Comparison of the movie Milk and Moral Christian Values in the Essay

Comparison of the movie Milk and Moral Christian Values in the Marketplace - Essay Example This activism lures him to seek public office as he believes that he can make a more effective difference for the gay community as a political figure. Harvey suffers through the high and lows of running for office before he finally becomes the first known homosexual in the US to take a political office. His political office is an uphill battle in there is constant tensions between Harvey and his supervisor Dan White a fiercely conservative politician. The film Milk therefore invokes Kavanaugh’s (1991) new conservatism. This new conservatism is two-tiered in that it has what is characterized as having â€Å"two complementary but dangerous tendencies† (Kavanaugh 1991, xiii). On the one hand, the new conservatism embraces the tendency to distinguish faith from notions of justice which is essentially being active in â€Å"love and service† (Kavanaugh 1991, xiii). On the other hand the new conservatism has a â€Å"tendency to equate faith with a particular form of social, political, or national power† (Kavanaugh 1991, xiii). Harvey, the activist who seeks a form of justice for the homosexual community and is openly gay can be said to represent the second form of the new conservatism in that his conduct forces the distinction between faith and notions of justice by becoming active in both love and service. We see Harvey challenge traditional conventions and insert himself in the midst of it by not only advocating change, but changing it by becoming the first openly gay US politician in public office. By taking this approach, Harvey becomes active in both love and service. However, it is not Harvey is makes this distinction. It is White who by his attitude makes this distinction and it is Harvey that forces this distinction. Harvey essentially represents the second tendency attributed to the new conservatism in that for him faith is indistinguishable from traditional concepts of

Leprosy in the Middle Ages Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Leprosy in the Middle Ages - Essay Example This essay focuses on the discussion of the Leprosy, or Hansen’s disease, that is an debilitating disease which has been prevalent for over 4,000 years, right from the ancient civilizations of China, India and Egypt. The researcher states that the earliest documented case of leprosy, supported by DNA evidence, is that of a man whose remains were discovered in a tomb next to the Old City of Jerusalem. The first recorded instance of leprosy is found in the Bible. It is probable that the disease spread to Europe from Egypt through Phoenician sailors in the 8th century. The word leprosy has its roots in the Greek lepra, meaning ‘a disease which makes the skin scaly'. The primary external symptom is pronounced skin lesions. It is caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae. If unchecked, this chronic bacterial infection can progressively attack the skin, nerves, limbs and eyes, causing permanent damage, deformation, blindness, loss of neural sensation, and local paralysis. Th e mode of transmission of the disease is still not certain. Poor living conditions, diet and genetic factors may predispose an individual to contact leprosy. Treatment for leprosy began with the introduction of dapsone in the 1930s and complete cures were made possible by multidrug therapy in the 1980s. It is acknowledged that leprosy was a familiar disease in medieval Europe, and probably reached its peak during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. In the Middle Ages, leprosy was a serious problem which elicited unique social and medical responses. ... In the Middle Ages, leprosy was a serious problem which elicited unique social and medical responses. Leprosy was a feared condition throughout the Middle Ages. This may be largely attributed to ignorance of its causes and medical implications, and the absence of any recognized treatment or cure. The Medieval diagnosis of leprosy, â€Å"was a prediction of disfigurement and death, and what is perhaps more terrifying, it separated a man from society because of the infection he carried outwardly and the moral corruption that lay within him† (Covey, 2001, 316). Biblical references supported this reaction to the disease. The numerous references to leprosy in the Bible largely give leprosy a connotation of being a disease of the unclean. This is evident in the passage from Leviticus 13: 44–46 which states, â€Å"Now whosoever shall be defiled with the leprosy, and is separated by the judgment of the priest, shall have his clothes hanging loose, his head bare, his mouth cove red with a cloth, and he shall cry out that he is defiled and unclean. All the time that he is infected and unclean, he shall dwell alone without the camp† (Covey, 2001, 316). In effect, the Bible condemned leprosy as a ‘defilement’ and sanctioned the banishment of lepers from society. The most common attitude toward leprosy was ostracism, rising from the fear that leprosy was a highly contagious disease. In the light of this fear of contacting leprosy through association with lepers, medieval laws enforced segregation of lepers in various manners in different places. The 1276 assizes of London restricted the freedom of movement of lepers by banning them from residing in the city. This was followed by