Author Bio:
Adam Smith was a renown Scottish intellectual in the 1700s. Extensively educated in European literature and affairs, Smith greatly advocated for the use of individualism and free market economies to be the driving factor of unprecedented economic transformation during his lifetime. In one of his most famous works, "The Wealth of Nations," Adam Smith goes on to defend self-interest and money-making in a time in which it was repeatedly questioned.
Date/Context:
Smith was situated in a period of an increasing global market, new technology, and a growing industrial society to fuel European enlightenment and prosperity. He denounces mercantilism and even contended Britain's American colonies were not worth the cost. During his studies, Smith applied a systematic and "natural" reviewal of the global economy, mirroring the time's profound historical, scientific, and educational revolutions.
Summary:
In "The Wealth of Nations" Adam Smith weighs on the detriments of mercantilism, or government regulation of the economy. Smith suggests a more laissez-faire approach in which the economy will regulate itself. He contends that it is solely the individual producer and self-interest that drives the economy. This division of labour ultimately influences widespread production and a free market based economy. All of this is "natural", he argues, and the government should not interfere with tariffs, subsides, and coercive practices.
Key Quotation: "Labour…is the real measure of the exchangeable value of all commodities…"
Wednesday, October 28, 2015
Sunday, October 25, 2015
PDP 4 - Declaration of the Rights of Man & Citizen
Author Bio: The author is anonymous, but it appears to be an official document for a set of laws passed by the National Assembly of France. The National Assembly of France was established during the French Revolution. The declaration was created by the National Assembly of France as an attempt to create a constitution.
Date/Context: After the French Revolution, there was a need for a new government. Absolute monarchy and feudalism were recently abolished. The construction of a constitution for the Republic of France was meant to promote equality and eliminate oppression.
Summary: The representatives of the National Assembly of France believed that a new set of laws that would enforce a person's unalienable rights, as well as their duties in society, would create less governmental flaws and more justice for the citizens of the Republic of France. The context of each article in the declaration prevent any form of oppression, injustice, and violence.
Key Quotation: "The representatives of the French people, organized as a National Assembly, believing that the ignorance, neglect, or contempt of the rights of man are the sole cause of public calamities and of the corruption of governments, have determined to set forth in a solemn declaration the natural, unalienable, and sacred rights of man, in order that this declaration, being constantly before all the members of the Social body, shall remind them continually of their rights and duties; in order that the acts of the legislative power, as well as those of the executive power, may be compared at any moment with the objects and purposes of all political institutions and may thus be more respected, and, lastly, in order that the grievances of the citizens, based hereafter upon simple and incontestable principles, shall tend to the maintenance of the constitution and redound to the happiness of all."
Date/Context: After the French Revolution, there was a need for a new government. Absolute monarchy and feudalism were recently abolished. The construction of a constitution for the Republic of France was meant to promote equality and eliminate oppression.
Summary: The representatives of the National Assembly of France believed that a new set of laws that would enforce a person's unalienable rights, as well as their duties in society, would create less governmental flaws and more justice for the citizens of the Republic of France. The context of each article in the declaration prevent any form of oppression, injustice, and violence.
Key Quotation: "The representatives of the French people, organized as a National Assembly, believing that the ignorance, neglect, or contempt of the rights of man are the sole cause of public calamities and of the corruption of governments, have determined to set forth in a solemn declaration the natural, unalienable, and sacred rights of man, in order that this declaration, being constantly before all the members of the Social body, shall remind them continually of their rights and duties; in order that the acts of the legislative power, as well as those of the executive power, may be compared at any moment with the objects and purposes of all political institutions and may thus be more respected, and, lastly, in order that the grievances of the citizens, based hereafter upon simple and incontestable principles, shall tend to the maintenance of the constitution and redound to the happiness of all."
Tuesday, October 20, 2015
SJS3 - "Syria in the Abyss"
Source: Weiss, Max. "Syria in the Abyss." Current History 113.767 (2014): 372-73. Print.
Author Credentials: Max Weiss completed his Ph.D. in modern Middle East history from Stanford University. He is now at Princeton as an Associate Professor of History and Near Eastern Studies. He is also the
Summary: Over 200,000 people have lost their lives in Syria in the past three and a half years because of protests for freedom, justice, and dignity that grew into regional conflict and international proxy war. The majority of these casualties were civilians while nine million were forced from their homes, and nearly two thirds are internally displaced while the rest are refugees at bordering states. The interaction of outside countries is just making the situation worse. The Syrian media was saying that the civilians were taking up arms against the government when, in reality, they were taking up arms to defend themselves from the government. However, in Inside Syria, the actions going on are accurately illustrated as failure on both sides of the war, being that both sides lied in some way or another. This article does have many opinions but the main idea questions everything, not giving one side an upper hand. There is also the double standard of the U.S. taking military action and it being fine while it would be greatly criticized if any other country, except Israel, would do the same against Syria.
Analysis: The author makes a strong argument on the case of the corruption within this war and the actions international countries took towards it, however there are some opinions within the piece. Most came from the work he cited, Inside Syria, concerning the double standard of war. This would not necessarily be true in all cases. There were definitely enough evidence to support it, even taking out the opinionated responses. The turn of the war when the international community was a huge support for his argument. Although he includes opinions, he makes sure that they are distinguished between them, making the article much easier to interpret. In conclusion, this professor at Princeton is a reliable source because of his background and clear understanding of the topic.
Monday, October 19, 2015
SJS3 - "Imperialism and the Arab-Israeli Conflict: Revisions in Matzpen's Historical Perspective"
Source: Blass, Joshua. "Imperialism and the Arab-Israeli conflict: revisions in Matzpen's historical perspective." Israel Studies 2015.
Author Credentials: The author is a doctoral student in the Department of History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Therefore, he would have adequate knowledge on a controversial topic that involves Israel.
Summary: The conflicts between Israel and the Arabs and Palestinians are evaluated by the Matzpen organization. Each recollection supports the Israeli cause, while maintaining an ideology of fighting against destructive neighbors. The organization also believed that the western countries' interventions in the conflicts would presumptuously end the war periodically. However, their view on western imperialism drastically changed into an increased hatred as time passed and more issues with neighboring countries arised.
Analysis: The author's argument was strong, but biased due to his sources. Since he used Matzpen's point of view, his article failed to adequately represent the Arabs' and Palestinians' perspective. The author provided substantial evidence from many sources from reputable authors. He also identified how most of Matzpen's ideologies were opinions, while identifying historical facts. Due to the abundance of sources, the author is a reliable source when considering the Arab-Israeli Conflict from Israel's point of view.
Author Credentials: The author is a doctoral student in the Department of History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Therefore, he would have adequate knowledge on a controversial topic that involves Israel.
Summary: The conflicts between Israel and the Arabs and Palestinians are evaluated by the Matzpen organization. Each recollection supports the Israeli cause, while maintaining an ideology of fighting against destructive neighbors. The organization also believed that the western countries' interventions in the conflicts would presumptuously end the war periodically. However, their view on western imperialism drastically changed into an increased hatred as time passed and more issues with neighboring countries arised.
Analysis: The author's argument was strong, but biased due to his sources. Since he used Matzpen's point of view, his article failed to adequately represent the Arabs' and Palestinians' perspective. The author provided substantial evidence from many sources from reputable authors. He also identified how most of Matzpen's ideologies were opinions, while identifying historical facts. Due to the abundance of sources, the author is a reliable source when considering the Arab-Israeli Conflict from Israel's point of view.
Friday, October 9, 2015
PDP 3- The Tyranny of Materialism over the Lands of Islam
Arthur Bio:
Hasan Al-Banna was originally a teacher of the Sunni Muslim faith
whom in 1928 created the Muslim Brotherhood. He did this because he
believed that European influence was found too commonly within the
Middle Eastern countries and this problem could be solved by creating
another political party. He strongly opposed European influence
because people were too willing to ditch their Muslim heritage and
start believing and living the way the Europeans did. Hasan Al-Banna thought that
the only way to diminish European influence would be for everyone to
rejoin the Muslim faith and give worship to God. He was assassinated
in 1949 in revenge for the prime minister being assassinated by one of
the members of the Muslim Brotherhood.
Date and Context:
"The Tyranny of Materialism over the Lands of Islam" was written most
likely in the 1940s. Although the situation is still continuing today. It was written with the inferred goal of
obtaining new members for the Muslim Brotherhood. However this was not
directly stated and just assumed. This brotherhood began in Egypt as
this is where Hassan Al-Banna lived and noticed the problems of
European influence. At the time the leader of Egypt had been directly
influenced by European lifestyle and decided to ban the Muslim
Brotherhood in fear that he would gain a large following. As mentioned
before Egypt was an independent state at the time however when
European influence reached the leaders of Egypt the country seemed to
go into a colonized mode in which Egyptians followed the European
beliefs.
Summary:
Hassan Al-Banna believed that Islamic countries were becoming too
heavily influenced by European interaction. He claimed that this was a
form of modern colonization even though the countries being colonized
are independent. This was a problem in his mind because with European
influence came many sins. Some examples of these sins were abuse of
alcohol, having sexual relations with multiple partners, smoking, and
many others that Muslims had not been introduced to before. In
addition less people were following the Muslim faith and remembering
to pray multiple times a day. His thinking was that European influence
could be ended by convincing more people to follow the Muslim faith
and to worship God multiple times a day. The overall goal or inferred
meaning of this article is to convince people to join the Muslim
brotherhood to fix these problems.
Key Quotation:
"They laid their plans for this social aggression in masterly
fashion, invoking the aid of their political acumen and their military
predominance until they had accomplished their desire."
Arthur Bio:
Hasan Al-Banna was originally a teacher of the Sunni Muslim faith
whom in 1928 created the Muslim Brotherhood. He did this because he
believed that European influence was found too commonly within the
Middle Eastern countries and this problem could be solved by creating
another political party. He strongly opposed European influence
because people were too willing to ditch their Muslim heritage and
start believing and living the way the Europeans did. Hasan Al-Banna thought that
the only way to diminish European influence would be for everyone to
rejoin the Muslim faith and give worship to God. He was assassinated
in 1949 in revenge for the prime minister being assassinated by one of
the members of the Muslim Brotherhood.
Date and Context:
"The Tyranny of Materialism over the Lands of Islam" was written most
likely in the 1940s. Although the situation is still continuing today. It was written with the inferred goal of
obtaining new members for the Muslim Brotherhood. However this was not
directly stated and just assumed. This brotherhood began in Egypt as
this is where Hassan Al-Banna lived and noticed the problems of
European influence. At the time the leader of Egypt had been directly
influenced by European lifestyle and decided to ban the Muslim
Brotherhood in fear that he would gain a large following. As mentioned
before Egypt was an independent state at the time however when
European influence reached the leaders of Egypt the country seemed to
go into a colonized mode in which Egyptians followed the European
beliefs.
Summary:
Hassan Al-Banna believed that Islamic countries were becoming too
heavily influenced by European interaction. He claimed that this was a
form of modern colonization even though the countries being colonized
are independent. This was a problem in his mind because with European
influence came many sins. Some examples of these sins were abuse of
alcohol, having sexual relations with multiple partners, smoking, and
many others that Muslims had not been introduced to before. In
addition less people were following the Muslim faith and remembering
to pray multiple times a day. His thinking was that European influence
could be ended by convincing more people to follow the Muslim faith
and to worship God multiple times a day. The overall goal or inferred
meaning of this article is to convince people to join the Muslim
brotherhood to fix these problems.
Key Quotation:
"They laid their plans for this social aggression in masterly
fashion, invoking the aid of their political acumen and their military
predominance until they had accomplished their desire."
Thursday, October 8, 2015
PDP 3 - A Turkish Republic for the Civilized World
Author Bio: Born in May
1881, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was the first
President of Turkey, and served as a military officer in World War I
and the Balkan Wars.
He helped Turkey become an independent
state, and became the first president of Turkey on October 29, 1923.
He died in 1938 from cirrhosis of the
liver.
Date/Context:
The Ottoman Empire began its slow demise in 1571, after it
lost the Battle of Lepanto, causing the expansion of the country to
stagnate. Fast forwarding to 1918, after World War I has ended, the
Ottoman Empire was on the brink of extinction, being threatened on
all sides from countries such as England and Russia. The Ottoman
empire was faced with two options: dissolve into a neighboring
country and surrender all land, or create a new state, maintaining
the majority, or even all
of the land.
Summary: This speech from Mustafa
Kemal Atatürk is split into 3 sections, the first being about the
state of the Ottoman Empire post-World War I. Atatürk talks about
the disarray that
the vilayets were in, and how phrases such
as “Ottoman Empire” and “Padishah-Caliph” were essentially
meaningless. The
second section is about
one of his previous speeches
in 1924, in which Atatürk talks about
three main points that the Turkish state would achieve and adhere to.
The third section is about the fall of the
Ottoman Empire and the creation of the Turkish state. Atatürk talks
about the newly formed Turkish state, and
the measures it took in order to return to a peaceful state,
specifically the Restoration of Order act.
Key
Quotation:
“The
result we have attained today is the fruit of teachings which arose
from centuries of suffering, and the price of streams of blood which
have drenched every foot of the ground of our beloved Fatherland.”
PDP 3 - The Ruba'iyat
Author Bio:
The author, Omar Khayyam, was alive in between the years 1048 and 1131. He was born in Nishapour, Iran. He was an astronomer, mathematician, and philosopher. He developed the Jalali Calendar, which is more accurate than those used in the west at this time.
Date/Context:
These poems were written sometime during Khayyam's lifetime, as there are no specific dates written. These poems help us understand what may have been happening during the timeperiod in which Khayyam lived.
Summary:
The book contains 1200 individual quatrains. This is a collection of Khayyam's works, which went unpublished for around 700 years. These are all quatrain poems with little to no relation to each other than references to different things such as wine, rule, or light/darkness.
Key Quotation:
"For 'Is' and 'Is-not' though with Rule and Line."
The author, Omar Khayyam, was alive in between the years 1048 and 1131. He was born in Nishapour, Iran. He was an astronomer, mathematician, and philosopher. He developed the Jalali Calendar, which is more accurate than those used in the west at this time.
Date/Context:
These poems were written sometime during Khayyam's lifetime, as there are no specific dates written. These poems help us understand what may have been happening during the timeperiod in which Khayyam lived.
Summary:
The book contains 1200 individual quatrains. This is a collection of Khayyam's works, which went unpublished for around 700 years. These are all quatrain poems with little to no relation to each other than references to different things such as wine, rule, or light/darkness.
Key Quotation:
"For 'Is' and 'Is-not' though with Rule and Line."
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