Phobias Essay Example for Free

Phobias Essay A phobia is a common word to describe an unhealthy condition in which people experience abnormal fear of certain things or phenomena and demonstrate irrational behavior. The standard medical definition of phobia defines it as â€Å"early always, excessive fear of some particular type of object or situation; fear that is persistent and without sound grounds, or without grounds accepted as reasonable by the sufferer† (Beck, Emery, Greenberg 1985:115). Overall, the main symptoms of a phobia are â€Å"the presence of fear and by avoidance behavior† (Hamilton 1995:170). This fear should be excessive and manifested in physical symptoms, such as dryness of the mouth, nausea, sweat, and even faintness. The presence of excessive fear then leads a person to avoid the dreaded situation. Whatever the symptoms of the phobia might be, it is certain that phobias are a serious condition that can adversely affect the life of a person. In the following, we discuss various typical types of phobias, demonstrating their harmful influence on people’s lives. One of the most common phobias is agoraphobia, â€Å"a generalized fear of leaving home or a small familiar safe area, and of possible panic attacks that might follow. Agoraphobia is the only phobia regularly treated as a medical condition† (Wikipedia, 2006). This condition is one of the few phobias that are regularly treated with medication and behavioral therapy. When present in individuals, agoraphobia can seriously impair an individual’s ability to interact with the environment. Quite often, it will restrict a person’s willingness to relocate or even move out of one’s home. Agoraphobia typically emerges in individuals in their twenties who have a â€Å"a lowered threshold for panic attacks associated with separation† (Beck, Emery, Greenberg 1985: 134). Another widespread type is social phobia related to the general dislike of society aggravated to the degree of a medical condition. Another term for the same disease is the social anxiety disorder. The medical definition describes this phobia as â€Å"excessive long-lasting social anxiety causing relatively extreme distress and impaired ability to function in at least some areas of daily life† (Wikipedia, 2006). This fear can be seen in ordinary shyness which is characteristic of virtually all people in certain situations. However, whether shyness can be seen as a phobic condition is a matter of debate. In addition, there are more specific conditions that focus on selected objects or situations. One example is needle phobia, â€Å"a recently defined medical condition that affects at least 10% of the population† (Hamilton 1995:170). The people who suffer from this condition have developed an aversion to all kinds of medical procedures that involve an injection, which often triggers an avoidance of health care as a whole. It is certain that this condition can put the lives of people who demonstrate it in serious danger if it leads them to neglect a visit to a doctor. Therefore, phobias are serious health disorders that have the potential to seriously disrupt an individual’s life. Whereas people often demonstrate irrational behavior, only some instances have been classified as medical conditions qualifying for the definition of phobia. These include agoraphobia, or fear of open spaces or unwillingness to leave the familiar space, social phobia, also known as social anxiety disorder, and some more specific conditions, such as needle phobia. To a different degree, these phobias are widely spread and affect a large proportion of population.

Importance of Identity in Toni Morrisons The Bluest Eye :: The Bluest Eye Essays

The use of characters as symbols is a common literary device, and Toni Morrison employs it to great effect.   In Morrison’s novel, The Bluest Eye, the central theme is the influences of the family and community in the quest for individual identity (Baker, 2008).   This theme is recurrent throughout the novel and she uses the characters of Pecola Breedlove, Cholly Breedlove, and Pauline Breedlove as symbols for it.   However, these characters are not merely symbols of the effects of the family and community on an individual’s quest for identity, they are also representative of the quest of the many black people that were migrating north in search of better opportunities.  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Breedlove family is not a family in the social sense.   Essentially, they are a group of people living under the same roof, a family by name only.   Cholly (the father) is an alcoholic man who literally beats his wife Pauline and sexually abuses his daughter Pecola.   Pauline is a â€Å"mammy† to a kind, white family and she comes to love them more than her biological family for obvious reasons.   Pecola is a delicate, small girl who holds a very poor image of herself.   Because she does not live up to the world’s standard of beauty and have blue eyes, she believes herself to be ugly.   As a result, she prays every night that she will wake up with blue eyes.   Brought up as a poor unwanted girl, Pecola Breedlove desires the acceptance and love of society. The image of "Shirley Temple beauty" surrounds her. In her mind, if she was to be beautiful, people would finally love and accept her. The idea that blue eyes are a necessity for beauty has been imprinted on Pecola her whole life.   "If [I] looked different, beautiful, maybe Cholly would be different, and Mrs. Breedlove too. Maybe they would say, `Why look at pretty eyed Pecola. We mustn't do bad things in front of those pretty [blue] eyes'" (Morrison 46).   Many people have helped imprint this ideal of beauty on her. Mr. Yacowbski as a symbol for the rest of society's norm, treats her as if she were invisible. "He does not see her, because for him there is nothing to see. How can a fifty-two-year-old white immigrant storekeeper... see a little black girl?" (Morrison 48). Her classmates also have an effect on her.   They seem to think that because she is not beautiful, she is not wo rth anything except as the focal point of their mockery.

Cold War: question and answers Essay

1) The â€Å"iron curtain† was a dividing line because it was dividing Eastern and Western Europe. Western Europe had more of a democratic form of government where as Eastern Europe was ruled by the Soviet Union. 2) The policy President Truman is suggesting in his speech to Congress is the Truman Doctrine. The Truman Doctrine is a policy that stated that the United States would support Greece and Turkey with economic and military aid to prevent them from falling into the Soviet Sphere. This policy gave $400 million in aid to Greece and Turkey. 3) The Secretary of State Marshall suggested this plan(the Marshall Plan) for European recovery so if Europe would come into economic, social, and political damage it would also affect the United States very negatively also. The Secretary of State wanted to avoid those negative affects on the United States. He wanted to avoid the negative effect the European situation would have on the United States economy. 4) The purpose of NATO is to protect North American countries and ten Western European countries from attack by the USSR. The North Atlantic Treaty stated that any and all attacks made against any member of NATO would be considered an attack against them all. Its basic goal waste increase the stability and defense of its member countries. 5) The â€Å"satellites† help provide a buffer for the Soviet Union because they can track which invader is coming toward their border or see if any bombs are heading towards the Soviet Union. The â€Å"satellites† also act as a buffer but protecting the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union won’t care about these other countries that will get caught up in war and social and economic upheaval. 6) Khrushchev’s view of U.S. actions are that moves made by the United States such as the â€Å"anti-communism† movement was used to cover up statements of one power for world domination. The U.S. wanted to have a secure, dominant world power in the capitalist world. In document sic Khrushchev states that the fight for capitalism will lead to another world war. 7) The impact the â€Å"arms race† had on the world was countries racing for nuclear weapons/WMD which led to a â€Å"balance of terror.† A lot feared use of these weapons and saw this as a deterrent to war. 8)The basis for President Kennedy’s demand that the missiles be removed from Cuba was that it threatened the peace and security of the United States, Kennedy wanted to stop any chance the missiles could be used against America for any reason. He saw it as a threat to world peace. 9)Krushchev explains that the missiles were placed in Cuba for defensive reasons and to stop any aggression against Cuba. He now explains the missiles could now be removed because there is no chance that Cuba will be attacked by any country in the Western Hemisphere . Essay: How did the Cold War begin and what â€Å"weapons† were used to fight this war? The Cold War began at the end of World War II. The Cold War was the conflict between the Communist Nations led by the Soviet Union and the Democratic Nations led by the United States. The entire purpose behind the Cold War was to stop the spread of communism which the United States was against. Communism was thought to corrupt and cripple the entire world. They fought by propaganda, economic war, and constant military clashes. The Cold War started September 3rd 1945 and ended in 1989. When the â€Å"Iron Curtain† came down in Eastern Europe, as Winston Churchill stated in his speech on March 5th, 1946 as shown in document one, that was when the Cold War began. The Soviet Union made many countries into â€Å"Soviet satellites†. A satellite nation is a nation that is effectively dominated by another. The Soviet satellite nations were: Albania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Romania, Poland, Hungary, Soviet Union, East Germany, and Czech. The Untied States wanted for all the European countries to have the freedom to pick their own governments. The war between the two nations escalated quickly when the Soviet Union successfully developed their  own atomic bomb. It became a â€Å" war of words†, the words was â€Å"weapons†. No active shooting was done and no actual weapons were used. It was basically Democratic nations against Communist Nations, a war of words on who had atomic bombs to use against other nations. As stated in document two President Truman believed it was the Untied States duty to support those who are resisting attempted domination. He believed if communism was forced on Turkey or Greece by the Soviet Union, it will have effects that are far reaching to the West. The policy President Truman is suggesting in his speech to Congress on March 12th, 1947 is the Truman Doctrine. The Truman Doctrine is a policy that stated that the United States would support Greece and Turkey with economic and military aid to prevent them from falling into the Soviet Sphere. This policy gave $400 million in aid to Greece and Turkey. Secretary of State Marshall gave a speech on June 5th, 1947 explaining his plan for European recovery as expressed in document three. The plan he was suggesting was the Marshall Plan. The Secretary of State Marshall suggested this plan(the Marshall Plan) for European recovery so if Europe would come into economic, social, and political damage it would also affect the United States very negatively too. The Secretary of State wanted to avoid those negative effects on the United States. He wanted to avoid the negative effect the European situation would have on the United States economy. It’s presented in both documents two and three that President Truman and Secretary of State Marshall had the best interest of the United States and other nations against communism at heart with both their policies. As presented on document four NATO is the North Atlantic Treaty. It was signed by the United States, Canada, and ten other nations of Western Europe in 1948. The purpose of NATO was to protect North American countries and those ten Western European countries from attack by the USSR. The North Atlantic Treaty stated that any and all attacks made against any member of NATO would be considered an attack against them all. Its basic goal was to increase the stability and defense of its member countries. NATO was basically an intergovernmental military alliance against the Soviet  Union and what they stood for which was communism. NATO constitutes a system of collective defense whereby its members state to agree to mutual defense in response to an attack by any external party(any communist nation). In conclusion, the Cold War began because fear of the spread of communism that the United States and West Europe had hated. This prevented chances of negotiations and friendly approach in diplomacy and foreign policy. Another reason on how the Cold War began was grouping of world nations in rival alliances such as NATO and the Warsaw Pact members. The Warsaw Pact members were German Democratic Republic, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and the Soviet Union as shown in document five. The piling up of atomic weapons and picking either the democratic side or the communist side generated suspicion in one another.

Smoking In Public Places - Smoking Ban in Iowa Essay

No Smoking at WIT Earlier in the year of 2008 my school stated that there would be no smoking allowed around their campus. This obviously flared up its fair share of supporters and non supporters. Some of the non supporters are asking if it is fair for the college to say what they can and cannot do in a public place. So is it ok for them to say no smoking on campus? I think they have every right to. According to Utilitarianism, when making a decision you should choose the one that results in the greatest amount of happiness for the greatest number of people. Although there are smokers who attend the college, the number of nonsmokers outweighs them. Therefore, the greatest number of happiness would be brought to those nonsmokers who no†¦show more content†¦By banning smoking around the campus, the college reduces the garbage in and around their campus. Now visitors to the college will not see dirty cigarette butts in the grass or next to the doorways, which makes the college appearance better to first time students and visitors. So, for WIT to say no smoking is OK! However, on the basis of self-interest, the smokers of WIT could fight their point of view. This tells us that each person should do what is in their own best interest, because that is what is most important. Many smokers smoke for the social aspect and the relaxing effects the nicotine has on them, which many college students might benefit from in challenging times. Letting the students smoke around the campus will help the smokers quickly get back to their studies, rather than having to walk or drive away from campus. So the smokers continuing to smoke around campus would be ok. My final argument will be based on the ethics of caring, which states that a person should be aware of the vulnerable, and to make sure they are cared for. So, for WIT to say no smoking around campus is actually helping the smokers as well. By not making smoking at school easy and accessible, it may help smokers qui t! For the smokers to quit will benefit their own health and the health of the other people around them. It is proven that productivity increases and absenteeism decreases among former smokers compared with current smokers. In that case, for WesternShow MoreRelatedThe Effects Of Cigarette Smoking On The Environment920 Words   |  4 PagesCigarette smoking has affected the environment negatively, as well (Novotny). Discarded cigarette butts can be seen off the streets, sidewalks, beaches, or other open areas (Novotny). Even though a single discarded cigarette filter has minimal impact on the environment, United States had manufactured 1.35 trillion of filtered cigarettes in 2007 and 360 billion of them were consumed (Novotny). 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