Jane Eltons Identity Conflict in Catherine Maria Sedgwick’s A New Engl

Jane Elton's Identity Conflict in Catherine Maria Sedgwick’s A New England Tale In her article â€Å"‘But is it any good?’: Evaluating Nineteenth-Century American Women’s Fiction,† Susan Harris provides methods and criteria for examining Women’s Fiction in what she calls â€Å"process analysis† (45). To apply Harris’ guidelines to Catherine Maria Sedgwick’s A New England Tale, I must first â€Å"acknowledge the ideological basis of [my] endeavor† (45) as a feminist/equalitist critique of the text. Furthermore, I identify the three-fold approach that Harris describes as historical, in distinguishing early nineteenth-century from mid- to late-century attitudes, rhetorical, in labeling Sedgwick’s communication to readers didactic, and ideological, by understanding my objections stem from twenty-first-century attitudes. Harris also explains, â€Å"If we look at them as both reactive and creative†¦we can understand [texts’] aesthetic, moral, and political values† (45); I consider A New England Tale to have a sentimental aesthetic, a Christian morality, and a support of female subordination. The concern of this paper is the â€Å"happy ending,† typical in Women’s Fiction according to Harris (46), present in A New England Tale, in which Jane Elton sacrifices her autonomous self through marrying Mr. Lloyd. I will critique this ending by applying several of the points Harris makes, including the conflict between theme and structure, the â€Å"extended quest for autonomy† (50), and the issue of the self-willing and â€Å"socially determined self† (54); also, I will discuss the sexual and religious politics Jane faces, as well as the importance of her role as educator. Readers can understand the autonomous self to which I refer in a nineteenth-century context: this do... ...orphaned, to abused, to truly loved. Therefore readers supporting these stances likely align with Sedgwick in viewing Jane’s marrying Mr. Lloyd as better than her marrying Erskine; however, consider that Sedgwick promotes Christian morality/values. Contemporary non-religious feminist/equalitist readers would likely desire for Jane to live independently: while this may not have been historically feasible, we can still prefer that Jane choose loyally to her self, that if she must marry, her choice does not sacrifice her identity. Works Cited and Consulted Foster, Edward Halsey. Catharine Maria Sedgwick. New York: Twayne, 1974. Harris, Susan K.. "'But is it any good?': Evaluating Nineteenth-Century American Women's Fiction." American Literature 63 (March 1991): 42-61. Sedgwick, Catherine Maria. A New England Tale, and Miscellanies. New York: Putnam, 1852.

A Hero of Our Time by Mikhail Lermontov Essay -- Hero of Our Time, Vla

In his novel A Hero of Our Time translated by Vladimir Nabokov, Mikhail Lermontov creates a character named, Pechorin based on his opinions to 19th century Russian society. Pechorin is cruel, selfish, and careless to the people but ironically, Pechorin’s refusal to marry either Princess Marry or Vera, reveals him to be as an honorable man. Although, Pechorin describes his life as full of boredom and his opinion to love is different, Lermontov again explains he should be represented as a respectful man. By Pechorin’s behavior and thoughts, Lermontov demonstrates an honorable man is not consistently sympathetic and understandable because truly, Pechorin’s behavior and thoughts are to depict how life may describe as meaningless and purposeless. Lermontov expresses Pechorin’s selfishness by the rejection to Princess Marry and Vera in which ironically, those also represent him as an honorable man and that he explains the meaningless life. Pechorin has an unusual mind and character that no other men will have during 19th century. The first impression of Pechorin drives people to think him as a disrespectful man because for the most of the time, his actions are blamable. For example, when Pechorin kills Grushnitsky in the duel and after, then he meets Princess Marry right away, he says â€Å"I cannot marry you. Even if you wished it now, you would soon regret it† (162). Lermontov fully proves the disrespectful behavior of him because he killed a man over a girl’s love and he right away rejects the girl’s love. However, Lermontov’s real view is Pechorin killed Grushnitsky because they both did not truly love Princess Marry; instead, Pechorin already knew it was a jealousy that was coming from each other in which it supports how honorable ma... ...ctfully to the people around him but still, he may represent as an honorable man because of his thoughts and behaviors to 19th century Russian society. First, the event of Princess Marry and Vera explains Pechorin is a respectful man because he rejects those two girls’ love for their own lives and by explaining the meaningless life to them. Second, Lermontov’s beliefs that a life is apathy by Pechorin’s behavior and thoughts lead Pechorin as an honorable man. Most of the people believe an honorable man is one who says a life is not boredom and acts carefully and responsibly to his or her people. However, Lermontov explains an honorable man’s character alters by a society situation such as Pechorin. An honorable man’s action and belief may alter and that people still have to respect them because an honorable man is made by the people and the society.

Pragmatism, Perfectionism, and Feminism :: Feminist Feminism Pragmatism Essays

Pragmatism, Perfectionism, and Feminism ABSTRACT: I consider the revision of pragmatism by three leading neopragmatists: Richard Rorty, Richard Bernstein, and Cornel West. I argue that their vision of pragmatism lacks a teleology, though a teleology is suggested by Bernstein's description of a pragmatic ethos. I appeal to Stanley Cavell's notion of 'moral perfectionism' to suggest a kind of teleology that is available to pragmatism. Finally, I find the weakness of pragmatism done without teleology well exemplified in the exchange between Rorty and Nancy Frazer at Rorty's 1990 Tanner Lecture. Rorty's paper, "Pragmatism and Feminism," was meant to offer feminists some pragmatic strategies for improving their position. Frazer's strong response finds Rorty's suggestions only marginally helpful. I interpret her criticism of Rorty's suggestions to be that they lack something like a teleology. To me, this suggests that pragmatism can learn from feminism. Pragmatism is revolutionary both in the sense of being a philosophy that is critical, destabilizing, and progressive, as well as in the sense of being a philosophy that, in the turning philosophical tides, has come back. Pragmatism was eclipsed in the first half of the twentieth century by analytic philosophy, in its various forms, but in the last decade or so pragmatism has returned in full force, and with an explicitly philosophical agenda. In this paper I will examine this new wave of philosophical pragmatism, sometimes referred to as neopragmatism, as it appears in the works of three of its leading proponents, Richard Rorty, Cornel West, and Richard Bernstein; and specifically, how it compares to, contrasts with, and contributes to feminism, as illustrated in the exchange between Rorty and Nancy Fraser that occurred as part of Rorty's 1990 Tanner Lecture. A difficulty that arises in talking about pragmatism, new or old, is that pragmatism comes in so many forms. For Rorty, the most influential of the neopragmatists, pragmatism is primarily anti-philosophical. He defines its role in terms of negations: it is anti-representational, anti-universalist, and anti-foundational. One of Rorty's descriptions of what pragmatists do is, "pragmatists keep trying to find ways of making antiphilosophical points in nonphilosophical language." (1) For Cornel West, pragmatism represents a kind of return to philosophy, a return, that is, from a false to a genuine philosophy. It is a return to a philosophy that, at last, addresses the loci of our real needs. In his impressive, The American Evasion of Philosophy: A Genealogy of Pragmatism, West describes the return to pragmatism as follows:

Character Study Of William Shakespeares Hamlet English Literature Essay

When talking to Polonius ( Excerpt 1 ) , Ophelia about becomes dense. Although she expresses herself, she does so in an highly laden manner. When asked about Hamlets stamps, Ophelia responds by stating that she doesnt know what to believe. This is an unfastened invitation to Polonius to determine her sentiments in any manner possible. Proof of this is in Polonius response: Marry, I ‘ll learn you: believe yourself a babe By stating this, Polonius wants to pull strings Ophelia. A babe is frequently portrayed as guiltless, un-knowing, fleeceable, and easy influenced. Babies besides absorb about anything they are shown or told, and reiterate these things about precisely the manner they were presented. This is precisely how Ophelia is ; she is dumbed down in her relationship with her male parent. She becomes a topic of his, a figure to make his command. This is non the merely relationship where Ophelia is pushed around. Ophelias relationship with Claudius is even worse than her relationship with Polonius. Although Polonius uses Ophelia for aid in his Acts of the Apostless of espionage, Claudius uses Ophelia in even more evil commands, such as messing with Hamlets bosom. In Excerpt 2, Ophelia is in the state of affairs where she must deny Hamlet to see his response. This thought was largely formulated by the King to happen the beginning of Hamlets evident insanity. The male monarch, in an attempt to convey more stableness to his life, wants Hamlet to go stable as good. Because of this, he is willing to give the relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia to heighten his ain state of affairs. Claudius asks Ophelia to return Hamlets letters. Ophelia has no pick by to follow and as a consequence destroys her relationship with Hamlet. The Queens relationship with Ophelia is similar to the Kings relationship with Ophelia. The Queen is in a really commanding relationship ( as seen in Excerpt 2 ) ( Madam I wish it may ) with Ophelia. But, it is for a different ground. The King controls Ophelia as a device to break his ain state of affairs. The Queen utilizations Ophelia to bring out the jobs with Hamlet ( out of echt attention for Hamlet ) . But, the Queen is highly nescient and fails to recognize that her actions are really aching Hamlet more. The most interesting and most cryptic relationship is the connexion between Hamlet and Ophelia. Near the beginning of the drama, Ophelia references to Polonius an act of Hamlets that can be interpreted as confidant ( Just predating Excerpt 1 ) . Hamlet seemingly writes infinite letters to Ophelia during this clip, and it isnt until Ophelia ( non by pick ) returns Hamlets letters that their relationship alterations. Ophelia goes from being in love with Hamlet to feel foring him ( O, what a baronial head is here o'erthrown! ( III.i, 163 ) ) . On the other side, Hamlet is amused by the full experience. He to the full realizes what is traveling on with Ophelia, Claudius, and Polonius and he finds it entertaining. From that point on in the book, Hamlet uses Ophelia as some kind of amusement. BUT, deep down, it is evident that Hamlet is still really much in love with Ophelia. Ophelia has different types of relationships with different characters. The King uses Ophelia for his ain personal addition. Polonius uses Ophelia for aid in his Acts of the Apostless of espionage. The Queen utilizations Ophelia to happen out more about Hamlets issues. And Hamlet uses Ophelia for amusement. But, throughout the book Hamlet remains in love with Ophelia. All of these utilizations for Ophelia make her the biggest tool of Denmark. The motive of moving: Ophelias function Throughout the drama, Ophelia is forced into state of affairss of moving to carry through the command of others. The most prevailing of these state of affairss is where she must return Hamlets letters, a statement that she doesnt want/love him. This function of moving is meant to carry through Claudius, Polonius and the Queens purposes, which fit two other motives in the drama: misrepresentation and espionage. Ophelias moving was merely a portion of the larger programs of misrepresentation and espionage. Although Ophelia had literally no influence in the planning of the misrepresentation and espionage, she helped to transport it out, and is hence merely every bit guilty as the other plotters. Flowers: Ophelias Connection to Flowers OPHELIA There ‘s rosemary, that ‘s for recollection ; pray, love, retrieve: and there is Viola tricolor hortensiss. that ‘s for ideas. Laertess A papers in lunacy, ideas and recollection fitted. OPHELIA There ‘s fennel for you, and aquilegias: there ‘s herb of grace for you ; and here ‘s some for me: we may name it herb-grace O ‘ Lord's daies: O you must have on your herb of grace with a difference. There ‘s a daisy: I would give you some violets, but they withered all when my male parent died: they say he made a good terminal, — ( Sings ) For bonnie sweet Robin is all my joy. ( IV.v, 199-210 ) Ophelia chooses her flowers carefully. In making so she represents each of the characters in their ain manner, uncovering even more who they truly are. Rosemary/Pansies – Laertes: Remembrance of Polonius, maintain the memory of their male parent alive. Fennel Claudius: Obsequiousness of Ophelia, reflects their relationship. Columbine Claudius: Infidelity, non faithful in love for household and others. Rue Queen/Herself: Grief, mourning Daisy Queen: Dishonesty, fraudulence ( Queens headlong matrimony ) Violets Hamlet: Fidelity and truthfulness, Hamlet through his ain prevarications has helped destruct their relationship. This leads me to believe that possibly Ophelia isnt truly insane, possibly shes merely improbably angry and is blinded by her choler. She must hold put an atrocious sum of idea into these flowers, more than any insane individual can take the clip to make. I believe that she merely reached a breakage point ; she no longer wants to be used. The Tool of Denmark has broken. Note: Flower Meanings from hypertext transfer protocol: //aboutflowers.com/flower-a-plant-information-and-photos/meanings-of-flowers.html and hypertext transfer protocol: //www.800florals.com/care/meaning.asp

Effect on the Skeletal System of Young People Performing Contact

Activity is beneficial for people of all ages. People who are fit will, in general live longer and maintain a more active and fulfilling lifestyle. However there are some downsides to physical activity, in particular at high level. A large majority of ageing athletes suffer from long term injuries such as the poor state of someone’s knee. It is generally regarded that contact sports are beneficial to children. This is due to the fact that the majority of bone density material is developed when the person is young.This is beneficial to people because many bone diseases such as osteoporosis are connected to low bone density and inactivity as a young adult. On the flip-side when competing in high impact sport there is a very high chance of some sort of injury occurring along the way. For example if someone dislocates their shoulder playing rugby, it is more than likely that this will trouble them in the future. In addition to this when playing contact sports, the joints that are covered in articular cartilage can be worn away at a more rapid rate. Indeed, some injuries even lead to the cartilage being taken out altogether.This is a negative effect of contact sports on the skeletal system of young people as they may well end up suffering from osteoarthritis later in life. Osteoarthritis is thought to be related to cartilage being worn down to the point that the bone is no longer protected. High impact sport is generally considered to be a beneficial activity to people of all ages. Similar to contact sport, when competing in high impact sport the bone mass is built up. This is due to the fact that when someone runs solidly for half an hour, bones such as the tibia will suffer from tiny fragments breaking of the main bone.When this subsequently re-heals it will be stronger than it was before and allow for more exercise to be done on it. However, a high impact sport such as hockey, basketball or netball can be quite dangerous as it is thought that anterior cruc iate ligament injuries appear to be very common among sports that involve a lot of pivoting. Damage to this particular ligament can have a lasting affect on an athletes career and even put them out of action for good. The anterior cruciate ligament is so important because it prevents hyperextension in the knee.Women have even more problems with this ligament due to anatomical differences. This is a big disadvantage in young people competing in high impact sports as it could prevent them at a young age from taking part in anything ever again. In young people, especially teenager’s repetitive injuries often occur the at growth plates. Repetitive injuries occur when repeatedly over time the body doesn’t have a chance to repair, and the joints and surrounding tendons and muscles become irritated. The chance of repetitive stress injuries can be reduced by simple things, such as having a rest period where the body has time to recover.In addition to this using proper equipmen t also is a big factor, such as using proper running shoes to run in. If repetitive stress injuries go untreated then it is likely that the performer will have to stop competing in physical activity for a long period of time. Although serious, repetitive stress injuries can be avoided by using the correct precautions and are pretty much controlled by the performer as a pose to the outside environment. In summary of this it is clear that the different types of physical activity discussed above all have their positive sides and negative sides.However, in my opinion the positives of by far outweigh the negatives. Physical activity brings about so many other positives as well as just the physical aspects. Such as when participating in team sport a sense of unity, self confidence etc. These positives, for me, far outweigh the possibility of injury occurring. In addition to this if we always worried about things happening to us nothing would ever be done, we would just sit at home. Theref ore I think the rewards of physical activity far outweigh the negatives.

Poe’s Devices for Heightening the Effect of Terror and Horror in Short Stories Essay

Edgar Allan Poe, an American poet, critic and writer of the XIX-th century, is a world- recognised master of the horror genre. Poe’s Tales of Arabesque clearly demonstrate his talent for cultivation of mystery, terror, and macabre. The process of this horror cultivation is very subtle and complicated. Poe, like an artist of arabesque who intertwines and interlaces flowers into an elaborate pattern, weaves a net of mystery and horror and entangles the reader in it. Poe starts any work ‘with consideration of the effect’ it would have on the reader. All other stages of story creation and literary devices used for it depend on that main effect. Thus, the genre of Poe’s works, their plot structure, type of narration, word choice, and imagery are the devices, with the help of which Poe creates and heightens the effect of terror and horror. Such works as ‘The Cask of Amontillado’, ‘MS Found in a Bottle’, and ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’ serve as vivid examples of Poe’s sophisticated but very effective horror creating technique. The effect produced by the work on its reader largely depends on the genre of this work. It is no mere chance that Poe chooses the genre of a short story for his works of horror. On the one hand, a short story provides the writer with enough space to intrigue the reader, to rouse his interest in the plot. ‘MS Found in a Bottle’, for example, invites the reader to take part in a fantastic adventure in the midst of the stormy ocean. On the other hand, the plot unfolds very quickly, leaving no time for reasoning and meditation, keeping the senses heightened and sharp. Thus the perception of horror deepens and strengthens. Short forms of a short story bind the reader to pay closer attention to every word, to every comma and exclamation mark. Words used to create the atmosphere of terror and mystery become more colourful, more significant and profound: metaphors grow into symbols, symbols – to allegories. In ‘The Cask of Amontillado’, for example, the suspense of something terrible increases with every step Fortunato makes into the depth of the Montresors’ catacombs, with his every cough, with every proposal of Montresor to come back. But the effect of horror is heightened not only by length of a story, but also by its plot structure. A very short introduction or its complete absence and the disjunction placed at the very beginning of the story put the reader into the coarse of events at once. The events are mostly proleptic; being unaware of their meaning readers start experiencing nervousness and alarm, they feel that some dark, arcane mystery is about to uncover. The reversal in a short story comes to the end and it always comes unexpectedly. With the help of this device the writer shocks the reader, greatly intensifying his horror. Thus, terrified with the gloomy atmosphere of the Roderick’s castle and the constant sensation of trouble, the reader gets truly horrified at the sight of Roderick’s dead sister, lady Madeline, suddenly revived to life. The absence of a resolution prolongs the shock from the terrible mystery uncovered; or, as it is in ‘MS Found in a Bottle’, – the mystery that can never be resolved. The manner in which the story is narrated is no less important for heightening the effect of horror than its very plot. Though all the three stories proposed for this study are narrated in the first person, they are told in various types of the first person. These types differ by four main aspects. The first one is the part that the narrator plays in the story and his influence on the course of events. The narrator of the ‘The Cask of Amontillado’ is the central figure of the plot, moreover, he is its moving force. The reality of the story is revealed to us through Montresor’s eyes and is estimated by him. The reader is always with the narrator and as the narrator is a murderer the reader becomes his unwilling accomplice to murder. The horror of being a murderer is absolute. The narrator of ‘MS Found in a Bottle’ is also the central figure of the plot, all the events happen to him and are described by him. Being always together with the narrator, the reader embarks on a dangerous, perilous, hair-rising adventure, which ends as unexpectedly as it begins. Unlike the previous two stories, ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’ is not a story about the narrator. It is Roderick Usher who is in the centre of the plot, it is his mind and his life that we are interested in. But as we are with the narrator, who is an observer and estimator of events, we can only feel the dark mystery of the House of Usher, but can not penetrate into. There is no greater horror than that of mystery and no greater terror than that of the unknown. The second aspect in which the three first person narrations differ is the use of tenses. Poe intentionally tells ‘The Cask of Amontillado’ in the past and presents all the events in chronological order. This device helps the writer to show the mind and actions of an insane person, who carefully plans a murder and methodically carries it out. Because of such step- by-step development of the plot the feeling of horror progressively grows higher and sensations of terror deposit. In ‘MS Found in a Bottle’ the writer builds up the narration in a way to bring the story closer to the reality and to the reader. That’s why he makes use not only of the past tense, but also of the present and even the present continuous. By describing the mysterious ship in the present the writer transports the reader on its deck, makes him feel the tossing of the ship, inhale the salty air. The use of the present continuous in the very end of the story heightens the horror and despair of being ‘amid a roaring, and bellowing, and thundering of ocean and of tempest’. The syntactic structure of the final passage – short abrupt sentences separated by dashes – creates the effect of the stream of consciousness and makes the reader not only the witness, but a participant of the final scene. The three main tenses of ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’- past perfect, past, and future – expand the borders of the events narrated. The past tense helps the writer to describe Roderick Usher as a reserved, mysterious, gloomy, melancholic, and abnormally sensitive person. The flash back made into Roderick’s childhood with the help of the past perfect shows that he has always been that kind of person and all his ancestors were like him. The future shows that though the House of Usher fell the mystery of it will never be solved. Thus the sense of ‘insufferable gloom’ and FEAR, which Roderick and his house arouse in the reader, roots in the ancient past and prolongs itself into the future. The final aspect that makes each of the three stories unique is the structure of the narration. ‘The Cask of Amontillado’ is formed of a combination of dialog, monologue, and description. These are the dialogues here that are of particular interest to the study. Dialogues of ‘The Cask’ are short and abrupt. Answers given to the questions are brief and concrete ( ‘Nitre? ‘ he asked, at length. ‘Nitre,’ I replied. ). This device makes every single word symbolic. Dialogues here are the part of the imagery that helps to draw the picture of horror and expectation of threat. Dialogues of ‘The House of Usher’ differ from those of ‘The Cask’. They are long, descriptive, and complicated. Some dialogues between the narrator and his friend grow into the monologues of Roderick. The final monologue of Roderick composed of broken and disconnected sentences shows the shock of horror Roderick experienced when he felt that Madeline was back from her tomb. This shock extends to the narrator and to the reader. ‘MS Found in a Bottle’ consists of a single monologue. The changing speech of the narrator reflects his mood and influences the mood of the reader. But the main function of this monologue is to create the hostile, tense, and gloomy atmosphere of the confusing reality. The main thing that influences the way in which the story effects the reader is the setting. Poe uses various stylistic devices to create a sinister setting and thus heighten the effect of horror and terror in his short stories. Metaphor is one of the most important stylistic devices. It enables the writer to describe implicitly the thing or notion for which there is no name in the common language, or a feeling ‘which will admit to no analysis’. Thus, for example, the supernatural wild ocean is named ‘watery hell’ or ‘chaos of water’. Simile helps to describe the indescribable in a more explicit form. Such similes as ‘waters rear heads like demons of the deep’, or ‘crew glide like the ghosts of the buried centuries’ arouse associations with death, mystery, and myth. And the comparison of the windows of the house of Usher with blind eyes inspires us to take the house as a living creature, strange and dangerous. Another device, used to animate inanimate objects is personification. Whatever Poe personifies – the wind (‘breath of wind’), silence (‘obstinate silence’), tempest (‘bellow of the tempest’), or air (‘wild air’) -it becomes brighter and more profound. Epithets carry out a chief function in creating the main images of the stories and drawing their sinister and horrifying settings. Thus, the ocean in ‘MS Found in a Bottle’ is described as unfathomable, terrible and thundering; the ship is gigantic and supernatural; the house of Usher is melancholy and ancient, it has bleak walls, dark intricate passages, Gothic archways, vaulted ceilings, and it inspires a ‘sense of insufferable gloom’ and ‘unredeemed dreariness’; the vaults of the Montresors are dark, damp and sombre. Poe frequently uses epithets that show the extreme quality, power, or size of an object described. Such epithets as intolerably hot wind, extreme fury, immense pressure, terrific breakers, and colossal supports form the fantastic reality of Poe’s works. An immense impact on our senses and feelings is made by colour and light words. Poe paints his gloomy settings with four main colours: black, red, grey, and yellow. These colours, however, never repeat those that we are used to, they are always unique and special. Poe sees every subtle hue of the colour and observes the way it ‘behaves’. Red, for example, is presented in two main hues: dusky-red and blood-red; it glares, streams down, or gleams in encrimsoned light. Red is the colour of blood and is therefore associated with pain and murder. Black, ebony black, and deep dingy black are the colours of ‘eternal night’ and ‘pitchy darkness’. They symbolise death, burial, fear, horror, and misfortune. Grey and leaden-hued arouse associations with ghosts, shadows, something elusive, mysterious, and imperceptible. Yellow or sickly yellow is traditionally regarded as the colour of disease, sickness, and insanity. The light in the stories is never bright but is always indiscrete, feeble, sluggish, faintly discernible, ghastly and mystic. And the gloomy setting created with the help of these hues of light can arouse in the reader nothing but the sensation of growing fear. In the conclusion it would be necessary to mention, that Edgar Allan Poe is an unsurpassed master of the horror creating technique. He uses such devices as genre, structure of the plot, type and structure of narration, vivid imagery, settings, colour, and light to heighten the effect of terror and horror in his short stories. The contribution he made into the development of the horror genre can not be overestimated.

Intercultural Conflict Analysis Essay

In the Southeast Asian region lays a body of water and islands which have been disputed about for the possession of them. This area by international term is known as the â€Å"South China Sea.† (Keep in mind that they do not have any correlations with China but it is rather just an international name.) This body of water runs along territories belonging to China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, Philippines, and many other countries. Within this body of water, there are well over 200 islands which are un-inhabited by people and contain useful resources. Considering that the sea does not surround just one country which can claim authority over it, it is difficult to determine who has the right to these islands. There are no laws on who these islands belong to. This dispute brings into many questions about sovereignty, law of the sea, and resource ownership rights on an international level if more than one country surrounds the sea. This is also representative of the economic relation s among countries in the larger Asia-Pacific region, especially in the South China Sea area. Its dynamic and cooperative approach to economic matters has attracted more partnerships with various countries and organizations across the globe. The area is potentially rich in oil and natural gas deposits; however, the estimates are highly varied. The Ministry of Geological Resources and Mining of the People’s Republic of China estimate that the South China Sea may contain 17.7 billion tons of crude oil (compared to Kuwait with 13 billion tons) The South China Sea territorial dispute has become one of the most problematic issues in recent times. Current trends as well as complications resulting from China’s rise and its conflict with anxious neighbors have seemingly put any solution out of reach in the near future. However, there are still steps that rival claimants can take in order minimize the chance of major conflict. Before any international agreement is hastily signed, claimant countries must first resolve internal hindrances to treaties. This most especially refers to China. A good preliminary step for the country would be to strictly implement a more centralized command of its maritime law enforcement and administrative agencies. After it has done this, it can now proceed to engage in agreements with other nations without the high prospect of one of its own violating any treaty provisions. Additionally, all claimant countries should limit if not stop the negative propaganda surrounding thedispute. The South China Sea issue is better perceived by people if it is seen as a source of cooperation rather than competition. Disproportionate national sentiment stemming from negative propaganda about the disputes allows less room for movement for government officials, and makes diplomacy difficult. Claimant countries can choose to coordinate a joint exploration of resources in order to arrive at a win-win scenario, instead of insidiously encroaching their way into oil sources, and ending up having to forfeit them when other claimant countries cry foul. Lastly, all countries involved must work to deescalate tensions and strive for resource sharing and regional cooperation. This could be done by making and implementing a legally binding code of conduct with legitimate mechanisms for settling disputes. If these steps can be done, then probably, the prospect of a stable multi-polar world is not that far off. References: 1.http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/asia/north-east-asia/223-stirri†¦ 2.http://csis.org/files/ts120912_glaser.pdf 3.http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142412788732385490457826151182756471†¦ 4.http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-19754353