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The Comparing Betweem Venus Of Milos And Venus Of Sandro Botticelli
The Comparing Betweem Venus Of Milos And Venus Of Sandro Botticelli
This essay will examine the parallel ideas behind the Venus de Milos and trhe birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli. Venus de Milos is an ancient Greek statue, carved in marble 150 BCE and the Louvre Museum in Paris houses it. It is a depiction of the goddess Aphrodite. Though its features seem classical, it is a late Hellenistic work, created at a time when Greek culture as a whole was in decline. The painting the Birth of Venus is the work of the Italian artist Sandro Botticelli and it dates around 1482 ACE. The idea and ideal of Venus inspire the artists to create masterpieces. One can talk about idolatry-the worship of an image, the love with the classical ideal, as the power that inspire both Botticelli and the sculptor of Venus de Milos. the idea of venus maybe an allegory: venus may be the personification of human beauty and superiority over the nature. But who was Venus, or better, who was Aphrodite, as the goddess of love is called with her Greek name? Aphrodite, in Greek mythology, is the goddess of love and beauty and the counterpart of the Roman goddess Venus. In a Homeric legend, mentioned in the Iliad, she is said to be the daughter of Zeus and Dione, one of Zeus’s consorts. In the Theogony of Hesiod, she is described as having sprung from the foam of the sea, and etymologically her name may mean “foam-risen.” According to Homer, Aphrodite is the wife of Hephaestus, the lame and ugly god of fire. Her lovers include Ares, god of war, who in later mythology was represented as her husband. She was the rival of Persephone, queen of the underworld, for the love of the beautiful Greek youth Adonis. Perhaps the most famous legend about Aphrodite concerns the cause of the Trojan War. Eris, the personification of discord-the only goddess not invited to the wedding of King Peleus and the sea nymph Thetis-resentfully tossed into the banquet hall a golden apple on which were inscribed the words “for the fairest.” When Zeus refused to judge between Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite, the three goddesses who claimed the apple, they asked Paris, prince of Troy, to make the award. Each goddess offered Paris a bribe: Hera, that he would be a powerful ruler; Athena, that he would achieve great military fame; and Aphrodite, that he should have the fairest woman in the world. Paris declared Aphrodite the fairest and chose as his prize Helen of Troy, the wife of the Greek king Menelaus. Paris’s abduction of Helen led to the Trojan War. Probably of Near Eastern origin, Aphrodite was identified in early Greek religious belief with the Phoenician goddess Astarte and was known under a variety of cult titles, including Aphrodite Urania, queen of the heavens, and Aphrodite Pandemos, goddess of the whole people. Venus de Milo, which means Aphrodite of Milos, it was found on the Greek island of Milos in 1820. Although it is of a grandiose style that recalls the Classical Period, the Venus de Milo is from the late Hellenistic Age ( ). Beside it stood a herma (stone pillar) on which the arm of the goddess rested. On the base of the herma was inscribed the signature of an artist, Alexandros, or Agesandros, from Antioch on the Meander. By this signature the work can be dated from 150 BC to 100 BC. A hand holding an apple was also found on Milos, and this may have been a part of the figure. If so, Aphrodite was represented as the goddess of the “apple island” (Greek milo, “apple”). The original on which the artist based his work was probably an Aphrodite of the 4th century BC, which showed the goddess holding the shield of Ares with both hands. In the Milos statue, however, Aphrodite may have held her garment in her (now lost) right hand. The statue stands in a typical Greek “S” figure style, as many other statues from the classical world. The viewer can easily see the charm of Venus, both in the face and at the pose. Venus depicts the ideals of ancient Greece, which were anthropocentric, that means, humans are the center of the world. By the later, the Greeks may want to say that among all nature, the most beautiful thing is human nature, something that Sophocles also stated in one of his tragedies. Venus was the goddess of beauty, and perhaps for artist who sculpted the Venus de Milos, the goddess was the apotheosis of the beauty of nature. One must keep in mind that the ancient Greeks did not have omnipotent and omniscient gods. Their gods functioned as the humans did: they had sex, cheated and so on. The only deference between a human and a god was the fact that the god could not die. The statue of Venus de Milos may symbolize among other things the human willingness for eternal beauty and youth. The statue is half naked, but it should not be a surprise to the viewer. The Greeks did not consider nudity as a sin. In fact there was no word in their dictionary that could be parallel to our modern conceptions of sin. Human beauty, since it was the highest of all things, should be seen by many. The later belief can be derived from the fact that, many Greek statues, among them Venus de Milos, were nude. Venus de Milos may also symbolize the beauty of life. Death was not a big deal for the Greeks. That is why they did not like to mention deaths name. But life was a big deal, and Venus de Milos may be the personification of the beauty of life, which one can enjoy while she/he is young and beautiful. Sandro Botticelli in the 15th century was inspired by the same ideal, the beauty of human nature. His painting shows Venus coming out from the sea on a shell. The painting was painted in an era at which people start to cut themselves apart the doctrines of the church. During that time, which is referred as the renaissance, people looked back to the classical world for ideas to imitate so that their generation could be great as the Greco-Roman generation was. Venus is naked as well and she shines in light, as if she was the neoplatonic light of beauty shining to the cave of this ugly world. One can see, however, the goddess attempt in the painting to hide (maybe partially) her nudity. The later is due perhaps to the fact that Boticelli’s generation was not totally apart from the teachings of the church. Nevertheless, the fact is that the 15th century generations looked back to the past to find inspiration. The classical myths of Venus inspired the Italian painter, as well as the themes of beauty. The Venus of Botticelli stands in “S” figure style, or contraposto, as it is nowadays known. The same pattern of depiction was used in the Venus de Milos. Venus in the painting of the Italian artist is coming out from the sea. It is a story from the Greek mythology that was used by Botticelli. One may say that the depiction of Venus as a goddess coming out from the sea has an additional meaning. For the Greeks Venus was the goddess of love and beauty. Maybe Botticelli wanted allegorically to say that Venus in his painting is the symbol of the new (reborn one could better say) ideals that were rising. The new ideals were the ancient Greco-Roman ideal, that took away the strength of the church, which had been the highest institution through the Middle Ages. Botticelli worshiped Venus, an allegorical goddess, which was to bring change to the world. Venus is the new way of thinking, a way of thinking based of beauty and freedom of the individual, who can be nude if he/she wants. The sculptor of Venus de Milos worshiped his Venus as well: for Alexandros of Antioch, Venus stood for the superiority of human beauty and nature over the creation, which as idea that the generation of Botticelli stared to follow. The worship of Venus may be interpreted as the victory, the rising from the sea victory, of human logic over superstitious teaching and reasoning. The worshipers of Venus are worshipers of humanity, which centers the world, not around a spirit but on the human activity.
Bibliography:
The Burakumin Japanese Outcasts
The Burakumin: Japanese Outcasts
Racism and discrimination is a common, but not accepted, practice in most societies. The thing that makes the discrimination of the Japanese Burakumin so different is the fact that they are racially the same as all other Japanese. Discrimination of Burakumin has been going on for centuries.
In feudal Japan, there was a cast system that was formed. There was the emperor, the feudal lords, samurais, farmers, artisans, merchants and a group called hinin. Hinin usually had dirty jobs like cleaning toilets or leather craft. Beneath this group were the Burakumin. A portion of historians believe that early Burakumin were most likely native Japanese tribesmen that were defeated during warfare and forces into slavery. The modern Burakumin are descendents of gravediggers, executioners, and animal slaughterers and of people who had other “dirty” jobs. They are excluded from normal social activity because of Buddhist law, which states people who killed and ate meat were impure. Today, the Burakumin make up about 2.5% of Japan’s population.
Officially, law has done with the Burakumin class away. However, people are still discriminated against for being a descendent of this original class.
To this day, the segregation continues. This segregation led to the construction of numerous communities to house Burakumin. Most maps of Japan do not show these communities. The people who lived in these settlements were referred to as Hinin (non-people) or Burakumin. They were not allowed to converse with the rest of Japanese citizens. In fact, as recent as fifty years ago, Burakumin had to wear a leather patch so people would know they were Burakumin.
The Burakumin were not allowed to marry a regular Japanese citizen. It was strictly forbidden. The following is an example of what would happen to someone who married a Burakumin woman—“My parents said I could not have any relationship with them. I have two sons ages nine and eleven. My father met the first one once when he was a baby, and the second time a few months ago by accident at the hospital when we were visiting my grandmother” (Daily). The families only lived miles apart for ten years but never talked. Even after his wife died of cancer, his father still would not talk to him. The embarrassment of having Burakumin grandchildren was too much to handle. If one were to come into contact with a Burakumin, they would have to see a Buddhist priest to be cleansed of their impurity. Burakumin had no given surnames; instead they were given a number. Burakumin were not allowed to eat, drink, or smoke near a non-Burakumin. They also suffer from medical ailments more than the average Japanese citizen. This is due to bad medical care. Many Burakumins have low-paying jobs with no insurance. They suffer from tuberculosis and trachoma at a higher than average rate.
Japanese citizens would not even touch something that a Burakumin had touched. For instance, if someone known to be Burakumin tried to buy food the storekeeper would most likely wear gloves rather than touch the money given to him by a Burakumin. Another example of this discrimination is when a fire would start in a Burakumin ghetto; neighbors would discuss how the fire had a tremendous stench. Most likely, the Burakumin house fires would be the last to be put out. In present day Japan, Burakumin work with non-Burakumin and most workers do not know the Burakumin, but management does know. They have private investigators to track addresses of potential employees. If they are found to have Burakumin residences, they will either not be hired or start off 5%-10% less than non-Burakumin employees. Burakumin are seen as uneducated and dirty even though they are racially identical to non-Burakumin. “Only 10.6% of Burakumin were reported to be employed in enterprises of over 300 employees, well below the national average of 23.3%” (Somucho 20).
Most of Japan’s large companies have Burakumin files-a list that shows all of the Burakumin slums in their area. When companies renew applications for employment, they hire private investigators to look for Burakumin addresses. In turn, the Burakumin applicants are not called in for interviews. Most companies simply throw the application in the trash.
Kiryu is home to the largest Burakumin ghettos; it has about ninety of them. There, numerous Burakumin live outside of the slums and meticulous methods are used to disguise their Burakumin backgrounds. Since Japanese firms keep records of Burakumin residences, the Burakumin will move frequently so they get lost in the system. They hope that their background will be hidden.
For over one hundred years, sporadic uprisings have occurred. The first of these started in the early 1870’s. It was very unorganized and only involved a few local people. In 1903 another movement took place. Instead of uprising, they organized a group, somewhat of a lobbyist group. This was for the most part unsuccessful. There have always been some politicians that support the Burakumin. Some of them come from Burakumin backgrounds and were able to break the cycle of poverty and illiteracy. By 1920, political movements for the Burakumin had developed into a few ideological groups, partly because of the spread of Marxism. Some of the groups were communist, anarchists and revisionists.
The progression of Japanese military power in the 1940’s pushed these groups into obscurity fearing repercussions from the government. In 1947 numerous Burakumin were elected to the House of Representatives.
After the war, the United States helped the Burakumin with land reforms. They helped out into place a program that allowed the Burakumin to purchase land they had farmed for years. Although Americans helped them for the most part, the Burakumin are anti-American. The Burakumin Liberation League constantly lobbies the government in hopes of upgrading their Burakumin status. They also hope the government will do something about the Burakumin ghettos. But for the most part, Buddhist monks and other religious leaders are the only ones that are dedicated to help their plight.
The Japanese government had invented its own version of racism. Instead of based on racial differences, it is based on impurity. Japan’s version of racism is deeply rooted in tradition and the fear of being polluted or contaminated. One of the worst fears for a parent is for his or her son or daughter to marry a Burakumin. Racism is also prevalent against the indigenous people of Japan, the Ainu.
Many Japanese like to believe that Burakumin do not exist. They deny knowing anything about them or say that discrimination had ended about fifty years ago. Discussing Burakumin is unacceptable. Dictionaries do not even have the definition for Burakumin and the media never talks about them, even when the Burakumin Liberation League (BLL) is holding a rally. The BLL is a major group that tries to influence the government for reforms. Think of it as a lobbyist group. But the government has tried to covertly pass anti-Burakumin rights laws. These anti-Burakumin laws are unconstitutional. S. Uesigi who is an independent researcher states, “Minister Murayama, following the advice of his ministry of justice, arguing that it’s ratification would conflict with the constitutionally guaranteed freedoms of speech and publication” (Uesugi 6). The Asia Pacific Human Rights League is a new organization for the liberation of the Burakumin. “It aspires to provide information to the Asian public about racism. It aims to be the precursor of some kind of formal human rights organization that will operate within the Asian Pacific to promote human rights” (Hurights 9). For the most part the position of the Burakumin has gotten much better over the years. The rise of political organizations such as the Burakumin Liberation League has helped the Burakumin to break the cycle of poverty, But there is still along way to go.
Racism and discrimination is a common, but not accepted, practice in most societies. The thing that makes the discrimination of the Japanese Burakumin so different is the fact that they are racially the same as all other Japanese. Discrimination of Burakumin has been going on for centuries.
In feudal Japan, there was a cast system that was formed. There was the emperor, the feudal lords, samurais, farmers, artisans, merchants and a group called hinin. Hinin usually had dirty jobs like cleaning toilets or leather craft. Beneath this group were the Burakumin. A portion of historians believe that early Burakumin were most likely native Japanese tribesmen that were defeated during warfare and forces into slavery. The modern Burakumin are descendents of gravediggers, executioners, and animal slaughterers and of people who had other “dirty” jobs. They are excluded from normal social activity because of Buddhist law, which states people who killed and ate meat were impure. Today, the Burakumin make up about 2.5% of Japan’s population.
Officially, law has done with the Burakumin class away. However, people are still discriminated against for being a descendent of this original class.
To this day, the segregation continues. This segregation led to the construction of numerous communities to house Burakumin. Most maps of Japan do not show these communities. The people who lived in these settlements were referred to as Hinin (non-people) or Burakumin. They were not allowed to converse with the rest of Japanese citizens. In fact, as recent as fifty years ago, Burakumin had to wear a leather patch so people would know they were Burakumin.
The Burakumin were not allowed to marry a regular Japanese citizen. It was strictly forbidden. The following is an example of what would happen to someone who married a Burakumin woman—“My parents said I could not have any relationship with them. I have two sons ages nine and eleven. My father met the first one once when he was a baby, and the second time a few months ago by accident at the hospital when we were visiting my grandmother” (Daily). The families only lived miles apart for ten years but never talked. Even after his wife died of cancer, his father still would not talk to him. The embarrassment of having Burakumin grandchildren was too much to handle. If one were to come into contact with a Burakumin, they would have to see a Buddhist priest to be cleansed of their impurity. Burakumin had no given surnames; instead they were given a number. Burakumin were not allowed to eat, drink, or smoke near a non-Burakumin. They also suffer from medical ailments more than the average Japanese citizen. This is due to bad medical care. Many Burakumins have low-paying jobs with no insurance. They suffer from tuberculosis and trachoma at a higher than average rate.
Japanese citizens would not even touch something that a Burakumin had touched. For instance, if someone known to be Burakumin tried to buy food the storekeeper would most likely wear gloves rather than touch the money given to him by a Burakumin. Another example of this discrimination is when a fire would start in a Burakumin ghetto; neighbors would discuss how the fire had a tremendous stench. Most likely, the Burakumin house fires would be the last to be put out. In present day Japan, Burakumin work with non-Burakumin and most workers do not know the Burakumin, but management does know. They have private investigators to track addresses of potential employees. If they are found to have Burakumin residences, they will either not be hired or start off 5%-10% less than non-Burakumin employees. Burakumin are seen as uneducated and dirty even though they are racially identical to non-Burakumin. “Only 10.6% of Burakumin were reported to be employed in enterprises of over 300 employees, well below the national average of 23.3%” (Somucho 20).
Most of Japan’s large companies have Burakumin files-a list that shows all of the Burakumin slums in their area. When companies renew applications for employment, they hire private investigators to look for Burakumin addresses. In turn, the Burakumin applicants are not called in for interviews. Most companies simply throw the application in the trash.
Kiryu is home to the largest Burakumin ghettos; it has about ninety of them. There, numerous Burakumin live outside of the slums and meticulous methods are used to disguise their Burakumin backgrounds. Since Japanese firms keep records of Burakumin residences, the Burakumin will move frequently so they get lost in the system. They hope that their background will be hidden.
For over one hundred years, sporadic uprisings have occurred. The first of these started in the early 1870’s. It was very unorganized and only involved a few local people. In 1903 another movement took place. Instead of uprising, they organized a group, somewhat of a lobbyist group. This was for the most part unsuccessful. There have always been some politicians that support the Burakumin. Some of them come from Burakumin backgrounds and were able to break the cycle of poverty and illiteracy. By 1920, political movements for the Burakumin had developed into a few ideological groups, partly because of the spread of Marxism. Some of the groups were communist, anarchists and revisionists.
The progression of Japanese military power in the 1940’s pushed these groups into obscurity fearing repercussions from the government. In 1947 numerous Burakumin were elected to the House of Representatives.
After the war, the United States helped the Burakumin with land reforms. They helped out into place a program that allowed the Burakumin to purchase land they had farmed for years. Although Americans helped them for the most part, the Burakumin are anti-American. The Burakumin Liberation League constantly lobbies the government in hopes of upgrading their Burakumin status. They also hope the government will do something about the Burakumin ghettos. But for the most part, Buddhist monks and other religious leaders are the only ones that are dedicated to help their plight.
The Japanese government had invented its own version of racism. Instead of based on racial differences, it is based on impurity. Japan’s version of racism is deeply rooted in tradition and the fear of being polluted or contaminated. One of the worst fears for a parent is for his or her son or daughter to marry a Burakumin. Racism is also prevalent against the indigenous people of Japan, the Ainu.
Many Japanese like to believe that Burakumin do not exist. They deny knowing anything about them or say that discrimination had ended about fifty years ago. Discussing Burakumin is unacceptable. Dictionaries do not even have the definition for Burakumin and the media never talks about them, even when the Burakumin Liberation League (BLL) is holding a rally. The BLL is a major group that tries to influence the government for reforms. Think of it as a lobbyist group. But the government has tried to covertly pass anti-Burakumin rights laws. These anti-Burakumin laws are unconstitutional. S. Uesigi who is an independent researcher states, “Minister Murayama, following the advice of his ministry of justice, arguing that it’s ratification would conflict with the constitutionally guaranteed freedoms of speech and publication” (Uesugi 6). The Asia Pacific Human Rights League is a new organization for the liberation of the Burakumin. “It aspires to provide information to the Asian public about racism. It aims to be the precursor of some kind of formal human rights organization that will operate within the Asian Pacific to promote human rights” (Hurights 9). For the most part the position of the Burakumin has gotten much better over the years. The rise of political organizations such as the Burakumin Liberation League has helped the Burakumin to break the cycle of poverty, But there is still along way to go.
Racism and discrimination is a common, but not accepted, practice in most societies. The thing that makes the discrimination of the Japanese Burakumin so different is the fact that they are racially the same as all other Japanese. Discrimination of Burakumin has been going on for centuries.
In feudal Japan, there was a cast system that was formed. There was the emperor, the feudal lords, samurais, farmers, artisans, merchants and a group called hinin. Hinin usually had dirty jobs like cleaning toilets or leather craft. Beneath this group were the Burakumin. A portion of historians believe that early Burakumin were most likely native Japanese tribesmen that were defeated during warfare and forces into slavery. The modern Burakumin are descendents of gravediggers, executioners, and animal slaughterers and of people who had other “dirty” jobs. They are excluded from normal social activity because of Buddhist law, which states people who killed and ate meat were impure. Today, the Burakumin make up about 2.5% of Japan’s population.
Officially, law has done with the Burakumin class away. However, people are still discriminated against for being a descendent of this original class.
To this day, the segregation continues. This segregation led to the construction of numerous communities to house Burakumin. Most maps of Japan do not show these communities. The people who lived in these settlements were referred to as Hinin (non-people) or Burakumin. They were not allowed to converse with the rest of Japanese citizens. In fact, as recent as fifty years ago, Burakumin had to wear a leather patch so people would know they were Burakumin.
The Burakumin were not allowed to marry a regular Japanese citizen. It was strictly forbidden. The following is an example of what would happen to someone who married a Burakumin woman—“My parents said I could not have any relationship with them. I have two sons ages nine and eleven. My father met the first one once when he was a baby, and the second time a few months ago by accident at the hospital when we were visiting my grandmother” (Daily). The families only lived miles apart for ten years but never talked. Even after his wife died of cancer, his father still would not talk to him. The embarrassment of having Burakumin grandchildren was too much to handle. If one were to come into contact with a Burakumin, they would have to see a Buddhist priest to be cleansed of their impurity. Burakumin had no given surnames; instead they were given a number. Burakumin were not allowed to eat, drink, or smoke near a non-Burakumin. They also suffer from medical ailments more than the average Japanese citizen. This is due to bad medical care. Many Burakumins have low-paying jobs with no insurance. They suffer from tuberculosis and trachoma at a higher than average rate.
Japanese citizens would not even touch something that a Burakumin had touched. For instance, if someone known to be Burakumin tried to buy food the storekeeper would most likely wear gloves rather than touch the money given to him by a Burakumin. Another example of this discrimination is when a fire would start in a Burakumin ghetto; neighbors would discuss how the fire had a tremendous stench. Most likely, the Burakumin house fires would be the last to be put out. In present day Japan, Burakumin work with non-Burakumin and most workers do not know the Burakumin, but management does know. They have private investigators to track addresses of potential employees. If they are found to have Burakumin residences, they will either not be hired or start off 5%-10% less than non-Burakumin employees. Burakumin are seen as uneducated and dirty even though they are racially identical to non-Burakumin. “Only 10.6% of Burakumin were reported to be employed in enterprises of over 300 employees, well below the national average of 23.3%” (Somucho 20).
Most of Japan’s large companies have Burakumin files-a list that shows all of the Burakumin slums in their area. When companies renew applications for employment, they hire private investigators to look for Burakumin addresses. In turn, the Burakumin applicants are not called in for interviews. Most companies simply throw the application in the trash.
Kiryu is home to the largest Burakumin ghettos; it has about ninety of them. There, numerous Burakumin live outside of the slums and meticulous methods are used to disguise their Burakumin backgrounds. Since Japanese firms keep records of Burakumin residences, the Burakumin will move frequently so they get lost in the system. They hope that their background will be hidden.
For over one hundred years, sporadic uprisings have occurred. The first of these started in the early 1870’s. It was very unorganized and only involved a few local people. In 1903 another movement took place. Instead of uprising, they organized a group, somewhat of a lobbyist group. This was for the most part unsuccessful. There have always been some politicians that support the Burakumin. Some of them come from Burakumin backgrounds and were able to break the cycle of poverty and illiteracy. By 1920, political movements for the Burakumin had developed into a few ideological groups, partly because of the spread of Marxism. Some of the groups were communist, anarchists and revisionists.
The progression of Japanese military power in the 1940’s pushed these groups into obscurity fearing repercussions from the government. In 1947 numerous Burakumin were elected to the House of Representatives.
After the war, the United States helped the Burakumin with land reforms. They helped out into place a program that allowed the Burakumin to purchase land they had farmed for years. Although Americans helped them for the most part, the Burakumin are anti-American. The Burakumin Liberation League constantly lobbies the government in hopes of upgrading their Burakumin status. They also hope the government will do something about the Burakumin ghettos. But for the most part, Buddhist monks and other religious leaders are the only ones that are dedicated to help their plight.
The Japanese government had invented its own version of racism. Instead of based on racial differences, it is based on impurity. Japan’s version of racism is deeply rooted in tradition and the fear of being polluted or contaminated. One of the worst fears for a parent is for his or her son or daughter to marry a Burakumin. Racism is also prevalent against the indigenous people of Japan, the Ainu.
Many Japanese like to believe that Burakumin do not exist. They deny knowing anything about them or say that discrimination had ended about fifty years ago. Discussing Burakumin is unacceptable. Dictionaries do not even have the definition for Burakumin and the media never talks about them, even when the Burakumin Liberation League (BLL) is holding a rally. The BLL is a major group that tries to influence the government for reforms. Think of it as a lobbyist group. But the government has tried to covertly pass anti-Burakumin rights laws. These anti-Burakumin laws are unconstitutional. S. Uesigi who is an independent researcher states, “Minister Murayama, following the advice of his ministry of justice, arguing that it’s ratification would conflict with the constitutionally guaranteed freedoms of speech and publication” (Uesugi 6). The Asia Pacific Human Rights League is a new organization for the liberation of the Burakumin. “It aspires to provide information to the Asian public about racism. It aims to be the precursor of some kind of formal human rights organization that will operate within the Asian Pacific to promote human rights” (Hurights 9). For the most part the position of the Burakumin has gotten much better over the years. The rise of political organizations such as the Burakumin Liberation League has helped the Burakumin to break the cycle of poverty, But there is still along way to go.
Bibliography:
Daily Telegraph. 24 May 1994.
Hurights Osaka. “What Will Hurights Osaka Do?”. Hurights Osaka Newsletter. Osaka.
(1995): 1.
Somucho. Outline of the Results of the 1993 Surveys to Assess Conditions in the Dowa
Areas. Tokyo. 1995.
Uesugi, S. “Thirty Years after the Deliberative Council Report and Buraku Liberation”. Human
Rights 85 (1995): 2-7.
The book of James
The book of James
The question of the importance of religion has been one that has been debated for centuries. The argument has been taken from the side of the empiricist, who desires quantitative proof and the pragmatist who fights that it is religions qualitative proofs that hold greater weight. In the Varieties of Religious Experience, William James sets forth that the argument of the pragmatist, stating that it is not the origin of religion that is of greatest importance but rather the results or fruits that have come from religious belief that are the true basis for the judgment of religion. In stark contrast, Sigmund Freud in his Civilization, Society and Religion, argues that the origins of religion are indeed of great importance due to the fact that they are infantile and provide for an illusionary existence if their beliefs are held as fact. However, Freud’s argument that religion is illusionary never truly makes its case for religion being harmful to humanity, but instead states what the necessity for a higher being fulfills in one’s psyche and not what the result of that influence is. James provides the stronger of the two arguments, as not only recognizes that there is an inherent need to understand the origins of religions, but most importantly that it is the fruits and not the roots of religion that are of greater importance to humanity in understanding the need for religion.
William James begins his work by setting aside the argument that by explaining the origins of something we have also provided an explanation for its origins. The value of something is be judged by its effects, not by its origin.
All questions of value, according to James, can be answered in knowledge gained through experience. James states that the term “religion” must deny any one experience, but states that the name is a collective term for a number of varying experiences. The qualitative differences seen in these experiences are dependent upon whether we recall them later and if they will bring us beneficial results or the fruits of life, as James puts it. One must now be willing to judge the religious life primarily by the results of that experience on the individual.
According to James, without religious ideas (whatever their origin) there is no proper reasoning for difficult moral choices, or hardships, and therefore, the quality of human life diminishes. For James the varieties of religious ideas that exist are important in that they lead humanity to perform moral and useful actions. He believes that without such encouragement these actions would not naturally take place. James emphasizes the individual experience, but states that the ideas that are shared and communal provide humanity with a means toward progress.
For those who question religious belief, James claims that those questions are of little importance to the practice of religion, or to the understanding and to the actions, which have very little value to humanity. Religious experience must be valued as an important contribution to human life; its truth manifests itself in the wonderful ways in which it enriches human conduct and feelings. However, the idea that humanity will ever be able to conclusively provide a rational argument for the presence of God must be set aside, and no attempt at such a proof should be made, as James believes it would serve no practical value.
James emphasizes that only a belief in God can give us sufficient justification for our natural desires for a morally strenuous life marked by concern for others. James clearly values this form of life more than others, and he believes that human beings will devote themselves to the heroic, the charitable and the morally demanding if religious ideas are made available. Without religious experience, James believes that the human potential for good would not occur. Without religious ideas, regardless of their origins, humanity would lack any proper justification for a morally exacting life and would fail to understand those for whom a morally exacting life is more important than a spacious living. Without religious ideas, therefore, the quality of human life would suffer greatly. There is a strong need for religion as part of the human psyche, it gives something to aim toward and find hope within.
James believes religion brings peace or mind and ease, and where it came from is of little consequence. Freud however, does not believe that there is necessity for religion, and that because of its origins religion is not justified. Freud begins the third section of his paper with the question “In what does the value of religion lie?” (195) He believes that its value lies in our need to have a defence against the forces of nature, to provide an answer for the terrors suffered by man and to give consolation for that pain. To gain that control we personalize nature and attempt to appease it through praise and bribery. (196) this personalization of nature offers us a way to understand what we are so powerless against and thus, to gain some sense of control over it.
Freud believes that the relationship of humanity and nature bears a great similarity to that of the relationship between the children to the parents. In that respect deities must put forward the following attributes; they must exorcise the terrors of nature, they must reconcile humanity to the cruelty of fate and they must compensate humanity of the sufferings and privations which a civilized life has condemned them.(197). Freud acknowledges that through time the roles of Gods and Goddesses have evolved but their tasks have remained generally the same; to protect humanity against the dangers of both nature and fate and to protect humanity against the injuries which threaten us from human society itself. In that way to protect us the way a parent protects and shields a child from the dangers of the world. Freud sees divinity as monotheistic, as the relationship between that of a parent and child and the intimacy that is shared there is the same as that of the divine and humanity.
Freud suggests that it is natural for humans to personify nature and the life as humans know from the beginning that the way to influence nature is through the establishment of relationships. The feelings of helplessness and weakness that humans feel does not argue against the notion of the exalted one but it also has a lot to do with the relationship between the child and the father. Freud’s notion of the mother is as the child’s first object choice, a relationship that is then replaced by the stronger father. This relationship is one of ambivalence and the child grows with the knowledge that he or she is forever to remain powerless and dependent upon others who are more powerful than he or she. This belief is continued in life as those powers are transmitted from the father to the divine. Freud states, “He creates for himself, the gods who he dreads, in whom he seeks to appropriate, and whom he nevertheless entrusts with his own protection.”
To Freud the physical origin of religious ideas is that they are the fulfilment of the oldest and strongest wished of humankind and for that reason they are illusions. They are illusions or wishes for the protection of humanity against the forces of nature. They are the moral justification and prolongation of earthly existence. As such wished Freud claims that they issue from the infant’s conflicts of the early father complex. “It is an enormous relief to the individual psyche if the conflicts of its childhood arising from the father-complex – conflicts which are never wholly overcome – are removed from it and brought to a solution which is universally accepted.” (212)
An illusion is an error made by humans in terms of wish fulfilment and borders on the line of psychotic delusions. The difference between the two being that a delusion is in complete contradiction with reality. Whereas illusions can be un-realizable or contradictory and not necessarily false in relation to reality. Therefore, according to Freud religious doctrines are illusions. Being that they cannot be refuted, proved or believed.
Freud’s inability to see the necessity of religion and the benefits that can be gained from it, seem to take away from the strength of his work. Although an interesting concept, Freud’s constant focus on the child and those first few years as well as his emphasis on the father, does not explain many religious experiences, for it is certain that not all people experience religion the same way. There is no fear of god in the Buddhism, but a necessity for inner peace. Freud dismisses religion simply because some of the characteristics that are held over from childhood are transferred to one’s feelings about God, a dismissal that is an unfair and unwarranted assessment.
James however, did provide for different religions and different experiences, which allows for a better argument and one that better stands the test of time. James believed that each individual had the right to affirm their religious belief solely on the basis of emotional predilection. James hope that Varieties would help to understand religion with the walls of personal experience as an important notion, James seems to understand religion at it’s very core. Although his conclusions seem modest and simple at times, that is the very essence of religion; to provide simplicity and promote modesty in one’s life.
Bibliography:
Freud, Sigmund ([1927]1985). The Future of an Illusion. Vol. 12 of the Pelican Freud Library. Middlesex: Penguin Books.
Http://www.psywww.com/psyrelig/james/toc.html.