The Kings Contributions To Development Of Thailand History Essay

The Kings Contributions To Development Of Thailand History Essay With the constitutional monarchy belonging to the country, on 9 June, 1946 at the tender age of 18, King Bhumibol Adulyadej ascended the throne in the name head of state by not involving to political activities for leading country after the death of his brother, King Ananda. Due to the law of constitution, the king was restricted into a narrow role and segregated from the reign of power; however, with the purpose of developing nation and being capable, the king establish his base of support among Thai people which was the step of his mission. The absence of government support had made the king face to harsh reality in his initial phase of his development effort, but the king still was able to continue his efforts. For over 6 decades of reign, King Bumibol Adulyadej has contributed a number of developments in social, economic and political field to his nation and got more respects from his people constantly. His Majestys contributions to social and economic development The first decade of kings contributions (1946-1955): Mainly focusing on rural development, the king had set up thousands of development projects aiming to promote potential consumption among the Thai rural poor. For instance, in early 1950s, the severe epidemics ravaged the Thai population and caused people loss of life, physical impairment and chronic suffering, as the consequence, the king personally set up the project of promotion of large scale disease control by contributing over 2,000,000 baths, and more importantly, from this project, many constructions of rural hospitals were established to serve public. Besides this project, many agricultural projects were established at the same time in order to accelerate the rural poors living standard. From this flying in northeastern Thailand over Phuphan Mountain in 1955, the king notice the inadequate rainfall to the arable land belonging to farmers; as the result, from this understanding over the facts farmer faced, the king started to set up project of water irrigation to help poor farmer for their cultivation. From this project, the idea of artificial rain introduced by His Majesty was facilitated by technological advances; moreover, fresh water for public consumption was also introduced under this water management project. In the educational sector, His Majesty set up the scholarship fund in 1955under the name of Ananda Mahidol to enable outstanding students to gain more academic knowledge abroad to serve the nation. The second decade of kings contributions (1956-1965): In this second decade of reign, His Majesty still continued to take many actions to broaden his rural development mission. At this time, His Majesty, moreover, started to strengthen the diplomatic tie with other nations with the belief that it is a key to stabilize Thailands security and continue Thailands prosperity. For second decade of his reign, His Majesty had spent most of his time abroad with long-version mission for his country. By mid-1960, His Majesty had embarked on a whirlwind tour of 15 nations in North America and Europe. Between 1961 and 1967, His Majesty visited 13 other countries in Asia, Australia, and made similar visits to Germany, Austria and the US (Bangkok Post, 2006). The visits of His Majesty aimed to establish international diplomatic relationships between Thailand and the globe, and more importantly to express Thailands image on the international stage in order to gain countrys international credibility. Furthermore, seeking Western support in countering the spread of communism which was a threat to Thai national security was considered as the underlining objective of the visit of His Majesty who wanted to strengthen the democratic system in his country for making prosperous living for his Thai people. From this state visiting of His Majesty, Thailand did get huge recognition and acknowledgement from international community; as the result of His Majestys diplomatic efforts, Thailand was considered as the significant actor in the arena of foreign affairs which contributed a significant role in helping to creating ASEAN. In the internal affair of Thailand in 1960, Thailand faced the worst national disaster which a severe typhoon devastated the thirteen provinces in southern of country, and at the same through his Au Sau Radio program, His Majesty raised 11 million baht from the donations of public to emergency help victims affected by natural disasters. Later on, in 1963 many foundat ions were established under the effort of His Majesty with purpose of emergency help and rebuild some infrastructure after getting natural disaster. Besides, His Majesty continued his effort on the agricultural section by conducting many research and experimentation to explore new methods of rice cultivation and dairy farming for his poor farmers and to see his Thai people with fuller stomach. From his hard-working on social development, His Majesty earned and organized his broad-base public support. The third decade of kings contributions (1966-1975): In 1971, artificial rain services were officially offered to the farmer by The Royal Rain-Making Research and Development Project. From this artificial rain services, the serious effects of the dry season to the farmers were reduced and people were able do their cultivation with other water management project efficiently; moreover, His Majesty still contribute his active involvement in this operation of the project till the present day. With the free charge of the Royal Rain provided by His Majesty, Thai farming enjoyed the significant benefit in cultivation even though the highly developed technological base was introduced in country by government. Moreover, from this royal rain services, His Majesty is remained in the heart of Thai people mostly Thai farmers up to nowadays. During the second decade of his reign, many complex problems were faced by Thai society; for this reason, His Majesty set up the approach to every issue with way of wisdom and sensitivity. His Majesty Bhumibol Adulyadej (December 15, 1970) delivered the speech to public that I dont wish to see anybody succumb to anybody else. I am for democracy. But we must create genuine and appropriate democracy. Democracy without wisdom will turn in chaos. And that Chaos will develop into anarchyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ we must respect the dignity of humans, the dignity of individuals. We should think of how to promote peoples dignity. From this valued approach, His Majesty won the hearts of minority group in the Northern Thailand, and His Majesty could hold the hands of both side -the minority group and the government- to a solution over the problem of opium production done by minority group. Later on, His Majesty could convince the minority group to give up their traditional cultivation by planting opium, and to adopt the cash crops cultivation introduced under the royal project set up by His Majesty. Following this new cultivation, the minority group was ab le to enhance their standard of living with the higher income contributed to their budget. As a consequence, the illegal supply of opium from the northern part of country was extremely reduced, and that was considered as a great sign for Thailand to adopt legal market in the country with best obvious approaches to solution contributed by His Majesty. The fourth decade of kings contributions (1976-1985): For this decade of his reign, His Majesty still set up his commitment to rural development. The royal co-operative project was established for the purpose to teach farmer to rely on themselves by cooperating with each other and to help them from the exploitation of middleman merchants, capitalists, and the capital investment; moreover, from this project, His Majesty initiated the first Rice Bank in 1975 and the Cow and Buffalo Bank in 1979. At Thammasat University when visiting for musical performance, His Majesty (March 6, 1971) delivered a speech to farmers over the problem of exploitation from the middleman that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦if one wants to solve this problem, the starting point is to coalesce in groups, as a group of consumers have contact with the group of producers. Agreements should be made and there should probably be an establishment of a mill house or negotiations with the mill owner in order to prevent the middleman p rocess. If all rice consumers set up groups, buying paddies and milling paddies themselves or having them milled by an agreed operator, passing through one channel, the producers, the millers and the consumers could solve the question of the middleman. As the result, The Rice Bank was the part of the royal co-operative project and guideline to ensure that the project would get success. From the Rice Bank, farmers have to join together and keep their rice into the bank barn which means that it is the source of reserved food; moreover, the Rice Bank had its committee which practiced as the keeper and decided to give loan with minimum interest rate to farmers for consumption or to be used in their cultivation. From this policy, it helped the poor farmers from exploitation of outsiders. Cows and buffalos were the essential element for farmers to do their cultivation; however, some poor farmers were not able to own cow or buffalo for their cultivation. By understanding this issue, His Ma jesty initiated the Cow and Buffalo Bank to his poor farmer. From the Cow and Buffalo Bank, poor farmers were able to borrow cow or buffalo from the bank to use in any beneficial ways according to the agreement of the bank; moreover, poor farmers could also do long-term purchase installment for cow or buffalo with agricultural purposes. More importantly, the research and development centre was established in 1979 to guarantee that many new development methods and projects would provide to rural development. His Majestys actions were more recognized by public and the government. Shortly after this establishment of centre, in 1981, understanding the sustainable actions of His Majesty to rural development, the government discovered the office of the Royal Development Projects Board (RDPB) matched to His Majestys Royal projects by contributing professional and financial assistance from the appropriate agencies within the government; therefore, from this discovery, it led to have the inc rease of floating fund to the budget, so many other His Majestys initiated projects have increased in number as well. The fifth decade of kings contributions (1986-1995): Again and again, His Majesty showed his commitment in social development which started in the first decade of his reign without support from the government till the fifth decade of his reign with a number of supports from public and the government. Many projects related to water irrigation, preventing soil erosion, building canal, etc were continued with contributions of His Majesty. From 50-year experience engaging in the development practice, His Majesty had revolutionized a new approach called The New Theory which was outlined into three parts to serve as guideline for farmer to get self-sufficient in their life. From this new approach, the farmers have firstly to empower themselves by starting with their individual level, and then they have to strengthen the entire community in order to effectively collaborate with the outside, and the last point is to envision fair and equal partnership between their community and the private sectors. His Majesty strongly believed that if the farmers can adopt this approach, it is clearly sure that they will improve their living standard. The six decade of kings contributions (1996-2006): In the six decade of His Majestys reign, Thailand faced the unexpected and dramatic collapse of its economy caused by financial crisis in 1997. This crisis caused millions of Thai people jobless and seriously affected to the whole country and region. Soon, His Majesty introduced the new approach or theory called Self-Sufficiency Economy to his country. (This point is going to be discussed in economic His Majestys contributions part.) His Majestys contributions to economic crisis There are many causes of the economic crisis in Thailand in 1997; however, one of those causes was the too much expansion of production with no buyer. For Thailand, from this crisis, it is the costly lesson of unbalance and unstable growth which partly due to the situation of economic and social process depending heavily on foreign capital flow and external market. With the understanding of the source of causes of crisis, His Majesty introduced the Self-Sufficiency Economy philosophy to his nation by giving an interesting speech to his people that In fact, I have often saidà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ to be a tiger is not important. The important thing is for us to have a self-supporting economy. A self-supporting economy means to have enough to survive. From this speech, His Majesty convinced that it was not too much important for Thailand to hold the position as an economic tiger, or be recognized as a newly industrialized country, but what much important is the living in moderation and being s elf-reliant in order to prevent ourselves from the destabilization caused by the external actors in the globe. The main concept of the Sufficiency Economy is to enable Thailand to remain self-reliant, staying in middle path between society at the local level and the market in the global context, reserve of richness of the ecosystems and survival without the necessity of intervention from external factors. From this concept, the government now commonly include in many development project for the country.

PHYSICIAN ASSISTED SUICIDE

PHYSICIAN ASSISTED SUICIDE Introduction Problem Statement Is there a right to die? The practice of which a doctor gives a patient a gravely damaging dose of a substance, which is the normally requested by the patient, that he or she has intentions of using to end his or her life is referred to as Physician Assisted Suicide. Some feel that a terminally ill patient should have a legal right to control the manner in which they die. Physicians and nurses have fought for the right to aid a patient in their death. Many families of the terminally ill have exhausted all of their finances taking care of a patient who is dying and would much prefer the option of assisted suicide to bankruptcy. While there are many strong views against Physician Assisted Suicide, one of the most compelling is that patients who are terminally ill have the right to die in not only a humane but also in a dignified manner. But in hindsight, can we assure that there is dignity in dying necessarily when the doctor who is so trusted by the patient and their family, and whose professional ethics are to further and sustain life, injects a patient who is terminally ill with a dose of medication that is so lethal it immediately puts an end to that individuals life? Each and every culture including our own have a taboo against murder. All across cultural and religious groups the practice of physician assisting with suicide is considered wrong. As stated by Leon R. Kass, 2008, even when requested by the patient, the taboo against doctors killing patients is the very embodiment of reason and wisdom. Without it, medicine will have lost its claim to be an ethical and trustworthy profession. Obviously, the moral and ethical dilemmas surrounding the legalization of physician assisted suicide will be an issue for years to come. Dying is as much a natural process of life as birth. Families have fought to have their loved ones kept alive even when there was a DNR (do not resuscitate) or advanced directive. My position is against Physician Assisted Suicide because the decision of when and where the time of our death should occur is one that only God has the right to decide, because no person or doctor has the right to end a life. Hypothesis Independent Variable Physician Assisted suicide comes into existence when a doctor supplies a patient with the ways and means of putting an end his or her life, most times with a prescription for a deadly dose of a medication or substance. The patient then takes the drugs without the assistance of the doctor. The way that this is done is different from euthanasia, which is when the doctor gives the lethal dose to the patient or he or she carry out some other act, such as administering a lethal injection that puts an end to the patients life. In most states, Physician Assisted suicide is an illegal act Dependent Variable Physician Assisted Suicide runs directly opposite to the belief that the duty of the doctor is to save and prolong life. Furthermore, if Physician Assisted Suicide were to become legal, there is a possibility that some form of abuses would occur. For example, poor and other elderly individuals might be secretly burdened to choose Physician Assisted Suicide over more complicated and expensive palliative care options. Review of the Literature According to the New England Journal of Medicine, a survey was done nationally in the United States which showed that in 1996, 3102 questionnaires were mailed to a stratified probability sample of physicians in the 10 specialties in which doctors are most likely to get requests from patients for assistance with suicide or euthanasia. 1902 completed these questionnaires. Eleven percent of the physicians said that under current legal constraints, there were circumstances in which they would be willing to hasten a patients death by prescribing medication, and 7 % said that they would give a lethal injection; 36% and 24%, respectively, said that they would do so if it were legal. Since beginning practice, 18.3% of the doctors stated that they received a request from a patient for help with suicide and 11.1% had been asked by their patient for a deadly injection. Sixteen percent of doctors who received such requests, or 3.3% of the entire sample, reported that they had written at least on e prescription to be used to speed up the death of a patient, and 4.7%, said that they had given at least one lethal injection (Meier et al, 1998). A second set of research done by Braddock, Tonelli, 1998 also noted that Physician Assisted Suicide is unethical for one of many reasons. First, there is the argument of the sanctity of life which details intense religious and worldly beliefs against taking the life of a human being. The argument is also that assisted suicide is also wrong morally because it is contrary to these traditions. Second, passive vs. Active distinction: The argument here is that there is a significant distinction between passively letting an individual die and actively killing an individual. Of course there is the argument that refusing to treat someone or refraining from treating equals to letting the individual die (passive) and is excusable, while Physician Assisted Suicide equals to killing an individual (active) and is not excusable. Third, the potential for abuse which argues that particular groups of people who does not have the ability to obtain care and support, may be pushed into physician assiste d death. Also, physician assisted death may become a strategy for cost-containment. Family members who are burdened and other health care providers may attempt to persuade the patient toward physician assisted death. To shield the patient from these deceptions, it is the argument that Physician Assisted Suicide should remain illegal. Fourthly, professional integrity in which those who oppose physician assisted suicide point to the historical ethical beliefs of medicine, strongly opposed to taking life. The general concern is that connecting Physician Assisted Suicide to the practice of medicine could damage the way in which the general public views the profession. Lastly, fallibility of the profession in which the worry is that doctors will make errors (Braddock, Tonelli, 1998). The University Of Washington School Of Medicine followed up with research to prove the illegality of Physician Assisted Suicide. Research by Meier et al, 1998 states that in most states, including the state of Washington, assisting in a suicide is considered a crime and the state of Oregon is the only state where Physician Assisted Suicide is presently legalized. In the case of Compassion in Dying v. Washington, the Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals held that individuals have a right to choose how and when they die. Later, the Second Circuit Court found a New York law on Physician Assisted Suicide in conflict with the 14th amendment, which says that no state shall deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. The Court held that competent patients were being treated differently than incompetent patients. The US Supreme Court has ruled that there is no constitutional right to assisted suicide, and made a legal distinction between refusal of treatment and Physician Assisted Suicide. However, the Court also left the decision of whether to legalize Physician Assisted Suicide up to each individual state (Braddock, Tonelli, 1998). Oregons Death with Dignity Act which was established on October 27, 1997 permits terminally ill Oregonians to end their lives through the voluntary self-administration of lethal medications, solely prescribed by a physician for that purpose. The statute requires the Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) to collect information about patients and physicians who participate in the physician- assisted death (PAD) process. It also requires ODHS to publish an annual statistical report (Aungst, 2008). According to Oregon public health officials, by the end of 2001, doctors in the state had legally prescribed a lethal dose of barbiturates for 139 patients. Ninety of these patients ingested the medication and died Dr. Timothy Quill was investigated but not convicted for the part he played in the suicide of a patient after he made public his account of the incident. In November of 1998, 60 Minutes aired a tape of Dr. Jack Kevorkian administering a lethal injection. His patient, 52 year-ol d Thomas Youk, suffered from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), otherwise known as Lou Gehrigs disease. As a result of the show, Kevorkian was tried for first degree murder in Oakland County, Michigan. Prosecutors argued that, in giving a lethal injection, Kevorkian stepped over the line of Physician Assisted Suicide into euthanasia, and that his actions amounted to murder. Kevorkian was convicted of second degree murder, and is currently serving a 10 to 25 year prison sentence (Braddock, Tonelli, 1998). Since 1990 four Dutch government-sponsored surveys of end-of-life decision-making by Dutch doctors have been carried out (covering 1990, 1995, 2001 and 2005 respectively). The surveys have shown that in thousands of cases doctors have broken the legal and professional guidelines regulating Physician Assisted Suicide, not least the requirement that doctors report each case to the authorities. For example, the first survey showed that in 1990 over 80 percent of cases went unreported and were instead illegally certified by doctors as deaths from natural causes. The latest survey shows that, in 2005, 80 percent of cases were reported, a significant improvement, but that 20 percent of cases were still illegally certified as death from natural causes.

The Reform Of Schools :: essays research papers

The Reform of Schools   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The government of Ontario proposes there is a need to make universally accepted rules in the school system. For students to be more disciplined, the government needs to achieve new province wide standards. If the new school standards will not discipline the students, and if each school entails its guidelines, then the government's province wide code of conduct will fail. Moreover, the intervention of the government will not enforce the students to become more disciplined. While the arguments for producing new rules are unrealistic, more powerful arguments can be made supporting the current code of conduct.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  With the government's proposition to create a new code of conduct, the students will receive more disciplinary action. Just as the law governs society, the province wide guideline governs the student body. Since the rules will be explained, and since the students will understand the consequences of their actions, then the students will follow these rules. Due to the thoroughness and strictness of the outcomes, there will be fewer problems in the school system. Moreover, to separate schools means to separate students. Since the new code of conduct produces equality, and since it sets forth equal status among individuals, then the students will have a standard that the entire province takes part in. Now, the schools are going from each one entailing their code of conduct. To treating all schools as equals. For example, if a student in Ontario skips out of class, and if the student receives a punishment (making up that class on their time  ® weekends), then the students in other provinces will not skip out of class. Overall, the new bill will make the students who do not want to be at school the school's choice, not the students.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In opposing this proposition, the intervention of the government will not solve schools individual problems. Since discipline is taking place in schools, and since certain schools acquire more disciplinary action from others, then the current code of conduct exemplifies self-discipline and respect towards authority. Purpose for multiple codes of conduct allows the school system to punish the students accordingly. If there was a new province wide standard, there would be one punishment to distribute; however, with the current system, teachers are allowed to fluctuate the punishment according to the severity of the crime. In addition, punishments and discipline play an active role in a student's development. It is essential in determining respect for themselves and authority.

Divorce and the Decline of Morality Essay -- Giving up on Marriage

As America's divorce rate continues to skyrocket, it seems that morality continues to plummet. Approximately sixty-five percent of all marriages in America end in divorce, and this number does not seem to be declining any time soon. Are we creating a new generation "Y" of single parents? Is a broken home the wave of the future? If Americans don't get a grip on morality, this will surely be the case. It is not possible to pinpoint exactly why America's divorce rate is so high, much higher than that of previous decades. There are so many issues today that contribute to divorce than had existed in the past. Take teen pregnancy, for instance. It is alarming that so many of our children are having children themselves. They feel they must get married at fifteen and sixteen because it is what's right for the baby. Needless to say, most teen marriages under these circumstances usually end in divorce. What kind of life is this for a child? What kind of values will they learn from their parents example? According to Stuart Shepard, staff writer for Focus on the Family, "divorce tears down our moral and social responsibility to our children. They see marriages as if things don't work out, you can just leave and not work it out" (Shepard np). Adult children of divorced families are three times more likely to get divorced than adult children raised with both parents in the home (Markman 128). This negative pattern of divorce is one that could go on for generations if Americans are not willing to slow down their rate of divorce. Another contributing factor is the fact that divorce is much more accepted by society as a whole. Even though a lot of American... ...hildren." 1997, November 20. 2000, June 25. Markman, H.J. and S. Stanley. Fighting for Your Marriage: Positive Steps For A Loving and Lasting Relationship. San Francisco: Josey Bass, Inc, 1994. Shepard, S. "Study Examined Effects of Divorce". Focus on Family 2000, June 5: np. Stanley, S. Marriage in the 90's: A Nationwide Random Phone Survey. Denver, Colorado: PREP, Inc. 1997. Treas, J. and D. Giesen "Sexual Infidelity Among Married and Cohabiting Americans". Journal of Marriage and the Family Vol 62 (2000) : 48-60. U.S. Bureau of the Census. "Marriage, divorce, and remarriage in the 1990's." Washington, D.C.: Us. Government Printing Office, 1998. Zachary, G.P. "America: Straight-Laced Public Yawns at Scandal". The Wall Street Journal 1998, Feb 9: section B, p.1

Essay --

Service delivery is one of the most challenging tasks that face many organizations today. This is even worse in cases where factors such modality of fulfillment of a given service, challenges inherent in it and productivity measurements are not properly understood. My company deals with a complaint resolution service. This is a service product that is delivered directly to clients who depend on it for the purpose of redress concerning misunderstanding or disagreements as far as the company’s products are concerned. Customer dissatisfaction is highly dangerous for the existence and prosperity of any given business as it may make the business to collapse so easily. It is upon this concept that the company operates with a view to ensuring that all customer related misunderstandings are dealt with swiftly and compassionately so that clients do not feel neglected or misunderstood. Complaint resolution, as hard as it is, is a very delicate interaction between the client and the company agents. This means that it should be handled carefully by taking into account the key requirements that it deserves. The requirements for complaint resolution are many and generic. They include patient and credence, feedback and time, customer inclusion and respect, record and documentation among others. First, and most obviously, patient of the highest level is needed. This is recommended in the cases where an agent is involved in a complicated case that may need more time to handle in one hand, and urgency on the other. In addition, any company agent is required to be patient with controversial clients who may not give room for explanations as to what could be the remedy of a given misunderstanding. Patient is also recommended as the best way of... ...ining and continual financial support. Even though it is difficult to measure the productivity of this service product, customer complaint resolution, parameters like increase and decline in customer-related claims is a perfect gauge of its performance. Concisely, it is suffice to say that customer complaint resolution is highly necessary for any business. This is because any customer dissatisfaction may of consequences to the survival and prosperity of the company. As a result, all customer-related complaints should be dealt with swiftly and compassionately by taking into account all the key requirements that underpin the exercise lest any deviation cost the company dearly. On the same note, this service should be carried procedurally by taking into account all the recommended steps involved in order to ensure quality customer service delivery in the company.

Gardian Angel Essay

The guardian angel is a unique â€Å"spiritual being† that I find very interesting to talk about and real in every way and this is based on facts that happened to other individuals and from my own personal experience. A guardian angel in my opinion is a protector that guards you or a group of people from evil and can also guide you through the toughest of times. I believe a guardian angel is given powers from the good man upstairs. Guardian is to guard and angel is an angel sent from God. Religious people who have faith and believe in God are more typical to believe in guardian angels. It is a blessing from the good Lord to have a guardian angel walk by your side. A guardian angel is like a shadow and is always there to assist you from the evil. The little miracles that happen to a family or a person are the work of God and his helpers, the Guardian angel. For example, the time when I was eleven years old and I was helping my uncle Don paint a Denny’s restaurant. I was up on the upper deck painting the ceiling when I went too much on the side and fell straight down, at least 13 feet from the top. My uncle Don said that he found me on a pile of tarps sleeping. I know that I had a guardian angel looking over me at the time; it was as if my guardian angel took control of my body providing me some wings to slow me down from a bad and dangerous fall. The evil things that we are sometimes surrounded by are when a guardian angel is most needed and present themselves. Another example is when Congress woman Gaby Gifford’s got shot in the head and even doctors thought there was no chance she would remember who she was, or even live for that matter. But she overcame all the challenges that bestowed her. A lot of people, who did not believe in the lord before are finding themselves believing now since Gaby Gifford’s situation. Her guardian angel interceded for her and helped her so that the bullet would not go in the area that would kill her. Another time was when I was living in Los Angeles. I was in middle school walking home with my little brother Ricky and we got held up by gang bangers. They had held a knife to my throat with my feet dangling in the air. I don’t know how we got out of that alive but I do believe it was my guardian angel. In conclusion my personal definition of a guardian angel is a spiritual being that guards, guides and provides safety to people at any point or time of need and danger in their lives.

Pride and Prejudice essay †a comparison of Elizabeth and Lydia Essay

Elizabeth Bennet is the second eldest of Mr. and Mrs. Bennet’s five daughters. Lydia is the youngest. The only thing these two siblings seem to have in common is their family. The girls contrast starkly. Lydia Bennet has a rather childish and fun loving disposition. She comes across as a little lacking in intelligence and her own father even goes as far as to call her ‘one of the silliest girls in the country.’ As well as saying that she is ‘silly and ignorant like other girls’. Elizabeth on the other hand is mature, kind, compassionate and rather more in her fathers favour than her younger sister. He seems particularly fond of his ‘little Lizzy’ and tells his wife that she ‘has something more of quickness than her sisters’. Throughout the novel the girls opposing personalities are demonstrated. Lydia’s flirtatious and frivolous ways are very apparent at the beginning of the novel through her behaviour towards the soldiers. Elizabeth’s wisdom shines through at the first ball in the novel, when she overhears Mr Darcy describing her to Mr Bingley as ‘tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me’. Elizabeth however takes this on the chin, and instead ridicules him by recounting the story to her friends and laughing at his rudeness and arrogance. Her conduct is admirable, a lesser girl would have been devastated to hear herself described in such an unflattering and uncomplimentary way, and in this instance we truly see her good manners and sense of maturity. Both Elizabeth and Lydia are confident and outspoken girls although in rather different ways. Lydia tends to say exactly what she thinks without much consideration, whereas Elizabeth’s words are always thoughtful and quick witted. Her observance and good sense make her mostly a consistently accurate judge of character. For example she recognises the inappropriate behaviour of some members of her family, like her mother and Lydia, and feels embarrassed. Also she realises Mr Collins unsuitability for her and refuses his proposal, despite it offering her notable financial stability. She also takes a dislike to Lady Catherine De Bourgh, regardless of her influential position, and stands up for herself and her family. However, in the case of Mr Wickham and Mr Darcy, her perception was originally misguided, but later she recognises her mistakes. Lydia on the other hand does not have such a sound sense of judgement. She believes that Wickham genuinely loves her and will marry her, when his intentions were only to elope with her. She was so gullible that she ran away with him and her only saving grace was Mr Darcy forcing Mr Wickham to enter into marriage with her. Lydia rushes headfirst into her affair with Wickham and claims to love him, although in reality she barely knows him. Elizabeth is completely different to her sister and by no means hurries into her romance with Mr Darcy. She demonstrates at several stages in the novel that she does not want a pretentious and shallow relationship or marriage for practicality, but wants to find a true love match. Her cousin Mr Collins is very admiring towards Elizabeth and asks for her hand in marriage. The acceptance of this proposal would have offered Elizabeth a sound life as Mr Collins had ‘a good house and very sufficient income’. But having no physical or mental attraction to the man, Elizabeth tells how, in regard to his proposals ‘it is impossible for me to do otherwise than decline them.’ Mr Darcy also asks for Elizabeth’s ‘acceptance of his hand.’ At the stage when he makes his first proposal to Elizabeth she believes him to have wronged Mr Wickham and feels a ‘deeply rooted dislike’ for him and so declines his proposal. In this instance she follows her heart, despite Mr Darcy earning ‘ten thousand a year’ and having a very respectable status and estate. Neither Lydia nor Elizabeth really conform to the expectations of the society that they live in. They are both different to the mould of average women of the setting, but in their own ways. Lydia is less discreet than her elder sister and certainly makes a name for herself with her flirtatious and attention seeking tendencies. She is only fifteen years of age and many people scorn her for socialising with men, attending balls and such like. Lady Catherine De Bourgh is a prime example of this and tells Elizabeth that it is ‘very odd’ Lydia being out at only fifteen years of age. Another far more scandalous way in which Lydia does not conform to the values of her society is her elopement with Wickham. She runs away with him to London without a single care for her family or the disgrace it might bring to their name. She believes all that he tells her unquestionably and is certainly very niaive. She is ignorant with regard to her family’s feelings and her actions outrage her father and cause her mother to be ‘taken ill immediately’. It places their home in ‘such confusion’ and forces Mr Darcy to pay out a substantial sum of money to the penniless Wickham. Lydia’s behaviour was not the norm and Elizabeth tells how her ‘conduct has been such as neither you, nor I, nor anybody can ever forget’ which implies that the elopement has tarnished the Bennett name lastingly. At the time the novel was written, women were expected to become ‘accomplished’ in things such as art, music and reading. Elizabeth is suitably talented at playing the piano and ‘has a good notion of fingering’ and Darcy tells how ‘no one admitted to the privilege of hearing’ her ‘can think of anything wanting.’ She is also ‘a great reader’ and so all in all is quite an accomplished girl. Lydia though does not, as far as I can tell, show much talent or interest in the areas of music and arts. She seems rather preoccupied with the soldiers in neighbouring Meryton, clothes, balls and gossip. Although Elizabeth is generally well liked and highly thought of, she does not completely live up to expectations in her society. As I have discussed previously she doesn’t, like most girls of the time, consider money an important enough reason to marry and hence refuses two marriage proposals. In this period, women were considered second class citizens in society, as equality had not yet been established between the sexes. This makes Elizabeth an even more remarkable character as she is by no means intimidated by Mr Darcy and is intelligent and assured enough to tease and mock him, questioning his actions and picking him up on his past wrongs. Her disposition is so confident that she has enough conviction to stand up for herself and express her views cleverly regardless of the company she is keeping. This is demonstrated when she stands her ground when confronted by Lady Catherine De Bourgh, telling her in no uncertain terms that her prospective marriage to Mr Darcy is none of her business. In the period that the novel was written, this would not have been considered acceptable conduct as Lady Catherine is of much higher social status than Elizabeth. Lady De Bourgh explains how she has ‘not been accustomed to language as this’ and goes on to ask Elizabeth – ‘do you know who I am?’ Elizabeth also causes a minor stir when she walks three miles from Longbourne to Netherfield. It was unusual for ‘ladies’ of the time to walk so far unaccompanied – they would usually have taken a carriage. This is a way in which Elizabeth takes a subtle stand and resolves to do as she pleases regardless of what people may think. Miss Bingley tells how Elizabeth seems to ‘show an abominable sort of conceited independence.’ The main character of the novel is Elizabeth Bennet and much of the story is portrayed through her eyes, leading the reader to favour her. She is the heroine of the novel and the main narrative is her story in particular. I think that Jane Austin meant for her to be a particularly likeable character, as she shows admirable and dignified conduct throughout. She is the sort of woman that many people would aspire to – she has intelligence, beauty, talent and is a kind and compassionate sort of person. She does not allow herself to simply be dictated to, but has the strength of personality to do and say as she sees fit, and for these reasons I think that she earns almost all readers approval. I do not think that Jane Austin intended us to approve of Lydia. Her behaviour certainly was not approved of by the characters in the book as she acted without any consideration for others. She was self centred, reckless and stupid. However, I do not think that Lydia is a bad character that we are meant to strongly dislike, but on the contrary, we are meant to be entertained by her antics. She adds a touch of scandal to the story making it all the more interesting and in the end it is her carelessness in not thinking before she speaks that lead to Elizabeth and Mr Darcy finally uniting. The two sisters are very different indeed and are both portrayed to opposite extremes. Elizabeth’s responsibility and great qualities are magnified by Lydia’s outrageous behaviour at the other end of the scale. I think that without Lydia’s character Elizabeth would not seem quite so exemplary, and without Elizabeth to live up to, Lydia would not seem such an immature and thoughtless character. I personally prefer Elizabeth and I think this is a feeling that most readers would share. I think she is an ideal role model who overcomes many obstacles to find truly deserved happiness in the story. Although I don’t particularly dislike Lydia, I think that she is a silly and annoying character who lacks all the inspiring qualities possessed by her older sister, Elizabeth Bennet.