Revenge In Hamlet Essay -- essays research papers

What do you consider to the main theme(s) of Hamlet? Shakespeare’s Hamlet is a complex play where many themes are intertwined – themes that are essential to the development of the play. The issue of death and disease, both physical and emotional is very prevalent throughout the duration of the play, as well as fate and divine providence. The play also questions madness and whether it can be feigned, as well as corruption and its moral implications. Of course, who could forget the famous ‘To be or not to be’ soliloquy, where Hamlet not only questions life and death, but many of life’s other uncertainties as well. Undoubtedly, the most essential theme in the development of Hamlet is revenge and question ‘Does revenge pay?’ Revenge is a frighteningly bloodthirsty emotion, which causes people to act blindly and without reason. Revenge is a theme that is cleverly built upon throughout the extent of the play; with it being the driving force behind two of the main characters in the play. The play is introduced by the appearance of the ghost of Hamlet’s father in the first scene, which automatically gives the impression that something is amiss. This is later clarified by the statement that â€Å"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark† (Act1 Scene 4 Line 90). The ghost emerges before Hamlet and insinuates that his death was not as nocent as it may seem. The ghost urges Hamlet to â€Å"Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder† (Act1 Scene 5 Line25) and informs him that â€Å"The serpent that did sting thy father’s life now wears his crown â€Å"(Act1 Scene5 Line 38). This appears to indicate that Hamlet’s father’s death was actually murder, and that the deed was committed by King Hamlet’s brother, Claudius, who had now taken over as King of Denmark. The Ghost taunts Hamlet, telling him that it is part of every man’s honour to avenge his death. Hamlet then becomes a part of Denmark’s foulness and wre tchedness when he agrees to avenge his father’s death. This is the beginning of a vicious cycle of hatred, death and revenge that destroys many lives. Soon after Claudius marries Hamlet’s mother, Gertrude, Hamlet feigns madness as a ploy to cover up his attempts to avenge his father’s death and to bring him closer to Claudius. One of the first things Hamlet does in his attempt to prove Claudius’ guilt is to have ‘The Mousetrap’ performed in court. ‘The Mousetrap recreates ... ...amned Dane, Drink off this potion. Is thy union here? Follow my mother.† Laertes dies, content that justice has been served and Hamlet himself dies soon after, his father’s death finally avenged. The obsession and need for revenge displayed by our two main characters eventually led them both to their downfall. Not only did it hurt themselves, but many others close to them. Ophelia’s death, for example could be blamed on Hamlet’s desire for revenge, whilst Hamlets death occurred as a result of Laertes quest to avenge his father’s death. Hopefully, it is easy to see why I believe that revenge is the core theme in Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Revenge shapes the entire plot of the play and could be blamed for corrupting Hamlet and Laertes, making them almost evil in their final intentions. Shakespeare highlights the moral implications of revenge, and how a person can be corrupted by their need for revenge. The age-old saying ‘An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth’ is outlined perfectly in Hamlet. You cannot receive a punch, return a punch and then all sit down together for a lovely dinner. The second that you retaliate, it starts a horrible chain that is almost impossible to break.

Children and Young people Essay

Traditionally the legal the legal age of adulthood was 21 but in the past 20-30 years most jurisdictions have lowered this age to 18. Article 1 of the Convention on the rights of the child (CROC) states that anyone under the age of 18 is child. Also the Children and young person’s (care and protection) Act 1998 (NSW) defines a ‘young person as someone aged between 16-18. These definitions are important because laws treat children and young people differently to adults. Before the late 19th century children committing criminal acts were treated in the same way as adult offenders. The concept of an age before which a person could not be held criminally responsible -doli incapax – did not exist, and children as young as seven were convicted of serious criminal offences. There were two significant events in the 1980s that advanced the rights of children and young people internationally and in common law countries. The two events were the signature of the United Nations Convention on the rights of child (CROC) and the Gillick case. The Convention on the rights of the child (1989) sets out a comprehensive set of rights for all children and young people. These rights cover civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. The Gillick v West Norfolk and Wisbech Health Authority (1985) was a House of Lords decision. The department of health and Social Security has distributed a flyer advising doctors that they could lawfully provide contraception and advice to persons under 16 years old without parents’ consent. The mother of 5 daughters brought and action against the health authority and the DHSS based on her belief that a child under 16 was too young to make such decision without parental consent. The court of appeal allowed Mrs Gillick’s appeal and took the matter to the House of Lords with affirmed the appeal on the basis that 16 years old was capable of consent in medical matters provided that she has sufficient understanding and intelligence to understand fully what is proposed. In other worlds children have the rights and ability to make decisions to affect their lives and they can do so competently as long as they understand the implications of their decisions Children’s have the right to education and is compulsory for children aged 6-15 to attend school under the Education Act 1990(NSW) Under section 22 of this Act, parents must send their children to a government or non-government School registered with the NSW board of studies. There is no minimum legal age limit for young workers according to the office of industrial relations in NSW however if they are under 15 they must receive authorisation from the NSW Department of Education and Training to leave school. Young people in workplace are covered by all the relevant workplace and safety legislation for workers in NSW. The High Court of Australia followed the decision in the Gillick case and stated that once a person has sufficient maturity and intelligence to understand what is proposed she or he is capable of consenting to medical treatment. Parents have the responsibility to seek proper medical cared for their children even if they have religious objections. The children and Young Persons (Care and protection) Act 1998 (NSW) section 174 authorise a medical Practitioner to carry out emergency treatment on a child or young persons without parental consents. Young people do not have the right to leave their parents’ home before 18 however the law would not normally force young people over 16 to stay at home against their wishes. Children and young people are protected from discrimination on the basis of age by the Anti- Discrimination Act 1977 (NSW). This act also outlaws discrimination on the basis of sex, race, and sexuality. The Convention of the rights of the child (CROC) is a legal mechanism which has been important in putting the rights of children on the global agenda. Once a nation has signed and ratified a treaty the United Nations committee structure monitors and reports on the extent to which hat nation is complying with its international obligation, the committee’s limitation is that it has no coercive powers. Another legal mechanism is the children’s court. Across NSW there are 13 children’s magistrates siting in seven specialists children’s court there also five children’s registrar appointed under the children’s court Act 1998(NSW) to assist in administration of matters before the court. Trade unions are organisations of workers who act together to maintain their rights to good working condition. The Australian council of trade unions (ACTU) provides information about pay and conditions, health and safety issues, apprentice- ships and training and negotiating employment contracts for young people entering the workforce for the first time. Trade unions are a Non-Legal mechanism for protecting rights of children and young people. The kids Helpline are just one of the many organisations from which children and young people in crisis can seek advice. It is a non-legal mechanism just like trade unions. It offers 24hr free telephone and online counselling. If children and young people come into contact with the criminal justice system, it usually through interaction with a police officer when being arrested or questions about some matter. Seventy eight per cent of the 843 children and young people surveyed said that the police rarely treated young people with sufficient respect. It could be argued that children and young people l on the whole do not have good relationship with the police. Young people are frequently targeted for police intervention for lacking respect or simply for being young and out in the public. Children around the world are exploited and abused where the laws of their countries fail to offer protections to them. There are approximately 250 million child labourers worldwide. In 2007 it was estimated there were as many as 300 000 children and young people involved in armed conflict with up to 100000 of these believed to be in Africa. In countries ravaged by war and famine children lack the protection normally afforded to them within the family. Very recently in Australia children sat in immigration detention centres having broken no laws, as a result of the previous federal governments’ punitive laws relating to asylum seekers. In other countries minors are still being executed for the crimes they have committed The rights on children have come a long way. Australian legislation has established processes and institutions to recognise and protect the important role that children and young people play in out in our society. There is still cause for great concern about the exploitation and abuse of children internationally. The force of international law relies on the domestic measures taken to implement the rights contained in treaties such CROC and the pressure brought to bear by parties not only by treaty based human right committees.

Decision Making Paper Essay

This paper examines the correlation between personal, organizational and cultural values. The paper also discusses how these values affect the decision making in individual’s personal and professional lives. Value is a social principal goal or standard held by an individual, class or society. Values are shaped by surrounding situations. Normally the three values are accepted in society such as Personal Value, Organizational Value and Cultural Value. Personal Values are the principals that define human as an individual. Personal values, such as honesty, reliability and trust determine how one will face the world and relate with people. It also consists of caring, courage, creativity, friendliness, honesty, honour, independence, integrity and spirituality. Organizational values are the principals that guide human’s behavior in professional contexts. They define how person work and how he or she relate to co-workers, managers and clients. They also reveal person’s potential of advancement. It also consists of autonomy, competitiveness, conscientiousness, dedication, ethics, loyalty, professionalism, punctuality and team player. Cultural values, like practice of the faith and customs, are principals that sustain connections with person’s cultural roots. They help person feel connected to a larger community of people with similar backgrounds. It also consists of celebration of diversity, ethnic roots, faith, linguistic ties, national ties, regional ties and tradition. Personal, professional and cultural values are connected to each other. These values are something that affects every area of person’s personal and professional lives. In our daily routine we interact with these values very often especially personal values. Personal values are something which we are learning from our childhood. Our parents are the pioneers of these values. They teach us what is correct and what is wrong. As we grow, we take our own decisions but our parents have a great influence in our thought process. I believe this is how we learn how to respect our own personal value when we grow as an adult. Next one is professional values. We begin to learn this value as soon as we enter into the world of independence. Each organization has its own set of rules and regulations. We need to follow those while taking care of our own personal values. At workplace the main important thing is how we interact with co-workers, managers and clients. How you present yourself with others is also very important. Cultural values are something again goes with the personal values. They give importance to the tradition, cultural ethics and your opinion of relating those to the workplace and personal life. In society sometimes people with same backgrounds come together and form a group and share their cultural values. At workplace also sometimes we notice people with same cultural values come together and have better understanding between them. Finding balance between personal, organization and cultural values is very crucial. Many times in our life we need to fight to take the decision based on these three values. For example for me as a woman find the right balance between my personal life with family and professional life is very difficult. Family (kids) comes first while taking any decision for myself even when to decide the right career path and when to start it. For working mother balance between these values plays an important role while taking any decisions. Many times I noticed that one needs to give up on something in order to achieve on whatever he or she wants. Same principal applies to the values. Sometimes professional values overcome personal values but if we can manage both of them and achieve the result we want then that will be a big success. Resolving a conflict by analyzing the situation needs practice but one will achieve this by paying attention and keeping balance between the values. Decision making is a very important process. â€Å"Decision making is the study of identifying and choosing alternatives based on the values and preferences of the decision maker. † (Harris Robert, 1997). I believe if we give respect to all the three values equally and give importance to all of them while making a decision then our decision making process will be much easier than we expected and we can keep the right balance in the personal and professional life. We will be able to take correct decisions in life if we start appreciating these values more significantly.

Christian worldview Essay

Theologians from different ages attempted to answer this question by pointing to the primacy of the Bible and the laws of the Church as the foremost guide to Christian living. Thomas Aquinas, for example, noted that a Christian worldview is Christocentric from the very beginning. that is, the creation was a manifestation of the Word of God. Hence, the Christian is obliged to recognize that the word â€Å"creation† is a partial manifestation of Christ (partial, since the mystery of the Trinity is yet to be revealed to humanity). Hence, every human being is expected by the Creator to be stewards of His creation. This role of stewardship should be characterized by respect for creation, responsible leadership, and brotherhood. Thus, for Aquinas, the Christian worldview is tantamount to recognition of the Christocentric origin of creation and its manifestations (the role of stewardship) in the actions of men. The Concept of Worldview: A Background In Creation Regained : Biblical Basics for a Reformation Worldview , Albert Wolters answers the question by pointing that â€Å"living consciously to the teachings of the Bible and understanding its meaning† is grounded on what he calls â€Å"framework. † This framework is equivalent to the term â€Å"worldview† (in German, Weltanschauung). Worldview literally means a framework of beliefs which functions as a guide to life. The author sees that the elements of a Christian worldview were first derived from the Bible and expounded by the Protestant Reformation. Hence, Wolters exposition of a Christian worldview had its roots from Protestant theology, although the basic elements of a Christian worldview are almost identical. In the book, Wolters created a framework for understanding the teaching of the scripture by expounding three concepts: creation, fall, and redemption. The author notes that the creation was formed out of God’s goodness. this goodness flow from the Divine will to the physical world. It can be said that the physical world to which man is located has that share of Divine Essence. Added to that, when God created man, he set forth creation as man’s purpose. God bestowed on man the role of stewards of creation. Creation serves as the means of man to attain his full development. Thus, it can be said that the â€Å"creation was created for man, and man for creation. † This mutual relationship between creation and man can be exhibited in the book of Genesis. The scope of such relationship became, however, limited because of the fall of humanity. However, the incarnation of the Word to this world became the grounding point for the restoration of creation. Hence, Christ’s redemption of humanity served as the climax for that restoration. God’s Grace as Restoration Here we can argue that God’s grace is not a concept far removed from the physical world. It is neither supra-creational nor anti-creational. God’s grace is restorative in value. God intended to restore the original goodness and meaning of creation to which sin has severely damaged. Wolters argues that because of the expansive scope of God’s redeeming work, Christians are invited to participate in his work in all parts of the world. Thus, the author notes that redemption is tantamount to the fulfillment of God’s will in this world. The afterlife serves as the final test of man’s love for God. The term â€Å"redemption† though is only a subset of God’s grace (since God’s grace is the totality of God’s loving actions towards the history of man). Redemption is viewed as the restoration of man’s relationship with God, which had been severely impaired by the fall. This restoration though, cannot be attained if God is viewed by man as a distant entity. God therefore willed that He must be a participant in the redemption of man, because â€Å"He alone is capable of giving grace to man. † This was manifested in the incarnation of the Word. The incarnation serves as God’s medium to communicate his â€Å"grace† to man. Wolters notes that the baptism of Jesus Christ was the first act to which God made clear His intention of reaching the humanity. This â€Å"reaching† though must be viewed as an act of love. undeterred by the dualist distinction of the divine and the physical. Needless to say, it was also a means of God to show that His preeminence is unbounded by time, space, and matter. that although He is distinct from the three dimensions of the physical world, He is Lord. Concepts of Structure and Direction The relationship among the three concepts can be explained using two terms: structure and direction. Structure refers â€Å"to the order of creation† , that is, it is the unchangeable and objective reality established by God. This establishment of objective reality was basically derived from the Divine Essence, yet distinct from God Himself. This method of ascribing the nature of creation to God is stressed in the work of Catholic and Protestant theologians. According to this method, we assume that God’s nature is translated into another nature by virtue of creation. However, we can never equalize God’s nature with that of creation. The reality expressed in God is different from the reality manifested in creation. Thus, God’s preeminence in terms of nature is recognition of the Divine origin of creation. Thus, the â€Å"order of creation† is derived from the will of God, and yet distinct from His nature. Direction, on the other hand, is about the evil in the world and its corresponding cure. The evil was first manifested in the fall of humanity. the cure in the salvific actions of the incarnated Word. Thus, the author argues that structure and direction comprised the â€Å"worldview. † This worldview though differs from philosophy and theology by virtue of being pre-theoretical. This pre-theoretical notion of worldview is compounded on the will of God. Thus, the author notes that the order of creation (structure) is something derived from God which can be utilized for or against the kingdom of God (direction). The Idea of Creation The idea of creation is expounded in the book of Wolters. Wolters defines it as â€Å"the correlation of the sovereign activity of the Creator and the created order. † This created order is governed by God’s acts called â€Å"laws. † Here, Wolters arrives at a definition of law: â€Å"the totality of God’s ordaining acts toward the cosmos. † Law is a translation of God’s will into actions comprehensible by the human mind. Translation is necessary in order for men to obey the will of God and participate in God’s work (stewardship of creation). Added to that, law is also recognition of the subordinate nature of creation to the will of God. This subordination though does not impede the capacity of creation to reach full development. The law serves as the focal point of development of all creatures since the â€Å"history of creation† is guided by the salvific actions of the Most High. The Conception of Divine Law Nonetheless, the law is foremost the recognition of the sovereignty of the Absolute and Perfect God and of the individuality of the creation. Anything beyond the grasp of God’s ordaining acts does not exist. Development separate from the hands of God will not mature. Thus, it can be said that the law serves as the driving force for the maintenance of the â€Å"order of creation† and its corresponding development. Here Wolters makes a distinction between the law ordained by God and the laws established by man. The law ordained by God serves first as a means for humanity to achieve full development. Humanity from the very beginning is special to God. Among the creatures of the earth, God chose man as his representation. When God said, â€Å"Let us create man in our own image†, God bestows on man the authority to shape the world. Thus, when God established the â€Å"Law†, He intends for obedience to become a point of development. that is, development in accordance to the will of God. As what had been argued earlier, development outside the scope of God’s authority does not exist. Second, God’s law functions as a test to humanity. For example, the laws of nature were established in order to test the efficacy of man’s genuine efforts to reach the Almighty. God wants humanity to discover and reach Him through its own efforts. By the laws of nature, man realizes that a Power exists beyond what he perceives. This Power is the manifested in the powers of nature: the capability to create and destroy. Thus, God intended the law to be a salvific force for man’s redemption. Human law, on the other hand, tends to be brutal and blind in scope. For the most, laws in society protect the strong and promote injustice. Rather than catering to the needs of the weak and the poor, these laws maintain the paramount interests of the ruling class. The consequence: the laws established by society become contradictory to the true purpose of the Higher Law. Rather than viewing these â€Å"secular laws† as an extension of the Law of God, it is perceived by the oppressed as an instrument of injustice and evil. Wolters then argues that because of the inclination of the laws of society to dispense evil and injustice, it becomes an â€Å"enemy of God’s ordained purpose. † Secular and Religious Domains of the Law Wolters argues that the world is divided into â€Å"secular† and â€Å"religious† domains (based from the distinction of human and divine law). The religious domain is that which concerns the private approach to scripture removed from the rudiments of â€Å"public† or â€Å"secular† affairs such as politics, science, art, and scholarship. He argues that the â€Å"religious† domain focuses on the personal ascription of an individual to the nature of the Divine. that is, the world outside the grasp of the human mind. The â€Å"secular† domain is the one derived from God and made meaningful by man. â€Å"Meaningful† here does not connote the imperfection of God in establishing an â€Å"order†, rather God gave man the capability of creating an order to which he may achieve his full potential. Components of Worldview Here, Wolters correlates â€Å"worldview† with the cognitive dimension of humanity as the medium to which man may live faithfully in accordance to the Divine Essence. He notes that if man would rearrange his mental structure to embody the teachings of the Bible, then man’s life would reflect the will of the Divine. Needless to say, man’s life would be renewed and somehow â€Å"restored† to its true purpose. Thus, Wolters argues that a one-way subordinate relationship exists between beliefs and practices. Practices are derived from beliefs. Beliefs are derived from God’s revelation to man (which reached its climax in the redemptive act of Jesus Christ). In this dualism, the inner aspect of worldview is equivalent to beliefs. the outer to practices. These two aspects of dualism though are not mutually exclusive. Man’s beliefs influence his actions. His actions, in turn, reinforce those beliefs. Here, Wolters presents a discussion of consecration and sanctification. Sanctification refers `to the renewal from the inside out. † Consecration, on the other hand, refers â€Å"to external and superficial renewal. † The distinction between these two concepts can be grasped from a substantial understanding of the dualist conception of worldview. Before an individual is renewed superficially, there is a need to rearrange his beliefs. The rearrangement should be based from Biblical precepts declared to be essential to man’s future relationship with God. This rearrangement is termed â€Å"internal reorientation. † When beliefs are properly renewed (consequently worldview is changed), this results to a total reorientation of man’s lives and his activities. Because practices constitute man’s life, reforming becomes a way to enrich that life, and to an extent, to give meaning to its true purpose. It should be noted that this â€Å"new life† is Christocentric in orientation. Faith becomes a manifestation of the Divine Will and transforms into actions contributing to its fulfillment. Here, we can assume that an `internal reorientation† of the inner aspect of worldview is a prerequisite in the total reformation of man’s life. Form of Biblical Worldview The form of Biblical Worldview which Wolters presents in his book can be summarized as follows: The form itself is ordained by God after the fall of man. The fall of humanity destroyed the bridge between God and man, and thus made necessary the proliferation of sin in the world. Because the primary purpose of creation is man, and of man is creation, there was a need to establish a structure and direction that would characterize man’s worldview. Direction though is a manifestation that God gave man freewill. that is, the freedom to choose between good and evil. God though continues to guide humanity throughout history as a Force of salvation and grace. God’s establishment of the Divine Law serves as a means for man to attain his true purpose. This true purpose can only be found in the realm of the Divine. Hence, the law as what Jesus Christ said â€Å"is made for man, not man for the law. † And, worldview is made up of two components: consecration and sanctification. Sanctification is a prerequisite for consecration. A reorientation of man’s belief is necessary for a total transformation of his life. This transformation though must be Christocentric and derived from freewill. Only when these requirements are fulfilled that man reaches the mind of the Divine. The will of God then becomes manifested in the actions of man. Man then is restored to his true purpose (which was damaged by the fall). Personal Understanding of Christianity: Changes Personally, the redemption of Christ serves only as the restoration of God’s infinite love to humanity. This is not the case in Wolters’ book. God’s infinite love had been from the very beginning directed to the nature of man. God intended man to be his close associate, greater than the angels, and receiver of His Divine grace. No point in history that God’s love for humanity diminished. God’s love for humanity is perfect and without bound. Even if the physical world ends, God’s love will flow. This is the ultimate fact of Christianity. Nonetheless, the view (personal) that the restoration of man to his true nature is limited by time and space is also contradictory to the thesis of Wolters. He argues that the restoration or the redemption of humanity through Christ is continuous. that is, the Divine grace moves history towards the full attainment of that restoration. Hence, the righteous is called to participate in this redemptive act so that the â€Å"sinners† would be enlightened of the true purpose of God’s reign. Personally, there are only two events in human history which can be described as salient to Christian faith: fall and redemption. This is though not the case in Wolters’ thesis. From the very beginning (creation), God intended man to live with Himself to attain his potentialities. This was damaged by sin: the element that disrupted (and continues to disrupt) man’s true nature. Man became far from God. Although God tried to reach man, man became (and continues to become) ignorant of himself. Man was blinded by the authority given by God over His creation. He became selfish and ignorant of God’s will. Thus, God willed that man be restored to himself. that is, God wants man to be reconciled to his true nature: a nature that recognizes its Divine origin. Bibliography Aquinas, Thomas. Whether temporal goods fall under merit? † in Summa Theologica (Calvin College, Christian Classics Ethereal Library, 2005). Retrieved on 28 October 2007 from http://www. ccel. org/ccel/aquinas/summa. FS_Q114_A10. html. Luther, Martin. â€Å"The Necessity of Knowing God and His Power† in De Servo Arbitrio (On the Enslaved Will. (Calvin College, Christian Classics Ethereal Library, 2007). Retrieved on 28 October 2007 from http://www. ccel. org/ccel/luther/bondage. viii. html.

What are the steps for improving semantics as outlined in your Essay

What are the steps for improving semantics as outlined in your textbook Explain them - Essay Example This may be different from what the same word connotes to different people that is its implied meaning. The order of words in sentences is important in providing us their meaning more clearly than the words themselves (Kholoud 714). In order to improve semantics, our word choice and arrangement should help to clarify meaning and show respect. The way the words flow in the sentence clarifies what they mean and shows us the context in which they have been used. The use of specific language or words that narrow the meaning down from a general set to one item or inclusive group. This is the use of precise words to clarify the meaning of the phrase. This addresses the problem of semantic under specification where the meaning of a word is not complete without certain elements of context.  Another way is by the use of concrete language. This is the use of words that appeal to the intellect. Such words assist you to clarify semantic meaning by boosting understanding. Such words appeal to the senses and are related to feelings evoked by certain words or phrases. Use of language that is familiar to the recipient can diffuse confusion in a sentence. This is because familiar language is in a language context understood b y the recipient enhancing clarity and dispelling ambiguity. Through the use of descriptive details and examples in your content, you can improve semantic meaning by enhancing visual perception in the mind of the recipient. Visual descriptions help the listener to create a mental picture of what is being said and understand the concept better (Kholoud 716). Such tools increase clarity particularly in eliminating any form of ambiguity. When local and familiar examples are used in statements, listeners tend to understand the intended message and may seek further clarification with certainty. Localised examples also eliminate confusion since the explanations become customized per se. Sensitivity in communication is attained by being

Film analysis with historical references - Cidade de Deus (City of Research Paper

Film analysis with historical references - Cidade de Deus (City of God) (2002) - Research Paper Example The book was written by Paulo Lins, who was born in 1958 in Estacio, a black district of Rio, close to the docks; and later was rehoused in the City of God after the disastrous floods of 1966 (Lamnews, 2004). Living in the broken city with almost no infrastructure, Paulo experienced the dark side of the favela – the local gangsters, drug dealers, murders and thefts. The book was later turned into a feature film in 2003 that was critically acclaimed around the world, was nominated for four Academy Awards and gave a deep insight on the burning issue in Latin America – youth violence, crime and drugs (Oliveira, 2009). This write-up attempts to analyze the movie Cidade de Deus (City of God) in the historical and present context of youth violence and crime in Latin America. The Story of Cidade de Deus (2003) The movie "City of God" opens with a frantic chicken escaping slaughter hounded by a gang of pistol-packing prepubescents. The chase leads the protagonist, photojournali st Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues) in the middle of a proxy gunfight between the gangsters and the police. In a way, the first scene depicts the essence of the movie where Rocket is finding his ground between his two worlds. The movie unearths the decline of â€Å"City of God† over the span of 15 years, from a sunbaked ghetto of earth-colored houses having children playing soccer games and petty thievery in front yards into a sinister slum swarming with armed adolescent gangsters dealing in cocaine and murders. In the middle of this change, Rocket narrates his life in the slum, a child of the 60s; he witnesses barbarity, greed, rape and revenge that fuel a catastrophic gang war. The movie is split into three chapters, each drearier and more horrendous than the one before; narrating through parallels, the interweaving destinies of Rocket and his childhood playmates, Li'l Dice (Douglas Silva) who changes his name upon growing up to Li'l Ze (Leandro Firmino da Hora) – an ult ra-violent, psychotic, drug-dealing socio-path. In the 70s, Li’l Ze’s only link to humanity is his lieutenant Benny (Phillipe Haagensen) whose murder leads him to be even more ferocious. Apart from dealing in hard drugs and combating with other gangs and police, Li'l Ze also â€Å"grooms† pre-teenagers (â€Å"Runts†) by supplying weapons and making them snoopers. A decade later, Li'l Ze's finds his empire threatened by the very Runts who rebel against his authority. It all builds up to a shootout between Li'l Ze and a rival gang leader Knockout Ned (Seu Jorge), a peaceable bus-fare collector turned avenger after Li'l Ze rapes his girlfriend and shoots his brother. Rocket, on the other hand, despite living in the middle of violence, escapes from the criminal life through his passion for photography. His sensational photo of Li'l Ze and his posse ends up on the front page of a newspaper. Surprisingly, Rocket is encouraged by the publicity-hungry thug to be his court photographer. Most of the movie's final bloodbath is witnessed through his camera's lens. The narration of City of God uses many close-up shots, extreme close-up shots and flash backs making the movie very gripping. Gangs and Crime in Latin America Youth gangs are among the core features of the landscape of violence in Latin America and the Caribbean. Known by many names, pandillas, maras, bandas, galeras, quadrilhas, barras, chapulines, they are permeating throughout the territory, and are