Development of Television in Developing Countries

Development of Television in Developing Countries Research context The growth of television in the developing world over the last two decades has been extraordinary. Television was invented in the early 1900’s and was made commercially available in the 1920’s. Early television was in black and white and was broadcast via analogsignal, butadvance developments are such that now television is very much a personalized form of entertainment. Television now can broadcast a range of programming which is diverse in nature and taken from all around the globe. McLuhan coined the idiom â€Å"a global village† referring to the diversity of the world into becoming one village with the same thoughts and values. And this is what television has caused. Programming can make what is not a normal item in single country into something that is normal. It can change attitudes and values of a people. It can make one specific program from one country into the most wanted program in another country. Television itself has become all powerful as a medium of communication to the world. It turned the world into a global village. Television makes the unusual become something normal. Certain things cease to be unique or amazing. It can make change one society’s attitude, whether it be good or bad. It can make that same society become similar in its materialistic values to another. It makes the world similar and eradicates the differences, which in itself can be good as well as bad. Good in that we can understand each other better but bad, in that we lose those differences that make a culture unique. And different cultures are what make all of us unique. While television was first introduced to India in 1959, for the first three decades almost all broadcasting was in the hands of the state, and the content was primarily focused towards news or information about economic development. According to (Victoria L farmer: 256) national television system in more homogeneous societies the cultural link between programming and its audience was not clear because Indian government monopoly was predicated on its use to promote socio-economic development. Instead of television naturally reflecting a relatively homogenous national culture, Indian programming was specifically designed to create such an identity. In addition India’s sheer size meant that most of its citizens only received transmissions from within India. The most significant innovation in terms of both content and viewership was the introduction of satellite television in the early 1990s. And since television is often watched with family and friends by those without a television or cable, the growth in actual access or exposure to cable is likely to have been even more dramatic. A number of unintended consequences arose from justifying the construction of India’s television network on the basis of television’s potential for promoting ‘development’. The satellite instructional television experiment (SITE) of 1975-6 did show that some gains could be made through provision of information on topics such as new agricultural practices and basic health care. However, these gains proved to be of very limited scope (Victoria L farmer: 258-259). Broadcast of the Asiad in 1982 was the first Indian broadcast in colour-proved to be a phenomenally popular within India, a fact that did not go unnoticed by the former minis ter of information and broadcasting, Indira Gandhi (Victoria L farmer depicting the nation:265). In 1983 Doordarshan begin with commercially sponsored serials; it was a strategic decision to broadcast appealing, popular programming in order to build broad audience for effective political communication. The first hum log a drama with a family planning message begun arising in 1984. The expansion of Doordarshan reach and programming in early 1980s coupled with the advent of commercial sponsorship created a nexus linking state control of television for electoral ends with the commercial pursuit of profit through advertising (Victoria L farmer: 266). A second major consequence of Doordarshan programming in the 1980s was the erosion of the credibility of its news programming, through blatant use of the medium for publicizing congress party leaders and initiatives. This became particularly severe in the period preceding the 1989 elections, when the conspicuous use of news broadcasts for electioneering earned for Doordarshan the derisive sobriquet ‘Rajiv Darshan’ (Victoria L farmer depicting the nation: 268). Besides that the program offerings on cable television are quite different than government programming. The most popular shows tend to be game shows and soap operas. These shows are based around the issues of family and gender. The introduction of television appears in general to have had large effects on Indian societies. This is particularly the case for gender, since this is an area where the lives of rural and slum peoples differ greatly from those depicted in television programmings. By virtue of the fact that the most popular Indian serials take place in urban settings, character depicted on these shows are typically much more emancipated than rural and slum peoples. Further, in many cases there is access to Western television, where these behaviors differ even more markedly from India. There is also a broader literature on the effects of television exposure on social and demographic outcomes in other countries. For example, Pace (1993) describes the effect of television introduction in Brazil on a small, isolated, Amazon community, arguing that the introduction of television changed the framework of social interactions, increased general world knowledge and changed peoples perceptions about the status of their village in the wider world. Kottak (1990) reports on similar data from isolated areas in Brazil, and argues that the introduction of television affects (among other things) views on gender, moving individuals in these areas towards having more liberal views on the role of women in both the workplace and in relationships. And closely related to one of our outcomes, Chong, Duryea and La Ferrara (2007) report declines in fertility in Brazil in response to access to telenovelas; they also find changes in naming patterns of children, with the names of main characters featured on these programs increasing in popularity. The change has been even more dramatic in India. In the span of just 10-15 years since it first became available, cable or satellite penetration has reached an astonishing percentage in the Bhopal. These years represent a time of rapid growth in urban slum television access. Beyond providing entertainment, television vastly increases both the availability of information about the outside world and exposure to other ways of life. This is especially true for remote, rural villages, where several ethnographic and anthropological studies have suggested that television is the primary channel through which households get information about life outside their village (Mankekar, 1993, 1998; Fernandes, 2000; Johnson, 2001; Scrase, 2002). Most popular cable programming features urban settings where lifestyles differ in prominent and salient ways from those in rural areas. For example, many characters on popular soap operas are more educated, marry later and have smaller families. Many female characters work outside the home, sometimes as professionals, running businesses or in other positions of authority. All things rarely found in rural areas. Anthropological accounts suggest that the growth of TV in rural areas has had large effects on a wide range of day-to-day lifestyle behaviors. (Johnson, 2001). Yet there have been few qualitative studies on the influences of television access may have had on social and demographic outcomes of rural and slum areas. Therefore, in this paper we explore the introduction of television in urban slums areas of Bhopal on a particular set of values, behaviors and attitudes towards various television programmings. Although issues of slum development are important throughout the India, they are particularly salient in Bhopal and even their conditions are significantly worse. By exposing slum households to urban attitudes and values, television may lead to improvements in their status. It is this possibility that we explore in this paper.

Literature and Cinema Essay

Life is a Theme of Literature, Literature is the expression of Life. Life fashions Literature and Literature moulds Life. The intimate relation between Literature and Cinema is one of the common place truths which have been illustrated again and again, both Social and literary life history. Literature is the most fascinating creation of a literary artist based on the style and stategy of life. Life and reality are the basics of Literature. It’s a product of creation of a literary artist, accompanied with his theoretical and practical knowledge, intellect, thoughts and imagination, where an artist creates his own animated world with realistic events and incidents. As through the words of Mathew Arnold â€Å" Literature is the best record that is thought and Known in the world†, in the words of Satyajit â€Å"Literature was another avenue for the expression of his creative talents†. Cinema, an art of showing life of human beings and the respective happenings in life, which literature glorifies, not only the actual occurances but also reflects in an idealized form, the standards of social thought and morality. Cinema/Movies, the most remarkable, illuminating & fascinating discovery of Science and Technology, where the credit goes to the American scientist ‘Thomas Alva Edison’. The tone of literature changes with the stages of society, life style and the respective incidents, which portrayted & given a clear view by means of perfect moulding in mode of Films. These film/Vedio tapes are chosen out of the American experimental tradition to exemplify the various techniques of marrying the two arts â€Å"Literature & Cinema†. Every natural incident before the poet, around him, in world is the only source of utterance, arouses out his inspiration & his creative energy that rests upon the core of reality. This what further transformed into poems, speeches, songs and novels respectively. The poet presents his skillfulness, an admirable creation of his imagination and fancy in the mind of the readers, but in Later Middle Ages with the growth and development of drama led the people to exemplify another form of art, their intense fascination on gestures and acting, Various forms of drama were performed based on different scripts gives a clear evidence from the popularity of â€Å"Miracle† and â€Å"Morality† plays and â€Å"Interludes† before the advent of Elizabeathan drama and playwrights. The dramatic performances were based on antiphonal singing, dialogues were written and the possibilities were in Roman Catholic Church, with the advent of Elizabeathan drama, various plays of Shakespeare, Marlowe, Dickens and others followed, enriching the English literature. Considering the nature of work of literature can be comprehended by means of two stages, the art of reading and the art of showing, in which the later transforms poetry, novels, short stories into Cinema. The major distinction between them lies as poetry belonging to the art of utterance, while cinema/movies the art of showing, but on the whole they both don’t make easily a good couple. These films and the vedio makers have taken up the challenge anyway to make a way of responding the poet’s work, creating original cinematic writing, gradually leading to the magical, amusing world of entertainment and the fantasy in films. Cinema, A proportionate to the style of language as when a novel, short story transformed into a film, the first note worthy part comes the script. The script writer may or may not mould down the language of the novel in order to make an easy communication and understanding to the audience, mainly applicable in commercial films. In case of commercial films the novel or short story may be taken as a script but it may be modified according to the flavour of audience. The director Overrules the whole cinematographic sequence and drives away his workshop, tackling all barriers, creating a view of life and reality, giving a colourful portraiture of a dream world mingling with comic and tragic sequences with distinct and dancing, stepping on toes, wooing each other with charms of mouth, eye and mind. Finally ending with an admirable climax. Thus listening and reading a poet’s work is equally proportional to viewing and listening film maker’s work. Infact, Movies/Films are a director’s medium, as they reflect director’s own vision and his thoughts, but a fact acts as a contradiction and though debateable, how can a cinema be its truly literaray genius ? As when a great work of literature is adopted and placed on the screen by a director, whether it will be true or equal to the writer’s vision, as while transforming it into a celluloid. With the inception of Cinema, Literature has attracted all the creative film makers, pioneers in the world of cinema such as Pramathesh Barua, Debaki Basu have based their films on the eminent works of Sarat Chatterjee, Tarashankar Bandhopadhyay and others. Satyajit Ray’s â€Å"Pather Panchali† was the first which brought International Acclaim, was wholly based on the great work of literature of Bibhuti Bhusan Bandhopadhayay, Other than his Imaginative Creation Of Feluda, a Private Investigator, His nephew and literary artist Jatayu, together making â€Å"The Three Musketeers†, roaming different places, solving cases purely based on intellect also placed on the screen- â€Å"Sonar Kella†[The Golden Fortress], Joy Baba Felunath [Mystery of the Elephant God] and many more. His Creation Of Professor Shonku a Scientific, mystery thriller and Tarini Khuro, an adventurous, mystery sequence bring us to his imagination, art and literacy. Film Meastro Tapan Sinha in his film â€Å"Kabuliwallah†, which is wholly based on Tagore’s story, have also struck the writer’s vision. Eminent film makers as Mrinal Sen, Kumar Shahani and Adoor Gopala Krishnan were criticized ruthlessly when their literary works are adopted but distinguished from the original work. Mrinal Sen’s Oriya film â€Å"Matira Manusya† in 1965, the first Oriya film with an extraordinary literacy but had to face criticism due to the differentiation of literacy work with the film. Godrad and Mrinal Sen always based their films on the recreation of literacy classics. In this case the ideas and statements of the film makers get dwarfed in order to be true to the literary classics. Now lifting the veil of literary classics, there are many other eminent countless good Indian films were made simply by translating the works of Sarat Chatterjee, R. K Narayan, Banophool, Premchand, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhayay, Manik Bondhopadhayay and many more. It is indeed a credit of the director, translating these fabulous works into films by enhancing the appeal of the novel, doing a perfect justice to the writer’s work, possibly contributing a commercial support. Apart from this there are also enough contribution of the film makers of abroad. Films/Movies based on Shakesperean Comedy drama â€Å"Romeo and Juliet, â€Å"A Midsummer Night’s Dream†, â€Å"Twelfth Night†, â€Å"The Merchant Of Venice† etc. Even Shakespeare’s tragedies are transformed in Movies- ‘Macbeth’, ‘Hamlet’, ‘Othello’, ‘King Lear’ ‘Tempest’ etc. Marlowe’s ‘Edward II’, Jane Austen’s ‘Pride and Prejudice’, Milton’s ‘Paradise Lost’, Charles Dicken’s ‘Great Expectations’ and many more have been moulded and given a new look, quite popular to our present generation. Penny Gay interested in film ‘adaptation’ of classics, particularly of Shakespeare and Jane Austen: she is enthusiastic about free, imaginative, and wide-ranging rather than literalist attempts to translate these works to the screen. She has supervised several Honours dissertations in this field, and has taught a unit of study called ‘Shakespeare in the City’ which is entirely based on film versions. A close analysis on the films of Premchandra and Saratchandra, we find the characters and the situations are created in such a way, it seems it appears from modern day. Mordern world are in the urge of horror, mystery,thriller Stories, suspence thriller, brutal murders, death sequences centering round a single cause – may b a human being, living dead or alive, beasts and insects, by any cause of scientific or natural disaster, take a major role in the world of Cinema. Commertialy they usually do a huge amount of business. â€Å"Species 1& 2† shows how natural concequences takes a major part in creation of a new species, a living organism with in human beings. â€Å"Spiders and its Offsprings† â€Å"Arachnophobia†, Eight legged Freaks† gives a proper evidence of how a simple carelessness can turn into a terror of death, an unstoppable end. Similarly in movie â€Å"Final Destination†It is seen a different style of terror resulting death and its consequent horrors, with a superb touch of realism, blood hell and unyielding spirit of revenge paralysed the audience with terror. Mrinal Sen said â€Å"Cinema is never overawed by Literature† as he never based his films on any literary piece of work nor he translated any literary work into films, but he never moved away from literature. The Joyous elements of literature always attracted his vision. A small synopsis of the work or novel is enough for him to produce a film, as he belived â€Å"Cinema is a joint form of art, as a new form of art, borrows ideas from the old, creating a new way out from its curves and leads the path of progress as a medium. † Kevin Bacon Says â€Å"A good director creates an environment, which gives the actor the encouragement to fly†, Hector Babenko said â€Å"Curiosity doesn’t matter any more. These days people don’t want to be transported to emotional territories where they don’t know how to react. † -Robert Bresson said â€Å"My movie is born first in my head, dies on paper; is resuscitated by the living persons and real objects I use, which are killed on film but, placed in a certain order and projected on to a screen, come to life again like flowers in water. † The Script for making a movie always comes from literature, Pratical incidents, Realism, Beauty, Nature, Romance, comedy, Tragedy, Soliloque are the common facts of both literature and cinema. Cinema is Solely indebeted to literature, either partially or completely. Though the world of literature never ends, each moment of life, makes a literary artist discover new ideas and thoughts, a debateable question, indeed both literature and cinema are interconnected to each other, Literature can turn into a Cinematic view/cinema, but a cinema can never turn into literature. To a Literary genious, Literature is a view of life, a mode of survival, thinking, communicating, expressing his thoughts, but to a Director, film the only mode of communication. A question arises whether cinema should be a true literary genius, it depends on the director as he should be given complete freedom of cinematizing the literary classics in his own view. Cinematising, creating a celluloid of the great classics of literature reflects the vision of the writer and the ideas of the director simultaneously, Still remains unquestionable Literature is bound to cinema or Cinema is bound to literature ?.

A Passage to India: Culture Clash

CONTEXT British context ?Forster was a British writer and most of his readers were British. His work reflects also England and the period in which Forster lived and wrote. He is commonly regarded as an Edwardian novelist, because his first four novels were published during the reign of King Edward VII (1901-1910); in this period his values and outlook were developed. ?England had undergone the traumatic experience of the First World War; more than 750000 soldiers were killed, along with another million from other parts of British Empire. Between 1912 and 1924, the British policy had also changed: there were two main parties, the Liberal and the Conservative. ?British Empire was changing. The change was more evident in Ireland. Ireland gained the indipendence in 1921. KEY POINTS ?FULL TITLE: â€Å"A Passage to India† ?AUTHOR: Edward Morgan Forster ?TYPE OF WORK: Novel ?TIME AND PLACE WRITTEN: 1912-1924 England ?DATE OF FIRST PUBLICATION: 1924 ?TENSE: Past ?THEMES: Culture Clash ; Friendship; Ambiguity; Religion ?CHARACTERS: Dr Aziz, Mr Fielding, Adela Quested, Mrs. Moore, Ronny Healsop ? SETTING ( TIME ): 1910s or 1920s SETTING ( PLACE ): India, specifically the cities of Chandrapore and Mau. Carico†¦ CHARACTERS Dr Aziz ?Is the central Indian character in the novel. ?He works at the government hospital in Chandrapore. ?He writes poetry and his favorite poetic themes are: the Decay of Islam and the brevity of Love. ?He’s described as a true â€Å"Oriental† person. ?He’s very goodwill and his impulsive nature get him into situations that cause him trouble. ?Like many of his friends prefers to communicte throught confidences, underlying words and indirect speech ? Like many other Indians struggles with the problem of the English in India.CHARACTERS Mr Fielding ?The principal of the Government College (that is, a British? run school) in Chandrapore. ?He has â€Å"no racial feelingâ€Å". ?He’s far and away most the successful at developing relationships with native Indians. ?He’s less comfortable in teacher – student interaction than he is in one -on- one conversation with another individual ? Serves as Forster’s model of liberal humanism. ?At the and of the novel Forster seems to identify with Fielding less. CHARACTERS Adela Quested ?Her character develops in parallel to Mrs Moore’s one ?She’s an individual and educated free thinker Adela hopes to see the â€Å"real India† ?She puts her mind to the task, but not her heart and therfore never connects with Indians. CHARACTERS Mrs. Moore ?Mrs. Moore serves a double function in â€Å"A Passage to India† ? She’s initially a literal character. ?She becomes more a symbolic presence. ?The solution to the problem in India. ?Her name becomes more associeted with Hinduism ?She’s the heroine of the novel CHARACTERS Ronny Heaslop ?Forster ‘s emphasis is on the change that happened, when Ronny firs t arrived in India. ?Ronny’s character is a sort of case, an exploration of the restrictions of English colonial. Ronny’s tastes, opinions and even his manner of speaking are no longer his own, but those of older, ostensibly wiser British Indian officials. ?Clash with both Adela and his mother, Mrs. Moore. CHARACTERS There are also some characters that are less important that the previous and are: ? Mahmoud Ali: a Moslem and a close friend of Dr Aziz. ?Major Callender: the head of the government hospital in Chandrapore. ?Professor Godbole: an Indian who teaches at the college of Chandrapore. ?Hamidullah: a Moslem, educated at Cambridge University. ?Mr. McBride: the district superintendent of police in Chadrapore.Carico†¦ DEEPENING ON FEMALE CHARACTERS ?Adela Quested ?A young Englishwoman who comes to India With Mrs. Moore. ?She is expected to marry Mrs. Moore's son Ronny Heaslop. ?Her behavior radically affects the lives of the characters around her. ?On a symboli c level, Adela may also represent most people's inability to communicate or to understand the deeper patterns and meaning of life. While she is at Fielding's tea party, she remarks that she is not planning to stay long in India. ?She breaks off her engagement with Ronny and stays with Fielding for a while before leaving India and returning to England.She does not reappear after this. DEEPENING ON FEMALE CHARACTERS ?Mrs. Moore. ?She is the most sensitive and reflective of the English characters. ? An elderly widow, she is the mother of Ronny Heaslop, She also has another son, Ralph, and a daughter, Stella, by her second marriage. ?Mrs. Moore is introduced in Chapter two when she meets Dr. Aziz in the mosque in Chandrapore. Her they talk, and a friendship develops: Aziz is happy to have met an English person who is sympathetic toward him and India, while Mrs. Moore finds Aziz charming, intelligent, and interesting. ?In the meantime, Mrs.Moore argues with Ronny and when it becomes clea r that Ronny and Adela will not marry, Mrs. Moore realizes that her duties there were evidently finished. She doesn’t want to see India; Mrs. Moore has lost interest in the trip. For her, the echo's message is â€Å"Everything exists, nothing has value. † Shortly thereafter? just before Aziz's trial? she leaves India; we later learn that she has died on the voyage back to England However, her presence continues to be felt after her death. ?At the end of the novel, the spirit of Mrs. Moore returns to India symbolically in the form of her daughter Stella, who has married Mr.Fielding. THEMES Culture Clash ?The clash between two differents cultures, those of the east and those of the West. ?The West is represented by the Anglo – Indians in Chandrapore. ?Their social life centers around the Chandrapore Club. ?They have no desire to â€Å"understand† India or Indians. ?The East is represented by the Indians. ?We have a clash also between two distinct group of I ndian: Moslems and Hindus. ?â€Å"Hindus have no idea of society†. THEMES Friendship ?Is one of the most important things in life. ?There are many friendships : 1. Dr Aziz and his friends Hamidullah and Mahmoud Ali . Dr Aziz and Mrs. Moore 3. Aziz has a curious friendship with Professor Godbole. 4. British and Indians ?Impersonal forces at work in India will not yet allow the friendship between English and Indians. THEMES Ambiguity ?â€Å"A Passage to India† is full of ambiguity. ?In chapter 7 are introduced two terms that are repeated several times througthout the novel: â€Å"mistery† and â€Å"muddle†. ?Doubt and ambiguity surround two different events in the book that occur at the Marabar Caves: 1. Those of Adela. 2. Those of Mrs. Moore. THEMES Religion ?Religion is the major preoccupation in the book. The three parts of the book; Mosque – Cave and Temple, generally correspond to these religions: 1. Aziz loves the cultural aspects of his Islami c heritage. 2. The Anglo – Indians are spokemen of Christianity 3. Professor Godbole is the central Hindu figure in the book. His belief is the most representative of the true spirit of India. STYLE ?â€Å"A Passage to India† is written in the third person, with an impersonal narrative voice. ?The narrator is apparently omniscent. ?The narrative focus shifts from a description of external events and enters the consciousness of one character or another. At the same time, however, the narrative withholds a full explanation of certain events, most notably the misadventures that befall Mrs. Moore and Adela Quested at the Marabar Caves. Indeed, in recounting these details, the narrator is ambiguous rather than omniscient. STRUCTURE ?â€Å"A Passage to India† is divided into three parts or sections: 1. Part 1 , titeld â€Å"Mosque†, takes place during the cool, dry season. 2. Part 2, titeld â€Å" Caves†, takes place during the hot season. 3. Part 3, tit led, â€Å"Temples†, takes place during the rain season. ?Part 3 is the shortest of the three sections of the novel and might be considered as an epilogue.SETTINGS ?Chandrapore and in the Marabar Caves ?Within the town itself the author identifies several settings: 1. Civil Station 2. Chandrapore Club 3. Public places ?The third section is set in the town of Mau, a Hindu state several miles from Chandrapore. SETTINGS Although Forster uses poetic license in naming places, the settings correspond to real places in India. The novel's main city, Chandrapore, is actually based on the Indian suburb Bankipore, part of the city of Patna in the northern region of Bihar. The invented name, however, is not so far fetched.Forster probably chose this city for its different representation of India: its culture, history, and nature are all noteworthy. The town of Mau, is an example of an Indian hill station, a retreat from Indian plains that offers a serene place of beauty to both tourists and natives. The Marabar Caves about which Aziz knows so little are based on the Jain Temples on the Barabar Hills, once considered a retreat for Jain monks. The most impressive of the four caves on the Barabar Hills is Loma Rishi. The three other caves on the Barabar Hill are Sudama), Karnachopar, and Visvajhopri. SYMBOL ?The most obvious symbols are mosque and cave.Both for Aziz and Mrs. Moore, the mosque is a symbol of refuge and peace, a sanctuary. The first meeting of Aziz and Mrs. Moore takes place in the mosque at night, under the moonlight. Mrs. Moore has gone to the mosque because she is bored with the play she has been attending at the Chandrapore club. ?The mosque, is a symbol of the â€Å"real† India. ?The cave bears some resemblance to the mosque, in that both are closed spaces. Here, however, the resemblance ends. The cave is dark, featureless, and menacing. Although there are many caves at Marabar, it is impossible to distinguish one from another; they are all alike. We don’t know the real meaning of this symbol but It is at least certain that whatever else they might suggest, they stand for misunderstanding and meaninglessness, or what Mrs. Moore calls â€Å"muddle. † THE UNCERTAINTY IN THE CENTRAL EPISODE. ?One of the most unique aspects of Forster's novel is the uncertainty, the sense of not defined, which is focused on the central episode of the book: the alleged attempted rape in Marabar caves. In fact, the writer says nothing about what actually happened in the caves; in the novel there is a contrast between the before and the after that leaves the door open to interpretation. Forster himself said so very ambiguous, â€Å"In the caves there is, a man an hallucination or the supernatural. If I say it becomes whatever the answer, a different book. â€Å" ? This uncertainty is also present in the film: between the before and the after there’s a sharp cut that the viewer can interpret as he wishes, by carefully ob serving the scene we can feeling that Aziz is actually entered the cave with Adela but we aren’t sure of what he did. EXTRAS Islam Hinduism In Islam, belief in one God is the most important belief.Their God is called ALLAH, the Almighty, Creator and Sustainer of the universe, who is similar to nothing and nothing is comparable to Him Hinduism is commonly percived as a politheistic religion. Indeed, most Hindus would attest to this, by proffessing belif in multiple Gods. Islam exhorts man to consider himself and his surroundings as examples of Divine Creation. The trees belongs to God, The sun belongs to God†¦ The mayor differences between the Hindu and the Muslim perception of God is the common Hindus’ belif in the philosofy of Pantheism. The common Hindu considers everything as God.The major difference between the Hindu and Muslim belifs is the difference of the apostrophe â€Å"s† Hinduism has a caste system, with four major castes. Members of each are re quired by strict religious laws to follow hereditary occupations and to refrain from intermarriage or eating with members of another castes. The highest or priestly and intellectual caste is that of Brahmans,. The remain three are: Kshatriya (warrior caste), Vaisya (agricultural caste) and Sudras ( the low caste) In Islam, all humans are created equal, infact Islam rejects characterizing God as favoring certain individuals or nations.Everyone may distinguish himself and get His favour through virtue and piety. Cow is a sacred animal. Cows can’t be killed or eaten Muslims belive that each person has a body and a soul. Your faith and actions in this life will determine your fate in the life after Death. Hiduists believe in body and soul. Your soul returns to your body after death. Your status of caste in next life depends on your deeds in the previous life.

Catherine de Medici Biography, Reign, Accomplishments

Catherine de Medici (born Caterina Maria Romola di Lorenzo de Medici; April 13, 1519 – January 5, 1589) was a member of the powerful Italian Medici family who  became queen consort of France through her marriage to King Henry II. As queen consort and, later, queen mother, Catherine was highly influential during a period of intense religious and civil conflict. Fast Facts: Catherine de Medici Full Name:  Caterina Maria Romola di Lorenzo de MediciOccupation: Queen of France, Queen Mother  Born: April 13, 1519 in Florence, ItalyDied: January 5, 1589 in Blois, FranceKey Accomplishments: A powerful force during the reigns of three successive kings, Catherine played a major role in 16th century politics. She was also an influential patron of the arts. Early Life Catherine was born in 1519 in Florence to Lorenzo de Medici, duke of Urbino and ruler of Florence, and his French wife, Madeleine. Only weeks later, however, Madeleine fell ill and died. Her husband followed a week later. The newborn Catherine was cared for by her paternal grandmother, Alfonsina Orsini, and her cousin Giulio de Medici, who inherited the rule of Florence after Lorenzo’s death. The French King Francis I attempted to bring Catherine to the French court as his kinswoman, but the pope blocked this, looking to an alliance with Spain. Giulio was elected  Pope Clement VII  in 1523. By 1527, the Medici were overthrown, and Catherine became a target in the ensuing violence. She was placed in a series of convents for protection. In 1530, Pope Clement VII summoned his niece to Rome. Her education at this time was not documented, although it’s possible she had access to the scholarly pope’s extensive Vatican library. She did, however, have a governess when she returned to Florence in 1532, and went on to have a passion for literature and science all her life. Marriage and Family Pope Clement VII saw Catherine’s marriage as a useful tool in the tangled alliances of Europe. Several suitors were considered, including James V of Scotland; Henry, Duke of Richmond (Henry VIII’s illegitimate son); and Francesco Sforza, Duke of Milan. Ultimately, Francis I suggested his younger son: Henry, Duke of Orleans. Catherine and Henry were married on October 28, 1533, both age fourteen. The newlyweds were often apart in their first year of marriage due to the court’s travels, and in any case, Henry demonstrated little interest in his bride. Within a year, he began taking mistresses, including his lifelong mistress Diane de Poitiers. By 1537, Henry had his first acknowledged child with another mistress, but he and Catherine failed to produce any children until 1544, when their first son Francis was born. The couple had a total of ten children, six of whom survived infancy. Despite their many children, Catherine and Henry’s marriage never improved. While Catherine was his official consort, he bestowed most favors and influence upon Diane de Poitiers. Queen of France and Queen Mother In 1536, Henrys older  brother died, making Henry the Dauphin (a term meaning the eldest son of the ruling king of France). When King Francis died on March 31, 1547, Henry became the king, with Catherine crowned as his queen consort—though he allowed her little influence. Henry was killed in a jousting accident on July 10, 1559, leaving his fifteen-year-old son Francis II as the king. Although Francis II was deemed old enough to rule without a regent, Catherine was a crucial force in all his policies. In 1560, the young king fell ill and died, and his brother Charles became King Charles IX at just nine years old. Catherine became regent, taking on all responsibilities of state. Her influence remained long after the regency ended, ranging from arranging dynastic marriages for her other children to being party to major policy decisions. This continued when Charles’s brother, Henry III, succeeded him in 1574. As queen mother, Catherine’s regencies and her influence over her children put her at the forefront of most decisions made by the monarchy. Her era was a period of intense civil disputes, and while Catherine was rumored to be responsible for several acts of violence, she also made several attempts at brokering peace. Religious Disputes The foundation of the civil wars in France was religion–more specifically, the question of how a  Catholic  country would handle a growing number of  Hugenots (Protestants). In 1561, Catherine summoned leaders of both factions to the Colloquy of Poissy in hopes of reconciliation, but it failed. She issued an edict of tolerance in 1562, but only months later a faction led by the Duke of Guise massacred worshipping Huguenots and sparked the French Wars of Religion. The factions were able to make peace for brief periods of time, but never brokered a lasting deal. Catherine attempted to unite the monarchy’s interests with those of the powerful Huguenot Bourbons by proposing a marriage between her daughter Marguerite to Henry of Navarre. Henry’s mother  Jeanne d’Albret  died mysteriously following the engagement, a death for which Huguenots blamed Catherine. The worst, though, was still to come. Following the wedding celebrations in August 1572, Huguenot leader Admiral Coligny was murdered. Expecting a vengeful Huguenot uprising, Charles IX ordered his forces to strike first, resulting in the bloody St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre. Catherine was, in all likelihood, involved in this decision, which colored her reputation thereafter, though historians differ as to her level of responsibility. Patron of the Arts A true Medici, Catherine embraced  Renaissance ideals  and the value of culture. She maintained a large personal collection at her residence, while also encouraging innovative artists and supporting the creation of elaborately staged spectacles with music, dance, and stagecraft. Her cultivation of the arts was at once a personal preference and a belief that such displays enhanced the royal image and prestige at home and abroad. The entertainments also had the intention of keeping French nobles from in-fighting by providing amusement and diversion. Catherine’s great passion was for architecture; in fact, architects dedicated treatises to her with the knowledge that she would probably read them personally. She was directly involved in several grand building projects, as well as the creation of memorials to her late husband. Her dedication to architecture earned her a contemporary parallel to Artemesia, an ancient Carian (Greek) queen who built the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus as a tribute after her husband’s death. Death   By the late 1580s, Catherine’s influence over her son Henry III was waning, and she became ill, her condition exacerbated by her despair over her son’s violence (including the murder of the Duke of Guise). On January 5, 1589, Catherine died, probably of a lung infection. Because Paris was not held by the monarchy at the time, she was buried at Blois, where she remained until Henry II’s illegitimate daughter Diane had her remains re-interred alongside Henry in the basilica of Saint Denis in Paris. Legacy Catherine lived in an era of constantly shifting alliances, both political and religious, and fought to keep a stable future for her children. She was one of the most powerful forces of the time, driving the decisions of three successive kings. The Protestant historians who wrote after her death tended to portray Catherine as a wicked, decadent Italian who deserved blame for the bloodshed of the era, even going as far as calling her a witch. Modern historians tend towards a more moderate view of Catherine as a powerful woman in a dangerous time. Her patronage of the arts lived on in the reputation for culture and elegance that the French court maintained until the Revolution. Famous Quotes Catherine’s own words are mostly found in her surviving letters. She wrote extensively, especially to her children and to other powerful European leaders. In reply to warnings of the dangers of personally visiting a battlefield:  Ã¢â‚¬Å"My courage is as great as yours.†Ã‚  Following the death of her youngest son, Francis:  Ã¢â‚¬Å"I am so wretched to live long enough to see so many people die before me, although I realize that Gods will must be obeyed, that He owns everything, and that he lends us only for as long as He likes the children whom He gives us.†Ã‚  Advising  Henry III regarding the need for war:  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Peace is carried on a stick.†Ã‚   Sources â€Å"Catherine de Medici.†Ã‚  BBC,  www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/de_medici_catherine.shtml.Knecht, R. J.  Catherine de Medici. Routledge, 1998.Michahelles, Kerri-Rue. â€Å"Catherine De Medici’s 1589 Inventory at the Hotel de la Reine in Paris.†Ã‚  Furniture History,  vol. 38, 2002, pp. 1-39.Sutherland, N. M. â€Å"Catherine de Medici: The Legend of the Wicked Italian Queen.†Ã‚  The  Sixteenth-Century Journal, vol. 9, no. 2, 1978, pp. 45-56.