Gender Inequality Of The United States - 1363 Words

â€Å"You won’t get paid. As a woman and of color, you’re going to be underpaid, so there’s really no point,† Daniel recalled (â€Å"Career and Workplace† 4). A future law graduate was told to throw away her dreams in regards to gender inequality. A girl named Reshma Daniel had to give up what she loved most because of a situation regarding both her race and gender. Reshma Daniel’s parents moved to America from India with just a couple dollars. Her parents wanted their children to live the American life. For Daniel, that simply meant law school. While at Nova in Southeastern University in Florida, she majored in legal studies and job shadowed a family lawyer. After a pretrial hearing had taken place, another lawyer, a Vietnamese woman, told Daniel†¦show more content†¦It does no one any good, so why is it continuing to happen? All it does is harm. â€Å"If people in the world forever choose to live by â€Å"guidelines† of gen der inequality, then the line that separates men and women will forever be thick† (Kimble 1). Throughout history, women have faced intense discrimination. Discrimination is the unfair or detrimental treatment of different groups of people or things, especially on the ground levels of race, age, or sex. Women have faced intense discrimination from a shortage of legal rights and very little freedom from their husbands, to being thought to have minor brains. In many societies, women have forever been viewed as less than fully human (â€Å"News Wise† 1). On one hand, there has been great progress toward equality. At the same time, extensive and noticeable holes remain. These holes that still exist are not only in terms of economic inequality and continuing intolerance and harassment in the workplace, but in everyday conversations and actions (â€Å"Divided America† 6). While significant achievements for women s rights have been made, women continue to fight for equal ity today. They do not give up, they give it their all. Giving up would do no good. In 2015, women made seventy-eight cents for every dollar earned by a man (â€Å"White House† 6). â€Å"By 2018, there will be 1.4 million open technology jobs in the United States, and at the current rate of studentsShow MoreRelatedGender Inequality : The United States939 Words   |  4 PagesGender inequality has been an issue in the United States of America since the very founding of the country. Many believe that the sexes are equal in the United States of today because nearly a hundred years ago women gained the right to vote but this was not the only hurdle we needed to surmount. Gender inequality is alive and thriving even today, and although this is definitely not the only issue American women face today, it can be seen in something called the wage gap. It is commonly known thatRead MoreGender Inequality Within The United States1531 Words   |  7 Pageswe can see there is a trend implicates that the gender roles are slowly starting to change but the gender stereotype still have stayed firmly over the years in North America even though people are now more aware of the problem of gender inequality. In North America, gender roles between women and men are now being shared more equally in workspace due to the feminism movements and higher literacy level of women, but there are still gender inequality existing in our society. Feminism movements haveRead MoreGender Inequality Within The United States1701 Words   |  7 PagesGender has had a repeating effect on the choice of careers for people all throughout the United States. In history, it is taught that males dominated women in many careers, while women dominated males in only a few other minor positions. Males had an upper hand over women in engineering and in the military. One of the reasons males dominated was the idea of dominance over women has been passed down for centuries. It was never common for a women to be an engineer of a home or anything that wasn’tRead MoreGender Inequality Within The United States1879 Words   |  8 Pagesand colonization has evolved, gender in the United States has been constructed in a manner that is unknown in other countries. Our society has made different stereotypes for certain sexes. It is socially impossible to not make a collation between sex and gender in the United States. Women are viewed the same in the professional world and in the home life perspective. All roles played by women are considered to be inadequate or insignificant compared to men. Gender characteristics, such as masculinityRead MoreGender Inequality During The United States1971 Words   |  8 PagesCorona 1 Yailin Corona Honors English 11-4 Junior Research Paper 3 March 2016 Gender Inequality in the U.S. For years, women have been viewed as weak, indecisive, and subjective. Women have become more empowered since their suffrage and earning their rights. Although, they have their rights, women are not equal to men in today’s society because of unequal pay and discrimination. The pay between the two gender in recent college graduates and stabilized jobs opt towards males. Women are discriminatedRead MoreGender Inequality Within The United States2702 Words   |  11 PagesGender Inequality In the United States there are many human equal rights for women but they are insufficient to create equality. Despite of many equality rules gender inequality still exists and that’s the fact. In history women were not allowed to study or work. In modern world women are achieving education goals and also working. Does that mean women are getting equal treatments? The answer is no, women are not treated as equally as men. The graduation rates for women are higher then men, butRead MoreGender Inequality Within The United States1686 Words   |  7 PagesThere have been many advances in society, especially for women despite these advancements, there continues to be inequalities in sexual â€Å"equality† .Why does a wage difference exists between men and women? Are employers being sexist? Sexism has been a problem since the beginning of mankind. Women have struggled to achieve equality with men. The male dominated culture has led the female gender to become the â€Å"wea ker sex†. This discrimination, of course, based on the stereotype that women should be stayRead MoreGender Inequality Within The United States1410 Words   |  6 PagesEquality Among Gender Both within and across different cultures we find great consistency in standards of desirable gender-role behavior. Males are expected to be independent, assertive, and competitive; females are expected to be more passive, sensitive, and supportive. These beliefs have changed over the past twenty years within the United States and apparently around the world as well. Therefore, modern society has been trying for the past decade to eliminate all of these stereotypes and doubleRead MoreGender Inequality Within The United States Of The English Department Of Ku.881 Words   |  4 PagesIn today s society we have gender inequality without us even knowing we are doing it, because it is how we are all raised. From when a lot of us were younger we have seen everyone else â€Å" doing gender† so we have picked up on it.By doing gender we create different levels that men and women are put on. These levels are not natural they are man made. The culture we are raised in assigns and crea tes for us the different attributes and behaviors. Since we are aware of the expectations that are held overRead MoreGender Inequality : A Good Understanding Of The Social Inequality Essay1487 Words   |  6 PagesAs a female college student I feel the necessity to have a good understanding of the social inequalities around me. Although, women have socially grown with more power over the years, it is not enough to equalize with the men. For example, the pay gap difference between men and women for not having the â€Å"testosterone bonus† even though the same education and qualifications are present. I hope that over time I will be able to experience a change and have the same equal rights as men because I feel

Academic Dishonesty Essay - 1197 Words

In the past decade, professors across the country have noticed an alarming new trend—academic dishonesty is on the rise. More than half of college students surveyed admit to at least one instance of serious cheating in the past year (McCabe and Pavela). Information is incredibly easy to access on the Internet, and devices such as iPhones put that power, literally, into the palms of students’ hands. Many students entering universities today face extraordinary amounts of pressure for results academically, leading them to believe that cheating is necessary to succeed. This mentality is further cemented by examples in mass media, from professional athletes to CEOs cheating in order to get ahead. To battle this trend, colleges across the†¦show more content†¦According to Charles A. Perkins, Ph.D. and Anne A. Skleder, Ph.D, â€Å"most systems presume that the great majority are honorable and honest and that the Code is in place to punish violators. This approach is faulty because it is based upon the (false) presumption that the rules are understood and built on a foundation well established prior to arriving at college.† Students come to college with bad habits developed in high school regarding their completing their schoolwork honestly. Also, many already feel that cheating can be justified on a case-by-case basis, so honor codes do not actually dissuade them from doing it. Also, I do not feel that it is the place of colleges to impose moral standards on their students. For example, the students at Brigham Young University face regulations on every part of their lives, from their academic work, to their personal appearance, to their sexual expression. According to Stanley Fish in his work Save the World On Your Own Time, this type of education is not the university’s job, â€Å"the practices of responsible citizenship and moral behavior should be encouraged in our young adults, but it’s not the business of the univers ity to do so† (Fish 67). If honor codes tread into this territory, it serves the exact opposite of its intended purpose. Honor codes made to protect the integrity of the university will actually undermine it when they try to teach morality. Fish calls professors who try to cultivateShow MoreRelatedAcademic Plagiarism And Academic Dishonesty932 Words   |  4 Pagescontributor to academic dishonesty. Forgetting to study can cause those who would not usually cheat to stoop low and look at someone else s work. Some students rely on cheating to make their way through high school or college. Academic dishonesty is a way lazy students take advantage of hard working students. Whether the academic dishonesty is caused because of the lack of preparation, a poor work ethic, or by having a poor home life; it usually leads to violating academic dishonesty school policiesRead MoreThe Issue Of Academic Dishonesty1416 Words   |  6 Pagestechnology, academic dishonesty cases in every coll ege and university have greatly multiplied and become a global issue. The issue on cheating behaviors in students is so pervasive and uncontrollable that it is almost considered as commonplace (Arhin Jones, 2009). One of the hardest challenges for educators is knowing how and when to discipline their students. In the given scenario, there are several issues to take into account; the first and foremost being the issue of academic dishonesty. â€Å"AcademicRead MoreShould Cheating Be Academic Dishonesty? Essay1071 Words   |  5 Pagesfind it surprising that students cheat in college or university. McCabe, Trevino Butterfield (2001) offer many explanations as in why students commit academic dishonesty, such as peer influences. Although the findings of this study still can be applied today I argue a new study should consider the use of technology in regards to academic dishonesty. With the rise of technology, it has become much easier for students to cheat on exams and papers. For instance, people can cheat on exams with theRead MoreAcademic Dishonesty Is Defined By Wikipedia1199 Words   |  5 PagesAcademic Dishonesty Rhett Anderson EDUC-6380-70Y July 15th, 2014 Abstract Academic Dishonesty is defined by Wikipedia as, Any type of cheating that occurs in relation to a formal academic exercise. It is becoming a large epidemic that is hurting both students and teachers. With the high pressure that our society puts on success is making students justify cheating in order to get ahead. There any many forms of cheating that occur in a school setting. In this paper we are going to focus on theRead MoreAcademic Dishonesty : The Technological Era2061 Words   |  9 PagesAcademic Dishonesty: The Technological Era Introduction Academic dishonesty has become a growing concern for colleges and universities worldwide. The unethical morale students portray challenges the institutions to question students’ motives. According to Kirkpatrick (2015) the surveys indicate sixty-five to seventy-five percent of college students admit to cheating at least one time. The numbers rise, due to the advancement of technology, enabling students to cheat effortlessly. In addition, facultyRead MoreAcademic Dishonesty : Cheating And Plagiarism1899 Words   |  8 Pages There are myriad examples in academic history that one could identify that not only tarnished the reputations of the culprits but also sullied the reputation of the institution as to where they were a part of. Furthermore, there are many different types of academic violations: cheating, plagiarism, fabrication, etc. These distinct infractions have greater effects on the represented institution economically, socially, and holistically than those imposed on the offenders themselves. In order toRead MoreAcademic Integrity : Types Of Academic Dishonesty And Prevention Methods1743 Words   |  7 Pages Academic Integrity: Types of academic dishonesty and prevention methods Chetan Muppaneni Webster University Academic Integrity: Types of academic dishonesty and prevention methods Abstract This paper discusses the different types of academic dishonesty and the prevention measures that are taken to maintain academic integrity. The need of following the codes/rules of the institutions and to promote the academic integrity is mainly on the students and the faculty. The paper discussesRead MoreLegal Issue Scenario : Academic Dishonesty997 Words   |  4 PagesLegal Issue Scenario: Academic Dishonesty Technology is rapidly evolving and changing, and as a result of the increasing availability and propagation of several forms of technology, academic dishonesty cases in every college and university have greatly multiplied and become a global issue. The issue on cheating behaviors in students is so pervasive and uncontrollable that it is almost considered as commonplace (Arhin Jones, 2009). One of the hardest challenges for educators is knowing howRead MoreCheating And Other Forms Of Academic Dishonesty1511 Words   |  7 Pagesassignment. People can get in serious trouble for this in the real world. By saying the real world, I mean in high school, college, or the place of work. The definition for this action is, â€Å"academic dishonesty.† It defines as, â€Å"Misconduct is any type of cheating that occurs in relation to a formal academic exercise.† It can include, plagiarism: the adoption or reproduction of ideas or words or statements of another person without due acknowledgment.† (Berkely) So, in simpler terms this means usingRead MoreAcademic Dishonesty Is Essentially The Act Of Deceiving1752 Words   |  8 PagesAcademic Dishonesty is essentially the act of deceiving an instructor by cheating on a given assignment for that particular instructor. Academic Dishonesty ranges from using part of someone else’s work to fulfill the requirements of the assignment to using resources unethically to manipulate the outcome of the final grade in an effort to suit one’s personal desires rather than choosing to receive important feedback which can teach the student (the point of the assignment in the first place). Academic

Social Commentaries on the Disruption of Human Condition free essay sample

A deeper understanding of disruption and identity emerges from considering the parallels between Frankenstein and Blade Runner [copy this essay and you die gt;:( Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Ridley Scott’s Bladerunner are both social commentaries that reiterate the zeitgeist of their era; exploring parallel anxieties concerning the disruption of the human condition, the human condition being the meaningful interaction between humanity and the world around. Both composers raise this as the salient premise, through the embodiment of these disruptions in an identity. Identity and character play a significant role in unpacking the contextual fears and criticisms in both of these texts. Frankenstein and Bladerunner utilize differing mediums and conceptual aesthetic frameworks to elucidate their contextual parallels. Bladerunner as a grand narrative utilizes postmodern textual features like anti-humanist agendas and Frankenstein as a hybridized gothic text employing principles established by romantics framing enlightenment. Shelley and Scott both share concerns with the teleological perspective of the disruption of the human condition due to the corrupting clutches of technology. Shelley and Scott display strong contextual links which endure across time, such as common scientifically dominated worlds and contemporary anxieties. As the contemporary human condition dominates the face of the Earth with unerring progress, it is paradoxical in both texts that the focus shifts to the flaws of this domination. Victor’s hamartia is his own blinding ambition and need to defy ‘the natural a contextual parallel to the process of enlightenment, to even try to dominate it† who shall conceive the horrors of my secret toil†¦ pursue nature to her hiding-place†, the personification of nature and blatant disrespect creates a disruption in the human condition. The humans in Bladerunner are portrayed to be inferior to the replicants by the dysphemistic term â€Å"little people†. The human condition is degraded to a mere game, in which humans are the pawns. This is evidenced throughout the film by the symbolic motif of the chess set commerce is our ultimate goal here where life is seen as a commodity, a resource ready to be exploited. This is further inferred by the perpetual product placement and towering billboards framed by low angle shots in the opening sequence, these elements coupled with the unsaturated shots of the urban landscape create a spatial inequality symbolic of the contextual links to Reagonomics. Mirroring enlightenment the lement of life is also debased within Victor, where life isn’t a powerful and sacred natural force, but a series of technological processes, seen through the lack of emotive language when he aborts his creation I ardently wished to extinguish that life. In each case people are valued as a resource, not their worth as living, breathing beings. This teleological perception of the human condition is derived from the collective concerns of the exploitation based on the ambiguity of the human con dition. Framed by irrational and rational fears, this blurring distinction creates a plausible threat to the human condition motivating a change in action or perception. This â€Å"human condition† portrayed in both texts is contrasted with the â€Å"disruptions of the human condition. † Victor’s creature is metaphorical of an ‘everyman, created from dismembered parts of the deceased and the replicants in Bladerunner built to replicate the human form, these beings embody the technologizing of identity and disrupted human condition â€Å"to make an alteration in the evolvement of an organic life†. The replicants and Victor’s creature symbolize the birth of technology; raising the question of whether the human condition can survive a disruption like the birth of technology. Victor’s creature embodies a monstrous sublime over a traditional sublime and the mechanization of the identity, possessing the capacity to leave men in awe but it is this sublime that causes his own grief. â€Å"If I cannot inspire love, I will cause fear† he attempts to pursue his place and revaluates his identity. The creature expresses his anguish for his own paradoxical existence through the rhetorical â€Å"my accursed origin†¦my disgusting circumstances†¦ why did I live? † Similarly the replicants are relegated to bare life, where their identity is essentially stripped away from them and imposed with another. They’re identified as tabula rasa with no humanity initially embedded within them. Perceived through the implementation of false memories â€Å"we can control them better†¦ you’re talking about memories! acting as an artificial identity, Rachael unaware of the truth is introduced by ambient lighting with her foreground illuminated by sunlight, contrasted with the scene of realization where she is painted in darkness and at the point of realization Rachael is delved into complete darkness. Chiaroscuro and color manipulation are employed to metaphorically give the truth an omnipotent overtone. The blurring of the distinction between what attributes o r lack of attributes which separates Victors creation and the replicants from being called humans is the salient premise raised in both texts. This ambiguity is the common tool used to channel the concerns about the extents of the mechanization of the human condition. Both composers juxtapose a conflicting understanding of the human condition to put in stark contrast the teleological direction of the human condition and allow the audience to develop their own critical thesis of the human condition. Shelley utilizes epistolary form in the form of lowbrow horror while Scott employs postmodern textual features in film. Bladerunner following a postmodern tradition is a pastiche of genres incorporating film noir through a hardboiled detective and a femme fatale. Cliched characters like the femme fatale and Deckard are caricatures of caricatures; the human element is twice removed to serve the anti-humanist agenda. This framing of the human condition is a critical viewing, allowing the audience to discern a moral stance. The antagonist Roy Batty being the only character who is not two dimensional, but bares humanity perceived through Deckard’s rescue,† Ah! Kinship† the transition from night to dawn symbolizes moral tale of humanity contrary to this he is anti-human. The tale is anti-humanist as the protagonist and antagonist are revealed to be replicants, â€Å"We’re not computers-we’re physical†. The film disrupts the conventions of a moral tale, parodying it to serve as a tale of the human condition through anti-humans. Similarly Shelley’s crude epistolary form is an embodiment of the creature by its roughly sewn form reflecting the seams that crudely weave technology in Shelley’s context. The creature persistence in trying to find its place in humanity, and is interoperated as a romantic character pushing the boundaries separating man from beast. Shelley’s characters embody an enlightened scientific rationale and a romantic ideology these qualities evoke empathy allowing for a critical thesis of the displacement of the human condition to be conjured within the reader. Contrary to this, Bladerunner follows postmodern tropes where it is difficult to maintain empathy for characters that embody a moral tale reinforcing the anti-humanist agenda. Both texts subvert the role of â€Å"man† and Frankenstein’s Gothicism and Bladerunner’s postmodernism are utilized to frame the narrative allowing a suspension in disbelief and express darker ideologies about the teleology of the disruption of the human condition. This allows a viewing of the identities from a displaced perspective to a recentering of the human condition and identity. The texts mirror what has already occurred in the history of the human condition through their characters and in doing so explore strong contextual parallels like common technological worlds and contemporary anxieties. Shelley and Scott discuss the salient premise of disruption within the human condition through a shared teleological perception. Using differing aesthetic frameworks like sublime and postmodern rhetoric they critically assess the disruption of the contemporary human condition allowing the audience to discern a moral stance. They share the common goal to inspire and motivate action or a change in the perception to preserve the human condition.

James Bond Modern Myth Essay Example

James Bond Modern Myth Essay Most of what we consider to be today’s modern myths are timeless superheroes that have been preserved and elevated to this status by comic books, television shows, and movies. One modern character who has achieved this title, partly due to this same timelessness and seeming immortality, is Ian Fleming’s James Bond. Fleming created the character of Bond in 1953, when he released his first novel entitled Casino Royale. Critical acclaim for the novels led Fleming to partner with EON productions to film a James Bond movie – the first being Dr. No. While Fleming penned his final Bond story in 1964, other novelists and directors have continued to produce material that adds to the never-ending story of this British superspy. The image of James Bond has become an important part of pop culture, spawning a line of video games and musical arrangements made specifically for the series. It has also influenced many other novels and films; including the Austin Powers spoof series and the Jason Bourne books and movies. The name James Bond has become synonymous with violence, sex and sophistication, and it is a prime example of a modern myth due to people’s familiarity with the character and his personality. James Bond is a modern myth not just because of the mythic qualities that the character and his codename, 007, possess, but also because of the status to which it has been elevated and the number of ways in which it has been recreated. Ian Fleming released the first novel featuring Commander Sir James Bond of the British Secret Intelligence Service in 1953, which was entitled Casino Royale. We will write a custom essay sample on James Bond Modern Myth specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on James Bond Modern Myth specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on James Bond Modern Myth specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The novel introduced Bond as a cold and virtually emotionless MI6 (SIS) agent sent to defeat a Soviet terrorist who is funding a weapons trade in an intense game of Baccarat. As Fleming said of his creation: I wanted the simplest, dullest, plainest-sounding name I could find, James Bond was much better than something more interesting, like Peregrine Carruthers. Exotic things would happen to and around him, but he would be a neutral figure — an anonymous, blunt instrument wielded by a government department. (Chancellor 47) Most of the Bond novels would make reference to Bond’s coldness and nonchalant attitude towards murdering others, and it would become a staple of the series – a mythic quality that intrigued readers and, later, viewers. Also, Fleming notes that while Bond remains unmoved, wild occurrences take place around him – a duality that offers attractive action scenes and exotic locales as well as a character that garners interest with his mysterious nature. In fact, a glimpse into Bond’s history and previous life is not provided until the novel On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, the 11th novel in the series. This mystique is also another quality that has helped James Bond achieve mythic status. The Bond novels ended abruptly when Fleming died in 1964, but another novel and a collection of short stories were published posthumously two years later as they had already been written by Fleming. The saga continued, however, through the growing popularity of the film series. Fleming worked directly with EON productions in 1962 to release the first James Bond movie, which featured Sean Connery as Bond. Despite Fleming originally disliking Connery playing his character, along with the first film, Dr. No, receiving bad reviews from the box office, the production company continued to release Bond films and later achieved success and critical acclaim (Barnes and Hearn 8). The film series also gained a following that has continued to expand up to today, and it has reached a point where it appears that the saga will never end. In fact, history has proven that regardless of how poorly made a new Bond film seems to be, aficionados of the series will still embrace it because it features Bond, as proven by box offices failures such as Die Another Day and A View to a Kill. Although James Bond is not considered a traditional â€Å"superhero,† his never-ending story, ability to escape any danger, mind-blowing gadgets, and mysterious personality made him the first superhero of his time. â€Å"Before Superman, Batman or Indiana Jones, there was Bond, the bespoke superhero, blowing up stuff and nonchalantly risking his life and limb for God and country† (Hinson). James Bond faces his imminent death in every novel and film, often at the hands of some criminal mastermind or his arch nemesis, Ernst Stavro Blofeld (a character who has become a myth himself by inspiring characters such as Dr. Evil and The Claw). Despite the array of weapons, deadly plots and dangerous women used against him, Bond always escapes danger and lives to fight another day. The fact that his adventures have been replayed and expanded upon for forty years, that his likeness has been portrayed by six different actors, and that multiple authors have been licensed to pen new Bond novels solidifies his status as a modern myth. Also, like most myths, James Bond has become more famous than his original creator, a factor that separates the Bond series from any other book-turned-movie in the modern age. Despite all of the qualities of the James Bond series that prove its integration into our culture, it is necessary to connect it to other elements of myths in order to substantiate its role as a modern myth. First of all, myths are associated with the cultures that create them, and they become a tradition of that civilization. Such is the case with the Bond series, as it is ingrained in our society so that new films and video games are released every few years and the name James Bond is often the first image to come to a person’s mind when the word â€Å"spy† is mentioned. Likewise, the series itself integrates elements of the culture that created it. James Bond exudes the sophistication usually associated with Great Britain, and each novel and film includes aspects of the world’s happenings according to the era that it is produced during. For example, the film version of From Russia with Love reflects elements of the Cold War, and it especially resonated with the audience due to its release a year after the Cuban Missile Crisis. Likewise, the novel version of The Spy Who Loved Me, released in 1962, is the most sexually explicit of the series, which relates to the sexual revolution of the 1960s. Most of the films were adapted from novels, but they were all generally modified to deal with modern issues and problems, thus keeping Bond current and endowing the series with more mythic qualities. A common element of myths is that they deal with transcendence and man’s futile attempt to transcend his natural boundaries. In the myth of Oedipus Rex, Oedipus desires to outdo the gods and fate by escaping his doomed future of incestuous marriage and familial murder. Despite his precautions, he is unable to escape his fated downfall. James Bond deals with transcendence in a different way. While he considers himself, and is considered by others to be, a blunt instrument utilized by the British government, he attempts to transcend his own boundaries by becoming more of a superhero than simply a spy. In most of the Bond novels, he goes to great lengths to defeat the evil which he faces at that time, and this is played out even more in the films where his feats are dramatized and he is presented as a larger than life character. He performs stunts that are truly unrealistic and takes on a criminal organization, its leader, and a slew of henchmen single-handedly. Bond succeeds in transcending his boundaries because he always defeats the â€Å"bad guy† and escapes unscathed. Yet, his efforts can also be seen as futile because he never eliminates the source of the world’s evil – which ultimately is his goal. Of course, Bond fails in this goal because he takes on a challenge that is truly impossible, since evil can never be erased from the world. In this sense, James Bond can be seen as mythic because it features man’s inability to transcend to the level which he wishes to obtain. Like many mythic heroes, Bond must attempt to complete his missions while compensating for his weaknesses. As Joseph Campbell points out, imperfection is what makes people empathize with and cheer for a mythic hero – imperfection makes him human and perfection would be impossible to identify with (J. Campbell 4). While many critics argue that the James Bond series is bland because the protagonist has no flaws, their argument is invalid. Bond features multiple weaknesses in the novels and films: â€Å"He turned back to the front page and began to rattle off the points that struck him†¦Vices: Smokes heavily, drink, but not to excess, and women† (Fleming, â€Å"From Russia with Love† 41). In this segment from From Russia with Love, a Russian agent reads off the information file that they have kept on James Bond. His first vice (which, his vices should be viewed as weaknesses since they are imperfections) is smoking, which is heavily played up in the novels but was not featured in most of the films after the 70s. In fact, Pierce Brosnan’s Bond in the early 90s makes the remark that smoking is â€Å"†¦an awful habit† after seeing a Russian guard lighting up (M. Campbell). However, smoking is considered one of the literary Bond’s vices because, even though smoking was condoned in the 50s and visible in many films during the era, Bond is presented as smoking excessively and unhealthily. His drinking habits are considered a vice, but it is a less important factor because he does not drink to excess and does not allow it to impede his objectives. In fact, Bond’s drinking has become a mythic element of his character, but more specifically, his choice of alcoholic drink. â€Å"A dry martini, he said. ‘One. In a deep champagne goblet. Oui, monsieur. Just a moment. Three measures of Gordons, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until its ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon peel. Got it? † (Fleming, â€Å"Casino Royale† 72). This quotation first appeared in the novel Casino Royale and has since been featured in many other Bond novels and films, more commonly condensed into the phrase, â€Å"Shaken, not stirred. † Bond’s drink preference has been quoted and misquoted in many other mediums, thus proving its mythic qualities. His only other vice, and arguably the most notable of all, is his excessive amount of women. In every Bond adventure, he seduces at least one woman, although more often than not he has multiple women. In Casino Royale, both the novel and the 2006 feature film, he meets Vesper Lynd, a partner in his mission, whom he falls madly in love with. After becoming severely wounded, Bond contemplates retiring from the service in order to marry Vesper and lead â€Å"an honest life,† although this does not happen after he discovers that she is a double agent working for SMERSH/QUANTUM (the organization’s title differs in the novels and movies). Her death leaves him empty, leading him to tell his boss â€Å"The job is done†¦the bitch is dead now,† foreshadowing his distrust of women in every later novel and film (Fleming, â€Å"Casino Royale† 180). Bond is commonly referred to as a womanizer for his treatment of women after this event, using women simply for sex and the completion of his goals. These women whom he seduces are referred to as â€Å"Bond girls,† a term that has become another staple of the series. Usually, the â€Å"Bond girl† is the main woman in the novel or film, and she can range from being Bond’s coworker to his opponent. Bond girls† have also taken on a mythic element due to their names, which are usually comical as well as overtly sexual (i. e. Honey Ryder, Xenia Onnatop, and Pussy Galore). James Bond’s smorgasbord of women is considered a weakness because it often places him in dangerous situations. He is sometimes lured into a trap by his nemeses, su ch as in From Russia with Love, where SMERSH utilizes the beautiful Tatiana Romanova to assassinate Bond unsuccessfully, of course. Most myths, even some of the more modern ones, tend to feature some supernatural or preternatural components. Earlier myths often featured the gods as important players in the plot, and these supernatural beings sometimes intervene with the action of the myth. In the James Bond series, there is no mention of God or gods and the supernatural generally does not come into play, with the exception of the novel and movie Live and Let Die, which features a Bond girl with the ability to foresee the future and a nemesis that defeats his foes by utilizing voodoo and black magic. Otherwise, the supernatural does not come into play in the Bond series (this is due to the fact that the plots usually deal with realistic and modern-day elements). However, one connection that can be made to the supernatural is Bond’s agelessness and his superhero-like abilities. As previously noted, the Bond series has been operating for 40 years, yet the character never ages. While the ages of the actors who play him may vary, they have all been around the same ages (with the exception of Roger Moore, who was notably older than the other actors when he first began his tenure). His agelessness has helped to endow that mythical quality upon the series. Bond also possesses what some may view as a supernatural ability to always escape death; however, this is not a typical superhero power. Instead, Bond is attributed with a particular set of skills, including but not limited to the knowledge of boating, skiing and karate, which allows him to swiftly deal with his enemies, even in the stickiest situations. While this is not the traditional supernatural intervention that one may expect, it nevertheless aids in establishing his status as a myth. Just as Antigone presents a moral issue that its characters must face, many other myths do the same. They often attempt to provide some ethical justification for an action, therefore being pedagogical and teaching its audience something about life. The James Bond series is pedagogical as well, adding another aspect to the list of items that make it mythic. One feature of Bond that is insightful about life is his unhappiness. Throughout the novels more so than the films, Bond sometimes appears unhappy about the path he has chosen for himself as well as his constant romances with women but nability to ever settle down with someone (the novels hint at a possible marriage before Vesper Lynd was in the picture, but it is unclear as to if it fell through or if the woman died). In many ways, Fleming was reflecting his own personal life and his experiences during WWII. He wrote in his creed â€Å"I have always smoked and drunk and loved too much. In fact I have lived not too long but too mu ch. One day the Iron Crab will get me. Then I shall have died of living too much† (Fleming, â€Å"Fleming Creed†). While Fleming appears optimistic about his experiences in life, he nevertheless desires a source of calmness and relaxation. It can be said that Fleming, while beautifying the art and lifestyle of espionage, was also instructing readers that this way of life can leave a person empty and, while it can be exciting and exotic, human beings long for some stability. Bond novels and films also take a myth-like ethical justification approach to violence as well as the sometimes brutal tactics that Bond employs in his missions. James Bond constantly needs to shoot someone or blow up a building, but it is justified because it is all part of the grand scheme and allows Bond to complete his objectives. As described in the short story and film License to Kill, MI6 has given James Bond the authority to eliminate anyone who stands in his way. In light of his victory, any sins that he has committed immediately become irrelevant, and he is viewed as a hero in the same way that a soldier is viewed when returning home for a successful war. The Bond series serves as a modern myth because it explores ethical justifications and asserts that murders can be justified if they are executed in the pursuit of justice. The Bond series offers a myriad of items that have become ingrained in our society through their appearance in James Bond books and films specifically, Bond quips and catchphrases, the number 007, â€Å"Bond girls,† unrealistic gadgets, tuxedo-clad spies, and criminal masterminds who prove to be inefficient in eliminating their primary assailant. The Bond character is also a timeless and ageless figure that has been portrayed by multiple actors and presented in numerous adventures. The series also contains common elements of myths which substantiate claims that James Bond is a modern myth. The novels and films are pedagogical in nature and explore the issue of ethical justification for violence, and Bond is presented as having a preternatural ability to evade all danger and destroy all the evils that he faces. These adventures also deal with transcendence, and Bond’s attempt to transcend the boundaries of human nature and his occupation as well as his inevitable never-ending battle against the evils of the world. James Bond, like most myths, has garnered much more fame than its original creator, and the release of more films and novels featuring the protagonist is always expected since Bond has become a part of our society’s traditions.