To what extent was naval rivalry the main cause of the first World War Essay Example for Free

To what extent was naval rivalry the main cause of the first World War Essay One of the main causes of World War I was the Anglo-German naval race. Britain, as an island empire, always had the navy as one of her top priorities. A key event in Britain’s naval expansion was the 1889 â€Å"Naval Defense Act† that established the two power standard: Britain considered necessary to have a navy that was not only the largest in the world, but also equal to or greater than the sum of the worlds second and third largest navies. On the other side of the channel, also Germany saw naval expansion vital and as the only way to succeed in the acquisition of overseas colony; therefore, the â€Å"official† aim of Germany’s naval expansion was to reinforce their colonial empire, but this expansion was also seen as an obvious response to the British naval plans. This situation exacerbated the relations between the two European power and set basic elements for a naval race. In 1906, the Naval Race took an important turn. Britain launched the ‘HMS Dreadnought’, this new battleship was faster (21 knots), with a bigger range ( 9-12 Km), and powered with ten twelve-inch guns instead of the usual four, it was such an advancement of naval technology that it rendered all existing battleships obsolete. A couple of years later Germany responded to Britain, planning to build four dreadnoughts in a three years time. Britain inevitably had to counterattack Germany’s expansion by announcing the building of eight dreadnoughts instead of three. Consequently the relations between them were obsessed from the building of the navies, and a direct and evident rivalry was created. The results of this frenetic naval rivalry was that by 1914 Germany ,even if Britain’s fleet remained considerably larger , had become the second naval world power; they were both ready for a more than ever imminent war. Although the naval rivalry was one of the main causes of World War I and profoundly contributed to create an aggressive situation between the European nations, there was other long terms causes beside it. One of them was the alliances system that divided Europe in two main faction: on one side the triple alliance, including Germany Austria and Italy, on the other the triple entente, including France Russia and England. These alliances were defined as defensive, but choosing allies obviously also implicate choosing the most likely enemies, therefore this two blocs were ready to fight in case of a war. Another long term cause was the colonial rivalry. In the decades preceding WWI almost all the European nations were involved in the â€Å"Scramble for Africa†. All the nations wanted to demonstrate their strength occupying vast areas of Africa. France was one of the most successful, controlling almost all the West and Centre Africa. Also Germany started an intense colonial expansion and gained a million square miles territory between 1884 and 1899. Britain gained the control of some areas in the south of Africa, in Egypt and on the East and Gold Coast. The colonies were often seen as a source of free raw materials and as the only areas of possible expansion without deeply compromising European balance. Effects of the colonial rivalry can be analyzed in two different ways, on the one hand colonies were a sort of safety valve allowing the European power to keep the contrasts away from their continent; on the other hand this rivalry implemented the tension between the colonists nations, causing aggressive foreign policy. Besides this long term causes there was also the event that formerly caused the outbreak of war: the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The heir to the throne was assassinated on 28 June 1914 during a visit to the provinces of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The attack was planned from a group of six young Bosnians, even if their first plan to kill Franz Ferdinand failed, Gavrilo Princip, one of them, was able to approach the car and shot the Archduke and his wife. The assassination was the perfect pretext for Austria to start military actions against Serbia, and after gaining Germany’s support Austria-Hungary finally mobilized her troops against Serbia on 25 July. As a reaction Russia mobilized against both Germany and Austria, Germany declared war on France and Britain declared war on Germany for violating Belgium neutrality. In conclusion none of these causes can be defined as the only cause of war. All of them contributed to create hostility between European powers and to create the basis for a World War. The Naval Rivalry was probably a result of the pre existing tensions but certainly increased the hostility between Britain and Germany. Anyway the presence of such a great navy and army do not implicate a war but should be a deterrent since large scale destructions would be inevitable. It’s also true that the possession of a great and expensive navy and army pushes to use and test them. The overwhelming impression is that the long term causes made a conflict inevitable and that the short term causes such as the Balkan and Moroccan crisis just helped to increase the tension; while the Franz Ferdinand’s assassination was just the excuse the nations were looking forward to start the conflict.

First Love: Pathway To Adulthood :: essays research papers

First Love: Pathway to Adulthood Love is one of the strongest emotions that a human being can feel. It can arise ever so suddenly, spreading a feeling of warm happiness through every inch of a person; like wildfire spreading through a tree. But as the feelings become more intense, the flame of passion can turn into a blazing fire that burns painfully through every vein. A person's first love is especially powerful because it grows from an innocent, naà ¯ve passion. Such was the case for both Vladimir, in Turgenev's First Love, and Tatyana, in Pushkin's Eugene Onegin. The first experience of unrequited love for Vladimir and Tatyana was filled with these raptures and tribulations, which, although left them broken hearted, gave them the strength and maturity needed to become adults. Throughout the genre of First Love, Vladimir was shown to be completely swooped up in overwhelming emotion for Zinaida. Vladimir was entranced with her beauty from the moment he first saw her, "I gazed at her, and how dear she already was to me , and how near. It seemed to me that I had known her for a long time, and that before her I had known nothing and had not lived†¦. (33)" Vladimir was in love at the first sight of her. He couldn't help himself from becoming infatuated with her because he didn't know the first thing about love. As the genre moves on, Vladimir's feelings for Zinaida became deeper and deeper. Vladimir thought to himself: I felt weary and at peace, but the image of Zinaida still hovered triumphant over my soul, though even this image seemed more tranquil. Like a swan rising from the grasses of the marsh, it stood out from the unlovely shapes which surrounded it, and I, as I fell asleep, in parting for the last time clung to it, in trusting adoration. (48) Vladimir allows himself to become completely wrapped up in Zinaida to the point where it becomes an obsession. He is in love with her so much that he even envisions himself rescuing her, as if from any other man: "I saw a vision of myself saving her from the hands of her enemies: I imagined how, covered with blood, I tore her from the very jaws of some dark dungeon and then died at her feet (71-72)." Vladimir was so lost in love for Zinaida that he fantasized about her in order to make their love seem real. Although Vladimir's obsessive love for Zinaida brought wonderful emotions, it also brought the pain and suffering of jealousy and rejection. The raptures that Vladimir experienced went hand in hand with the

Langston Hughes and Alice Walker Essay

Langston Hughes’ Still Here and Dream Deferred are two poems depicting emotions driven by frustrations in life. These literary works may appear simple, but they both depict the social and political conditions during the time these poems were written. Langston Hughes, a renowned writer during the Harlem Renaissance, is famous for his works on social class and race relations in America. His poem Dream Deferred, as the title suggests, describes various detrimental effects frustration can bring to a person. Literary tools used were imagery, similes, and metaphors in question form to suggest these detrimental effects. In the poem, effects are described as the raisin in the sun, like a sore that festers, like a stinking rotten meat, and like a heavy load. The two poems by Langston both expressed the social and political conditions in his time and its implications to the lives of the African-Americans, then. During Langston’s time, African-American exercised limited rights that may have hindered them from attaining their dreams in life. Langston sees that this problem has caused great pain to the unfulfilled person and to the people surrounding him. The short story Everyday Use by Alice Walker, on the other hand, discusses how culture and heritage should be valued and recognized, specifically that of the African-Americans. Alice Walker, an American writer, like Langston, also writes about race and gender relations. Her short story illustrated the conflict in appreciating the African-American culture by presenting the redefined and the practical ways of doing this. The writer made use of the quilt as the representation of the culture and heritage of the African-American. The quilt, seen as the product of quilting, is said to be the refined way of seeing its worth while knowing the process of quilting represents the practical way and more meaningful way of appreciating the culture and heritage. The story suggests that heritage and culture should not be equated to tangible things and should be understood thoroughly to see its worth. Langston and Walker, through their works, showed how African-Americans feel and what their personal struggles are in two different scenarios. Indeed, their works never failed to provide inspiration to those who can relate. References: Hughes, L. (1951). Dream Deferred. Retrieved May 5, 2009, 2009, from http://www. poemhunter. com/i/ebooks/pdf/langston_hughes_2004_9. pdf Hughes, L. Still Here. Retrieved May 5, 2009, from http://www. poemhunter. com/i/ebooks/pdf/langston_hughes_2004_9. pdf Walker, A. (1973). Everyday Use. Retrieved May 5, 2009, from http://xroads. virginia. edu/~ug97/quilt/walker. html

Ma Foi French Expression Explained

Expression: Ma foiPronunciation: [ma fwa]Meaning: frankly, long story short, indeedLiteral translation: my faithRegister: informal, datedNotes: Ma foi is more of a filler or exclamation than an expression, which makes figuring out its meaning a little tricky. Its a bit old-fashioned so you dont necessarily want to use it yourself, but its still important to understand what it means. Uses for Ma Foi 1) Ma foi can mean frankly or in all honesty:Ma foi, je nen sais rien.Frankly, I dont know anything about that.Ma foi, à §a mest à ©gal.In all honesty / To tell you the truth, I dont care.Synonyms: crois-moi, en toute bonne foi, en toute franchise, franchement2) Ma foi can emphasize whatever you say it with:Ma foi, jespà ¨re que non.Well, I (certainly) hope not.Ma foi, oui.Indeed, yes.Cest ma foi vrai.Its certainly true.Synonyms: ben, en effet, enfin3) In the South of France, ma foi is commonly used to sum up a long, tedious, or obvious answer:a) Its a long, boring story, so Ill spare you the details:-Ça va? -Ma foi, à §a va.-How are you? -Fine, for the most part.Meaning: Im actually suffering from several minor ailments, but you dont want to hear about that so Ill just say that Im fine.Synonyms: bref, dans lensemble, en quelque sorte, en rà ©sumà ©, plus ou moinsb) The answer to that is obvious:-Sais-tu que Michel va divorcer? -Ma foi.-Do you know that Michel is getting di vorced? -Obviously.Meaning: Hes my best friend, so of course I know. (Optional: what a stupid question!)Synonyms: bien sà »r, à ©videmmentMa foi in English?Some English dictionaries include the expression ma foi meaning indeed.