philosophical/literary essays
 

as an exercise i have started that thread lets brainstorm daily on any of literary essay

Let's discuss on the issue of present govt with bureaucracy. PTI Govt is trying to curb corruption but is not willing to revise the salary structure of the Civil Employees. Resultantly, the bureaucracy has resorted to red-tapism. It is delaying all important decisions and public service assignments, hoping that the Govt would someday succumb to this pressure and will either revise the Salary Structure or reduce the intensity of anticorruption efforts.

Brilliant idea! I feel the more philosophical essays are often overlooked even though they have such a scope to showcase one's own creativity and ability. I shall list a few philosophical/literary topics from the recent CSS papers below and then we can add our own thoughts and arguments regarding them after that.
[LIST=1][*]If gold rusts what shall iron do? [*]Can meaning be fixed?[*]Great nations win without fighting.[*]Post-modern ethos - a challenge to the West.[*]Modernity is an unending process.[*]Life without change moreover is no life, but why one should not chose the safe haven of conformism?[*]All recorded history is Contemporaneous.[*]Ideologies thrive on the notion of resistance, yet change is a simulation. [*]Punctuality is the virtue of the bored.[*]Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent.[*]I disapprove of what you say, but I defend to death your right to say it. [*]Luxury of predecessors becomes the necessity of successors.[*]Art for Peace.[*]Truth is lived, not taught.[*]Sometime we do not see, what we see.[*]Too many of us are not living our dreams because we are living our fears.[*] Beware the barrenness of a busy life![/LIST]

The main underlying issue between the current Govt. and the bureaucracy is a deep seeded mistrust and a viscous tussle for power. The government has the authority to shuffle around the bureaucracy and the bureaucracy is in a solid defensive position of being able to, as you have also mentioned, slow down the machinery-causing delays and frustrations all around.

People like to think that the system that they are in the "best". They like living in a bubble. The Bureaucracy is open to change as long as it benefits them and they suddenly won't be required to do much more than they already do. Also even if they'll admit that the current system needs an overhaul not many currently serving bureaucrats would be willing to openly say that the system that appointed them and gave them the position is "wrong" or "corrupt". For them-being in the middle of it all- it almost becomes normal.

The government on the other hand needs to learn to negotiate better. You can't just step into a system and say to people already in it that all of you are corrupt or are sitting by while corruption happens and are to blame and so on and so forth. Such remarks only served to turn the bureaucracy against the govt.

So now both sides are playing a dangerous tug of war with the citizens of Pakistan and our future as well being caught in the crossfire. They'll have to learn to work together and find a common path forward.

Beware the barrenness of busy life --CSS2018
 

[B]Introduction:[/B]
[U]Modern man has turned himself into robot as he prefers to work all the time. It is inimical to man's social nature. Thus, he falls a prey to barrenness of busy life.[/U]
Outline:[LIST=1][*]Materialistic nature of man compels him to remain busy all the time.[*]An endless competition to achieve success over night further adds fuel to fire.[*]Peer pressure in professional life keeps one busy.[*]Big dreams lead man to stay busy, earn more and fulfill his dream accordingly.[*]Busy life kills the real essence of man's life.[*]It gives rise to serious health issues.[*]It is destructive for a healthy family system.[*]Today, divorce rate in World has increased and one reason is busyness of partners to share lovable moments.[*]A busy man easily falls a prey to mental illness.[*]Therefore, Japan has a great number of Depression patients.[*]It has weaken our society as culture of meetups and gatherings is no more.[*]Life needs a balanced approach be it professional, social or personal.[*]Man must save time for recreational activities.[/LIST]
He prefers to work day and night in pursuit of money. He does not like to spend time with loved ones rather considers it waste of time. In short, avarice for resources has overcome his conscience. His materialistic nature has turned him blind. Today, divorce rate is too high as partners are unable to make love and share moment with each other. It leads to breakup of family and all members of family suffer it. It is destructive for healthy society. Therefore, it is said that man must apply a balanced approach in life. In past, man used to earn a decent amount which was enough for bread and butter of his family. He did not believe in hoarding money. He used to pass time with family, friends and kins. He eagerly used to take part in recreational activities . As a result, he passed a happy and healthy life even in limited resources. In short, he was a brave man as he did not let his greediness overpower his will. Whereas in present, modern man is good business man but a bad husband or a busy father who does not have enough time for his offspring. In shirt, he is an ATM machine. It has long reaching bad effects on society. it perturbs the whole system of nature. It is deadly for a healthy life. Today, illnesses like Depression, Insomnia and bipolarity are very common. The main factor behind such diseases is disturbed social life of an individual. In developed states, firms do not appreciate spending extra hours on job. They advice their employees to spend time with their loved ones; so that, employees could not be less productive. whereas in developing states, this culture is not new but it is hoped that they would understand the menaces of a busy life and could control it latter or sooner. Thus, it is highly recommended that man must maintain a balanced approach in life. Efforts must be made to reinstate the culture of social gatherings, family meetups and vocational tours. If it successfully undergoes the same way, we would be able to prevent out people from the barrenness of busy life.

[B]'Extremes are busy, strive for balance.' __Collin Wright[/B] #Beware #The #Barrenness #of #Busy #life #CSS #2018 #Literary Essays #AllRightsReserved

[B]TOPIC: Sometimes we do not see what we see[/B]

Introduction:
• The two meanings of sight: (1) detection of stimulus by the sense organs (eyes) and perception by the mind (2) to discern, reflect, understand or comprehend
• Philosophy and Epistemology: sense experiences are a basis of all that we ‘see’ and know
• Interaction of our senses with the environment are a big source of our knowledge and shapes our behavior
• What we see depends upon a multitude of factors both physiological and psychological


Body:
• [B]Epistemology: Sight and Knowledge[/B]
• Empiricists: John Lock’s tabula rasa
• We depend on our senses for understanding, however they are not perfect
• [B]Psychology[/B]
• Experiments and theories that demonstrate how our understanding is often flawed
• Selective attention of our senses (visual and auditory)
• Inattention blindness
• Attribution theory and fundamental attribution error
• Conforming to Society and Social Influence
• Biases, Stereotypes and Prejudices that color our perception
•[B] Literature: Theme of Sight and Blindness, Appearance vs. Reality[/B]
• Metaphorical blindness of characters
• Famous playwright Sophocles’ [I]Oedipus Rex[/I]
• Shakespeare’s plays are a true mirror of society and show how we often err in seeing: [I]Othello[/I] and [I]King Lear[/I]
• [B]Contemporary Philosophy: Meta-narratives, truth and history[/B]
• Slavery and Cognitive dissonance
• Harriet Beecher Stowe’s [I]Uncle Tom’s Cabin[/I], Conrad’s [I]Heart of Darkness[/I], Achebe’s [I]Things Fall Apart[/I]
• Demonization of Jews and Holocaust
• Reformation and the emergence of Protestant religion
• Derrida, deconstruction and multiple truths


[B]Conclusion: [/B]

In the light of the above arguments and examples, it becomes clear that it is exceedingly difficult to arrive at absolute truth or understanding, and that there are multiple factors which often render us blind during the process of ‘seeing’ or understanding something that exists in the environment. There are two sides to a coin, and we mistakenly believe that the side we see is the only one that exists. We do not see what we see, because our past experiences, our limited senses, our expectations, biases and our society’s influence often tends to colour our understanding. It is like seeing the world through multi-colored glasses which are unique for every person. Perhaps the first step then, should be for one to declare 'I know that I know nothing', and realize that sometimes we do not see, or fully comprehend, what we see.