The Crusades Saladin Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The Crusades Saladin - Research Paper Example The paper "The Crusades Saladin" discusses The Crusades Saladin. Besides heavy casualties, the expeditions influenced its participants in their various aspects of life to adopt new mannerisms, foods, cultural outlooks, learning, and weapons. The Born á ¹ ¢alÄ Ã¡ ¸ ¥ al-DÄ «n YÃ… «suf ibn AyyÃ… «b in 1138, Saladin emerged as a powerful and most influential Muslim sultan of his time. During his reign, Saladin led troops in wars geared at regaining holy lands such as Jerusalem, which were lost during earlier battles. This was achieved by conquering and unifying warring factions before defeating King Richard I of England in the Third crusade. As such, Saladin is regarded as a great leader for his role in uniting and leading the Muslim world into crusades such as the battle of Hattin through to the Third Crusade. This paper illustrates the life of á ¹ ¢alÄ Ã¡ ¸ ¥ al-DÄ «n YÃ… «suf ibn AyyÃ… «b with regard to his rise to power, leadership, and crusades. Saladin’s heritage is subject to debate among historians who fail in consensus on his paternal family origins. Some describe him as a Kurd while others illustrate an Arab and Turkish ancestry. Saladin’s father, Najm ad-Din Ayyub was a warden at Tikrit fortress after rising in prominence as a wealthy Kurdish chief and a noble Muslim before Saladin was born. For this reason, Ayyub developed administrative skills that made him useful to the then ruler. Tikrit was a significant city as a scholars centre to both Christians and Muslims. The thirst for power and wealth saw Ayyub assist a rival leader.... However, the thirst for power and wealth saw Ayyub assist a rival leader, Imad ad-Din Zangi Lord of Mosul, after his defeat by offering them refuge in Tikrit. Similarly, Shirkuh, Saladin’s uncle was accused of murder, which forced Ayyub and his family to flee with his family on the same night the Saladin was born (Nicolle 10). In 1139, Saladin's family moved to Mosul where Zangi received them and proceeded to appoint Ayyub as the commander of his fortress in Baalbek, Syria as acknowledgement of his help. Saladin spent most of his early life in Baalbek following his father’s military career, which would later play a critical role in nurturing his leadership skills. Saladin’s early childhood education focused on religion, ethics, and culture, which involved learning Arabic, poetry, grammar, and formal prayers (Burhan). In addition, Saladin studied the Koran and the traditions of Prophet Muhammad as demanded in accordance to Islamic traditions. Over time, he was mai nly interested in learning Islamic principles concerning Christians and Jews owing to the prevalent barbaric crusades in Jerusalem. This interest can also be attributed to the day he was born as his family was exiled following the murder of a Christian by his uncle. Saladin failed to understand how Islam called for noble treatment of Christians and Jews even as they were involved in massacres in Jerusalem, in the name of crusades. In spite of the controversy surrounding the ill treatment of Muslims by Christians, Saladin was guided by Sufism, which sought for a higher spiritual life and closer intimacy with God. With great influences such as his father and uncle, Saladin grew up in a cultured environment of Damascus where he completed his education. It is indicated that Saladin got

The Legacy Admissions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Legacy Admissions - Essay Example The first argument in favor of legacy admissions raised by Thomas and Shepard (2008) has been that if a student inside a state is given preference in admission to an educational institution inside the state, just because his family pays the taxes that sustain the institution, on the same logic, it can be argued that legacy preferences are permissible (p.221). But is the payment of taxes which is obligatory for all citizens and which cannot be skipped even if your student does not get an admission in a college inside your state, comparable to the payment of a donation for a legacy admission? This is the million dollar question here. It is common sense that the element of choice is present only in the case of a legacy admission and the tax payer has no such choice. And also the payment of taxes makes it obligatory for the state to take care of the tax payers’ welfare. Further, even a student from an affluent family has the same right as his/her family is also paying tax. Hence, though convincing on first encounter, it can be seen that the comparison is flawed. And it is to this aspect that Megalli (2008) is also drawing attention to, when she pointed out, with supportive evidence, this practice will eventually lead to discrimination (p.230). And the evidence has also shown that â€Å"96 percent of all living Ivy League alumni are white† (Megalli, 2008, p.230).     The second major case in the article of Thomas and Shepard (2008) that legacy admissions amount to only a very small percentage of total admissions has also been contested by Megalli (2008) with the support of factual data. But while Thomas and Shepard (2008) have pointed out the comparatively less number of institutions where competition is so high that legacy admissions matter (p.222), Megalli (2008) has made a comparison between the percentage of all applications accepted and the percentage of legacy applications accepted in various ducational institutions and shown a disparity is t here (p.230). But both these sets of figures represent only convenient manipulation and partial presentation of data to support one’s argument.