without help. Unlike Belle, these women hate their jobs; â€Å"They make my skin crawl. I’m not out here for fun. I can’t stand them touching me,† (Crimefighters, 2008). This shows that these prostitutes are selling themselves because they have no other choice. They become reliant upon the money they are making that they cannot get themselves out of it. Street prostitution is dangerous. Crimefighters helps to show that there are dangers to being a prostitute and that people can turn nasty. ; â€Å"I could get picked up one day and chucked out in a ditch†, (Crimefighters, 2008). One prostitute said this on the programme. Clearly there is a danger to selling your body on the streets, as there is no one looking after your well being. Research has shown that women get pushed into prostitution for one reason or another and are then too afraid to stop selling themselves because they are scared of being killed by whoever is controlling them; â€Å"[JP: Why didn’t you just stop giving him the money and stop seeing him? ] Coz he’d kill me. He’d beat the hell out of me. I know that. You just know it at the back of your mind. It’s easier to just do what he wants† (Margie, aged 32). [â€Å"JP: Why didn’t you go to the police about him? ] Coz I’ve felt his punches. Anyway, it doesn’t matter if I did, coz wherever I go he’d hunt me down† (Sammy, aged 18). If you haven’t got their money- the money they want- you’ve had it. You could end up dead† (Patsy, aged 42) (Phoenix, 1999, Page 162). These comments from former prostitutes in Phoenix’s book show just how dangerous prostitution can be. Secret Diary of a Call Girl does not show the dangers of prostitution and is a poor portrayal of what it is like to sell yourself. Research says that men have discovered that they can use their genitalia as a weapon of force. â€Å"Men discovered that they could rape and women discovered that they ‘could not retaliate in kind’,†(O’Connell Davidson, 1998, Page 119). Over 300,000 women are raped a year. Prostitutes are raped on average 8-10 times a year and are constantly at risk of violence. Men can get very nasty if they are not given what they want, which is the main danger for prostitutes. O’Connell Davidson goes on to argue that; â€Å"Rape became not only a male prerogative, but man’s basic weapon of force against women, the principal agent of his will and fear,† (O’Connell Davidson, 1998, Page 119. ) In conclusion, Secret Diary of a Call Girl is not a fair representation of prostitution. In a world where more laws are being put into place to stop the legality of paying for sex, there really is no room for television shows glamorising the work of the sex industry. Although the portrayal of working in the escort business is reasonably accurate, it does not account for street prostitution, an act of the sex industry that is growing bigger and increasingly more dangerous; â€Å"The client will participate in the sex market if his willingness to pay for the first unit of prostitution exceeds the price of prostitution,† (Giusta, 2008, Page 20). This shows that men are only willing to pay as much as is parallel to their want of sex. In countries with an uneven income distribution and discrimination in the labour market, where the clients are typically rich and the possible sex workers are poor, we should expect more sex sold at lower prices†, (Giusta, 2008, Page 32). Giusta is telling us that more men are likely to pay less for sex. Meaning that the number of c lients using street prostitutes is likely to incline, causing a massive problem for our society. In London alone there are 7,620 street clients a week. Unless it is made illegal to pay for sex, this problem is only going to get worse.

American Dream Short Essay Essay

Since the United States of America was born the â€Å"American Dream† has been alive. When it was first established the â€Å"American Dream† was defined as the ability of having freedom, democracy, and financial stability. Today it appears that the â€Å"American Dream† has faded there is poverty, crime, government taking full control, and the social classes have a larger margin than ever. According to the article â€Å"More people express uncertainty in chance to achieve the American Dream† the Washington Post-Miller Center Poll found that â€Å"almost two-thirds of people express concerns about covering their families basic living expenses, compared with less than half the public four decades ago.† The thought of working hard, studying, and being able to retire use to be easy but now this has become a hardship. As values have changed and the pace of society has increased Americans want everything right here and right now but don not want to put the effort forward, those that still have the working mentality are those who achieve the true â€Å"American Dream.† People are becoming less motivated and more lazy. We try to finding an easy solution to all of our lives complicated problems, we no longer want to go to school, for it has become a â€Å"nuisance† and children are following in the footsteps of those that are not wise. Reading this article really opened our eyes. It’s not that the American Dream is unachievable, Americans just don’t want to work for it. We have become lazy and feel like everything should be handed to us, instead of believing that we should work for our accolades and make our opportunities. Bibliography Morello, Carol, Peyton M. Craighill, and Scott Clement. â€Å"More People Express Uncertainty in Chance to Achieve the American Dream.† Washington Post. The Washington Post, 28 Sept. 2013. Web. 14 Oct. 2013.

Turkey's Foreign Policy on Arab Spring Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Turkey's Foreign Policy on Arab Spring - Essay Example This has caused consternation to the West, who had hoped that Turkey would be an ally and would be able to help the West put pressure on these authoritarian Arab countries. In the meantime, Turkey has caused more problems for pro-Israeli countries, such as the United States, as the country has turned against Israel because of Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians and an incident where Israel killed a number of Palestinians who were a part of a humanitarian convoy. This is all a part of the Turkish pragmatic foreign policy, as it has realized that it needs to appease its neighbors in order to have security within its borders, as well as have free and open trade with the region, therefore it has embraced the Arab world. However, this caused problems for Turkey when the Arab uprising began. This is because Turkey, in its policy of zero problems with neighbors, embraced dictators. One of these dictators was Qadaffi, so the Libyan uprising put the country into a difficult position . Moreover, the embrace of other dictators in other countries, such as Syria and Iran, signaled to the Western world and the rebels in these countries that Turkey is not entirely on the side of the democratizers. ...   According to Onis (2010), Turkey currently has an active foreign policy approach, and this approach has been the hallmark of the AKP government era. This approach has had continuity between the first and second terms of office, as Abdullah Gul and Ahmet Davutoglu has played a key role in Turkey’s foreign policy initiatives. This active foreign policy precedes the AKP government administration, however, as it was a part of the Turkish regime since the post-Cold War era in the 1990s (Onis, 2010, p. 3). The AKP era’s central focus on foreign policy is that they use their power softly, and strive to improve relations with its neighbors (using the motto â€Å"zero problems with neighbors†). Pursuing a more ambitious role in regional and global power is another benchmark for the AKP government, as well as the desire to Europeanize. Nevertheless, the Middle East and the Arab world was also a focal point of the Turkish foreign policy initiatives under the AKP (Onis, 2010, p. 4). That said, Onis (2010) also states that the second term of office has been marked by foreign policy differences from the first phase, and the most glaring of these difference is that Turkey has weakened commitment to the European Union (EU). This has been shown in the fact that Turkey has acted independently of its Western Allies with regard to the international and regional conflicts (Onis, 2010, p. 4).

Northern Gateway Pipeline Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Northern Gateway Pipeline - Essay Example A project of such a scale requires a sizable investment and with that, the external factors affecting the project or the project’s own impact on the society should be analyzed extensively (Enbridge Inc, 2012; AFX News Limited, 2007). Officials at Enbridge believe the project has more direct and indirect benefits to offer than harm to the society or the environment. .Such projects provide employment opportunities, permanent and contract based. The construction period of the pipeline project will open a window for 62700 jobs and 1146 operational jobs in British Colombia, Alberta and parts of Canada, collectively. Such a job exposure will lead to skill development within the workforce. High-end tax returns of the pipeline project of $912million will contribute towards the betterment of the society and the province. This will be the largest private investment in the history of British Colombia. The revenue from the pipeline will contribute $270million to the Canadian GDP. Tax reve nues over 30 years will be over $1 billion, providing funds for healthcare, education and creating more job oppurtunities. Such an invest will give 1150 jobs in the Canadian economy. (Northern gateway pipeline project). Enbridge is one of the largest energy corporations in Canada, said that the company has the worst environmental record of 804 oil spills between 1991-2010. Therefore, it would not be surprising to realize that Enbridge Inc. is not exactly the favorite of environmental activists and often faces open criticism from various social pressure groups. The chiefs of the Gitxsan region have openly condemned the idea for the pipeline. Environment activists argue that the process of extraction of oil from the oil sands wills pollute air and nearby water bodies such as lakes and rivers, this process will give a rise to global warming causing heat levels to rise in the region. If a spill were to occur, the chances of an explosion may arise due to the levels of bitumen present and such spill in remote areas is always a difficult task to cleanup, especially in winters. The bitumen pipeline penetrates coastal waters for 185km; a spill can fatally damage the marine life and the waters of the protected bear forest. Furthermore, bitumen rapidly dissolves in water; this makes the decontamination a lengthy task. (Girard, R. 2010; CBC News 2012) The figures released by Enbridge state that the pipeline running from Kitimat would transport 193,000 barrels of natural gas condensate per day. With a westerly flow, oil pipeline containing bitumen will transport 525,000 barrels of oil per day. Through the Kitimat marine terminal, the oil will be shipped to the Asian overseas markets via tankers. Enbridge officials ensure that all vessels that enter Kitimat terminal will be modern and double hulled. All safety regulations will be followed and sea and wind conditions will be monitored closely. Enbridge claims that the strategy will be put forward by putting together the best people, strategy and planning (Pipeline information and plan). The debate will go on, between the economic benefits and the environmental hazards this pipeline project will bring. Economically the benefits are there, but being a public limited company has its certain limitations. Any undesired step putting the environment at risk might upset the shareholders and the investors greatly. Considering Enbridge’s reputation of oil spills and environmental violations, the criticisms on Enbridge

Summary of the Chapter Marxist Worldviews Assignment - 1

Summary of the Chapter Marxist Worldviews - Assignment Example The main reason why Karl Marx was opposed to Capitalism as an economic system was that capitalism, for him, alienates the laborers (the producers) from what they produce. What this means in essence is that since in a capitalist economic system the means of production are owned by a few people (the bourgeoisie), the labourers receive only an insignificant share of the profit that results from their work, and for this reason Marx argued that capitalism alienates the labourers by underpaying them and by denying them a chance to be part of the profit that is made from their labour. As a remedy to the unjust and the flawed economic system, Karl Marx proposed his own economic system that he was deeply convinced that its adoption and implementation would render justice to the poor, thus ensuring that there is peace in the society. Marx proposed Communism as his ideal economic system. In his development of Communism as an economic theory, Marx was influenced by both Hegel and Engels. Marx ad opted Hegel’s idea that the history of the world proceeds in a dialectic process. Marx, however, differed with Hegel in that, while Hegel had explained the history of the world in terms of the dialectic movement of ideas, Marx explained the history of the world in terms of the dialectic movement of material things, hence, Marx’s account of history is known as dialectic materialism. On the other hand, Marx took Engel’s idea that the laborers are alienated from their work in a capitalist society. In his account of the history of the world, Marx saw the thesis of the history as the status quo economic system, the antithesis of the status quo economic system comes about when there is the conflict between the owners of the means of production in the prevailing economic system and the laborers. The conflict between the owners of production and the laborers who are opposed to the economic system give rise to a synthesis, which is a new economic system.

Rhetorical Analysis of the Reformist Jane Adams Research Paper

Rhetorical Analysis of the Reformist Jane Adams - Research Paper Example In 1912, Addams was also among the lead supporters of Theodore Roosevelt on the Bull Moose (Progressive) party ticket; she also co-founded the Woman’s International League for Peace and Freedom which was a key facilitator of her winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931. Cedarville Illinois was the birthplace of Jane, she had eight siblings and was the second-last born of the family; their father was a successful political leader (local), serving sixteen years in the Senate, fought as an officer in the Civil War and was a close friend of Abraham Lincoln; they used to call each other ‘My Dear Double’. Jane had an inherited spinal blemish that contributed to her physical instability throughout her life though it was often remedied by surgery. Jane graduated from the Rockford Female Seminary class of Seventeen in 1881, be given a bachelor’s degrees the following year after the school was accredited to Rockford College for Women; later on, she started studying medicine her health condition interfered as she was being hospitalized now and then. Jane traveled to Europe where she continued with her studies for slightly less than two years after which she spent two more years writing and reading as she laid her objectives for the future; while there Jane and her friend Ellen Starr took a visit to Toynbee Hall, a settlement house in London’s East End which assisted greatly influenced a similar idea she had of starting a similar place for the underprivileged in Chicago. Jane is known to have come up with a variety of quotes with the most common being ‘Action indeed is the sole medium of expression for ethics’; others include; ‘Nothing could be worse than the fear that one had given up too soon and left one unexpended effort that might have saved the world’.

Discuss healthcare systems organizational structure, financing, Assignment

Discuss healthcare systems organizational structure, financing, mission, vision, philosophy, and values - Assignment Example ciety as a whole and how the overall healthcare system is linked with other sectors of the economy to support and bolster the overall good of the society. (Skolnik, 2012, p.52) It is therefore clearly established that the overall goals, mission and vision of a healthcare system shall be focused upon delivering good health and generating and allocating financial resources fairly. The financial resources of the healthcare system therefore either are generated through the public funds or through public-private partnership arrangements along with self-funding through patients. It is however, critical to understand that overall organizational structure can also result into the restriction of the access to the healthcare providers. (Andersen, Vedsted, Olesen, Bro, & Ndergaard,2011). The concept of gatekeeping into the overall organizational structure of healthcare system is resulting into a change in the overall relationship between the healthcare providers and the patients. Since one of the components of the organizational structure is service delivery it is therefore critical that organizational structure shall not be the restricting factor in the overall delivery of efficient and effective healthcare services to the patients. Andersen, R. S., Vedsted, P., Olesen, F., Bro, F., & Ndergaard, J. S. (2011). Does the organizational structure of health care systems influence care-seeking decisions?A qualitative analysis of Danish cancer patients’ refl ections on care-seeking. Scandinavian Journal of Primary Health Care,

Leadership and HRM Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Leadership and HRM - Essay Example Deregulation in many of the European countries have led to less collective arrangement for employees and more employee benefits at an organizational level . Most of the recognized organizations all over the globe have: (Rioux, Bernthal, Wellins,) `Best Practices` within an organization has often been linked to the Human Resource system that is being adopted by any particular organization. Human resource systems refer to the electronic tools that are used to assess and perform HR related information and functions respectively. Human resource system enables the HR staff to execute all the HR related activities such as personnel actions and job announcements. Marriot International has adopted various innovative HR practices which has earned it the reputation of â€Å"the best place to work† in the hospitality industry. Marriot`s spirit to serve has in fact guided its various HR initiatives. The company has reaped several benefits because of its employee friendly HR practices. J. William Marriot had set `The Hot Shoppe` in Washington in 1927 where hot food was served along with root bear. In 1937 Hot Shoppes ventured into airline catering services at Washington Airport. Over the next three decades Hot Shoppes diversified its business into many other service management sectors and in 1967, its name was changed to Marriott Corporation. In 1982, Marriot acquired Host International and became the largest operator of airport terminal food, beverage and merchandise facilities in the US. With the acquisition of Saga Corporation in 1986, Marriot became the largest food management company in the US. Marriot has also diversified into moderate price segments of hotels under the brand name of `Courtyard`. Today Marriot is a product of the metamorphosis that began fifteen years ago. Five major trends that can define the organisation are: Marriot has always been known for the

Gender and work roles in Society Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Gender and work roles in Society - Essay Example Unlike sex, gender is a socially constructed concept which has many ramifications in the social, political, and economic realms. The social construction of gender roles is responsible for the division the productive labor forces into one which has historically been private and unpaid, known for more than a hundred years as â€Å"women’s work† and another which occurs in the public sphere and his remunerated. Although women have entered the paid labor force in great numbers over the past 50 years, so-called â€Å"women’s work† has relegated women to child-rearing responsibilities, maintaining a home, cooking and cleaning and everything else which has historically been unpaid. Importantly, much of this work, child rearing, cooking, etc is both unpaid and often unappreciated. Historically, men worked outside the home, earning a paycheck and have been the breadwinners of the traditional nuclear family. Since the 1960s women have entered the labor force in incr edible numbers and have begun to earn the respect they deserve for the work that they do. Despite this important change, men still have much more power in our society and it remains structured upon the notion of patriarchy. Accordingly, women face many hurdles to direct employment in the paid labor force in the United States (see Bernbach 33-75). While female participation in the labor force has grown tremendously over the past half-century, women still lag behind men when it comes to getting paid for the hard work that they do. According to the American Department of Labor and Statistics, women on average earned $.80 on the US dollar relative to their male counterparts. From a sociological perspective, what can help account for the disparities women face in the labor force? Discrimination is one challenge women face in the paid labor force and this concept can be defined as the prejudicial treatment of others based upon perceived or real

Non Functional Requirements for an SMS customer relation service Essay

Non Functional Requirements for an SMS customer relation service - Essay Example Availability also ensures that the system has a relevant location of operation that meets the relevant connection requirements. Besides, the availability component denotes the percentage of time in which the system is up and must be running correctly (Bochmann, 2009). Performance is another imperative non-functional key that every user should be acquainted with, in any system. The performance constraint must specify all the timing characteristics incorporated in the software. Some features and task are more time sensitive compared to others. Therefore, the non-functional requirement must be able to identify the software functions that contain any constraints on their performance. Performance also entails the response times which takes into account the loading time as well as the time the screen takes to open and the refresh durations. Other facets of performance include processing time, which entails imports, calculations, and exports. Lastly, the query together with the reporting times that take into consideration the initial and subsequent loads forms another important aspect of performance (Griffiths, 2009). Another essential facet to note is usability. It incorporates the ease of use necessity. It addresses the features that establish the capacity of any software to be easily learned, understood and used by the intended users (Stellman, 2010). Additionally, the usability component takes into account the look and feel standards that integrate screen element, density, keyboard shortcuts, flow and layout, UI metaphors and colors. Similarly, internationalization or localization requirements form an important feature of usability. Usability also takes into account paper sizes, keyboards, languages and spellings. The last non-functional key is security. It is very important to ensure that only trusted users can gain access to a system. The login requirements must maintain

If Money doesnt Make You Happy; Then Your Not Spending It Right Critique Essay Example for Free

If Money doesnt Make You Happy; Then Your Not Spending It Right Critique Essay The belief that money lead to ultimate happiness was circulated among mankind and perceived as the essence of life, this can be seen in the quote: â€Å"Money makes the world go round†. Upon reading this quote , one begins to think that money is the everlasting physical material that brings happiness. However, Money is only tangible and can disappear overnight. William Durant, founder of GM and Chevrolet, said â€Å"Money is only leaned to a man. He comes into the world with nothing and leaves with nothing†. This indicates how one spends this tangible curse to pursue the thought of happiness. Throughout Dunns writing, the thought that spending money in a diverse manner brings happiness appears in numerous positions and to emphasis this stand it firstly appears in the title , â€Å"If Money Doesn’t Make You Happy, Then You Probably Aren’t Spending It Right†. Happiness-according to Dunn- through money, can be decanted through 8 different â€Å"Principles†: 1) Buy more experiences and fewer material goods. (2) Use ones money to benefit others rather themselves (3) Buy many small pleasures rather than fewer large ones (4) Eschew extended warranties and other forms of overpriced insurance (5)Delay consumption (6) Consider how peripheral features of their purchases may affect their day-to-day lives (7) Beware of comparison shopping (8) Pay close attention to the happiness of others. These are semi accurate ways spending money the right way and I agree with most of them; yet, some of these point I find quite contradicting. Because the nature of mankind does not agree with such perfect attributes and that one must obtain to have a more enjoyable life. Principle 1: Buy more experiences and fewer material goods. This is the utmost correct statement ever known to man when they want to spend money. The point directs us to a human natural instinct: boredom. Once a human is bored or tired of something, then that person will get rid of that object. For example; a plasma TV was bought , and it is an enjoyable device to a certain point. The TV owner would want to replace that TV with something productive and more efficient. This principle is showing that instead of buying something tangible and replaceable, one should consider something more everlasting like a memory of going to the lake fishing. Memories are not forgotten; they riddle and disintegrate over time but immortal as long as one keeps up with these  memories. Principle 2: Use ones money to benefit others rather themselves. In my opinion, this is only achieved with a perfect world containing angles as its citizens. The reality is that money isnt spent due human nature greed. There are still some saints in the world that are willing to give their wealth to the unfortunate but At the end of the day one must put into consideration that bills must be paid at the end of the month and food must be placed on the table at the end of the night. According to CNN Money Network statistics, 28% of all Americans have emergency savings savings that will last for 6 months. which means when 72% of the population lose their jobs living necessary will be excluded with if they dont find another job in less than a month. viewing it from a different perspective ; 72% of Americans live from paycheck to paycheck. With whatever there is leftover it is either going to the person or children’s saving account or for a trip for themselves or family. The author indicated the feeling and satisfaction one gets when helping someone for example donating to others as a warm or irreplaceable feeling. Principle 3: Buy many small pleasures rather than fewer large ones. Understanding this means that smaller pleasures last longer or become more embedded into our mines and life styles; due to the fact that, these small pleasures are more frequent and enjoyable. For instance, one might go out with a colleague for coffee every morning just about every day-supposing that one has an innocent crush on the other; it is better than going to that person out of the blue and asking the other for dinner. first, you have made a common ground with that natural frequency of $5 a day for two cups of coffee- so that means that you are less likely to be rejected completely. second, it is cheaper than one impressive dinner that might be in the $80-$90 dollar range. This is true to a certain point; if you have a family trip every year to the most casual tourist traps could be a lot more cheaper than one big one every two years to some where exotic and fun. I have personally performed interviews with people from the upper, middle , and lower classes. surprisingly the upper and lower class citizens both have the same mentality; which was frequent but cheap trips. The reasoning behind this -in my opinion- is to break the cycle of work, and sleep. Even though the middle class is known to everyone of being the hard working class . looking at the middle class, they prefer one big trip every once a year. this  shows that they first must insure themselves and their family before performing any drastic moves. Principle 4: Eschew extended warranties and other forms of overpriced insurance. People must have some kind of insurance to back the citizens up against any miscellanies accidents from heart attacks to explosions. the problem lies within the citizens themselves. as we hear through the media that almost 20% of Americans dont have insurance; for instance if a family member had a bad illness then all of the member in that family would suffer the consequences of the medical bill. Due to medical prices nowadays, if youre not insured than get prepared for the worst once an accident happens. Principle 5: Delay consumption. The very straight translation of this is in one quote: dont spend what you dont have. Marketing is a technique to lure the innocent and naive to falling prey to these falls advertising from the big monopolies. this point is the second most important point that humans do not realize. debt is something no one should endure and struggle through; it might be a grace if done once or twice for example: car loans, mortgage, credit cards. however, it will be the inferno once a standard Joe does not keep up with his bills because then all of those payments plus the interest on them will engulf that person till he/she is worn out or dead. Principle 6: Consider how peripheral features of their purchases may affect their day-to-day lives Third most important principle -in my opinion; finding the effects of irresponsible spending on someones life. this shows that one must know what theyre going to buy before and the effects of that purchase. There is a local quote: Do not shop at a grocery store when youre hungry. the meaning behind this quote links most of these principles together; if you shop when youre, most likely:1) youre going to buy a lot (2) once you buy a lot then you do not know how much your spending, (3) most of that food you bought you will eat but some will be thrown away. Principle 7: Beware of comparison shopping. this principle shows how one of the fallacies come into place: ad hominem. online shopping lets you compare products from different manufactures and compare them together. wondering how ad hominem comes to place; lets take this example: Joe wants to buy a car but he does not know what to look for; so he goes to an online website that can compare cars together. The first car he looks at is awesome but it has a leading competitor so the car manufactures put the flaws in that leading competitor car, and vice versa.  they both attack each other than using the positive attributes of each car are. it is a psychological brain attraction; by altering the context of the paragraph -by choosing the right words- the customer is in their grasps. Principle 8: Pay close attention to the happiness of others. this simply means that one must consider other peoples opinions before buying a product or service. this is also considered to be an ad hominem and moral equivalence; the reason is because we rely on hearsay not actual facts. it is a way of marketing to discredit an institution of whatever and whomever it is. The essay shows how spending money in certain ways can be effective to ones life style; bringing about more happiness according to Dunn through 8 Principles. the problem with that is that human nature most of the time cannot be predictable; so generalizing how one should spend their money to achieve happiness is not the way to going about; more like it is how can one achieve happiness at minimal spending.

Contextual Positioning Of Photographic Media Photography Essay

Contextual Positioning Of Photographic Media Photography Essay Using one image that you feel is representative of the work of a particular photographer, movement or genre, contextually deconstruct the image, in an objective and considered way. The image I have chosen to contextually deconstruct, is one photographed by Henri Cartier- Bresson. This image was taken in 1969 it is named Sidewalk Cafe, Boulevard Diderot, Paris. To discover the socio-cultural identity of Henri Cartier- Bresson, an exploration into his history must be undertaken, to determine the attitudes and outlook that influenced his thinking, understanding and perception, which can be leant from the social and cultural group to which he belonged. Henri Cartier Bresson was born in the 1900s and was raised and grew up during the age of the bourgeoisie. A Period in time that lasted for around a century and a half, Bourgeoisie translated means city dweller, this was considered a social class. Henri Cartier Bresson captured many great images that symbolise this time period during his life. Paris at that time was the city of its age, the 1900s, incredible wealth, incredible beauty, incredible art next to incredible poverty and bohemianism and a complete reworking of social morays. Henri Cartier Bresson was primarily a photojournlist who was most concernered with time and timing, his photographic fusion of form and content was groundbreaking. His images captured the moment, they are unplanned, this was made obvious when he publisised his book The Decisive Moment in which his introduction stated i craved to seize the whole essence, in the confines of one single photograph, of some situation that was in the process of unrolling itself before my eyes. Henri Cartier Bresson decided what to take a photo of, what elements to exclude and what angle to frame the photo, and these factors may reflect a particular socio-historical context. In the 1900s, World War I, was beginning, in the northeast of France, by 1918 the war was over and the Versailles Treaty was signed, the period between World War I and World War II was a time of Depression which lasted almost ten years, this was also the time of the avant-garde movement, in which France played a leading role, which brought artists, musician and filmakers worldwide, to France. The Avant- garde movement was a time in which boundaries of the norm in society were pushed. Henri Cartier Bresson was born into this world, being the eldest of five children and having a wealthy upbringing, he had the option of succeeding his fathers business, however Henri Cartier Bresson held a existentialist view, which meant that he believed he responsible for giving his own life meaning and living his life passionately and sincerely. Many people had this view as it was the time of existentialism. For Bresson it ment persueing his own dreams and passions instead of being duty bound to his f athers company. Henri Cartier Bresson influencer was his uncle, who was a painter, that died during the first World War, when Bresson was a mear age of five. Henri Cartier Bresson mentioned in an interview, in the year in which he died, my uncle, by being a painter, represented freedom to me. Bressons uncle represented bohemianism. Bresson was primarily a painter until he became inspired by a photojournalist from hungary, Martin Munkacsi. Munkacsi captured an image called Three boys at Lake Tanganyika, after seeing this image, Bresson was entralled, and took his camera and began image making himself, mainly in the streets. Bresson began working with a Leica, which he apparently painted black as to disguise it. this gave him anonymity in a crowd and he was able to capture more intimate shots such as the one he capture above, the couple outside a cafe, probably had no idea they were actually being photographed. Street photography is a type of documentary photography that features subjects in a candid situation, it is like holding up a mirror to society. This particular image that I have chosen I feel is a fair representation of his work, it captures the decisive moment attitude. It perfectly captures the Parisian cafe culture. Philosopher Josef Peiper said leisure is the basis of culture. The French cafe is as much a part of the culture of France as wine and cheese. This image captures a sterotype of France, the cliche black and white striped shirt, the Cigerette, and of course the beret. Even nowadays a trip to Paris, will almost always involve, french cafe culture, no matter which area of France a person goes to. Cafe culture is still a prominent leisure activity in France today. Henri Cartier- Bresson being a documentary photographer, photographed significant and historical events, he took images across the world in the beginning of his career, until doing extenstive work on the streets of Paris. Being brought up in a bourgeoisie society, where many people dwelled in cities, could have been part of the reason why Bresson entered the world of street photography. Bresson would have been considered fairly wealthy, in that era, simply because his was born into wealth, this gave him the oppurtunity to pursue his career in photography and the arts, which may not have been made possible otherwise. Bresson also had an full and beneficial education, attending university, and doing his mandatory service in the French Army. Bresson matured both artistically and as a man during a turbulent cultural and political era, which reflects in many of his images because of his documentation, of the worlds great events during his lifetime, such as Gandhis funeral, the final stage of the Chinease Civil War and many other great historial events. Bresson has a skill at envisaging an image, even when simply walking through the streets of Paris, his compostion is second to none, the rule of third is a compostional technique, captured in most of his images seems almost flawless. The fact that his camera is hand held, he manages to capture images, without camera shake, with good compostional skill, with the lighting being natural and without the subjects even realising they are being photographed. Once a subject realises they are being photographed they become far more formal and adapt and unnatural behaviour. The fact his subjects are completely unaware of the image being taken, makes his photographs far more pure and untainted and therefore even more spectacular. Especially so in this image, the couple being photographed are kissing, and are clearly unaware, if they were, this image would have lost its natural beauty, because the image would have been posed for. The small camera Bresson used when taking this specific shot, gave him the ability to get very intimate with this couple without there knowledge. For Bresson the street was his studio Susan Sontag a philosopher argues, To photograph is to appropriate the thing photographed. It means putting oneà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s self into a certain relation to the world that feels like knowledge, and therefore like power. Bresson managed to do this with such ease, and elegance, his perception of the world was captured through his camera, which was basically an extension of his eye. Although Bressons images are influential even in todays society, it can be argued that the way in which he took his images, violated social norms. However, this could be deemed acceptable considering he was living during a time of bohemian revolution whereby the norms in society were being pushed anyway. The fashion captured in this image is a perfect example of the time period. The strippy black and white shirt is not just a sterotype of France, it was the dress that middle class parisians wore. The sterotype of a person riding a bicycle through the streets of Paris, selling bread, garlic and onion is also somewhat true, it was the uniform the sellers wore, but became fashionable and others began wearing it. Another example of parisians pushing boundaries of the norm. Bresson was the co-founder of a company called Magnum photos, in which he himself as well as his co-founders began a project whereby they went out and took a series of images there project names were People live everywhere, Youth of the World, Women of the World and The Child Generation. The aim of the organisiation was to use the photographic medium as a service to humanity. Being a street photographer Bresson captured specific images of the time and the fashion and the attitude Parisians had. The fact that Bresson capture images that were publisized at the time could have been what influenced society, because it is not just society that influences a person, a person can influence society. The image I chose represents Bressons work well because it gives an insight into how exactly he created and captured the image and also gives an example of some of his greatest street photography, as well as proving that Bresson socio-cultural identity does effect his work in many ways. He photographed very ordinary things for the time period, but because they are documenting an era, it makes them timeless. The world in which Bresson has been raised and brought up in, definitly is apparent in his images especially those taken in Paris, his native country. This exploration into Bressons past and subsequently his image making proves that a his upbringing and the social climate in which he existed made an impact on his work, and lifestyle.

US and EU Approaches Towards Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

US and EU Approaches Towards Israeli-Palestinian Conflict The discipline of International Relations is both an academic as well a public policy arena, which emerges from political science. It is the subject and channel of International Relations, which adequately addresses a foreign policy of a state within the confines of an international system. International relations also take into account role of international organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), as well as multinational companies/corporations. Since the primary objective of international relations is both an analysis as well as formulation of a foreign policy, it could either be positive, or normative. In order for a foreign policy tube either positive or normative, it has to inculcate such diverse areas and subjects as political science, economics, history, law, philosophy, area studies, sociology, cultural studies, and a number of other social sciences; hence its utility for both analysis as well as formulation of foreign policy. In addition, it also includes and addresses such varied set of issues as economic development, foreign aid, environmental movement, nationalism, nuclear proliferation and human rights. However, for international relations to be practically applicable, effective, or at the least in the realm body of ideas, there are various theories, which ultimately lead us to the real world of policy. International relations theories thus provide a set of guidelines allowing us to agree to, as well as arrive at shaping better international outcomes. In addition, international relation theories allow for a better understanding of world events, and wherever necessary, provide for better solutions to the numerous issues and problems faced by the world community. One may also note that any theory, including the various international theories may not provide for answers to all the problems and issues faced by the world community; yet they do provide and assist us in first thinking about and then finding probable and the most viable solutions to the horde of problems and issues faced by the world community. At the onset, international relation theories can and do provide us with alternatives, and possibly even anticipate the various courses of international events in the global spectrum of politics. Some of the most common and practiced international theories include â€Å"Constructivism, Institutionalism, Marxism, and Neo-Gramscianism. Yet, the most dominant international theories, or rather the schools of thought which have been practiced in international politics include the international theories of Realism and Liberalism (Walt, 1998, p29. Introduction Having briefly touched upon the subject of international relations and international relation theories, the following dissertation will strive to address the said two disciplines within the context of one of the past centuries most disputed international issue; the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The dissertation will thus address this pressing international issue from the perspective of various international theories, with a particular focus on the different approaches taken by the United States of America, and that taken by the European Union. For a better understanding of the different perspectives and approaches taken by the United States of America and the European Union respectively, it would only be imperative that an equal and in-depth study the various international relations theories be also made part of this dissertation. The study of the more dominant, if not all the international theories becomes all the more importance as both the United States of America and the European Union group of nations each follow a somewhat different set of strategies in their international relations. The same is true for Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as both the United States of America as one international player, and the European Union group of nations as the second major player each address, view, and practice more than just a passing difference to one of the present days most pressing international conflict. As the present dissertation addresses the primary subject of the recent different approaches of the United States of America and the European for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in particular, and the Middle East Peace Process in general, it would only be imperative to commence the paper with the respective international relation theories, and through the study of these theories, present how respective international relations theories have influenced the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The following dissertation will thus strive to address the various international relation theories in brief, namely the theories of ‘Realism, Liberalism, and Constructivism,’ Though all these international relation theories enjoy their distinct places in international relations and politics, the theories of Realism and Constructivism are the ones that are practiced more commonly. Since these two theories comprise and are considered standard policy, the same will comprise of majority of the discussion in the present dissertation. The international relations theory of realism being the most widely practiced, and the fact that it is this vital theory that has been at the helm of most, if not all US foreign policies, the same has also been adopted by majority of nations friendly with the United States, or have been her allies at one time or another. This will be followed by a discussion of the second most vitally important international relations theory, that of ‘Constructivism’. It is this theory of constructivism that has largely been pursued by majority, if not all the European Union nations. The primary distinction between the theory of realism and that of constructivism is that, the theory of realism premises on the realist approach, as the term so states. On the other hand, the theory of constructivism largely relies on softer modes of communication, negotiation, socialization, and pursuit of ends through peaceful measures. The dissertation will then proceed with discussions on both the United States and the European Union nations, and address the perspective and approach taken by each on the issue of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in light of the pertinent international relations theory. Some of the Dominant International Relation Theories In Brief  International Theory of Realism One of the primary topics to be discussed in the present dissertation is the role or perspective of the United States of Americano the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and show whether the United States is influenced by ideas from the international relation theory of â€Å"Realism. In this context, it would only be imperative to present brief on the international relations theory of Realism, some of its key assumptions, and then arrive at the US approach respectively. A brief on the international relations theory of Realism reveals that it has often been associated with German terms of real and realitatimplying substantive or as the term so states real; and politikimplying politics or policy. Both these terms were perhaps first coined by one of Germanys leaders in the earlier part of the 20thcentury, Bismarck. In his attempts to bring about a suitable balance of power amongst the various European states, Bismarck sought peace as one of the most viable solutions in the then Europe of the earlier 20thcentury. Bismarck was aided by a number of realpolitik practitioners â€Å"who worked equally hard to avoid an arms race in Europe. Bismarck’s efforts however did not bear any fruit, as the early part of the 20thcentury witnessed arms race amongst the various nations of Europe, as well as formation of various alliances culminating in one of humanity’s first ever global tragedies, that of World War I. Some of the principle theorist of the international theory of â€Å"Realism â€Å"includes Carr, Kenneth N. Waltz, and Hans J. Morgenthau. However, it was Morgenthaus Politics Among Nations, which perhaps formally systemized classical Realism. According to Margenthau, there exist six principles, which he outlined in his famous book, Politics Among Nations. These six points are presented in the first chapter of his above said book. These vitally important facets of Morgenthau’s Theory of Realism are: International relations †¦is governed by objective laws that have their roots in human nature. The key consideration †¦is the concept of interest defined in terms of power’. †¦Interest defined as power is an objective category which is universally valid, although its exact meaning may change with time and circumstance. While moral principles have a place, they cannot be defined identically at every time and place, and apply differently to individuals and the state. The moral aspirations of a particular nation†¦ are not moral laws that govern the universe. Politics is an autonomous sphere that needs to be analysed as an entity, without being subordinated to outside values (Morgenthau, 1973,Chapter 1) International Theory of Realism In-depth studies on the international relations theory of Realism â€Å"reveal that there exist a number of primary assumptions, which guide the followers, or practitioners of the Realism theory. One of the first assumptions of Realism theory is that the entire international system is anarchic implying that that is the state alone is the supreme authority, and no other state or states can or have the capacity to regulate the affairs of another state. The theory of Realism further assumes that any higher supreme authority cannot dictate a state, and that there is no existence of any world government. This implies that each state must strive to create relations with other states on their own, instead of being dictated to do so. The theory of Realism â€Å"further assumes that there is no role for any international organization, non-governmental organization, or multi-national corporation in the affairs of the state, and that the sovereignty of astute governs all the international affairs. Thus, following the assumptions of the theory of Realism, a state is a rational actor amongst the community of global nations, and will always strive toward sits self-interest, which in turn call for ensuring the state’s security. Continuing with the theory of Realism, the same state will take all measures to secure its status as a sovereign nation including but not limited to amassing of resources, and relations with other states to be determined by the respective level of power enjoyed by the other state/s. The level of power in turn is assessed from the respective states economic and military capability. Perhaps the most stringent assumption inherent in the international relations theory of â€Å"Realism is its belief that states are inherently aggressive, and further that a states economic or military expansion can only be limited by the powers of the opposing state. (Waltz, 1964; Karl et al,1969; Mearsheimer, 1994) A further insight into the international relation theory of â€Å"Realism shows that it is divided into two sub-schools of thought, namely maximal realism and minimal realism. The first sub-school of realism, the maximal realism asserts that a state enjoys the status of the most powerful entity in the world, and that all other states ‘align themselves with this powerful state, and that too in their own interest and out of political necessity. The theory of maximal realism further assumes and somewhat asserts that, if there are two equally powerful entities in the world, it presents an unstable international political scenario. A prime example to this respect is that of period of Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States of America. According the maximal theory of Realism, such a situation will eventually lead to a stable international situation where one entity or state becomes more powerful, while the other into a less powerful entity respectively. (Waltz, 1964; Karl et al, 1969; Mearsheimer, 1994) The second sub-school of Realism, that of minimal realism ‘assumes that the smaller and less powerful entities or states will align themselves with the most powerful entity in the world, and this would be brought about to protect the interests of the smaller and less powerful states from the interests of the larger and single most powerful entity or state. The theory of minimal realism also assumes middle policy where two equally powerful states exist, and where the smaller and less powerful states may align themselves with either of the larger powerful state. The choice of selecting one of the larger and powerful states depends on the smaller states policies of the moment. This also implies that the smaller state may remain aligned with both the powerful states at the same time, yet pursue and align with one state keeping in view the interests and policies on a given area of politics, issue, or social problem. (Waltz, 1964; Karl et al,1969; Mearsheimer, 1994) International Relations Theory of Neo-Realism There exist yet another school of thought, one that is termed sane-realism. This was first coined by Kenneth N. Waltz in 1979, and was in fact an attempt at reformulating the original theory of ‘Realism in a modern and scientific perspective. One of the most works of Waltz was The Theory of International Politics, which aimed to rid the original theory of Realism of its defects. The Neo-Realism ‘school of thought, with Waltz as one of its first proponents assumes and addresses the international relations in terms of the various ‘structural properties of the international system’ which focuses on the distribution of power. The Neo-Realism theory in international relations somewhat rejects the variable of human nature in both times of war as well as peace. The neo-realism theory also neglects domestic politics of a given state, which is perhaps the darkest element of this theory. Neglecting domestic policies of states in turn paves the path for conflict and move towards war, both of which are primarily detrimental to the respective state as well as its populations. In addition, neo-realism theorys primary assumption that the international system is anarchic, as also reiterated in the opening lines of theory of realism, further confirms the theorys own assumptions that conflict and war cannot be avoided. In times of anarchy, as are the assumptions of the neo-realism theory, states pursue goals of security, either through self-help such as amassment of economic and military resources, or through the formation of alliances with those who enjoy the status the most powerful states in the world. However, the pursuit of security goals for a particular states through the neo-realism theory, whether through self-help, or through the alliances with other organizations both is somewhat practical for a short period only. As this theory does not provide a permanent solution to the security needs of that respective nation simply due to the ‘security dilemma where each state is witnessed to ever vigorously pursue attempts to improve its security, in turn provoking other states to do the same. The result of such conflicting approaches is none other than an insecure state, a condition that originally prompted the state to take or adopt policies according to the theory one-realism respectively. (Waltz, Theory of International Politics) Yet another equally negative element of the neo-realism theory is its rejection of international institutions, which normally serve as regulators of state behaviour as well as promotion pdf peace. According to the theorists of neo-realism, the international institutions are entities of self-interested great powers. The role of international institutions as per the theorists of neo-realism is limited to reflection of, instead of providing a concrete shape to the existing distribution of power in a given state. Furthermore, it is the balance of power and its pursuit, which holds true for followers of neo-realism theory. For the governance of, and pursuit of accomplishing a balance of power, the greater and more powerful entities or states acquire both the economic means as well as military strength/power. When both the said tools too are presumably insufficient, the strategy of forming alliances with stronger and more powerful powers is then pursued(Waltz, 1964; Karl et al, 1969; Mearsheimer, 1994) International Relations Theory of Constructivism The theory of Constructivism is also an important theory practiced in the arena of international relations with places particular emphasis on identities, norms, and culture in world politics. The theory of Constructivism thus allows for identities and interests of states to be used as tools for interactions, as are institutions, norms, and cultures utilized. The importance is therefore given to the different processes, rather than the structure of different actors and institutions not only for interaction, but also for arriving at peaceful means and resolutions of equally varied issues and conflicts in the realm of international relations, (Wendt, 1992). Constructivism as an international theory also explains the role of human consciousness in addressing the various problems and conflicts in the international arena of politics. Thus, one may note that the human action including the human capacity as well as the will of the respective people are duly utilized in order to nurture a deliberate attitude and highlight the significance of a given issue, such as our subject conflict of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It is the combination of the said human capacity and the will which in turn are responsible for the creation of social facts, or aspects which are dependent on the consensus of a given human agreements including but not limited to money, sovereignty and property rights respectively. The international relations theory of constructivism also explains the importance of identities and interests of the different parties to an issue or a conflict, and the fact that these parties or actors music-exist and share common factors as cultural beings. The said different parties also includes the state as one of the social actors, which in turn is bound to follow both international and domestic rules. The state in turn has to follow certain set or rules, norms, institutions, and identities, and thus allow the international relations theory of constructivism to offer new concepts for addressing and perhaps even resolving given issues and conflicts within and amongst states or parties. Thus, one may observe that the role of the human actors as parties to an issue or a given conflict, their identities and the role of institutions perhaps also act as theory’s limitation, and it is this reasoning due to which there is yet to emerge a general theory of social constructivism of reality. Thus it could be assumed that the theory of constructivism is merely confined as a philosophy or a perspective based on theory, rather than an approach to and for the study or practice of international relations. On one hand, the theory of constructivism provides for a fruitful insight otherwise ignored by traditional theorists of international relations. At the same time the theory of constructivism also allows for an alternative framework, even though the same is theoretical in both perspective and practice in the arena of international relations.(Reggie, 1998) The international relations theory of constructivism could well be summed up to include the states as being the primary units of analysis in international political theory. Furthermore, the theory of constructivism gives importance to the relationships of the various actors, including institutions within a given state, rather than focus on the material aspect, as is the case in theory of realism as one example. Another vitally importance aspect of the theory of constructivism is that it gives importance to identities and interests of a state, as also stated in the preceding lines, and somewhat overrides the role of, or system of human nature, or for that matter domestic politics in the realm of international relations. (Wendt,1994, pg.385) The theory of constructivism also offers a combination of social theory of knowledge where the involvement of all the relevant actors/players to an issue or conflict are a requisite, as well as somewhat rejects an individualist approach and theory of action, as is the case in, for example the theory of realism. Then there is the analysis of power in explaining the theory of constructivism, where theorists of constructivism argue that the distinction of the levels of observation and that of action, followed by a reflexive link between the two levels is central for a better understanding of the said theory. (European Journal of International Relations, 2000, pp.147-182) International Relation Theory of Liberalism Unlike the above-discussed theory of Realism, the international relations theory of Liberalism placed emphatically value and importance to international organizations, multinational corporations, Institutions as well as political parties of a given state. Thus, the role of such international organizations as the United Nations Organization, The International Monetary Fund, Transnational corporations to the likes of Shell, institutions such as The Papacy†, and to a certain extent political parties in a state are acknowledged as active players in the wider arena of international relations. In addition, the international relation theory of Liberalism also places broad perspective to such age-old ideas as Wilson Ian Idealism and contemporary neo-liberal and democratic peace thesis. It could also be implied that Liberalism places the value of a state as one actor amongst the different actors, as also stated in the preceding lines. Thus, allowing a state to fully cooperate with and through institutional mechanisms and use bargaining as one of the means to peacefully arrive at solving solutions and protecting interests of the respective state. (Wendt, 1992) Brief Historical Background The above sections of the dissertation briefly discuss some of the dominant theories in international relations the world over, as well as provide an insight on the international relation theory of Realisms â€Å"as a case study. The theory of Realism was chosen since it has become somewhat of a standard theory policy for majority of the western governments, with particular reference to the United States of America. In our present dissertation of Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and forthcoming discussions on the different approaches by both the United States of America as well as the European Union group of countries, it is only imperative that the said conflict be briefed in its entirety. Researchers and analysts the world over have described the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as the War of Two Rights, and rightly so, as it is the precise description which best affirms as well as defines the basic set of principles of humanity on which the conflict continues to date. Both the major partners to the conflict, the Jews and the Palestinians follow their own perspectives, ideals, and common history which has led them to become partners to one of the most volatile and complex of all present day conflicts on the globe. A glimpse on the regions history reveals that there exists a number of causes, issues, and factors which have fuelled, marred, as well as served to escalate this volatile and complex of conflicts over a period of more than 5 decades; the first vote to partition Palestine was casting 1947 marketing the beginning of the present day conflict. Though the singular event of creating a homeland for the Jews in areas that each party claims as their right was primarily between two distinct religions, Zionism and Islam, the conflict today has widened to include people of the same region/land (Palestine), same religions, and similar culture. Thus, one may observe that there are distinct branches of Muslims (Lebanese Shiite and Lebanese Sunnis) and Christians (Jews and Lebanese Christians), all of who follow their own ideals, set of principles and characteristics within the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In addition, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict today divides not only the major religions, it also includes and is more than influenced by countries as far off as the United States of America, European Union group of nations and the Soviet Union. This is not to mention the alliances, support and sympathies from equally diverse cultures and regions of a number of countries around the world for both the major parties to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Jews and the Palestinians.(Shapiro, 2005; Lynn, 1993) Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Historical Dateline in Brief A brief historical background to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict reveals that it can well be dated back to the 1800s, a period when the Jewish populations across Europe were facing severe persecutions. The answer to these persecutions led the Jews to a political movement, namely Zionism, in turn allowing them to move towards their biblical Promised Land. This was perhaps the beginning and establishment of a Jewish homeland within Palestine. The period prior to 1920 shows that the present day lands of Israel, all of the Occupied Territories of Gaza, and the West Bank were within Palestine. Yet the influx of Jews from across Europe commenced tensions within the entire Palestine, which later on turned and escalated into one of historys longest ever conflicts. The period of World War I, in particular the year 1916 witnessed the British Empire collaborating, and somewhat convincing various Arab leaders to revolt against the Ottoman Empire in return for support of, and the establishment of an independent Arab state which included Palestine. The British Empire, however did not keep its promise, and only a year later in 1917, announced its support for the establishment of a Jewish national home in Palestine. This historic turn of events was done by Lord Arthur Balfour, the then British Foreign Minister, as also naming the event as The Balfour Declaration of 1917. The Balfour Declaration of 1917, in turn opened up a new era of tensions between the Israelis and the Palestinian people, somewhat forcing the British Empire to enforce a mandate over the entire Palestine. This mandate spanned from 1920 to 1947. This was also period during which World War II was coming to an end, and the formation of the United Nations was on the anvil of the globe. One of the most severe implications and in-human acts perhaps never witnessed in all of previous human history were the atrocities committed against the Jews at the hands of German leadership, a series of events that forced majority of the western countries to support and bring the Jews to areas that today comprise of the state of Israel, and the occupied territories. Also termed as the Holocaust, the atrocities against the Jews at the hands of the Germans, virtually confirmed their place in the present days regions of Israel. Thus, it would not be wrong to deduce that the Holocaust was one of the primary factors for the formation of the state of Israel. The end of World War II, and the newly formed United Nations then witnessed a move to bring about peace in the Middle East. This was done through the formation of two states, and the internationalization of state of Israel. Palestine was thus partitioned and Israel formed on May 14, 1948. The establishment of a separate state for the Jews also witnessed majority of the Arab states rising in opposition. Among the states in Middle East who rose to oppose the establishment of Israel included Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Trans-Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and Egypt. Yet, all these states were defeated at the hands of Israeli army. The Israelis were thus successful in securing a homeland, while the Palestinians were left without a state. An important event in the historical perspective of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the Arab-Israeli war of 1967. The war of 1967 was a pre-emptive strike by the Israelis against Egypt, Syria, and Jordan. Though it was presumably an pre-emptive strike, yet the objective was perhaps to take over the territories of Golan Heights bordering and under the control of Syria, the West Bank bordering and under control of Jordan, and the Gaza strip from Egypt. History is evidence to the fact that Israel more than doubled its territories in this Arab-Israeli War of 1967. It is also one of the crucial issues, which have served to prolong the said issue from being resolved, or for peace to become permanent in the said issue. Later attempts by a number of countries of the Middle East including the United States, such as the joint attacks on Israel by Egypt and Syria in 1973, and the Camp David Accord of 1978 duly sponsored by the United States, and which involved top leaders from both Israeli and Palestine, failed miserably. The 1978 Camp David Accord however did accomplish an ally in Egypt, while the Arab world in general felt loss, as vast areas of disputed Palestine still remained unresolved and disputed. The entire decade of 1980s, the 1990s, and well to the end of the20th century witnessed the emergence of the Palestine uprising, also known as the Intifada, and continued violence in the regions of occupied territories, where the young Palestinians in particular came out on the streets, at times with nothing more than sling shots and stones. At other times, with suicide bombings which left scores of Israelis killed and injured. In response, the Israeli too responded with a result that both sides suffered numerous casualties. The Oslo Peace Accord of 1993, though was an attempt to strike a peace deal forth Palestinians, yet this event, similar to earlier attempts to prove to be a one sided affair. As critics have continuously termed the Oslo Peace Accord to have largely benefited the Israelis more than it did for the Palestinians, as the accord has allowed the Israelis control over land, water, roads, and other necessary resources. As of the present day scenario, Israel today has some of the most advanced and superior military in the region, including both high techmilitary equipment, arms industries, and to top it all, nuclear capability matched only with the largest powers in the world. All this has been possible with economic and military assistance from the United States of America. Aside from the unilateral role of United States of America for the state of Israel, the role of the United Nations too has been critical, as two UN Resolutions, namely UN Resolution 242 and 181both have called for return of all lands captured in the 1967Arab-Israeli War, both of which are yet to be implemented, leaving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict unresolved as ever. (Shah, 2001) The US Involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict A brief on the involvement of the United States of America in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict reveals that the US first collaboration was witnessed when the United States supported the United Nations in the establishment of the State of Israel on May 15, 1948. With the United States of America taking over as the principle ally for the Jews, the British mandate (1920-1947) came to an end. Ever since the establishment of the State of Israel was declared, the United States has continued to support Israel in practically all areas of Israeli economy. According to various studies, the state of Israel has been one of the largest beneficiaries of US aid ever since its establishment in1948, which according to estimates has today reached some 3 billion dollars annually. One of the most significant aspects of US involvement, in the historical perspective, has been the unilateral support provided to Israelis during the 1956 debacle of Suez Canal. In the said debacle, Israel US and EU Approaches Towards Israeli-Palestinian Conflict US and EU Approaches Towards Israeli-Palestinian Conflict The discipline of International Relations is both an academic as well a public policy arena, which emerges from political science. It is the subject and channel of International Relations, which adequately addresses a foreign policy of a state within the confines of an international system. International relations also take into account role of international organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), as well as multinational companies/corporations. Since the primary objective of international relations is both an analysis as well as formulation of a foreign policy, it could either be positive, or normative. In order for a foreign policy tube either positive or normative, it has to inculcate such diverse areas and subjects as political science, economics, history, law, philosophy, area studies, sociology, cultural studies, and a number of other social sciences; hence its utility for both analysis as well as formulation of foreign policy. In addition, it also includes and addresses such varied set of issues as economic development, foreign aid, environmental movement, nationalism, nuclear proliferation and human rights. However, for international relations to be practically applicable, effective, or at the least in the realm body of ideas, there are various theories, which ultimately lead us to the real world of policy. International relations theories thus provide a set of guidelines allowing us to agree to, as well as arrive at shaping better international outcomes. In addition, international relation theories allow for a better understanding of world events, and wherever necessary, provide for better solutions to the numerous issues and problems faced by the world community. One may also note that any theory, including the various international theories may not provide for answers to all the problems and issues faced by the world community; yet they do provide and assist us in first thinking about and then finding probable and the most viable solutions to the horde of problems and issues faced by the world community. At the onset, international relation theories can and do provide us with alternatives, and possibly even anticipate the various courses of international events in the global spectrum of politics. Some of the most common and practiced international theories include â€Å"Constructivism, Institutionalism, Marxism, and Neo-Gramscianism. Yet, the most dominant international theories, or rather the schools of thought which have been practiced in international politics include the international theories of Realism and Liberalism (Walt, 1998, p29. Introduction Having briefly touched upon the subject of international relations and international relation theories, the following dissertation will strive to address the said two disciplines within the context of one of the past centuries most disputed international issue; the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The dissertation will thus address this pressing international issue from the perspective of various international theories, with a particular focus on the different approaches taken by the United States of America, and that taken by the European Union. For a better understanding of the different perspectives and approaches taken by the United States of America and the European Union respectively, it would only be imperative that an equal and in-depth study the various international relations theories be also made part of this dissertation. The study of the more dominant, if not all the international theories becomes all the more importance as both the United States of America and the European Union group of nations each follow a somewhat different set of strategies in their international relations. The same is true for Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as both the United States of America as one international player, and the European Union group of nations as the second major player each address, view, and practice more than just a passing difference to one of the present days most pressing international conflict. As the present dissertation addresses the primary subject of the recent different approaches of the United States of America and the European for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in particular, and the Middle East Peace Process in general, it would only be imperative to commence the paper with the respective international relation theories, and through the study of these theories, present how respective international relations theories have influenced the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The following dissertation will thus strive to address the various international relation theories in brief, namely the theories of ‘Realism, Liberalism, and Constructivism,’ Though all these international relation theories enjoy their distinct places in international relations and politics, the theories of Realism and Constructivism are the ones that are practiced more commonly. Since these two theories comprise and are considered standard policy, the same will comprise of majority of the discussion in the present dissertation. The international relations theory of realism being the most widely practiced, and the fact that it is this vital theory that has been at the helm of most, if not all US foreign policies, the same has also been adopted by majority of nations friendly with the United States, or have been her allies at one time or another. This will be followed by a discussion of the second most vitally important international relations theory, that of ‘Constructivism’. It is this theory of constructivism that has largely been pursued by majority, if not all the European Union nations. The primary distinction between the theory of realism and that of constructivism is that, the theory of realism premises on the realist approach, as the term so states. On the other hand, the theory of constructivism largely relies on softer modes of communication, negotiation, socialization, and pursuit of ends through peaceful measures. The dissertation will then proceed with discussions on both the United States and the European Union nations, and address the perspective and approach taken by each on the issue of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in light of the pertinent international relations theory. Some of the Dominant International Relation Theories In Brief  International Theory of Realism One of the primary topics to be discussed in the present dissertation is the role or perspective of the United States of Americano the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and show whether the United States is influenced by ideas from the international relation theory of â€Å"Realism. In this context, it would only be imperative to present brief on the international relations theory of Realism, some of its key assumptions, and then arrive at the US approach respectively. A brief on the international relations theory of Realism reveals that it has often been associated with German terms of real and realitatimplying substantive or as the term so states real; and politikimplying politics or policy. Both these terms were perhaps first coined by one of Germanys leaders in the earlier part of the 20thcentury, Bismarck. In his attempts to bring about a suitable balance of power amongst the various European states, Bismarck sought peace as one of the most viable solutions in the then Europe of the earlier 20thcentury. Bismarck was aided by a number of realpolitik practitioners â€Å"who worked equally hard to avoid an arms race in Europe. Bismarck’s efforts however did not bear any fruit, as the early part of the 20thcentury witnessed arms race amongst the various nations of Europe, as well as formation of various alliances culminating in one of humanity’s first ever global tragedies, that of World War I. Some of the principle theorist of the international theory of â€Å"Realism â€Å"includes Carr, Kenneth N. Waltz, and Hans J. Morgenthau. However, it was Morgenthaus Politics Among Nations, which perhaps formally systemized classical Realism. According to Margenthau, there exist six principles, which he outlined in his famous book, Politics Among Nations. These six points are presented in the first chapter of his above said book. These vitally important facets of Morgenthau’s Theory of Realism are: International relations †¦is governed by objective laws that have their roots in human nature. The key consideration †¦is the concept of interest defined in terms of power’. †¦Interest defined as power is an objective category which is universally valid, although its exact meaning may change with time and circumstance. While moral principles have a place, they cannot be defined identically at every time and place, and apply differently to individuals and the state. The moral aspirations of a particular nation†¦ are not moral laws that govern the universe. Politics is an autonomous sphere that needs to be analysed as an entity, without being subordinated to outside values (Morgenthau, 1973,Chapter 1) International Theory of Realism In-depth studies on the international relations theory of Realism â€Å"reveal that there exist a number of primary assumptions, which guide the followers, or practitioners of the Realism theory. One of the first assumptions of Realism theory is that the entire international system is anarchic implying that that is the state alone is the supreme authority, and no other state or states can or have the capacity to regulate the affairs of another state. The theory of Realism further assumes that any higher supreme authority cannot dictate a state, and that there is no existence of any world government. This implies that each state must strive to create relations with other states on their own, instead of being dictated to do so. The theory of Realism â€Å"further assumes that there is no role for any international organization, non-governmental organization, or multi-national corporation in the affairs of the state, and that the sovereignty of astute governs all the international affairs. Thus, following the assumptions of the theory of Realism, a state is a rational actor amongst the community of global nations, and will always strive toward sits self-interest, which in turn call for ensuring the state’s security. Continuing with the theory of Realism, the same state will take all measures to secure its status as a sovereign nation including but not limited to amassing of resources, and relations with other states to be determined by the respective level of power enjoyed by the other state/s. The level of power in turn is assessed from the respective states economic and military capability. Perhaps the most stringent assumption inherent in the international relations theory of â€Å"Realism is its belief that states are inherently aggressive, and further that a states economic or military expansion can only be limited by the powers of the opposing state. (Waltz, 1964; Karl et al,1969; Mearsheimer, 1994) A further insight into the international relation theory of â€Å"Realism shows that it is divided into two sub-schools of thought, namely maximal realism and minimal realism. The first sub-school of realism, the maximal realism asserts that a state enjoys the status of the most powerful entity in the world, and that all other states ‘align themselves with this powerful state, and that too in their own interest and out of political necessity. The theory of maximal realism further assumes and somewhat asserts that, if there are two equally powerful entities in the world, it presents an unstable international political scenario. A prime example to this respect is that of period of Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States of America. According the maximal theory of Realism, such a situation will eventually lead to a stable international situation where one entity or state becomes more powerful, while the other into a less powerful entity respectively. (Waltz, 1964; Karl et al, 1969; Mearsheimer, 1994) The second sub-school of Realism, that of minimal realism ‘assumes that the smaller and less powerful entities or states will align themselves with the most powerful entity in the world, and this would be brought about to protect the interests of the smaller and less powerful states from the interests of the larger and single most powerful entity or state. The theory of minimal realism also assumes middle policy where two equally powerful states exist, and where the smaller and less powerful states may align themselves with either of the larger powerful state. The choice of selecting one of the larger and powerful states depends on the smaller states policies of the moment. This also implies that the smaller state may remain aligned with both the powerful states at the same time, yet pursue and align with one state keeping in view the interests and policies on a given area of politics, issue, or social problem. (Waltz, 1964; Karl et al,1969; Mearsheimer, 1994) International Relations Theory of Neo-Realism There exist yet another school of thought, one that is termed sane-realism. This was first coined by Kenneth N. Waltz in 1979, and was in fact an attempt at reformulating the original theory of ‘Realism in a modern and scientific perspective. One of the most works of Waltz was The Theory of International Politics, which aimed to rid the original theory of Realism of its defects. The Neo-Realism ‘school of thought, with Waltz as one of its first proponents assumes and addresses the international relations in terms of the various ‘structural properties of the international system’ which focuses on the distribution of power. The Neo-Realism theory in international relations somewhat rejects the variable of human nature in both times of war as well as peace. The neo-realism theory also neglects domestic politics of a given state, which is perhaps the darkest element of this theory. Neglecting domestic policies of states in turn paves the path for conflict and move towards war, both of which are primarily detrimental to the respective state as well as its populations. In addition, neo-realism theorys primary assumption that the international system is anarchic, as also reiterated in the opening lines of theory of realism, further confirms the theorys own assumptions that conflict and war cannot be avoided. In times of anarchy, as are the assumptions of the neo-realism theory, states pursue goals of security, either through self-help such as amassment of economic and military resources, or through the formation of alliances with those who enjoy the status the most powerful states in the world. However, the pursuit of security goals for a particular states through the neo-realism theory, whether through self-help, or through the alliances with other organizations both is somewhat practical for a short period only. As this theory does not provide a permanent solution to the security needs of that respective nation simply due to the ‘security dilemma where each state is witnessed to ever vigorously pursue attempts to improve its security, in turn provoking other states to do the same. The result of such conflicting approaches is none other than an insecure state, a condition that originally prompted the state to take or adopt policies according to the theory one-realism respectively. (Waltz, Theory of International Politics) Yet another equally negative element of the neo-realism theory is its rejection of international institutions, which normally serve as regulators of state behaviour as well as promotion pdf peace. According to the theorists of neo-realism, the international institutions are entities of self-interested great powers. The role of international institutions as per the theorists of neo-realism is limited to reflection of, instead of providing a concrete shape to the existing distribution of power in a given state. Furthermore, it is the balance of power and its pursuit, which holds true for followers of neo-realism theory. For the governance of, and pursuit of accomplishing a balance of power, the greater and more powerful entities or states acquire both the economic means as well as military strength/power. When both the said tools too are presumably insufficient, the strategy of forming alliances with stronger and more powerful powers is then pursued(Waltz, 1964; Karl et al, 1969; Mearsheimer, 1994) International Relations Theory of Constructivism The theory of Constructivism is also an important theory practiced in the arena of international relations with places particular emphasis on identities, norms, and culture in world politics. The theory of Constructivism thus allows for identities and interests of states to be used as tools for interactions, as are institutions, norms, and cultures utilized. The importance is therefore given to the different processes, rather than the structure of different actors and institutions not only for interaction, but also for arriving at peaceful means and resolutions of equally varied issues and conflicts in the realm of international relations, (Wendt, 1992). Constructivism as an international theory also explains the role of human consciousness in addressing the various problems and conflicts in the international arena of politics. Thus, one may note that the human action including the human capacity as well as the will of the respective people are duly utilized in order to nurture a deliberate attitude and highlight the significance of a given issue, such as our subject conflict of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It is the combination of the said human capacity and the will which in turn are responsible for the creation of social facts, or aspects which are dependent on the consensus of a given human agreements including but not limited to money, sovereignty and property rights respectively. The international relations theory of constructivism also explains the importance of identities and interests of the different parties to an issue or a conflict, and the fact that these parties or actors music-exist and share common factors as cultural beings. The said different parties also includes the state as one of the social actors, which in turn is bound to follow both international and domestic rules. The state in turn has to follow certain set or rules, norms, institutions, and identities, and thus allow the international relations theory of constructivism to offer new concepts for addressing and perhaps even resolving given issues and conflicts within and amongst states or parties. Thus, one may observe that the role of the human actors as parties to an issue or a given conflict, their identities and the role of institutions perhaps also act as theory’s limitation, and it is this reasoning due to which there is yet to emerge a general theory of social constructivism of reality. Thus it could be assumed that the theory of constructivism is merely confined as a philosophy or a perspective based on theory, rather than an approach to and for the study or practice of international relations. On one hand, the theory of constructivism provides for a fruitful insight otherwise ignored by traditional theorists of international relations. At the same time the theory of constructivism also allows for an alternative framework, even though the same is theoretical in both perspective and practice in the arena of international relations.(Reggie, 1998) The international relations theory of constructivism could well be summed up to include the states as being the primary units of analysis in international political theory. Furthermore, the theory of constructivism gives importance to the relationships of the various actors, including institutions within a given state, rather than focus on the material aspect, as is the case in theory of realism as one example. Another vitally importance aspect of the theory of constructivism is that it gives importance to identities and interests of a state, as also stated in the preceding lines, and somewhat overrides the role of, or system of human nature, or for that matter domestic politics in the realm of international relations. (Wendt,1994, pg.385) The theory of constructivism also offers a combination of social theory of knowledge where the involvement of all the relevant actors/players to an issue or conflict are a requisite, as well as somewhat rejects an individualist approach and theory of action, as is the case in, for example the theory of realism. Then there is the analysis of power in explaining the theory of constructivism, where theorists of constructivism argue that the distinction of the levels of observation and that of action, followed by a reflexive link between the two levels is central for a better understanding of the said theory. (European Journal of International Relations, 2000, pp.147-182) International Relation Theory of Liberalism Unlike the above-discussed theory of Realism, the international relations theory of Liberalism placed emphatically value and importance to international organizations, multinational corporations, Institutions as well as political parties of a given state. Thus, the role of such international organizations as the United Nations Organization, The International Monetary Fund, Transnational corporations to the likes of Shell, institutions such as The Papacy†, and to a certain extent political parties in a state are acknowledged as active players in the wider arena of international relations. In addition, the international relation theory of Liberalism also places broad perspective to such age-old ideas as Wilson Ian Idealism and contemporary neo-liberal and democratic peace thesis. It could also be implied that Liberalism places the value of a state as one actor amongst the different actors, as also stated in the preceding lines. Thus, allowing a state to fully cooperate with and through institutional mechanisms and use bargaining as one of the means to peacefully arrive at solving solutions and protecting interests of the respective state. (Wendt, 1992) Brief Historical Background The above sections of the dissertation briefly discuss some of the dominant theories in international relations the world over, as well as provide an insight on the international relation theory of Realisms â€Å"as a case study. The theory of Realism was chosen since it has become somewhat of a standard theory policy for majority of the western governments, with particular reference to the United States of America. In our present dissertation of Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and forthcoming discussions on the different approaches by both the United States of America as well as the European Union group of countries, it is only imperative that the said conflict be briefed in its entirety. Researchers and analysts the world over have described the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as the War of Two Rights, and rightly so, as it is the precise description which best affirms as well as defines the basic set of principles of humanity on which the conflict continues to date. Both the major partners to the conflict, the Jews and the Palestinians follow their own perspectives, ideals, and common history which has led them to become partners to one of the most volatile and complex of all present day conflicts on the globe. A glimpse on the regions history reveals that there exists a number of causes, issues, and factors which have fuelled, marred, as well as served to escalate this volatile and complex of conflicts over a period of more than 5 decades; the first vote to partition Palestine was casting 1947 marketing the beginning of the present day conflict. Though the singular event of creating a homeland for the Jews in areas that each party claims as their right was primarily between two distinct religions, Zionism and Islam, the conflict today has widened to include people of the same region/land (Palestine), same religions, and similar culture. Thus, one may observe that there are distinct branches of Muslims (Lebanese Shiite and Lebanese Sunnis) and Christians (Jews and Lebanese Christians), all of who follow their own ideals, set of principles and characteristics within the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In addition, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict today divides not only the major religions, it also includes and is more than influenced by countries as far off as the United States of America, European Union group of nations and the Soviet Union. This is not to mention the alliances, support and sympathies from equally diverse cultures and regions of a number of countries around the world for both the major parties to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Jews and the Palestinians.(Shapiro, 2005; Lynn, 1993) Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Historical Dateline in Brief A brief historical background to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict reveals that it can well be dated back to the 1800s, a period when the Jewish populations across Europe were facing severe persecutions. The answer to these persecutions led the Jews to a political movement, namely Zionism, in turn allowing them to move towards their biblical Promised Land. This was perhaps the beginning and establishment of a Jewish homeland within Palestine. The period prior to 1920 shows that the present day lands of Israel, all of the Occupied Territories of Gaza, and the West Bank were within Palestine. Yet the influx of Jews from across Europe commenced tensions within the entire Palestine, which later on turned and escalated into one of historys longest ever conflicts. The period of World War I, in particular the year 1916 witnessed the British Empire collaborating, and somewhat convincing various Arab leaders to revolt against the Ottoman Empire in return for support of, and the establishment of an independent Arab state which included Palestine. The British Empire, however did not keep its promise, and only a year later in 1917, announced its support for the establishment of a Jewish national home in Palestine. This historic turn of events was done by Lord Arthur Balfour, the then British Foreign Minister, as also naming the event as The Balfour Declaration of 1917. The Balfour Declaration of 1917, in turn opened up a new era of tensions between the Israelis and the Palestinian people, somewhat forcing the British Empire to enforce a mandate over the entire Palestine. This mandate spanned from 1920 to 1947. This was also period during which World War II was coming to an end, and the formation of the United Nations was on the anvil of the globe. One of the most severe implications and in-human acts perhaps never witnessed in all of previous human history were the atrocities committed against the Jews at the hands of German leadership, a series of events that forced majority of the western countries to support and bring the Jews to areas that today comprise of the state of Israel, and the occupied territories. Also termed as the Holocaust, the atrocities against the Jews at the hands of the Germans, virtually confirmed their place in the present days regions of Israel. Thus, it would not be wrong to deduce that the Holocaust was one of the primary factors for the formation of the state of Israel. The end of World War II, and the newly formed United Nations then witnessed a move to bring about peace in the Middle East. This was done through the formation of two states, and the internationalization of state of Israel. Palestine was thus partitioned and Israel formed on May 14, 1948. The establishment of a separate state for the Jews also witnessed majority of the Arab states rising in opposition. Among the states in Middle East who rose to oppose the establishment of Israel included Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Trans-Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and Egypt. Yet, all these states were defeated at the hands of Israeli army. The Israelis were thus successful in securing a homeland, while the Palestinians were left without a state. An important event in the historical perspective of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the Arab-Israeli war of 1967. The war of 1967 was a pre-emptive strike by the Israelis against Egypt, Syria, and Jordan. Though it was presumably an pre-emptive strike, yet the objective was perhaps to take over the territories of Golan Heights bordering and under the control of Syria, the West Bank bordering and under control of Jordan, and the Gaza strip from Egypt. History is evidence to the fact that Israel more than doubled its territories in this Arab-Israeli War of 1967. It is also one of the crucial issues, which have served to prolong the said issue from being resolved, or for peace to become permanent in the said issue. Later attempts by a number of countries of the Middle East including the United States, such as the joint attacks on Israel by Egypt and Syria in 1973, and the Camp David Accord of 1978 duly sponsored by the United States, and which involved top leaders from both Israeli and Palestine, failed miserably. The 1978 Camp David Accord however did accomplish an ally in Egypt, while the Arab world in general felt loss, as vast areas of disputed Palestine still remained unresolved and disputed. The entire decade of 1980s, the 1990s, and well to the end of the20th century witnessed the emergence of the Palestine uprising, also known as the Intifada, and continued violence in the regions of occupied territories, where the young Palestinians in particular came out on the streets, at times with nothing more than sling shots and stones. At other times, with suicide bombings which left scores of Israelis killed and injured. In response, the Israeli too responded with a result that both sides suffered numerous casualties. The Oslo Peace Accord of 1993, though was an attempt to strike a peace deal forth Palestinians, yet this event, similar to earlier attempts to prove to be a one sided affair. As critics have continuously termed the Oslo Peace Accord to have largely benefited the Israelis more than it did for the Palestinians, as the accord has allowed the Israelis control over land, water, roads, and other necessary resources. As of the present day scenario, Israel today has some of the most advanced and superior military in the region, including both high techmilitary equipment, arms industries, and to top it all, nuclear capability matched only with the largest powers in the world. All this has been possible with economic and military assistance from the United States of America. Aside from the unilateral role of United States of America for the state of Israel, the role of the United Nations too has been critical, as two UN Resolutions, namely UN Resolution 242 and 181both have called for return of all lands captured in the 1967Arab-Israeli War, both of which are yet to be implemented, leaving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict unresolved as ever. (Shah, 2001) The US Involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict A brief on the involvement of the United States of America in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict reveals that the US first collaboration was witnessed when the United States supported the United Nations in the establishment of the State of Israel on May 15, 1948. With the United States of America taking over as the principle ally for the Jews, the British mandate (1920-1947) came to an end. Ever since the establishment of the State of Israel was declared, the United States has continued to support Israel in practically all areas of Israeli economy. According to various studies, the state of Israel has been one of the largest beneficiaries of US aid ever since its establishment in1948, which according to estimates has today reached some 3 billion dollars annually. One of the most significant aspects of US involvement, in the historical perspective, has been the unilateral support provided to Israelis during the 1956 debacle of Suez Canal. In the said debacle, Israel