The Oxford Movement and Jane Eyre :: Jane Eyre Essays

The Oxford Movement and Jane Eyre    The Victorian period from the mid to late 1800's was a time of internal religious turmoil for England. In the Anglican Church there were many different groups competing to define the doctrine and practice of the national religion. The church was politically divided in three general categories following: the High Church, which was the most conservative; the Middle, or Broad Church, which was more liberal; and the Low Church, which was the Evangelical wing of the Anglican Church. Within the High Church there were also differences of opinion on the true nature of the Church as a whole. It is from this conservative branch of the Anglican Church where the men of the  Oxford Movement came. The Oxford Movement began as a movement to reform the Church of England in 1833. The name is taken from the Oxford University fellows who led the movement. Among these men were John Keble, Edward Pusey and John Henry Newman. All of them were extremely loyal to the Anglican Church and were concerned with the government's interference in its affairs. They also were worried about the liberal tendencies of the Evangelicals as a threat to the Church. The Oxford movement thought that they needed to lead the Church back to the "true" church of the fourth century AD; drawing on the patristic writings of St. Augustine, St. Jerome and St. Bernard, their aim was to revive the ritual and mysticism of the early church. The Oxford Movement's beginning is usually associated with July 14, 1833, which was the date John Keble gave his sermon on "National Apostasy." But, more importantly the movement took its roots with the publication of the "Tracts for the Times" by Newman, the first of which was published September 9, 1833, and the last, Tract 90, in 1841. The Tracts meant to remind the English to understand the church as an independent body, not as an appendage to the state. The Tractarians wanted the movement to offer a compromise between Roman Catholicism and Evangelicalism. The Anglicans were distrustful of the Catholic tendency because of the power of the Pope. On the other hand, they did not embrace the evangelical doctrine of universal damnation. The Oxford Movement and its leaders had the best intentions to reform the Church, but it seems to have been most successful in the way it pursued faith as "an impulse of the heart and conscience not an inquiry of the head" (Chadwick 12).

Kingship in Macbeth

Throughout the play we see many of Shakespeare's ideas on the topic and theme of kingship but also what he thought the qualities a man should have to rule his country Macbeth is a play about power and about how the characters in the play handle it and use it. These characters are judged as leaders by their personalities, relationships with their subjects and their attitude towards the country. The characters Duncan, Macbeth, Malcolm and Edward all represent their own brand of kingship and as the play progresses we see the faults in each of these. The first to represent kingship in the play is Duncan. He is loved by his subjects and this love is well deserved and Duncan may be considered the most generous and loved king but that does not mean he is infallible. He is a good king has two sons and cares for Scotland. He is described as a sainted king by Macduff in Act 4 scene 3. Duncan places a lot of trust upon his soldiers and they are very loyal as we see in the bleeding captain fighting against mercenaries and Macbeth says himself his loyalty and service to Duncan is sufficient for his reward and also says †he hath honoured him of late† and the essence of Duncan's good nature creates doubts in Macbeth with regards to the murder and Lady Macbeth has also experienced this kindness, a large diamond received for been a good hostess. We see Duncan is decisive when it comes to the matter of traitors as the thane of Cawdor is executed swiftly following his deception from Duncan's ranks. We also see a definite flaw in his nature as he is naive and overly trusting, this is evident when he says † there is no art to find the minds construction in the face † and his ability to sense the deception and treason of the thane of Cawdor and Macbeth shows a lot about his short comings in dealing with certain aspects of his rule which at the time the play was set it was a very important ability to have as a king and his misplaced trust is seen in his haste to reward Macbeth with his new title of Cawdor. In act 4 scene 3 Malcolm lists of the traits of a good king including justice, verity, temperance, stableness, bounty, perseverance, mercy, lowliness, devotion, patience, courage and fortitude and Macduff in response says a king without any of the following does not deserve to live. Also in this scene we see Malcolm testing MacDuff's loyalty saying he is worse than Macbeth, even though it's not very ensuring that his believable lying and a quickness to flee following his father's murder shows fear but it does show he is learning from the mistakes of his father which is a subtlety in the play as to what kind of king he would be. On a more evident note we do see he does know the characteristics of a king and already has loyalty from his subjects which shows a much more stable rule but is questionable if his accession to the throne was smooth and he will remain reliant on his nobles as I father once was. The main issue of the play regarding kingship regards the rule of Macbeth which gives a scenario of the latent potential for evil in kingship. It is clear Macbeths only interest is in his own agenda and plans which seriously contrasts with the list read out by Malcolm in the scene previously mentioned. Macbeth's unstable rule is only maintained by resorting only to murder and terror against his subject and Macbeths use of these tools is mainly caused by hi deep rooted insecurity. This shows kingship has the potential for good and for evil . In the time of Shakespeare the King was believed to be an agent of God and God himself spoke through the king and as Macbeth is not rightfully king his control disturbs the natural order of nature and the earth becomes †feverous† showing the connection between kingship, nature, and all things balanced is to Shakespeare and the majority of his people at the time believed was real. The killing of Duncan to obtain the crown was also described as †unsanctified† due to Duncan being instilled with †divine right† which raises the issue that Macbeths crime is not only unjustly but unholy and a crime against God himself. Macbeth being aware of this prior to the murder he said he would †jump the life to come† meaning he is damned. These thought of eternal damnation weighs heavily in Macbeth's corrupted mind and is a catalyst for his declining unpopularity as the king and is described as a tyrant, hell-kite, usurper, butcher and as devilish which also agrees with the religious side of his kingship. Coming up to the end of Macbeths reign we see he has alienated and abandoned his wife, ordered the killing of innocent women and children and his best friend and has lost the loyalty of all his Thanes and now completely relies on occult prophesies which were completely still led to the demise of the once ambitious soldier, Macbeth. Addressing the character of Edward even though he doesn't show up on stage at all he is established as Macbeths opposite and contrasting sharply in regards to the religious aspect of the play, the doctor says people are healed by his †holy touch† , †solicits heaven† and is †full of grace†. The lord in act 3 scene 6 says he is both †pious† and †holy† his †white magic† runs in opposition to the witches black magic. Edward believes the heart of Scotland can be cured by pray but sends 10'000 men to assist Malcolm and MacDuff showing diplomacy and strategy. Shakespeare contrasts the various modes of kingship in the play, a combination of political manoeuvring, religious and spiritual believe and the kingly graces as defined and appreciated by loyal subjects and the optimistic conclusion that those not in possession of their worth will not be accepted as kings and throughout the play we see the that the countries suffering or prosperity is a direct reflection of the moral of its king.

Oklahoma s Step Toward Change - 944 Words

Oklahoma’s Step Towards Change in Abortion Today, teen pregnancy is as high as ever. Shows like â€Å"16 and Pregnant† and â€Å"The Secret Life of an American Teenager† are centered on young girls’ journeys as teen moms, in hopes that viewers will become more aware about safe sex preventing teen pregnancy. Reducing teen pregnancy also reduces the rate of abortions. Teenagers are the ones who are most likely to get an abortion, since they are the ones that are the least prepared to be mothers. Regardless of their reasoning, abortion is an option that allows not just teens, but all women who are not ready or do not want a child. However, many are against abortion since they see it as killing a baby or taking away a potential life. According to writer Steven Ertelt of LifeNews.com, Oklahoma’s abortion laws are restrictive compared to other states especially with the passage of the Oklahoma Unborn Child Protection from Dismemberment Abortion Act, or HB 1721, in April 2015, which bans dismemberment abortions that tear babies limb from limb. Any abortion practitioners that breaks this law would face a fine of $10,000 and a few years in prison. This act is a big step towards saving more potential lives, shining light on the abortion process, and is a stepping stone for other states. One of the biggest reasons why many are against abortion is because the idea of taking away the life of a potential baby away is simply immoral. Ertelt states that Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin said she isShow MoreRelatedTimothy Mcveigh The American Terrorist1673 Words   |  7 Pages08/15/2015 â€Æ' When most people think of Domestic terrorism one name comes to mind. 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