Anti Gun-Control Essay Example for Free

Anti Gun-Control Essay Generally speaking, gun control is recognized as the effort to restrict or limit the production, shipment and ownership of certain guns. Over time, the issue of gun ownership has become a staple of controversy and one of the most hotly contested social issues facing Americans. More often than not, where one falls on gun control depends largely on their political affiliation, their moral standards and their past experiences with firearms. According to some estimates, approximately 80 million homes in the U.  S. own 223 million guns. As is the case with most issues, gun control comes with a list of pros and cons. The people who staunchly support gun control believe their argument would protect society and save lives, while those opposing gun control believe the opposite. Here are some of the most well-known arguments against gun control: Potential for more crime – It’s long been suggested that having a gun allows would-be victims to protect themselves against crimes. Proponents of gun control often point to crime statistics as a sign that gun control would be a positive for society. However, people against gun control firmly believe that by having a gun, people could prevent many of those crimes from happening in the first place. Second amendment – The second amendment from The Bill of Rights grants private citizens the right to bear arms. Thus, people who stand firmly against gun control insist that no legislation, technically, should have the right to take away a citizens guns without first repealing the amendment in question. Bad history – History appears to support the pro-gun crowd. Throughout various political regimes, the one constant of a tyrannical government has been the disarming of citizens. Thomas Jefferson once famously said: â€Å"No man shall ever be debarred the use of arms. The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against the tyranny in government. †

Discuss the Character and Functions of Sandra Essay Example for Free

Discuss the Character and Functions of Sandra Essay Beautiful Thing is set in London this is used to illustrate what Sandras character is like. Sandra Gangle is a tough middle class woman, who lives in a tidy council flat in South London. Sandra is house proud she likes everything in it to be nice looking. An example of this is the hanging baskets hanging on the wall out side her house. Sandra also looks after her self we can tell this by the Body Shop products on the floor. Sandra has many roles in this play, which include being mother, neighbour, barmaid, single parent, workingwoman and a girlfriend. Sandra is a survivor in the sense that she is bringing up a son all on her own and she has to pay for every thing her self. When I had three pee in my purse I went robbing for that boy This Indicates Sandras loyalty towards to her son, and how much she cares for him and tries to provide for him. An alternative example of how deprived Sandra was that I couldnt afford a cot This proves that however much Sandra tried and robbed she still couldnt afford the basics. Sandra is also very abusive, using foul language to insult people. A good example of Sandras abusive language is the first word of the play, which is SLAG. This shows a major part of Sandras character and is used to set the scene for the rest of the story. Although Sandra uses foul language she prevents Jamie using it by saying Language, Jamie! when he tells Leah I dont need fuckin elp. This is because it is disrespectful to use to bad language and she wants to bring him up to the best of her ability. Foul language is mainly used to add tension to the story. Sandra character is harsh in the way that she talks to people. This can be demonstrated by the way she talks to Leah on several occasions Face facts Leah, no bugger wants you and shut up By saying this Sandra is being tactless and insensitive towards Leahs feelings. Sandra is most thoughtless towards Leah. Sandra is also harsh in the way she describes Steves father We all know his dad leathers him, Im only having a laugh. This is used to demonstrate how heartless and insensitive Sandra really is. Steves father was very aggressive towards him on numerous occasions. He punches him for know reason and even threw him out once for burning the toast. One time when Steve was thrown out he went round to see Sandra to explain what had happened to him. The type of caring person that Sandra is she took him in. After listening to Steve she told him he could stay the night. Then said this to Steves dad Your little Stevens round at our place tonight. Ive every mind to report you. This shows the sensitive and caring side that Sandra has. Among all Sandras responsibilities she tries her best to monitor Jamies progress at school. Sandra makes sure of this by the phrase I shall be checking your homework when I get in. This is to ensure he is doing well. Sandra is also very unreliable like when she is supposed to check Jamies homework she doesnt even though she promises too do so. Telling Jamie Ooh, Sod that, Im knackered gives a mixed impression that she is trying her best to provide money but is short of time due to working, and this is why she is tired. Another shocking point is that Sandra is incredibly judgemental. Coming to negative conclusions without thinking about the consequences and affects that it has on other people. Sandra proves her character is judgemental by telling Leah A Leopard never changes its spots and a slapper never changes her knickers. An alternative example of Sandra being judgmental is when she tells Jamie I want you inside. Shes a bad influence. Both these quotes prove how Sandra is quick to form an unpleasant opinion of someone. Additionally Sandra is also extremely boastful and is keen to tell others about her achievements. Bragging to a group of friends telling them I won that hanging basket in the south east Thames barmaid at the year awards. Sandra is proving that she is significantly more than an average barmaid the proof of this was winning the award.

Importance Of Personal And Professional Skill Education Essay

Importance Of Personal And Professional Skill Education Essay The skill development is not a new concept, but it is becoming increasingly important. The continuing pace of change in business and management means that what we learned in our initial training courses soon becomes dated and irrelevant. It has been estimated that the half-life of skilled knowledge is about seven years. Furthermore, the amount of knowledge and skills continues to increase. Business and management has become knowledge intensive: we have entered the skilled-based economy. In this new world, it is impossible for us to know all that there is to know, yet access to the skilled and knowledge base is increasingly readily available. So what will make us developed skill specialist, rather than poor ones, is that our knowledge is more relevant, and more current, and is applied more efficiently and effectively. The work-place has also changed, with the result that in business and management are expected to have a wider range of skills. We increasingly work in teams on projects and much of what we do is virtual rather than tangible. As one project ends, another begins, and so we move from project to project, from team to team, and from one work-place to another. Indeed, for many, the increasingly itinerant nature of work leads us into several different careers during our working lives. These are strong, compelling reasons for professional development skills for manager, but there are many more. A better informed and more sophisticated public is demanding a higher duty of care and level of service from skilled workers. Linked to this is the increasing risk of claims for negligence from professionals deemed to have failed in their duty or given poor advice. Within organisations, modern quality management systems demand that qualified people are in place to make decisions. If we do not respond to this challenge, we face the prospect of becoming irrelevant. If, as skill professionals, we assume that our old time-served competences will last a lifetime, we will find ourselves becoming candidates for redundancy. The organisations we work for equally run the risk of failing to provide the new products and services that the market requires, resulting in decline. And so we need to learn continually as we work. This requires a skill set all of its own, a skill set we need to learn for ourselves as teachers and mentors, and a skill set we need to instil into our learners for their future benefit. TASK 2 Above we discussed importance of which we might assess our professional and personal development skills. However, what is missing is the route by which we might achieve its objectives. In this case four step approach is used: STEP 1 Profiling Ourselves This is the starting point for our individual professional development plan and should contain the ingredients from the table below: Working Life List strengths and successes Identify expertise that has not been exploited Skills inventory Rate skills and competences on a scale of 1-5 Identify skills needing further development Values, attitudes and beliefs Review the opinion of others Evaluate your own views and opinions Learning skills Identify types of learning preferred STEP 2 Define the Strategy Our development skills need to be correctly focused for maximum impact so that it meets both our individual development needs and those of the organisation for which we work. For Example If our employer has in place an annual staff review and appraisal process, then our individual aspirations and the organisational goals may have been reviewed, and a training and development plan agreed for the foreseeable future. Otherwise, we should discuss our skill development needs with department. STEP 3 Develop an Action Plan Putting the strategy into action can be the biggest challenge. An action plan can help. An effective action plan has four key ingredients: A clear statement of the goal to be achieved The actions required to achieve the goal The target timescale for achieving the goal Criteria to assess when we have reached our goal In order to deliver the action plan, we will have to seek out opportunities for learning and skills development, ideally in partnership with our employer. And since professional development benefits both the employee and the employer, we might find that our employer asks us to make a contribution to our own professional development, by committing some of our own time and perhaps by sharing the costs. Having established our action plan, we next need to decide how we are to go about the learning process. STEP 4 Evaluation and Reflection As we have seen, good development skills rely strongly on self analysis and appraisal to develop our personal profile and to analyse our preferred learning styles. This is not necessarily easy for a number of reasons. First, it can be hard to understand ourselves and see ourselves as others see us. Second, reflecting on skills and competences is not something that we are necessarily trained to do. Third, as the pace of life continues to increase, it is not easy to find time for self analysis and reflection. Mentoring is one way of overcoming these problems. A mentor is someone who can advise and guide you in your career. He or she has a number of roles as an appraiser, a supporter, a communicator and a motivator. The relationship therefore is different from that between a superior and his/her subordinate, and it is unlikely that a manager can carry out these functions. A good manager has coaching skills, is trustworthy, respected and is free from major distractions either within or outside the workplace. OUTCOME 2 TASK 3 Research commissioned by the British Audio Visual Society in 1988 suggests that we remember 10% of what we read, 20% of what we hear, 30% of what we see, 50% of what we see and hear, 80% of what we say and 90% of what we say and do at the same time. For this reason, professional recommends that we integrate learning and working, so that we improve our development skills within the context of our work using real-world problems. Then the time and effort we invest in professional development is rewarded by immediately assisting us to complete the task in hand. Senior skilled professionals believe the immediate usefulness of the learning greatly improves our motivation to learn. Whilst this may be generally true for groups of people, as individuals, we each have our own preferred learning styles. There are many ways to categorize learning styles, but the simplest places learners into one or more of three categories: Visual those who learn best through their eyes and what they see and read. The ideal learning approaches in this case will involve studying magazines and books and learning online. Auditory those who learn best by hearing things, either on tape or in discussion. Dialogue and discussion is important to their learning process. The ideal learning environment is the classroom, but discussions with colleagues and audio tapes can also be useful. Tactile those who learn best by doing, such as taking their own notes or participating in demonstrations and hands-on projects. Ideal structure: magazine and online learning; classroom that encourages participation. OUTCOME 3 TASK 4 The basis for my personal development plan is my ability to look inward into what are my values, who I am, my beliefs, strength and weakness. I was able to reflect and know myself and how I can transform my values into crucial tools that would help my professional development rather than be at the drawback of the clients that would need help in the future. Most counselling and therapy approaches believe that relationship between counsellors and client is very important. Certainly, effective communication between counsellor and clients is an aspect that aids the key elements of a sustainable therapeutic relationship, which includes empathetic understanding, genuineness, unconditional positive regard and trust (Copeland, 2002). It is recommended, that throughout counselling, clients should be free to give feedback and raise concerns about the counselling relationship. I have used the same relationship style in relating with my approach to address conflict and open to change. My research on this study has helped me to readdress my time keeping, studying more and writing more in my personal journal. In accordance with the SMART AND SWOT analysis, I use reflective practice to evaluate and draw my personal and professional plan. Reflection, or rather reflective practice, contributes to professional development by revealing the knowledge and skills used in everyday practice, and exposing areas that require development (Driscoll The-2001). The values that I prioritise in my professional development plan are respecting clients human rights and dignity, and also ensuring the integrity of practitioner-client relationship. Moreover, what is critical in practitioner client relationship is the issue of power discourse. However, what comes to mind is that power is also a potentially destructive weapon that can be used to oppress and exploit people and could lead to abuse in counselling and psychotherapy practice (Thompson, 2003). The principles that I have learnt and hope to adopt in my work with my case study in balancing power relations and dealing with forms of oppression include benefi cence, empowerment and advocacy. Personal SWOT analysis Strengths Im very creative. I often impressing clients with a new perspective on their brands. I communicate well with my clients and team. I have the ability to ask key questions to find just the right marketing angle. Im completely committed to the success of a clients brand. Weaknesses I have a strong, compulsive need to do things quickly and remove them from my to do list, and sometimes the quality of my work suffers as a result. This same need to get things done also causes me stress when I have too many tasks. I get nervous when presenting ideas to clients and this fear of public speaking often takes the passion out of my presentations. Opportunities One of our major competitors has developed a reputation for treating their smaller clients poorly. Im attending a major marketing conference next month. This will allow for strategic networking, and also offer some great training seminars. Our art director will go on maternity leave soon. Covering her duties while shes away would be a great career development opportunity for me. Threats Simon, one of my colleagues, is a much stronger speaker than I am, and hes competing with me for the art director position. Due to recent staff shortages, Im often overworked, and this negatively impacts my creativity. The current economic climate has resulted in slow growth for the marketing industry. Many firms have laid off staff members, and our company is considering further cutbacks. TASK 5 The leadership skills have following functions in relation to Task, Team and individual needs.          i). Defining the task it should define the task  with clear, concrete, time limited, realistic and challenging objective so that his followers can understand properly and complete the task in time. The end of the task should also be defined to make members aware about the success criteria.          ii). Planning of the work Leader should do proper planning on the procedures to be adopted in an open mind before starting the work. The questions based on what, why, when, how, where and who should be answered during making a simple and fool proof plan. Sometimes leader presents ideas and invites question from followers or he suggests tentative plan subject to change afterwards.          iii). Delegation of works Leader gives briefing about role of every individual in task and delegate work accordingly to create the right atmosphere, to promote team relationship and to encourage and motivate all team members.          iv). Controlling   Leader controls their team by directing, regulating, restraining or encouraging individual and team efforts on the task. Leader needs to exhibit self-control over his own sentiments and to have good control systems for effective monitoring financial and task performance for controlling others problem. TASK 6 The concept of personal and professional development is closely related. It could be explained that both concept impacts on one another, depending on the aspect at which we perceive the terms. According to Maslow (1996) Personal development refers to individual self development and the development of others. In addition, personal development may involve programs, tools and methods. As an individual, my personal development includes plans or actions oriented towards one or more of the following aims: goals, developing strengths, improving self-awareness and self-knowledge, building or renewing identity, identifying or improving potential, building employability or human capital, enhancing lifestyle or the quality of life, realising dreams and fulfilling aspirations (Bandura.1997.Jasper.2006). In my personal development, I learn information that will help me become more efficient, successful and happy according to (Peter, 1999). In the UK, personal development took a central place in university policy in 1997 when the Dearing Report declared that universities should go beyond academic teaching to provide students with personal development. In 2001 a Quality Assessment Agency for UK universities produced guidelines for universities to improve personal development as a defined structured and a support process set by an individual to reflect upon their own learning, performance, achievement and to plan for their personal, education and career development (Speck-Knipe.2005). Conclusion Using reflective practice, I have demonstrated in this essay the experience of my personal and professional development. I have differentiated between these two concepts and have also explained how they are intertwined to produce quality and efficient professional relationship in me as a potential counsellor. I have taken on board some core professional values such as trust, confidentiality, developing, professional, relationship and self-assertiveness as principles that underpin my professional development. I hope to apply these valuable experiences to practice as I work with other multi-disciplinary teams to assess service users needs and the law and ethical implications that could arise in the course of my placement. Applying for placement has not been easy hence I am yet to find a place. More importantly, as a student counsellor, the question is how does reflective and reflexive influence who I am? This is an on-going question for me to answer, as I continue with my learning unti l I take off counselling hat, though there is still room for improvement as I consider myself to be a work in progress.

The Worlds Longest War :: essays research papers

The World's Longest War Where We Are Journals practice a laudable self-censorship of criticism of religions. The most vicious devil worship is mentioned with little comment and then only in crime reporting of the atrocities committed. This is a good thing. Religious hatreds are so easily inflamed, and there is so much history of religious persecution, that we are much better off with this self restraint. Furthermore the separation of church and state is spelled out in our constitution and is practiced in most countries of the world, even in the former USSR and China. In democracies it is legal for a political party to yearn for religious domination, but in all democratic countries such parties are very small and never reach the stage of challenging their constitutions. The name "Christian Democratic Party," common in Europe, refers to moral roots, not to theocratic ambitions. The consequence of this separation of church and state is that political contention is not poisoned by religious hatred. There is one exception, Islam, a theocracy which has savaged the world for over a thousand years. Its religious doctrine is that church and state are one and that canon law and civil law are one. It periodically believes that unbelievers must be converted or conquered and that hating infidels is a virtue and killing an infidel is a ticket to heaven. In many of the faithful this religious fanaticism has merged with the secular fanaticism of Marxism-Leninism to make a witch's brew of hate and savagery against Christendom and capitalism. ('America is the Great Satan.') The demise of Marxism-Leninism in Europe does not extend to the Middle East. Russian and Chinese weapons continue to be sold for Arab oil money. During centuries of warfare the western countries have become democracies. Even Eastern Europe is avalanching into democracy. But, except for present day Turkey and some Far Eastern countries which practice a mild form of Islam, the Moslem world is run by military dictators, theocratic oligarchies, or a combination of both. A short list of these contemporary dictators (most entitled "President" or "King") includes: Ghadaffi of Libya, Assad of Syria, Saddam Hussein of Iraq, the Mullahs of Iran, Fahd of Saudi Arabia, Hussein of Jordan, and the competing warlords in Lebanon and the PLO. This theocracy has conquered or converted much of the civilized world. It's conquests have been impeded more by internal factional wars, murders, and schisms than by resistance of its victims. It is now on the rising slope of its next onslaught. It can not yet attack the superpowers in open warfare. Israel is a salient of the West in the Middle East so open warfare has been repeatedly

Grapes of Wrath :: essays papers

Grapes of Wrath It is said that everything is done for a purpose, and if that purpose is not obvious, it could be evident within oneself. In The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, the story not only entails the tale of the tragically poor, but also an uplifting sense of discovery. The story tells not only of the physical journey to California, but of the characters' spiritual travels as well. By examining the lives of Jim Casy, Tom Joad, and Ma Joad, one will see the enlightening changes that mark their lives through the depression. Jim Casy's journey is an astounding one. He begins his life as a preacher, yet decides one day that his work is invalid; sinful, in some way. He says to Tom, "'I used ta get the people jumpin' an' talkin' in tongues, an' glory-shoutin' till they just fell down an' passed out. . . An' then - you know what I'd do? I'd take one of them girls out in the grass, an' I'd lay with her. Done it ever' time. Then I'd feel bad, an' I'd pray an' pray, but it didn't do no good. Come the nex' time, them an' me was full of the sperit, I'd do it again. I figgered there just wasn't no hope for me, an' I was a damned ol' hypocrite. But I didn't mean to be.'" (Page 28) He decides that he is not noble enough to continue his work, and grows distempered when others ask him to preach the word of God. He spends his time with the Joad family gratefully, but little else. He does no real work to help them out; he spends most of his time thinking to himself. Although Casy repeatedly confesses his guilt for doing nothing for the family, he makes no real efforts to contribute, and remains on the sidelines. However, when Tom trips a policeman that was threatening to take everyone to the station, Casy takes the blame. "Casy turned to Al. 'Get out,' he said. 'Go on, get out - to the tent. You don't know nothin'.' 'Yeah? How 'bout you?' Casy grinned at him. 'Somebody got to take the blame. I got no kids. They'll jus' put me in jail, an' I ain't doin' nothin' but set aroun'.' A l said, 'Ain't no reason for -' Casy said softly, 'If you mess in this your whole fambly, all your folks, gonna get in trouble.

Jays Treaty :: essays research papers

Jay's Treaty "If this country is preserved in tranquillity twenty years longer, it may bid defiance in a just cause to any power whatever; such in that time will be its popularity, wealth and resources," stated by George Washington in response to demonstrators over the Jay Treaty. 1 Washington's remark was regarding the public's uproar following the release of information on the status of the discord with Great Britain. The people had just been informed of the contents of the Jay Treaty which were: 1) Britain agreed to give up the fur posts in American territory, 2) Britain also agreed to submit to arbitration the questions of disputed boundaries, the damage done to American shipping, and the debts due to British merchants. Although the people did not like these terms, Washington supported them to prevent us from going to war. Washington made his first move by sending a delegate to England, and furthermore by standing up to congress to get this treaty ratified. He demonstrates again his great moral coura ge for the welfare of his country. Although Washington himself did not write the treaty he deserves all the credit for initiating it in the first place. The times had become rough with the British, and according to Hamilton the British were a vital part of our economy. He said " †¦the tax on imports furnished much of the money for paying off our foreign, domestic, and state debts." 2 Along with the British's impressment of American seamen and their role in our economy Washington knew something had to be done. Washington knew that the tension between America and England had to be thinned out so he decided to send over a special envoy. The individual chosen for the job was Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, John Jay. John Jay had much experience in this department because he was the former Secretary for Foreign Affairs under the old Confederation. His objective was to make peace between the two countries. He was under instructions to make no commitment in violation of the treaties with France. Fortunately, Washington came to terms to do this, otherwise our infant country may never have grown into what it is today. This indubitably turned out to be one of Washington's bolder moves towards assisting his country. Another powerful move was demonstrated by Washington as he persuaded the Senate to ratify the treaty. The Jay Treaty was signed on November 19th , 1794, but was not ratified by the Senate until seven months later. "President George Washington's signing of the Jay Treaty provoked unimaginable criticism of his

Cicero’s Oratory and Rhetoric Influence on Roman Politics Essay

The establishment of Rome as a Republic in 509 BC was initiated by the overthrow of the Tarquin monarchy by Junius Brutus. From the remains of the fallen monarchy, the Senate assumed full powers in governing Rome with the Senate as its highest governing body. There were no written constitutions but laws and traditions guided the Republic . From that point forward, the Senate had the power to wage war, impose taxes and run the bureaucracy of the expanding Republic with officials delegated to every post under the supreme authority of the Senate. The Republic thus evolved from a simplistic method of governance inherited from the previous institutions. New offices were invented in order to respond to the needs of the time. Hence, from consuls rose the ranks of the proconsul then the qauestors, praetors, censors and so on. These offices had specific tasks and delegations with powers that varied in length of effect and severity. However, all these powers were concentrated in the hands of the patricians which the plebeian section resented until political currents soon swept and shook the foundations of the republican institutions controlled by the aristocracy . In 1st century BC these events culminated into a dictatorship by a former proconsul, Julius Caesar and soon the Roman Republic was on the verge of dissolution. A conflict between two social classes ensued and finally the Roman Republic that was ruled by the Senate was no more than a puppet of a tyrant. During the final years of the Roman Republic, a brilliant orator emerged from the ranks of the aristocracy, Marcus Tullius Cicero, whose life was intertwined with the republic’s collapse. Though originally, Cicero was not born from a wealthy family such that he would be, by virtue of birth, destined to be a part of the ruling aristocracy in the Senate. His was a political ambition which he gained through a career in law. He eyed for a seat in the Senate and with that he studied philosophy, jurisprudence and rhetoric. With the gift of words he made it into the Roman bureaucracy by being elected into the succeeding offices of the qauestor, aedile, praetor and finally consul in 63 BC . Cicero’s ascension to the highest office was attributed to Lucius Sergius Catalina who was vying for the post. To prevent Catalina (Catiline) from being elected, Cicero’s party nominated him. His speech during the election was quite essential in the exceptional rise to power by a non-patrician. In his First Oration against Catiline, D’Ooge translates Cicero’s speech before the Roman Senate: â€Å"†¦Before what youth, whom you had ensnared by the charm of your enticements, have you not carried a sword to encourage for his audacity or a torch to fire for his lust†¦Ã¢â‚¬  this, Cicero said in the presence of Catalina who tried to defend himself but the senators hauled at him a barrage of questions and interruptions that made Catalina flee from the Forum. Further engaging hatred against Catalina among the upper class senators, Cicero even invented that Catalina murdered his wife . He likewise included in his speech the senators were either fearful of nothing or fearful of everything that they declined at first to act against Catalina . Such was Cicero’s powerful speech that the tables were turned against Catalina. In Catalina’s desperate attempt to attain the consulship, he hatched conspiracies which were passed to Cicero who immediately reported back to the Senate. With such virtuosity, Cicero acquired emergency powers from the Senate. He later obtained messages Catalina sent to the Allobroges in lieu of his plans to raid the city. All these events were articulated by Cicero in a series of speeches in the Senate asserting that a threat had been extinguished. Following his presentation of evidence to the Senate, arrests were immediately carried out and the conspirators were executed without trial . Cicero’s revelations received frenzied applauses from the Senate as the rebellion was quelled before it touched the streets of Rome. Hence, the Cataline conspiracy gave way for Cicero and his oratory the popularity among the citizens and earned his consulship all at the same time . It was not the first time that Cicero made use of his oratorical skills but it was the very last of his outstanding accomplishments as a senator for the winds of the civil war upon Rome, and it was just a little time that Julius Caesar had tolerated the whimpering of the useless Senate . It was inevitable that Cicero eventually fell for the complexities of the military mind of Julius Caesar. He was eventually exiled for rallying behind the loser’s side. His exile was based on the allegations that he executed the Catilinarian conspirators without trial made by his archenemy Publius Claudius, but in reality, it was caused by his defense of Rome’s republican structure and the maintenance of the Senate which Caesar held powerless through the Triumvirate, with Crassus and Pompey . His exile gave him time to reflect his republican principles. His three major works worth to be discussed here in length was â€Å"On the Orator†, â€Å"On the Republic† and â€Å"On the Laws. † These documents in the form of dialogue were his manifesto of the republican principle he adhered to and believed to be the best for Rome. These treatises were interconnected with each other as each one was a prerequisite to the next. â€Å"On the Orator† discussed the characteristics of an ideal orator. Here he ascribed that a good orator must likewise be well acquainted with philosophy and law as a rhetorician should always have the solid foundations of factual basis for his arguments. Seemingly possible that the rhetorical abilities were reciprocally beneficial so that philosophical and political ideas could be well articulated hence better understood and subsequently agreed upon by a target audience. An ideal orator, he said, had to be at the fore of political decisions, create the necessary laws and be in himself an example of the correct way of living. These necessary traits of the orator were essential for the formation of an ideal commonwealth which he detailed in the treatise â€Å"On the Republic. † It was deliberated there that the Roman institutions were undermined at the onset of the Triumvirate. He further evaluated that the Roman Republic was a concoction of the components of a monarchy, aristocracy and democracy. In this paper his despise for the aristocracy which had marginalized him in the beginning of his career became evident. The moral decay of the aristocracy had been pointed out to be a possible cause of the government’s destruction. In order to avert such destruction, virtue must be actively exercised and the essence of the foundations of community had to be considered at all times. Therefore, the statesman who ran the affairs of the republic had to be accustomed to the concept of natural law. These laws he asserted on the last treatise, â€Å"On the Laws,† were to be based on the natural order of things such that man should perform his duties as what was determined of him to do even before his birth. He asserted that only through reason justice could be discovered that would subsequently provide the commonwealth with the laws that would govern its affairs . These discourses on the republican principles however, were deemed useless since Julius Caesar was just waiting for the right moment to strike. When Cicero was finally permitted to return to Rome, he was accepted by the citizens with somewhat unchanged enthusiasm. Feeling indebted to Pompey, he again took the center stage of the Forum to persuade the Senate to give Pompey dictatorial powers which Pompey took advantage while Caesar was on a military campaign in Gaul . While having these especial dictatorial powers, Pompey moved against Caesar’s advantage. The strokes of history went against Cicero as Julius Caesar ultimately defeated Pompey and became the sole dictator of the Roman Empire. Thus along with Pompey’s vanquish from the city, senators who also went to Pompey’s side fled in hope that they would be able to remove Caesar from his tyranny through Pompey’s legions in Africa and Spain. When Cicero was granted clemency by Julius Caesar in 47 B. C. , a condition was set that he would not be engaged in politics but when Caesar was assassinated in March 44 B. C. , Cicero again meddled with the affairs of the struggling factions who were eyeing Caesar’s former position. He was after all, hopeful that Octavian, the heir apparent to Caesar’s throne, would be influenced and manipulated to bring the Senate back to its former glory. In order to ensure Octavian’s victory over Mark Anthony, he engaged into the battle of persuading the senators, though they only held ceremonial powers, to aid Octavian. This series of speeches were called the Philippics. The Philippics had shown the greatest orator and rhetoric in Cicero and come scholars say that it was the finest moment in his political career but those speeches only spelled his death. Clearly, the Philippics were aimed to crush Mark Anthony. Unfortunately, Octavian had already come up with agreements with other contending parties. Cicero met his death quite sardonically too deviated from the eloquence of his oratory and the refinement of rhetoric. It was a brutal end for a man who lived by the word. His head was displayed at the Forum to convey a clear message to the Romans that the Roman Republic was extinct and that the new age had commenced . References Boatwright, M. T. , Gargola, D. J. , & Talbert, R. J. A. (2006). A Brief History of the Romans. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc. Clayton, E. (Ed. ) (2006) The Internet Encyclopaedia of Philosophy. Michigan. D’Ooge, B. L. (1915). Cicero Select Orations. New York: Benj. H. Sanborn & Co. Holland, T. (2003). Rubicon: The Triumph and Tragedy of the Roman Republic. London: Little Brown. Suetonius. (2003). The Twelve Caesars (R. Graves, Trans. ). London: Penguin Group.