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Dostoevsky Crime and Punishment Quotations

Dostoevsky 'Crime and Punishment' Quotations Crime and Punishment is a novel by one of the greatest Russian authors, Fyodor Dostoevsky. The novel was published in installments during 1866. Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov, a poor ex-student in St. Petersburg, who is the main protagonist. Here are a few quotes from the novel. Notable Quotes All is in a mans hands and he lets it all slip from cowardice, thats an axiom. It would be interesting to know what it is men are most afraid of. Taking a new step, uttering a new word is what they fear most.- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Part 1, Chapter 1Why am I going there now? Am I capable of that? Is that serious? It is not serious at all. Its simply a fantasy to amuse myself; a plaything! Yes, maybe it is a plaything.- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Part 1, Ch. 1Why am I to be pitied, you say? Yes! Theres nothing to pity me for! I ought to be crucified, crucified on a cross, not pitied! Crucify me, oh judge, crucify me but pity me?- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Part 1, Ch. 2What if man is not really a scoundrel, man in general, I mean, the whole race of mankind - then all the rest is prejudice, simply artificial terrors and there are no barriers and its all as it should be.- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment,Part 1, Ch. 2He ran beside the mare, ran in front of her, saw her being whipped across the eyes, right in the eyes! He was crying, he felt choking, his tears were streaming. One of the men gave him a cut with the whip across the face, he did not feel it. Wringing his hands and screaming, he rushed up to the grey-headed old man with the grey beard, who was shaking his head in disapproval. One woman seized him by the hand and would have taken him away, but he tore himself from her and ran back to the mare. She was almost at the last gasp, but began kicking once more.- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Part 1, Ch. 5 Good God! ... can it be, can it be, that I shall really take an axe, that I shall strike her on the head, split her skull open...that I shall tread in the sticky warm blood, blood...with the axe...Good God, can it be?- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Part 1, Ch. 5He suddenly heard steps in the room where the old woman lay. He stopped short and was still as death. But all was quiet, so it must have been his fancy. All at once he heard distinctly a faint cry, as though some one had uttered a low broken moan. Then again dead silence for a minute or two. He sat squatting on his heels by the box and waited, holding his breath. Suddenly he jumped up, seized the axe and ran out of the bedroom.- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Part 1, Ch. 7Where is it Ive read that someone condemned to death says or thinks, an hour before his death, that if he had to live on some high rock, on such a narrow ledge that hed only room to stand, and the ocean, everlasting darkness, everlasting solitude, everlasting tempest around him, if he had to remain standing on a square yard of space all his life, a thousand years, eternity, it were better to live so than to die at once! Only to live, to live and live! Life, whatever it may be!...How true it is! Good God, how true! Man is a vile creature!...And vile is he who calls him vile for that- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Part 2, Ch. 6 Life is real! Havent I lived just now? My life has not yet died with that old woman! The Kingdom of Heaven to her-and now enough, madam, leave me in peace! Now for the reign of reason and light...and of will, and of strength...and now we will see! We will try our strength.- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Part 2, Ch. 7I like them to talk nonsense. Thats mans one privilege over all creation. Through error you come to the truth! I am a man because I err! You never reach any truth without making fourteen mistakes and very likely a hundred and fourteen.- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Part 3, Ch. 1But what can I tell you? I have known Rodion for a year and a half; he is moody, melancholy, proud, and haughty; recently (and perhaps for much longer than I know) he has been morbidly depressed and over-anxious about his health. He is kind and generous. He doesnt like to display his feelings, and would rather seem heartless than talk about them. Sometimes, however, he is not hypochondriacal at all, but simply inhumanly cold and unfeeling. Really, it is as if he had two separate personalities, each dominating him alternately.- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Part 3, Ch. 2 Actions are sometimes performed in a masterly and most cunning way, while the direction of the actions is deranged and dependent on various morbid impressions - its like a dream.- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Part 3, Ch. 3It began with the socialist doctrine. You know their doctrine; crime is a protest against the abnormality of the social organisation and nothing more, and nothing more; no other causes admitted!- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Part 3, Ch. 5If he has a conscience he will suffer for his mistake. That will be punishment - as well as the prison.- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment, Part 3, Ch. 5It was dark in the corridor, they were standing near the lamp. For a minute they were looking at one another in silence. Razumikhin remembered that minute all his life. Raskolnikov’s burning and intent eyes grew more penetrating every moment, piercing into his soul, into his consciousness. Suddenly Razumihin started. Something strange, as it were passed between them... Some idea, some hint as it were, slipped, something awful, hideous, and suddenly understood on both sides... Razumihin turned pale.- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Part 4, Ch. 3 I did not bow down to you, I bowed down to all the suffering of humanity.- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Part 4, Ch. 4Power is given only to him who dates to stoop and take it... one must have the courage to dare.- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Part 5, Ch. 4I wanted to murder, for my own satisfaction ... At that moment I did not care a damn whether I would spend the rest of my life like a spider catching them all in my web and sucking the living juices out of them.- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Part 5, Ch. 4Go at once, this very minute, stand at the cross-roads, bow down, first kiss the earth which you have defiled, and then bow down to all the world and say to all men aloud, I am a murderer! Then God will send you life again. Will you go, will you go?- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Part 5, Ch. 4You ought to thank God, perhaps. How do you know? Perhaps God is saving you for something. But keep a good heart and have less fear! A re you afraid of the great expiation before you? No, it would be shameful to be afraid of it. Since you have taken such a step, you must harden your heart. There is justice in it. You must fulfill the demands of justice. I know that you don’t believe it, but indeed, life will bring you through. You will live it down in time. What you need now is fresh air, fresh air, fresh air!- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Part 6, Ch. 2 Nothing in this world is harder than speaking the truth, nothing easier than flattery.- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Part 6, Ch. 4Crime? What crime? ... That I killed a vile noxious insect, an old pawnbroker woman, of use to no one! ... Killing her was atonement for forty sins. She was sucking the life out of poor people. Was that a crime?- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Part 6, Ch. 7If I had succeeded I should have been crowned with glory, but now Im trapped.- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Part 6, Ch. 7It was I killed the old pawnbroker woman and her sister Lizaveta with an axe and robbed them.- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Part 6, Ch. 8Youre a gentleman... You shouldnt hack about with an axe; thats not a gentlemans work.- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Epilogue 2Some new sorts of microbes were attacking the bodies of men, but these microbes were endowed with intelligence and will ... Men attacked by them became a t once mad and furious.- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Epilogue 2 How it happened he did not know. But all at once something seemed to seize him and fling him at her feet. He wept and threw his arms round her knees. For the first instant she was terribly frightened and she turned pale. She jumped up and looked at him trembling. But at the same moment she understood, and a light of infinite happiness came into her eyes. She knew and had no doubt that he loved her beyond everything and that at last the moment had come.- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Epilogue 2They wanted to speak, but could not; tears stood in their eyes. They were both pale and thin; but those sick pale faces were bright with the dawn of a new future, of a full resurrection into a new life. They were renewed by love; the heart of each held infinite sources of life for the heart of the other.- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Epilogue 2Seven years, only seven years! At the beginning of their happiness at some moments they were both ready to look on those seve n years as though they were seven days. He did not know that the new life would not be given him for nothing, that he would have to pay dearly for it, that it would cost him great striving, great suffering.- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Epilogue 2 But that is the beginning of a new story – the story of the gradual renewal of a man, the story of his gradual regeneration, of his passing from one world into another, of his initiation into a new unknown life. That might be the subject of a new story, but our present story is ended.- Fyodor Dostoevsky,  Crime and Punishment, Epilogue 2

The ideal person Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The ideal person - Essay Example Shu represents Confucius’ golden rule, which warned against imposing on others what you did not want to be imposed upon you. The virtue refers to empathy whereby, an ideal person has the ability to view situations from other people’s perspectives without rendering harsh judgments from their personal appraisals of the situation. Closely related to this virtue is the concept of Zhong (loyalty), which implies that social roles define one’s moral duties. Confucius believed that an empathetic person possessed the ability to embrace people’s different perspectives, which resulted from their differing social roles (Riegel, 2008).Xiao referred to filial piety, which encompassed dimensions of social relations ordered in a hierarchy. These relations included ruler and the people, husband and wife, father and son, elder brother and younger brother, and older friend and younger friend. According to Confucius, an ideal person had the ability to respect those on the low er side of the hierarchy such as wife, younger friend or brother. In addition, proper functioning of the social relations constituted societal harmony (Riegel, 2008).Wen referred to leisurely activities undertaken by individuals; for example, music or arts. According to Confucius, individuals should embed moral themes in these activities, as it added societal value to these activities. He inferred that individuals should avoid engaging in creative pursuits that do not mirror any virtues (Riegel, 2008).

Fundamentals of business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Fundamentals of business - Essay Example From that initial initiative, the company grew manifold and in that time, changed the name from PC’s Limited to "Dell Computer Corporation" in 1988 Dell Inc. Corporation is a computer company located in Round Rock, Texas. It builds and sells personal computers and other products, which are related computers. â€Å"The company currently sells personal computers, servers, data storage devices, network switches, software, computer peripherals and televisions.† (crunchbase.com). Presently, close to 100,000 people work in Dell and its worldwide operations. Dell had its best growth during 1980s and 1990s, and thus its optimal growth elevated it as the largest seller of Personal Computers and servers. But, in early 2000’s, Dell’s was overtaken by Hewlett-Packard. So after 2008, it held the second spot in computer-sales within the industry behind the Hewlett-Packard Company. Dell has been a pioneer in the business of manufacturing made to order PCs and laptops and manufacture of x86 servers. To diversify its portfolio it has expanded its product range to include data storage hardware, printers and their cartridges, networking switches and hand held PCs as well as proving software solutions. The company has a global reach and has offices in Europe, Asia and Japan besides America. The company aims to produce high quality products at a low cost and use this strategy to achieve profitability. Michael Dell, who is the founder and currently the Chairman and CEO, held around 10% of the company’s shares. Rest of the key stake holders are institutional and mutual fund owners besides the small time investors. Customers: We believe in creating loyal customers by providing a superior experience at a great value. We are committed to direct relationships, providing the best products and services based on standards-based technology, and outperforming the competition with value and a superior

Security of Information in Government Organizations Essay

Security of Information in Government Organizations - Essay Example Whatever format government organizations store their information, it needs to be protected properly (Aoufi, 2011). ISO 27002 claims that information safety is the central aspect of government’s information security that guarantees three features which are: integrity, availability and confidentiality of asset (Aoufi, 2011). Integrity is about protecting the truthfulness and extensiveness of information. This feature denotes to the necessity that information is secured from improper change Availability is certifying that only approved employers have access to information and associated assets when needed. This property refers to the protection of information from denial of service Confidentiality guarantees that information is accessible merely to those approved employers. This feature denotes to the security of information from illegal leak (Aoufi, 2011) There are no priorities regarding the importance about those three features. The importance of each of the features relies on the perspective of how they are implemented in government organizations. For example, information which is categorized as public is needed to assure availability and integrity and confidentiality is not needed (Aoufi, 2011). Information Security In Government Organizations Information security in government organizations are the promise that information, resources and facilities are protected against concession and people are secured in contradiction of workplace violence. Through information security government can guarantee its own security that supports the health, protection, economic welfare and safety of citizens. Security arises by forming trust among government, citizens and people within government organizations. Within government organizations there is need to certify that people... This essay stresses that in any government organization, the resources and operations are highly reliant on information technology to achieve the objectives and targets. Considering the high reliance, information becomes a strategic enabler for success of government organizations. Thus, defending information is main concern for any government establishments This paper makes a conclusion that through information security, government organizations can protect their information system from illegal accessing, leaking, distraction, alteration, inspection, coping or damaging. Government organizations possess several intimate information regarding nuclear operation, military operation, business deals, and employees. Most of those data are processed electronically and shared across organizations’ internal network. As the use of internet and computer increases and develops, the risk of leaking and stealing those high priority information has also increased. There are internal as well as external threats of government information. Thus, information security has become highly important and technologically advanced expressively in recent times. Government organizations are required to provide a great deal of effort for protecting information asset from external as well as internal threats. Through proper security measures government, organiz ations are able to ensure the integrity, availability and confidentiality of information.

Russian Foreign Policy Towards The Post Soviet Sphere Politics Essay

Russian Foreign Policy Towards The Post Soviet Sphere Politics Essay The relations with Russia and the fragmented post-Soviet space have been rather popular topic for some years now. But after the cyber crises, April anxiety and the attack to South Ossetia, the topic has gathered even more increasing attention. The Russian foreign policy therefore has been changed a lot and has undergone different strategies. Nowadays Russian foreign policy creation probably reminds to lot of people like building the road to the heaven. The process consists of continuous alternating compromises as well as provoking actions or signs towards the West. Sometimes the decisions of Russian foreign policy are even against its own national interest and therefore from time to time it could raise a question if Russia has even stepped out from its baby-shoes or not. During the Russian Empire times the Russian foreign policy symbolized the Orthodox Christian world and the centre of gravity for pan-Slavic movements. It was greatly based on the imperialist world order that was trying to find quick development in economic and social means. The main objective was to increase Russian living standards so it could compete with other more developed countries. But after the collapse of Soviet Union, what was according to Putin the biggest catastrophe during the 20th century, the Russian foreign policy has changed. It became more pragmatic and looked after the realization of sophisticated world. This was also visible from the Russian relations with other countries, as Russia started to communicate more closely with the more refined world. The characteristics of the different relations with different countries varied a lot- at one time Russia was acting like a full-partner while on the other times Russia took only minor roles or even opposition in cooperati ng. The changing Russian foreign policy was established on different aspects. The main objective was to formulate Russian national interests, so the foreign policy could correspond to the ones that are especially necessary and which ones are applying to the other countries on the world political field. Another objective was to tempt other countries to the agreements on subjects where its interests are not the same as Russia has. The reactions to the Russian foreign policy changes have not been easy to adapt neither for Russia nor to the post-soviet countries. The ending of the Cold War was unexpected to the both sides and the idea to totally change the ideologies of the countries policies after that, has not yet been accomplished by neither of the sides. The changes of Russian foreign policy are influenced by different features. The main influencer is probably the situation on the oil market, as Russia is one of the biggest oil providers in the region. This also affects the trade of other goods. For example after the collapse on Soviet Union the Baltic States were still a part of post-Soviet geopolitical and economic development. The party that is ruling the political decisions in Russia has also a big role to play in the influence process of Russian foreign policy. The clear difference was visible with Boriss Jeltsin and Vladimir Putin, whose tactics were different. The third aspect that influences the Russ ian foreign policy rather highly is the current Russian relations with Eurasia and Caucasus as well as with Central Asia and the situations on those countries. But to a country like Russia probably the biggest foreign policy driver is the embrace of the power and its sphere of influence- either it is local or more like global. The presentation of the change from rather Russia-centered and regional power emerged during the Putin administration. At that time Russia raised to being one of the global energy power suppliers and demanded the local currency recognition equal to the US dollar. Russian foreign policy and market economy The importance of the economics and businesses in Russian foreign policy today is considerably high. It has also been seen as a source of the state power. With the Putin presidency major changes on Russian business market were made. During the Putin administration the big oligarchs were destroyed. Putin deputized its authorities to sit on the boards of key companies so he could have a control over the businesses. He also continued to support the integration of Russia to the world economy. While during the Soviet Union times Russia was the biggest supplier on its markets, but now after the collapse of Soviet Union the markets where Russia is the biggest player are decreasing and the foreign trade is taking over. This can be considered as one of the biggest threats to Russian economy. Also as we had financial crises in the world, the unemployment rate in Russia rose significally. Russian foreign policy today When to follow the Russian foreign policy, it can actually be said that it is rather continuous and has hidden aggressiveness. The current Russia has a tendency to demonstrate new conceptual documents in foreign policy as well as in security policy. These are always welcomed with high level of attention because according to these documents the world is trying to predict the coming Russian policy  [1]  . If to be very careful and to observe closely, it can be seen that actually the changes of Russian foreign policy has built up on tactical regrouping. The biggest change between the previous and current Russian foreign policy concept is that now the foreign policy goals has to be in balance with Russian economic, intellectual and technological possibilities. Regardless to the world image of Russia according to its recent actions, Russia still seems to think of itself as the super-power. In different ways and by different actions Russia still threats the post-soviet countries and in a way Russia still treats them as a part of its colony. But there is a difference between the former soviet countries. For example the threat to Estonia is unlike and smaller than to Georgia, as Estonia is a member of the European Union. Therefore the actions or procedures how Russia can endanger Estonia is different because of the western powers, but in case of Georgia, as it was seen, there is not such a strong backup. For Russians the fact that Estonia joined the western block was a big disappointment and according to the surveys, it became apparent that Estonia is the second country that the Russians trust the less. The Russian foreign policy that we know today is a product of former superpower, which desperately tries to hold on to its power. Some histori ans even say that, now when different countries are allies, the war will begin sooner or later. The orange revolution in Ukraine during the 2004, reminded greatly the situation in Estonia after the singing revolution. After the orange revolution Ukraine seemed to be able to see the freedom, as it happened in Estonia in 1987-1988. Then in year 2007 Vladimir Putin wrote a letter to Ukraine president Viktor JuÃ…Â ¡tÃ…Â ¡enko with what Putin clearly and directly intervened to Ukraine domestic problems and policy. But the actual aim of this letter was basically to control Ukraine, as Putin saw that things are getting out of his hands. This can be considered as a clear sign of Russian wish to take over the control and basically to reunite the former Soviet Union countries in order to form a Russian Empire again. It seemed that the tactic was to take over the control at first from the inside of the country by trying to attract the people, who can be manipulated to support Russia and its ideas and plans. If that has been accomplished then it is easy to take over the country tim e by time. In year 2008 Russian president Medvedev claimed that Russian foreign policy is neither liberal nor conservative but it is driven from Russian national interests. He also said that the freedom, democracy and the protection of human rights matters a lot to Russia and in its foreign international relations. These are also the aspects that are protected the most  [2]  . Few months after that Russia took military actions against Georgia. The Russian- Georgian war was a clear sign to the West and to the rest of the world that Russia has had enough of its post-Soviet foreign policy and that some things have to be changed. Also it gave a warning to the world that Russia is not that pushed down as it may have seemed and is actually capable to amend enormous damage. The new face that Russia is showing now by demanding pragmatic relations with the west, internal country liberalization and the high turn of economical high technology is only the change of the layer, not the inside. Also if the Russia we know today does not liberalize the market economy, it may bring with it, that European Union has to use the sanctions. Meaning that basically in the end, both of the sides will lose tremendously. When in year 2009 Russia changed the foreign policy in a way so it will be more pragmatic, balanced and that it is not based on the opposition. During the same year Dmitri Medvedev said that, it is about the time when Russia should stop being so ignorant and egoistic. By this saying the world got rather surprised, as before Russia has wanted to play leading roles on different fields. Russia even wanted that its currency would be equal to dollar, meaning that it would be recognized all over the world. This thought was led by the oil prices and the fact that Russia is a considerably big supplier of the oil in the world. But this behavior that Russia admits that they should back down a little does not happen that often. Usually it is driven from the current situation on the world oil market and of how strong is Russian power at the time. The American analyzing centre Stratfor  [3]  predicts in it analyses that in coming year the Russian activities in its neighborhood will most probably increase. According to that it has been predicted that Russia will start to fight back the former Soviet Union countries and that Estonia is the country that interests Russia the most. The reason for that is argued to be easy- Estonian politics are easy to manipulate with. In addition to Estonia the other Baltic States countries Latvia and Lithuaina are probably facing the same. Such an increased attention and interest to Russia has been ever since the Baltic States joined the European Union and NATO. But the Baltic States are not the only countries to whom Russia will concentrate on year 2010. According to the forecasts the year 2010 Russia strives to weaken the influence of the West from Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Armenia. The goal of this is the recreation of the political union on the territory of the former Soviet Union. The analysts are predicting that the influence of Russia will be more successful in Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan. When talking about Ukraine, this prediction can be derived from the fact that the new Ukraine president Viktor JuÃ…Â ¡tÃ…Â ¡enko has a pro-Russia thinking. But interesting fact with this is the promise that Juņºtņºenko gave- to unite the badly managed Ukraine with big economic potential with the West- and Centre- Europe. This of course is causing troubles with Russia, as Ukraine will then leave the traditional influence-sphere. Now in year 2010 basically all the former post-soviet countries are on a risk, meaning that all the countries are afraid that Russia will attack sooner or later. Especially after the launch of Stratfors report as with previous forecasts 90% of Stratfor reports have been right. Other facts that are backing up the Russia potential interest towards post-soviet countries and West, is the fact that during the autumn 2009 Russia was practicing the attack to Poland, that ended with penetration to Poland with 900 tanks. The same actions were made to Latvia. It is hard to say for sure if it was only a practice against a terror attack or was it a real exercising of the infiltration. Russia today After the launch of the analyses of Russian Foreign policy and its impact to the former Soviet Union countries by American forecast agency Stratfor, many of the post-soviet countries have started to worry and fear Russia even more than before. According to the Stratfor analyses Russia is trying to form its influence sphere from its neighboring countries. With a big possibility the first countries will be Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan. It has been predicted that most probably those countries will not show that much resistance, then all the other post-soviet countries will be forced to either accept the conditions that are suitable to Moscow or to search independently the help from the foreign countries, such as USA. Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan will probably choose the first opportunity whereas Georgia and Baltics will look for the other ways. The probability that Georgia will fail to do so is rather high, as actually it was also seen in August 2008. The probability of Baltic States search for help to succeed is little higher. In case Russia should try to capture Baltic States, the chance that Russia will ruin its relations with Europe and United States is rather possible. On the other hand if Russia is going to act as predicted and target Ukraine and Georgia first, then the Baltic States could win approximately 3 years to figure out how to protect themselves. At the same time it is very important to be updated of the actions and information what is happening in Latvia as by now it is one of the weakest countries in the Baltics. The situation in Latvia is rather bad and the economy needs to be stabilized. But exactly by that reason Latvia is very sensitive to the external influences and therefore it could turn to a really good playground to the Russia. The current situation in Ukraine is still unclear as the presidentary elections are coming. That also raises the question if Ukraine has already been sold to Russia or not. It is still unclear who will win the elections and who will be appointed to be the new president. At the same time all the candidates are in a way pro-Russia, meaning that the new president of Ukraine may start to cooperate with Russia in a long-run, as Ukraine is known as a rather corrupted country and then the predicted Russian control over Ukraine will still be established. The elections still will not decide on the Ukraine final destiny, but the fact that on the current elections all the candidates are pro-Russia may send a clear signal to Russia. Once Russia recaptures Ukraine, all the other post-Soviet states will probably face the same intentions. Besides the elections and controlling the Ukraine foreign policy, Russia has one more plan with Ukraine- Russia is strongly against the Ukraine alliance with NATO and European Union. In a way Estonia is in the same situation as Ukraine, but the fact that the crossing-point of world interests is south and near-east due to the oil and heavy fuel, it leaves the Baltic Sates on the background. The near-east and the territories next to the Black Sea are with high importance to Russia. Conclusion After the recent incidents that Russia has had with different countries over the past few years, the overall image of Russia has changed a lot. In addition to that the Russian foreign policy has made through major changes after the breakdown of Soviet Union. The biggest change has been that the role of Orthodox Church that used to play a big role in the Russian foreign policy has lost its importance. Another change was the Russian- Georgian war with what Russia sent a clear sign to the world that they are tired of their current foreign policy, but they also showed how they feel about the NATO enlargement. With that step lot of the other post-Soviet countries started to fear for their independence. Besides all kind of different changes one of the mentionable is also the fact that Russia started to use its role as one of the important energy providers as a political weapon. Russia understood that they can use the energy export to improve the countrys economical and political position in the world. When looking from the post-Soviet countries viewpoint and considering the recent Stratfor analyses that predicted the high Russian attention to its neighboring states has created rather anxious feelings in post-Soviet countries. If the predictions are going to come true, it is going to cause huge changes in Russian foreign policy.

Revenge In The Odyssey :: essays research papers

The Greeks, as portrayed by Homer, are a very vengeful people. Throughout The Odyssey, a theme of vengeance is dominant. These displays of retribution come from different entities for fairly different reasons. So why is revenge such a factor in The Odyssey? Fear and the overwhelming feeling of payback are two answers. Homer gives numerous examples of how certain characters demonstrate their power in a fury of rage. He writes of the payback Zeus gives to those who break the rules, of Poseidon’s hatred towards Odysseus, and of Odysseus’s revenge to those who have dishonored his home.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Zeus is the most powerful of all gods. All the Greeks with sense know not to cross him. A major practice in their culture is to invite in visitors that come to their doorsteps. This practice involves caring for the visitor by bathing and feeding them. After the visitor has been cared for, the host and visitor discuss the lineage of the visitor. This is done with the fear of Zeus and those who don’t follow the practice are dealt with. Those who don’t follow this practice are considered barbarians. Homer gives a clue into the extent of the fear when he writes that Telemakhos was “irked with himself / to think a visitor had been kept their waiting…'; (5). One example in The Odyssey is when Odysseus comes to the home of the Kyklops. Odysseus states:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  “We will entreat you, great Sir, have a care   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  for the gods’ courtesy; Zeus will avenge the unoffending guest'; (153). Kyklops just answers that, “We Kyklopes care not for your thundering Zeus…';(153). This is a big mistake because directly after this statement, the Kyklops eats some of Odysseus’s men. Zeus does avenge the men through Odysseus. Odysseus gets the Kyklops drunk and stabs out his eye, allowing an escape. One thing that is bad for Odysseus, though, is the fact that Kyklops is the son of Poseidon, god of the earthquake. This now spurs a new challenge for Odysseus: he must get home with Poseidon’s obstacles.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Poseidon has never really liked Odysseus. When Odysseus tries to make it onto the shore of Skheria, Poseidon “…calls up wind / from every quarter, and sends a wall of rain…'; (89). Consequently, it is a safe assumption that Poseidon will really have it in for Odysseus. He states, “I thought he should suffer all the way [home]'; (233). After Odysseus returns home, Poseidon talks to Zeus and says he wants to put a mountain ring around the city and crush the ship of the Phaiakians.