Media Essays Media Representations Public

Media Essays Media Representations Public Media Representations Public Abstract The purpose of the study is to examine how mental illness and crime is currently represented in the UK media; to what extent, if any representations have changed over the past decade. Furthermore, the study will adopt the theory of social representations, given the theory’s useful theoretical perspective for the investigation of media representations. The study will be qualitative in nature, comprising of content analysis of UK tabloid and broadsheet newspaper articles. Content analysis is considered to be ‘one of the classical procedures for analysing textual material’ (Flick 1998:192), and is the only method for the analysis of textual material within the social sciences (Bauer (2000). Also, the study will try and discover whether media representations differed considerably in accordance with the type of newspaper and the political orientation of a particular newspaper. Introduction Previous research by the Department of Health found that media representations of mental illness have a negative effect on public perception (Rose, 1998). Another study by the Glasgow University media group, confirmed the belief that people who saw a strong link between mental illness and violence, derived their beliefs largely from the media (Philo, 1993). Although the relationship between the media and public attitudes are complicated, there is however evidence supporting the view that details of mental illness promote and reinforce negative public perceptions (Cutcliffe Hannigan, 2001). Negative representations and the effect that the media has had when dealing with mental illness according to Cutcliffe Hannigan, (2001) makes the point â€Å"that supervision registers, supervised discharge and the appearance of a generally more controlling mental health policy framework in the 1990s emerged, in part at least, as a result of media-fuelled moral panic†. This was as a result of the powerful media coverage of mental health issues relating to the death of Jonathan Zito at a London underground station and the horrific death of Ben Silcock by a lion at London zoo (Cutcliffe Hannigan, 2001). Meanwhile, according to (Cutcliffe Hannigan, 2001) â€Å"Despite the recent European Convention for Human Rights Act coming into force in October 2000, some developments in British mental health care appear to be moving away from the position that upholds, wherever possible, the individual’s personal freedom as sacrosanct, towards a position more concerned with minimizing risk to others†. This development is evident in the policies and legislations that have been introduced by the Labour government since their election in 1997 (Cutcliffe Hannigan, 2001). Over the past 30 years a substantial amount of research has been conducted to determine the effect of the media on the public’s belief system. If public perception of mental illness is based on negative and false images perpetuated by the media, there is a danger that government responses to systems and people in the mental health field will also be based on these false realities, rather than on the true needs and issues of people suffering from mental illness (Cutcliffe Hannigan, 2001; Rose, 1998). Media Representations of Mental Illness Promote False and Negative Images and Stereotypes According to Edney, (2004) â€Å"The media play an influential role in shaping people’s attitudes about the world they live in and about the individuals who inhabit the world with them. Stories about or references to people with mental health issues are rarely out of the headlines in news stories, yet research indicates that media portrayals of mental illness are often both false and negative†. Negative Images and Stereotypes in News Media Furthermore, Edney, (2004) a â€Å"1993 Glasgow University study that conducted a content analysis of 562 newspaper items containing representations of mental health and illness identified within local and national media over the course of one month. The study concluded that 62% of those stories focussed on violence towards others in relation to a person with mental illness. Stories that garner the most media attention appear to be those that make a link between mental illness, crime, and violence†. Violence and Criminality in News Media Meanwhile, Edney, (2004) â€Å"nearly two-thirds of all news stories examined involving those with psychiatric diagnoses could be classified as crime news. Yet, when news on the whole was examined, only 10% of stories were crime news, with the other 90% of stories revolving around issues unrelated to crime or violence, such as politics, entertainment and health. Thus it is not that news overall is dominated by stories about crime, but rather that news stories featuring people with mental health problems are overwhelmingly given this specific and negative focus. Negative Media Portrayals and public’s Negative Attitudes However, according to Edney, (2004) â€Å"The few acts of violence committed by people with mental illness are generally directed at family members, not strangers. Media depictions of persons with mental illness attacking a stranger shape public opinion. The saliency of such high-profile crimes, despite their infrequency, makes it appear as though violent crimes committed by individuals with a psychiatric diagnosis are common, and that the general public has reason to fear people with mental illness†. Furthermore, Edney, (2004) â€Å"the media’s representation of people with mental illness as violent, dangerous, and unpredictable has resulted in the mentally ill suffering societal scorn and discrimination. However, mistaken and negative depictions perpetrate the public’s damning image of people with mental illness and sustain continued intolerance oppression. Such erroneous and negative associations are woven so thoroughly into the fabric of the public consciousness that sensationalism need no longer occur for the public to equate mental illness with dangerousness.† Meanwhile, according to Anderson, (2003), â€Å"Media representations of mental illness can have a significant effect on public images of people who experience mental health problems. The implications for people living in the community are considerable, particularly when the media depict people suffering from a mental illness as being ‘dangerous’ and violent†. Throughout the 1990s, Anderson, (2003), â€Å"the media increased attention on issues surrounding governmental community care legislation and the discharge of people from institutional care. This resulted in a stream of news reports on homicides involving a person known to be suffering from a mental illness†. Furthermore, Anderson, (2003) says that â€Å"Newspapers in the UK have been one of the most powerful forms of media portraying such incidents. The case of Stephen Laudat, a person known to be suffering from schizophrenia, and who was convicted of killing Bryan Bennett, is identified as the ‘Killer who should not have gone to jail’ in an article attempting to illustrate the inadequacies of community care provision†. Another report by Anderson, (2003) â€Å"confronts the reader with ‘Mental patient Kills mother after quitting hospital’, which tells the tale of Gilbert Steckel, who was found to have killed a teacher and her two daughters soon after being discharged from a psychiatric hospital†. These events, along with the cases of Christopher Clunis and Jonathan Newby, show the failings of health policies and the health service (Anderson. 2003). An article in the ‘Independent’ announced ‘NHS accused over mentally ill killers (Anderson, 2003). Furthermore, according to Anderson, (2003), â€Å"During the last decade a number of studies and analytical papers attempted to demonstrate that negative reports in the press have contributed to the formation of negative public attitudes towards the mentally ill. Broadsheet and tabloid newspapers made a significant link between mental ill health, criminality and violence. Such stories were often given more exposure than positive articles. Social Representations Theory Given the amount of work carried out using social representation theory, I will concentrate on the aspects of the theory that are useful for media analysis. Social Representation theory provides a framework for the understanding of common-sense thinking, and does not privilege one particular form of research methodology, thus reducing the possibility of bias or error. For example, social representations that emerge as a result of content analysis of media texts do not change as a result of being investigated, albeit representations rely on the interpretation of the researcher, and therefore may contain a degree of bias. In contrast, information gathered from individuals may be open to change, since individuals may behave differently once they are aware of the nature of the investigation (Farr, 1993). Social Representations theory also guides methodology as well as being theoretical and in this regard any researcher working with social representations need to be aware of their own bias. Social representations theory was developed by Moscovici who defined social representations as a: system of values , ideas and practices with a twofold function; first to establish an order which will enable individuals to orient themselves in their material and social world and to master it; and secondly to enable communication to take place among the members of a community by providing them with a code for social exchange and a code for running and classifying unambiguously the various aspects of their world and their individual and group history (Moscovici 1973: viii) Therefore, social representations are a system of organised structures of meanings which is expressed through the medium of practice and talk. It provides a person with a framework to make sense of their social world, and their understanding is influenced by the meanings associated to them by society. One of the main principles of the theory is the process of making the unfamiliar familiar; which allows a person to make sense of events or something new which is unusual or interesting. The theory suggests that individuals develop further ideas as they do not like to live in a society that is strange or unfamiliar. According to Moscovici, (2000) when â€Å"otherness is thrust upon us in the form of something not quite as it should be we instinctively reject it, because it threatens the established social order†. Newspaper articles showing acts of violence or crime sometimes sees the perpetrator as having a history of mental illness, or psychological disorder, which would suggest that mental illness, was the direct cause of violence. So, to what extent can and should the mental health services protect the public against crime committed by mentally disordered offenders. According to Turner, (1996). Section 1 of The mental Health Act (1983) defines mental disorder as mental illness, arrested or incomplete development of mind, psychopathic disorder and any other disorder or disability of mind. Furthermore, the Act sets out four types of mental disorder, being severe mental impairment, mental impairment, psychopathic disorder and mental illness (Turner, 1996). Whilst the definitions are in fact legal constructs the type of mental disorder attributed to individuals is dependant on the clinical judgement of doctors and psychiatrists. Thus, detention under the Mental Health Act (1983) depends on the recommendations of two medical professionals, and should the type of mental disorder differ between the two judgements then the detention is invalid. Moreover, the 1983 Act states that individuals should not be deemed to have a mental disorder buy reason only of promiscuity or other immoral conduct, sexual deviancy or dependence on alcohol or drugs. In other words, behaviour that is not perceived to be within social norms is not a mental disorder. Whilst alcohol and drug abuse may cause mental disorder, and thus fall within the scope of the 1983 Act, in isolation they are not mental disorders. Consequently, discussions on the best means of disposal of mentally disordered offenders has been the subject of many government policy initiatives. In relation to DSPD offenders the Home Office/Department of Health (1999) policy proposals for Managing Dangerous People with Severe Personality Disorder identified the need to protect the public and to provide effective services for individuals suffering from DSPD. Personality Disorder describes a range of different conditions, from those individuals who pose some threat to themselves as well as to their families or friends to individuals who are severely disordered and pose a high risk to the public. This group of individuals is characterised as having DSPD, and it is estimated that over 2000 individuals within England and Wales suffer from this disorder. Current provisions of managing DSPD are problematic, since DSPD sufferers pose new challenges to the mental health services; the lack of knowledge about causes of the disorder and the nature of treatment of the disorder. Although individuals with DPSD may also suffer from mental disorder as well as a personality disorder, they are perceived as having different needs from most mentally ill patients and often undermine hospital regimes (Home Office/DOH, 1999). DSPD sufferers are less likely to receive consistent and long term treatment for their disorder, often treatment being a result of crisis intervention. Furthermore, involuntary admission to hospital for treatment of a psychopathic disorder is conditional on the basis that the individual will benefit from the treatment in hospital or prevent deterioration. In the case of DSPD sufferers, psychiatrists are less likely to recommend hospitalisation unless they also suffer from mental illness. However, the majority of DSPD sufferers are found within the prison system, where it is argued they pose equally challenging problems for prison staff. Those individuals who are categorised as being disruptive are held in Close Supervision Centres within the prison, whereby they are subject to high levels of supervision. On the other hand, whilst some individuals pose no management problems in prison they present a risk to the public on release. Furthermore, assessment of DSPD sufferers in prison by mental health services is not a matter of course, but rather a matter of chance. Some might question that this system is a breach f the duty of care on the part of both the criminal justice and mental health services to such individuals. Whilst the causes and possible interventions of the disorder are unclear it is hard to prove whether consistent and long term treatments have reduced the likelihood of re-offending, and the risk to the public. More resources needs to put in place in order to provide the care required by particular mentally disordered people, thus not assumimng that mentally disordered people are homogenous groups. Therefore, in this regard one would suggest that the mental health services should not only protect the public from the risk posed by DSPD individuals but also should protect the individual sufferers. Nevertheless, the duty of care is not only the responsibility of the mental health services. The Criminal justice system play an important role in the management of mentally disordered offenders. Diversion of mentally disordered offenders into psychiatric care can occur prior and during the process of criminal proceedings. Firstly, the police have the power under Section 36 of the Mental Health Act (1983) to take a person, they believe to be behaving in a disturbed manner in a public place, to a place of safety, such as hospital for assessment. This power is open to the police even if an offence has not been committed. The Crown prosecution service may also take into account the mental health of an offender when deciding whether a prosecution is in the public interest. The power of the courts range from remanding the the individual in hospital for assessment, imposing a hospital or restriction order or order the transfer of an individual already in prison into hospital care. However, Grounds, (1996) argued that the provisions of the mental health services in relation to mentally disordered individuals are not â€Å"as full or comprehensive as is required†. Facilities within secure hospitals have been seen to be too custodial and non-therapeutic. As a result the Special Hospitals Service Authority was established in 1989 to manage the special secure hospitals of Broadmoor, Rampton and ashworth Hospitals (Grounds, 1996). Furthermore, the Butler Committee interim report (1975) recommended increased provision for medium secure beds within regional health authorities. However, Grounds, (1996) argued that the target proposed by the Glancy committee of 1, 000 beds had not been met. According to the Department of Health and Home Office (1991) the number of secure in regional Secure units on 31 January 1991 was 597 (Grounds, 1996). In addition, the provision for secure wards providing intensive care was consistent in some areas minimal, and 1community based forensic psychiatry services were also poorly developed’ (Grounds, 1996:289). One of the principles of the Reed committee report (1990) was that all mentally disordered offenders who required care and treatment should receive it from the health and social services rather than the criminal justice system. In practice, this is not the case since the Courts can only issue Hospital orders if a hospital is willing to admit the patient. Thus, despite the fact that the Courts can impose hospital orders in the disposal of mentally disordered offenders whom they believe require treatment, the actual numbers issued are low in comparison to the number of mentally disordered offenders remanded in custody for assessment (Grounds, 1996). The report suggested that in planning services for the disposal of mentally disordered offenders care should be based on the following criteria: wherever possible community based rather than institutionally based care; the level of security should be in line with the level of danger the individual poses to both himself and others; the type of care should maximise the rehabilitation of offenders, and assist individual in sustaining amn independent life; and the location of treatment should wherever possible be as close to the individual’s own home and family. Although the Government White Paper, The Health of the Nation, (1992) set a health target for the effective service provision for mentally disordered offenders the resource provision is not expected to be high. Another problem is that of risk assessment. Risk is a probabilistic quantiative notion, since it predicts the probability of specified harm in a specified time period. Risk assessment can be both false positives, where an event will occur but does not occur or false negatives, namely that a prediction is made that an event will not occur but it does. The notion of dangerousness is in itself an an imprecise concept, one that is based on subjective judgement. Dangerousness is not a pathological attribute but depends on both the issue of context as well as individual characteristics. For example an individual who is characterised as being pathalogicallly jealous would not be a danger to the general public, but would pose a risk to a partner. The evidence highlights the fact that provisions within the mental health services of dealing with individuals who pose a high risk to the public are lacking. The detention of DSPD individuals in prisons without consistent and lonf=g term treatment plans is not only detrimental to the individual concerned but also increases the risk of re-offending as well as increasing possible risks to the public. Moreover, lack of adequate treatments and support systems for individuals increases public perceptions of the failure of the Community Care policy. Furthermore, whilst it is clear that some individuals pose a threat to the public as well as themselves, some might argue that the process of risk assessment needs to be rigorous. A greater understanding of the needs of |DSPD individuals across both the mental health services and criminal justice services is urgently required; hence the need for the agencies involved with mentally disordered people to collaborate. Furthermore, provided there are adequate provisions available the majority of individuals may not pose any real threat to public safety, and the belief that all mentally disordered individuals pose a threat to the public is grossly exaggerated.

History of Bangladesh

The  history of  Bangladesh  as a  nation state  began in 1971, when it seceded from  Pakistan. Prior to the creation of Pakistan in 1947, modern-day Bangladesh was part of  ancient,  classical,  medieval  and  colonial  India. The area's early history featured a succession of  Indian empires, internal squabbling, and a tussle between  Hinduism  and  Buddhism  for dominance. Islammade its first appearance between the 8th-10th centuries when Muslim missionaries arrived. Later, Muslim rulers reinforced the process of conversion by building  mosques,  madrassas  and Sufi  Khanqah.The borders of present-day Bangladesh were established with the  partition of Bengal  and  India  in 1947, when the region became  East Pakistan, part of the newly formed  Islamic State  of  Pakistan. However, it was separated from the  western wing  by 1,600  km (994  mi) of Indian territory. Due to political exclusion, ethnic and linguistic dis crimination, as well as economic neglect by the politically dominant West Pakistan, popular agitation led by  Sheikh Mujibur Rahman grew against  West Pakistan, resulting in the  Bangladesh Liberation War  of 1971, which the  Bengali people  won with the support of India.After independence, the new state endured  famine,  natural disasters  and  widespread poverty, as well as political turmoil and  military coups. The restoration of democracy in 1991 has been followed by relative calm and economic progress. The Bengali Language Movement The  Bengali Language Movement, also known as the  Language Movement  Bhasha Andolon, was a political effort in  Bangladesh  (then known as  East Pakistan), advocating the recognition of the  Bengali language  as an  official language  of  Pakistan. Such recognition would allow Bengali to be used in government affairs.When the state of Pakistan was  formed  in 1947, its two regions, East Pakistan (also called  East Bengal) and  West Pakistan, were split along cultural, geographical, and linguistic lines. In 1948, the  Government of Pakistan  ordained  Urdu  as the sole national language, sparking extensive protests among the Bengali-speaking majority of East Pakistan. Facing rising sectarian tensions and mass discontent with the new law, the government outlawed public meetings and rallies. The students of the  University of Dhaka  and other political activists defied the law and organised a protest on 21 February 1952.The movement reached its climax when police killed student demonstrators on that day. The deaths provoked widespread civil unrest led by the  Awami Muslim League, later renamed the  Awami League. After years of conflict, the central government relented and granted official status to the Bengali language in 1956. In 2000,  UNESCO  declared 21 February  International Mother Language Day  for the whole world to celebrate,[7]  in tribute to the Language Movement and the ethno-linguistic rights of people around the world.The Language Movement catalysed the assertion of Bengali national identity in Pakistan, and became a forerunner to Bengali nationalist movements, including the  6-point movement  and subsequently the  Bangladesh Liberation War  in 1971. In Bangladesh, 21 February is observed asLanguage Movement Day, a national holiday. The  Shaheed Minar  monument was constructed near Dhaka Medical College in memory of the movement and its victims. ———————– The  History of  Bangladesh

Dependency Theory

What is Dependence Theory? Dependency theory is a theory of how developing and developed nations interact. It can be seen as an opposition theory to the popular free market theory of interaction. Dependency theory was first formulated in the 1950s, drawing on a Marxian analysis of the global economy, and as a direct challenge to the free market economic policies of the post-War era. The free market ideology holds, at its most basic, that open markets and free trade benefit developing nations, helping them eventually to join the global economy as equal players. The belief is that although some of the methods of market liberalization and opening may be painful for a time, in the long run they help to firmly establish the economy and make the nation Dependency theory, in contrast, holds that there are a small number of established nations that are continually fed by developing nations; at the expense of the developing nations’ own health. These developing nations are essentially acting as colonial dependencies, sending their wealth to the developed nations with minimal compensation. In dependency theory, the developed nations actively keep developing nations in a subservient position, often through economic force by instituting sanctions, or by proscribing free trade policies attached to loans granted by the World Bank or International Monetary Fund. The critiques of dependency theory can be leveled within a nation as well as internationally. In fact, dependency theory tends to trace its roots to back before the emergence of modern post-colonialism. On an internal level, dependency theory can be seen applying to regions within a country. In the United States, for example, historically the industrial Northeast can be seen drawing wealth from the agricultural south in a pattern reflected in the modern world by the industrial northern hemisphere and the productive southern hemisphere. Dependency theory also posits that the degree of dependency increases as time goes on. Wealthy countries are able to use their wealth to further influence developing nations into adopting policies that increase the wealth of the wealthy nations, even at their own expense. At the same time, they are able to protect themselves from being turned on by the developing nations, making their system more and more secure as time passes. Capital continues to migrate from the developing nations to the developed nations, causing the developing nations to experience a lack of wealth, which forces them to take out larger loans from the developed nations, further indebting them. The Relevance of Dependency Theory in the Caribbean Dependency Theory is relevant to the Caribbean region because it act as a helping hand, which aid with the Caribbean being developed. It encourages trade, exports and tourism, which is a major form of economic growth. The Caribbean can only produce so much for itself; we have to be dependent on other countries to get resources that are absent from within the Caribbean region. The product varies, as sugar from Cuba and Guyana, bauxite in Jamaica and Guyana, petroleum in Trinidad and Tobago and in the Netherlands Antilles, bananas in St. Lucia, Dominica, Grenada, St. Vincent, Guadeloupe and Martinique and coffee in Haiti. Dependency Theory in the Caribbean region has prospered by means of export of the resource-based products. The Caribbean regions are at a disadvantage but given this, one can seek maximum advantage. Nevertheless given the bad experience of the colonial period most countries turned to some kind of planning, involving and export substitution and export diversification. Assets were created from as early as the colonial period. Tourism is one of the main foreign exchange earners for most of the regions economies. Some implications on how developing countries can alleviate the effects of the world system are by: OPromotion of domestic industry and manufactured goods. By imposing subsidies to protect domestic industries, poor countries can be enabled to sell their own products rather than simply exporting raw materials. OImport limitations, by limiting the importation of luxury goods and manufactured goods that can be produced within the country, the country can reduce its loss of capital and resources. OForbidding foreign investment, some governments took steps to keep foreign companies and individuals from owing or operating property that draws on the resources of the country. ONationalization, some governments have forcibly taken over foreign-owned companies on behalf of the state, in order to keep profits within the country. Dependency Theory and its place in the Global Economy Dependency Theory sees the global economy as characterized by a structured relationship between the cores states which, using political military and economic power to extract a surplus from the peripheral countries. Any attempt by the dependent nations to resist the influences of dependency often result in economic sanctions. Dependency Theory in its various forms has advanced the proposition that development and underdevelopment are opposite faces of the same coin, â€Å"or reciprocal conditions of a global system of capital accumulation. Economic vulnerability and dependency are other dimensions that are derived from the relatively high degree of financial dependency of most government in the region. The Caribbean countries face several challenges arising out of structural shifts in the world economy. The main disadvantages are represented by certain primary products exports, preferential arrangements and environmental vulnerability. Dependency Theory Bedouins and the Dependency Theory. Theories of globalization fall into three categories; Modernization, dependency and the world systems theory. These theories each sprout out into more categories and they distinguish what or how a country or society has developed into. The modernization theory focuses on the culture and belief systems that are powered by globalization. This theory then takes off into five more stages known as the traditional stage, culture-change stage, take-off stage, self-sustained stage, and high economy stage.These stages mainly focus on a few things such as tradition, culture, economy, advancement of education and technology, and also ones that produce the exported goods for other countries to import. Although some theories are open to change that is done gradually, some refuse to change and just stay the same without and further advancement. Although these theories are what distinguish a country and where it lays on the scale, it still does not mean it cannot further itself into something better throughout the world.Anthropologist Donald Cole researched on the Bedouins who are groups of nomadic pastoralists. Al Murrah is the people Cole focused on, they are a small society that resided in the heart of the desert in the country of Saudi Arabia. They were based on caravan trade with relied on the care of camels and other animals. The Al Murrah society was a society based off itself, and other small societies around the desert. They relied on the commodities with oasis centres for dates, rice and bread. They had a military force and also raided others and committed warfare.The rich and powerful Saudi government then recruited Al Murrah males into the national guards work and then the leader of the Al Murrah, as known as the Emir, was recognized as the commander in chief of the small tribes for the national guards. The Saudis would then pay these commanders salary wages which they then would distribute to other tribes people. This then left the Al Murrah people dependent on the Saudi government. This type of works would be considered under the dependency theory. The modern state of Saudi Arabia has token its time by exploiting the small tribe of the Al Murrah by having them work for the National Guard for wages.Saudi government took control over these people by having them always wanting more money and so they would recruit more and more emirs into the National Guard which thus left the Bedouins to be integrated into the nation states throughout the Arabian Peninsula. The dependency theory applies to the Bedouins because it is a larger group exploiting the smaller group into helping them. Although their lifestyles are different, they still accepted the change and still went on with it and now have discontinued existing in the deserts of Saudi Arabia.

Hesitation, Repression, and Indecisiveness in the Love...

Impotent, pathetic, inadequate, timid. Everyone knows a J. Alfred Prufrock, and everyone has a bit of him in himself or herself. Just like Prufrock we readers have been witness to the pretentious triviality of others, the women who come and go/ Talking of Michelangelo (lines 13-14), and the lack of confidence which prevents the realization of desires. Eliots careful choice of epigraph from Dantes Inferno reverberates throughout this poem as the logic behind Prufrock sharing his feelings with his listener. Just as Guido da Montefeltro is certain his listener shares a similar fate as himself, so to does Prufrock believe that his listener is like himself, and will never turn back and descend the stair (line 39). Prufrocks†¦show more content†¦Death also signifies Prufrocks lack of social contact and sexual stimulation. The word etherized not only means to numb, but is also suggestive of the word ethereal. Prufrocks repressed desire can be seen in his frustration with the realit y of social/emotional interaction and also with the ethereal, inexpressible inner desire of his heart, not just to ask an overwhelming question, but further, to say exactly what he means as in line 104. Unable to force the moment to its crisis leaves Prufrock emotionally impotent. Unlike Marvell and his coy mistress Prufrock does not have all the time in the world to malinger, stretched on the floor. Trivializing his message of desire, as in the rhyme of lines 79-80 or referring to himself as John the Baptist only further hinders the expression of his desire. And we can only imagine in Eliots use of religious images in which Prufrock wept and fasted, wept and prayed that Prufrock is fervently hoping for the self-confidence to express his desires. Yet after the social banter/conventions of the cups, the marmalade, the tea, the porcelain and some talk of you and me Prufrock is still unable to seize the moment, to turn desire into action. Presuming that Prufrock is largely reflecting on these issues himself rather than to another listener one notices that he is unable to even mention his desires to himself, so deeply