Belief And Doubt And Modern Mind Religion Essay Example

Belief And Doubt And Modern Mind Religion Essay Example Belief And Doubt And Modern Mind Religion Essay Belief And Doubt And Modern Mind Religion Essay One of the oldest and most influential beliefs in human history and in the creative activity at big has been the belief refering the beginning of life and existence and the different theories that tried to give an account to the beginning of life and the existence. With the attempts to seek and happen solutions to one of the greatest enigmas, the ancient societies tried to come up with different suggestions that became a foundation for the creative activity of faith and spiritual beliefs, since most of the enigmas could non be easy explained and therefore the human race hosiery to believe that at that place must hold been an being of a different and more powerful being that was involved in the creative activity and the presence of life and the existence. Though there were different faiths that arose as a consequence of the beliefs, all these faiths seemed to hold a common feature in that they believed in the being of other forces that did non arise from the human race and which had power over humanity and the events that occurred twenty-four hours to twenty-four hours in the existence. There was hence a strong belief that humanity and the existence must hold originated from someplace and that there must hold been some superior being that was involved in the creative activity and control of life and all the events in the existence. It is believed that the human existences are merely like any other animate being in the carnal land in assorted facets. Just like the remainder of the animate beings, they possess all the physiological features of the carnal land and are even similar in many of their features and behaviour, particularly in affairs of birth, life, feeding, growing and development and even decease. However, there are a few differences that have been noted in the human race that are really alone and non possessed by any other member of the carnal land. These factors are normally in the facets of psychological and mental features and besides in the societal apparatus of the human race. In this facet, one of the cardinal features of the human existences is their perceptual experiences and beliefs, which include a cardinal belief in supernatural existences which is a foundation for faith. Religion is therefore a major difference between the human existences and other life things. There are a batch of alterations that have been experienced over the old ages in different facets of life. These alterations have chiefly been driven by forces from the different innovations and promotions that have been experienced in different countries of the human race, particularly in the societal apparatus and interactions between different societies, technological promotions, different innovations in trade and concern and assorted other alterations in the universe that have redefined the life style of human existences and followed a class of modernness, which is the footing of the present human life. With the entry of the human race into modernness, there have been a batch of alterations particularly since different facets of life have been redefined and better explained by different innovations and promotions in engineering, scientific discipline and art. One of the chief things that have experienced a great alteration has been the beliefs of different people since some of th e antecedently unexplained enigmas have found good and convincing accounts particularly refering to formation and beginning of life every bit good as the happening of different events in the existence. And in this manner, there have been a batch of alterations in the perceptual experiences associated to life, and though with a batch of attempts to continue different beliefs, some have found it necessary to redefine their beliefs. More specifically, there has been a great struggle between the innovations in scientific discipline and engineering and faith. While scientific discipline and engineering have sought to explicate most of the happenings in life particularly the 1s that formed a footing for faith as they did non happen adequate accounts, faith has insisted that there is non much that can be done in the facets of the supernatural existences since they are more powerful than the human race and hence can neer be overthrown by the different innovations and promotions by the human existences. With the alterations that have been experienced due to technological promotions and the scientific innovations, there has been a alteration from traditional ways to a signifier of modernness that is the footing for the modern head. The modern head is normally more reliant on proven worlds and theories instead than on pure and apparently superstitious beliefs and perceptual experiences. This has been even more emphasized in affair to make with faith as it is based on beliefs instead than on proved theories and worlds. Hence, the modern head has chiefly opposed the beliefs that have founded faith and given out their ain cogent evidence and beliefs against faith, hence steaming up a batch of struggle between the modern head and faith. There has been a batch of argument on the being ad relevancy of faith particularly in explicating maters to make with life and the existence and moreover in explicating their beginning and ability to boom. This argument has led to the being of two different and contrasting signifiers of beliefs ensuing to presence of different bookmans and the different factors they advocate for. More specifically, there are those that have adopted the modern head and wholly opposed the perceptual experiences of faith concluding that it is based on fabricated factors and non on world. They have farther argued that faith is a signifier of a tradition that has now become outdated with the entry of more solid and proved facts that are against it and that explain the same facets that faith formed the footing for faith. On the other side, there are those that have wholly upheld their beliefs and faith and have rejected the alteration that has been experienced due to scientific innovations and technologica l promotions. The different bookmans that have opposed spiritual beliefs have laid their statements on different facets. They portray a batch of uncertainty and in some instances strong resistance to faith and its associated beliefs. For illustration, Freud has been wholly opposed faith saying that it is merely a signifier of mental and psychological psychotic belief and that there really is no proper footing for spiritual beliefs. It seems like worlds are non willing to travel an excess stat mi to explicate their universe so they have come up with different beliefs to seek and halt them from traveling through the hurting of the accounts. In the same manner, Russell argues that faith is founded on myths instead than on facts and that there is no demand to stand so strongly for what you can non turn out. Rather, there is a demand to encompass modernness and facts that have been proven beyond uncertainty. Similarly, another strong opposition of faith is Nietzsche who believes that faith is merely a groundless platform that is merely enjoyed by the weak and those of small understanding ad that there is a demand for people to seek more cognition and apprehension of different facets of life so as to be able to encompass life and all its happenings in a more positive and clear mode. There is hence no demand to maintain on with beliefs that have no foundation but instead there is a demand to travel for more luxuriant and clear facts that have found cogent evidence in the modern universe. On the other side, there are many bookmans who have experienced the effects of modernness in different ways and have acted under different appellations in the universe and yet they have given faith a consideration in their lives. Malcolm, for illustration embracings faith and province that it should be given its due topographic point in life. He besides states that faith is a cardinal portion of humanity and that non merely are human existences societal existences but besides religious existences and hence he prefers to believe in a supernatural, religious being that is in control of the existence and life. In a similar mode, Joyce argues that life is more groundless without faith and that faith has a really relevant and cardinal topographic point in the society. Modernization can non be used as a whipping boy from faith, it is really supposed to congratulate and non supplement faith. Besides, harmonizing to Lewis, faith is inevitable since life is full of struggles between the good and the immorality and that merely by encompassing faith can a society be able to populate with sobriety and order. Without faith, there would be pandemonium and a batch of disorderliness and life would be without intending. In the same manner, Luther portrays a batch of spiritual belief in the facets of his support and his religion. He is a really influential and popular leader yet he gives faith its rightful topographic point irrespective of the happenings and occurrences around him particularly due to scientific and technological innovations. He believes that these factors should be integrated with faith so as to hold a fulfilled life. In general, even with the many scientific innovations and the technological promotions, there is a demand for there to be a consideration of the basic factors in life, of which faith is one. Religion has stood the trial of clip and irrespective of the alterations in life and in the universe, there is a demand to give it a topographic point in the society so as to hold order, sobriety and even factors that unite and place the society. With these factors in topographic point, the society is bound to be united as one and to come on even as the universe progresses. Without this factor of belief, there will be a batch of promotions in the universe but unluckily the society will crumple and disintegrate under these really same forces of alteration.

Women, Voice Pitch Authority, and Gender Bias

Women, Voice Pitch Authority, and Gender Bias Do we respond differently to the sound of a voice based on its gender? Do mens voices have more authority and are womens voices more friendly? These questions skim the surface of an overlooked aspect of gender discrimination bias that arises from how we judge a female voice, especially pitch. Typically, gender bias against women is rooted in optics. We look at hair color, body shape, size, weight, height, physical attractiveness and make assumptions. Clothing, skirt length, and style of attire provide visual cues that fuel stereotypes and feed into gender expectations. Take away sight and we still jump to conclusions, but now the pitch of a womans voice becomes the yardstick by which we measure her worth. Picture the stereotypical dumb blonde. How does she sound? Either we imagine her voice as high and squeaky, or soft and breathy like Marilyn Monroe. Its sexy, but it doesnt convey authority or increase trust. Going Low To gain authority, women have long believed that its better to pitch their voices lower. And experts have discovered that most women are following that dictum. Over the past 50 years, womens voices have dropped significantly. Although womens voices normally register a full octave higher than mens voices, today theyre just 2/3rds of an octave higher. The most prominent example of this vocal divide can be seen in the media where an enormous distinction exists between the types of products sold by female voices and those pitched by male voices. At first glance, it might appear that women and men enjoy parity based on the number of voiceovers on TV commercials. Womens voices are commonplace in commercials that sell everyday household items such as dishwashing detergent, toilet bowl cleaners, diapers, paper towels. But commercials selling big-ticket items such as cars and trucks are largely the domain of male voices. Thats because of the sexual politics surrounding how we perceive male and female voices. Writing for the UK website the New Humanist, Sally Feldman observes: [Theres] a basic difference between the way men and women tend to speak. Whereas men often breathe from their abdomen, women are more likely to constrict their voices to an upper range which allows less variety and less control. In a recent collection of essays, Well-Tuned Women, Kristin Linklater writes: â€Å"When a high voice connects with a strong impulse based, for instance, in anger or fear, it becomes shrill, strident, screechy, piercing, nasal, penetrating, sharp, squeaky or brassy and generally unpleasant to the point of causing major distress in the hearers.† Men, on the other hand, with their deeper voices and richer tones, find it easier to convey authority and control. It’s partly physiological. Men’s voices are lower than women’s because they have a larger larynx, developed in the Adam’s apple at puberty, and longer, thicker vocal folds.... Anne Karpf [author of The Human Voice] argues that men have come to assert power through their deep voices and resonant tones to such an extent that â€Å"pitch has become a weapon in the gender wars. Men in Control Look beyond TV commercials and youll see how effectively men have wielded the power of pitch in the gender wars. Ever notice there are no female announcers on game shows? asks veteran voice actor Lora Cain. None serve as announcers on TV talk shows, and very few do network promos or movie trailers two of the most prestigious and highly-coveted jobs in the voiceover industry. According to Cain, statistics bear this out. Men do 80% of the voice work while women accounting for only 20%. Why does gender discrimination exist in a field where its not how you look but how you sound? Cain feels its because those positions of clout that determine whether a voice will be male or female namely, writers and directors are held primarily by men. The key is more women writers and women directors, she observed in a recent phone interview. If there were more women writers, thered be more of a tendency to say, Lets consider a woman for this. Opening Doors for Women Voiceover professional Lora Cain is one of just a handful of women competing at the upper levels of this male-dominated field, and shes acutely aware of how the deck is stacked against female announcers and women voice actors. Theres this belief that women dont sound good in certain situations or that women dont like to listen to women. Wheres the logic in that? she argues. Women talk to each other, and women make 80% of the buying decisions in this country. But when a woman wants advice on what to buy, shes not as likely to ask her male partner as she is a female friend...or even another woman standing in line at the bathroom. Thats just what women do. So, of course, we listen to other women. We seek out each others opinions. We are  our greatest resource. Im hoping that we can change that belief little by little. Cain credits changing opinions in the industry as opening doors for women. Whats popular now is the real person sound. Its created new opportunities and thats really wonderful. But women are still shut out of certain jobs where theres an expectation that you need to have a certain weight behind your voice. Some say that women dont have that, but thats not true. She cites Randy Thomas  as a woman with vocal weight. Described as the most recognized female voice in America,  Thomas is best known as the voice of the TV show  Entertainment Tonight  and the Hooked on Phonics commercials. Thomas shattered the voiceover glass ceiling in 1993 when she became the first female announcer of the Academy Awards. Since then, shes done the Oscars at least seven times as well as the Miss America Pageant and the Democratic National Convention. Shes the first announcer male or female to hit the trifecta of announcing the Big Three Awards the Oscars, the Tonys and the Primetime Emmys in a single year. Confidence Thomas has broken out of the pack of female voice talent due to that authoritative voice, as Cain describes it. You hear it and you believe her. This authority and forcefulness is ultimately the biggest hurdle facing women in the voiceover industry and in business as well. Listeners, like clients and co-workers, are more willing to place their trust in the voice that sounds confident and assured. The Count Is In A March 2010 AdweekMedia/Harris Poll  bears out these findings. Researchers asked participants to listen to male and female voiceovers in commercials and judge them based on various criteria. When asked who sounded more forceful, 48% chose the male voiceover while only 2% chose the female. When asked who sounded more soothing, respondents overwhelmingly chose the female voiceover 48% vs. only 8% for the male. Both genders were regarded as equally persuasive with 18% choosing the male voiceover vs. 19% choosing the female. Yet when it comes to major purchases, authority seems to trump soothing or persuasive. When asked which voiceover would be more likely to sell them on buying a car or a computer, respondents chose the male voice 3-4 times more often than the female; only 7% chose the female voice in either situation. In comparison, 28% of respondents felt the male voiceover was more likely to sell them a car, and 23% felt they were more likely to buy a computer based on the male voice. The problem is that we hear gender first and form assumptions about the speaker even before we have a chance to assess timbre, pitch, speed, clarity, and other vocal qualities that might establish authority or trust. Unfortunately, hearing gender isnt all that different from seeing gender when we discriminate based on sex alone and assign characteristics to physical traits often arbitrarily, stereotypically, and unfairly. Crossing Barriers Like Thomas, Cain has come up against the structural bias inherent in an industry where voices are judged by how well they sell. Shes been taking a crack at another glass ceiling announcing TV game shows as the only woman among half a dozen candidates vying to announce the popular syndicated show  Wheel of Fortune.  When the shows longtime male announcer passed away in November 2010, Caine pushed for the producer to consider a woman. Although there are no female announcers on any games shows currently in production, Cain is optimistic, noting, We go through these cycles in the 80s and 90s women could be heard as announcers on game shows although they were mostly cable channels. When she pointed out to  Wheel of Fortune  executive producer Harry Friedman that there were no other women announcers on TV game shows today, he was willing to give her a shot. Although the person behind the voice usually remains invisible, Cains putting her thoughts forward along with her voice to make audiences aware that women are capable of doing the same quality work as men, just as they do in every other career field. Im calling attention to this, Cain explains, because we need to recognize when women cross these barriers. At the same time, however, it would be nice to have viewers listen to someone like Randy Thomas and think, Oh, she sounds great instead of focusing solely on the fact that, Oh, thats a woman. Sources Camber, Rebecca.  Why women who want to get ahead get a husky voice.  DailyMail.co.uk.Dolliver, Mark. How People React to Male vs. Female Voiceovers.  Adweek.com. 8 March 2010.Feldman, Sally.  Speak up.  NewHumanist.org.uk.Hendrickson, Paula. Choice Voice. EMMY Magazine at RandyThomasVO.com.