Astrology Essay -- essays research papers

The basic astrological assumptions are not hard to grasp. For if astronomy is the study of the movements of the heavenly bodies, then astrology is the study of the effects of those movements. The astronomers of the ancient world assumed a division of the universe whereby the superior, immutable bodies of the celestial worlds ruled over the terrestrial or sublunary sphere, where all was mortality and change. It was assumed that the stars had special qualities and influences which were transmitted downwards upon the passive earth, and which varied in their effect, according to the changing relationship of the heavenly bodies to each other. They were led to postulate a single system in which the seven moving stars or planet shifted their position in relation to the earth and each other, against a fixed backcloth of the twelve signs of the zodiac. There was nothing obscure about these general assumptions. At the beginning of the sixteenth century astrological doctrines were part of the educated man’s picture of the universe and its workings. It was generally accepted that the four elements constituting the sublunary region (earth, air, fire & water) were kept in their state of ceaseless transformation by the movement of the heavenly bodies. The various planets transmitted different quantities of the four physiological qualities of heat and cold, dryness and moisture. Therefore astrology was less a separate discipline than an aspect of a generally accepted world picture. During the Renaissance, even more than in the Middle Ages, astrology pervaded all aspects of the intellectual framework in which men were educated. During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries there were four main branches of judicial astrology. First, there were the general predictions based on the future movements of the ravens and taking note of such impending events as eclipses of the sun and moon. These forecasts related to the weather, the state of the crops, mortality and epidemics, politics and war. They indicated the fate of society as a whole but not that of particular individuals. Secondly, there were nativities, maps of the sky at the moment of a person’s births either made on the spot at the request of the infants' parents' or reconstructed for individuals of stature, those who could supply the details of their time of births. The horoscope at b... ...nglish churches and may have helped to shape popular religious attitudes. Pictures of the sun and moon were found in several Suffolk churches and the churches themselves were built to face the rising sun. How far such practices affected men’s basic beliefs it is difficult to tell. Anne Bodenham, who was executed for witchcraft at Salisbury in 1653 was a former servant of the astrologer John Lambe, she had long practiced as a cunning woman, claiming to be able to do more than Master Lilly or anyone whatsoever. When she dealt with a maid who had convulsive fits, she is reported to have proposed a frankly pagan remedy -prayer to Jupiter, the best and fortunatest of all the planets'. Even more striking is another Wiltshire case, which came before the quarter sessions in 1656. A Lacock weaver, Wllllam Bond was charged with atheism and blasphemy, and in particular with publicly affirming that ‘there was no God or power ruling above the planets, no Christ but the sun that shines upon us'; and 'that the twelve patriarchs were the twelve houses'. "This was astrology run wild; and it is tantalizing not to know how many of William Bond's contemporaries may have held similar vie ws.

A Rose for Emily: Pressures of Society

Pressures of Society Most people desire to fit in with the social norm. People do not want to be outcasts or different. Everyone in a society tries to fit into their cookie cutter forms to make themselves just like everyone else. Society does not like those who don't fit in and meet their standards. In the short story â€Å"A Rose for Emily† by William Faulkner, the main character Emily lives in a society full of high morals and monetary status. The setting plays a huge role on the actions of Emily and forces her to seclude herself from the rest of society. A Rose for Emily† takes place in post- civil war Jefferson, a small town in the deep south of the United States. The setting of the story helps illuminate the values of society during that time. Emily's society was built on the beliefs that the white, upper-class citizens were far more superior to everyone else. Being that they were more superior, everyone was held to a higher standard. The people of Jefferson were ex pected to have prim and proper houses and yards, high morals, and to obey all of the town's laws. While Emily was part of the upper-class, she did not quite fit in to society's cookie cutter mold. Emily's house was an eyesore to the rest of the town, she was said to be dating a gay man who was of the working class, and she did not pay her taxes. The people of the town began to question Emily's sanity because she was not just like everyone else. â€Å"Some of the ladies began to say that it was a disgrace to the town and a bad example to the young people†¦. but at last the ladies forced the Baptist minister†¦. o call upon her. † (94-95) These actions show how much society truly wanted to change Emily's way of life so she would fit in with them and stop ruining their image. The southern country setting with these harsh conditions led Emily to lock herself in her home in order to seclude herself from society. Emily did not feel welcome in her society. She knew that the others judged her and looked down upon her for her actions. The pressures of society took a huge t oll on Emily. The front door closed upon the last one and remained closed for good. When the town got free postal delivery, Miss Emily alone refused to let them fasten the metal numbers above her door and attach a mailbox to it. She would not listen to them. † (95). Emily felt as though she was a total outcast in her society and she became insane because of it. After her death, the town finds out that Emily had murdered her future husband. She had truly gone insane due to the pressure that society had placed on her. All in all, Emily's harsh society that she lived in caused her to feel unwelcome and go insane. Emily felt forced into locking herself away in her home to seclude herself from society. The high moral standards that the rich white southerners place on society greatly affected the life of Miss Emily. Emily did not fit into society's cookie cutter mold, and as a result she was ridiculed and cast away from the rest of society. The pressures of society can have a very damaging effect on those who do not fit into the social norms.

Short Story - 837 Words

8:49 PM As everyone waited to get a move on, Isaac and Epsilon sat down next to each other on an old bench. Malessica had fallen asleep, lying her head on Gerard’s shoulder while he meditated. Claire and Sabra sat outside talking under the starry skies, reminiscing of the old days. Sawyer, Paisley and Dorian sat down together, seemingly doing work on a single laptop. The afternoon felt longer than Isaac thought, but it was almost time for them to get going. Epsilon seemed generally relaxed, before standing up to stretch his arms. Isaac stood up also, stretching to loosen the tense muscles from sitting around for a few hours. Once they finished stretching, they moved closer to the door. Gerard slowly started to shake Malessica, waking her†¦show more content†¦Doesn’t get better looking than this.† Sawyer sighed once again. â€Å"Yup, he’s completely broken. We won’t hear the end of this.† Isaac and Epsilon laughed at them, while Dorian continued to ramble on about his physique. Sabra and Claire finally came inside the station getting ready to set their plans in motion. Clearing her throat, Paisley started to speak. â€Å"Well guys, it’s about that time. We’re finally going to be doing this, we’ve gotten so far and now it’s almost time for us to end this situation once and for all.† â€Å"The Sangrine Syndicate has been a threat to Kireina Island for so long now.† Malessica thought. â€Å"I can’t believe we’ve gotten so close to this.† â€Å"We’ll have backup, but we need to give them a bit of time.† Dorian added. â€Å"If Vittorio is dangerous like you say he is, we’ll need to detain him.† â€Å"All we have to do is deal with the cannon fodder and then take down the big dogs.† Sawyer said. â€Å"Our backup shouldn’t take too long though, maybe thirty-forty minutes tops.† â€Å"Let’s get a move on while the night is still young.† Sabra said. Exiting the train station, Isaac looked at back at it. He still couldn’t believe this was finally it. Deep down inside, Isaac wished to speak with Pele about everything once again. Everything he learned about the Sangrine Syndicate intertwined with the prophecy she told him. Everyones main goal was to defeat the Sangrine Syndicate and go on with their lives, but he still had trouble arising which couldShow MoreRelatedshort story1018 Words   |  5 Pagesï » ¿Short Stories:  Ã‚  Characteristics †¢Short  - Can usually be read in one sitting. †¢Concise:  Ã‚  Information offered in the story is relevant to the tale being told.  Ã‚  This is unlike a novel, where the story can diverge from the main plot †¢Usually tries to leave behind a  single impression  or effect.  Ã‚  Usually, though not always built around one character, place, idea, or act. †¢Because they are concise, writers depend on the reader bringing  personal experiences  and  prior knowledge  to the story. Four MajorRead MoreThe Short Stories Ideas For Writing A Short Story Essay1097 Words   |  5 Pageswriting a short story. Many a time, writers run out of these short story ideas upon exhausting their sources of short story ideas. If you are one of these writers, who have run out of short story ideas, and the deadline you have for coming up with a short story is running out, the short story writing prompts below will surely help you. Additionally, if you are being tormented by the blank Microsoft Word document staring at you because you are not able to come up with the best short story idea, youRead MoreShort Story1804 Words   |  8 PagesShort story: Definition and History. A  short story  like any other term does not have only one definition, it has many definitions, but all of them are similar in a general idea. According to The World Book Encyclopedia (1994, Vol. 12, L-354), â€Å"the short story is a short work of fiction that usually centers around a single incident. Because of its shorter length, the characters and situations are fewer and less complicated than those of a novel.† In the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s DictionaryRead MoreShort Stories648 Words   |  3 Pageswhat the title to the short story is. The short story theme I am going conduct on is â€Å"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’ by James Thurber (1973). In this short story the literary elements being used is plot and symbols and the theme being full of distractions and disruption. The narrator is giving a third person point of view in sharing the thoughts of the characters. Walter Mitty the daydreamer is very humorous in the different plots of his dr ifting off. In the start of the story the plot, symbols,Read MoreShort Stories1125 Words   |  5 PagesThe themes of short stories are often relevant to real life? To what extent do you agree with this view? In the short stories â€Å"Miss Brill† and â€Å"Frau Brechenmacher attends a wedding† written by Katherine Mansfield, the themes which are relevant to real life in Miss Brill are isolation and appearance versus reality. Likewise Frau Brechenmacher suffers through isolation throughout the story and also male dominance is one of the major themes that are highlighted in the story. These themes areRead MoreShort Story and People1473 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿Title: Story Of An Hour Author: Kate Chopin I. On The Elements / Literary Concepts The short story Story Of An Hour is all about the series of emotions that the protagonist, Mrs. Mallard showed to the readers. With the kind of plot of this short story, it actually refers to the moments that Mrs. Mallard knew that all this time, her husband was alive. For the symbol, I like the title of this short story because it actually symbolizes the time where Mrs. Mallard died with joy. And with thatRead MoreShort Story Essay1294 Words   |  6 PagesA short story concentrates on creating a single dynamic effect and is limited in character and situation. It is a language of maximum yet economical effect. Every word must do a job, sometimes several jobs. Short stories are filled with numerous language and sound devices. These language and sound devices create a stronger image of the scenario or the characters within the text, which contribute to the overall pre-designed effect.As it is shown in the metaphor lipstick bleeding gently in CinnamonRead MoreRacism in the Short Stor ies1837 Words   |  7 PagesOften we read stories that tell stories of mixing the grouping may not always be what is legal or what people consider moral at the time. The things that you can learn from someone who is not like you is amazing if people took the time to consider this before judging someone the world as we know it would be a completely different place. The notion to overlook someone because they are not the same race, gender, creed, religion seems to be the way of the world for a long time. Racism is so prevalentRead MoreThe Idol Short Story1728 Words   |  7 PagesThe short stories â€Å"The Idol† by Adolfo Bioy Casares and â€Å"Axolotl† by Julio Cortà ¡zar address the notion of obsession, and the resulting harm that can come from it. Like all addictions, obsession makes one feel overwhelmed, as a single thought comes to continuously intruding our mind, causing the individual to not be able to ignore these thoughts. In â€Å"Axolotl†, the narr ator is drawn upon the axolotls at the Jardin des Plantes aquarium and his fascination towards the axolotls becomes an obsession. InRead MoreGothic Short Story1447 Words   |  6 Pages The End. In the short story, â€Å"Emma Barrett,† the reader follows a search party group searching for a missing girl named Emma deep in a forest in Oregon. The story follows through first person narration by a group member named Holden. This story would be considered a gothic short story because of its use of setting, theme, symbolism, and literary devices used to portray the horror of a missing six-year-old girl. Plot is the literal chronological development of the story, the sequence of events