Tuesday, August 6, 2019
The Future of Graphic Arts Essay Example for Free
The Future of Graphic Arts Essay Public works projects were promoted by Lester Beall during the 1930s. The depiction of this project is describes as this poster for the Rural Electrification Administration juxtaposes a photograph of two young people against an abstracted American flag to express optimism for a technologically enhanced future (WebCT, 2002). This is also a political manifestation in the way that there is a presentation of an image designed to give hope in a time where there are different social problems. However, this was not a new move, as in 1917 there was the use of graphic art in the form of posters as a reaction against the social condition, and supporting the revolution (WebCT, 2002). In the country there was support given to the Russian Telegraph Agency (ROSTA) (WebCT, 2002). If we look at the way these posters were made we can see why thy were so limited, with poster printed by hand, or attentively only with the use of rough stencils (WebCT, 2002). This limited the amount of posters but still the work of artists such as Gustav Klutsis and Mikhail Razulevich development and used more mechanical methods of reproductions (WebCT, 2002). Nearby in Germany politics was also the subject of John Heartfield where he was against the rise of the Nazi part though this use of graphic arts, however, this time the images were more direct with the use if graphic art as a political advertising using photomontages as well as slogans on a single poster (WebCT, 2002). This was a demonstration of how graphic art could be used to develop emotional feeling regarding public issues and to change the opinions of those watching (WebCT, 2002). This has been used again and against throughout history, with the different message against the status quo being depicted in images relevant to the contemporary society (McQuiston and Greer, 1997). Here we have seen the beginnings of the development, how society and politics have influenced the way that the art has been developed. If we want to look to what the future may hold we need to take a leap and consider how the more recent past has developed with the use of graphic art. Here we can then see the way that the foundations were built upon. To undertake this there are many approaches that can be developed. The way in which graphic art has development may be seen in many mediums in many countries. , However , in keeping with the theme of looking to the future we will look at an artist of the past that was both prolific, and seen as looking ahead of his time to what the future would hold. To this end we will consider the role of one of the most influential graphic artists of the twentieth century; Paul Rand. III. Paul Rand In considering a specific work of a well known designer we can understand how the work influence the customer as well as influenced the wider environment of that of graphic design and the way that the influences that are felt in the short term and the long term. In looking at Paul Rands work we can conclude that he influenced not only his clients, but also appreciate the wider influence he has had ion the graphic design industry in general as well as appreciating the uniqueness of his own style, as was demonstrated by the design of many logos including that of IBM. There are many graphic designers that have had a long lasting impact on the way we see the world and interpret its meaning. Some designers have been subtle in the influence and the range of designs that have made a difference have been anything from typefaces to landmarks, but one of the best known, if not by name then by his work must be that of Paul Rand, also known as Papa logo (Lange 1998). Paul Rand has a wide range of styles and worked in the field of advertising, and can be seen to have made a great impact, his specially was branding, and the specific work we will be considering here will be the well known IBM logo (Hurlbert, 1979). The idea of a logo that was innovative and had meaning as well as a message may have been new and groundbreaking in the days of Rand, but it is partly due to his wide ranging influence that we can see the wide practice of branding has taken the current route. It is also a shame that in this modern world where the forte of Rands talents lay there has been a common practice of branding which has become homogenised and bland (Hurlbert, 1979). This is not a criticism that can be seen to have been levelled at Rand, who not only designed this innovative and still used logo. Rand was also responsible for logos such as the carriers UPS, Cummins Engines, Yale University and Next Computers (Lange 1998). This logo is unique and the style is recognised widely, even if the actual company name cannot be read the distinction is very clear. It was Rands intention to design logos and other works which were not only recognisable and identifiable very easily, but also one that can be seen as having a real meaning, which is demonstrated very clearly by the logo designed for IBM. The brief of any designer in looking to brand an organisation will often be rather vague, there will be a requirement for the Logo to be suited to the corporate culture, but this in itself is an intangible, and as such it very difficult to describe, it will also need to indicate the sphere of operation or characteristics that the client wants the logo to bring to mind when it is viewed by the clients own customers. The IBM logo has become well known for its blocked design that appear to indicate a clean cut image with is both technological and simple, with colours that are seen as safe but also bold an innovative without threat. If we look for the way in which the design was inspired then we may be looking for a very difficult element, in other designs this may be more apparent, such as his advert for El Producto poster in 1953 we can see that there was a message of merry Christmas (Rand, 1953). The actual content of the design can be seen as imitating Christmas as the cigars which are depicted in them are cigar shaped but lot a great deal more interesting due to the fact they appear in Christmas designs such as we might expect to see on Christmas wrapping paper or decorations for the seen. The inspiration here is more easily observed, but this inspiration for IBM must has existed, yet describing his talent and style has been described by some as trying to catch lightening in a bottle, but we can see inspiration in the way that the logo was used once it had been designed (Hurlbert, 1979). His style was simplistic, and he took the inspiration form may sources, but the need for something that was not elaborate but served as functional is very clear in this design. In the way that posters were later designed to advertise IBM we start to see the inspiration of his humour and the way in which he would play ion words. This can be seen as making a great deal of sense as if we look at the way in which other Logos were also designed there was always an innovative way of the company initials being used to convey and communicate the idea of the company and to build up associations regarding the company. Therefore it is fair to assume that the play on words and the way in which the letters were all used were not only effective but also consciously used in such a way. With IBM the design is one that appears to be of technical specifications, but the humour was to come out later. In an advertisement where the logo was to be used there was a change which emphasised the way on which the logo could be immediately recognised, but would still gain attention rather than be brushed off due to its familiarity, in this Rand left the M, from IBM and replaced the I with and eye, and the B with a bee (Lange 1998). A play on words, but also on the perception of the product and brand as well as inspiration derived from the everyday world around us, but filled will psychological meaning, putting into place the quote from the beginning of this paper. However, the management of IBM prevented it ever seeing the light of day and being subjected to the customers critique as they did not believe if conveyed the IBM message It was not IBM (Lange 1998). The role he had on the industry as a result of successes like this was not kept to himself but communicated in the same medium as that of his work, through the printed word in many many manuals on how to design logos and polish their appearance (Lange 1998). In his own words the trademark should embody in the simplest form the essential characteristics of the product or institution being advertised (Rand, 2000). However, if also saw it as the designers job to be able to bring the formality down on occasion, and the way in which he is described as an idealist and a realist using the language of the poet and the businessman. He thinks in terms of need and function. He is able to analyse his problems, but his fantasy is boundless appears to embody the form and function where they both appear to be of importance, but the realism and the poetry are also very apparent (Hurlbert, 1979). If we try and see if there are any autobiographic aspects to this work this is a more difficult perspective simply du to the simplicity of the work, however the work in print can be seen as an aspect of his very early work when he was hired by Esquire magazine (Hurlbert, 1979). The humour that is apparent in the rejected IBM advertisement is also autobiographical as the way in which he sees the world was seen by many who met him as one which encompasses a large degree of humour as well as common sense (Hurlbert, 1979). In his early days there was a need for succinct design produced at a rapid rate for use in mails shoot advertising and magazine copy, but the need for the inclusion of artistic style was also recognised as many of his works were seen on a regular basis as the Art Directors Club (Hurlbert, 1979). If we compare this grounding with the IBM logo, there is both the simplistic that comes with the need for speed, but also the style and grace which can be seen as an aspect of art and design. The impression we get of the IBM logo is that it has always just been there, associated wit the company on such as basic level that we are apt to forget its origin for a man who started he career in the 1930s (Hurlbert, 1979). The symbolic content can also be recognised by the colours as well as the lines. / They appear to be very geometrically spaced, with a great deal of precision not only in the distance between each line, but also in the way that the letter line up. The white ion the blue background serves to emphasis this contrast and therefore gives an impression of precision that we now associate with the company. If we consider the way that he may have been influenced by others at the same time there is a little difficulty as he was seen as a leader rather than a follower, but the simplistic design can also be seen as functional for the reproduction as well as recognition. If we consider the work in relation to Rands other work then it is neither relatively significant or insignificant, it is a typical example of the way in which function and form were combined. From the advertising campaigns for bill boards and magazine cover designs as well as the logos there are some common characteristics, such as the idea of the simple being better than the complex, the ability of the design being something that the client as well as the customers can relate to. When we look at the other Logos this common thread is very well illustrated. However, we can argue that this one logo may also be significant as it is probably one of the best known examples of his work, recognised throughout the globe and still used today. The UPS insignia must also come a close second, but this also consists of the same characteristics, the simple designee, although a little more complex, is immediately identifiable, but in this case the symbolism is also more openly apparent. Other logos such as the Yale University one can be seen to have exactly the same style of simplistic function, where form is an art, and as such we can argue that the piece of work studied in this paper could have been substituted for any of his other works and the conclusions would be the same. Although he dies in 1996 the influence he has left on the art of graphic design has not reduced, his work is still studied and admired, and perhaps the best and most significant legacy is the continued use of the works from the man also known as papa logo. In many ways his work can still be seen as relevant, yet it was still as a result of the technology changes that he was able to form these images, and the effective nature of many may be seen as a result of the increased art of typography. Therefore, to understand the development of this we also need to consider the development of typography. IV. Typography Typography is seen in everyday life, from the newspapers we read, the television programmes we watch to the numbers on buses and the advertisements on the bill boards. To what typography consists of we need to look at the characteristics that are present in the lettering. There are many typefaces and different ways for those typefaces to be presented. It is in this development of typography we can argue that the computer has been great influence, allowing for more type faces to be developed and for the uses of these typefaces to be manipulated more easily. This has been a boon to the graphic artist, and in understanding the ability to develop an image as simple as a letter using the computer then we can appreciate the way that larger images many also be manipulated. These are used in practically all manifestations of graphical arts. The use of a type face creates an image, and even in an item as simple as a menu it has been proven to have a discernable effect on customer perceptions and resulting purchases that are made (Heimann, 1998). When we consider the purpose of typography it has to be seen as more than simply a communication of words, however if we break it down into its smallest component of typography can be seen in the following way The basic unit of all type design is the individual letter. Letters come together to form words, and words come together to form stories (Anonymous, 2000). This is the role of the graphic artist, to present an image that communicates, this may be story, a feeling a perception or just an image that will be recalled for a later association. It is in this last section off the quote that we can see that way the typography is used can convey a great deal about a story. For example if we see a film being advertised with typography that is jagged and looks like it is dripping with blood then we can automatically assume that it will be a horror movies of some sort. This is the message that is conveyed in the layout and design of the typography. The typography will be different on a romance than on a science fiction film, due to the different perceptions they create. The advances in the use of the computer here can be seen in the aiding of the design by trying out and manipulating designs without the need to keep making mock up posters and by trying out changes speedily at the click of a button. This can be seen as very useful in a number of ways, it reduces the materials used so that there are greater ranges of possibilitys at a lower cost. The time element is also much shorter, and as such the costs can be seen as proportionately lower. The need for an expert can also be seen as reduced, with the computer there is no longer the need for specific training as the range of programmes that can be used allow almost anyone with a typing skills can take on the task of a typographer. Therefore, the range of uses of these type faces and the extent of the styles can be seen as no long only the realms of the professional. Small businesses are able to produce their own business stationary and develop their own advertisements and literature, even a local parish or community magazine that used to be hand types can look like a professionally produced publication. However, when these are used there are still some very basic rules that are followed the advantage with the computer and the ability to see the layout before a publication is printed on a large scale can be to see that in the main even those without training or specific knowledge will follow them naturally. The ability to keep the readers attention is a combination of factors. The first will be the content of the text, and if we are looking at this from a purely typographical or graphical art perspective then this is not in the control of the typesetter (Anonymous, 2000). The design of the text and the size of the text are important as illegible text or test that is uncomfortable to read will loose the interest of the reader just as easily as boring content (Anonymous, 2000). The next items that need to be considered are not so obvious unless you look at a piece of typesetting where they are wrong, and then it becomes obvious. There are the line lengths and the spacing between the words and letters. It is these spacing between letters that can make a publications look professional. Until the computer was in many homes and small businesses the typing would be on a conventional type writer where the space between each letter is the same with no sense of proportion as seen in the courier and the courier new type faces (Anonymous, 2000). This fixed spacing has become associated with the home produced leaflets that were duplicated with duplicating machine or by the use of photocopiers has become less apparent as proportional fonts have been used, examples may be seen as the popular times new roman that is a well used font. The difference here is that the proportional basis of a font means that smaller letters, such as a i or an l will take up less rook than a w or an m, similar to the way handwriting takes place and the pattern is easier in the eye as apparent gaps between letters in the same word will all be the same (Will-Harris, 2000). In addition there will also be the element of the actual line spacing. If the lines are too close together the typeface, whatever it is will be difficult to read and there will be a crowding effect (Will-Harris, 2000). Again the use of the computer enable this to be seen and adjusted before any documents are even printed so out rarely becomes an issue (Will-Harris, 2000). There will also be issues such as the actual form of the entire setting as well as the quality of the reproduction, which may or may not be issues the typesetter will be involved in. However he how of the typesetting comes together to form a message and communicate an issue or an idea so in this way we can see that the typesetting can be as important as the content, get it wrong and people will not read it whatever it says (Will-Harris, 2000). However, if we are going to consider how the computer has influence the development of typography we can also look to the actual type fonts that are used. There are even programmes able now that can scan a persons handwriting and then code it into the computer as a type face or font so that it will be reproduced when typing. In a broader sense, there have been other wide scale developments directly due to the computer. The use of computers and the advent if they Internet have seen the development of a collection of new typefaces or fonts to cope with the individual situations and specific needs of this medium. Two fonts have been developed by Microsoft with this in mind. Mathew Carter was responsible for the development of Verdana which is a sans serif named after the verdant Seattle region (Will-Harris, 2000). The second is Georgia, a bright serif labelled due to a tabloid headline concerning alien heads allegedly found in the area of Georgia (Will-Harris, 2000). Verdana is easier to read on a screen as the x height is higher than normal giving the type face a larger appearance without the need for more space (Will-Harris, 2000). There is also special attention taken with the letters that are sometimes easily confused on screen such as i, l and j and I where the formations of the letters is slightly different, with slightly different height to distinguish them more easily (Will-Harris, 2000). Georgian is similar as it still has a higher x point, but not has high as Verdana, but is still retains an almost times new roam feel about it so it can be used in traditional circumstances, and again can be seen as easier to read simply because it has been designed specifically for the screen, yet they also reproduce well in print (Will-Harris, 2000). Therefore we can see how the computer has impacted on the development of typography, in the way it is used, developed and put together to the actual design of the fonts. It has come a long way in a short period of time, and is likely to go further, especially in the hands of the graphic artists, both in the design as well as in the use. There are also computer aided design packages that will develop new fonts, even for an amateur, such as handwriting fonts of an individual that are scanned in. Here we can see that there is a development with a cross over of the many different art forms and the way in which inspiration impacts on the art. To look to the future we have seen how there has been inspiration in the past, and how this has impacted on graphic art, The next stage must be to consider the way in which inspiration may be gained in the future. V. Inspiration The first factor we need to consider here is that the cross over of the different art forms is increasing, a graphic artist may use a camera or paints, a typographer may also be a graphic artist. Expression in the arts has always looked for new and innovative ways to be presented. This have often used newer and more radical as the forum for ideas and inspiration in the search for the ways in which to be inspired and find the spark required for creativity to take place. Just as in any other art form graphic design can be inspired or developed from what is seen around us and the every day mediums which we all come across. For example, we can consider the art of contemporary photography. The argument for the adoption and acceptance of contemporary photography techniques in graphic design can be that in contemporary photographs we may find more contrasts and forms which are suitable for graphic design. The way in which the pictures are framed and made up with different contents and contrasts in colours may also be more suitable to be adapted and changed rather than a traditional countryside view. They may be developed more appropriately. The best way to demonstrate this is to take two contemporary photographs and examine what may be gained from them by a graphic designer. The way in which they add to an idea or be developed to a specific outcome by providing a concept or a form from which the designer can work. Alternatively the way in which the photography may demonstrate to the graphic designer ways of working. The first photograph we will consider is Sandy Trails, was taken in 1999 by Tony Chumak and can be seen at http://tonychumakstudios. com/GallerySeries8/Tcs_Image_144-24X-A-L. asp. This is only on the boarders of contemporary photography. It is a landscape with a difference, in the centre of the landscape is a pattern in the sand which would normally be avoided by the photographer. This photograph demonstrates the way in which contemporary photography can capture texture and image, which is only available through this one medium. It is often said that art should convey a social message (Rich, 1998). This is true whether it is fine are or graphic design and whether the purpose of the work ids art or even advertising (Rich, 1998). The use of a photograph such as this can be used to convey many different types of message depending on the context n which the graphic designer is working By looking at this picture aspects suitable for graphic use can be seen. The contrast of the shades of sand caused by the lighting cast shadows which can almost appear alive and stark. Natural forms and shapes can lead to very pleasing and easy to use or interpret ideas for a designer. A shape formed by the wind of the sea flows and the graphic designer can take this line and simplicity and translate it to all manner of variable uses. Curves flow through the medium which is devoid of life forming shapes which approximately can be seen as more than waves, but of forms in the sand which can be placed together with a little imagination and thought. The adaptation of what is normally straight or fixed into a flowing contemporary shape has long been used in design.
Monday, August 5, 2019
Egon Schiele: Influences on and Impact in Art
Egon Schiele: Influences on and Impact in Art Was Egon Schiele ahead of his time or just in touch with it? A master of expressionism or practising pornographer and paedophile? What was the driving force behind his most memorable images; those being his nudes and self portraits? Looking at economic, social, personal influences, was he milking the times and environment for self gain or was he a hormone raging self absorbed youngster finding himself? Introduction Expressionism is described in typically polemic terms in the preface for the 1912 exhibition in Cologne, featuring new artists of this genre. In it, it says: ââ¬Å"the exhibition is intended to offer a general view of the newest movement in painting, which has succeeded atmospheric naturalism and the impressionist rendering of motion, and which strives to offer a simplification and intensification in the mode of expression, after new rhythms and new uses of colour and a decorative or monumental configuration ââ¬â a general view of that movement which has been described as expressionism.â⬠Schiele certainly fulfilled the loose terminologies expressed above, as a great deal of the subject matter he explored, primarily his nudes and his self-portraits, were concerned with the constant need to redefine and explore different ways of expressing these themes; a simplification and intensification in the mode of expression. At times, Schiele reduces the broad sentiments of Impressionism to a single streak; he cuts out all that is unnecessary, reducing his backgrounds to a simple wash of colour, and thus focuses on his primary interest, that of the human subject. Schiele was also extremely concerned with the notion of self in his work; he is frequently cited in critical work as a narcissist and, with over 100 self portraits to his name, each of which appear to be concerned with showing himself in various, often contradictory ways, this would appear to be true. But, beyond simple glorification of the self, Schiele seems to be doing something else in his self-portraiture. By picturing himself in such a varied and at times contradictory way, Schiele in turn questions his own authenticity, and attempts to align himself with that great canon of artist in society, as a contemporary Promethean or Christ-like figure. ââ¬Å"Allegory, unmasking, the presentation of a personable image, and close scrutiny of body language as influenced by the psyche, all met most palpably where Schieles eye looked most searchingly ââ¬â in his self-portraits, his odyssey through the vast lands of the self. His reflections on and of himself filled a great hall of mirrors where he performed a pantomime of the self unparalleled in twentieth century art.â⬠Indeed, the ambiguity of Schiele as regards himself is a dense and complex subject, which regards both ââ¬Å"truthâ⬠, and a more subjective appraisal of art in Viennese society during the time in which Schiele was painting. Schiele was also concerned with breaking down and fundamentally opposing the traditions of Viennese culture and art which, at the time, were largely very conservative in opinion. In his art, Schiele would strike out at the culture that celebrated Biedermeier art and the slavish reproduction of classical works that he was taught at Viennas Academie der Bildunden Kunste (Viennas Academy of Fine Art), which he was admitted to on the grounds of his exceptional talent as a draughtsman. Most prominently, he would break these rules, and was thus ahead of his times with his extremely controversial oeuvre, which broke from these schools almost completely, both stylistically and in terms of the subject matter that they conveyed. But it is extremely difficult, if not impossible when considering any artist to extricate him / her from the times in which he / she was born. An artist is inevitably bound to the world around him / her, and thus, it is important to consider the economic, social and cultural trends that were prevalent at the time. Schiele was part of the expressionist movement ââ¬â which immediately set itself up against the heralded principals of art in Vienna, by setting up its own artist-led business entities, using the work and the life of Klimt as an example. I will expand upon the layered history that led up to Viennese expressionism, and hope to extrapolate the extent to which Schiele was paving the way for a new generation of artists. Schieles art was especially controversial in its subject matter. In his early work especially, unflinching portraits were painted that not only showed Schiele in uncompromising positions, but also subjects such as proletariat children, who were invariably portrayed naked, and painted with a grotesque and sickly eroticism that draws you unerringly into these taboo areas. Whether Schiele was deliberately trying to shock and provoke the modesties of the Viennese public, or whether he was trying to uncover a more universal, spiritual or sexual truth is subject to debate. Overall, in this essay, I will discuss how the history of Vienna impacted upon the work of Schiele, looking at the cultural, social and economic impact of Schiele. I will also look at how Schiele uses the self-portrait, especially how he chooses to either promote, or at least define the prevalent role of expressionist artist in his work. Then I will look at how the abundance of these controversial self-portraits, along with innumerable photographs of Schiele posing, in turn makes Schieles identity in his work more ambiguous. Then I will look at the more pornographic side of Schiele, and question how Schiele, deeply embedded in the cultural and moral codes of the time, reacted entirely against them and established his own, art of ââ¬Å"uglinessâ⬠. History Of Viennese Expressionism Fredrick Raphael, in his preface to Dream Story by Arthur Schnitzler, suggests something about the Viennese psyche; he says that: ââ¬Å"In 1866, Bismarcks Prussia destroyed Austro-Hungarys bravely incompetent army at Sadowa. The effect of that defeat on the Viennese psyche cannot be exactly assessed. Austria had already suffered preliminary humiliation by the French, under Louis-Napoleon, but Sadowa confirmed that she would never again be a major player in the worlds game. Yet conscious acceptance of Austrias vanished supremacy was repressed by the brilliance and brio of its social and artistic life. Who can be surprised that Adlers discovery of the inferiority complex, and of compensating assertiveness, was made in a society traumatized by dazzling decline? It was as if the city which spawned Arthur Schinitzler and Sigmund Freud feared to awake from its tuneful dreams to prosaic reality.â⬠Indeed, the times in which Egon Schiele was making his mark on the Viennese establishment was a time where the Viennese art community were at their most conservative, or most susceptible to lapsing into these ââ¬Å"tuneful dreamsâ⬠. Schieles self-imposed mission, it seemed, was to violently shake these people into a state of consciousness. But that isnt to say that Schiele existed entirely in a vacuum, living entirely by his own rules. Comini stresses that: ââ¬Å"The content of Schieles Expressionism then was a heightened sense of pathos and impending doom, and an acute awareness of the self. Schieles Expressionist form drew from the great European reservoir of Symbolist evocativeness.â⬠So, from a veritable melange of varying influences, Schiele managed to get his form, which combined that of exceptional draughtsman, with an inescapable desire for portraying the artistry of ââ¬Å"uglinessâ⬠, something of which Schiele was something of a pioneer. In 1897, Schiele joined the painting class of Christian Griepenkerl; who was a deeply conservative artist devoted to neoclassicism, or the slavish devotion and replication of classic works of art. This involved long hours copying the works of the Old Masters at Viennas Academy of Fine Art. Schiele was enrolled for his superior draughtsmanship, but he was eventually alienated from it because he didnt see the relevance or the importance in neoclassicism. Thus, he became something of a troublemaker to the establishment, and was eventually forced out. This was echoed 100 years hence by the Romantics; an art group who pursued a loose programme intended to reinvest art with emotional impact. The Romantics, however, proved too unpalatable to the Viennese citizenry, who instead preferred the work of Biedermeier artists. Kallir says: ââ¬Å"On the whole, Germans proved more receptive to Romanticism than Austrians who shied away from such intense expressions of feeling and took refuge in the mundane cheer of the Biedermeier.â⬠She goes on to say: ââ¬Å"Biedermeier [â⬠¦] was geared more to the applied than to the fine arts, though in all its myriad incarnations it promoted the personal comforts of the middle class Burger. Biedermeier painting revolved around idealized renditions of everyday life, scenes of domestic bliss, genre pictures portraying ruddy-cheeked peasants, and picturesque views of the native countryside.â⬠Being born into this highly stringent, conservative environment must have shaped Schieles defiance somewhat, as Schiele not only seems to break with what was established in Vienna as profitable art, but he almost seems to occupy exactly the opposite role. Even in works by Klimt, who was deemed controversial at the time, there are still elements of decorative palatability that makes his work visually and aesthetically appealing. Schiele seems to be deliberately working against this formula; which was brave considering that art, at the time, depended on patronage and buyers to actually sustain a profit. Schiele didnt seem concerned in the slightest that his work wouldnt get a buyer. In fact, the market is abandoned almost completely. In Schieles early work, art becomes ââ¬Å"uglyâ⬠; his figures are pallid and atrophied; the composition of the pieces are unconventional and thus attack the sensibilities of the audience. Upon his break from Viennas Academy, and much akin to Klimt, whom he admired and painted on a number of occasions, Schiele set up his own group, entitled simply, ââ¬Å"The New Art Group.â⬠This was similar to Klimts route, as he set up the Viennese Secession, of which Schiele would play a part, which came from and used the tried and tested formula of the Genossenschaft betdender Kunster Wiens (Vienna Society of Visual Artists), a project financed by Emperor Franz Josef as a means of promoting art in the city. However, this system was not without its drawbacks. ââ¬Å"Its progressive potential was [â⬠¦] undermined by a policy of majority rule, which generally granted victory to the conservative faction. Within this context, the societys role as dealer was particularly disturbing to the younger, more forward-thinking minority, from whom exclusion from major exhibitions could have adverse financial consequences.â⬠Similarly, the capitalist nature of art, coupled with the conservatism of the market made for a very difficult time for the progressive artist, and perhaps was a reason behind why Schiele opposed the artistic community with such fervency and vitriol, and often resorted to shock tactics and self-publicity to get himself heard. Klimts Secession operated on similar principles to the Vienna society: ââ¬Å"â⬠¦the Secession [â⬠¦] was principally a marketing agent for its members work.â⬠Thus, again it proved difficult for the younger, more radical artists to break through, despite Klimts support. Later, funds from patronage dwindled, so it was necessary for artists to seek out new markets. ââ¬Å"The withdrawal of official patronage pre-empted the Secessionists to seek new ways of generating the sales and commissions necessary to keep them in business.â⬠Ultimately, this meant that socialist, and personal art became more prominent a theme. The monumental, allegorical themes that Klimt and Schiele tended to attack (although Schieles work was deeply personal, it was also very monumental and took a number of influences from Klimt and symbolist art), no longer had a substantial market. Klimts decorative style, coupled with his established name, could still sell work to his established clients. Schiele, however, had no such luck, and it was only in 1918, the last year of his life, that Schiele managed to break even with his work. Although Schiele did not seem overly concerned with the economic potential of his works; in fact, he even seemed to equate poverty and suffering to the role of an artist in general, and Schiele was probably one of the most uncompromising artists of the twentieth century in terms of pandering to a particular audience; it is nevertheless important to consider economics, social and cultural conditions because, Schiele, by setting himself and his role as an artist in direct opposition to the establishment, also put himself in the long-standing tradition of artist in opposition to mainstream society. Kallir points out that: ââ¬Å"The Secession, the Galerie Muethke, and the Wiener Werkstatte [, the latter two being establishments set up in the wake of the gradual reduction of patronage funds and a need to find and establish new markets for art], in the formative first decade of this century were peculiar products of their times that shared common aspirations and limitations. It was important to all concerned that these entities, although ostensibly committed to marketing art, were artist-run.â⬠So, although economics were a concern in art, they were not necessarily, as dictated previously with the majority run Vienna Society of Visual Artists, primarily about making money and transforming the Viennese art scene into a profitable industry. Economics was an incidental concern, only foisted upon the establishment by chronic necessity: ââ¬Å"The artists evinced a tacitly accepted loathing for art-as-business (Schiele could be particularly eloquent on this point) and a determination to place aesthetic considerations above economic ones.â⬠So, as is fairly obvious from the art that he made, Schiele was against the motive of making money from art. But this reveals an interesting contradiction that plagued expressionist and other, later artists seeking to make a living from art at the same time as challenging the social and economic processes that ultimately fund its creation: ââ¬Å"[I]f the primary goal [of these entities] was to serve the artistic community, these organisations could not entirely ignore their secondary purpose: to sell art.â⬠So, Schiele, like many other artists, was cut between a requirement for money (which was especially apparent now that the former staple of patronage monies had all but dried up), and a requirement to express uncompromisingly his artistic expression. Schiele would not settle for the former, and instead pursued the latter with a vigour and an intensity that, at the time, was quite extraordinary. Schiele and Self-Portraiture. Of all the artists in the 20th century, or indeed any century, Egon Schiele was probably one of the most self-conscious. But, in Schiele, the self is a very problematic subject. Schoeder suggests: ââ¬Å"In his self-portraits, Schiele shows himself as wrathful, with a look of spiritual vacancy, or as if racked by a severe spasm of hysteria; or arrogantly looking down his nose, with head tossed back; or apprehensively or naively peering out of the picture. Which Schiele is the real Schiele?â⬠Schiele seems to instinctively divide himself into differing components, but also, he uses art to singularly pursue his own political views of the role of artist, in many ways using self-portraiture to assert, rather than fragment his own personality. The ambiguity with which Schiele regards himself can be looked at in a number of ways. 1. The Artist-as-Martyr It could be argued that Schiele was simply posing, or playing the varying roles of artist to gratify his ego. This is interesting because Schiele was definitely working toward a specific identity as artist. In 1912, Schiele was arrested for three days for publishing obscene works where they could be displayed to children. An item of his work was subsequently burned in the courtroom. In prison, he creates a number of interesting works of art, that are especially interesting because their titles read like manifestoes. Titles such as Hindering the Artist is a Crime, It Is Murdering Life in the Bud! (1912), For Art and for My Loved Ones I Will Gladly Endure to the End! (1912), and Art Cannot Be Modern: Art Is Primordially Eternal (1912). Certainly, judging from these titles, Schiele definitely has a number of ideas regarding the artist, his specific role, and what separates a true artist from a charlatan. Schiele, in his highly polemical, hyperbolic painting titles, equates the artist with suffering and martyrdom, suggesting that he will ââ¬Å"endureâ⬠, and immediately glorifying the artist as a giver of life and eternal well being to the masses. Schroeder goes on to say: ââ¬Å"Behind these works lies the idealization of suffering in the Romantic cull of genius, as updated in the last years of the nineteenth century through the writing of Friedrich Nietzsche and through the posthumous response to Arthur Schopenhauer. [â⬠¦] The turn of the century saw the apogee of the Artist-as-Martyr legend, in which the relationship between suffering and greatness draws so close that the pose of suffering may in itself constitute a claim to the higher grades of artistic initiation.â⬠So, the implication here is that Schiele was indeed acting a specific role of artist, that he was assuming a specific ââ¬Å"pose of sufferingâ⬠that was in many ways an act of fulfilling his societal role as an artist. Certainly these roles of suffering were explicit in his work. In Self-Portrait Standing (1910), Schiele portrays himself as contorted and thin; his face is twisted into an ugly grimace, and the colours used are mottled, pale and rotten. His arms are deformed and his positioning is unnatural and forced. His eyes are hollow and there is no context to the portrait; the background is a simple cream colouring. To exaggerate his alienation yet further, Schiele highlights his body with a shock of white. This has the effect of drawing the subject even further out of his environmental world, and, along with the forced hand gestures, serves to make us see the subject as an exhibit, rather than as part of a natural world. As Schroeder points out: ââ¬Å"On the white expanse of paper, they do not exist: they are exhibited.â⬠In his principal work, Hermits (1912), he paints himself with Gustav Klimt, whose own break with neoclassicism and ornate style of expressionism was a major influence on Schieles early work. Klimt is seen as asleep, or else resting on the shoulders of Schiele, who stands in front of him in a large black cloak. Mitsch suggests that in Hermits, ââ¬Å"[s]eldom has the human body been visualised so exclusively as a materialization of spiritual forces [â⬠¦].â⬠But the painting is called Hermits, which suggests something about the role of artist that Schiele observed, although the painting certainly displays elements of the spiritual; as Steiner suggests, ââ¬Å"he presents the master and himself in a picture where two male figures in monklike garb and with aureoles about their heads are seen on a monumental plinth.â⬠In Hermits, Schiele and Klimt both look glum; Schiele stares defiantly back through the painting. The vast black cloak serves to homogenize the body of Klimt and Schiele, and thus portrays the role of the artist in general as one of blackness, of a biblical darkness. But, the title is more secular: Steiner goes on to say that: ââ¬Å"We see Hermits (as the painting is called) and not saints, and the tone is no longer mystical and remote but one of delicate equilibrium between the two men ââ¬â the elder, Klimt, deathlike, and the younger, Schiele, looking grim, doubtless because the artist leads a solitary life, condemned by society to suffer.â⬠So, Schiele, in a very modernist way, is simultaneously divorcing himself from the establishment of the religious school of Neoclassicism, but is also contemporising it. In similar ways that Freud brought scientific rigour, and secular practice into studies of the human psyche, Schiele was in turn taking religion out of mystical, allegorical artwork, and instead putting himself into it. This artistic position, as forerunner to Klimt, in a sense, emerging from the body of Klimt, but staring out defiantly and uniquely, epitomizes Schieles position. Steiner suggests that: ââ¬Å"At the time that he painted Hermits, Schiele was already seeing himself as a kind of priest of art, more the visionary than the academician, seeing and revealing things that remain concealed from normal people.â⬠2. The Artist-As-Protean The ambiguity with which Schiele forges his own identity can also be seen in a different way. The variance between different forms of self-portrait merely represent different sides of the Schiele character. This would certainly fit into the Freudian notion of self ââ¬â as a stigmatized, fragmentary and anarchic collection of different preconceived notions. For instance; Freuds basic notions of Id, Ego and Super-Ego serve to fragment the self ââ¬â psychoanalysis in general serves to this effect, and, in a number of Schiele self-portraits, he uses the quite unusual system of the double portrait to encapsulate this fragmentation. Fischer makes the point that ââ¬Å"[t]he familiar repertoire of Freudian psychology with its ego and super-ego, conscious and unconscious realms, might equally be applied to these dual self-portraits.â⬠A great deal of photography of Egon Schiele (of which a great deal exists) utilizes the effect of double exposure, thus, a doubling of the self. In one untitled photograph of Egon Schiele , he is seen firstly staring into the distance, while another image of himself looks back, observing himself intently. Steiner says that: ââ¬Å"Schiele countered the sensory fragmentation of the self by means of a multiple self which came little by little to form a visual concept which reconstituted his unity with the world in a visionary way.â⬠Indeed, during the time when expressionism was most active, a serious redefinition was underway, on the secular, theoretical grounds of Nietzsche and Freud, and also due to the cataclysmic human and social catastrophe of the Great War. In Hermann Bahrs 1916 book, simply entitled Expressionism, he says: ââ¬Å"Never was there a time so shaken with so much terror, such a fear of death. Never was the world so deathly silent. Never was man so small. Never had he been so alarmed. Never was joy so far away and liberty so dead.â⬠But he rallies against this bleakness, which is encapsulated in other modernist and expressionist works; works such as Eliots Wasteland and the paintings of Munsch and the German school of expressionism: ââ¬Å"Now necessity cries out. Man cries after his soul, and the whole age becomes a single cry of need. Art, too, cries with it, into the depths of darkness; it cries for help; it cries after the spiritual: that is expressionism.â⬠So, by ploughing the ambiguities of the self, this reading would assume that Schiele was, in many respects, crying ââ¬Å"after his soulâ⬠, so to speak; searching among the myriad of different identities available to him, a concrete or at least a compatible sense of self that had eluded him, along with an entire generation of artists dispossessed by the Viennese establishment. The various parts of Schieles meticulous, and almost surgical self-analysis falls into a number of distinct camps, but also seems to, in a more generalised sense, work against the pattern of self-portrait or nudity established by other artists. Up until that time, generally speaking, the nude was seen in a grandiose sense: the painted nude women, such as those in Degas, were painted as Goddesses, resplendently beautiful, radiant, often placed in scenarios that depicted frolicking jollity or natural equilibrium; and the men, who were much rarer in contemporary art, were generally seen as heroic, muscular and noble. Schiele breaks entirely with this long-established tradition. Firstly, the school of nude self-portraiture at the time only comprised of a single person; Richard Gerstl, whose painting Self-Portrait, Naked stood on its own at the time as the only painting to be done of the nude artist. Schroeder points out: ââ¬Å"Just how uncommon is was to depict oneself naked is revealed by the fact that before 1910 only one precedent existed in the whole of Austrian art.â⬠Thus, Schiele was already putting himself in the position of pioneer of a particularly exhibitionist genre. But, in unsheathing the artist of the attire that would previously assign to him his identity, Schiele places a whole new dynamic in the art: the dynamic of the self itself. One of Schieles most important works Seated Male Nude (1910), Schiele portrays himself covering up his own face. Indeed, in most of his self-portraits, especially his early ones, his posture is contorted and manufactured; he is posing and the background again is simply a plain, unembellished white. In Seated Male Nude, Schiele is grossly emaciated, his feet have been cut off, and his nipples and eyes glow red, suggesting that there is a deep demonism within him. He is seen as grotesquely, disturbingly ectomorphic; ââ¬Å"the figure looks as though it has been taken down from a gothic crucifix: it is angular, and looks carved: Schiele was seeing himself as Christ without a loin-cloth. The red highlights of his eyes, nipples, navel and genitals make the body look as if it were glowing from within.â⬠But, also, the red ââ¬Å"glowing from withinâ⬠also exposes another central tenet of Schieles work ââ¬â namely, that it gives the appearance that he is hollow inside. Schiele preserved his more allegorical, symbolic works for the medium of oil; paintings such as Hermits discussed earlier, and thus, this hollowness cannot be overlooked as having greater metaphorical meaning, and would suggest the reasons behind why Schieles self-portraiture varied to such a large degree; namely, that the inner self which Schiele was desperate to uncover, was absent, or simply defined as a mad, glowing redness. ââ¬Å"[S]pastic and hunch-backed, or with a rachitic deformation of the ribcage: this was the artist as an image of abject misery ââ¬â a cripple [â⬠¦] the dirty colouring, with its shrill accents, makes the flesh tones ugly and aberrant. In Seated Male Nude, a self-portrait, the artist mutates into an insect. The absence of feet [â⬠¦] [is] an amputation. This is a mangled soul in a mangled body. We see through the body into the soul.â⬠Indeed, the mangled soul is non-existent, the inside is hollow and empty. So, insomuch as this is similarly affected by social and cultural developments at the time, Schiele is moreover offering a more detailed and theoretically astute reading of the self and warring and dissolute factions. Schroeder says that: ââ¬Å"If all of these self-dramatizations reveal the true nucleus of the painters psyche, then he must have been a fragmented personality, unlikely to escape the diagnostic attentions of the genius Sigmund Freud. The question is just how much of his psyche is conveyed by his self-portraits, either those with grimaces or those that express a frozen resignation? What and whom does Egon Schiele really see in his studio mirror? [â⬠¦] It makes all the difference in the world whether he is observing his own body as an act of direct, emotional self-knowledge or whether in his imagination he is slipping into someone elses role and experiencing his own self as that of another person.â⬠So, that Schiele depicts himself as a variety of different people doesnt necessarily mean that he is living up to a certain artistic function; in a sense, glamorizing the role of the artist as a suffering person. Art As Pornography Schiele has been regarded by many critics as a pornographer. Looking at his paintings, which often draw attention to the genitals, to eroticized regions of the human body, as well as the contorted and mechanistic quality to the nude portraits, which appear twisted and exploited. Schiele was eventually put in prison for his indecency, although this was due to his eccentric practice of showing his work to the friends of the children who were painted, often nude. Schroder suggests that ââ¬Å"[i]n Schieles early pictures of children the objective embarrassment of the models lowly social origins is reinforced by the embarrassment of their obscene nakedness.â⬠This would suggest that the portraits themselves are designed to be as exploitative and as pornographic as possible. The children portrayed are certainly seen in an especially lurid light; and their embarrassment is portrayed by their forced poses, the absence of environment, etc. However, it is often difficult, at the time and later, to extrapolate eroticism from pornography, and in Schiele, this is particularly difficult. Schiele himself denied accusations of pornography, and certainly, the nudes have greater substance and meaning in terms of formulating an Expressionist identity of the self. Mitsch suggests that Schiele ââ¬Å"expresses [in his eroticism] human bondage and is to be understood as a burden that is painful to bear. Aimed, from the beginning, at outspokenness and truthfulness, it assumes almost inevitably a daring form.â⬠So, here difficulty with regarding Schieles output is highlighted. The work is about expressing human bondage, but it is also exaggerated and mutilated and ââ¬Å"outspokenâ⬠. So Schiele acts as both pornographer and eroticist, and also strikes out more clearly at exposing the truth behind the body. Schiele himself commented on accusations that his work is pornographic made by his Uncle, by replying in a letter, saying that ââ¬Å"the erotic work of art is scared too.â⬠The painting Reclining Girl In A Blue Dress (1910), establishes this difficulty. In it, a girl is portrayed, leaning back and revealing her genitals. Her genitals are high-lighted in white, and draw the eye to the girls genitals using both composition and colour. The brush-strokes are strikingly crude, almost sketchy. Fischer says that ââ¬Å"[i]t is impossible to defend this picture against the charge of pornography. Even so, Schieles radicalism of form places him beyond too simplistic a categorisation.â⬠He goes on to say: ââ¬Å"He was not merely out to satisfy a shallow voyeuristic impulse. Pubescent lust and delight in discovery, the naà ¯ve symbolism of distinguishing sexual features, and boyish stratagems for looking up girls skirts are combined in the twenty-year-old artists way of viewing the world with the invention of ingenious new forms, which took the Schiele of 1910 a step forward, out of the world of teachers and uncles and into the radical world view of the Expressionist avant-garde. In the years ahead, Schiele pursued this distinctive combination obsessively.â⬠So, according to Fischer, even though his work was pornographic, the forms in which this pornography took and the means by which Schiele painted these pornographic images, allowed us to question the nature of the images and thus elevate them to something beyond pornography. Schiele was certainly obsessed with portraying the self: his images, despite being, at times, shamelessly provocative and deliberately controversial to the conservative Viennese public (the pre-conceived role of an artist to challenge the perception of the ordinary people would stress this, and was a certain depiction of the artist that Schiele would live by), would also put stress on the techniques and the principles applied to the painting in order to elevate it beyond mere titillation or voyeurism. In his nudes, Schiele was definitely looking to get closer to his, and societies view of the human condition in the confusing wake of secularism, the transmogrification of belief toward the self (in Freud and Nietzsche, for instance), and the selfs role in society. Naturally his view is not a particularly optimistic one, and he is frequently out to establish the pain in the heart of the self ââ¬â his cut-off, mutilated and distorted figures serve to expose the more desultory aspects of the self, and thus his images appear less as pornographic, and more as pieces that actually challenge and oppose the traditionally porno
Performance Enhancing Drugs
Performance Enhancing Drugs Should Performance Enhancing Drugs Be Illegal? There are many different types of ââ¬Ëperformance enhancing drugs. Athletes commonly use performance enhancing drugs to boost endurance, strength, adrenaline, energy, stamina and concentration. This essay will elaborate on reasons as to why performance enhancing drugs should be illegal in all codes of sport, specifically. These three main reasons include the effects performance enhancing drugs can have on an athletes person, integrity of athletes and sporting events or meets. As well as disadvantages other competitors, who choose not to use performance enhancing drugs, experience and are not creating an even playing field. Sporting competitions and events are at their most competitive and entertaining when all athletes are using their naturally abilities and not relying on performance enhancing drugs to power their efforts. Sporting competitions are supposed to be a showcase of a persons natural ability, their mental strength and how far they can push their bodies whilst performing against some of the best athletes in the world. Sporting competitions should not allow the use of performance enhancing drugs because they change the natural ability and make-up of the athlete and their performance, possibly awarding the athlete with untrue medals and prizes for their supposed achievements. Athletes not using performance enhancing drugs, whether this is due to the athlete not wanting to risk their health by taking performance enhancing drugs, not being able to fund the taking of drugs or just because they think it is wrong, can be disadvantaged compared to athletes who do take the drugs. These specific athletes have the tendency to have higher achieving, performance enhancing drug using, athletes chosen over them for positions in teams and events. This then causes non-drug taking athletes to spend less time practicing their chosen sport, to lose money if competing in professional competitions, to lose mental and physical strength as well as compromise personal success. Also a majority of division one competitions involve teenagers as well as adults. Taking performance enhancing drugs for a teenager would have a worse side affect on their body than it would on an adult. Sportsmen who use performance enhancing drugs may suffer physical effects including liver and kidney damage, baldness, skin discolouration, testicular shrinkage, a higher voice, infertility and breast growth. Women however, may experience liver and kidney damage, deepening of the voice, breast reduction, menstrual cycle irregularities and facial hair growth. As well as these physical effects, men and women both can be subject to emotional distress, severe mood swings, hallucinations and violence on and off the field. Performance enhancing drugs, if taken by an adolescent, can cause long term health problems and stunt the persons further development. A recent study of high school students in America shows that statistics on students who used steroids rose from 1.2% of 40 kids to 1.7% of 40 kids in one year. Therefore, performance enhancing drugs can cause complications on an athletes health, mentally and physically, are untrue to what sporting events are about and their ethics and disadvantage many athletes as well as imbalance the playing field. All of these reasons strongly indicate that performance enhancing drugs should be illegal in all codes of competitive sport. Bibliography: unknown, January 25th 2001, Drugs: An Athletic Wrecking Ball, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://www.thepost.ohiou.edu/archives/archives3/jan01/012501/editorial.html unknown, May 5th 2008, Academics Defend use of Performance Enhancing Drugs, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/academics-defend-use-of-performanceenhancing-drugs/2008/05/04/1209839456349.html Jeff Wilson, January 28th 2005, Performance Enhancing Drugs Have Potentially Damaging Effects, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://observer.case.edu/Archives/Volume_37/Issue_15/Story_44/ Kathy Henry, unknown, Performance Enhancing Drugs-Athletes Should be Allowed to use Them, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://ezinearticles.com/?Performance-Enhancing-DrugsAthletes-Should-Be-Allowed-to-Use-Themid=719944 unknown, unknown, Performance Enhancing Drugs, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://www.termpapers-termpapers.com/dbs/f4/sjf202.shtml Mayo Clinic staff, December 26th 2006, Taking Performance Enhancing Drugs: Are You Risking Your Health?, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/performance-enhancing-drugs/HQ01105 John W Orchard, Peter A Fricker, Susan L White, Louise M Burke and Deborah J Healey, May 9th 2005, The Use and Misuse of Performance Enhancing Substances in Sport, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/184_03_060206/orc10359_fm.html
Sunday, August 4, 2019
Industrial Hemp Should be Legal Essay -- Argument for Industrial Hemp
Just the mention of the word Cannabis in todayââ¬â¢s society brings about all types of negative connotations. This is understandable due to the major propaganda campaign that has been waged by the U.S. government on the plant. Most citizens have no idea what a mature Cannabis plant looks like, and close to none recognize the thousands of uses it has. This is paper will not discuss whether drug-type Cannabis should be legalized for recreational or medicinal purposes, what it will discuss is the many environmentally friendly products that can be made from non-psychoactive hemp. The Columbia History of the World states that the first archaeological record of human industry is a piece of hemp fabric. This is testament to the fact that the Cannabis plant has been used since the dawn of mankind for all types of purposes, and only lately has fallen out of use due to itââ¬â¢s prohibition by capitalists. Earlier cultures used it for fabric, rope, oil for lighting lamps, medicine, and paper, to name the most important ones. With the rise of technology we have alternative resources to use for those products, but are they superior? Cotton accounts for half of the agricultural chemicals used in America today. Now, forests are cut down to make paper that is inferior to hemp paper in every way. We have all types of petrochemical oils that are used today, but studies have shown that hemp oil can accomplish all of the major tasks that modern synthetic oils achieve. Medicine will not be discussed, but it will be said that Cannabis is listed in the oldest survivi ng medical text, and for thousands of years was used to treat almost every symptom that a human can acquire. Non-Psychoactive Cannabis has been popularly known as Industrial Hemp. There are three main varieties of the plant; ones with good fiber, ones with good oils, and one with good psychoactive properties. Industrial Hemp is very easy to grow and harvest. It does not require an abundance of fertilizers to grow. Nor does it require pesticides/herbicides/fungicides because insects never pose a serious threat due to its alarmingly fast growth rate and natural defense system. Hemp fiber is the strongest natural fiber in the world, the reason why it was used for all ship rigging up to the modern age. Hemp fabric has an excellent texture that gets softer with each use, yet keeps it durability. Despite itââ¬â¢s ... ...to be the staple of Kentucky's economy, too. Willard R. Jillson, in 1942, wrote a speech about the hemp industry in Kentucky and stated, ââ¬Å"Born with the Commonwealth, the story of the hemp industry in Kentucky is, in effect, a history of the state itself.â⬠(1) In a strange dichotomy of policy, even after the governmentââ¬â¢s war on the plant and its illegalization, during WWII the USDA requested that childrenââ¬â¢s 4-H clubs in Kentucky grow hemp for the war! The University of Kentucky still has this flier in their archives. The case has been made for why Industrial Hemp should be allowed to be grown by U.S. farmers. It has also been shown that the major reasons against its use are completely unconvincing, for they are based in selfishness, corruption, and misinformation. Industrial Hemp is an environmentally friendly alternative to many of the most used and most polluting resources in the U.S. today. With all the damage being done to the Earthââ¬â¢s environment by modern industry, the time to use Hemp again is more important than ever. So, as one can see, the issue is complex, yet the answer is clear. Unfortunately the antagonist is one of manââ¬â¢s oldest and strongest enemies, greed.
Saturday, August 3, 2019
George Orwells Nineteen Eighty-Four :: 1984 Essays
George Orwell is the pen name of Eric Arthur Blair, a British writer with political conscience. He was born in India but educated in England at Eton College. He served the Indian Imperial Police in Burma from 1922 to 1927. In sick health, he returned to Europe to live in poverty as a struggling writer. Orwell joined the Republican forces in the Spanish civil war, and wrote a chilling account of this experience. He went on to write many books, mostly autobiographical, and achieved successes as a brilliant writer. 2. SynopsisThe novel takes place in a theoretical and fictional dystopian totalitarian society. The story begins in London on April 4, 1984 after an atomic world war divides the world into three states. London is the capital of Oceania which is run by INGSOC(English Socialism). The controllers are called "The Party." The Party is divided into two sections, The Inner Party, and The Outer Party which are the "Rich" and the "middle-class." There is a third group of people called "The Proles," or "The Proletariat" which are the poor, and considered to be animals by the party. The main leader of this government is Big Brother. The novel is told in third person and partly first person, and is also divided into three parts. In the first part the main character and his conflicts with the world he lives in are revealed. Winston Smith is a bureaucrat who works for the government by altering history at the Ministry of Truth. He begins to ponder the reason things are so bad and commits a terrible crime. In the second part, he falls in love with Julia, and is taken in by a man named O'Brien, a member of the anti-party society called the Brotherhood. O'Brien turns out to be a true member of The Inner Party. Winston and Julia are captured and hauled off to the Ministry of Love (Minilove in Newspeak). Here, during the final part of the story, Winston is incarcerated and rehabilitated by The Party. O'Brien constantly tel ls Winston that Winston is crazy, and that he is trying to help him. During these sessions he reveals the true purposes of INGSOC. The party's goals can be summed up in their mottoes. "WAR IS PEACE, FREEDOM IS SLAVERY, and IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH(Orwell, 7)."3. ThemeUnder the rule of INGSOC, members of The Party are engrossed in their work. It is essential that the government keeps its people happy in order to avoid rebellions and "thought crimes.
Friday, August 2, 2019
Ethics Answers Essay
1)à à à à à à à à Yes, I agree with Emmanuel Kant. It is said that a manââ¬â¢s worth is measured by how much he helped others to ease their burdens, and acted with compassion for the well-being of the majority. But first, he must preserve his integrity and self-respect before he can serve his fellow man. As Kant stated, one who transgresses against himself loss his manliness and becomes incapable of doing his duty towards his fellows. The most important duty to us is the preservation of oneââ¬â¢s life and dignity. à à à à à à à à à à à 2)à à à à à à à à Yes. Certainly, suicide is abominable. And Kantââ¬â¢s arguments against suicide are very convincing and tenable. We, as human beings, are vested with the gift of willpower, the freedom to choose things that make us happy and contented. It would be a waste if this willpower is used as a means to destroy oneââ¬â¢s very life. Suicide defeats the purpose of what makes us human, that is to serve others and dignify oneââ¬â¢s life. à à à à à à à à à à à 3)à à à à à à à à In this instance, the Congressman lost his self-worth in two ways; one, by accepting bribe, and the second by being drunk. Because a manââ¬â¢s worth is by doing his moral duty to himself and others, this duty would not be attained because he transgresses against himself. Kant observed that he who transgresses against himself loses his manliness and become incapable of doing his duty towards his fellows. A man who fails in his duty to himself loses worth absolutely. à à à à à à à à à à à 4)à à à à à à à à Worth in Emmanuel Kantââ¬â¢s concept is the capacity of an individual to perform his moral duties to himself and others. It is a manââ¬â¢s over-all personality. Thus, a man who has destroyed and cast away his personality, has no intrinsic worth, and can no longer perform any manner of duty to himself and to his fellow human being.
Thursday, August 1, 2019
Contracts and Negligence Assignment Essay
Q. 1.1 A Contract is an agreement that is obligatory when imposed or acknowledged by law. (Peel, 2010). An agreement is a contract when forged with the willing approval of those involved in the contract, for a legal consideration and with a legitimate object, and not hereby expressly declared to be void (Malaysian Contracts Act, 1950). Contracts can either be Bilateral or Unilateral. Bilateral Contract is an agreement where a promise is exchanged for a promise. For instance, contract for the sale of goods is a bilateral contract. The purchaser promised to purchase the goods, in return for the sellerââ¬â¢s promise to supply the goods. Figure 1 Source: https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=drawing+of+bilateral+contract+by+wikispaces The above shows both sides promise to do something Unilateral Contract occurs where just one person makes a promise open and available to anyone who performs the required action. For example: ââ¬Å"collecting the reward such as à £100 for a lost document or petâ⬠is unilateral contract. Figure 2 Source: http://www.images.123.tw/unilateral-contract/ The above shows only one side promises Contract can also be oral or written. Furthermore in order for a contract to be valid the offer and acceptance criteria must be met. The lawfully acceptable method for a contract to be binding is illustrated in the diagram below. This is known as Formation of Contract. Figure 3 Source: (www.laws1008.wikispaces.com) A Contract comprises of six important elements before it becomes valid and these are; Offer, Acceptance, Consideration, Intention to create Legal relation, Certainty and Capacity. If a single one of elements mentioned above is missing, the agreed contract will become illegal. The main elements are explained below: Offer: This is the first element in a valid contract. According to Peel (2010) an offer is ââ¬Å"an expression of willingness to contract on specified terms, made with the intention that it becomes binding once it is accepted by the person to whom it is addressedâ⬠. An offer must be communicated and should be explicit. The person putting up the offer is referred to as offeror whilst the individual who receives the bid (offer) is referred to as the offeree. However, an offer must be distinguished from invitation to treat. There are two cases to be considered here. One case is Gibson v Manchester City Council (1979) Mr Gibson was sent a letter that informed him the council ââ¬Ëmay be prepared to sell the property to him for à £2,180 freeholdâ⬠. The City Treasurer stated in his letter that ââ¬Å"This letter should not be regarded as firm offer of a mortgageâ⬠. Included in the letter was the instruction on how to complete and return the enclosed application form to make a f ormal request to purchase the property. Mr Gibson did as he was requested butà because of unanticipated change in political leadership of the council, the proposed action to sell houses to tenants was changed and Mr Gibson was notified accordingly that it would no longer be possible for him to buy the house. Initially the Court of Appeal affirmed there was a binding contract between the the council and Mr Gibson but the verdict got over ruled on appeal to the House of Lords. The outcome of the judgement states that the first note forwarded by the Council was not an offer to sell rather it is an invitation to treat and further stated Mr Gibson did not accept an offer instead made one when he sent his completed requisitioned form. However, in an identical case of Storer v Manchester City Council (1974), Mr Storer puts in a bid to purchase his council property and he was forwarded an ââ¬ËAgreement for Sale of a Council Houseââ¬â¢ form which he signed and posted it back to the Council. The council received his reply before the political reform affecting the sales of house to council tenants transpired. The Council contended that the ââ¬ËSale of Agreement Form to sell the Council Houseââ¬â¢ was not an offer and in this instance no contract was contracted. However, the Judges failed to agree and ruled that the form was indeed an offer immediately Mr Storer signed the form and forwarded it back to the Council. It is pertinent to point out the differences between these two similar cases. In the case of Mr Gibson no ââ¬ËAgreement for Saleââ¬â¢ was prepared and Mr Gibson did not sign. Whereas for Mr Storerââ¬â¢s case there was an agreement; consequently, the bargaining has been done and an agreement attained. Acceptance: Is defined by Chartered Institute of Taxation as ââ¬Å"any words or actions signifying the offereeââ¬â¢s consent to the terms proposed by the offerorâ⬠. Acceptance must be final and unqualified. Acceptance should be conveyed to th e offeree. The wordings contained in the terms of the acceptance must be exact wordings in the terms of offer. Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Company (1891) case refers. The company placed an advert in a newspaper, and in addition put a sum of cash on deposit with a bank and say they would pay anyone who contacted influenza while using their products, a remedy for curing flu, coughs, colds, bronchitis. It stated that anyone who had the ailment after taking the medication shall be recompensed with à £100. A consumer, Ms Carlill, took the medication and caught the flu. The firm was sued by her for damages and her case was successful. Consideration: ââ¬Å"means something of value is given by one party to the order: ââ¬Ëit is the price ofà the promiseââ¬â¢ (Chartered Institute of Taxation 2013) In Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Co. Ltd v Selfridges & Co. Ltd. (1915) Consideration is ââ¬Å"an act of forbearance of one party or the promise thereof, is the party which the promise of the other is bought and promise thus given for value enforceableâ⬠. Selfridges broke the term of agreement and Dunlop sued and lost the case because Dunlop could not enforce the contract because they did not provide any consideration for the promise made by Selfridge. It is important to highlight that ââ¬Ëpast consideration is no consideration. This means that anything done before the promise in return is given is no consideration and it is not adequate to make the promise binding. Types of consideration include: Executed (present) this is when an act is completed. An example is a Unilateral contract Executory this is when promises have been made in exchange for performance of acts in the future. For instance, a Bilateral contract Past consideration. In addition there are certain requirements for consideration to be valid and these are: It must not be past. However, there are exceptions such as:à (a) Previous request where the promisor has previously asked the other to provide services. Lampleigh v Braithwait (1605) (b) Business Situations, that is, when a thing is done in business and both parties perceived that it will be paid for. Caseyââ¬â¢s Patents (1892) refers. (c) The Bill of Exchange Act 1882 Section 27 (1) says ââ¬Å"provided that previous debt is valid for a bill of exchangeâ⬠. It has to be forbearance to sue that is, if an individual has valid claim against another person but promises to forebear the enforcement. Combe v Combe (1951) & Alliance Bank v Broom (1864) It should be passed at the request of offerer. Durga Prasad v Baldeo (1880) It must move from the promisee. Dutton v Poole (1677) & Tweddle v. Atkinson (1861) It must be sufficient. Thomas v Thomas (1842); Chappel v Nestle (1960). Cannot consist s olely on sentiment value White v Bluett (1853) It must be legal that is not doing things that are immoral Wyatt v Kreglinger and Fernou (1933) Performance of existing duty that is, person carrying out duties that under general rules, they are required to do will not provide consideration. Traditional authority for rule: Collins v Godefroy (1831).à Carrying out additional duties: Glasbrook Brothers v Glasmorgan County Council (1925) Existing Contractual Duty this is where an individual has promised to do a thing already obligated to them under a contract that will not amount to a genuine consideration. (Stik v Myrick (1809) 2 Camp 317; Hartley v Ponsonby (1857); William v Roffey ââ¬â if a 3rd party is owed for existing contract Duties to pay debts. This is where debts are paid in instalment. This is not a valid consideration and it is known as Pinnelââ¬â¢s Case. Foakes v Beer (1884) Intention to create legal relations: Parties to the agreement must intend to go into a legally binding agreement or contract. This is an intention from the two involved parties to go into a lawful and binding association. If there is no intention the agreement will be void. Intention to create legal relations could be: Commercial or business relations. Kleinwort Benson Ltd v Mining Corporation Bhd (1989), or, Social friendââ¬â¢s relation. Simpkins v Pays (1955) and Family or domestic relations. Balfour v Balfour (1919). Capacity: All those involved in a contract should possess legitimate ability to go into it. An individual unsafe physically, demented or a minor under the age of 18 cannot go into a binding. However, certain groups of people who have limitations such as mental health issue, drunks and minors under the age of 18. Those are the mentally ill, Minors under the age of 18 as stipulated by the Family Reform Act 1969. e.g. Chapple v Copper (1844) where a service was considered necessary but in the case of Nash v Inman (1908). Where a waistcoat was supplied to a minor would have been considered necessary but in this case it was the other way round as, purchase of the waistcoat is not necessary because the father had already provided the minor with several waistcoats. If a minor procure a luxurious thing and did not acquire because of necessity, the minor is liable and be responsible for his action. Privy of Contract means that ââ¬Å"a contract cannot under normal situation confer rights or impose responsibilities emerging from it on any person except those involved in it. It is also known as ââ¬Å"Rights of the third party Act 1999â⬠. Treitel (2004) It isin also the relationship between the parties to an agreement, though there are exceptions, Q. 1.2. Face to Face (Verbal or Oral): This is ââ¬Å"an agreement based on spoken promises, however it may be difficult to prove and it legally binding andà both parties will understand what they have agreed to and bargained in good faithâ⬠. www.ehow.com Phillip v Brooks (1919) case refers. It is case that involved a thief who falsely pretended to be Sir George Bullogh and bought jewellery under Sir Bulloghââ¬â¢s name with a cheque. The thief convinced the jeweller to part with the ring because his wifeââ¬â¢s birthday was next day. The jeweller was convinced the was indeed Sir Bullogh after checking the address directory which tallies with Sir Bulloghââ¬â¢s address details. As soon as the rogue left, he sold the ring under the false name of Mr Frith and vanished into thin air. The claimant instituted a unilateral mistake of identity legal action. The case was affirmed that the transaction was not void for mistake because the parties transacted a face-to-face contract and in law it was assumed they dealt with the person before them and not the person they claimed to be. Written Contract: This is a written document indicating an agreement between two individuals. The parties can be human beings, organisations and businesses. All parties will have to append their signature to the contract to be legitimate. It also acts to protect both parties from breach of contract. www.wisegeek.com On-line: This is also known as Distance Selling when goods are sold to consumers void of face-to-face contact and done through Internet, e.g. Amazon.co.uk, eBay, booking vacation and on line banking. This type of transaction is governed by the Distance Selling Act 2000. Four contractual elements are contained in on-line contracts: offer, acceptance, consideration and intention. Contracts by Deed: ââ¬Å"is a written document signed by the promisor and it must be clear be clear in the wording of the document that is intended to take effect as a deed. The must be witnessed by a third party. (Chartered Institute of Taxation 2013). The property title will not be given to the potential buyer until the final payment is made. It is also referred to as Sales Contract. Q. 1.3. Terms are the contents of contract. It is used in the civil law, to denote the space of time given to the debtor to discharge his obligation. Terms could be expressive resulting from positive stipulations of an agreement. It could be of right or of grace it is not within the agreement. Terms are of grace when it is afterwards granted by the judge at the requisition of the debtor. Contracts terms may be expressive or implied and could be classified as either: conditions, or warranties or innominate terms. www.tutor2u.net An express term is one thatà has been particularly stated and agreed by both individuals at the time the contract is executed. It could be written or oral. www.tutor2u.net Implied terms are words or stipulations that a court presumes were planned to be incorporated in a contract meaning the terms are not expressively mentioned in the contract. www.elawresources.co.uk It could be: Terms implied through custom, Hutton v Warren (1836) EWHC J61; In fact. The Moorcock (1889) 14 PD 64 At Law Shell UK v Lostock Garage Limited (1976) 1 WLR 1187 There are two main types of implied term: (a)Terms implied by statue for example Sales of Goods Act 1979. There are about four key provision but I will use Section as an example that says ââ¬Å"goods should be of ââ¬Ësatisfactory qualityââ¬â¢ meaning they should be up to standard a rational individual would consider ââ¬Å"satisfactoryâ⬠and if the purchaser says the good is being purchased for a distinct reason, there is an implied terms the products are suitable for the intended purpose. www.tutor2u/net (b) Terms implied by law courts an example is if the courts held that landlords of blocks of flat should keep the communal areas including lifts, stairs etc. in a reasonable state of repairs ââ¬â so that the term was implied into the rent contract. an example case is Liverpool City Council v Irwin (1977) AC 236 HL Innominate term this when the parties involved fail to classify the commitments in the contract, the court will hold that they are unattested and apply the ex-post ââ¬Ëconsequence of breach test ââ¬â¢. The judgement given will depend on the magnitude of the breach. Case of: Hong Kong Fir Shipping v Kawasaki Kaisen Kaisha (1962) 2 QB 26 refers. Condition is a paramount term of the contract that goes deeply into the contract. For example if a proviso is contravened the guiltless party is entitled to renounce the contract and claim compensations. In the matter of Poussard v Spiers (1876) 1 QBD 410. Madame Poussard entered into contract to perform as an opera singer for three months. She was ill five days before the opening night and unable to perform for four days, held that she breached condition and that Spiers were entitled to end the contract. Warranties are minor terms of a contract which are not central to the existence of the contract. If a warranty is breached the innocent party may claim damages but cannot end the contract. Bettini v Gye (1876) QBD 183.à Trader puff is an expression of exaggeration made by a sales person or found in advertisement that concerned the goods offered for sale. It represents opinions instead of facts and is usually not considered a legally binding promise. Example of trader puff: ââ¬Å"this is in good shapeâ⬠and ââ¬Å"your wife will love this carâ⬠Representation Term ââ¬Å"is used in reference to any expressed or implied statement made by one of the parties to a contract in the course of negotiation to another regarding a particular fact or circumstances that influence the consummation of the deal and if not honoured the innocent party may bring an action for misrepresentation. (There are three types of misrepresentation as follows: Innocent, fraudulent and negligent misrepresentations (e-law resources) Learning Outcome ââ¬â 2: Mini-case A The case above is an expressive term Bi-lateral case one involving Fiona and her uncle which involves offer and acceptance. Uncle Arnold was the offerer and Fiona the offree. The offer here was à £15,000. The main element of this case was that of acceptance. The agreement failed due to non-acceptance and time as consideration because the uncle said ââ¬Å"fairly quicklyâ⬠with a third party involved ââ¬Å"I have already had a good offer from my colleagueâ⬠so the following is to be considered when giving the verdict: Term: Offer à £15,000 and Acceptance by Fiona, Bi-lateral, both written and expressive Consideration ââ¬â Time fairly quickly Third Party involved with better offer (Privity) Even though no clear straight form of acceptance occurred it is still a legal binding agreement but in this case Fiona cannot claim compensation for breach of agreement because it failed due to her delay and negligence in not responding in time. Therefore, if Fiona decides to go to court her case is not substantial enough to award her for damages. However, under vicarious liability Fiona can make a claim in court if she wishes. An example is Harvey v Facey (1893) AC 552 Privy Council. This was a case between Harvey and Facey in which correspondences were exchanged regarding sales of bumper Hall Pen asking for the sale of the property. (This was a distance offer as it was done through telegram). When Harvey asked ââ¬Å"Will you sell us Bumperà Hall Pen?â⬠. Facey responded ââ¬Å"Lowest price for the Bumper Hall Pen à £900â⬠to which Harvey responded ââ¬Å"We agree to purchase Bumper Hall Pen for à £900 asked by you. Please forward your title deed so that we may get early possessionâ⬠. Unknown to Harvey Facey was already negotiating with Kingston Council. The transaction failed and Harvey sued Facey. The issue in this case is ââ¬Å"was that there was no clear offerâ⬠from Facey to sell the property to Harvey so the Privy Council ruled that ââ¬Å"An offer cannot be implied by writing. It can only be concrete and sound. The appellant Harvey cannot imply that Facey made an offer when he did notâ⬠(www.casebriefsummary.com) Mini case B This is a distance, face-to face executed consideration and unilateral case involving offer of intention made by Mrs Smith open to everyone so no need for acceptance in this instance. The offer here is the reward of à £10 if her lost cat is found which did not involve transport cost. Mrs Smith refusal to David à £25 which include cost of transportation is valid and justified as payment for transportation was not included in the advert so therefore David has no case and could not claim for compensation if he goes to court. See Leonard v PepsiCo. PepsiCo placed a superfluous television advert stating ââ¬Å"Pepsi pointsâ⬠if Pepsi was drank highlighting a young person arriving at school in Harriet jet and mentioned that the Harrier jet was for 7,000,000 Pepsi points. Leonard attempted to collect the Harrier jet by forwarding 15 Pepsi points accompanied with a cheque for $700,000.00 in order to obtain the Harrier jet. PepsiCo refused the delivery of the Harrier jet. Leonard lost the case because advertisement was not an offer. Mini-case C Mrs Harris, the owner of three rented houses in Extown, asks her next-door neighbour, Ted, to collect rent from the tenants for her while she is abroad on business. Ted collects the rents and when Mrs Harris returns, she says to him, ââ¬Å"Iââ¬â¢ll give you à £50 for your workâ⬠. Later Mrs Harris refuses to pay Ted. Here is a bi-lateral verbal, expressive offer and acceptance case between Mrs Harris and Ted. The main contract element issue here is consideration because the act has already been performed by Ted before the agreement was met. Even with no binding agreement, the ââ¬Ërule of consideration applies in this caseââ¬â¢ because consideration can never be past or post, therefore in this case, Ted can sue Mrs Harris for consideration and breach of Contractà for his claims. For example see the case of Labriola v Pollard Group, Inc. (2004) Mini-case D The above is an offer and acceptance bi-lateral expressive written contract case between Lynx Cars Ltd and Roadstar Ltd though the agreement is not legal binding. The offeror is Lynx Cars Ltd whilst the offeree is Roadstar Ltd. The contract term as stated here are the quantity of cars (2000), time limit of five years with no financial loss incurred. Roadstar Ltd was informed in good time of just four weeks cancellation into the agreement. My verdict is that for Roadstar Ltd to make a claim the agreement must be legally binding which is missing in this case. Therefore Roadstar can withdraw from the agreement but cannot make any claims for compensation because of reasons given above. Mini-case E The above case was initially a unilateral case because it was advertised and opened to all but after the agreement was signed between Slick Cars and Paul it became Bi-lateral. The agreement was also an expressive one with contract term of conditions, warranty and trade puffs met. However if in the future something goes wrong with the car, Paul is not entitled too claims because all the sales conditions were met as of the time of purchase. Also if the car was discovered to have been stolen, Slick Cars Ltd and not Paul will be liable for prosecution. The warranty on the car includes the refund of road tax payment and an implied term of ââ¬Å"buying a car from their hundreds of carsâ⬠. All the conditions regarding the sales of the car have been met bargain including the traders puff. My advice to Paul is to go ahead and buy the car as he has no liability regarding the car even if the car was to be a stolen one. However if the Trade puff does not represent what the advert says, or any of the condition is missing, Paul has the right to terminate the agreement his money will be refunded but will not be entitled to any compensation. However if the Trade puff defaults and Paul has evidence to support it, Paul can sue for compensation. Verdict Paul to buy the car but he should bear in mind that the warranty cannot end the contract but again, he could be compensated. Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Company (1891) case refers. Mini-case F The above is a clear case of tort negligence and breach duty of care. Negligence failure on Duty of Care on both the part of the Council and the Leisure Centre. The Councilââ¬â¢s notice was partially obscured so not visible to Jim and his wife, also the Council should have cut the overgrown shrubs failure to do this is maintenance negligence as this accident could have been prevented in addition Jimââ¬â¢s car damaged by the Council van is a health is an implied term and safety issue for which the Council is liable. The Leisure Centre on the other hand did not show any Duty of Care when the accident happened and therefore liable to pay for injuries and other related costs. In view of the above, it is my considered advice that Jim and his wife get compensated. See Blake v Galloway (2004) CA Q. 3.1 Tort is a civil wrong committed against an individual and originated from the Latin word tortum meaning ââ¬Å"twisted wrongâ⬠and also conceded in court law as arguments for a legal action that can be resolved through compensations. See, e.g. Smith v. United States, 507 U.S. 197 (1993). This is a case involving the of a husband who got killed whilst working for a private firm under contract to a Federal Agency in Antarctica a region with no recognised government and without civil tort law and the wife sued The United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) for wrongful death in action. The case was dismissed by the District court for lack of jurisdiction because Mrs Smithââ¬â¢s case was stopped by FTCAââ¬â¢s foreign country exception policy that states that the statuteââ¬â¢s waiver of sovereignty immunity does not apply, however, the Court of Appeals affirmed. (https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/507/179/case.html) The principal reason for tort law is ensuring compensation is given for the injuries sustained and to prevent others from committing the same harms. Inclusive of the types of injuries the injured party may recover are: loss of salaries fitness, pain hardship, and rational medical costs. These are inclusive of both present and future expected losses. Tort could be in form of trespass, assault, battery, negligence, products liability, and intentional infliction of emotional distress Torts are classified into three categories as follows: Intentional torts: These are intentional acts that are rationally and foreseeably done to injure another person. Intentional torts are unethical behaviours the defendant knew or should have known could transpire as a result of their actions or inactions, an example is to intentionally hit a person. Case of Broome v Perkins [1987] Crime LR 271 refers. The appellant was diabetic and drove in an unsafe manner whilst suffering from hypo-glycaemia, a low blood sugar level caused by an excess of insulin in the bloodstream. His claim of non-insane automatism failed because of evidence that he had exercised conscious control over his car by veering away from other vehicles so as to avoid a collision and braking. His was found guilty for driving without undue care and attention Negligent torts are the most common tort used to describe behaviour that constitute unreasonable risks to harm to a person or property or where the defendantââ¬â¢s actions were irrationally precarious. Vaughan v Menlove (1837) 3 Bing NC 467 in this case the defendantââ¬â¢s haystack caught fire because of poor ventilation. The defendant had been warned several times that the haystack could cause fire but he contended he had used his acumen and did not anticipate a risk of fire. The court held his logic was inadequate. He was adjudged by the standard of a reasonable man. (www.e-lawresources.co.uk) However, it pertinent to mention that not all wrongful act is a tort. In order for a tort to be constituted the following must exist: Every wrongful act is not a tort. To constitute a tort, There must be an unjustified action carried out an individual person The unjustified action must be serious in nature to have given warranted a judicial relief and Such judicial relief should be in the manner of an action for un-established injuries. Strict liability torts are when a person places another in danger in the absence of negligence because he possessed weapon, animal or product and it is not compulsory for the plaintiff to prove negligence meaning :mens reaâ⬠. http://education-portal.com See Sweet v Parsley 1970 HL This is a case involving a landlady who lets rooms to tenants however she kept a room for herself and visits once in a while to collect her letters and the rent. In her absence the house was raided by the police and cannabis found. She wasà found guilty under s5 of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1965 (now replaced), of ââ¬Å"being concerned in the management of premises used for the smoking of cannabisâ⬠. She appealed and claimed no understanding of the situation and could not be expected to rationally have acquired such understanding. Her conviction was revoked by The House of Lords, due to lack of proof that she purposely rented her house to be used for drug-taking, since the statute in question created a serious, or ââ¬Å"truly criminalâ⬠offence, the judgement convicting her would have grave consequences for the landlady who is the defendant. Lord Reid stated that ââ¬Å"a stigma still attaches to any person convicted of a truly criminal offence, and the more serious or more disgraceful the offence the greater the stigmaâ⬠. Lord Reid in furtherance pointed out that it was inappropriate to levy her for total liability for this type of wrongdoing because the people who were in charge for renting properties are not likely to have anticipated everything that their tenants were doing. It is imperative to mention that there are both similarities and differences in torts. Similarities between tort and contract laws The above two laws share the same similarities in that they are both civil wrong. In tort the injured person will claim damages with a classical example of Donoghue v Stevenson (1932) whilst in contract the injured person will sue for compensation an example is the case of Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Co. Limited v New Garage & Motor Co Limited (1915) A C 79. In both tort and contract violations monetary rewards or any payment that will atone for the losses Differences between tort and contract laws are shown in the table below: Tort Law Contract Law No relationship with the claimant, could be total stranger Claimants could be known to each other and parties to the contract Consent not necessary liability is warranted by one individual against another Consenting parties are involved Tort is punitive Contracts is positive, creative situations Tort is used to claim compensation by the injured party Contract involves two or more parties In tort damages are imposed by court or negotiated In Contract compensations are awarded as stipulated in the contractual agreement Tort law is not codified Contract law is codified Tort law safeguards right in rem available against everyone It protects rights in personam meaning against a particular person Damages are un-liquidated Damages are liquidated Source: http://www.acadmia.edu Q. 3.2 Negligence is the failure to take reasonable care or exercise the required amount of care to preventing harming others. An example is where an accident occurs that injured another person or cause damage to the car because the driver was driving erratically, the driver could be sued for negligence. http://www.thismatter.com Negligence in behaviour and duty usually have a disastrous effect on individuals and the society as whole, and in order to protect the society from these dangerous acts, legal steps are taken such as included in the elements of negligence. Consequently, elements of negligence as explained below: Duty of Care: is the statutory obligation made mandatory on every rational human being of sound mind to exercise a level of care towards an individual, as reasonably in all the situations, so as to avoid injury to other fellow human being from being or damage his or her property. An example is the celebrated case of Donoghue v Stevenson (1932) in which the claimant drank gi nger beer bought by her friend containing a dead snail causing her harm . This case brought about the ââ¬Å"neighbour principle testâ⬠and according to Lord Atkin ââ¬Å"Reasonable care must be taken to avoid acts or omission which one can reasonably foresee to injure oneââ¬â¢s neighbour and this brought about the question ââ¬ËWho then in law is my neighbour?ââ¬â¢ Neighbours are those individuals who will be closely and directly affected by oneââ¬â¢s actâ⬠This case led to the Neighbourââ¬â¢s principle. Duty of care is therefore based on the relationship of different partiesââ¬â¢ involved, negligent act or omission and the reasonable foreseeability of loss to that person http://.www.carewatch.blogspot.co.uk. The loss here may arise as a result of misfeasance or nonfeasance and may also cause pureà economic loss as I the case of Ultramares Corporation v Touche (1931) and psychiatrist damage or nervous shock. Case of Alcock v Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police (1991) refers In order to establish a Care of duty, the liste d bullet points below also known as the tripartite contained in negligence must be met: The element must be reasonably be foreseeable There must be a relationship between the claimant and the defendant It must be fair, just and reasonable in such environment or situation for a duty of care to be sanctioned. Example is the matter of Caparo v Dickman (1990) HL a case involving auditors certifying false account for the company. (www.sixthformlaw.info) Breach of Duty: is where the defendant fails to meet the standard of care as stipulated by law and to confirm if the defendant owed the plaintiff any moral or obligatory duty. However the defendant is not enforced to have any contractual liability with the plaintiff. The responsibility can be moral or legitimate. Example is the case of Willsher v Essex Area Health Authority (1988) 1 AC 1074 in which a premature babe was given overdose of oxygen by a junior doctor that affected the babyââ¬â¢s retina and made him blind. The case was affirmed as the defendant was in breach of duty (www.e-lawresource.co.uk) Psychiatric Injury: This arises from ââ¬Å"sudden assault on the nervous system (www.lawteacher.net) and until recently was uncertain in tort of negligence. For claimants to make claims regarding psychiatric injury he or she must be able to prove that the injury was genuine. However emotions of grief or sorrow are not enough to cause psychiatric injury Hinz v Berry (1970) 2 QB 40 The Hinz family went out for a day trip when a jaguar driven by Berry ran into the Hinzââ¬â¢s car killing the Mr Hinz and injuring the children. Mrs Hinz witnessed the incident and became depressed but her claim was rejected by the Court of Appeal. Factual Causation: This is the process where it must be proved reasonably in the law that the defendantââ¬â¢s ââ¬Ëactionââ¬â¢ led to damage. This in some cases, applying ââ¬Å"but forâ⬠test in most cases resolve the disputed tortââ¬â¢s law cases but if it was proved, the fact must go hand in hand with the other elements, in order to make the case valid and if established, then the defendant is said to be liable to damages. The case of Barnet v Chelsea & Kensington Hospital Management Committee (1969) in which a Mr Barnett went to hospital and complained of stomach pains and vomiting, he was attended to by a nurse whoà informed the doctor on duty. The doctor told the nurse to send him home and visit his GP in the morning. Mr Barnet passed away five hours later due to arsenic poisoning. Even if the doctor had examined Mr Barnett at the time he visited the hospital there was nothing he could have done to save him. The hospital was found not liable but this case introduced the ââ¬Å"but forâ⬠test that is, the hospital was not negligent for the death of Mr Barnett. Bermingham. (2005). However, there is no need to prove negligence has a certain pattern or order. The elements are principally the determining rules in assessing whether a certain case is a case of negligence or not. Damages: This is the sum of money a plaintiff gets awarded in a lawsuit. There are various types of damages such as: Special damages: caused by the injury received inclusive of medical and hospital bills, ambulance charges, loss of wages, property repair or replacement costs or loss of money due on a contract. General damages: is a result of the other partyââ¬â¢s actions, however, they are subjective both in nature and in determining the value of damages. These include pain and suffering, future problems and crippling effect of an injury, loss of ability to perform various acts, shortening of life span, mental anguish, and loss of companionship, loss of reputation in a libel suit, humiliation from scars, loss of anticipated business and other harm. Exemplary (Punitive) damages: This is the combination of punishment and the setting of public example. Exemplary damages may be awarded when the defendant acted in a malicious, violent, oppressive, fraudulent, wanton or grossly reckless way in causing the special and general damages to the plaintiff. On occasion punitive damages can be greater than the actual damages, for example, in a sexual harassment case or fraudulent schemes, though these damages are often requested for, they are rarely granted. Nominal damages: These are damages awarded when the actual harm is minor and an award is necessitated under the circumstances. The most famous case was when Winston Churchill was awarded a shilling (about 25 cents) against author Louis Adamic, who wrote that the British Prime Minister had been drunk at a dinner at the White House. The Times. (1947) Liquidated damages are damages pre-set by the parties in a contract to be awarded in case one party defaults as in breach of contract. The case of Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Company v New Garage & Motor co (1915) AC 70 refers. Defences forà Negligence: This is where the defendant tries to introduce evidence that he did not cause the plaintiffââ¬â¢s damage or injury. (www.injury.findlaw.com) There are several defences obtainable to negligence claims such as: Violenti non fit injuria: This is a Latin phrase which means ââ¬Å"for a willing person, there is no harmâ⬠and used in civil cases as a defence especially when the claimant voluntarily assented to start legal risk of harm at his own peril. In the case of: Smith v Baker (1891) AC 325. The plaintiff was employed by the defendants on a railway construction site and during the course of his work rocks were moved over his head by a crane. It was known to both the plaintiff and his employers that there a risk possibility of a stone falling on him and had earlier complained to his employer about the risk A stone fell and injured him and he sued his employers for negligence. His employer pleaded violenti non fit injuria and declined by the court because although the plaintiff knew about the risk and continued to work but no evidence shown that he voluntarily undertook to run the risk of injury, but his continuance to work did not indicate volens (his consent). Contributory negligence: This defence applies where the damage suffered by was caused partly both by the claimant and the defendant. Here the defendant must prove that the claimant failed to take reasonable care for his own safety and this caused the damage. This was enacted in the Law Reform Contributory Negligence Act 1945 according to Cracknell (2001) that (1) ââ¬Å"Where any person suffers damage as the result is partly of his own fault and partly of the fault of any other person or persons, a claim in respect in respect of the damage shall not be defeated by by reasons of the fault of the person suffering the damage, but the damages recoverable in respect thereof shall be reduced to such exte nt as the court thinks just and equitable having regard to the claimantââ¬â¢s share in the responsibility of the damageâ⬠so, if contributory negligence is confirmed the claimant would be awarded the cost proportional to his own fault of the damage. For example if the claimant was entitled to à £20,000.00 (Twenty thousand Pounds and he was responsible for 25 per cent of the damage, the claimant would be awarded à £15,000.00 (Fifteen thousand Pounds only). However, sometimes contributory negligence operates in complete defence as in Common law where the court found the claimant to be partially blame for their injuries they might receive nothing. In the case of Butterfield v Forrester (1809) 11 East 60à the plaintiff was injured when rode his horse erratically and ran into a post obstruction negligently left on the road by the defendant near his house with the intentions of carrying out repairs. A witness confirmed the plaintiff (Butterfield) was riding dangerously and could not avoid the post. The witness further testified that if the plaintiff was not riding dangerously he would have seen the post and the accident would have been avoided. The plaintiff was found guilty of contributory negligence and received nothing. Froom v Butcher (1976) QB 286. The driver of a car did not use the safety belt and was seriously injured in the accident with the defendantââ¬â¢s car as a result of the defendantââ¬â¢s negligence. The injuries sustained by the driver would not have been that serious if he wore the seat belt. His damages were reduced by 20 per cent by the Court of Appeal. This accident resulted in the introduction of not wearing safety belt as a criminal offence. Statutory or Common Law Justification: In certain situation a person may have a worthy defence to a tort action if he has valid evidence that his actions are covered by statutory rule and applicable law or legislation. A good example is the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1968 distinctly setting out the power of Police to arrest, stop and search and entry. If these powers are used fairly and responsibly, the Act will yield a good defence to a tort action. Self-defence might possibly be a good justification in common law for tortious actions as in the case of R v Gladstone Williams (1984) 78 Cr. App. R. 276. Ex turpli causa non oritur actio (Illegality) : This is coined from Latin to mean ââ¬Å"of an illegal act there can be no lawsuitâ⬠(www.legal-glossary.com) In the case of Vellino v Chief Constable of Greater Manchester (2002) 1 WLR 218 Court of Appeal Vellino was a regular offender with history of convictions. He was arrested and as usual tried to jump from the second floor window and got himself injured seriously. The Police were aware of his several attempts in the past and knew this to be dangerous but did nothing to stop him from escaping. In his attempt to escape from the second floor he injured himself and suffered fractured skull resulting in brain damage and quadriplegia also known as tetraplegia, a paralysis caused by the injury he sustained making completely dependent on people for support. Vellino sued the Police and claimed they owe him duty of care to prevent him from injuring himself which the Police denied and in their defence raised ex ââ¬Ëturpi causaââ¬â¢ that it was a criminalà offence for an arrested person to attempt to escape. The claimantââ¬â¢s appeal was dismissed. Consent: Is a full defence raised in civil cases especially when a defendant is sued for civil litigation for committing an intentional tort. . It is also referred to as assumption of risk and it plays an important role in law. In common law consent is regarded as a necessary ingredient for creating a binding contractual bargain. In addition Consent is very closely linked with ââ¬Å"volenti non fit injuriaâ⬠. Below are the types of Consent: Express Consent: Is when the defendant agreed to willingly submit to plaintiffââ¬â¢s action. For example, Tom willingly takes part in a tackle football game and Henry tackled Tom, Tom suffers a knee injury. Henry is not liable because Tom obviously consented by agreeing to take part in the game. Implied Consent: is deduced from plaintiffââ¬â¢s conduct. (Oââ¬â¢Brien v Cunard S. S. Co., 28 N. E. 266 (1891) Plaintiff was a passenger abroad on one of the Defendantââ¬â¢s ships. She was vaccinated whilst on the ship and suffered complication resulting in injury. She sued for assault and injury. Her case was dismissed on the grounds that she did not object when the defendantââ¬â¢s doctor indicated he wants to vaccinate her. Informed Consent: This is an individualââ¬â¢s agreement to allow something to occur made with full knowledge of the risks involved and other options to his chosen course of action. However, consent by the plaintiff does not authorise the defendant to do whatever he wishes to the plaintiff because of the contact that the defendant made with the plaintiff should not go beyond what the plaintiff consented to. For example, if I visited my Dentist to remove a rotten tooth and in the process he noticed a tumour and removed it without my consent. I could sue my GP for assault and injury because I did not consent to him to remove the tumour I only consented to him to remove my rotten tooth. (1) Consent will be void if it is obtained by trickery or by fraudulent means. Bartell v. State 82 N.W. 142 (Wis. 1900). Case refers. (2) Consent will be void if it is given under duress or threats of physical force. (3) Consent will also be void if it was given as a result of a mistake and the mistake was (a) Caused by the defendant, or (b) The defendant was aware of the mistake and he did not alert the plaintiff. Necessity: It is an affirmative defence that is raised when a tortious act is committed by an individual, for the prevention of greater harm or injury from occurring to the community, defendant or defendantââ¬â¢s property. Regina v Dudley & Stephen (1884) 14 QBD 273 DC. In this case, Dudley and Stephen the defendants and Brooms were ship wrecked with Parker, a fellow young seaman. They have been without food and water for almost three weeks. The defendants killed Parker to provide food for themselves to save them from starvation but Brooms dissented. They were found guilty of murder (www.casebriefs.com) Q. 3.3 Vicarious liability is ââ¬Å"one which on one individual as a result of an action of anotherâ⬠. Rutherford and Bone. (1993). For example, is the liability of an employer for the acts and omission of his employees. It can be regarded as strict liability due to the defendant not being at fault. The most popular vicarious liability is when the employee otherwise the ââ¬Ëtortfeasorââ¬â¢ commits a tort while in his employerââ¬â¢s employment, the employer is held liable and this due to the doctrine of ââ¬Ërespondeat superiorââ¬â¢ a Latin phrase meaning ââ¬Ëlet the master answerââ¬â¢ . For a court to establish if an employee acted whilst in employment the following must be confirmed if: Did the action happen whilst the employee is at work and during working hours? Did the employer employ the employer when the incident occurred? Was the injury due to the actions of the employee in the role the employed was hired? Example is the case of Mattis v Pollock (t/a Flaming oââ¬â¢s Nightclub) (2003) EWCA Civ 887 The bouncer was employed by Flamingo night club and in the course of performing his duty he got into a fight with one the customers and stabbed the customer. His employer were held liable for the injuries caused to the customer. Other case example is Other was in which a business can be liable in vicarious manner is when the employee acted in an unauthorised ways whilst performing the contractual duties, or when the employee acted against his employerââ¬â¢s instruction, or if the employee commits fraud andà acted against his work boundaries. In all the above, the employer is still liable vicariously. Examples of different cases are enumerated below: In the case of Century Insurance Co. Road Transport Board (1942) AC 509 HL and Limpus v. London General Omnibus Co (1862). The driver o a petrol tanker was in employment whilst transferring petrol into and underground storage tank. He struck a match to light a cigarette resulted in explosion that caused a lot of damage. It was held negligent the driver was negligent in carrying out his duties and his employer was found negligent. Limpus v. London General Omnibus Co. (1862) in this case th e driver was speeding to collect passengers and purposely obstructed the driver of a rival company and overturned the latterââ¬â¢s bus despite that the bus driver had been warned strictly not to cause obstruction. His employer LGOC was found liable Employee committing a fraud whilst in employment is illustrated in the case of Lloyd v Grace, Smith and Co. 1912 in this case the plaintiff wants to sell some cottages and went to the solicitors. The managing clerk of Lloyd conned the plaintiff to transfer the cottages to him and embezzled part of the mortgage money. Lloyd was sued by the employee and they were found liable for the fraud committed by the clerk even though it was only the clerk who benefited from the fraud. Control Test: The control test was the original test that has its origin in master and servant law and it also explore who has dominance over the way work is carried out the work. This test was applied in Mersey dock and Harbour Boards v Coggins and Griffiths Ltd (1946) Mersey Dock was in charge of training and for providing crane operator to organizations. Mersey contracted one of his operators to Stevedore Company and caused injuries through his negligent in operating of the cra ne. Mersey Dock was found liable as it was assumed the crane operator was in their employment as a contractor. Finally, the Employeeââ¬â¢s criminal behaviour is one of the positive factors of how a business can be vicariously liable because if whilst in employment commits any criminal action his employer is liable vicariously the case of Heasemans v Clarity Cleaning (1987) Court of Appeal where the defendant employed an office cleaner who in the course of her duty used the plaintiffââ¬â¢s telephone for international calls. The appeal of the contactor was successful as it was held that was not vicariously liable for his employeeââ¬â¢s act Health and Safety Act 1974: It is also referred to as HSWA or HASAWA is the main pieceà of law or legislation that covers occupational health and safety at work and gives wide-ranging duties on employers to ensure in a reasonable practical manner the health, safety and welfare at work of all employees, likewise it also expect some degree of responsibilities from employees. Source: (http://www.hse.gov.uk/legislation/hswa.htm) The main purpose of this Act is to ensure: The security, of health and safety as well as the welfare of individuals at work To protect individuals against risk to health and or safety in relations to the activities of individuals at work To control and prevent the use of illegally acquired of hazardous dangerous substances. Employersââ¬â¢ responsibilities include: To provide and maintain safety equipment and safe systems at work. To ensure hazardous materials used are properly stored, handled, utilised and transported safely To provide supervision, instruction, information, training at work for employees To ensure the control of certain emission into air To provide a safe working environment To provide a written safety policy/risk assessment for employees Look after the health and safety of others such as the members of public. On the other hand, the employeesââ¬â¢ responsibilities include: Taking care of their own health and safety and that of others, failure to do this makes the employees liable Must avoid interfering with things provided by the employer in the interest of health and safety Must cooperate with their employers Source: (http://www.slideshare.net/ManojRNair/work-based-learning-health-and-safety-act-1974) Finally, it is worth mentioning that there are other several relevant legislations amongst which are: Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 Fatal Accident Act 1976 Limitation Act 1980 Law Reform (Contributory Negligence) Act 1945 Employersââ¬â¢ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969 Employersââ¬â¢ Liability (Defective Equipment) 1969 Civil Procedures Rules (as amended by the Woolf reforms) Sources: (www.leeds.ac.uk) In conclusion the above report has critically and chronically been done and analysed to reflect on all the relevant issues affecting Aspects of Contracts and Negligence. ââ¬Å"Vicarious Liability.â⬠StudyMode.com. 02, 2013. 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