Celtic Mythology The Otherworld - 1739 Words

When it comes to celtic literature, the ‘Otherworld’ is a common theme found throughout various genres of literature which represents a sort of ‘heaven-like’ place. In Celtic mythology the Otherworld is depicted as a supernatural world that provides abundance, joy, and everlasting youth and beauty. We typically see the Otherworld as being very elusive, but in Celtic literature some mythical heroes get the opportunity to visit the Otherworld, sometimes by invite from one of it’s inhabitants or just by a lucky chance. While the Celts themselves do not believe in the specific idea of heaven, there are many parallels between heaven and the Celt’s idea of the Otherworld. Historically, the Celts generally viewed the idea of ‘heaven’ as boring†¦show more content†¦On their voyages they experience various different hardships that they must overcome and involve a character going out and seeking revenge, but coming back and learning of forgiveness. Evidence of the concept of the Otherworld existing in Celtic literature is even seen throughout other historical narratives, with the idea of an island off the coast of Ireland existing, referred to as ‘Brasil’. This idea embodied the Irish idea of a perfect place that had a perfect climate and abundance of lavish luxuries. This idea began to extend to other countries, where explorers and conquistadors would set out in search of these mystical lands. This was the pull factor for Columbus beginning his expedition in order to find these lands which promised luxuries and perfect weather. Despite the fact that this island did not actually exist, it reiterates the concept which the Celts had instilled in their history of this idea of the Otherworld. These concepts surrounding the Otherworld are reiterated throughout Celtic literature, with the Otherworld and human world being able to coexist, with the two groups of people regularly being able to interact with one another, often times with grave consequences. However, those who inhabit the Otherworld naturally have an advantage over those in the human world and usually always win and get the revenge that they seek out. Realistically speaking, weShow MoreRelated Scandinavian Mythologies Essay1222 Words   |  5 PagesFrom three different sources The Faerie Queene, The Mabinogion and Beowulf two concept, one from each Celtic and Scandinavian Mythologies can be seen. The first concept is from Scandinavian mythology and is that of the idea of redemption or dying well. The second is from Celtic mythology and is the use of the Other or Otherworld. From the two stories, The Faerie Queene and The Mabinogion, what would give the reader the greatest feeling of hope throughout them both would be the idea of comeuppanceRead MoreThe Celtic And Roman Religions Essay1535 Words   |  7 Pagesbelief in life after death. The druids, the early Celtic priesthood, were said by Caesar to have taught the doctrine of transmigration of souls along with astronomy and the nature and power of the gods. Transmigration is a philosophy of reincarnation incorporating the specific belief that after death, the soul of a living being is then transferred (or transmigrates) into another living form and thus takes birth again. The Irish believed in an Otherworld, which they described sometimes as undergroundRead MoreThe Order Of The White Moon Goddess Gallery Presents1705 Words   |  7 PagesDanu. It is said that the Goddess Brigid was born at the exact moment of the sunrise. It is said that she rose into the sky with the sun, rays of fire beaming from her head. In Druid mythology, the infant Goddess was fed with milk from a sacred Cow from the Otherworld. Brigit owned an apple orchard in the Otherworld, and her bees would bring their magical nectar back to earth for her. Her power is manifested through bees and there are stories that Brigit helped those in need by sending her bees towardsRead MoreEssay about The Once and Future King1411 Words   |  6 Pagesdeveloped out of Celtic mythology. Regardless of its origins, the Arthurian legend has done nothing but grow. The earliest mention of a possible Arthur is in the Welsh poem Gododdin, which was written circa 600 AD, in which a mighty warrior is menti oned. The Mabinogin is a collection of Welsh tales that includes a few King Arthur stories. These stories include The Spoils of Annwfn and the tale of Culhwch and Olwen. In The Spoils of Annwfn, Arthur and his followers go to the Celtic Otherworld in his PrydwennRead MoreMorgan Le Fay5287 Words   |  22 PagesBritain is in need of him. Marian Zimmer Bradley rescues Morgan le Fay from the Medieval sources, and tells the story from Morgan’s own point of view, as recently seen in the excellent movie, The Mists of Avalon, based on her novel. Celtic Story Morgan was a Celtic Queen. One of the definitions of the name Morgan is â€Å"Great Queen† (Mohr Righan), which may have been an ancient royal title. The early Celts were matriarchal, and during the transition from matriarch to patriarchy, they went by DruidicRead MoreEssay on A Conspiracy Phenomenon: Alien Abductions in the U.S.2997 Words   |  12 Pagesare thoroughly imbedded in popular US culture that, as we shall see, they are really a part of how it developed and grew. By investigating the story narrative of alien abduction accounts we can trace their possible origins in ancient folklore and mythology, and recognise how they have influenced both conspiracy theorists and popular media to become one of the most familiar parts of conspiracy culture in America. Aliens and related conspiracy theories have a symbiotic relationship to American culture;

Mass communication Free Essays

In a face-to-face communication, the source or the person who started talking to you expresses himself through the message in Aramaic. The encoding process involves his motor skills. These are his vocal mechanisms, the movement of his lip and tongue, his lungs, his vocal cords and the face muscles. We will write a custom essay sample on Mass communication or any similar topic only for you Order Now    But what if the source had his vocal cords removed because of throat cancer? He may be able to encode his message verbally through artificial aid. But he may have difficulty doing so, nonverbally with the use of intonation, pitch and volume. That may cause the message to be encoded inappropriately or insufficiently. The channels through which you, as the receiver, receive his message are your five senses. The problem is you cannot understand the Aramaic language. Though there are channels through which people send information, there could be a possibility that it can’t be decoded. We cannot assure that you will be able to decode what the source sent, the same way he sent it.   This difference between your use of codes is an example of noise. (www.cultsock.ndirect.co.uk, 2003) An example of a distance communication is through the telephone. For instance, you have a job from a faraway place. But due to a lot of work and the other people waiting in line to use the pay phone, you only have a few minutes to call a friend, the receiver. You are the source here. You express your message through the mouthpiece of the telephone, â€Å"which transmits the signal through the telephone-wire channel†. The signal acquires static noise as it goes. This distorted signal is once again converted so it can be received at the destination or at the other end, to the receiver. Loss of information may occur, causing the message to be quite different from what you sent. The possible problem in distance communication, like in this example is, whether or not the telephone system will work properly. (Griffin,1997) In public communication, the source utilizes machines, which transmits public messages that sent to large audiences, who may be at different places at the same time. The channels are media like TV and movies. The audiences are the receivers. (University of South Florida, 2005) The Shannon-Weaver, though offering an efficient analysis, does not involve much consideration of the traces of the emotional and psychological drive of humans behind the messages they send. (Buddenhagen, 1994) Generally speaking, the model is helpful in understanding the interrelatedness of the elements in a communication process. Works Cited Buddenhagen, E.   (1994). Communication. Retrieved August 31, 2006, from http://www.explorit.org/science/bytes/communication.html Griffin, E. (1997) Information Theory of Claude Shannon Warren Weaver.[Electronic version] A First Look at Communication Theory.   Retrieved August 31, 2006, from http://www.afirstlook.com/archive/information.cfm?source=archther Communication: Mass, Interpersonal, and Machine-Assisted (2005). Retrieved August 31, 2006, from University of South Florida, College of arts and sciences Website: http://www.cas.usf.edu/lis/lis6260/lectures/shannon.htm The Shannon-Weaver Model. (2003). Retrieved August 31, 2006, from http://www.cultsock.ndirect.co.uk/MUHome/cshtml/introductory/sw.html How to cite Mass communication, Essay examples

Evolution of a Global City State free essay sample

Firstly, we can define being strategic as the abilities that one has to outdo one’s competitors and rivals, staying ahead of changes at given circumstances, hence successfully standing out amongst all the competitors and rivals one has. In the context of regional hubs being strategic in the pre-colonial Malay world. Any regional hubs that stood out successfully, beating his rival ports can be considered strategic. Regional hubs stood out because of inheriting strategic locations, achieved â€Å"strategicness† by differentiating themselves and gaining thrust to â€Å"strategicness† by various external factors. All these factors do compliment each other for the rise and fall of regional hubs. Being born strategic means regional hubs were positioned strategically at places, which were easily accessible by traders. Traders back then travels by sailing ships, which takes weeks or months to complete a round of trade, hence location of the hub is extremely important for regional hubs to stay strategic. Sailing of such ships are determined by wind patterns such as the trade and monsoon winds. [1] The trade winds blows from southern Thirtieth Parallel towards Equator in north-westerly direction. Where as the monsoon wind has 2 seasons. The Southwest monsoon winds from July to September that brings Arabia and Indian traders. Northeast monsoon wind winds from November to January, which brings traders from Bay of Bengal to ports such as Acheh in northeast Sumatra and Kota Cina [2] Though being born strategic is crucial, it does not contribute to the rise and fall of the regional hubs. Ports will not generally change their locations geographically. Moreover, climate and wind patterns are unlikely to change drastically that will cause a change in the influx of traders to the region, hence the rise and fall of regional hubs. Achieving â€Å"strategicness† plays a huge role on the rise and fall of a regional hub. It refers to the man-made unique factors individual regional strived to processes to gain competitiveness in the region. Those ports that were consider achieved strategicness had successfully distinct and differentiate themselves from the rest of the ports in the region. Temasek regional hub, it differentiated itself in trade. Temasek catered to the economic demands in the Asian market and Riau Archipelago by providing unique product that cannot be obtained in other regions. Temasek achieved strategicness by proving unique products Hornbill casques of very fine quality, lakawood of medium quality and cotton. The goods that Temasek provided for the traders were of an exceptional quality, [3] compared to the rest whom provided goods of unknown coarse and inferior quality. Hence Temasek achieved its â€Å"strategicness† amongst its competitors. Even after the fall of Temasek because of the revert in Chinese maritime policies, Melaka grasped the right opportunity to tie up with the Chinese court to gain â€Å"strategicness† over the region. [4] Therefore, achieving â€Å"strategicness† is a key factor contributing to the rise and fall of the regional hubs. If a regional hub did not differentiate itself from the rest or grasped the right opportunities, it will lose its grip of the regional economy. Attaining â€Å"strategicness† thrust can be considered the most adequate description for the rise and fall of many regional hubs. These are factors caused by external changes, causing the regional hub to stay competitive and strategic. The shift of Asian economic context in the late 10th century has created a change of trading environment to be a more conducive one for the pre-colonial Malay world. Before the 11th century, private traders were prohibited from trading overseas; the Chinese Court dominated the entire maritime economy. The lift of ban of private Chinese traders to travel abroad had created a gradual liberalization of the Chinese maritime economy. [5] This change had the greatest impact on the economy of the ports in Melaka Straits region. The growth of direct participation of private Chinese traders with the ports in Melaka Straits region thus eroded the importance of an entrepot. Port-states such as Palembang and subsequently Jambi in Sumatra began to lose control of the ports subsumed to them. The need for entrepot to facilitate goods is obsoleted, because the ports which previously subsumed under the entrepot, such as Tamesek were then able to pursue economical and political fortunes independently. [6] In addition, Jambi, was one of the entrepot of the time was invaded and overthrown by Singhasura. [7] The fall of Jambi resulted to an economic vacuum of trade in the region. This gave even more opportunities for more port settlements such as Temasek [8] to flourish along the Straits of Melaka. The fall of Temasek was also closely tied to the change of Chinese maritime policies after Zhu Yuanzhang overthrew the Mongols in 1368. [9] Hence, external thrust can play a huge role on the rise and fall of regional hubs. Lastly, all the three factors of being born strategic, achieved â€Å"strategicness† and gaining strategic thrust were important for the regional hubs to stay competitive. However achieving â€Å"strategicness† and having a strategic thrust can play a more significant role in the rise and fall of regional hubs. As being born 10strategic will not be the only factor for the rise and fall of regional hubs. Hence, the statement is appropriate to a certain extent.