The Analysis of Philosophers Against the Family Article by Christina Essay - 1

The Analysis of Philosophers Against the Family Article by Christina Hoff Summers - Essay Example The paper will also analyze the view of the author and how it has been justified in her claims. The conclusion drawn by the author is also a point that will be reviewed in the paper. The author is basically against the radical movement of modern day feminists. Summers is denouncing radical feminist movement and comments that their views are not connected to true aspirations of women. ( Thesis) Christina Hoff Summers in her article â€Å"Philosophers against the Family â€Å"is arguing about the absurdities of the modern radical feminists. She is claiming that what the radical feminist demands for is not the true wants of a woman. According to the author, a woman wants to be in a family and take care of her children and she does not wants to dominate men as feminist seek. A woman wants equal and fair rights in the workplace and society and does not want any extraordinary power like the feminists to perceive. Her aim is to show the world the true inner self of a woman and for this; s he is outrightly demeaning radical feminists. According to her liberalism is advocating social reform with conservative spirits and it should not be supernal to the social institutions under which people operate. The radicals want to do away with social mores and institutions but the liberal focuses on social reforms. Summers aligns herself with liberal camp while attacking many of the radical ideas of modern feminists. The author has an idea that it is perfect to approach family ties and ethics from a liberal or conservative framework but a radical approach can hamper the society and disrupts people’s happiness. Sommers understand that modern radical movement has neglected social institutions that do not fit in the traditional utilitarian or Kantian frameworks. Family is one of social institutions and philosophers have often ignored it or had made an attempt to change or abolish it dramatically. The author deems this and cites many examples where the radical alteration of fa mily has happened.

Alcohol-related Motor Vehicle Trafic Crashed Essay

Alcohol-related Motor Vehicle Trafic Crashed - Essay Example It has been decreasing owing to the efforts by patrol police who have worked hard to bring sanity. From 2009, the police have seen the number of death toll from university students. This made the Florida Highway Patrol to provide the names of all the students that have lost their lives in such bizarre incidents. Sixty percent of these deaths were caused by drunk driving (cited in SAMHSA 45). However, the police and hospitals have noted with concern the influence of other substances that the students use alongside alcohol. Students consume alcohol alongside marijuana thus putting them to extreme risks. SAMHSA (substance abuse and mental health services administration in their report, gives the names of students who have lost their lives in the since 2009. A good number comes from the University of Florida that is situated in the Miami De County (cited in SAMHSA 47). These statistics can be compared to the recent trends as from the year 2012. In the year 2013, a 30-year-old was sent to hospital (cited in SAMHSA 45). Officers found out that he was driving while drunk. In the year 2010, approximately 2,220 people were convicted of drunk driving. They were irresponsible enough, putting their lives and that of passengers at risk. According to high department, they recorded close to 228, 000-accident cases in the year 2011. Of these accidents, 108,000 were alcohol induced. Fatal accidents were 850 with 900 casualties. Statistics also show that many students have fallen victims of drunk driving. Most of them are from the Universities and the University of Florida is mostly affected. These students live the high life, go to parties, get drunk and choose to drive themselves. It is so painful to see the large list at the high department, which states that all of these students... This essay approves that the nurses must develop empathy before embarking on helping the victims. It helps them develop passion to help the victims. A nurse must have a positive attitude towards helping accident victims. In most cases, reckless drivers are receiving limited attention from the nurses. Nurses should also receive training from the top management to enable them develop a positive attitude towards their work. Care must also be taken to control the overacting personnel like the ones who develop compassion fatigue. This report makes a conclusion that the Miami De County is facing road accident nightmares. The county is recording a worrying trend in the alcohol-related road crashes. This is attributed to the drinking habit of the county. Statistics show that the county did record high accident numbers between the years 2010 and 2012. Recently the numbers have been increasing with alcohol contributing to almost a third of the accidents. The traffic police have worked endlessly to salvage the situation to no avail. There is a new group of drinkers: the teenagers in university. These groups lead affluent lives occasioned with drinking. The resulted is many road accidents and death tolls. The only professionals that can handle this situation are nurses. This paper recommends that nurses can use their influence on the patients they attend to reduce these road accidents. They have a variety of intervention stages, from the education sector to the alcohol advertising companies. Throughout this paper, i t is notable that nurses have less intervention with regard accidents. This paper also should bring awareness to the nurses and encourage their participation in reducing alcohol-related road crashes.

Psychological Continuity Of Personal Identity Philosophy Essay

Psychological Continuity Of Personal Identity Philosophy Essay In this chapter I describe my position with regards to personal identity over time. I describe the limits of acceptable psychological change, and discuss which elements of the psyche are essential to our survival. I also attempt to address whether psychological change has a physical cause or not. The Psychological Criterion for Identity Sydney Shoemaker suggested the theory of psychological continuity as an improvement upon memory continuity. While losing our memories would certainly be a huge loss, it could be possible for people to maintain the same psychological life despite this. But what do we mean when we speak of psychological life? This encompasses more than just memories, including beliefs, passions, and tendencies. Clearly, our mentality changes greatly during the course of our lifetime. This theory, then, allows for a similar transition as Lockes memory criterion. As long as I am psychologically connected to my past self, I am still the same person as I was. Criticisms of this position But what about almost complete personality changes? For example, people who have lived lives of terrible sins may experience a religious conversion and change almost every aspect of their lives totally willingly. Does this mean they are literally no longer the same person they used to be? Marya Schechtman claims that if people change their beliefs, they must have empathic access to their old beliefs. This does not simply entail having a good memory of those beliefs, but being able to recall them with the same passion as when they were fervently held. Schechtman states that they must look upon their old beliefs favourably and still give them some weight in the decisions they make today. However, many people dismiss their old beliefs and do not wish to give them any weight at all, because they no longer see these old beliefs as relevant to their current decisions. Schechtman gives the example of a party girl who mellows after becoming a mother, to the point that she views her younger days with embarrassment and even disdain. According to Schechtman, this woman is not the same person as she was as a teenager. But it seems that maturity, and the changes in belief which come with it, are inevitable. For example, children tend to have a very self-centred approach to life and only behave in their own interests. Yet as they mature they gain a greater understanding of manners and courtesy, and are able to put others before themselves when necessary. If we must give weight to our old opinions, as Schechtman claims, we must all give the selfish child within us an opportunity to disregard the feelings of others. It seems that giving all our previous beliefs some consideration results in us giving weight to a lot of contradictory views. More importantly, Schechtmans attempt to keep a link open to our old selves results in us behaving a manner which is untrue to our new selves. I, however, believe what is more important is that the changes a person undergoes as they grow older and presumably wiser, are voluntary changes. As long as the changes are not somehow imposed upon the individual, perhaps as a result of brainwashing or conditioning, the changes a person goes through should not cause them to become an entirely new person. [I believe that change in identity over time is unavoidable, unless one lives in a box from birth. The first few years of our life are spent developing an identity. After that, most of our life is spent learning and trying new things which challenge that identity. Sometimes we integrate our new knowledge (not just factual, but also societal and emotional) into the identity we have at the time, and sometimes our old beliefs are pushed aside and replaced by this new information.] I believe that the Ship of Theseus is an appropriate analogy for the development and changes which occur in ones identity. The usual type of development which occurs in our identities is a gradual one, where new knowledge is integrated alongside the knowledge we already had. If, however, we were to dismiss all of our previous passions, dispositions, beliefs and opinions at once, it is difficult to defend the position that we are still the same person as we were before. It seems the only way we could defend this position is with the criterion of bodily continuity, which we have already seen is not that helpful. From this we can conclude that what is needed for us to retain our identity over time is for the changes to be gradual and voluntary. Some may claim that any psychological changes we undergo must have a physical cause. This has not yet been confirmed by science, though. Many psychological disorders which may affect our identity do have physical symptoms on the brain. But it is impossible to determine causality in these cases. For example, people with depression have lower levels of serotonin(?) than people who are mentally healthy. However we cannot determine whether this is the cause of the depression or the result of it. So we cannot tell whether it is brain continuity or psychological continuity which is the real issue here. But regardless of whether or not psychological change has a physical cause, it seems the brain is still needed to encapsulate our psychology. As we discovered from the chapter on bodily continuity, our DNA is an important aspect to the continuity of our selves. This means that our psychology in a robot would not really be us. Look at: What Matters For Psychological  Continuity Defining psychological continuity in terms of style of thought which, though possibly a result of past experiences, do not depend upon our memories of them. Amnesiacs often demonstrate the same styles of thought as they had shown prior to their loss of memory. It is also possible that we regularly forget bits of information and later reform those memories in the same way as before. http://bookstove.com/non-fiction/on-psychological-continuity/ But what if the personality change is not total? What if there remains one tenuous psychological link to our past self, while everything else is lost. How many psychological links must there be in order for our identity to live on? During the course of our lifetime the majority of our psychology changes, so majority isnt good enough. Refers again to Ship of Theseus- perhaps if the change is gradual enough its okay. Problem tends to occur when the change is a majority one and sudden. What if memories were downloaded to a robot? This would still be you according to psychological continuity. Again, suggests that the physical body is needed to encapsulate and verify the mental element (although this is dangerously Cartesian. But to be fair, the only person who objects to that is Ryle, who isnt all that great). Ultimate challenge: what is psychology if not, essentially, the brain? Cannot defend an argument based on a mysterious immaterial mind, but may have to resort to this until neuroscience is able to explain the location of each element of the personality. Similarly, cause and effect cannot be established. Is the change in personality a result of a change in the brain, which seems to suggest it would be involuntary, or does our intentional change or development of personality cause our brain to work differently? Parfit describes a scenario where a scientist attaches a number of switches to a mans brain. As each switch is flicked, they cause the man to become slightly more psychologically like Napoleon. After half the switches have been flicked, the mans psychology is half his own and half Napoleons. Once all the switches have been flicked, his psychology is completely identical to Napoleons. Williams argues that, as each change caused by the switch is so slight, changes in identity are subject to the same problem as Sorites problem and the heap paradox. This is because each change is so slight that we are inclined to say that individually they do not change the mans identity. But if no switch changes his identity, we must conclude that when all the switches have been flicked he is still the same man he was, despite having none of the same tendencies or memories. Parfit suggests that we are simply mistaken in our belief that the question Will I die when the next switch is flicked must have an answer. He argues that it is absurd to believe that there is a sharp borderline which is so incremental that we could never really know the location of it. Therefore, he concludes, it is far more sensible to adopt a reductionist view of personal identity. Which is? However, I argue that the sharp borderline which exists can be knows quite easily. While many may claim that we lose our identity somewhere around the 50% mark, where the majority of our psychology becomes more similar to that of someone elses, I claim the distinction is much sooner. I believe that our identity is lost as soon as the scientist flips the first switch. Although the effects are minimal, our psychology has been artificially altered into something which is not the same as us. The fact that we allow this tampering simply because the effects are minimal is what lures us into the heap of the paradox.

Aristophanes the Comic Writer Essay -- essays research papers

Aristophanes Aristophanes was a comic writer who lived between 450 and 385 BC and composed about forty plays in his lifetime. His plays were all comedies, which usually addressed very serious political and social issues in a direct and crude manner, which, like much of today's comedy, is what made them funny for the audience to watch and appreciate. Many of the comedies would even go as far as mocking members of the audience or making personal attacks upon contemporary political personalities. Aristophanes’ â€Å"Lysistrata† is no exception to this crude comedy, ridiculing what he thinks is the absurdity of the Peloponnesian War. The comedy is a brilliantly constructed piece with an extremely profound underlying message encouraging a Panhellenic society. He does not see the point of the battles within the country and wishes a unification of the city-states. Therefore through his work he wishes to enlighten the people of Greece. In order to understand the meaning behind Aristophanes’ play, some background history of the events leading up to the war is needed. There are three important occurrences, which ultimately led to the outbreak. It all started when Epidamnus (a colony of Corcyra) became involved in a political struggle. Democratic factions had taken control of the colony’s government and forced the aristocrats out of power. In retaliation for this action the aristocrats joined with barbaric forces and attacked the city and its surrounding areas. Seeking help, the colony sent a request to Corcyra, its motherland, for military intervention. Corcyra however refused to help the Epidamnians in their political struggle, and so the colony went to the city-state of Corinth for assistance. Being itself distantly related to the people of this colony, the Corinthians sent ships to suppress the violence. This move greatly displeased the Corcyraeans who saw the Corinthians as interfering with their af fairs. So in turn, they sent their own ships to intercept the Corinthians. To counter the Corinthian action, the Corcyraeans made an alliance with Athens (who had a very bitter relationship with Corinth). Acting according to a duty to protect the Epidamnians and possibly just to stand up to the Athenians, the Corinthian fleet attacked the Corcyraeans anyway. The resulting engagement was won decisively by Corcyraeans because of the Athenian support. This act further embitte... ...hough some of the women were weakened, it was the support of others that helped them overcome their cravings. This gives us a reference to the good that comes out of a united group.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Aristophanes using more comical examples putting light on the stupidities of this war. In a scene involving Myrrhine and her husband, Myrrhine puts her husband through torture†¦ â€Å"I’m dead: the woman’s worn me all away. She’s gone and left me with an anguished pulse. What shall I put thee in (O woe!) Since into something thou must go, Poor little lad†¦ he pines and peeks. Our lovely girl has proved a curse.† (Lysistrata, P. 319) This is all a comical twist, which appeals to the audience. Whether they realize it or not, they are being exposed to the faults of the war. Aristophanes is able to get his message across to a lot of people and in turn the word is spread.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Aristophanes’ play serves a greater purpose than a mere comical work. He addresses his views on the Peloponnesian War. He expresses his resentment of the war and pokes fun at how illogical it truly is. Through this comedy he is able to reach the public crowd and spread his views.

Case 20 : Aurora Textile Company

Case 20: Aurora Textile Company GROUP QUESTIONS Learning Objectives: 1. The basics of incremental-cash-flow analysis: identifying the cash flows relevant to a capital-investment decision 2. The construction of a side-by-side discounted-cash-flow analysis for a replacement decision 3. How to adapt the NPV decision rule to a troubled industry 4. The recognition that a reduced investment horizon is a significant consequence of financial distress 5. The importance of sensitivity analysis to a capital-investment decision Case Questions 1. How has Aurora Textile performed over the past four years?Be prepared to provide financial ratios that present a clear picture of Aurora’s financial condition. From 1999 through 2002, the financial performance of Aurora was unattractive and disheartening. This could be attributed to the business risks that arose from the intense competition that characterizes the industry in which Aurora operates. Absent an industry benchmark or comparable with wh ich to gauge the performance of Aurora, we utilized a trend analysis of the period 1999 through 2002. With 1999 as a reference point, we noticed that all measures of profitability have worsened.On a cumulative annual basis, net sales have been declining by 15%, while profit margins and ROA were always in the negative (see exhibit 1). While raw material cost as a percentage of net sales have been declining, the cost of conversion is escalating and affecting the bottom-line (see exhibit 1). It is obvious that Aurora needs to manage its expenses to generate profits from sales. While on the surface, the liquidity measures have improved (see exhibit 1), it is doubtful that the company has the ability to meet its current obligations with just cash and cash equivalents on hand.This is partially due to the fact that many of the firm’s current assets are predominantly account receivables and inventories. While it is true that the firm, its competitors, and the industry are continuing to lose money, an effective cost-control strategy – i. e. a strategy that improves profit margins, reduces operating costs, and appropriately manages inventory and account receivables will be crucial for Aurora to remain sustainable. 2. List the factors affecting the textile industry. What do you think is the state of the industry in the United States?How should you incorporate the state of the textile industry into your analysis? Why should anyone invest money in the industry? 3. What are the relevant cash flows for the Zinser investment? Using a 10% WACC and assuming a 36% tax rate, what do you get as the NPV for the project? What are the value drivers in your analysis? What do you estimate as the cost per pound for customer returns under the Zinser alternative? (Hint: for a replacement decision, analysts often find it helpful to prepare two sets of cash flows and two NPVs—one for the status quo and one for the new machine. Status Quo In the first year of the project , we calculated net sales assuming the current 500,000 pounds per week production level at a $1. 0235 selling price per pound (52-week year). After the first 3 year, we assume sales will grow by 2% in volume and 1% in price. Material and conversion costs will not change, but will increase at a pace of 1%. SG&A costs are equal to 7% of net sales so will adjust accordingly. Change in inventory is cash spent so it should be considered when calculating cash flows.In our analysis we calculated inventory by dividing COGS by the number of days in a year and then multiplying by the number of days of inventory held, 30 days in the status quo scenario. The current equipment will be depreciated using the straight-line method with zero salvage value. The current book value of the machine is $800,000 and the depreciation expense is $200,000 for the next four years. Using these assumptions, keeping all else constant, in a 10-year horizon the NPV of the Hunter Plant is about $8. 1 million (see exh ibit 2). New Project – Invest in Zinser Machine Aurora Textile Company also has the option of investing in a new Zinser machine for the Hunter Plant. The main difference between investing in the Zinser machine and maintaining the status quo is an initial investment of $8. 25 million and the receipt of $608,000 in after-tax sales proceeds from selling the existing machine. Additionally, there is an initial $50,000 ($32,000 after-tax) cost for training employees, but this cost is only incurred once (see exhibit 3).In their first year using the Zinser machine there will be a 5% decrease in sales volume, but selling price will increase 10%. Material costs per pound will be the same as the status quo, but conversion costs will decrease to $0. 4077 per pound per year due to lower power, maintenance and return costs. Days of inventory held will also drop to about 20 days. All other assumptions are the same as the status quo. In this scenario, the NPV of the Hunter Plant is about $15 . 87million if Aurora invests in the new Zisner machine (see exhibit 3). Incremental Cash Flows – The Net Effect of the New ProjectWhen looking at the incremental cash flows for the new project, replacing the old machine with the Zinser machine is a good investment. The NPV of the investment is $6. 33 million and the IRR is 28%, much higher than the 10% hurdle rate (see exhibit 4). While all the assumptions made could affect the NPV of the project, the major concern that could erode the value of the project is whether Aurora can survive for 10 years. In our early termination analysis (see exhibit 5), if we ignore the salvage value the time horizon breakeven point of incremental NPV is between 4 and 5 years, about 4. years. However, even if Aurora shuts down, the earlier they terminate, the higher the salvage value of the Zinser machine will be. Therefore, the time period to breakeven might be less than 4 years. If the Zinser machine can be sold for its 50% book value at early termination, it only needs 2 years for the project to add value to the Aurora Textile Company. 4. How sensitive is the economic life of the Zinser investment to its value to investors? In other words, if the company survives the entire 10 years, what is the NPV of the project?What if the company can survive only four years, what is the NPV of the project? For our sensitivity analysis, the main things we focused on were production levels and price. Here is a chart representing the IRRs for certain production levels and prices. Our production level estimates were based on the fact that we don’t know how the market will react with increased foreign competition. The textile growth rate we used for our most likely model is the domestic rate of growth, not the world growth rate.We don’t know if letting foreign competitors into the market would significantly shift the industry out of America or if it will keep a constant growth (at 2%). Our price estimates were based on the new WTO mandate that is going into effect in 2005. With the tariffs and quotas on the textile industry being lifted, there will be a significant growth in the amount of textile goods imported into America. Even though the cost may be high to transport these goods into the states 5. What would be your recommendation to the Board of Directors?Specifically would it be better to invest in the Zinser or to pay a dividend to the shareholders. Be sure to explain the primary reasons that justify your recommended course of action. The U. S. textile industry is going through a tumultuous time, and most companies are experiencing losses. Therefore, it would seem like an odd time to invest more money into the company. However, as the industry evolves Aurora Textile Company needs to innovate to stay competitive. The industry is moving toward demand for a higher quality product, and Aurora cannot afford to fall behind.The Zinser machine will help Aurora meet this demand. If the project were accep ted, the Zinser machine would replace the current machine in the Hunter Plant. Because the other three Aurora plants would not be affected by this decision, we compared the cash flows of only the Hunter plant with the new machine and without. The NPV of the Hunter Plant is about $15. 86 million if Aurora invests in the Zisner machine, and only $8. 91 million without the investment. In addition, when looking at the incremental cash flows of the investment, the NPV is $6. 6 million and the IRR is 28%, much higher than the 10% hurdle rate. Taking all of this into consideration Aurora should invest in the project. In addition to accepting this project, falling spot prices for cotton could be beneficial to Aurora Textile Company in the future. However, the company also needs to implement other strategies to improve their profit margins, including reducing operating costs and appropriately managing inventory and account receivables. These changes will help Aurora move in the right directi on to ensure that they are not forced to shut down operations in the foreseeable future

Macbeth English CW Essay

Malcolm calls Macbeth and Lady Macbeth ‘this dead butcher and his fiend like queen,’ (Act 5, Scene 9, Line 36). Do you think that Lady Macbeth has any redeeming qualities? In this essay I will try to show that Lady Macbeth, although she is evil, does have some redeeming qualities. I think that Lady Macbeth does have redeeming qualities and that she shows these at different points throughout the play. I think that we can see Lady Macbeth as a different person because we see what happens at points when Malcolm doesn’t. We know that Lady Macbeth was not responsible for the killing of Banquo and The thane of Fife’s wife and children. However, there is ambiguity over the question of whether Lady Macbeth is a witch or not. In these times a witch could have been identified by her ability to predict the future, fly, sail in sieves, bring on night in daytime and their ‘damned spot’. This is a supposed red mark on a witch’s body from where the devil has supposedly sucked blood. In act 1, scene 5 she says: ‘Come, you spirits That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here And fill me from the crown to the toe topfull Of direst cruelty’ This suggests that she wants evil spirits to take over to allow her to do what needs to happen. This makes us think that she may be a witch. In Elizabethan times people were quite scared of witches and King James, the king at the time, was especially fascinated by witches. In act 1, scene 5 Lady Macbeth seems very pleased to receive Macbeth’s letter but we see her say that she doesn’t think that Macbeth will be brave enough to murder Duncan for the crown. We also see that she is ambitious and ruthless when she says: ‘And chastise with the valour of my tongue All that impedes thee from the golden round,’ But she appears to be ambitious for her husband and not for herself. I think that this is a redeeming quality as she just wants to help her husband, as she doesn’t think he will go through with it because he is not tough enough. This seems fiend like as to suggest to kill a king is awful, made even worse by the fact that he will be sleeping and unarmed. A soldier would only consider killing and armed man, in battle morally right but to kill a guest is morally wrong. This is also regicide, and Shakespeare was taking a big risk putting such a controversial thing into one of his plays. I think that Lady Macbeth might horrify the audience with her language here especially when she says: ‘Which fate and metaphysical aid doth seem To have thee crowned withal.’ I think that the audience would have been particularly shocked with the words ‘metaphysical aid’ as these are supernatural forces. I think that the audience would have been shocked further when Lady Macbeth says: ‘Come, you spirits That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here And fill me from the crown to the toe topfull Of direst cruelty’ Here Lady Macbeth calls to the evil spirits and asks them to full her with cruelty. This would have suggested that she either was a witch or wanted to become a witch. For the audience at this time this would have been horrifying. The words that Shakespeare uses suggest that Lady Macbeth’s head is full of thoughts of becoming queen, especially when she says, ‘crown’. Also the alliteration in the phrase, ‘to the toe topfull’, stresses the ‘t’ sounds and stresses the syllables of ‘topfull’. Then Shakespeare uses soft ‘s’ sounds, which sound like hissing, suggest Lady Macbeth’s association with evil. The association with evil comes from the story of Adam and Eve. In the Bible Adam and Eve are tempted by a snake to take an apple from the tree. This snake was in fact the devil and this therefore associates a snake (or hissing sounds) with the devil and evil. I don’t think that Macbeth’s and Lady Macbeth’s relationship is conventional for the time as she seems to have a more male role. She seems stronger than Macbeth and in a way seems to have a power over him. She hasn’t even spoken to him yet and she has already decided what the plan of action is going to be in order for him to become king. In Act 1, Scene 6, we see Lady Macbeth welcoming Duncan to her house. In this scene she plays the role of the hostess and seems to be extremely evil in this scene. We have just seen her telling Macbeth about the plan to kill Duncan and now she is being really nice to Duncan. This will cause the audience to dislike her as we can see that she is obviously not a very nice person. This shows her as being really two faced and insincere towards Duncan. She is being, as she tells Macbeth to be later on, the innocent flower but the serpent underneath. In Act 1, Scene 7, we see Macbeth talking to himself and saying that he has no motives or good reasons to kill Duncan. But then Lady Macbeth comes in and uses blackmail and she taunts him to get him to go through with this, and to get her own way. ‘When you durst do it, then you were a man. And to be more than what you were, you would Be so much more the man.’ This suggest that Lady Macbeth thinks that Macbeth is a coward and therefore not a man. This is fiend like as she is blackmailing Macbeth into doing it. She is telling him he is not a man, and to be unmanned was a bad thing in Elizabethan times. Lady Macbeth, therefore, looks like she is very responsible for Duncan’s death as it wouldn’t have even happened if Lady Macbeth hadn’t persuaded Macbeth to do it. In this scene Macbeth appears to be weak and not the dominant person in this relationship. Also she doesn’t appear to show any recognition that what she is doing is so wrong. I think that Lady Macbeth would shock the audience when she says that she would rather kill her own child than break such a promise as this one. ‘†¦I have given suck and know How tender ’tis to love the babe that milks me: I would, while it was smiling in my face, Have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums And dashed the brains out, had I so sworn†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ This also shoes Lady Macbeth’s fiend like qualities. This statement would have shocked the audience greatly. She says that she would kill her own baby while it was smiling at her while she was breast feeding it if she had sworn to do so. This is a shocking statement and I think it would have shocked anyone. This truly shows how evil she is. This statement also raises another point of ambiguity. Lady Macbeth says, ‘I have given suck†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ This suggests that she has had a baby but there appears to be no child now. This raises the question of where the child is or if it is even alive. In Act 2, Scene 2 Lady Macbeth appears to have a few redeeming qualities. The fact that she has had to have a drink because she isn’t feeling brave is a redeeming quality. Also the fact that her thought are flicking around shows her tension and suggests that she is not as impenetrably ruthless as she seems. ‘†¦He is about it. The doors are open, and the surfeited grooms Do mock their charge with snores.’ This is another redeeming quality as it may shows her feeling guilty. Also when she says: ‘†¦Had he not resembled My father as he slept, I had done’t.’ This shows that she does have compassion as she couldn’t kill someone who looked like her father. Also in this scene when Macbeth comes back from killing Duncan, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth have a frantic, disjointed conversation while Macbeth is holding the daggers. This conversation last for thirty seven lines and it is only on the last line that Lady Macbeth realises that Macbeth is still holding the daggers. This shows how panic stricken they are and how neither is thinking clearly. This is a redeeming quality as this suggests that Lady Macbeth feels guilty and worried. In Act 2, Scene 3, Lady Macbeth faints when she hears that Duncan has been murdered. This is ambiguous as we don’t know if she is actually fainting or whether she is trying to cover up the situation. However this point is ambiguous as there are a number of reasons for why she might have fainted. She could be surprised (or even dismayed) that Macbeth is acting on his own or she might be shocked at Macbeth’s rashness when he kills the guards. Another point is that she might genuinely be upset at Macbeth’s gory description, as she said that Duncan reminded her of her father. The story which is probably more likely is that she is trying to draw attention away from the fact that Macbeth killed the guards to stop him from looking so guilty. This shows how evil she is. She doesn’t want people to focus on it too much and she also doesn’t want to be blamed. In Act 3, Scene 2, we see that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth have drifted apart ad become more distant. Macbeth has become more independent as well. We see this when we see that Macbeth has made plans to kill Banquo, but Lady Macbeth is not involved. This is a redeeming quality as we see that Lady Macbeth has nothing to do with this murder, only they murder of Duncan which was to help her husband anyway. She seems to be affected by this as she asks him what will happen, ‘What’s to be done?’, but Macbeth won’t tell her. In Act 3, Scene 4, we see the banquet held by Macbeth. Lady Macbeth seems to be different at the start of this scene as Macbeth says, ‘our hostess keeps her state’. These suggest that Lady Macbeth is sitting quietly, away from everyone else. This shows that she is not acting like the conventional hostess. This also ambiguous and suggests that Lady Macbeth may have begun to lose her mind already or she may be feeling isolated as she and Macbeth have drift apart. This could also shows that she is feeling guilty which is a redeeming quality. However, as soon as Macbeth leaves the feast Lady Macbeth goes after him to remind him that he mustn’t leave and that he needs to go and be the host. When Macbeth starts to see Banquo and behave weirdly, Lady Macbeth covers up for him but tells him to stop being stupid and entertain the guests. ‘You have displaced the mirth, broke the good meeting With most admired disorder.’ Here she is scorning Macbeth for ruining the banquet and drawing attention to himself. Lady Macbeth does not seem to feel guilty in this scene but she does seem afraid. I don’t think that she shows signs of feeling in this scene as she still blackmails and taunts Macbeth to get him to sit down and act as though everything is normal. Act 5, Scene 1 is the last scene that we see with Lady Macbeth in it. I think that Shakespeare uses the sleepwalking in this scene so that all can be revealed by Lady Macbeth to another character. I think that in this scene we begin to feel sorry for Lady Macbeth and I think that she has some redeeming qualities in this scene. One is that she acknowledges that she has done something wrong. ‘What will these hands ne’er be clean?’ This shows that she thinks she has blood on her hands and she wants then to be clean. She obviously feels guilty as she is having nightmares about it all. Also in this scene Lady Macbeth begins to speak in prose. Shakespeare always makes his main characters speak in verse but Lady Macbeth no longer speaks in verse. This shows that she is mad and is no longer important to the play. Also I think another redeeming quality is that she seems to feel responsible for all the deaths throughout the play, even tough she was only really responsible for one of the deaths, Duncan’s. I think that in this scene we begin to feel sorry for Lady Macbeth and like her a bit more. This scene shows that she does have redeeming qualities and that she isn’t completely evil. I don’t think that lady Macbeth is a ‘fiend like queen’. I think she is evil but has many redeeming qualities which make her seem a lot better as you go through the play. I also think that the fact that we see more of Lady Macbeth than Malcolm does mean we have the opportunity to see these redeeming qualities whereas Malcolm might not. I think that the moral of this play is don’t kill the king. It is not honourable or good and it will come back to haunt you.