The Lord of the Rings Essay Example for Free

The Lord of the Rings Essay The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings follows the story of Frodo as he and a group of friends set off on a quest to destroy the One Ring before its evil creator, the Dark Lord Savron, can get it and use it to obliterate Middle Earth. This film has a huge following of fans, which is probably something to do with how well such a wide variation of themes and genres are included in the storyline of the film. Although it is obviously a fantasy film this is clear from the opening sequence in which the different races of Middle Earth are each given a set of rings it has elements of other genres featured as well. The huge battle scene towards the beginning of the film hints towards an action/adventure aspect whilst the friendship between Frodo and Gandolf shows that the importance of trust and companionship will play a key part in how the plot evolves. The film begins with a womans voice telling the story of how the rings began life and goes onto explain who got the rings. Whilst she is talking, we see the action on screen mirroring her words as well as an ancient map, which points out where in Middle Earth the different races of life live. We are then taken to a panning shot of a huge battle scene in which the keeper of the last remaining ring is defeated. From then on filming follows this one ring as its new owner is ambushed in the forest and the ring drops to the riverbed, then as a creature known as Gollum finds it. This sequence of filming ends when Bilbo Baggins finds the ring. The next shot is in the Shire, sixty years later, and here we watch as Frodo meets up with Gandolf and the two friends take a trip through the village Frodo lives in. The locals are preparing for a party and for a while we are oblivious to who or why they are celebrating. This is until banner reading Happy Birthday Bilbo Baggins is raised between the trees. It is exceptionally important in this film that the setting is explained to the audience. This is because the entire world that the story is played out in is completely fictional. To gain such needed explanation of setting, extreme long shots and panning shots were used during the battle scene, which meant the audience could understand the enormous scale of the battle. During the opening voice over section, a map was shown on screen pointing out where each of the races live, this gave the film more authenticity and almost made the audience feel this was a real place, and these creatures were real creatures, which was essential if the film wanted to capture the audiences imagination.

Gender Language Acquisition And Language Use Psychology Essay

Gender Language Acquisition And Language Use Psychology Essay INTRODUCTION Over the last thirty years there has been a sharp increase of research on the differences between men and women, in particular the extent to which men and women use language differently. The purpose of this project is to identify the differences between male and female speech and how societys attitude towards gender has an impact on language acquisition and language use. Firstly this project will introduce the subject of sociolinguistics with a focus on stereotyping, language acquisition and the general differences in speech between males and females. Secondly, current opinions and attitudes will be discussed along with recent research that has been carried out examining if gender stereotyping exists and whether it has an impact on language acquisition and the way language is used. Lastly it will analyse findings from my own research of colour terms used by a sample of 10 children. Sociolinguistics is the study of the relationship between language and society, and how society influences or affects the way in which language is used by individuals or groups (Crystal, 2008). Gender Difference is a branch of sociolinguistics that focuses on how males and females communicate and what differences there are between the two sexes. Over the last 20 years research has been conducted to try and answer such questions as Do women really talk more than men? Do men swear more than women? and Do women gossip more than men. The main differences identified between the way men and women communicate are: mens language is more dominant, aggressive, assertive, confident and forceful and womens language is submissive, cooperative, emotional and sincere (Pearson, 1985). Research has been carried out to examine whether these differences are due to biological or social factors. LITERATURE REVIEW Early research examining the relationship between gender and language was first carried out by Lakoff in 1975 and published in her book Language and Womans Place. Lakoff identified several factors that make womans language different to mens. Womens language contains more: Hedge phrases: sort of, it seems like; Polite forms: would you mindà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦; Tag questions: you are coming to dinner, arent you?; Standard English and tend to avoid using expletives. Lakoff stated that women are reluctant to force their views on another person which explains the use of hedge phrases. This view was supported by McMillan et al (1977). In relation to tag questions, Mulac Lundell (1986) found similar results with their research however studies by Dubois Crouch (1975) contradicts this as they found that men were more likely to use tag questions than women. Holmes (1984) also disagreed with Lakoffs suggestions of tag question and found that in most cases women used them to give the person being spoken to an opportunity to speak. Lakoffs research also found that women notice more detail than men causing women to be more perceptive; they notice things such as tone of voice, facial expression, and body language. She noted that women use a greater variety of descriptions when describing colours, (violet instead of purple or crimson rather than red. Glass (1992) carried out research to identify biological differences and found that in males the right hemisphere of the brain matures faster than the left where as the opposite occurs in females with the left hemisphere of the brain developing first. Therefore men are more adept at right hemisphere tasks such as solving mathematical problems while women are better with left hemisphere tasks such as developing language and vocabulary. Differences that arise due to social factors could be due to the fact that there is an element of sexism in language which instils gender stereotyping. Words that represent women or refer to women tend to have negative connotations (Romaine, 2008). If we look at the words that describe a single male (bachelor) and a single female (spinster), for many people the word bachelor would imply a young, single, professional male with prospects where as the word spinster would suggest a lonely, old female, yet they both mean the same for each gender. Nilsen (1977) carried out research using 500 dictionary words which had either male or female connotations. 385 were found to have male connotations compared to only 132 with female connotations. Nilsen looked at the words for negative connotations and found that the number of words with negative female connotations outweighed the number of male ones by 25%. There has been a lot of research examining whether the impact of gender stereotyping at an early age has had an influence in the use of language. Eisenberg et al (1985) found that parents will more often than not choose toys that are associated with their childs gender. Caldera (1989) looked at the type of toys children play with and the role they have in language development. He found that boys toys such as cars and trains have low levels of teaching and questioning and require little or no interaction with a parent. Boys will often mimic the sounds related to the toy (e.g. beep beep for a car or choo choo for a train) but the toy requires no conversation. In contrast, girls toys such as dolls and prams require a certain amount of role play that elicits constant verbal interaction with the toy with the child giving a step by step account of what will happen next (e.g. it is now time for your nap), which often leads to a parent becoming more involved making comments and questioning ( Caldera, 1989). By the end of a childs first year gender differences are already evident in the way they play and dress and the way adults interact and communicate with them. Parents will typically choose to dress a boy in blue or a girl in pink because that is what gender stereotyping dictates. Pearson Davilla (2001) found that baby boys are often described as strong, solid and independent where as baby girls are described as loving, cute and sweet thus reinforcing gender stereotypes. This type of gender stereotyping has also been found to occur in school textbooks with language often emphasising the ideas of males and females (Cameron, 2007). The use of terms like he, him and his, and men when referring to a person or people reinforces gender language with females made to look inferior to males. Males and females are typically represented in traditional gender roles with women as mothers and housewives, and men as professional breadwinners. Again women are portrayed in more submissive and inferior roles. This was more noticeable with reading schemes from the 1960s and 1970s. Males are also seen as having more opportunities than females as they are portrayed as being more adventurous and physically stronger than women. Females seem more caring and are seen as more interested in domestic matters taking a submissive role to allow male dominance. However Bradley (1981) and Weatherall (2002) have argued that there are no significant differences between male and female speech. METHODOLOGY In order to obtain comparable data I needed to ask a sample of children to look at a picture and give the name of each colour of a specific object within the picture. As this research was to be conducted during the Christmas season I used a sample of children who were attending a Christmas party. I devised a questionnaire which contained a colourful Christmas themed picture of Santa flying his sleigh along with five questions asking to name the colour of different objects within the picture (Appendix 1). The picture chosen had different shades of colour in order to allow a variety of answers for a particular object. The research was carried out on a small scale using a mixture of interpretive and positivist methods. A sample size of 10 children was used ranging from age 4 to 9 with an equal number of males and females to allow a more accurate comparison of data relating to gender. The children sampled were enjoying themselves at a Christmas party. Each child was sat down individually at a quiet table and asked to describe the colour of the various objects in each question. They were also asked their age. The time taken to answer the questions was an average of 4 minutes per child. FINDINGS I have analysed the findings for each question individually in order to compare the differences between genders. Q.1. What colour is Santas hat? In the picture, Santas hat is a standard red colour therefore it is not surprising that red was the answer given by 100% of the children. Q.2. What colour is the sky? The sky is a shade of blue which could be described as a light blue or sky blue. 80% of the boys gave the answer blue where as this answer was only given by 20% of the girls. Sky blue was the most popular answer which was given by 60% of the girls. Light blue was given by 20% of girls and 20% of boys. Q.3 What colour is Rudolph? Rudolph is a brown colour that could be described in a number of ways. 80% of boys answered brown compared to 40% of girls. Interestingly one girl (20%) gave the answer nutmeg while a second girl (20%) answered fawn and a third girl (20%) answering light brown. Fawn brown was also given by 20% of boys. Q.4. What colour is Rudolphs scarf? Rudolphs scarf is a dark shade of green. Green was the answer given by 80% of boys and 80% of girls. Only two other shades were given; moss green (20% boys) and sage (20% of girls). Q.5. What colour is Santas sleigh? Santas sleigh is red but it is a much darker shade of colour than his hat. Of the boys sampled, 80% gave the answer red with only one boy (20%) giving a different answer of burgundy. None of the girls gave the simple answer of red. 60% distinguished that is was a much darker red than Santas hat and therefore described it as dark red. One girl (20%) gave the answer maroon and another girl (20%) gave the answer burgundy. The table below shows the results along with each Childs gender and age: Response to Questions Child Gender Age Q.1 Q.2 Q.3 Q.4 Q.5 A M 8 Red Light Blue Fawn Brown Moss Green Burgundy B M 8 Red Blue Brown Green Red C M 9 Red Blue Brown Green Red D M 4 Red Blue Brown Green Red E M 7 Red Blue Brown Green Red F F 6 Red Sky Blue Nutmeg Sage Maroon G F 7 Red Light Blue Fawn Green Burgundy H F 5 Red Blue Brown Green Dark Red I F 6 Red Sky Blue Light Brown Green Dark Red J F 6 Red Sky Blue Brown Green Dark Red DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS The results show that females take more notice of details than males as the female children were more perceptive when looking at the picture and therefore gave a greater variety of colour descriptions. These results agree with Lakoffs research of Language and Womens Place. Lakoffs research was published more than thirty years ago and her specific claims about the way language is used by woman have been overturned as more recent research does not support them as the research was based on intuition. (Cameron, 2007). However, Lakoffs arguments that language-use, gender and power are all connected is still supported (Cameron, 2007). Individual differences may account for some of the variations in the results. Child A, a male child, gave colour terms of Red, Light Blue, Fawn Brown, Moss Green and Burgundy which suggests that other social factors besides gender stereotyping may have an influence. The way people use language is affected by the context of the situation they are in and to whom they are engaging in conversation with (Cameron, 2007). Holmes (1984) uses the analogy of a tightrope to explain: Women are obliged to walk a tightrope of impression management, continually demonstrating their professional competence while also making clear that they have not lost their femininity that they are not, for example, aggressive or uncaring (Cameron, 2007). Factors such as socio economic background, parent influence and other interests may have a direct effect on language acquisition and needs to be researched further. CONCLUSION The differences between males and females can be attributed to biological and social factors. Research by Glass (1992) shows that the brain develops differently in males and females which results in the two genders having a preference for tasks that are associated with that part of their brain that matures faster. Social factors such as gender stereotyping has a significant influence on language use as it helps to reinforce the roles that society dictates men and women should have. Gender stereotyping occurs from birth Females use language as a way to develop personal relationships where as men use language to assert independence and status. People adapt their language to different contexts therefore gender differences is a difficult area to study. Gender alone cannot account for differences in language use and as such other factors such as socio economic background, education and individual differences should be taken in to account. Much of the research carried out has identified what the differences are between male and female speech but with little suggestions as to why these differences occur. REFERENCE LIST Bradley, P. H. (1981) The Folk Linguistics of Womens Speech: An Empirical Examination. Communication Monographs. 48, pp73-90 Caldera, Y.M. (1989) Social interactions and play patterns of parents and toddlers with feminine, masculine and neutral toys. Child Development, 60, pp70-76. Cameron, D. (2007) The Myth of Mars and Venus. New York: Oxford University Press Crystal, David. (2003) The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language. Second Edition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, p.298 Dubois, B. L., Crouch, I. (1975) The question of tag questions in womens speech: They dont really use more of them, do they? Language in Society, 4(3), pp.289-294. Eisenberg, A.R. et al (1985) Childrens Talk: Learning to use Language. New York: Norton. Glass, L. (1992) He Says, She Says. Closing the Communication Gap Between the Sexes. New York: G.P. Putnams Sons. Holmes, J. (1984) Hedging Your Bets and Sitting on the Fence: Some Evidence for Tag Questions as Support Structures. Te Reo, 27, pp.47-62. Lakoff, R. (1975) Language and Womans Place. New York: Harper Colophon Books. McMillan, J. R. et al (1977) Womens language: Uncertainty or interpersonal sensitivity and emotionality? Sex Roles, 3, pp.545-559. Mulac, A., Lundell, T. L. (1986) Linguistic contributors to the gender-linked language effect. Journal of Language Social Psychology, 5, pp.81-101. Nilsen, A. et al (1977)  Sexism and language. Illinois: National Council of Teachers of English, pp.161-179. Pearson, J. C. (1985) Gender and Communication. Iowa: W.N.C. Brown Publishers. Pearson, J. C., Davilla, R. (2001) The Gender Construct: Understanding Why Men and Women Communicate Differently. In Borisoff, D. Women and Men Communicating. Illinois: Waveland Press. Weatherall, A. (2002) Gender, Language and Discourse. London: Routledge

The Gallant Boys of Gettysburg :: essays research papers

The story I read took place mostly at the Battle of Gettysburg. Tom and Jeff Majors had just enrolled in the Confederate army. Tom enrolled as a private and Jeff as a drummer boy. Their dad, Nelson Majors, who had been in the army for quite some time, had just been promoted to Major. Tom and Jeff were appointed to their father's unit. They fought in the Battle of Gettysburg which was the worst battle of the Civil War. The death total for the battle was great. The Union and the Confederates lost a total of 18,000 men each. During the worst part of the battle, a shell hit Tom's leg. Jeff immediately carried him to the field doctor. The doctor told Tom that his leg would have to be cut off. The Confederate army was being beaten back by the Union and they had to retreat. That meant that Tom was put on a wagon and carried away. Tom knew there was little chance of him surviving the ride. Jeff had an idea to take Tom to the Poteets' house. They had eaten with them before the battle. The Poteets gladly agreed to keep Tom for a short while at their house. Jeff and Nelson Majors were very happy that Tom could stay with them. When Tom's leg was healed, he and Jeff went back to Kentucky where their family was from. When they got home there was a big welcome dinner. A letter came a few days later telling Jeff that he would need to go back to the army. When Jeff got back, he and his dad talked about how Tom was doing and the rest of the family. After that, the story ends just as they were about to go fight another battle. The predominate conflict in The Gallant Boys of Gettysburg occurred when Tom was hit by a shell from the Union army. Jeff turned and saw Tom rolling and rolling on the ground. When Jeff got there, he saw that it had struck Tom's leg. He quickly tied a bandage on it to stop the bleeding. Jeff told Tom that he would have to instantly see a field doctor. The doctor told Tom that his leg would have to be taken off. When Jeff and Tom arrived at their home in Kentucky, Sarah, Tom's girlfriend, saw what had happened to his leg.

A Speech Given By Frederick Do -- essays research papers

FREDERICK DOUGLASS’S POWERS OF APPEAL After his escape from slavery, Frederick Douglass chose to promote the abolition of slavery by speaking about the actions and effects that result from that institution. In an excerpt from a July 5, 1852 speech at Rochester, New York, Douglass asks the question: What to the slave is the Fourth of July? This question is a bold one, and it demands attention. The effectiveness of his oration is derived from the personal appeals in which he engages the listener. At once in this speech, Douglass appeals to his listeners’ religious tendencies. He asks his audience, “am I, therefore, called upon to bring our humble offering to the national altar…'; (441). Religious appeal is so important because the majority of his audience is Christian, and he implies that Christianity, in its ostensible purity, allows the mishandling of human life to the degree of slavery. By relating Christianity directly to slavery, his listeners must question the validity of their Christian doctrines in relation to the institution of slavery. In doing so, they must eliminate their acceptance of one of these traditions; the odds are that Christianity holds a much more loyal following than slavery, in which case slavery will be given up as a practice. Douglass also quotes from Psalms 137:1-6, and the ludicrous concept that slaveholders expect their slaves to be joyous in their state of bondage is the essential meaning of the passage he chooses as it relates to the comparable situation of the Babylonians’ captives (442). His persuasive appeal in this case is the notion that any pious Christian would have sympathy for the lamenting captives and contempt for the captors in the Psalms passage. If this assumption is correct, then the same pious Christians surely should realize the situation of the slaves on this day and every other. Additionally, in asking this question, he asserts immediately that the meaning of the Fourth of July is entirely different from that of the free, white American. Douglass concedes that the whites of America had reason to rejoice: “the rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity, and independence'; (441). However, he also illustrates that there are just as many reasons for slaves to scorn the traditional meaning of the Fourth of July. Furthermore, these reasons are as ... ...w, with all of the activity and thinking life requires, the slave’s manhood can be questioned (443). For the white man listening to this argument, it is required that he empathizes with the situation of the slave, because in actuality there is much in common between the free and the enslaved. This is precisely Douglass’s point; bondage is the only hindrance of slaves’ abilities to lead a fulfilling life. Douglass’s appeals to his audience are specifically directed toward white, Christian males. He is fully aware at all times he must show that he can relate with them. As Christians, how should they have felt had they been denied their right to practice religion and believe in their god? What would they do if the country they so loved chained them to a life of servitude? Finally, what would all the work to support a family and desire for self-improvement have accomplished if it only benefited a master, but not a wife and children? Douglass deliberately addresses those aspects of life that mean the most to his audience because in doing so he is sure to gain the listeners’ full attention and consideration of the immorality of slavery.

Urban Ministry: the Kingdom of God Response

From the section â€Å"Did I really say that? †: â€Å"Tell us you made it, Zack. Be our example of a rich man who broke free from the grasp of greed. Tell us you won the struggle with mammon and abandoned yourself to the Christ who touched you. Tell us, Zack, that we can be liberated from the power of privilege. † This paragraph is really powerful to me. Even though compared to some people like celebrities and such, we may not seem so rich, but overall, we live a life of abundance. We are constantly striving to achieve more in life too, like what we have is never enough. And for the most part, the things we strive for really don’t benefit us spiritually. When you think about it, having really nice jobs leads to more money, which eventually turns into greed and brings out the worst in most people. I really like the statement and thoughts the author says above. If we are too busy being chained down to our jobs and money and social status, we can never truly focus on what truly is important. From â€Å"Kingdom Playgrounds†: One of my favorite verses is â€Å"Truly I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven† (Matthew 18:3). It sounds like a simple thing to do-to act like children-but it really isn’t. We are so corrupted today, that it sometimes sounds silly to go back to acting like children. Children are innocent and care free about the ridiculous things that adults worry about. And if you go back to being innocent and care free, then you can really see the little things that children see, and really appreciate those things. Love isn’t seen as a complexity as it is to adults; children love everyone. They see past the negative in others and see only the positive.

A home is an important investment

A home is an important investment, and the prices reflect this all over the United States. In some states, finding the perfect house for your budget is more difficult than in other, and this has proven to be so in New Jersey. The purpose of this research was to find out the availability of good houses in New Jersey at prices that would be affordable a member of the lower-to-middle income families. Specifically, a three or four bedroom two-storey house with two bathrooms, equipped with natural gas energy, a basement, separate dining and kitchen, and a large backyard.This proved to be rather difficult in Vineland, New Jersey as most houses of this description any where in the state exceed the $200,000 that is the budget for this project. To begin with, I calculated the amount of down-payment I was able to afford at $7000. Traditionally, down-payments have been 20% (Bruss), but I was able to find a bank that would offer 95% financing with private mortgage insurance (PMI). For a family o f four seeking a house with three or four bedrooms and two bathrooms, even with no other parameters, finding one for under $200,000 was difficult.After searching several sites on the internet, newspaper, and calling real-estate agencies, the lowest price located was initially $310,000. Though the one of the lowest-priced on the market, this house did have central heating. It was more than ten years old, however, which was older than I had hoped. I chose the neighborhood Vineland because I sought an area with a good public school system at a location outside of the city. I also sought a place that had low property taxes, but that was difficult to find.The Newark Star-Ledger announced a â€Å"drastic increase in New Jersey property taxes,† declaring that the state has the highest property taxes in all of the United States, averaging $10,000 in 36 municipalities (Donohue). Therefore, finding a house with a reasonable tax rate was a virtual impossibility. These requirements prove d to be a challenge since, according to The Daily Journal of Vineland, â€Å"Through the centuries, New Jersey has relied on property taxes to finance schools and local services† (Baldwin). This suggested that the better funded the school system, the higher the property tax would be.It was necessary to find a house of at least three bedrooms as there are two children in this family of four. The four-year-old needs a backyard to play in, preferably one with trees, and a septic tank would be too much to handle. Houses in the suburbs generally have trees in the backyard, (though there were none at that price). I did find a two-story house for that price with a backyard, basement, and three bedrooms, but not in Vineland, and it had only one bathroom (Foxtons). It also had an attractive property tax rate, but the sewer was septic and it was 50 years old.Further searching led to a very nice home in Vineland with all the required amenities, including separate formal living and dinin g rooms, city sewer, a garage. It also had a fireplace and four bedrooms. The well-funded and vibrant public school system was an added attraction (Vineland Public Schools). It was, however, 31-40 years old and being sold for $269,000. In addition, the property taxes were approximately two times as high as the $200,000 house and the average down-payment was $13,495. (Century 21).The research found that though many opportunities exist to purchase a nice home, one has to be willing to pursue a very diligent and detailed search. Though houses exist that fit the spectrum of buyers’ desires, it is necessary to have a reasonable sum at your disposal for spending on the house of your dreams. It was difficult to find a house that fit the description (three bedrooms, two bathrooms, separate kitchen and dining, basement, central heating, excellent public school system, under ten years old) for as low as $200,000. However, a few nice ones existed for little over $50,000 more.Although th e perfect home is yet to be located, I am hopeful that all the possibilities have not yet been exhausted, as the search has brought me closer to my goal. Works Cited Baldwin, Tom. â€Å"Governor Did Little to Ease Property Tax Burden. † The Daily Journal. Vineland. 2004. Available: http://www. thedailyjournal. com/apps/pbcs. dll/ article? AID=/20041115/NEWS01/411150337/1002 Bruss, Robert J. â€Å"How to Buy Real Estate for Nothing Down. † Loans USA. 2004. Available: http://www. 1loansusa. com/articles/Articles06_11_04/news1. html Centruy 21. â€Å"Property Details: Vineland, NJ 08361.† Available: http://www. century21. com/buy/property_detail. aspx? teasers=property-detail- pic+Property+Detail+with+Pictures&tr_key=31891830&bSite=N&Zip=08361 Donohue, Joe and Tom Hester. â€Å"Drastic Increase in New Jersey Property Taxes. † The (Newark) Star Ledger. 2005. Available: http://www. ire. org/extraextra/archives/000870. html. Foxtons. â€Å"New Brooklyn Road, B erlin† Camden. Available: http://www. thedailyjournal. com/apps/pbcs. dll/article? AID=/20041115/NEWS01/411150 337/1002 Vineland Public Schools. â€Å"Technology. † Author. Available: http://www. vineland. org/ technology/index. htm

Bellinger and Transsexuals

Bellinger V Bellinger case might lawfully be epitomized as clear and unbiased reference to putative gender-sex differentiating and even opposition. Social role of an individual is what apparently regarded as a reflection of his/her inner, biological role. Male and female interact and represent themselves in their respective gender roles as they are accostomed to and as it is their only way to fully reveal their personality, gender role being an essential part to it.So far, within the academic notion of ‘sex’ or, if related to psychology, ‘sex identity’ two distinct and rather discrete categories, first denoting biological [inborn] components, second denoting acquired through socialization pattern of behaviour, were embraced to secure separate and considerate approaches. That gender role is a concept relating to second or ‘acquired’ group of elements is a fact which thus far scarcely entail any poisonous implication.If there be a game participant s to which are free to chose their gender role and are warranted, by the rules of the game, to be fully accepted at their new status, this status will for the purpose of the game mean a ‘carte blanche’ for any constructive self formation and assuming myriad of new social roles which spurrs the creativity of the participants. That game is very much alike a masquerade, where costumes and dresses are commonly known and recognizable and the owners of those costumes, impersonal as they are wearing their dominos, are treated as if being a true heroes.The rules of the game which sanctionize impersonation, in fact, inaugurate the spirit of mockery and futher creativity of individuals which, perdued by the cloak of assumed gender, depart further from the province prescribed by their sex role assigned as birth. In fact, this abstract situation or game is hardly ruled by any societal regulation or government statutues; it is inherently present in human communities which tend to di ssociate into a number of nuclear communiteis which develope their internal regulations and are characterized by certain margin of deviation.What really empowers the participants of that kind of abstract situation and actualize their further expansion is technical devices or ‘masks’ needed to successfully impersonate gender roles and special warrant that their will be accepted in their new acquired role. First creates the discourse of community, the accesability of technical devices draws the idea of the situation nearer to the partcipants; second creates continuum for their activity empowering scheme to expand and difining the extremities and limits of that expansion.Far from stating the internal driving forces which rule the participants when they ‘jump in the game’ I would like to underscore the dialectics between transsexuals and doctors which is accountable for re-asserting transexuals’ subjectivity, providing them with technical means which gre atly contribute to that subjectivity’s formation, and dialectics between transexuals and law. In Re Bellinger, several facts point out to the current state of limitations law and society encounter as regards patterns of cross-sexual behaviour and their possible legal implications.It is clear enough that Mrs. Bellinger since her unsuccessful marrige to a woman which resulted in devorce as early as 1975 led a sexually deviant subjective life which found its expression in wearing womans dress and acting as a woman. That pattern of behaviour is characterictic of transvestites or cross-gender individuals which find sexual and/or cerebral gratification in assuming a gender role of woman by partial of complete cross-dressing and often (which is conditioned by a degree of boldness of a cross-dresser) venturing out into public .As we also might know Mrs. Bellinger was rather radical in her endeavour and has completely assumed new gender role and, in fact, had disguised her male side u ntil eventually gone through gender re-assingment procedure. Although, for the purpose of present consideration the fact of her going through sex re-assignment treatment is immaterial as far as it may only indicate her being extremely persistent in assuming characteristics of wanted gender.The fact that she underwent operational treatment has no practical implications on the province of law concerned: it only designated that she been through treatment results of which are partially recognized by state and law in general and to that extent that she is entitled to correction of documents (passport, etc. ) That government corrects documents for the person which changed so profoundly that otherwise doing may impede his/her interaction with government and state services is absolutely reasonable practice.When individual wishes to change a name he/she is also entiltled to the correction of personal data in the passport lest there be any confusions of the personality of passport holder. Now the question is are there any material differences in the eyes of the law between situation when individual chose to ungergo operational treatment and having done so needs to have the personal data typed in passport (together with photograph) corrected and that when individual chose to change, say, her marriage status and needs to have her personal data (last name) corrected?I think, despite apparent difference of two cases, both of them involve substantial changes in person’s status which (changes) has to find their adequate reflection in official personal information. Initially, law is not concerned with changes or transformation person undergoes – it is only concerned with legal implications of those transformations or how they will affect legal status of individual should he participate in his new status within legal sphere.To participate within legal sphere, to put it accurately, mostly means to partake in complex of relations subject to regulation of specific la w or specific legal norms. Thus, though two cases are entirely different with respect to the nature of changes individual undergoes, legal implications of sex re-assignment procedure are somewhat limited by the current state of law which is reluctant to acknowledge validity of marriage between persons at least one of which participated to it not in his/her original sex, but has chosen to change that original sex and actually did so prior to the marriage .It follows that as regards [spicific] law of family, individual that enjoyed legal recognition in general (recognition through correcting personal data, including name which indicate gender), is incapable of fulfilment his/her rights springing from that recognition in particular case and with respect particular province of law.Thus, as far as nature of changes concerned apparently matters in the eyes of law, since it delegates rights upon person who changed the name as a result of personal wish and withholds the legal capabilities o f those rights fulfilment in the case with men who changed the name as a result of personal wish to change sex and thus appropriate more coming feminine name, it proceeds that the fact of general aprobation of the sex-reassignment procedure and its results, which finds its expression in registering individual as a woman and entails legal rights and prefenrences capable of fulfilment in specific provinces of law (pension age and, what is more important, the right to marriage), does not mean that general aprobation’s universal validity – it instead means some kind of contingent validity of general recognition of status.It practically means that general recognition is void as long as it does not entail recognition of persons rights in specific provinces of law (like labor law and family law). Particulary, the fact of gender re-assignment is immaterial to the case because neither it benefited the person any more than would do when testifying his/her expressed and extremal desire to posses the characteristics of opposite gender, nor it entailed some practical outcomes of government’s general recognition of the sex re-assignment fact when person was allowed to change a name in the passport. Thus far, I insist that Mrs. Bellinger was a transvestite which gone through gender re-assignment but the latter procedure did not qualitatively affect her legal status. As it is known from the case, the registrator did not ask Mrs.Bellinger about her gender status and Mr. Bellinger himself was not willing to inform him. So, it will be reasonable to presume that if at the moment marriage took place Mrs. Bellinger did not actually do gender re-assignment but instead prefered cross-dressing as transvestites do the registrator would hardly have more doubts about the gender of fiancee than he actually had. The difference between pre-operational and post-operational positions of Mrs. Bellinger was rather internal of character and laid deep in her self perception w hich apparently was tending towards further unification with all that constitutued ‘feminine’. Even at the time when Mrs.Bellinger still possesed secondary sexual atributes of male (penis) she also possesed a great deal of feminine traits and was very skilled at dressing woman clothes and make up. This allows for induction that it was not only after the operational treatment that Mrs. Bellinger did actually transformed in terms of gender as seen through public eyes. If transvestite looks skillful enough to pass the street and impart the idea of her ‘girlishness’ to every one looking at her, she, to certain degree, is a girl to herself at this moment and is, to absolute degree, a girl to society aroound her. When much of the things to visually transform boy into a girl was done and done with a good taste then nobody will distrust his/her feelings and venture to check her anatomical sex by pulling her skirts up.Thus, it is apparent that transvestite radiates feminine gender when in public eye which certainly does not go without further affirmation of [her]self in that believe. It follows that category of gender which comprise number of biological and non-biological or acquired elements is construed through and within societal perception of what that gender (male/female) should look like . If the society is misled and perplexed that only means that ‘gender identity’ of some of its members went awray. The latter conceive the idea of gender in the context of ‘self construction’, ‘self transformation’ and doctor actually aid them in perpetuating that belief in contigency of gender .That transvestite resort to special devices to assume the gender role and misled the society means that even without surgical treatment they may successfully socialize into society in the desired role and that actual sex reassignment does not have any implications other than on transvestite’s subjectivity and self per ception, that is, no practical bearing on societal perception. At this point, if law is only concerned with empowering adequate socialization (securing the equality of rights and principle of genral equity and equlity) of individual in his/her gender role, then it precribes equality of scope of right which pertain to inborn woman and that which pertain to person gone through sex re-assignment.On societal level, that equality is already established since everyone perceive trasvestite as a woman and naturally does treat her as a woman . Methodological problem here is that marginal transvestites which cross dress completely, live like women and express a strong desire to transform their bodies so that to alter their secondary sexual attributes into that which pertain to woman and, in whole, strive to unify with another gender totally abandoming their own original one, present a distinct group which needs both taxonomization and separate legal approach . As we said earlier, there will b e no virtual difference for the registrator whether Mrs. Bellinger would have been through surgical treatment at the moment of marriage or not.In the same manner, she will look equally feminine to people on the street before and after operation. The problem lays in her self perception. Acute desire to get rid of the abhorrant organs which (desire) borders with risc of self-mutilation or suicide was invoked by Harry Benjamine as reasons for surgical treatment of a patient. ‘Benjamine patient’ thus requires separate taxonomical niche and might also require medical and in extremal cases surgical treatment which , thus, looks akin to emergency surgical measures applicable to unstable patient. Surgical vocabulary has penetrated the terrain once inhabited by psychopathological terminology.Treatment of such hard cases involving Marginal drive towards unification with other sex by arsenal of intense psychoterapy was rendered futile and changed for more radical, surgical and hor monal technologies. Although, it is within approach of psychoterapy that demand of sex change, which was crucial in disclosure of syndrome itself, was recognized to â€Å"cover over another form of subjectivity that are fundamentally destabilizing. † It follows that emergency approach within which syndrome of expressed gender dysphoria taken at its extremity is only capable of rectification through surgical treatment intended at partial or full removal of secondary sexual attributes posseses not its past persuasiveness.Rather, its thesis about demand for sex change which serves as signifier of the syndrome invites critics on the ground of its Although, â€Å"Benjaminian patient† as a product of doctors and patients dialectical development of â€Å"cohesiveness for a subjectivity [which] constantly [is] under threat of destruction† is very appealing to the law. The law may find its subject in the â€Å"Benjamine patient†. Thus created taxonomical niche ent ail various legal situations. Earlier, we considered the possibility of Mrs. Bellinger’s actual marriage (in terms of social recognition of their civil union) in case if she would not undergo sex re-assignment procedure and concluded that marriage will be not less socially valid under that conditions.What if in her place was another person who only occasionally cross dress and does not wish to play that social role of woman forever? It is very possible that she would pass the social test and misled the public with its look but the degree to which she really needs that social and legal recognition is, presumably, incommensurable to that of Mrs. Bellinger. In this case, the fact that individual has undergone surgical procedure may testify her commitment to the purpose of ultimate unification with opposite gender (along the lines of ‘Benjamine patient’ approach) as well as underscore the intricasy of her psychosomatic neurosis ( psychopathology approach).In any case , surgical treatment dialigns the group of Marginal transvestites from other, Nuclear ones . And similary to medicine which aids that marginal patients by delivering them from their detestable organs , law is called to facilitate their further socialization into society by resolving the internal pressure they feel as regards inability to lawfully participate in civil unions. That law is called upon to faciliate in internal self development and self apprehension is no new: it has incorporated norms securing the right of disabled and retarded which contribute to their self esteem and facilitate their internal development or prevents them from [the threat] of destruction of personality.But is not it that law pre-maturely intervene into the relations which are to be at first clearified and agreed upon by the medical specialists and only then passed into the sight of law? Whether it us true or not that if there are presently two groups each of which has its explanation on what marginal t ransvestism is and how it should be treated then law is bound to side with one of those schools since no mutual agreement was developed? ‘Benjamine patient’ is very appealing taxonomical category which directly and logically connect Marginal transvestism (springing from expressedly antipathic reaction to individual original sex) and gender re-assignment treatment (which is deemed to be the only plausible resolution to thus posed problem).But in the eyes of law transvestite which undergone sex re-assignment posseses no single distinct advantage as compared to that (transvestite) which did not been through that treatment. It is gender identity of individual that matters when considering the issue of legislative changes to Matrimonial Causes Act. In this respect, gender re-assignment procedure is not a conclusive step which defines those who are eligible for the right to marriage; it is only one of those steps which are directed by human identity and, through acquiring fur ther visual and material semblance, incrementally lead to unification with desired sex. This road may prove to be infinite.The position of gender re-assignment surgical procedure within the continuum of surgical procedures transexuals resort to allows for observation that transexuals, in fact, are continuously disturbed by abyss between them and ideal feminity (in case of men transexuals) and may never acquire bodily semblance enough to put their mind or gender identity at ease, that is to say that they are insecure in their feminity and their self apprehension is constantly impaired. Thus, it is impossible to render a transsexual somehow belonging to feminine gender solely on the ground of him/her being surgicaly treated. Rather, it is the expressed self apprehension as belonging to feminine gender that could make them what they want to be. This conclusion entails further ones.The most prominent of them is that pronounced desire to be a femine is what transsexual has and ever would have and the aim of the law is to state whether it is sufficient for granting them all rights pertaining to female sex. In context of right to marriage this pronounced desire has to somehow fit into the definition of marriage (marriage is void unless the parties are ‘respectively male and female' (Bellinger para 1) or that definition has to be changed because of certain cases which hardly fall within that definition but nevertheless seem to have direct bearing on the marriage. Clearly, transsexual which articulate her gender to be feminine in the marriage tends to have a wife role which will organically consort with other characteristic of feminity she tends to.In Re Kevin (validity of marriage of transsexual) [2001] Fam CA 1074 it was stated that there is no ‘formulaic solution' to determining the sex of an individual for the purpose of the law of marriage and â€Å"difference is essentially that we can readily observe or identify the genitals, chromosomes and gonads, but at present we are unable to detect or precisely identify the equally â€Å"biological† characteristics of the brain that are present in transsexuals† But to put right to marriage in direct dependance upon [determining] sex of person seems to be a dead end. The array of cases strating from Corbett v Corbett [1971] P 83 and ending with present case testifies that this approach is hardly efficient.The desicion in Goodwin v UK (2002) 35 EHRR 18 laid ground for re-apprisal of that approach. It reads that the Court found found ‘no justification for barring the transsexual from enjoying the right to marry under any circumstances'. Obviously, there are no such impedements springing from the law itself which would prospectively prevent Marginal transvestites from acquiring right to marriage provided that there be a legislative will of Parlament. That the perplexities of that problem partially and briefly stated earlier do prevent House of Commons from passing the bill also seems clear. At the same time, incentives coming out of European court are expressedly painted in colors of progressive and liberative legislative approach.Presently, I belive that formula which will satisfy ‘Europeans’ will involve legislation tending to antecede the resolution of academic debates as regards specific domains of meidine and, in fact, contribute to the progressive and enlighted resolution of those debates. In our case, present state of the law includes some deceptive provisions. It clearly states that parties to marriage are ‘respectively male and female' which seems to be consonant with the desire of Marginal transvestites as they tend to artificially acquire ‘maleness’ or ‘femaleness’. At the same time, law and the court do not seem to bother about priciseness of their rendering of that provision.So far, as it occures from the great majority of the cases, the court only have approached notions of ‘malenessâ⠂¬â„¢ and ‘femaleness’, construed them to signify biological sex and made efforts to elaborate measures of ascertaining that [original] sex. It is now clear that societal perception of gender does not co-incide with legal one. The court insures the degree of preciseness of that legal perception but apparently, the split between society which eyes Marginal trasvestite and sees a girl, Marginal transvestite which lives and strives to be a girl actually ever-approaching to it, and the Court which eyes Marginal transvestite through microscope and employes all kind of hromosomal tests and technical appliances to disclose that individual’s original and abhorrent side is enormous.Doctors almost at once sided with their patient and developed certain categories (at the beggining ‘Benjamine patient’ and then ‘gender identity disorder’) actually saling transvestites to state as transexuals – taxon compulsory and contigent in itself – which would underscore their unstability at the original gender and destabilizing subjectivity. Another school of medicine tries to buy that category back from the state pointing at the internal incommensurability and incohesiveness of it. It (school) actually speak out that state and society bought the thing which is not what it seems. And it is the time when gender and sex opposition is to reveal fully. As it might be construed from Bellinger case despite her successful effort to approach ‘feminity’ Mrs.Bellinger did not managed to approach ‘femaleness’ which under the present provisions of the law warrant her a right to marriage. Doctors appealed to progressiveness and humanity of legislator so that the latter might confer ‘femaleness’ upon transexuals even if only to save their subjectivity. Unattainable status of, say, ‘femaleness’ is mainly in charge of legal deadend with marriage rights of marginal transvestites. If sex-rela ted approach was changed for gender-related one (first signifies biological sex, second – gender role) within the provisions of the law it will greatly reduce that paintfull dialectics between transsexuals and doctors and transsexuals and law.Though, that changes ought to go with recognition of homosexual marriage. Transsexuals will never agree to register as homosexual family but this will reduce the degree to which marriage right depend on gender re-assignment procedure, which is immaterial to marginal trabnssexuals right to marriage. Number of words: 3558. References: Books: Changing Sex: Transsexualism, Technology, and the Idea of Gender by Bernice L. Hausman; Duke University Press, 1995 The Psychology of Sexual Orientation, Behavior, and Identity: A Handbook by Louis Diamant, Richard D. McAnulty; Greenwood Press, 1995 DNA and Destiny: Nature and Nurture in Human Behavior by R. Grant Steen; Plenum Press, 1996 Journal articles:Transvestism: A Survey of 1032 Cross-Dressers. by Richard F. Docter, Virginia Prince. Journal Title: Archives of Sexual Behavior. Volume: 26. Issue: 6. Publication Year: 1997. Page Number: 589+. Moving gaily forward? Lesbian, gay and transgender human rights in Europe. by Kristen Walker. Melbourne Journal of International Law, June 2001 v2 i1 p122 Paper articles: Law reports. (News) Daily Telegraph (London, England); April 17, 2003 Cases cited: Corbett v Corbett [1971] P 83 Re Kevin (validity of marriage of transsexual) [2001] Fam CA 1074 Goodwin v United Kingdom (2002) 35 EHRR 18 Bellinger v Bellinger [2003]2 FLR 1 Bellinger v Bellinger [2003] UKHL 21