Friday 29 October 2010

Espana

Spain on Prezi

Posted by at No comments:
Labels: ,

Thursday 28 October 2010

The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli

1.
 Cesare Borgio would be a very successful businessman in today's society, especially if he were the head of an international company that used many different places to make and sell their product.  In Cesare's rule, he disposed of "such forces not appearing to him reliable," (Chapter 8) until he found a group of forces which he trusted fully.  With the entire world at his disposal, he would be very apt at finding the best countries and companies with which to work,  and therefore very successful at turning a profit from whatever he produces.
Ramiro d'Orco, though he met an untimely public death, was as a whole successful in the task he was assigned to complete.  Described as "a swift and cruel man," (Chapter 7), Ramiro would be the most successful in charge of a NGO.  When Duke Valentino promoted Ramiro, "he gave the fullest power" (Chapter 7) to him.  Though Ramiro was technically working for Valentino, he worked independently from him and "in a short time restored peace and unity with great success," (Chapter 7).  But, eventually Valentino became afraid of the power that Ramiro held, so he executed him, impressing his subjects with "the barbarity of this spectacle," (Chapter 7)
Oliverotto da Fermo, in modern business, would be not be successful unless in a organization such as the mafia.  In his rule, he used deceit and war to succeed, fighting with and murdering his own family in order to secure his position.  He considered it "a paltry thing to serve under others," (Chapter 8), so he used whatever means necessary to rise above his superiors.  Oliverotto put on a facade of kindness when he invited his uncle Giovanni Fogliani to visit, because "he entreated Giovanni to arrange that he should be received honorably by the Fermians, all of which would be not only to his honor but also to that of Giovanni himself who had brought him up," (Chapter 8).  By acting like Giovanni's coming was going to be a splendid family reunion, Oliverotto gained his trust and was able to arrange that "soldiers issued from secret places and slaughtered Giovanni and the rest," (Chapter 8) murdering the uncle that had raised him as a son.  For this clever underhandedness, Oliverotto would make a successful leader of the mafia, climbing through the ranks with his fellow assassins and committing parricide of the people thought to be his friends until he was on top, a very honorable place indeed.
2.
 Though a prince has many people who help him to be a successful ruler, above all, his people are a prince's greatest ally.  "A prince can never secure himself against a hostile people, because of their being too many, whilst from the nobles he can secure himself, as they are few in number," (Chapter 9).  If all of the people within a prince's principality disliked their ruler and decided to rebel together, they would be too much for the prince to overcome, and he would be trampled by their immeasurable force in their numbers. Also, "the prince is compelled to live always with the same people, but he can do well without the same nobles," (Chapter 9).  A prince has the power to appoint whatever nobles he so chooses, so if one displeases him he can dispose of him.  On the other hand, a power the prince does not have is to force the people that oppose him to leave the country.  Though he could exile a few, if many choose to join forces against the prince, they will defeat him merely because of their numbers.  But still considering this, "wise princes have taken every care not to drive the nobles to desperation, and to keep the people satisfied and contented," (Chapter 19) because it is always in anyone's best interest to have as many people on their side as is possible.  On a military side, "it is now more necessary to all princes...to satisfy the people rather than the soldiers, because the people are more powerful," (Chapter 19).  The people enjoy peace, and the soldiers enjoy the amount of money for them that comes from war, so these two groups of people are discordant with one another.  Even though soldiers have war experience and many weapons at their disposal, the people still outnumber them and are the ones that must live under the prince's rule.  And even with regards to this, "there never was a new prince who has disarmed his subjects," (Chapter 20).  In conclusion, though many different groups of people can be beneficial to a prince, his subjects will be the most help to him in the end, but even before this one must consider that because "a prince cannot help being hated by someone, they ought, in the first place, to avoid being hated by everyone," (Chapter 19).
3.
 In The Prince, Machiavelli illustrates the fact that a prince must have a good balance in between being too kind and being too mean, because both could lead to his demise.  He says that, "Liberality exercised in a way that does not bring you the reputation for it, injures you," (Chapter 16).  A prince must at least appear kind enough to gain a reputation of being kind, but not too kind to give away everything and trust too much, for that will very likely lead to his end.  Machiavelli also states that there are certain points in a prince's rule in which he should exercise generosity, and points in which he should not.  With regards to different princes in different positions, he says, "Either you are a prince in fact, or in a way to become one.  In the first case, liberality is dangerous, in the second it is very necessary to be considered liberal," (Chapter 16).  When a man is striving to become a prince, he must show the people care and compassion in order to gain their trust and support, but once in control, he must rule with an iron fist, because "we have not seen great things done in our time except by those who have been considered mean; the rest have failed," (Chapter 16).  Though generosity is an important tool for a prince of a principality, Machiavelli has the general opinion that "it is much safer to be feared than loved," (Chapter 17) for a prince.
4.
 Though Machiavelli does say that a prince should have good qualities, there are also many things he says which are not in line with the Beatitudes and can be considered generally immoral.  One thing that Machiavelli says is that "on learning that nay one, on any consideration, has not told him the truth, he should let his anger be felt," (Chapter 23), but the Beatitudes instruct that one must be patient and kind, and even if someone did lie to said prince, the right thing to do would be to forgive them and not become enraged.  Machiavelli also says, with regards to being angry, that a prince should have "injuries which it is necessary for him to inflict, and to do them all at one stroke so as to not have to repeat them daily," (Chapter 8), but a prince should be able to be peaceful and not warlike so that he has no need to injure his people.  Whether or not a prince chooses to injure his people or not, Machiavelli believes that "their government is weaker and more insecure, because it rests entirely on the goodwill of those citizens," but in reality these governments will be the strongest in faith.  "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God," (The Beatitudes) and be able to thrive more so than those who do not have goodwill.  Machiavelli is also wrong because he believes that "a man who wishes to act entirely up to his professions of virtue soon meets with what destroys him among so much that is evil," (Chapter 15) but ultimately those who are virtuous will be the ones who win in the end, "because great is [their] reward in heaven," (The Beatitudes). Even though Machiavelli believed that "some [princes] lived nobly and showed great qualities of soul, nevertheless they have lost their empire or have been killed by subjects who have conspired against them," (Chapter 19), he is wrong; these are the people that will always win in God's eyes.  But, no matter how a prince "may appear to him who sees and hears him altogether merciful, faithful, humane, upright, and religious," (Chapter 18), in the end, God can always see your heart, and He is the one who decides whether said prince will enter the kingdom of heaven or not.
5.
 The Beatitudes create an idealistic world in which only good is done, but the world that Machiavelli writes about is a more realistic one, in which not everyone can be a peacemaker and be virtuous.  He states that "a blunder ought never be perpetrated to avoid war, because it is not to be avoided, but it is only deferred to your advantage," (Chapter 3).  Though "blessed are the peacemakers," (The Beatitudes), Machiavelli knows that the world is a discordant one in which people need some way to resolve their differences, so they turn to war.  He even goes further into this saying that "a prince ought to have no other aim or thought, nor select anything else for his study, than war and its rules and discipline," (Chapter 14).  Even though peace would be ideal, the best way to be successful is to indeed have war and be as educated as one can be about it in order to save your people.  Also opposed to the Beatitudes, Machiavelli says that "not to lose again what they had acquired, they were compelled, in order to secure themselves, to murder him," (Chapter 12).  Though killing people is not pure in spirit, it is sometimes necessary to ensure that more good will come from a person dead than alive.  With regards to the second part of the Beatitudes, Machiavelli says that "benefits ought to be given little by little so that the flavour or them may last longer," (Chapter 8).  In the Beatitudes, the rewards for people's virtue are big and immediate, but these people should be rewarded gradually so that it means more to them.  Machiavelli's general belief is that "it will be found that something which looks like virtue, if followed, would be his ruin; whilst something else, which looks like vice, yet followed brings him security and prosperity," (Chapter 15).  The Beatitudes are very straightforward, but Machiavelli believes that they are often wrong, and that good things will more often come from bad rather than good, unlike what the Beatitudes say.  In so many words, "good works will do you harm," (Chapter 19).

Machiavelli, N. (1513). The prince. Retrieved from http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/machiavelli-prince.html
Posted by at 2 comments:
Labels: ,

Wednesday 27 October 2010

Geography of Spain and Christopher Columbus

Posted by at No comments:
Labels: ,

Tuesday 19 October 2010

Revised Henry VIII's Divorce of Catherine of Aragon and Separation of the Church

Henry VIII made a brash decision to sign the Act of Supremacy, bestowing upon himself the authority over the Church of England, in order to be able to divorce his wife Catherine, who would not give him a son, and marry the younger Anne Boleyn. By making himself head of the Church of England, Henry disconnected himself from Rome and the Vatican, and had not only the power of the crown, but also the power of the supreme religious leader. Henry made it so that he himself and only himself "shall have full power and authority...to visit, repress, redress, record, order, correct, restrain, and amend all such errors, heresies, abuses, offenses, contempts, and enormities," (http://www.thenagain.info/Classes/Sources/ActSupremacy.html) which gave him any and all authority over the kingdom of England, and presented the very easy opportunity to abuse his extreme amount of power.  Consequently, he also gave himself the ability to marry any woman who would have him, since he had the power to divorce any of his wives should he so choose. Catherine of Aragon was the first victim of this. In signing the Act of Supremacy and divorcing Catherine, Henry was unjustified because he pushed his power to its limits, and abused the privileges he already had in order to steal more away, angering Catherine, the Holy Roman Empire, and many of his own subjects.
On a personal level, Catherine could not have been fond of Henry's decision to take away her position as queen and divorce her for a younger woman, all because she could not produce a son. She had been in power for 24 years, serving her husband faithfully and attempting to give him an heir many times, but all of her children were miscarried, stillborn, or died in infancy, except for one: Mary. Henry was displeased with her and thought their marriage was cursed. Catherine writes him, "You have cast me into many calamites," (http://englishhistory.net/tudor/letter5.html) letting him know how much pain and stress he had caused her, but Henry never really cared about her as anything more than an object that could give him a true male heir.  When the Vatican would not let him divorce Catherine, he made himself head of the Church of England and broke Catherine's heart, sending her away as Princess Dowager and moving on to Anne Boleyn. Catherine had tried to retain her position as Henry's wife and queen, not letting Thomas Cranmer oversee their divorce because "her cause was before the Pope she would have none other judge," (http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/cramner-hen8.html).  Catherine demanded that the highest authority in the Church declare their marriage annulled, trying to hang on to her beloved husband, but Henry found a way around that for his own selfish purposes.  None of the years Catherine was faithful to Henry mattered to him; all that he cared about was his wife, any wife, producing an heir for him. Catherine, on the other hand, loved Henry with all her heart until her dying day when she writes him a letter ending with "Lastly, I make this vow, that mine eyes desire you above all things," (http://englishhistory.net/tudor/letter5.html) letting him know that she will always love him more than anyone. In Catherine's opinion, and the opinions of many who agree with her, it was surely not right for Henry to divorce her without her having any say, and Henry should not have done away with her for such petty reasons.
The Holy Roman Empire, on a more political and religious standpoint, thought that Henry was overstepping his boundaries as king when he intruded on the position of a religious leader. The Vatican, at this time, had a lot of power. The Holy Roman Empire had started out small in 843, but it had grown to cover much of Europe between that time and the time of Henry VIII's reign. Also during this time, the Holy Roman Emperor in charge of the entire empire was Charles V. This man happened to be the nephew of Henry VIII's wife he was trying to divorce: Catherine of Aragon. Not only did the Holy Roman Emperor disagree on this attempted divorce on religious grounds, but Charles was surely somewhat biased in his decision to not annul Henry's marriage, because he was working partly on the behalf of his family. Though this partisan was not completely right, Henry should have yielded to the ruling of the Holy Roman Empire instead of cutting himself and England off completely to satisfy his need for an heir.  No matter how hard Henry and his associates tried, the Vatican would not be swayed in its decision to not annul the marriage of Henry and Catherine (http://englishhistory.net/tudor/priwols1.html), so Henry took control of his own Church and made his own rules.  In his Act of Supremacy, Henry VIII states that the purpose is "for the conservation of peace, unity, and tranquility of the realm," (http://www.thenagain.info/Classes/Sources/ActSupremacy.html) while in reality he made himself an enemy of the entire Holy Roman Empire by going against their will.
Not only were people of authority against Henry's decision, but many of his subjects and people under him were too. Cardinal Thomas Wosley lost his job and was executed as a result of Henry's discord with the Church, and he surely thought Henry trying to overpower the Vatican was not the best idea. He did all that he could to try to give Henry what he wanted, but it was not enough. Henry, crazy with supreme political and now religious power, ordered Wosley to be killed. Wosley had trusted Henry, saying even upon arrest, "My person was in the king's protection,"  (http://englishhistory.net/tudor/priwols1.html) assuming that this was a mistake and Henry will save him, where in reality Henry was the one condemning him to the Tower of London. After being thrown in the Tower, Wosley "was much astonished and shortly became ill," (http://englishhistory.net/tudor/priwols1.html) eventually dying as a result of Henry and the fact that, now that he had so much power, people that were once close to him were dispensable.  Murder on undeserved grounds, even indirectly, is never ok, and this resulting from Henry's splitting from the Church to divorce Catherine helps to show how Henry's choice was not right, and shows that all the power in his hands corrupted him enough to betray Wosley, one of his chief advisors.
Judging from the viewpoints of many different people in many different positions, as a whole this withdrawal from the Vatican was initially an unjustifiable act of Henry VIII. Some good that came of it in time, though, was a sense of English nationalism when Elizabeth I continued Henry's religious establishment and made Protestantism such a big part of England that it was deeply intertwined in the culture itself. Henry's decision does show that some good can always come from bad. Nevertheless, Henry's decision was made selfishly and has no decent reasons to justify it, but despite his motives, Henry took control and forever changed the fate of England.

Works Cited:
Catherine of Aragon. "Primary Sources - Letter of Katharine of Aragon to Her Husband, King Henry VIII, 7 January 1536." EnglishHistory.net. Web. 28 Sept. 2010. <http://englishhistory.net/tudor/letter5.html>.
Cranmer, Thomas. "Medieval Sourcebook: Letter of Thomas Cranmer, 1533." FORDHAM.EDU. Fordham University. Web. 28 Sept. 2010. <http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/cramner-hen8.html>.
"Habsburg History - European Monarch Genealogy." Welcome - European Monarch Genealogy. Web. 28 Sept. 2010. <http://www.monarchgenealogy.com/habsburghistory.htm>.
Hall, Edward. "Primary Sources: The Fall of Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, 1530."EnglishHistory.net. Web. 28 Sept. 2010. <http://englishhistory.net/tudor/priwols1.html>.
"HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE--1500." McMurry University | Christian College | Universities In Texas. Web. 28 Sept. 2010. <http://www.mcm.edu/academic/depts/history/maps/HOLYROMEMPIRE.html>.
"The Act of Supremacy." Then Again. . . Web. 27 Sept. 2010. <http://www.thenagain.info/Classes/Sources/ActSupremacy.html>.
"The Holy Roman Empire’s Imperial Diet: Electoral Votes in 1792." The Napoleon Series. Web. 28 Sept. 2010. <http://www.napoleon-series.org/research/government/c_holyroman.html>.
Posted by at No comments:
Labels: ,

Perugia's History and Accomadations

Cassero di Porta Sant'Angelo
Offers a historical background
 on the building
Cathedral of San Lorenzo
Gorgeous example of Gothic architecture
that took 400 years to complete
Brufani Palace Hotel Pool Area
View of the Hotel Priori from their website.
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Sunday 17 October 2010

"Our Majesty, Queen of England" Trailer


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJV3Fh1pPkc
Thanks to the extremely talented cast and crew of Brianna Glase, Jimmy Knell, Becca Kotula, Mary Kate Luft, Allison Sanphilippo, and Martha Schick (listed alphabetically) and the following primary sources:
Posted by at No comments:
Labels: ,

Friday 1 October 2010

Elizabeth I Trailer: Various Notes and Planning

  • The Final Product:
  • Scenes:
    • Being born
      • Anne Boleyn holding Elizabeth
    • The romping
      • Step dad walks through door, Elizabeth cowers/is afraid, step dad closes door, Catherine opens door and sees them, gets mad, banishes Elizabeth
    • Mary I and Elizabeth make up
      • Mary apologizes to Elizabeth
      • Mary: "Forgive me dear sister, I apologize," then they hug
    • When Elizabeth finds out she's queen
      • Sitting under a tree, people bow to her and address her as queen, she quotes psalms
      • Elizabeth: "It is the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes,"
    • Telling Parliament she's not going to get married
      • Elizabeth: "I have already joined myself in marriage to a husband, namely the kingdom of England," -OR- "Better beggar woman and single then Queen and married,"
    • Confronting Mary, Queen of Scots
      • Elizabeth sitting on throne, Mary comes in, guards take her away
    • Spanish Armada/Tilbury Speech
      • SPEECH- "By your concord in the camp, and by your valor in the field, we shall shortly have a famous victory over the enemies of my God, of my kingdom, and of my people."
  • Casting
    • Elizabeth = Martha
    • Mary, Queen of Scots = Mary Kate
    • Mary Tudor/Jailer= Becca
    • Anne Boleyn/Guard= Allison
    • Henry VIII/Thomas Seymour/Member of Parliament = Jimmy
    • Catherine Parr/Guard= Brianna
  • Primary Sources:
  • Filming (when and where)
    • Thursday at 4:00 at Martha's house
Posted by at No comments:
Labels: ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)