Education in Taiwan under Japanese Rule

voices in the city essays

voices in the city essays Voices in the city(Anita Desai) Voices in the city is a pessimistic novel like Cry the peacock.The protagonists of this novel are detached , self-centered and remain aloof from others just as Maya in Cry the peacock, who alienates herself from the rest.What they always wanted was shadows,silence and stillness and that was what they were left with. Nirode the main character is an editor of a newspaper. The novel begins with the scene at the station when nirode comes to see his brother off. When the train departs he starts introspecting , compares his capabilities and achievements with Aruns. He broods over the way he has grown up with his shortcomings and laidback attitude.Wonders the way he has whiled away his time since childhood and has been a looser always.This thought (realization) makes him envy Arun who has always been the winner. In this novel the life of Calcutta has been portrayed . The characters of this novel especially Nirode and his sister Monisha feel themselves detached from this city.They find it difficult to cope up with its busy life where people are so ambitious and rapacious.Their mother who lives in Kalimpong is also like any of the calcuttians and that is the reason they dont approve of certain things about her.Nirode never replies to her letters never feels the need of her embrace and shelter because he thinks she is having an affair with Major Chaddha. He finds her lusty at this age and fels that she is no more concerned about her childrens feelings and emotions.Even the company his friends dosent excite him and he becomes a loner. Thinking that after reaching lofty heights there is no other way than to descend to the bottom , Nirode feels why not to take a shortcut and remain at the bottom since this is the ultimate destination.Because he has never achieved anything in his life , he starts living revelling in the f...

Autobiography Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Autobiography - Personal Statement Example I enjoy dancing which I fist learnt from my brother at early ages. Today I can do tap dance and all manner of acting on stage. In addition, I enjoy photo shooting and hair makeup. As a fashion designer, I officially began my brand in November 2014, and since then I have two-fashion line within the same brand. They include the Tokyo003 collection, which is inspired by the Asian traditional clothes such as kimono and the china dress. The other brand is the T-8-C collection of Gold colour swimwear. I have been displaying my work at local SF fashion since last year. I began the Tokyo 003 collection in late 2014 with my family being the greatest inspiration. My background is attributed to a three generation of traditional Japanese guitar player family. This implies that my grandmother, mother and I, wear kimono. This inspires me to design a kimono which is a traditional wear but in a modern way. In collaboration with David Klein, I learnt how to use his photograph to create various designs. I began my swimwear line this year, 2015. This follows the inspiration of being born and raised near famous beaches for tour. Through the friends whom I could see wearing swimwear model, I was naturally inspired to design my own swimwear collection. The sun goddess and radiant sunshine are my inspiration for the T-8-C. My signature colour is Gold, which is attributed to radiant sunshine. This feeling increase my energy to work even on more designs. In essence, I can describe The 8th Continent as a state of mind, which is surreal Utopia, where one can express views without fear of ridicule. The happiest people with confident are residents of The 8th

The public should legally be able to view the sex offender registry to Research Paper

The public should legally be able to view the sex offender registry to protect their family - Research Paper Example Sex offender registry is where the people who have been convicted of sexual offences are recorded. The records are normally held in police offices, courts or the sheriffs’ offices but are nowadays available in a national registry as well online in the National Sexual Offenders Public Registry. They are also available in the Federal Bureau of Investigation websites by county and state. Any individual can conduct a search of the sexual offenders by state, address, and name among other search criteria. The information on this registry is updated as frequently as the information is got from the sexual offender who has to be reporting to the nearest police station and update his or her information at least once every year. Debate has risen over the sex offender registry all around the country with some people advocating for its removal from public visibility while others want it to remain and even keep on being updated so that they can remain alert and aware of their neighbours and friends. The pros and cons of this debate are discussed below in detail and they include issues such as stigmatization, family breakups, trauma to children, living in fear and forever being regarded as a criminal for the cons. The pros of having a sex offender registry are: knowledge, caution, and self-protection, early prevention among others (Tofte and Jamie 46). The sex offenders’ registry remains to be among the greatest protection and prevention mechanism parents have against sex offenders and sex predators. Parents especially with younger children are better able to protect their children against sex offenders once they have a better knowledge of whom they are. Research has indicated that majority of the people who commit sex offences are not strangers but are family friends or neighbours (Maddan, 54). Having a registry where the parents can be able to verify whether their neighbours or family friends are sexual offenders is

Theories Of Personality: Albert Einstein

Theories Of Personality: Albert Einstein This paper will discuss about the life of Albert Einstein and how the different theories of the personality are applied on his life. Like the theory of Maslow in which he describes the five needs of the human beings and the big five model. Certainly, he was mentally a very strong person that was against the military rule and dictatorship of German government. Finally, he would not have been a famous and genius man of the 20th century if he were not conscientiousness. The theory of Erickson describes the psycho-social improvement through eight different periods. According to this theory, each level focuses on a subject, or calamity, that is particularly important at his that span of life. By applying the theory of Erickson on Einsteins psycho-social improvement at the very end of his life, we could possibly comprehend that his life was wonderful and playful. The intelligence of Einstein was specially called the logical-mathematical intelligence. Certainly, Einstein formed the theories based on the observations, and on the logical reasoning. Take For instant, some scientists thought while Albert Einstein was still working in government grant office, he experimented that many of the people that were coming inside and out the office on the certain time. Albert Einstein was not very confident or competent in his early life, he even started talking very late then any other normal person but in the later life he became very confident and he achieved a lot by the validations of the theories that he proposed. Trait Theory: According to Douglas, the majority of people illustrate others by referring to their sociable, thoughts, actions, feelings and needs. All these points are called personal traits that tend to assist to express how a person generally thinks and then behave. There are two diverse trait theories that are given later in this paper. Firstly, the trait theory utilizes a factor-analytic technique that is organized in five essential factors that are: Openness Conscientiousness Extraversion Agreeableness Neuroticism These trait theories complement each other to assist us get additional understanding of the personality of Albert Einstein. While focusing on the factors of the big five model, Einstein was an extremely non-open person in the early childhood. When he was three years old, he could not yet talk, and he really hated playing music especially playing piano. Nevertheless, he became more open when he became an adult man. He used to be enjoyed by art; he also used to play music as his preference and got interested about nature. He was very introverted, he did not really liked to talk to others. Every scientific work was done by him. And this could possibly be the reason that clarifies that why he gave divorce to his wife. However, in the end days of his life, he was pretty much more active and he joined many organizations that confined the peace and the human rights. He had a very strong agreeableness that could be seen by his love and his passion, along with his fights for freedom and peace of the world. He was not very neurotic because he had by no means concern about the certainty of his theories that were not agreed upon by almost all of the scientists of 20th century, but he still struggled, fought and proved to the humanity the truth. Certainly, he was mentally a very strong person that was against the military rule and dictatorship of German government. Finally, he would not have been a famous and genius man of the 20th century if he were not conscientiousness. Because he created new theories, he should have been very structured and well-versed in each theme. Secondly, the trait theory utilizes the biological features that are recognized as: Introversion Extraversion Emotionality Stability. Connecting to the 2nd trait theory, Albert Einstein seemed not to fit in any specific area of the sphere e.g. Introverted Extraverted and Emotional Stability. He was very submissive, thoughtful, easygoing, peaceful and active. We could easily see it all the way through his personal living. For instant, he on no account cared how people thought about his presentation, his hair or the clothes. Einstein had the unsurprising trait patterns that represent the multifaceted personality. Neo-Freudian Theory: The theory of Erickson describes the psycho-social improvement through eight different periods. According to this theory, each level focuses on a subject, or calamity, that is particularly important at his that span of life. By applying the theory of Erickson on Einsteins psycho-social improvement at the very end of his life, we could possibly comprehend that his life was wonderful and playful. Albert Einstein displayed self-actualization in dedicating his life for society and science. The scientific creativity of Einstein was intensely connected with the societal development and was an enormous part of his history. The theory of Erickson will terminate that at the older age, Einstein lived a very meaningful life and he was prepared to countenance death with approval and pride. Nevertheless, Einstein apparently was not satisfied by his life although he had completed a lot of work. At the same time, as in the last days, when he was in hospital, he spoke something to the nurse in German before going to sleep forever. A lot of scientists said that Einstein may talk about the quantums theory for the achievement to that nurse, but regrettably she did not appreciated German. Therefore, when at the time when Einstein was about to death, we might also see the confliction between honesty versus despair. (Cunny, 1960). A lot of people had doubt and questioned that how Einstein was so good and intelligent. After the death of Einstein, doctors managed a surgery on his head and did not found out any dissimilarity between his brains with a normal persons brain. According to the theory of Gardner, everyone governs a special intellect which is articulated in different situate of skills (Language, Thought, Intelligence 285). The intelligence of Einstein was specially called the logical-mathematical intelligence. Certainly, Einstein formed the theories based on the observations, and on the logical reasoning. Take For instant, some scientists thought while Albert Einstein was still working in government grant office, he experimented that many of the people that were coming inside and out the office on the certain time. He observed that the time and space in the place of work that were linked and by the reasonable thinking, his common relativity theory was recognized (Cunny, 1960). In other viewpoint, Sternberg Triarchic theory also integrated three diverse types of intelligence that are: Analytic Creative Practical Einsteins science efforts were based on logical intelligence. He also used diagnostic thought to resolve the physics problems. And He may also have realistic intelligence because he was worried that a lonesome man in science that can only work alone and observe the subjects through his uneven experience in life. For example, he disliked rote learning in schools, so that he can get experience and studied math by his individuality. Generally, both theories clarified the types of intelligence of Albert Einstein splendidly and it gave us more thoughts about our particular intelligences which we have not thought about ever before. Psychoanalytic Theory: This theory by Sigmund Freud explains that the psyche of human beings is divided in two structures that are the conscious and the unconscious mind of a person. However, the mind of a person has three parts that are: Id Ego The Super-Ego had been such a progressive messenger and he had said about how significant thoughts are that a person can never get any of the revolutionary ideas if he keeps on thinking the same thoughts that he thought before. A person has to think different thoughts in order to progress in life. The ego is part of the individual structure and it will be with us when we dwell in the sphere of the substantial and live inside this concept as we know of it as time since the ego only survive in our past reminiscences or our future thoughts. The ego cannot exist in the present moment of now. When we go back to the area of the absolute, all reverse to the care that is the center of our living being and the ego vanishes because we are one time again in full information that we are with the foundation of all that survive and there is no idea such as time. There is only the current instant of now and the ego can not survive in this surroundings. Maslow Hierarchy of Needs: The hierarchy of needs include all the physiological, psychological, belonging, esteem needs and the need for self-actualization. 5.1. Physiological Need: The physiological needs include the needs like air, water, food, shelter and safety etc. Albert Einstein was not very social in his early life but by the end of his life, he became more social, started interacting with people more often because of the safety of not being lonesome. There are two ways to live your life. He also believed that there are only two ways by which a person can live his life. One is if you believe that nothing is a miracle and the other is when you believe that everything is a miracle. 5.2. Psychological Need: Probably psychological needs enable us to prosper rather than just survive; this can be seen in terms of excess energy just like economic magnificence can also be seen in terms of over capital. The majority of the people on the planet earth waste most of the time while struggling to satisfy their survival needs and so they then have a very little time spare to enjoy luxury of pleasing the psychological needs of understanding and knowing. Einstein was a very intelligent man and he did not believed in miracles. The theories he proposed were not accepted by other scientists but he was psychologically very strong and determined that he was right and soon everyone was found of him. 5.3 Belonging Need: Even when Einstein was a very young child, he valued solitude, in 1930 he remembered and said that he was a true lone traveler and he have never belonged to his country, his home, his friends, and even his instantaneous family with his whole heart and as a matter of fact, he had never lost the sense of coldness and the need for solitude, and the feelings that increase with the years and time. (qtd in Cassidy 64). 5.4 Esteem Need: There are of two types of Esteem needs that are: Internal esteem needs that can include the need for self- respect, competence, confidence, freedom and achievement. External esteem needs can include the needs for recognition, status, power, admiration and attention. Albert Einstein was not very confident or competent in his early life, he even started talking very late then any other normal person but in the later life he became very confident and he achieved a lot by the validations of the theories that he proposed. On the other hand, he also received a lot attention and admiration throughout his life and was very famous among the people. 5. 5 Self- Actualization: Albert Einstein displayed self-actualization in dedicating his life for society and science. The scientific creativity of Albert Einstein was intensely related with the societal development and was an enormous part of his history. Conclusion: These trait theories complement each other to assist us get additional understanding of the personality of Albert Einstein. While focusing on the factors of the big five model, Einstein was an extremely non-open person in the early childhood. Certainly, Einstein was mentally a very strong person that was against the military rule and dictatorship of German government. Finally, he would not have been a famous and genius man of the 20th century if he were not conscientiousness. Because he created new theories, he should have been very structured and well-versed in each theme. Albert Einstein was not very confident or competent in his early life, he even started talking very late then any other normal person but in the later life he became very confident and he achieved a lot by the validations of the theories that he proposed. On the other hand, he also received a lot attention and admiration throughout his life and was very famous among the people. The scientific creativity of Albert Einstein was intensely related with the societal development and was an enormous part of his history. Probably psychological needs enable us to prosper rather than just survive; this can be seen in terms of excess energy just like economic magnificence can also be seen in terms of over capital. Einstein was a very intelligent man and he did not believed in miracles. The theories he proposed were not accepted by other scientists but he was psychologically very strong and determined that he was right and soon everyone was found of him. Gender Selection: Ethical Dilemma Gender Selection: Ethical Dilemma 1.0 INTRODUCTION â€Å"Over the course of human history, the gender of a newborn child has mostly been a surprise and an uncontrollable aspect of the lifecycle† (Akchurin and Kartzke 2012). However, with advances in reproduction technologies nowadays such as in-vitro fertilization and testing embryos for abnormalities, parents can not only know the gender of their offspring before birth, but it is also possible for them to choose the gender of the child before it is being implanted in the womb (Cloonman et al. 2007). Since decades, the practice of identifying fetal sex during pregnancy has existed and it was first introduced in the 1970s (WHO 2012). While prenatal sex selection was once considered to be unique to India and China, the practice now exists in the Asian, European and African countries, especially with the prevalence of ultrasound, being more affordable to middle-class and even lower-class families (Miller 2001). Although gender selection has been beneficial to a large extent to so ciety, questions about its ethicality are often raised and it remains a highly controversial issue. Therefore, the following points below emphasises on the arguments for and against in a bid to provide a balanced debate as to whether selecting the gender of a child before birth should be allowed or not 2.0 ARGUMENTS FOR MOTIVATIONS UNDERLYING SEX SELECTION 2.1 Prevention of selective abortion and infanticide Throughout history, gender selection has been practiced after birth by the abandonment or killing of unwanted infants or before birth by selective abortion. However, these ruthless practices still exist in some countries. One of the main causes is due to deep-rooted cultural factors present in countries like India and China (Jones 1992) which strongly affect gender preferences. For instance, in China, the Government has adopted the one-child policy and for the case of India, most Indian’s parents mostly pray for a baby boy for cultural factors such as inheritance of property, family name to their heirs and their contribution to economic activity (Bhaskar and Gupta 2007). Therefore, by allowing parents to choose the sex of their offspring before pregnancy and eventually allow them to get their desired offspring, this will not only prevent them from committing sins like infanticide and selective abortion, but also avoid negative cultural implications. 2.2 Family Balancing Gender selection is also considered as ethical when it is used for â€Å"Family balancing† purposes (Bhaskar 2010). As Cline (2007) claimed, families that already have one or more children of a particular sex may feel like selecting the gender of their next offspring in order to â€Å"balance the gender ratio† of their family. Data indicate that couples who are expecting a baby, but already have a daughter, prefer to have recourse to gender selection methods so as to ensure that their next child would be a boy (Hesketh and Zing 2006). Thus, this argument is justified when considering the fact that having children of different sex in a family is beneficial to the society (Akchurin and Kartzkey 2012). 2.3 Freedom of choice If the latest technology in gender selection exists, then parents believe that they should have the reproductive right to select the gender make-up of their family given that no impairment is being caused to the society by their decision (Harris 1997). Article 16 (1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that: Men and women of full age†¦ have the right to marry and to found a family and this right also implies that they have the right to make choices over how their family should be formed(U.N. 1948). 2.4 Sex-linked genetic diseases For families who are prone to get sex-linked genetic diseases like â€Å"Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, hemophilia, Cooleys anemia, Downs syndrome†, and more than 400 other diseases (Jones 1992), pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) prevent them from conceiving a baby with the risk of developing a severe illness and avoid abortion or premature death (Silverman 2005). Therefore, in this case, the use of PGD for a medical purpose is an ethical practice. 3.0 ARGUMENT AGAINST SEX SELECTION 3.1 Children designed to specifications A popular criticism of gender selection is its use for non-medical reasons. Children are being considered as consumer products or toys designed to specifications in a bid to satisfy parents (Akchurin and Kartzke 2012). The latter are using money and technology to fulfill superficial desires and soon they will want to choose the eye or hair colour, skin tone and eventually the career of their offspring, thus leading to the creation of a â€Å"designer baby†. Besides, parents may not be aware that in trying to customize their babies, this may lead to the development of other undesirable traits; low intelligence, birth defects, the passing of hereditary diseases, or even genetic disorders. 3.2 Natural Selection Having a child is a natural phenomenon, full of wonder, but however, doctors, and to an extent parents, are â€Å"playing God† by choosing the gender of their child (Leung 2004). Children should not be loved because of who they are, not because they are exactly what we wanted of them (Stein 2004). Reproductive technologies were developed with the intention to cure diseases, but choosing the gender of a child before pregnancy is not a disease. Thus, by allowing sex choice for non-medical reasons, this can have harmful implications on the society as this will encourage selective abortion. Besides, the society will lose its natural essence and the evolution of human species will be affected (Sureau 1999). 3.3 Gender imbalance Another unintended consequence of sex selection is gender imbalance. Gender preferences due to social and cultural factors may result in serious imbalances in some countries like India, Vietnam and China. For instance, in India, the sex ratio at birth is very high such that there are â€Å"914 girls for every 1,000 boys† (The Economist 2011). The negative implications of gender imbalance may subsequently lead to â€Å"marriage squeeze† whereby a shortage of women leaves fewer brides available for the large numbers of prospective grooms (Hvistendahl 2012). These imbalances are socially harmful because as they are linked to forced marriage, sexual violence, kidnapping and prostitution. 4.0 CONCLUSION â€Å"Childbirth is a complex series of molecular reactions and organic growth, and while doctors have learned much about the process, there is still much that is unknown† (Akchurin and Kartzke 2012). Technology has permitted humans to make choices on different ways on how to live their lives, but gender selection is all about allowing people making a choice about the life of someone else, which is not a decision for them to take as it severely affects the quality of life of the child in some way or another and can eventually have negative impacts on the society as a whole (Cloonman et al. 2007). However, as per the Human Genetics Alert Campaign Briefing (2002), it is pointless to ‘try to stop scientific advances’, but instead, it is better to focus on how to prevent any abuse. Policymakers need to be aware of the practice’s potential growth, and how it threatens gender equality and progress in their own countries (Gilles and Jacobs 2012). Hence, gender sel ection is a highly controversial issue as far as its applicability for medical and non-medical reasons is concerned and involves a debate that is outside the scope of this essay. BIBLIOGRAPHY Akchurin,W. and Kartzk, R., 2012. The Ethics of Gender Selection [online]. Available from: http://www.ethicapublishing.com/ ethical/3CH2.pdf. Bhaskar, V., and Gupta, B., 2007. India’s Missing Girls: Biology, Customs and Economic Development, Oxford Review of Economic Policy, 23, 221-238. Bhaskar, V., 2010. Sex Selection and Gender Balance. University College London. Cline, A., 2007. Gender Selection- Ethical Considerations New Technologies. [online]. Available from: http://atheism.about.com Cloonman, K., Crumley, C. and Kiymaz, S., 2007. Sex Selection: Ethical Issues. Developmental Biology. The New York Times. [Online]. Available from: http://8e.devbio.com Ganatra, B., 2008. Maintaining Access to Safe Abortion and Reducing Sex Ratio Imbalances in Asia. Reproductive Health Matters 16, 90-98. Gilles, K. and Feldman-JACOBS, C., 2012. When technology and tradition collide: from gender bias to sex selection. Policy brief- Population Reference Bureau, Washington, USA, 1-5. Harris, J. 1997. Goodbye Dolly? The ethics of human cloning. J Med Ethics, (23), 353-360. Hesketh, T., and Zing, Z.W, 2006. Abnormal Sex Ratios in Human Populations: Causes and Consequences. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 103(36), 13271-75. Human Genetics Alert Campaign Briefing, 2002. The case against sex selection [online]. Human Genetics Alert, London. Available from: www.hgalert.org/sexselection.PDF Hvistendahl, M., 2012. Unnatural Selection: Choosing Boys Over Girls and the Consequences of a World Full of Men. Report of the International Workshop on Skewed Sex Ratios at Birth, UNFPA, New York. International debate education association, 2012. This house believes parents should be able to choose the sex of their children, [online]. Available from: http://idebate.org/es/cite/17669 JONES, O., 1992. Sex Selection: regulating technology enabling the predetermination of a childs gender. Harvard Journal of Law Technology, 6, 1-62. Leung, R., 2004. Choose the Sex of Your Baby. CBS News. [online]. Available from: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/04/13/60II/main611618.shtml Miller, B., 2001. Female-Selective Abortion in Asia: Patterns, Policies, and Debates. Report of the International Workshop on Skewed Sex Ratios at Birth. American Anthropologist, 103 (4), 1083-95. Peterson-Iyer, K., 2004. Designer Children. Cleveland: The Pilgrim. 1-232. Silverman, A., 2005. Genetic Diseases. The Silverman Center for Gender Selection, [online]. Available from: http://www.gender-select.com Stein, R., 2004.A Boy for You, a Girl for Me: Technology Allows Choice. The Washington Post [online]. Available from:http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A62067-2004Dec13.html Sureau, C., 2007. Gender Selection: a Crime Against Humanity or the Exercise of a Fundamental Right? Oxford Journals Human Reproduction. [online]. Available from: http://humrep.oxfordjournals.org The Economist, 2011. Add sugar and spice.[online]. Available from: http://www.economist.com/node/18530101 U.N., 1948. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights.General Assembly United Nations. Available from: http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/index.shtml> Waters, B., 2001. Reproductive Technology. Cleveland: The Pilgrim. 1-148. World Health Organization (WHO), 2011. Preventing Gender-biased Sex Selection: An Interagency Statement. [online]. Available from: www.who.int/reproductivehealth

That Was Then, This Is Now :: essays papers

That Was Then, This Is Now As I grow older I find myself and my surroundings changing. Many things about my personality and appearance have altered greatly in the past decade. I've observed many of these same changes in my family as well as in my friends. Some of my likes and dislikes of certain things are the same as when I was six years old, but not all. From my love of children and every type of critter to my dependency on my parents, my life has changed. From a very young age I've always loved children. "Mom, can I have a little brother and sister to play with?" was a favorite question of mine. A little bit later I would learn the answer. I would eventually have both. Other mothers often commented on my 'motherly instinct' when it came to my younger siblings. I've always liked the feeling of being able to comfort someone smaller than I am. As a child I loved playing dolls and 'house', always pretending to be the mother. Now I work at a Nursery watching over real children. From my love of children derived my desire to become a pediatrician. Along with my love of children is my love of animals. A new pet every week was a regular around the Moody House. My friends were always amazed by the array of creatures crawling around my room and shimmying up the curtains. One week I'd have eight pet chickens and a guinea pig and the next it was a turtle and bunny rabbit. As I grow older I become a little less interested in having as many pets as possible and a little more content with just the ordinary dog and my pet Iguana. All throughout my life I have depended on my parents. As a young child I searched eagerly in the eyes of my mom and dad for the reassurance I needed whenever I did something new. Holding tightly onto my dad's hand as we crossed the street I trusted he would always take me safely across. In the same way I have always trusted they would guide me through life safely. Although I no longer hold their hands when I cross the street I know they are always there. I've grown into my own person, depending more on myself rather than searching for reassurance through them.

How Attitudes to Marriage Have Changed Essay

In the past people married at a much younger age on average than they do today. Marrying in your late teens or early twenties was normal. Most people got married as this is what was expected of you, and people rarely considered not doing so. Many fewer decide to marry these days. Many make the conscious decisions not to as they prefer to remain more independent. This can be the case for both genders. Some would argue that people wait to meet the right person now, whereas before they would marry the first person who came along. Living Together while not Married In the past it was not socially acceptable for unmarried couples to live together. It was seen as wrong and was therefore extremely rare. It is possible that this contributed to early marriage. Unmarried couples living together has almost become the norm now. Many decide to see how they get along living together before they decide to marry. It is also common for couples to live together, and possibly have children, without ever getting married. They live the same way as a married couple without ever making it official. Children It used to be rare for people not to have children. Most people would conform to a very specific lifestyle, marrying young and having children soon after. Hardly anyone had children before marriage, and it was even rarer for people to do this by choice. Nowadays it is not uncommon at all for people to have children without being married and this is not seen as a big issue by most. Sometimes parents live together as a family with their children without being married, while others are single parents. Not everyone decides to have children either. It is no longer seen as something you must do so it has become more of a choice. The Role of Women A hundred years ago, the role of women was very specific. They were expected to marry, have children, and not work. Their role was to look after the home and their children while men went out to work. Women’s role in family life, and life in general, now depends on the individual person and her circumstances. Many still crave the traditional lifestyle of marriage and children, but many make other choices. There are many more career women; some are working parents while others don’t have children at all. The role of men is also less rigid, and it is much more common than it used to be for Mothers to go to work while Fathers stay at home. Divorce Divorce was once illegal so wasn’t an option at all. Even once it did become legal it was rarely considered and was deemed a sin by many. Now it is much more common for a variety of reasons. Attitudes have completely changed and divorce is seen as perfectly acceptable for those in an unhappy marriage and there is no longer the same stigma attached to it. Although some think of the increase in divorce as a negative, it could be argued that it is better than remaining unhappy. It is also practically easier with family law having changed to make it easier for those seeking a divorce.