Elements of The Lord of the Rings in Final Fantasy VIII Essay -- Lord

Elements of The Lord of the Rings in Final Fantasy VIII      Ã‚  Ã‚   J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings trilogy is arguably the most influential work of fantasy literature in modern times. Its epic tale of good against evil and its surreal world of magical and unusual characters and places have captured and enchanted readers since its publication half a century ago. The story of the struggle to destroy the One Ring still influences numerous tales of adventure in literature, film, and role-playing games. Since the advent of role-playing video games, the Final Fantasy series has endured in a genre where many other games seem to blend together. It marks a standard in the world of role-playing games in much the same way The Lord of the Rings marks a standard in fantasy literature. This essay shall examine these two epic adventures and show some of the ways in which Final Fantasy VIII draws upon elements from The Lord of the Rings.    At the center of Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings is the basic struggle between good and evil, manifested through the battle over the One Ring. The story draws upon traditional Christian theology and ideas about good and evil, right and wrong. Goodness in The Lord of the Rings is represented by selflessness and an interest in the good of all, with a willingness to give of oneself for the good of the whole. However, the border between good and evil is not always clear, and characters are not necessarily completely good or completely evil. Selfishness, greed, and hunger for individual power are destructive forces for evil within individual characters, and characters must use their own moral compass to choose whether to strive for good or give in to the temptation of evil. Even... ...Merry and Pippin or Zell Dincht. Perhaps it is the vulnerability in characters like Frodo Baggins or Squall Leonheart; seemingly 'regular guys' who are thrust into extraordinary situations and who persevere for the forces of good in the world. Regardless, both The Lord of the Rings and the Final Fantasy series are works that have managed to grow beyond the narrow bounds of their genre, and both will likely remain influential standards by which other works are judged.    WORKS CITED Final Fantasy VIII. SquareSoft/Electronic Arts. 1999. Final Fantasy: Worlds Apart. Final Fantasy VIII home page. Tolkein, J.R.R. The Fellowship of the Ring. New York: Ballantine Books, 1954. ---. The Return of the King. New York: Ballantine Books, 1955. ---. The Two Towers. New York: Ballantine Books, 1954.   

Readings in Jazz History Essay

Jazz, the music which was born and blossomed in New Orleans at the turn of the twentieth century, later traveled all over the country acquiring new features and forms. The New Orleans jazz style included polyphonic music in which different musical instruments simultaneously play different variations on a particular piece of music and which includes freer rhythmic improvisation. Usually the musical instruments included trumpet, clarinet, and trombone all playing different melody at the same time. Starting from New Orleans jazz traveled to Chicago, Kansas City, New York and others and made them its centers for a certain period. Kansas City jazz flourished in the 1930s, when the town was an entertainment capital during the Depression. The city’s unique sound was largely defined by the reliance of its bands on blues, fast tempos, and simple riff structures. Local bands developed to a high degree in relative isolation from outside influences. The top quality of African-American origin of jazz mattered to many other cities, but did not reach Texas until the middle 1920s. And the impact of the representatives of New Orleans style, so decisive in other parts of the country, was less strongly felt in this region. In contrast, the sound of the blues was pervasive in Texas. Kansas style, distinguished by the rise of larger dance bands, was characterized the inclination for the blues. The Kansas City style as it evolved in the 1920s and 1930s incorporated an informal â€Å"head chart† style relying on simple memorized parts. Among the pioneers of Kansas City jazz were Count Basie band (featuring Lester Young) and Jay McShann band (featuring Charlie Parker). One of the most influential of the Kansas City players from the 1930s was Lester Young. Among his achievements was the change of melodic improvisation in jazz, where he offered an alternative to the hot, syncopated style. Jazz style became distinguished by flowering of cool jazz, a supple manner of phrasing across bar lines, a greater sensitivity to intervals that underlay harmonies, and emotional elevation. Lester elaborated the techniques of jazz improvisation and broadened the music’s emotionality. Among other prominent players was Count Basie whose band worked on refining swing style, music which largely derived from the blues, relied on formal, syncopated arrangements to support soaring, improvised solos. It was propulsive music, infectious and irresistible. Murray’s thesis on the return of Kansas City jazz to its roots in New Orleans seems to be more like nostalgic view. If to look at jazz of the 1930ies more attentively, it will become obvious that it was rather the reconsideration of the true nature of jazz than a throwback. Kansas City jazz again returned to improvisation, to free performance, but improvisation now was intentional, the true jazz musician was that who could play without scores, who could improvise with melody and create off hand. However, if to return to New Orleans’ improvisation, it was predetermined by the lack of education. The musicians of that time were not professionals and many of them just reproduced on the stage the music the way they felt it. So the difference in the grounds for improvisation is the key factor that does not allow the assertion that Kansas style is the throwback to the initial form of jazz to be feasible. â€Å"I can’t stand to sing the same song the same way two nights in succession, let alone two years or ten years. if you can, then it ain’t music, it’s close-order drill or exercise or yodeling or something, not music. † (96) – these words of Billy Holiday convey the general attitude towards the jazz that existed among prominent musicians and jazz critics in the 1930s. The survey of the ideas on jazz music and its nature expressed by such musician as Louis Armstrong, Billy Holiday and Duke Ellington as well as jazz critics Robert Goffin and John Hammond leads to the conclusion that all of them meet in the view on the nature of jazz. Though with different approaches and interpretation both musicians and critics stand up for the idea that real jazz is the music which is not written down and played all times in the same way. In other words all of them uphold the opinion that improvisation is the only key feature of true jazz what makes it easy music. However, as it was mentioned there are still some variances in approaches. Thus, Goffin for example, uses the term â€Å"hot jazz† to define improvised form and claims that â€Å"hot jazz, [is] otherwise known as improvised jazz, a type of music that was in existence long before it was formally tabulated. The epithet â€Å"hot† is applied to any passage â€Å"in which the executant or executants abandon the melodic theme and develop an imaginative structure on the basis of that theme and incorporated with it. † (83) At the same time he points to the problems related to the setting jazz tunes within fixed scores that result in nothing but poor resemblance of real music. He contrasts melodic jazz to hot jazz in favour of latter: â€Å"Melodic jazz has contributed nothing to music and will only be remembered for its unspeakable insipidness; whereas hot jazz is a creative principle which can scarcely fail to affect the music of the future in the most original and unexpected directions†. (84) Special attention Goffin pays to Louis Armstrong, whom he considers â€Å"the supreme genius of jazz† (85). Speaking about Louis Armstrong, he also defends the idea of improvisation to be the true music. He, actually, differentiates between swing and jazz, attributing latter to the contemporary commercialized music. Swing for Armstrong is exactly that type of free music based on improvisation which was practiced in New Orleans thirty years before his time. The same as Goffin does Armstrong rebukes the practice of writing down music, and explains that tendency by the quest for profit of record companies. At the same time, John Hammond distinguishes African-American musical traditions from the popular commercial phenomenon which he refers to as swing that is played predominantly at this time by white bands. He accuses people involved in music business of commercialization of jazz and deprivation it of any value: â€Å"Not the least of the despoilers are the commercial gentlemen, who produce all kinds of ridiculous recorded jazz under the caption â€Å"Swing,† and who are directly responsible for the stunt music that great men like Armstrong play these days. In this society there are always Breakfast Food people to sell their wares by tying them up with something popular†. (103) Hammond stands out in this team by the most fervent wish to surmount racial conflicts in jazz realm. He constantly points out to the fact that Black musicians suffer from being prejudiced by audience and record companies, despite the fact that the jazz is originally black music. Therefore, considering these ideas, we can arrive to the conclusion that all of mentioned participants of jazz world have common understanding of improvised nature of real jazz, and all of them acknowledge that with putting music in the frames of scores the musicians deprive it of its emotional load, feeling and originality. While, the tendency to written scores existed and evolved there must have been an explanation to it. The professionals discussed above agree in view that the main threat to the jazz was the commerce, practiced by record companies that tried to gain maximum profit from popular music of those days. And, as it usually occurs, such practice contributed to the simplification of music. However, looking back, this tendency did not have lethal effect for jazz, while today we can see that jazz did not stumbled in its progress and continues its development appearing in such modern forms as acid jazz, nu jazz etc. Works cited list Walser, Robert. Keeping Time: Readings in Jazz History. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999

Socrates s Philosophy On Moral Life - 1960 Words

Socrates makes a profound impact in our minds through his wisdom, his power of critical thinking, moral strength and intelligence. In the end it is Plato who immortalizes Socrates in the popular imagination as a man of profound knowledge. Socrates’ effectiveness as a philosopher depended as much on the strength and interest of his personality as on the power of his mind. Socrates’ philosophy was based on discovering the truth, understanding moral life and talking about the elements that make up a good life. In my judgment, one of the most important things about Socrates quest was, indeed, the persistent habit and practice of being critical and thoughtful, not being truly blind to one s own groundless convictions and assumptions. Contemplation and critical self awareness as a way of worthy life is what Socrates stands for. So, therefore, he adopted questioning people about their knowledge as the foremost maxim for his life, and that is why he ultimately believed that th e unexamined life is not worth living. Real life, according to Socrates, is not something that is just to be lived, lived by adapting blindly and head strong primal instincts, popular convictions, or time long honored customs. The good life is a life that questions and thinks about things, it is a life of observation, contemplation, self examination, and open minded wondering. The good life is a kind of life that should be devoid of all types of injustice and corruption. Socrates ultimately believes that,Show MoreRelatedPlato, An Ancient Greek Philosopher1458 Words   |  6 Pagesfree thinker and lived in a free city, Athens. He was taught by multiple teachers including Socrates who was frequently mentioned in his writings as the central character. Plato’s novel, The Republic, influenced the idea of government and shows his views on the world. Throughout his personal life, writings, and dialogues, Plato shows his value of knowledge and how each of his writings impacted th e morals of people in the society. Plato was born in 427 BCE in Athens which is one of the most powerfulRead MorePlato s The Apology Of Socrates874 Words   |  4 PagesIn Plato s â€Å"The Apology of Socrates†, Socrates states, â€Å"the unexamined life is not worth living† and he would rather be put to death them stop his practice of philosophy (The Apology). In this writing, Socrates is charged with not accepting the gods recognized by the state, devising new gods, and corrupting the youth of Athens. However, the word apology in the title is not our modern English interpretation of the word. The name of the speech stems from the Greek word apologia, which translatesRead MoreEssay on The Nature of Socratic Philosophy516 Words   |  3 PagesSocratic Philosophy The original word for philosophy steams from the Greek word philosopha,meaning love of wisdom. Although Socrates himself never claimed to have any answers to the questions he raised, his views and methods of philosophy are the cornerstone of what philosophy is today. The nature of philosophy, as viewed by Socrates, is centred around the wellness of the soul, virtue being defined as knowledge and the pursuit of truth through the questioning of beliefs. Socrates heavilyRead MoreSocrates : The Suicide Of Socrates1405 Words   |  6 PagesSocrates was born in 470 BCE in Athens, Greece. His father was Sophroniscus, a sculptor and stone mason from Athens and his mother was a midwife by the name of Phaenarete (30 Interesting Socrates Facts 2014). Socrates original profession was masonry and sculpting, before becoming a philosopher. On a day in 399 BC, Socrates ( roughly 71 years at the time) went to trial.Now why would anyone want to send an old man to court? Three answer is that Socrates was accused of refusing to recognize theRead MorePlatos Philosophy in Apology1375 Words   |  6 PagesPHL202H5 Plato s Philosophy in Apology Plato was known to be one of Socrates students, and knew him for over 40 years. Although Plato s version of Apology is popularly believed to be (the most accurate) historical recount of what happened in 399 B.C on the day of Socrates trial, historians cannot be sure the validity of everything he wrote. It can be argued that it is actually a philosophical work, remarking on the teachings of Socrates and his beliefs, which he stood by even until hisRead MoreStudent Teacher1669 Words   |  7 Pagesstudents by shaping their rational and moral virtues and hence, play an important role in molding the society as a whole. The education system of ancient India and Greece shared some common characteristics. In both cultures, teachers and their disciples conglomerated at specific places earmarked for educational purposes. This is where students gained both spiritual and material education from their teachers. All ancient societies functioned according to a set of moral codes and social hie rarchy and teachersRead MoreBook Report On The Book Le Gai Savoir 1421 Words   |  6 Pageschemistry class. I had a friend who spent all his time, in science classes, reading books about philosophy. His nonconformity caught my attention. I started to be interested by the big mustache of the author on the cover page of his book Le Gai Savoir, because I knew, of course, that all authors with big mustache – such as Victor Hugo and Albert Einstein – wrote about great things! So I started to read Nietzsche s works. Then, one day, my dad caught me reading Le Gai Savoir and he told me that this philosopherRead MoreWhat Good Is Good?1716 Words   |  7 Pageswould be someone that does no wrong and lives an honest life. So my question is what really is good? If there is good does there also have to be bad and evil? Are bad and evil the same thing or do they have different meanings as well? Each philosopher, Socrates, Plato and Augustine, had their own idea of what good mean t to them and even though they had similar thoughts on what good was they had different ideas of where it came from. Socrates was known to be one of the greatest philosophers of theRead MoreStrengths And Weaknesses Of Socrates1663 Words   |  7 Pages Socrates is known in today’s world as one of the greatest philosophers in history. Born in 469 BC just outside of Athens, Socrates was properly brought up and thoroughly educated, he developed both physical and mental strengths. Socrates spent time with the philosopher Archelaus, where he studied astronomy, mathematics, and was introduced to philosophy. Archelaus taught with a scientific approach. Socrates turned from this approach and created his own. He decided instead of trying to understandRead MoreSocrates s View Of Justice1676 Words   |  7 Pages â€Å"But when Socrates was busying himself with ethical questions to the complete neglect of nature as a whole, and was seeking in them for the universal and directing the mind for the first time to definitions, Plato, accepting his teaching, came to the conclusion that it applied to something other than the sensible world: the common definition, he reasoned, could not apply to any of the sensible, since they were always ch anging,† (Guthrie). Socrates was constantly wrapped up in thought about how the