Why you chose Psychology Major (Personal Autobiography) Essay

Why you chose Psychology Major (Personal Autobiography) - Essay Example I would like to understand the thought pattern of humans and help change how they interact with fellow humans in order to have a more functional society. Therefore, I chose psychology major because apart from it being a fully fledged career on its own, whatever else career one chooses, employability is enhanced when there is a psychology background. By majoring in psychology, I will use research to learn elementary human behavior, and apply the knowledge to solve problems that affect holistic human development. Psychology will enable me to simultaneously use science and practice, stimulating my continuous development of both. I am a person who is inclined to contribute to the wellbeing and prosperity of all areas of the society. Having been brought up in an urban, low-income and marginalized neighborhood, I witnessed many kinds of social ills where school children engaged in sexual immorality, the youth got into crime and adults openly abused drugs and neglected their families. The social fabric was completely ripped apart and no neighbor could stand up to address the rampant problems. Although studies have generalized such neighborhoods to inherently have social breakdowns, to an extent of stereotyping, I believe such societies are as human as any other. They need patience, understanding and dedicated efforts towards achieving normal lives. Stereotyping, marginalizing and segregation will only aggravate the situation. Psychology, therefore, will enable me to work with other professionals in other fields including policymakers, lawyers, physicians, school personnel, computer experts and engineers towards understanding many problems. As a psychology major, my objective is to understand the cause of people being the way they are, doing the things they do and behaving the way they do. Throughout my childhood, even though living a below-average life, I have always been a hard worker and performer in school. Perhaps my forced, early association with the local church saved me from the lifestyle I witnessed and continue to witness among my peers. Through this, I believe I am ready and have the flexibility to face the various and diverse tasks and schedules associated with a psychologist’s career. I want to overcome challenges and satisfy the desire to be part of a team that will adapt technology and benefit human life; to participate in primary healthcare work; to advice disturbed youth; to set up care facilities for the aged and neglected; to encourage children to attend school; to raise awareness of the perils of crime and drug abuse; and ultimately, to be the change that marginal ized societies need. I chose a psychology major because it is also one of the most effective avenues towards understanding myself, not only others. Through psychology, I will achieve this by studying characteristics of human conduct that will help me in my daily life including my perception of the roots of psychological disorders; my capacity to deal with pressure; my memory and learning performance; and my interactions with other people. My key drive towards a psychology major is to understand why the society I grew up in is the way it is. However, I can also integrate any of the other social studies with what I will learn so as to help bring change to the society, not only understand it. For example, an insight of human conduct as

Organic farming overview in Australia Assignment

Organic farming overview in Australia - Assignment Example The second set of methods to control weeds, pests and diseases include crop rotation; use of natural pesticides; careful crop choice and planning; increase of genetic diversity; use of resistant crops; engage good cultivation practices; and encourage important pest-eating predators. Lastly, organic farming also entails good animal husbandry and the careful use of water resources (Rigby & Caceres, 2001). Organic farming provides long-term benefits to the environment and people, which represents the main aim of engaging in organic farming. The first aim is increasing soil fertility in the long-term, and the use of organic materials helps strengthen the potential of the soil. Second, organic farming helps control both diseases and pests without causing harm to the environment, while third, organic farming ensures that the water used remains safe and clean for consumption (Rigby & Caceres, 2001). ... The essence is that organic farming has several benefits, especially in terms of reduced costs (Rigby & Caceres, 2001). Organic farmers strive to do their best to produce food from the environment using systems that are close to those that naturally exist, and work on the premise of a closed agricultural circuit. For instance, soil fertility that results from manure use and the soil formation of the said organic matter plays the role of a fertilisation agent by reducing the loss of nutrients and water, and lessening erosion (Taus, Ogneva-Himmelberger & Rogan, 2013). Furthermore, farm inputs such as fodder and manure should in principle be produced within the farm or the neighbouring ones so that the need for external inputs is reduced. In essence, the use of hand works as opposed to mechanisation has reduced environmental effects, for instance the practice of mechanical control of weeds as opposed to the use of herbicides (Taus, Ogneva-Himmelberger & Rogan, 2013). Organic farming gre atly contributes to sustainable development, coupled with increased economic activities with some important added value. Scientific papers have been written the world over concerning organic farming, and the statistics they provide show an increased volume of global sales of organic food and drink. Research reveals there was a 43% increase, equivalent to USD25.5 billion, between 2002 and 2005 (Taus, Ogneva-Himmelberger & Rogan, 2013). Despite the fact that organic farming is practised in a number of countries, studies show that uptake is concentrated in North America and Europe, and they also stand out as areas with greater supply and demand. According to the World of Organic

The Battleship Potemkin In Relation To Formalism Film Studies Essay

The Battleship Potemkin In Relation To Formalism Film Studies Essay There are many different approaches that try and answer the question What is Cinema? each with their own idea and beliefs of what film should be and how the medium should be used. From the beginning there have been to main approaches to film, the Realist and the Formalist. The realist approach attempts to copy reality placing a great emphasis on location and mise-en-scene. The Formalist approach supports a style of film making which displays the directors vision of the world, greater emphasis is placed on distorting reality to create meaning. Sergei Eisenstein was a director that used this approach to film making and in this essay I will analyse his film The Batteship Potemkin (1925) according to his theory of montage and the Formalist film approach. The Formalist approach believes that structure of a film is in symbiosis with its medium, therefore changing the shot types and editing out of continuity seems to be the right thing to do. Although one could say the Formalism is related to expressionism because they both emphasize that film should not merely imitate events as they occur in real life, but should produce edited version of reality (Fourie, 2001, 200). In his piece Beyond The Shot [The Cinematographic Principle And The Ideogram] Eisenstein explains the similarities between montage and hieroglyphs. He explains how when the symbols used in hieroglyphs are looked at on their own, they do not necessarily make much sense but when two hieroglyphs are placed next to each other they are seen as a complete image. He gives the example of the representation of water and of an eye signifies to weep' (Eisenstein, 1929, 16). He explains how the combinations of hieroglyphs literally show what in film is called a montage. A single shot within a film does not convey any real meaning unless it is combined with another shot. He also explains how in a hai-kai each line helps to convey an entire image or feeling for example Ancient monastery. Cold moon. Wolf howling (KIKKO, in Eisenstein, 1929, 17). In this example you can imagine each line on its own, but when they are put together they create a full image, or a sequence or a complete meaning Eisenste in refers to them as montage phrases, montage lists (Eisenstein, 1929, 17) Montage has been established by the Soviet film as the nerve of cinema (Eisenstein, 1929, 140). Soviets developed the idea of a dialectical montage: a constant collision of one shot (the thesis) with another shot (the antithesis) to create a totally new meaning (the synthesis). For Eisenstein the brick by brick method of montage made no sense, the collision of shots would evoke feelings and understanding in the audience as they would put the shots together themselves and therefore the meaning and understanding would be personal, even if the director implied a certain message, each viewer may read the sequence differently. Eisensteins proposal of montage as a series of collisions to create meaning is supported by the collision theory in particle science which states that the particles first have to collide, and only the collisions that have sufficient energy will cause a reaction.. For the collisions to happen and for them to create meaning there had to be conflict present. In another one of his essays, A Dialectical Approach To Film Form, Eisenstein states that Art is always in conflict (Eisenstein, 1929, 138). Eisenstein was more interested in how, through the use of editing, composition, sound and perspective, conflict could be created within an image. He therefore came up with a list of possible conflicts within a shot, or conflicts between the colliding shots which are Graphic conflict, Conflict of planes, Conflict of volume, Spatial conflict, light conflict and tempo conflict (Eisenstein, 1929, 144). By looking at the frame as the foundation of montage, Eisenstein was able to apply the values of montage to each seperate shot, and then create conflict between the shots to generate powerful emotional and intellectual reactions from the audience. In the film The Battleship Potemkin Eisenstein displays his view of montage as being a series of conflicting images, throughout the whole film. For example the In The Battleship Potemkin, Eisenstein creates a tense and aggressive rhythm with thie theory of dialectic montage. Furthermore, he passes on a certain observation of history to the audience through his editing. Taken as a whole the collision approach tries to signify the conflict and collision of history itself and at the same time the technique when applied to individual scenes impose certain emotional focus and response of the audience. Start analysing scences from the film after explaining the conflict thing Then talk about the manipulation of people through the use of montage editing Propaganda Passive audience Vs. Active audience conclude

Shakespeare Essay -- Writers Authors History William Shakespeare Essay

Shakespeare Who was Shakespeare? Was he a man from Stratford-Upon-Avon who started with little and became the greatest English author to ever live; or was he a privileged Earl who was a favorite at Queen Elizabeth’s court? That is the great mystery. This particular mystery is difficult to solve because of the lack of documentary evidence. The Elizabethans did not believe in getting everything in writing as people do today. Therefore, the truth may never be known with certainty. However, evidence does exist to support at least two theories about the Shakespearean authorship: one that the man from Stratford wrote the works, the other that Edward de Vere the Earl of Oxford was the author. The question then becomes, which argument does the majority of the evidence support? Could a writer as prolific, insightful, and universal as Shakespeare have been an actor with only a basic grammar school education? Other examples of genius from meager beginnings do exist. For instance, Albert Einstein got poor grades in high school, yet he turned the scientific community on its ear with his groundbreaking theory of relativity. Abraham Lincoln had little or no formal schooling, and he became the president of the United States and wrote the moving and eloquent Gettysburg Address. Perhaps education and social standing are overrated when it comes to intellectual virtuosity. Though the evidence for Oxford as the author of the Shakespearean canon is impressive, the lowly man from Stratford remains the true Bard. In an article for the New York Times, William Niederkorn, a playwright and editor, notes that Edward de Vere, Earl of Oxford was first nominated as a candidate for the Shakespearean authorship in 1920 by J. Thomas L... ...thman and Terry Ross. 7 April 2004. 15 March 2004 . Kathman, David and Terry Ross. â€Å"Barksted and Shakespeare.† The Shakespeare Authorship Page. Eds. David Kathman and Terry Ross. 7 April 2004. 15 March 2004 . Matus, Irvin. â€Å"The Case for Shakespeare.† The Shakespeare Mystery. 1996. PBS. 15 March 2004 . Niederkorn, William S. â€Å"A Historic Whodunit: If Shakespeare Didn’t, Who Did?† The New York Times. 10 February 2002. 1 April 2004 . Ogburn, Charlton. â€Å"The Man Who Shakespeare Was Not (and Who He Was).† The Shakespeare Mystery. 1996. PBS. 15 March 2004 .

Computer Operating System Essay

The Windows series of operating systems produced by the Microsoft Corporation primarily make use of two file systems: the File Allocation Table (FAT) and the New Technology File System (NTFS). Additionally, some versions of Windows NT also support the use of the High Performance File System (HPFS), a result of Microsoft’s joint developer involvement with IBM to produce the OS/2 operating system. (Duncan, 1989; Custer, 1994) Initially released with DOS, FAT makes use of a table which indexes information on which sections of the storage medium are free, unusable or taken up by files. Disk space is partitioned into distinct units known as sectors or clusters. There is no real organization to the directory structure of FAT, and as such free disk space can become distributed across many different sectors, resulting in file space being allocated in discontiguous sectors. As such, data is highly fragmented and increases seek times. (Microsoft, 2007; Duncan 1989) HPFS was first introduced with OS/2. It improved over the core functionality of the FAT system by introducing additional room for metadata attributes. Allocation units were changed from clusters to physical sectors of 512 bytes each, optimizing the disk space used for each file. HPFS directory entries also hold more attribute data: they possess single sector FNODEs that serve as the control structure for each directory. Fragmentation is drastically reduced by allocating as much of a file in contiguous sectors. However, the HPFS is dependent on a Super Block which contains the control structures of the root directory – essentially the root FNODE. The Super Block is thus vulnerable to corruption or loss from a bad sector which can compromise an entire partition’s useability. (Microsoft, 2007; Duncan, 1989) NTFS was designed to meet the growing demand for network servers and file sharing capabilities and it borrowed many of its concepts from the HPFS. (Kozierok, 2001) It is a journaling file system which permits greater recoverability by reverting files back to a useable state in the event of power failures and system crashes that occur during file transactions. Additionally, it also makes use of an expanded meta-data system which allows administrators to set a wider variety of access and use controls to files. The NTFS also optimizes data by storing small files into the Master File Table of the NTFS itself. The larger system format limit provides means that allocation units are much more refined as well. (Microsoft, 2004; 2007) Memory management on Windows has an access limit of up to 4GB of physical memory, and as such, the allocation of memory to processes is limited by this cap. By using paging to transfer pages of data between main memory and an auxiliary storage device such as a hard drive, it can overcome some of the limitations of physical RAM and enable system processes to have their own 4GB logical address space. Additionally, Windows accords memory protection to process in such a manner as to prevent access to one another, which is crucial to ensure that processes can operate simultaneously without compromising their functionality. (Garg, 2008) Microsoft Windows is essentially an operating system that is built with multi-tasking in mind, which in effect, allows multiple programs to be executed simultaneously. Each application is composed of one or more processes, each of which provides the resources needed to execute a program. Processes are composed of threads, a discrete unit by which processor time is allocated and a single thread, called the primary thread initiates the process. Each thread may execute any portion of code in the process, including those already being executed by another thread. Virtual address space and system resources are shared by threads of a single process, though exception handlers, scheduling priority and other components that determine a thread’s importance and role within the context of a process. (Microsoft Developer Network, 2008) Windows possesses many of the essential features crucial to basic security such as authentication and access control, encryption schemes and protection profiles. However, the API for cryptography is easily compromised by the fact that it easily trusts multiple keys in certifying authority of access. As such, only one code key is necessary to render a system vulnerable. Such a compromise is possible either through accidental disclosure of the private key or when the certifying authority mistakenly issues a certificate. On the level of network security protocol, Windows makes use of IPSec, a cryptographic IP-level protection system which is an open standard in the industry, which functions not only through data encryption and verification of hosts but by detecting modifications made to data during network transit. (Quardt, 2004) Windows security is at its most problematic with regards to applications and non-operating system products. Part of the problem is that for the purposes of consumer convenience, Microsoft Windows continues to be reliant on legacy applications that contain security threats that were of trivial matter during their initial release. Furthermore, the signature architecture of Microsoft programs is to mix application code and data, such as ActiveX for example, can allow untrusted data from outside the system to activate code. (Quardt, 2004) Also, Windows approves digitally signed code even if it is supplied from outside of the system, which means that a system administrator must implicitly trust whoever has signed the code to have subjected it to appropriate code review. In essence, the problem with Windows security is that trust and certification is so decentralized as to deny systems administrators total control and authority over the trustworthiness of code.   REFERENCES Microsoft Corporation. (2007, May 7) Overview of FAT, HPFS and NTFS File Systems. Retrieved August 9, 2008 from: http://support. microsoft. com/kb/100108 Microsoft Corporation (2004, May 5) Local File Systems for Windows. Retrieved August 9, 2008: http://download. microsoft. com/download/5/b/5/5b5bec17-ea71-4653-9539-204a672f11cf/LocFileSys. doc Duncan, R. (1989, September) Design goals and implementation of the new High Performance File System. Microsoft Systems Journal, 4, 5, 1-13. Custer, H. (1994) Inside the Windows NT File System. Washington: Microsoft Press. Kozierok, C. M. (2001, April 17). Overview and History of NTFS. PCGuide. Garg, P. â€Å"Windows Memory Management. † Intellectual Heaven. Retrieved August 10, 2008 from: http://www. intellectualheaven. com/Articles/WinMM. pdf Microsoft Developer Network (2008, August 7). â€Å"About Processes and Threads. † Retrieved August 10, 2008 from: http://msdn. microsoft. com/en-us/library/ms681917(VS. 85,printer). aspx Hart, J. M. (2004) Windows System Programming, 3rd Edition. Boston: Addison-Wesley Professional. Quandt, S. (2004, May 25) â€Å"Linux and Windows security compared. † Linux. com Retrieved August 11, 2008 from: http://www. linux. com/articles/36273? page=2

Compare and Cotrast the Characters of Gabriel Conroy and Michael Furey in “The Dead.”

Michal Furey loved Gretta so much that he, a (probably) tubercular worker in a potentially carcinogenic workplace (the gasworks) risked his already fragile health to come stand in her back garden in a cold rain. He is so desperate to see Gretta before she leaves that he says â€Å"†¦ he did not want to live. † Gretta believes that he died for her, and it may well be the case. There is no mention of whether or not he wore galoshes, but if he did it didn't save him. He died a week after that last time he saw Gretta.Gabriel, however, is fond of the newfangled galoshes, and he is careful about his and his wife's health. Unlike Michael Furey, Gabriel seems to relish being alive. He is in love with his wife, but he also does not seem to harbor romantic notions about her. â€Å"He did not like to say even to himself that her face was no longer beautiful but he knew that it was no longer the face for which Michael Furey had braved death. † It's hard to imagine Gabriel Conr oy braving death for anyone, and certainly not for romantic love.He seems too self-satisfied for that, but he also has, as many smug and contented people have, an element of self-loathing â€Å"A shameful consciousness of his own person assailed him. He saw himself as a ludicrous figure, acting as a pennyboy for his aunts, a nervous wellmeaning sentimentalist, orating to vulgarians and idealising his own clownish lusts, the pitiable fatuous fellow he had caught a glimpse of in the mirror. † It is difficult, in this last respect, to compare Michael Furey and Gabriel Conroy.Michael Furey died as a teenager, in all the passion of ill-health coupled with immaturity and intense romanticism. Gabriel is a grown man, a teacher, a father and husband, with all the cares, maturity, satisfactions, and even dashed illusions that that status conveys. Michael, the passionate lover of Gretta who sang, with a beautiful voice, the maudlin tune of â€Å"The Lass of Aughrim† had none of G abriel's life of solid — and, perhaps, stolid — respectability and responsibility. Such circumstances change personalities.But, it is suggested by Joyce's text, Michael and Gabriel shared little except their love for Gretta. Michael is headlong, talented, in ill-health, but also careless of life. Gabriel is, by comparison, careful, steady, respectable, and bent on the enjoyment of his possessions (especially Gretta) and his raised status compared to many people around him. They seem to be of very different dipositions, and, at the end of the story, Gabriel and the reader are left to think whether Gretta would have been happier with Michael Furey, had he lived.

Heart of darkness 9

Heart of darkness 9 Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness relates to the reader through several narrational voices, the story of the Englishman Marlow traveling physically up an unnamed river in the wilderness of the Belgium Congo, and psychologically as a journey into one's self. The frame narrator is an Englishman upon the 'Nellie', a yawl on the river Thames, who relates the story as told to him by the separate narrator Marlow. Through the frame narrator, Conrad expresses to the reader the theme of the shifting nature of reality.Marlow's negative views on colonialism and racism (although contradictory) were the new ideologies taken into consideration during the time the novella was set. These views were expected to be adopted by the contemporary reader as evidenced by the frame narrator changing his view of London as "the biggest and the greatest town on earth" to being a "monstrous town marked ominously on the sky a broading gloom of sunshine" It is important to realize, however, that both the frame nar rator and Marlow absent information as affected by their own background and white, European upbringing and also personal experiences.MarlowHence negative views on women and (unconsciously) African natives and strong views on colonialism and to a lesser extent racism arise.Marlow quickly expresses his view on colonialism that "The conquest of the world which mostly means the taking it away from those who have a different complexion or slightly flatter noses than ourselves, is not a pretty thing when you look into it too much." When Marlow arrives at the station he is shocked and disgusted by the sight of wasted human life and ruined supplies . The manager's senseless cruelty and foolishness overwhelm him with anger and disgust. Also through dramatic scenes such as the 'Grove of Death' Marlow convinces the frame narrator and...

Learn All About Primate Cities

Learn All About Primate Cities The term primate city may sound like something in a zoo but it actually has nothing to do with monkeys. It refers  to a city which is greater than two times the next largest city in a ​nation  (or contains over one-third of a nations population). The primate city is usually very expressive of the national culture and often the capital city. The law of the primate city was first created by geographer Mark Jefferson in 1939. Examples: Addis Ababa is the primate city of Ethiopia - its population outshines that of all other cities in the country.   Do Primate Citys Matter?   If youre from a country that doesnt have a primate city it can be hard to understand the significance of them. It is hard to imagine one city being responsible for the cultural, transportation, economic and governmental needs of the rest of the country. In the United States, for example, these roles are usually played by cities like Hollywood, New York, Washinton D.C. and Los Angeles. While independent movies are made in every state the majority of the films that all Americans watch are created in Hollywood and Los Angeles. Those two cities are responsible for part of the cultural entertainment that the rest of the nation watches.   Is New York City a Primate City? Surprisingly, even with its huge population of over 21 million residents, New York is not a primate city. Los Angeles is the second largest city in the United States with a population of 16 million. This means that the United States lacks a primate city. This isnt surprising  given the geographic size of the country. Even cities within the country are larger in size than that of an average  European city. This makes it far less likely for a primate city to occur.   Just because it isnt a primate city doesnt mean New York isnt important. New York is what is known as a Global City, this means it is financially significant to the rest of the world. In other words, events which affect the city also affect the global financial economy. This is why a natural disaster in one city can cause the stock market of another country to dip. The phrase also refers to cities that do a huge amount of global business. The term global city was coined by the sociologist Saskia Sassen.    Signs of Inequality Sometimes primate cities form because of a concentration of higher-paying white collar jobs in one city. As jobs in manufacturing and agriculture decline, more people are driven towards cities. Unemployment in rural areas can contribute to wealth concentrations in urban areas. This is made worse by the fact that most of the higher paying jobs are located within cities. The further people get from city centers the harder time they have finding well-paying jobs. This creates a vicious cycle of economically depressed small towns and overpopulated large cities. It is easier for primate cities to form in smaller nations because there are fewer cities for the population to choose from.

Change Your Life Forever by Spending 1 Hour a Day Doing These 5 Things

Change Your Life Forever by Spending 1 Hour a Day Doing These 5 Things Most people  only spend 8 hours per day at work. If you work 5  days a week, that’s 40 hours. Even if your job is super intense and you’re working 60-80 hour weeks, you still have hours and hours of time to yourself. Okay, you have to spend a lot of that sleeping- that’s important. But in the hours of leisure time left to you, there are things you could be doing to vastly improve your future. Rather than just blowing all those hours on happy hours and Netflix, why not try spending an hour a day doing these 5 things and see what happens? 1. Make your evenings matterDon’t just rely on your working hours to gain skills and knowledge and make your career magic happen. Try doing a little bit each day off the clock that will help you advance in your career, not just get your daily job tasks done. Take online classes, develop new skills, practice and master old ones. Keep pushing yourself to learn more and do more and you’ll be amazed at how much faste r you advance at work.2. Read moreIt almost doesn’t matter what you’re reading. Keeping the habit, taking in knowledge, considering other points of view- all of this makes you more interesting and interested in the world around you. One hour spent learning about a new topic makes you that much closer to being respected by your boss and peers as â€Å"in the know.† Plus, the benefits to your general knowledge and vocabulary will be palpable.3. Side projectsIf your company won’t give you the opportunity to take your new skills and interests for a test spin, try volunteering. Find a way to have practical expression of what you’re learning so it can really start to translate into workable results. If nothing else, these side hobbies and projects will help keep you feeling fulfilled.4. Build your networkEven if you just spend 10 minutes a day maintaining your contacts, reach out, participate in conversations on social media or LinkedIn, and pursue new o nes. You’ll start to see a major difference and that work will really pay off when you need to rely on your network to change jobs or take your career to the next level.5. Start nowDon’t start this next week- or after the holidays. Start tonight. Don’t put off what can become such an ingrained habit that you hardly realize it is a chore you’ve set yourself.If you can get to the point where you are doing these 5 things naturally? You’ll be well on your way to actualizing your success.

Rhetorical Analysis paper on air pollution in China Essay

Rhetorical Analysis paper on air pollution in China - Essay Example King’s goal is to convince the audience that air pollution in China paves way for new opportunities of investment and profitability. King has adopted the style of a guide in the article for the audience. In this article, King has made a very structured approach to guide the audiences through his argument in that he has also proposed how to approach the topic; he has suggested what to think at a particular point while reading the article as â€Å"Hold that thought, while you consider another point† (King, 2013). Likewise, he says, â€Å"I'll discuss this in a moment. First, however, let's take a look at† (King, 2013). Not only does King suggest the audiences when to think what, but he also openly tells which point needs more thinking and which should just be ignored; â€Å"And don't chuckle at that idea† (King, 2013). He has used this structured and guided-thought strategy to make the audiences think exactly on the lines that he wants them to think on so that by the time they reach the article’s end, they consent with what King that it is possible to make profit from the rising level of air pollution in China. King has emphasized on particular words and incorporated emotional appeals in the article by using different word formatting to reflect their importance e.g. â€Å"Bad means BAD† (King, 2013).... Occasionally, King has exaggerated problems to make the audience see through his lens e.g. â€Å"the words 'air pollution' and China are almost one and the same† (King, 2013); obviously they are not the same for had they been same, they would have been synonyms. One can sense the high level of sarcasm embedded at several such points in the article. At another point, King says, â€Å"drivers can't see where they're going† (King, 2013); obviously it is very unlikely for the air pollution to rise to a level where the drivers can even not see where they are going. However, these effects do make the article more interesting and help the audience understand the gravity of the problem which is one of the goals of King. In order to emphasize his argument, King has made use of numerous examples that suggest rise in the air pollution in China. These examples include but are not limited to increase in the number of road accidents, delayed flights because of low visibility from air pollution, clogging of hospitals in Beijing from people suffering from lung ailments, cancellation of the outdoor activities by schools, and stores running short of out-face masks. These examples reflect as pictures in the minds of the audience as they read the article. While King notes several statistics to show rise in the air pollution in China e.g. reading for air pollution given by the air monitor on top of the US Embassy in Beijing, China and its comparison to the average reading to show how far pollution has exceeded, King has not given in-text citations or a references section to facilitate the audience in locating the sources of the statistics he uses. There are several points where he has made statements without supporting them with adequate sources. For example, King says, â€Å"The worst of

Week 3-Individual small Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Week 3-Individual small - Assignment Example She decided that since she could not afford to pay 12000 dollars to health care for her first year in self-employment, she would seek more affordable coverage. She found out that she was only eligible for a cheaper insurance at this time of the year based on â€Å"special enrollment." This â€Å"special enrollment† includes elements like unexpected divorce, birth of a baby, and job loss among other circumstances that would make paying the needed money for health cover hard. Though this is a national case of changes in health care, the impact is far felt within the country. The reason for such ignorance is that sources of education for most people on health care changes and the requirement are not reliable and do not give finer details of options that are present. In this article, the author does not directly make a claim to solve the problem but anyone reading her article knows her suggestion. The lesson is that people need to be reeducated on the possibilities and circumstances that surround changes in healthcare insurance coverage as a means to adapt to healthcare reforms (Jean Card, 2014). Jean Card. (2014, July 17). How Obamacare Screwed Up My Small Business Health Insurance - US News. US News & World Report. Retrieved August 28, 2014, from

How can one person lead another Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

How can one person lead another - Essay Example If true than what are the different types of leadership. What are the factors that define a type of leadership? Do culture, organizational behavior, characteristics and attitude of the people has any role to play in defining the successful type of leadership for a particular organization in a particular country. In the fast changing world of the twenty first century, the ever accelerating pace of change creates a lot of challenges and opportunities for the organizations. Hence organizations today need the vision of leadership and adaptability to capture the opportunities and minimize threats for sustained growth (Kotter, 1996). This paper aims at studying the characteristics, attitude and behavior of the Indonesian people and the organizational culture and work environment of Indonesian organizations. I as a leader will analyze which leadership theory and style is more appropriate and suitable for them? How I will apply them to lead and guide people in my organization? Culture as Men tal Programming There is almost as much variety in Human’s mind as it is in human beings themselves but fortunately there still exists a structure in this variety which provides the basis for mutual understanding. Every person has his own pattern of thinking and feeling which determines his potential action based on his lifetime learning. To deviate from such patterns and learn something new, a person has to do a lot of unlearning and unlearning is more difficult than learning. These patterns of thinking, feeling and actions form the mental programs. These mental programs are deep rooted in the social environment, life experiences which include family, neighborhood, youth groups, workplace and living in a society. All this information gives us an insight into an individual’s behavior and action and reaction (Gert Jan Hofstede, 2010). The sound knowledge of this mind program is very important for leadership. This mind program also defines the working environment in the organizations and determines the behavior and attitude of employees. I will not be able to lead people in my organization and successfully doing the unlearning unless I have sound knowledge of their mind program. The Relationship between Organizational Culture and Performance Research has proven that organizational culture has very weak link with organizational performance but it is an important determinant of internal control within the organization. Research also proves that organizational culture and internal control and governance although has positive relationship with organizational performance but its role is not very significant (Wobovo, 2008). This research further augments our point of the need of leadership for improving organizational performance. Behavioral tendencies of Indonesians Indonesia consists of 17,508 separate islands and the population exceeds 234 million. In terms of population it is the fourth largest country in the world. Indonesia is a multicultural socie ty with one of the most populous Muslim majority country in the world. It also has significant number of Hindus, Buddhist and Christians. Hence the culture of one city is sometimes entirely different from other

Nursing Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Nursing - Article Example The article maintains that the health industry has critical lapses in its implementation of modern technology in its leadership structures. In addition, the author acknowledges the static nature of work environment and the need to restructure leadership policies. Thus, the article compliments health management literature. My Analysis The modern business environment is characterized by scarcity of resources and, hence the need for effective management. Application of technological innovations has been identified as a significant aspect of management in the modern business environment. Although the health sector deals with the inherent problem of people’s health, it requires effective management. This indicates the existence of a legitimate research problem for analysis. The author utilizes both qualitative and quantitative research methods to explore the extent of the problem. In particular, the researcher utilizes quantitative techniques to measure the level of application of information technology in the health sector. This enables him to make a precise comparison of the health industry with other industries of equivalent interests. To complete his analysis, the researcher utilizes qualitative research techniques to establish factors that have contributed to lack of application of information technology in the health industry. ... To enhance credibility of his argument, the author cites primary articles from refereed journals and government publications. The paper concludes its analysis with recommendation that calls for speedy implementation of information technology in the health industry. Areas of first priority include prescription and patient’s progress records. Application I consider the article relevant to the current teaching and nursing practice. It is interesting to note that the health sector lags behind other industries in its application of information technology, despite its significance to the society. This signifies the need to have conclusive restructure of the entire system beginning with training programs for nurses. I consider the problem as a twofold problem due to patient’s contribution. The conservative nature of patients and other beneficiaries of public health services have contributed to the delayed implementation of information system in the health industry. Thus, the p ublic needs relevant training as a prerequisite for the implementation. In addition, there is need to create user-friendly systems that can be utilized by different categories of users. Integration of the newly developed systems into the current work environment should also involve all stakeholders. I consider the issue critical for the sustainability of the health sector and I recommend speedy reforms. Professional Organization â€Å"Factors Affecting Nurses' Decisions to Join and Maintain Membership in Professional Associations† Summary Professional organizations are effective tools in maintain professionalism and social welfare among workers. Although nurses comprise majority of health workers in a given country, most of have not discovered the values of joining

Explain Vince Rizzo's search for identity in the movie City Island Essay

Explain Vince Rizzo's search for identity in the movie City Island - Essay Example This paper will shed light upon Vince’s search for identity in the movie; light will also be thrown upon how he fathered a child in his teenage, who comes back in his life and how things progress from there. Vince is a native of the island, he is uncomfortable with people who come to stay there and bring about unwanted changes, and the opening scene of his voiceover presents the same very comprehensively. Vince is not comfortable with his job, he is a prison guard, and his ambition of becoming an actor is perhaps the most important thing in the movie. He lies to his wife and moves to Manhattan to pursue a career as an actor. There are a lot of misunderstandings in the movie, Vince’s wife thinks that her husband is after some mistress who he has been pursuing for quite some time, Vince’s ambition and several misunderstandings make this movie very intriguing. Vince has several problems which he is completely unaware of, his daughter strips at a club in order to pay her school fees; he meets his step son who he fathered out of wedlock. Vince’s son is addicted to porn on internet and wants to fulfill his fantasies with a girl residing in the neighborhood; these are some of the many problems which Vince was facing. The introduction of Tony, Vince’s step-son brings a huge twist in the movie.

Give an introduction to the political system in People's Republic of Essay

Give an introduction to the political system in People's Republic of China. What is the role of Politburo Standing Committee - Essay Example China’s Political System: China is a socialist state, led by a single party rule, normally referred to as the communist party. This party is recognized by the constitution of China, and the same constitution has provisions on how this party should be led. This includes the establishment of powerful committees such as the politburo and the politburo standing committee (BBC, 4, 2013). The constitution also recognizes four vital institutions whose main roles is to help the party in the governance of the country. These institutions are, the people’s liberation army, the peoples national congress, the state council, and the political consultative conference (Lawrence and Martins, 7, 2013). These are the four pillars in which the communist party of China controls all the affairs of the Chinese. The institution of the state is responsible for implementing the various policies of the communist party. The state is therefore headed by the state council, which includes ministries and various commissions (Lawrence and Martins, 8, 2013). Under the Chinese constitution, the National People Congress (NPC) is responsible for overseeing all the affairs of the state council. The NPC is also responsible for supervising other political institutions such as the Supreme Court, the Presidency, the Prosecutors office, and the military. However, the NPC is under the communist party, and it is therefore unable to carry out its own policies (Military of China, 9, 2013). The political consultative conference on the other hand provides an avenue where the state and the party can consult on various policy issues. The military on the other hand have the responsibility of protecting the Chinese (Security Service, 11, 2013). However, critics argue that the Chinese military is only loyal to the communist party, and not the people of China. Other political institutions in China are the minor parties that were formed before the emergence of the communist party. These parties are eig ht, and they pledged their loyalty to the communist party, accepting its leadership. This allows for the description of the Chinese political system as one of political consultation, and multi-party cooperation, but under the Communist Party (Lawrence and Martin, 14, 2013). The Politburo Standing Committee: The communist party has four important organs representing its leadership. The highest decision making body is the politburo standing committee, followed by the politburo. The next in rank is the central committee, which is thereafter followed by the congress. The politburo standing committee (PSC) is responsible for the enactment and the development of policies. This organ consists of seven people, and each of them has various roles (Lunn, 13, 2013). The members of this committee are also members of the politburo, and they meet once in every week to deliberate on the policies that the government should follow. This is the institution that actually rules China, since their decisi ons is always the law. In arriving at a decision, members of the PSC try to achieve consensus, and if it fails, they take a vote. The simply majority carry’s the day (McGregor, 34, 2012). It is important to denote that the seven members of the PSC are ranked from the scale of one, to seven. Each of them has specific functions, and it can either be in security, propaganda, or foreign relations. For example, the highest ranked member of

Explain Vince Rizzo's search for identity in the movie City Island Essay

Explain Vince Rizzo's search for identity in the movie City Island - Essay Example This paper will shed light upon Vince’s search for identity in the movie; light will also be thrown upon how he fathered a child in his teenage, who comes back in his life and how things progress from there. Vince is a native of the island, he is uncomfortable with people who come to stay there and bring about unwanted changes, and the opening scene of his voiceover presents the same very comprehensively. Vince is not comfortable with his job, he is a prison guard, and his ambition of becoming an actor is perhaps the most important thing in the movie. He lies to his wife and moves to Manhattan to pursue a career as an actor. There are a lot of misunderstandings in the movie, Vince’s wife thinks that her husband is after some mistress who he has been pursuing for quite some time, Vince’s ambition and several misunderstandings make this movie very intriguing. Vince has several problems which he is completely unaware of, his daughter strips at a club in order to pay her school fees; he meets his step son who he fathered out of wedlock. Vince’s son is addicted to porn on internet and wants to fulfill his fantasies with a girl residing in the neighborhood; these are some of the many problems which Vince was facing. The introduction of Tony, Vince’s step-son brings a huge twist in the movie.

Industrialized Poets Essay Example for Free

Industrialized Poets Essay Edgar Allan Poe, Walter Benjamin, and Arthur Rimbaud all lived in the turbulent 19th Century where the idyllic countryside was giving way to the industrialized world. Their poetry reflects the profound impact industrialization’s onslaught had on the world. Starting from Edgar Allan Poe, to Arthur Rimbaud and finally to Walter Benjamin this paper will discuss the effect of industrialization on their respective worldview vis-à  -vis the situation of the world during their life time. A City in the Sea By Edgar Allan Poe Lo! Death has reared himself a throne In a strange city lying alone Far down within the dim West, Where the good and the bad and the worst and the best Have gone to their eternal rest. There shrines and palaces and towers (Time-eaten towers that tremble not!) Resemble nothing that is ours. Around, by lifting winds forgot, Resignedly beneath the sky The melancholy waters lie. No rays from the holy heaven come down On the long night-time of that town; But light from out the lurid sea Streams up the turrets silently — Gleams up the pinnacles far and free — Up domes — up spires — up kingly halls — Up fanes — up Babylon-like walls — Up shadowy long-forgotten bowers Of sculptured ivy and stone flowers — Up many and many a marvelous shrine Whose wreathà ©d friezes intertwine The viol, the violet, and the vine. So blend the turrets and shadows there That all seem pendulous in the air, While from a proud tower in the town Death looks gigantically down. There open fanes and gaping graves Yawn level with the luminous waves; But not the riches there that lie In each idols diamond eye — Not the gaily-jeweled dead Tempt the waters from their bed; For no ripples curl, alas! Along that wilderness of glass — No swellings tell that winds may be Upon some far-off happier sea — No heavings hint that winds have been On seas less hideously serene. But lo, a stir is in the air! The wave — there is a movement there! As if the towers had thrust aside, In slightly sinking, the dull tide — As if their tops had feebly given A void within the filmy Heaven. The waves have now a redder glow — The hours are breathing faint and low — And when, amid no earthly moans, Down, down that town shall settle hence, Hell, rising from a thousand thrones, Shall do it reverence.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The setting is in a city in the west ruled by death who is worshiped by all. This set is often quoted or at least used for the crafting of gothic films or at work. Death looks down upon all from his high tower, like Sauron atop Barad-Dur. The city has ‘domes, spires and kingly halls, and fanes and Babylon like walls. The poem makes a rather ironic point because the west has always been associated with good and life and the east with evil and death. For example, in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings Trilogy Aragorn is the goodly Lord of the West while the Sauron commands a legion of evil Easterlings.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Poe speaks of a brooding end of days when ‘the waves now have a redder glow, the hours are breathing faint and low.’ The waves turning red as a sign of hells coming because red is the color of fire and hence the color of Hell and the Devil. ‘and when, amid no earthly moans, down, down the tower shall settle hence, Hell rising from a thousand thrones, shall do it reverence. It would appear that the poem speaks of the city of death as if it were superior to Hell. Rather, as if Hell were subordinate and must pay homage. The end is a creepy scene where the Devil expresses gratitude to the devil for allowing him to come and rule the Earth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As can be expected of Edgar Allan Poe the setting is dark and brooding. In relation to the modernization being experienced during Poe’s time it is quite possibly a comment on the widening gap between the rich and poor as a result of industrialization, specifically the factory system. Poe lived in the early 19th Century in his time factories were being setup left and right. People were migrating from the provinces to the cities in order to get jobs at the factories because the cottage industries they used to have were no longer viable. Instead they had to move to cities. The cities were grim gothic environs in their own right. Sanitation, Housing, and food were all in short supplies. The cities were dirty, grimy, disease ridden affairs for the vast majority of the rural immigrants. Life was short and dangerous, they lived miserable lives often working in inhuman conditions for factory owners who ruthlessly abused them. Contrast this with the capitalists who owned the factories. The newness of the factory system meant that laws were not yet in place to protect the rights of the workings. Unscrupulous factory owners worked the peasants to the hilt. Fourteen-hour work days and Six-day work weeks were not unknown. Wages were a scandal, with no wage boards or unions to protect them and with the labor being a buyers market most workers had no choice but to accept the poor wages or be unemployed. As a result, the factory owners could become oppressively rich. In fact, in the Victorian era the Nobles and the now-wealthy Capitalists mingled as equals in the lavish parties of the day. Men like Vanderbilt and Astor could afford to build Palatial estates fit for kings quite possibly at the expense of the wretched workers in their factories. In my opinion, aside from his already dark and brooding outlook and writing style, Edgar Allan Poe was inspired to write A City in the sea by his exposure to the factory system. The oppression of the workers vis-à  -vis the extreme privilege of the owner may have further jaded mr. Poe. He would is not the first, and he was certainly not the last to suggest that Hell itself will rise from the City in the Sea. Moving forward, Arthur Rimbaud’s Une Saison en Enfer or A season in hell was written at the time when he was recovering from a gunshot. The book has had considerable influence on later Surrealist writers it was considered a revolutionary work because it shunned conventional description, straightforward narrative and didactic purpose. His work revolts against naturalism, precision and objectivity. Rimbaud relies on suggestion and evocation rather than concrete depiction. For this paper we will focus on the second poem Bad blood. The poems read like the confessions of a self-confessed scoundrel. And why should it not? Rimbaud had a homosexual lover named Paul Verlaine who later shot him when they broke up. The book was direct result of his shooting and the tumults he underwent while recovering from the wound. Initially the book was unsuccessful. The poem Bad Blood, like the rest of his work, reads like the rants of a self-confessed scoundrel. He explores his pre-Christian, Gaellic origins and emphasizes his alienation from modern civilization. Scholars are at variance as to what the actual theme of his work is. However, the general consensus is that it has to do with the Narrator’s struggle to reconcile the ideals of Christianity with the Hypocrisy and Corruption of Western Civilization. There are many dualities presented and exposed for what they are. In relation to his times the Hypocrisy and Corruption was at its hilt. In those days nearly every European power had colonies overseas. All European nations, at least in the west, professed freedom and civil liberties as inalienable rights. Slavery and serfdom were obsolete and illegal in Western Europe. Yet all one has to do is leave the confines of continental Europe so see that slavery is still widely practiced. I believe that as result of modern printing and communication methods like the Morse code and the AFP news began to travel faster than it did before. This exposed Rimbaud to the many forms of Hypocrisy and Corruption that crippled the morale fiber of Europe. For example, Africans are treated as second-class citizens in their own country. They are forced to work inhumane conditions in the mines, plantations and farms of their European masters for little or no viable compensation. Civil liberties are denied to colonials to the hilt, in the Philippines the Spanish are allowed to beat up the locals just for not showing them the proper deference. In fact, he did not have to go very far. There were many reports of women and children working in English coal mines. They even went on strike to protest their inhumane wages and working conditions. Normally news from England would take days or even weeks to reach continental Europe and vise versa but thanks to the telegraph a worker’s strike in Paris can be known to Londoners as quickly as the next day. Finally, Benjamin’s work was perhaps the most heavily affected by industrialization. In fact, his book Paris, Capital of the Nineteenth Century is almost entirely about the advances and changes brought about by the rapid industrialization of the bygone century. The book outlines the changes in almost glowingly utopia perspective. This is in contrast to the dark, brooding and negative views of the previous authors. For example, the first chapter â€Å"Arcades† points out that material and social conditions that makes Arcades possible. With the advancement of capitalism, Arcades have become obsolete, replaced by the department store. As an aside, Benjamin refers to Arcades as almost utopian paradises. The next chapter about Daguerre photography mentions the role of photography in transforming art. The chapter also mentions how photos become a commodity and emphasizes the commodity trade of photographs in relation to portraits. Benjamin will later refer to this as unconscious optics. The fourth chapter points out how the rapidly industrialized world has successfully separated home from work. In the olden days of Agriculture people worked that land where they lived. In his day people traveled quite far to reach the factories and shops where they worked.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Simply put, Benjamin chronicles the changes that industrialization has brought about. It is appears he view industrialization as positive since there are few mentions of the negative aspect of it. Instead Industrialization is viewed positively as a means to improve the lives and livelihoods of people.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Industrialization brought about massive changes during the 19th century. Poets and writers as purveyors and chroniclers of the people’s world-view are not isolated from these sweeping changes. These authors are just a few examples of how the great changes of their times greatly affected their styles.

Typical Family

Typical Family As society has evolved, so has the idea of the typical family.  Historically, the idea of family  consisted of one father (the King of the Castle, so to speak), one mother (often the family matriarch) and a child or children, all of whom are biologically related. The image painted around the All American Family  is one that includes a beautiful house with blue window panes and a white picket fence, set right in the middle of middle-class, suburban America. While families that do fit this stereotype continue to exist, many of todays typical American families have the roles of the parental units filled by not just one mother or one father. Parental roles are being filled by grandparents, aunts, uncles, elder siblings, adoptive parents, single parents, co-parents and/or step-parents. The children in these families may or may not be biologically related to the parents or caregivers; if the children are not biologically related they are usually adopted children, foster children, or step-children. Families such as these are often referred to as blended families . The term co-parenting  is sometimes used when two parents of a child are not married to each other. The same term is also used when referring to a family that has two lesbian mothers and/or two gay fathers. Although there is open opposition to gays and/or lesbians being parents or wanting to be parents (whether biologically, foster or adoptive), studies show that people around the world support and acknowledge these types of families. According to Gary Gates at the Urban Institute, as of May 30, 2003, the amount of lesbian mothers has grown to between one (1) and five (5) million; the amount of gay fathers has grown to between one (1) and three (3) million; and there are eight (8) to ten (10) million children who have one or more gay or lesbian parent.1 Mr. Gates further states that, 96% of all U.S. Countries have at least one same-sex couple with children under the age of 18  in their household.2 If one were to compare these numbers to the numbers that would be presented of tr aditional families, these numbers seem quite minimal; however, in the fight for gay and lesbian rights, these numbers are encouraging. Because the numbers continue to increase each day, they are also a testament to the desire of gay and lesbian parents to be seen as equivalent members within their communities, Lesbian, Gay, Bi and Transsexual (LGBT ) community or otherwise. Societys general outlook on gay and lesbian parenting is also changing. According to a poll conducted by the Wall Street Journal (1999), one-third of poll takers endorsed same-sex marriage and unions. These same people would most likely endorse same-sex parenting. Though there is acceptance and welcome for people in the LGBT community to openly parent and raise children, gay and lesbian couples and individuals still face many challenges from others who are not so open minded. Some people have argued that homosexuality is a mental disorder, therefore are of the opinion that members of the LGBT community should not be able to marry or have children. The American Psychiatric Association declared that homosexuality is NOT a mental illness [emphasis added] in 1973.3 The American Psychological Association adopted the same measure in 1975. As psychology was one of the first disciplines to study homosexuality in depth, psychologists have discovered that the fear of being gay (or homophobia ) has played a key role in anti-gay attitudes and behaviors of those who disagree with the gay lifestyle. Though this finding has helped people better understand the reasons certain people are uncomfortable or against the LGBT lifestyle, it has not completely neu tralized the unfounded fears that some people have. There have been some arguments that gay or lesbian parents will molest their children, biological or otherwise. The Child Welfare League of America studied and concluded that, the likelihood of homosexual adopters molesting children placed with them is no greater than it is for the general population. 4 Roland Summit, M.D. concludes that, the vast majority of offenders are heterosexual men. Male offenders who abuse young boys maintain adult heterosexual relationships. The habitual molester of boys is rarely attracted to adult males.5 The premise that ones sexual orientation defines that person as a pedophile has been proven false time and time again. This particular fear has propounded multiple studies, most, if not all, with the same generalized conclusion. The American Psychological Associations policy statement regarding placing prospective adoptive and foster children within gay or lesbian homes reads, in pertinent part: The picture that emerges from research is one of general engagement in social life with peers, parents, family members, and friends. Fears about children of lesbian or gay parents being sexually abused by adults, ostracized by peers, or isolated in single-sex lesbian or gay communities have received no scientific support. Overall, results of research suggest that the development, adjustment, and well-being of children with lesbian and gay parents do not differ markedly from that of children with heterosexual parents.6 This policy has generously helped LGBT parents to fulfill their dream of having a family through the adoption process.

Cowboys in Kilts: The Failure of the Scenic in Rob Roy & Braveheart :: essays papers

Cowboys in Kilts: The Failure of the Scenic in Rob Roy & Braveheart There was recently a cartoon in the New Yorker magazine.The cartoon shows a group of kilt-clad Highlands charging up a hill, claymore swords drawn and waving, as one of them says to another, "You know, if we didn't wear this damn skirtsmaybe we wouldn't have to defend our manhood every five minutes." My analysis begins, as it will end, where most cowboy movies begin and end, with the landscape.Western heroes are essentially synedoches for that landscape, and are identifiable by three primary traits: first, they represent one side of an opposition between the supposed purity of the frontier and the degeneracy of the city, and so are separated even alienated from civilization; second, they insist on conducting themselves according to a personal code, to which they stubbornly cling despite all opposition or hardship to themselves or others; and third, they seek to shape their psyches and even their bodies in imitation of the leanness, sparseness, hardness, infinite calm and merciless majesty of the western landscape in which their narratives unfold.All of these three traits are present in the figures of Rob Roy and William Wallace--especially their insistence on conducting themselves according to a purely personal definition of honor--which would seem to suggest that the films built around them and their exploits could be read as transplanted westerns.However, the transplantation is the problem for, while the protagonists of these films want to be figures from a classic western, the landscape with which they are surrounded is so demonstrably not western that it forces their narratives into shapes which in fact resist and finally contradict key heroic tropes of the classic western. Howard Hawkes' 1948 Red River will serve as our example of the western model.The opening credits rise literally out of the landscape, and we're told in the opening narration that this is a story of the landscape, in that it recounts the first major cattle drive along the Chisholm trail from Texas to Abeline, Kansas.In the 1st scene we see a vastly open prairie with a small wagon train almost lost in its expanse.We discover immediately that Dunson (John Wayne) is leaving the wagon train to strike out on his own.The signature trait of Dunson is the first of the western hero's trademarks: once he's made up his mind, "nothing anyone says or does can change it"; despite the entreaties of the wagon master and his putative girlfriend, Dunson sets out south with only his friend, Tom Groot (played by Walter Brennan). Cowboys in Kilts: The Failure of the Scenic in Rob Roy & Braveheart :: essays papers Cowboys in Kilts: The Failure of the Scenic in Rob Roy & Braveheart There was recently a cartoon in the New Yorker magazine.The cartoon shows a group of kilt-clad Highlands charging up a hill, claymore swords drawn and waving, as one of them says to another, "You know, if we didn't wear this damn skirtsmaybe we wouldn't have to defend our manhood every five minutes." My analysis begins, as it will end, where most cowboy movies begin and end, with the landscape.Western heroes are essentially synedoches for that landscape, and are identifiable by three primary traits: first, they represent one side of an opposition between the supposed purity of the frontier and the degeneracy of the city, and so are separated even alienated from civilization; second, they insist on conducting themselves according to a personal code, to which they stubbornly cling despite all opposition or hardship to themselves or others; and third, they seek to shape their psyches and even their bodies in imitation of the leanness, sparseness, hardness, infinite calm and merciless majesty of the western landscape in which their narratives unfold.All of these three traits are present in the figures of Rob Roy and William Wallace--especially their insistence on conducting themselves according to a purely personal definition of honor--which would seem to suggest that the films built around them and their exploits could be read as transplanted westerns.However, the transplantation is the problem for, while the protagonists of these films want to be figures from a classic western, the landscape with which they are surrounded is so demonstrably not western that it forces their narratives into shapes which in fact resist and finally contradict key heroic tropes of the classic western. Howard Hawkes' 1948 Red River will serve as our example of the western model.The opening credits rise literally out of the landscape, and we're told in the opening narration that this is a story of the landscape, in that it recounts the first major cattle drive along the Chisholm trail from Texas to Abeline, Kansas.In the 1st scene we see a vastly open prairie with a small wagon train almost lost in its expanse.We discover immediately that Dunson (John Wayne) is leaving the wagon train to strike out on his own.The signature trait of Dunson is the first of the western hero's trademarks: once he's made up his mind, "nothing anyone says or does can change it"; despite the entreaties of the wagon master and his putative girlfriend, Dunson sets out south with only his friend, Tom Groot (played by Walter Brennan).

Hiroshima and Nagasaki Essay -- History, Atomic Bomb

With the approval of American President Harry S. Truman, the fates of two Japanese cities, Hiroshima and Nagasaki were sealed. This decision came with heavy hearts, as the United States attempted to end their involvement in World War II by using nuclear power against the nation of Japan. Truman’s primary goal in this form of attack was to discontinue the war as quickly as possible, while also sending a message to the enemy and establish the United States as the leader in atomic energy. Beginning as a secret operation labeled the Manhattan Project, atomic bombs became the new weapons of mass destruction. The evident frontrunner in nuclear technology, the United States was the first country to release atomic bombs on another nation for war purposes (not including testing), eventually creating a window for today’s modern combat. Even though it was common knowledge between scientists since 1939 that nuclear warfare was a possibility, no specialists understood the process of inventing the explosive devices. The United States, along with the United Kingdom, underhandedly worked on the Manhattan project, doling out and collaborating information until the atom bomb was completed. It was a necessity for this international government project to remain a secret, in order to make sure that Germany did not make any atomic discoveries before the Allied powers, and to surprise the Japanese with the bombings. With this goal in mind, it was essential that information would not Due to this cloak-and-dagger secrecy, the attacks were unexpected to the inhabitants of Japan, especially the residents of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. With specific objectives, the United States’ decision to drop an atomic bomb on Hiroshima required extensive research lea... ...tops within ten miles of the city there came unofficial and confused reports of a terrible explosion in Hiroshima. All of these reports were transmitted to the Headquarters of the Japanese General Staff† (Avalon Project: Chapter 7, par. 3) .Upon a staff officer’s flight survey of Hiroshima, â€Å" after flying for about three hours, while still nearly 100 miles from Hiroshima, he and his pilot saw a great cloud of smoke from the bomb. In the bright afternoon, the remains of Hiroshima were burning† (Avalon Project: Chapter 7, par. 4-5). While the damage was being observed, â€Å"a great scar on the land, still burning, and covered by a heavy cloud of smoke, was all that was left of a great city. They landed south of the city, and the staff officer immediately began to organize relief measures, after reporting to Tokyo† (Avalon Project: Chapter 7, par. 6).

Anz Introduction

Recommendation It is recommended that ANZ Bank’s management should reconsider customer value proposition, reputation and security risk as a consequence of ANZ Bank recent outsourcing strategy. This report discusses three main issues that ANZ Bank’s management may have to consider if it is to enhance strength and core competency. Customer value proposition Firstly, as ANZ Bank has stressed that ‘becomes a super regional bank’ is a core strategy objective (ANZ 2012), ANZ will have to consider the potential effect for customer value proposition as a result of recent outsourcing strategy.It has been pointed that the problem of losing managerial control that may arise from outsourcing (RBA tells bank to go slowly 2012). Weerakkody and Irani (2009) suggest that the loss of managerial control may negatively affect the quality of service which will lessen customer value proposition. Based on Porters’ five forces, ANZ Bank is involved in a situation of a high bargaining power of customers (loyalty) and the threat of substitution (Porter 1980). Reduced customer value proposition will enhance power of customers and threat of substitution (Porter 1980).Opponents may suggest that outsourcing will contribute to emphasising competitive advantage (Mcivor 2011). The competitive advantage of ANZ Bank is trade and supply chain (ANZ Trade & Supply chain – A Competitive Advantage 2009). Focusing on competitive advantage will enhance customer value proposition (Piggott 2012). It will assist ANZ Bank achieve its business objective. However, ANZ Bank outsourced 50 jobs include a head of human resources, credit officers and business analysts (Wade and Hawthorne 2012). Fail to package requirements and manage contract efficiently will often result in poor performance and raising cost (Scott 2008).If poor quality services are provided and ANZ Bank fail to control this, customer value proposition will be negatively affected. Therefore, the risk of r educed customer value proposition is a significant issue that ANZ Bank should consider. Reputation The second significant issues facing ANZ Bank will be the reduced reputation in light of ANZ Bank sends jobs overseas (Wade and Hawthorne 2012). According to utilitarianism, ANZ Bank’s manager should make decisions not only based on responsibilities to the company and shareholders but also employees and society (Hartman and DesJardins 2006).Staff reduction in domestic industry will negatively impact unemployment rate. The less society responsibility will influence reputation. Applying SWOT analysis to this case, weaken the internal strength of the worthy brand will put ANZ Bank in a less competitive position (Agarwal, Grassl and Pahl 2012). Critics of this issue may suggest that outsourcing is a method for cost saving. Based on deontology, ANZ Bank’s manager has to make decisions on the basis of responsibilities to the company and shareholders (Hartman and DesJardins 2006 ).Outsourcing is an effective way to execute responsibilities. ANZ Bank (2012) announced that customer focus is a strategy to drive competitive advantage. Indeed, outperformance of customer service will enhance reputation ANZ Bank much more significantly than outsourcing. However, Waters (2012) pointed out that offshoring may cause workforce problem which will threaten the reputation of ANZ Bank. If ANZ Bank fail to outperform competitors with customer service, the reduced brand image may lead ANZ Bank lose market share.Hence ANZ Bank will have to consider the potential problem of reputation. Security risk The third issue that ANZ bank should aware of is security risk which can strongly affect success of outsourcing (RBA tells bank to go slowly 2012). Nassimbeni, Sartor and Dus (2012) suggests that as the foreign organisation may have less protect in a cultural and legal environment, the security risk become more relevant. The security risk increases as sensible data are available f or providers, intermediaries and sub-contractors (Nassimbeni, Sartor and Dus 2012).The outsourcing industry which builds relationship with ANZ Bank can make profit through selling customer information to ANZ Bank’s competitors. Based on value chain, leak of customer information will reduce value of service (Needle 2010). Customers may switch to competitors. It can be argued that there is a contract which would protect data and customer information. The contract is legal protection tool to constrain operators (Nassimbeni, Sartor and Dus 2012). However, even if there is a contract, it does not guarantee everything will operate smoothly.The level of legal and judicial environment will affect the effectiveness of contract (Nassimbeni, Sartor and Dus 2012). For example, Vodafone has been suffered customer privacy leaks. It leads Vodafone faces penalties of up to $250,000 (Sydney Morning Herald 2011). Therefore, it is very important for ANZ Bank to consider security issue. Conclusi on Therefore it can be concluded that ANZ Bank should reconsider customer value proposition, reputation and security risk in response to the recent outsourcing strategy. Reference List Agarwal, R. , Grassl, W. and Pahl, G. 012, ‘Meta-SWOT: introducing a new strategic planning tool’, Journal of business strategy, vol. 33, no. 2, pp. 12-21, viewed 10 May 2012, Business Source Premier. ANZ, 2012, Our company: profile, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited, Melbourne, viewed 6 May 2012, < http://www. anz. com/about-us/our-company/profile/>. ANZ Trade & Supply chain – A Competitive Advantage, 2009, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited, Melbourne, viewed 6 May 2012,. Nassimbeni, G. Sartor, M. and Dus, D. 2012, ‘Security risk in service offshoring and outsourcing’, Industry management and data system, vol. 112, no. 3, pp. 405-440, viewed 10 May 2012, Business Source Premier. Needle, D. 2010, Business in context: an introduction to busin ess and its environment, 5thed. , Cengage Learning, Andover. Hartman, L. and DesJardins, J. 2006, Business ethics: decision making for personal integrity and social responsibility, McGraw Hill, Sydney. Mclvor, R. 2011, ‘Outsourcing done right’, Industrial Engineer, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 30-35. Piggot, L. 2012, Introduction to business (BUSS1001), The University of Sydney, Sydney, 18 March, viewed 6 May 2012, < http://blackboard. econ. usyd. edu. au/ @@/81A8AC3019FFF9D178B10ACC0DBF3F0A/courses/1/BUSS1001_SEM1_2012/content/_559616_1/embedded/BUSS1001_Sem%201%2C%202012_Week%203%20Lecture. pdf> Porter, M. E. 1980, Competitive strategy: Techniques for analyzing industries and competitors, Free Press, New York. ‘RBA tells bank to go slowly’, 2012, Sydney Morning Herald, 29 March, viewed 6 May 2012, <

The God Must Be Crazy Movie Analysis

The only students there are a crop of rustic and austere people the Bushmen. They lead a simple yet vibrant life in their own â€Å"paradise†. However a bottle dropping from the civilized world encroached upon peaceful and complacent family life. In the wake Of discovering its various facilities they began to scramble for it to satiate their own needs thus stirring anger jealousy hate and violence. Therefore Xi the first person who had found the bottle decided to throw this evil thing to the end of the world.In the course of his journey he name across Andrew Steen and Kate Thompson who eventually fell in love with each other. Meanwhile a brutal Samba's gang was subdued by Mr.. Steen with the help of Xi. It is plausible that this comedy film is sheerer a good expression. This film directly demonstrates its positive and pleasant dimensions to its viewers. Indeed this film is imbued with comic elements. I was amazed when Xi had misgivings about how such a small bottle on the tele scope could have a capacity of so many people. I was bursting into laughter the moment Mr..Steen steered towards the fence which blocked his way and he responded awkwardly in the presence of Mrs.. Thompson trying to pick up the bottles falling from the table. Was giggling when Jack drove away his bus under which lurked Xi and Midi to elude the beast chasing after him. However that is far from enough. It is true that the aesthetic effect of a comedy is laugh which is the part and parcel of the whole movie but it is not the whole story the moral lying behind the laugh is the essence of the comedy. In keeping with Iliad which was composed by Homer a renownedGreek poet and depicted numerous valiant soldiers on the one hand and conveyed the idea of heroism and humanism inspiring people from generation to generation on the other the film The gods must be crazy has also represented the educational significance of a comedy edifying and reshaping viewers. After watching this film for a secon d time I come to a deeper understanding of this comedy that the comedy elements are not merely scheduled to create laughter instead they are planned to sing praise for Xi's primitive and rustic mind to give the thumbs up for Mr..Stein's grit and integrity while giving the thumbs down against Jack's hypocrisy. More importantly I hold that this comedy movie has a social implication for our modern life. Fraught with fierce competition due to the globalization people are progressively deprived of an air of freedom and dedicating themselves to a dreary commitment to mean ambitions or love of comfort. We become desperate social climbers and have devotions to material things. Therefore, bottles-?material things constitute the center rhythm of our life.

Art: Is It Important or Not?

Leonardo dad Vinci is known for his paintings, one of the art works Is called Mona Lisa. This work of art is Just a painting of the woman without any artistic perspective. But It Is not just a painting of a woman, because If It was we could not feel mysterious feeling. By looking at the Mona I-Sis that Leonardo loved which took four years to finish; we can feel his will to finish this planting with perfection, we can feel Is love toward this woman, and we can feel his sadness that come from the fact that she Is already someone's wife.Like this, we could feel the emotions that we might not have felt without work of arts. Arts teach us about the human emotions. The music is one of many subjects of arts, and it is most popular one. There are people that listen to music just to party, but some music has meaning and teaches us history. For example R;B music; this music is originated from the African American that was enslaved by white people. They sang this song to relieve the pain or sin g about the pain they felt. By listening to this kind of music, we can learn about he pain they felt and know the history when they were suppressed and enslaved.We can keep reminded that the enslaving people is bad thing and painful experience that we should not let anyone feel. Music teaches us about the history and also the emotions of creator of the music. There might be a people that think art is useless and meaningless, but it is a fact that arts possess meaning and teaches us about the world. By looking at the work of art we can feel what artist wants us to feel, we can learn the history, and we can earn the culture of time period when artist lived or place where art originated from.Also, we can see what kind of emotions that people felt during the time period of when art was created. The art is shows every human can feel, and we must learn from It. Art: Is It Important or Not? By hung meanings in the arts. The work of arts includes all the aspect of our society. The arts can express many feelings that we could not feel without it. There is countless Leonardo dad Vinci is known for his paintings, one of the art works is called Mona Lisa.This work of art is Just a painting of the woman without any artistic perspective. But it is not Just a painting of a woman, because if it was we could not feel mysterious feeling. By looking at the Mona Lisa that Leonardo loved which took four years to finish; we can feel his will to finish this painting with perfection, we can feel is love toward this woman, and we can feel his sadness that come from the fact that she is people that listen to music Just to party, but some music has meaning and teaches us from it.

An analisys of Management Accounting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

An analisys of Management Accounting - Essay Example This research aims to evaluate and present the models and concepts affecting the pricing decisions taken by organizations, critically reflecting upon their usefulness. The price variable is the one of the significant ingredients in marketing mix of the organization. Price itself can effectively communicate with the consumers regarding the product or service. So, â€Å"when the pricing decision is made, the organization must consider several factors. These factors† such factor includes, Regulation of government, Perceptions in the market, supply, desired pricing position of the organization, demand and finally Competitors and Competition pricing policies. The final price of any product or service is influenced by various factors; these can be summarized into two that are internal and external factors. Internal Factors – Internal factors are those which are controllable by the organization and also, if required, it can be altered. Although, the company may have control ov er these internal factors creating a quick alteration is not always practical or realistic. For example, pricing of the product may depend closely on the efficiency of a manufacturing capability (e.g., how much can be manufactured in a certain time). External Factors - There are a numeral of influencing factors which are not restricted to the organization but will influence pricing decisions. The marketer needs to identify these factors to carry out various researches to observe what is happening in every marketplace that the organization serves, since result of these factors can change by marketplace. The Pricing Decision: As mentioned above, the pricing decision of the organization is impacted by various dissimilar factors. So, pricing decision at initial stage can be very time- consuming though these are exemptions. Normally pricing decision of the organization is complicated, hence it must involve the various cautions consideration of all these factors listed above to make a good decision. â€Å"The pricing strategy can be viewed as a function of competitive product quality and stage of the product life cycle† (Rashid et al. 1988, p. 194). Various models which influenced the pricing decision of the organizations are discussed below. Cost and Demand Oriented Pricing Models: In this model, organization uses demand or cost as a foundation for setting the price of the service or product. Traditionally, this type of orientation or model is applied to the theory of micro economics by forming demand curve on the basis of summation or outline of the person’s utility funct ions for consumers in the market. Thus, first thing is that to assess and identity the consumers perception regarding the product or services. Perception of the

Quantitative and Qualitative Methods of Research Assignment

Quantitative and Qualitative Methods of Research - Assignment Example Measurements of data in a big population are carried out through random sampling. Random sampling does not give an accurate measurement in people since people are different from each other as compared to elements tested in natural sciences that are always identical (Graham, 2008). The best approach to measurement that should be used in the measurement of people and society is the use of a computerized sampling method that is programmed to practice simulation. Use of computerized sampling will ensure that the whole population is well represented (Davies, 2007). Both qualitative and quantitative types of research need to be valid and reliable to enhance their use by analysts. The validity of these research methods ensures the connection of the research carried out and the theoretical ideas of the researcher (Chikkodi and Satyaprasad, 2010). Much of it refers to the generalizability of the findings in both the quantitative and qualitative research. In a bid to assess, the validity of these two types of validity in research, their credibility and transferability aspect is very important (Connaway and Powell, 2010). The credibility aspect is used to determine whether the findings in the research seem believable while the transferability aspect determines whether the findings of the research are applicable in another context. Reliability of these types of research refers to the situation in which more than one observer of the study agrees with the findings (Katsirikou and Skiadas, 2012). A good example is how an efficient apparatus in laborator y gives accurate data.

Worldcultures Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Worldcultures - Essay Example In fact, some of their great architectural works still stand strong in major towns and cities across the globe. However, one is left wondering whether the modern architectural works would withstand the test of time and last long as the structures build in the ancient Rome. The great work of the Romans can still be seen and emulated because of the superior architectural ideas and engineering skills they used and the kind of reputation they built put of their great work that certainly made them conquer the world, influence and rule it for this long. Jenkins reveals that the Romans did their architectural works with a lot of dedication and professionalism with the aim of producing a useful architecture3. To ensure that this is accomplished, they ensured that thorough planning was done before starting any construction works. It is for this reason that buildings, bridges, marketplaces, cities and harbors contracted by the Romans are still admirable to much architecture to date and are adopting their styles in the construction according to Jenkins4. Brown notes that the Romans employed different styles in their building, which influenced many architectural pieces5. The arch is a perfect example, which is a structure made using a mixture of the bricks, stone, and concrete. The arch was meant to give strength to or support buildings. The arches were mainly blocks, which are wedge-shaped and were to be supported using wooden materials during construction. The arches created by the ancient Romans were very strong and could withstand a lot of weight. To ensure that this is so, they used a mixture of volcanic sand and lime to create a strong and durable concrete. The strong concretes made from these mixtures were then be used to build strong and beautiful structures like the aqueducts used for supplying water to the major cities as noted by Brown6. Immediately after this remarkable accomplishment, other

Critically assess the relevance of Marxist theory to the study of Essay

Critically assess the relevance of Marxist theory to the study of media texts - Essay Example Moore looks into the presidency of George W. Bush and analyzes the future of the country in the light of his policies and actions. Moore alleges that Bush family had long-term business relationship with the Saudi royalty and the family of bin Ladens. Bush and his inner circle avoided pursuing the Saudi connection to 9/11, despite the fact that 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudis and Saudi money had allegedly funded Al Qaeda (Fahrenheit 9/11). Fahrenheit 9/11 shows how a nation is kept in constant fear by FBI alerts and ultimately lulled into accepting the USA Patriot Act, that according to the film infringes on basic civil rights further adding that it is in this atmosphere of "confusion, suspicion and dread" that the Bush Administration "invades" Iraq. Fahrenheit 9/11 shows clips of the war to highlight the US casualties and the human cost to individual soldiers and their families thus invoking anti-state feelings within the armed forces. The core narrative of Fahrenheit 9/11 paraphrased from various reviews on the film: the Bush administration seize... ure the world's second largest reservoir of oil-all on the dubious grounds that Saddam Hussein was behind Al Qaeda's attack on World Trade Centre and his regime which possessed weapons of mass destruction posed a serious threat to the security of the United States and its Western allies. Fahrenheit 9/11 has been one of the most controversial and provocative documentary films since 2004 when it was released in the United States and worldwide. It seems to have borrowed the title and inspiration from Ray Bradbury's fiction novel "Fehrenheir 451" published in 1953. The thrust of the novel is towards highlighting the major concerns of the 1950s such as McCarthyite witch-hunt against communists , burning of books in Nazi Germany; Soviet leader Stalin's suppression of writers and books and the horrifying consequences of a nuclear weapon on the fictional town of Phoenix. Fahrenheit 451 belongs to George Orwell's "Big Brother" genre which is not exactly a Marxist comment on the society but a reflection of Western liberal thought. One may argue that Bush comes out in the film as the main protagonist, however, in its over all impact the film, wittingly or unwittingly, shuns narrative structure of story-telling that is the hallmark of the Hollywood style of film-making. Vertov and his colleagues believed both in the absolute ability of the cinema apparatus to reproduce reality as it actually appears and in the necessity of editing to arrange this reality into an expressive and persuasive whole. This doctrine, called by Vertov kino-glaz ("cinema-eye"), contributed significantly to the montage aesthetics which came to dominate the Soviet cinema after 1924. (Cook, 1996 p.134) Fahrenheit 911 does not use a protagonist or a narrative and uses a format which is more associated with the

MODIGLIANI AND MILLERS ADVICE ON DEBTS IGNORED BY COMPANIES Essay

MODIGLIANI AND MILLERS ADVICE ON DEBTS IGNORED BY COMPANIES - Essay Example The split between the Shiism and the Sunnism has been based on an ideological aspect that still exists. This separation, nevertheless, has been unbreakable by the national, the ethnic, political, socio-political, social, and yet economic partitions in the context of the Islamic world. It has also been influenced during historical times in cases of some Islamic rulers, Islamic politicians as well as Islamic colonialists to provide their own direct interest (Haji-Yousefi, 115). Due to all these social, political and economic reasons it has also been argued that the division between these two branches of Islam is still at large in the world. This division is also cultural in the sense that the cultural aspects of Islam from the point of view of these two divisions are regarded to be different at significant level. Also the economic orientation of these two branches and the interest of Islamic people are still so much dominant that the difference has become almost impossible to ignore (H aji-Yousefi, 115). Answer 2: To be certain, globalization has been regarded as a compound occurrence, which includes a great diversity of propensities as well as movements in respect to the economic, social as well as cultural areas. It has been a multidimensional nature and therefore does not provide itself to the distinctive definition. For the purpose of ease, it can be described as rising as well as intensified streams between nations of ‘goods, services, capital, ideas, information and people’ that produce different cross-border addition of a number of social as well as cultural activities. However, in the context of the developing countries, this is creating significant amount of negative effects on the societies of these countries. These countries are largely losing their respective social identity. This is revealed by the fact that globalization is incorporating greater number of people having different social aspects and activities which are creating divergence among the local peoples’ social identity (Bertucci and Alberti, 1). Also the existence of globalization is creating negative effects on the social organizational structures of developing nations. Transfer of old and used technologies from the developed part of the world to developing countries are creating detrimental effects

African American Culture Essay Example for Free

African American Culture Essay African American culture in the United States includes the various cultural traditions of African ethnic groups. It is both part of and distinct from American culture. The U. S. Census Bureau defines African Americans as people having origins in any of the Black race groups of Africa. [1] African American culture is indigenous to the descendants in the U. S. of survivors of the Middle Passage. It is rooted in Africa and is an amalgam of chiefly sub-Saharan African and Sahelean cultures. Although slavery greatly restricted the ability of Africans in America to practice their cultural traditions, many practices, values and beliefs survived and over time have incorporated elements of European American culture. There are even certain facets of African American culture that were brought into being or made more prominent as a result of slavery; an example of this is how drumming became used as a means of communication and establishing a community identity during that time. The result is a dynamic, creative culture that has had and continues to have a profound impact on mainstream American culture and on world culture as well. After Emancipation, these uniquely African American traditions continued to grow. They developed into distinctive traditions in music, art, literature, religion, food, holidays, amongst others. While for some time sociologists, such as Gunnar Myrdal and Patrick Moynihan, believed that African Americans had lost most cultural ties with Africa, anthropological field research by Melville Hersovits and others demonstrated that there is a continuum of African traditions among Africans in the New World from the West Indies to the United States. The greatest influence of African cultural practices on European cultures is found below the Mason-Dixon in the southeastern United States, especially in the Carolinas among the Gullah people and in Louisiana. African American culture often developed separately from mainstream American culture because of African Americans desire to practice their own traditions, as well as the persistence of racial segregation in America. Consequently African American culture has become a significant part of American culture and yet, at the same time, remains a distinct culture apart from it. History From the earliest days of slavery, slave owners sought to exercise control over their slaves by attempting to strip them of their African culture. The physical isolation and societal marginalization of African slaves and, later, of their free progeny, however, actually facilitated the retention of significant elements of traditional culture among Africans in the New World generally, and in the U. S. in particular. Slave owners deliberately tried to repress political organization in order to deal with the many slave rebellions that took place in the southern United States, Brazil, Haiti, and the Dutch Guyanas. African cultures,slavery,slave rebellions,and the civil rights movements(circa 1800s-160s)have shaped African American religious, familial, political and economic behaviors. The imprint of Africa is evident in myriad ways, in politics, economics, language, music, hairstyles, fashion, dance, religion and worldview, and food preparation methods. In the United States, the very legislation that was designed to strip slaves of culture and deny them education served in many ways to strengthen it. In turn, African American culture has had a pervasive, transformative impact on myriad elements of mainstream American culture, among them language, music, dance, religion, cuisine, and agriculture. This process of mutual creative exchange is called creolization. Over time, the culture of African slaves and their descendants has been ubiquitous in its impact on not only the dominant American culture, but on world culture as well. Oral tradition Slaveholders limited or prohibited education of enslaved African Americans because they believed it might lead to revolts or escape plans. Hence, African-based oral traditions became the primary means of preserving history, morals, and other cultural information among the people. This was consistent with the griot practices of oral history in many African and other cultures that did not rely on the written word. Many of these cultural elements have been passed from generation to generation through storytelling. The folktales provided African Americans the opportunity to inspire and educate one another. Examples of African American folktales include trickster tales of Brer Rabbit and heroic tales such as that of John Henry. The Uncle Remus stories by Joel Chandler Harris helped to bring African American folk tales into mainstream adoption. Harris did not appreciate the complexity of the stories nor their potential for a lasting impact on society. Characteristics of the African American oral tradition present themselves in a number of forms. African American preachers tend to perform rather than simply speak. The emotion of the subject is carried through the speakers tone, volume, and movement, which tend to mirror the rising action, climax, and descending action of the sermon. Often song, dance, verse and structured pauses are placed throughout the sermon. Techniques such as call-and-response are used to bring the audience into the presentation. In direct contrast to recent tradition in other American and Western cultures, it is an acceptable and common audience reaction to interrupt and affirm the speaker. Spoken word is another example of how the African American oral tradition influences modern American popular culture. Spoken word artists employ the same techniques as African American preachers including movement, rhythm, and audience participation. Rap music from the 1980s and beyond has been seen as an extension of oral culture. Harlem Renaissance [pic] Zora Neale Hurston was a prominent literary figure during the Harlem Renaissance. Main article: Harlem Renaissance The first major public recognition of African American culture occurred during the Harlem Renaissance. In the 1920s and 1930s, African American music, literature, and art gained wide notice. Authors such as Zora Neale Hurston and Nella Larsen and poets such as Langston Hughes, Claude McKay, and Countee Cullen wrote works describing the African American experience. Jazz, swing, blues and other musical forms entered American popular music. African American artists such as William H. Johnson and Palmer Hayden created unique works of art featuring African Americans. The Harlem Renaissance was also a time of increased political involvement for African Americans. Among the notable African American political movements founded in the early 20th century are the United Negro Improvement Association and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. The Nation of Islam, a notable Islamic religious movement, also began in the early 1930s. African American cultural movement The Black Power movement of the 1960s and 1970s followed in the wake of the non-violent American Civil Rights Movement. The movement promoted racial pride and ethnic cohesion in contrast to the focus on integration of the Civil Rights Movement, and adopted a more militant posture in the face of racism. It also inspired a new renaissance in African American literary and artistic expression generally referred to as the African American or Black Arts Movement. The works of popular recording artists such as Nina Simone (Young, Gifted and Black) and The Impressions (Keep On Pushin), as well as the poetry, fine arts and literature of the time, shaped and reflected the growing racial and political consciousness. Among the most prominent writers of the African American Arts Movement were poet Nikki Giovanni; poet and publisher Don L. Lee, who later became known as Haki Madhubuti; poet and playwright Leroi Jones, later known as Amiri Baraka; and Sonia Sanchez. Other influential writers were Ed Bullins, Dudley Randall, Mari Evans, June Jordan, Larry Neal and Ahmos Zu-Bolton. Another major aspect of the African American Arts Movement was the infusion of the African aesthetic, a return to a collective cultural sensibility and ethnic pride that was much in evidence during the Harlem Renaissance and in the celebration of Negritude among the artistic and literary circles in the U. S. , Caribbean and the African continent nearly four decades earlier: the idea that black is beautiful. During this time, there was a resurgence of interest in, and an embrace of, elements of African culture within African American culture that had been suppressed or devalued to conform to Eurocentric America. Natural hairstyles, such as the afro, and African clothing, such as the dashiki, gained popularity. More importantly, the African American aesthetic encouraged personal pride and political awareness among African Americans. Music [pic] Men playing the djembe, a traditional West African drum adopted into African American and American culture. The bags and the clothing of the man on the right are printed with traditional kente cloth patterns. African American music is rooted in the typically polyrhythmic music of the ethnic groups of Africa, specifically those in the Western, Sahelean, and Sub-Saharan regions. African oral traditions, nurtured in slavery, encouraged the use of music to pass on history, teach lessons, ease suffering, and relay messages. The African pedigree of African American music is evident in some common elements: call and response, syncopation, percussion, improvisation, swung notes, blue notes, the use of falsetto, melisma, and complex multi-part harmony. During slavery, Africans in America blended traditional European hymns with African elements to create spirituals. Many African Americans sing Lift Evry Voice and Sing in addition to the American national anthem, The Star-Spangled Banner, or in lieu of it. Written by James Weldon Johnson and John Rosamond Johnson in 1900 to be performed for the birthday of Abraham Lincoln, the song was, and continues to be, a popular way for African Americans to recall past struggles and express ethnic solidarity, faith and hope for the future. The song was adopted as the Negro National Anthem by the NAACP in 1919. African American children are taught the song at school, church or by their families. Lift Evry Voice and Sing traditionally is sung immediately following, or instead of, The Star-Spangled Banner at events hosted by African American churches, schools, and other organizations. In the 1800s, as the result of the blackface minstrel show, African American music entered mainstream American society. By the early twentieth century, several musical forms with origins in the African American community had transformed American popular music. Aided by the technological innovations of radio and phonograph records, ragtime, jazz, blues, and swing also became popular overseas, and the 1920s became known as the Jazz Age. The early 20th century also saw the creation of the first African American Broadway shows, films such as King Vidors Hallelujah!, and operas such as George Gershwins Porgy and Bess. Rock and roll, doo wop, soul, and RB developed in the mid 20th century. These genres became very popular in white audiences and were influences for other genres such as surf. The dozens, an urban African American tradition of using rhyming slang to put down your enemies (or friends) developed through the smart-ass street jive of the early Seventies into a new form of music. In the South Bronx, the half speaking, half singing rhythmic street talk of rapping grew into the hugely successful cultural force known as Hip Hop. Hip Hop would become a multicultural movement. However, it is still important to many African Americans. The African American Cultural Movement of the 1960s and 1970s also fueled the growth of funk and later hip-hop forms such as rap, hip house, new jack swing and go go. African American music has experienced far more widespread acceptance in American popular music in the 21st century than ever before. In addition to continuing to develop newer musical forms, modern artists have also started a rebirth of older genres in the form of genres such as neo soul and modern funk-inspired groups. Dance [pic]. The Cakewalk was the first African American dance to gain widespread popularity in the United States. [pic] African American dance, like other aspects of African American culture, finds its earliest roots in the dances of the hundreds of African ethnic groups that made up African slaves in the Americas as well as influences from European sources in the United States. Dance in the African tradition, and thus in the tradition of slaves, was a part of both every day life and special occasions. Many of these traditions such as get down, ring shouts, and other elements of African body language survive as elements of modern dance. In the 1800s, African American dance began to appear in minstrel shows. These shows often presented African Americans as caricatures for ridicule to large audiences. The first African American dance to become popular with White dancers was the cakewalk in 1891. Later dances to follow in this tradition include the Charleston, the Lindy Hop, and the Jitterbug. During the Harlem Renaissance, all African American Broadway shows such as Shuffle Along helped to establish and legitimize African American dancers. African American dance forms such as tap, a combination of African and European influences, gained widespread popularity thanks to dancers such as Bill Robinson and were used by leading White choreographers who often hired African American dancers. Contemporary African American dance is descended from these earlier forms and also draws influence from African and Caribbean dance forms. Groups such as the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater have continued to contribute to the growth of this form. Modern popular dance in America is also greatly influenced by African American dance. American popular dance has also drawn many influences from African American dance most notably in the hip hop genre. Art [pic] Sand Dunes at Sunset, Atlantic City by Henry Ossawa Tanner 1859-1937 From its early origins in slave communities, through the end of the twentieth century, African-American art has made a vital contribution to the art of the United States. During the period between the 1600s and the early 1800s, art took the form of small drums, quilts, wrought-iron figures and ceramic vessels in the southern United States. These artifacts have similarities with comparable crafts in West and Central Africa. In contrast, African American artisans like the New England–based engraver Scipio Moorhead and the Baltimore portrait painter Joshua Johnson created art that was conceived in a thoroughly western European fashion. During the 1800s, Harriet Powers made quilts in rural Georgia, United States that are now considered among the finest examples of nineteenth-century Southern quilting. Later in the 20th century, the women of Gee’s Bend developed a distinctive, bold, and sophisticated quilting style based on traditional African American quilts with a geometric simplicity that developed separately but was like that of Amish quilts and modern art. After the American Civil War, museums and galleries began more frequently to display the work of African American artists. Cultural expression in mainstream venues was still limited by the dominant European aesthetic and by racial prejudice. To increase the visibility of their work, many African American artists traveled to Europe where they had greater freedom. It was not until the Harlem Renaissance that more whites began to pay attention to African American art in America. [pic] Kara Walker, Cut, Cut paper and adhesive on wall, Brent Sikkema NYC. During the 1920s, artists such as Raymond Barthe, Aaron Douglas, Augusta Savage, and photographer James Van Der Zee became well known for their work. During the Great Depression, new opportunities arose for these and other African American artists under the WPA. In later years, other programs and institutions, such as the New York City-based Harmon Foundation, helped to foster African American artistic talent. Augusta Savage, Elizabeth Catlett, Lois Mailou Jones, Romare Bearden, Jacob Lawrence and others exhibited in museums and juried art shows, and built reputations and followings for themselves. In the 1950s and 1960s, there were very few widely accepted African American artists. Despite this, The Highwaymen, a loose association of 27 African American artists from Ft. Pierce, Florida, created idyllic, quickly realized images of the Florida landscape and peddled some 50,000 of them from the trunks of their cars. They sold their art directly to the public rather than through galleries and art agents, thus receiving the name The Highwaymen. Rediscovered in the mid-1990s, today they are recognized as an important part of American folk history. Their artwork is widely collected by enthusiasts and original pieces can easily fetch thousands of dollars in auctions and sales. The Black Arts Movement of the 1960s and 1970s was another period of resurgent interest in African American art. During this period, several African-American artists gained national prominence, among them Lou Stovall, Ed Love, Charles White, and Jeff Donaldson. Donaldson and a group of African-American artists formed the Afrocentric collective AFRICOBRA, which remains in existence today. The sculptor Martin Puryear, whose work has been acclaimed for years, is being honored with a 30-year retrospective of his work at the Museum of Modern Art in New York starting November 2007. Notable contemporary African American artists include David Hammons, Eugene J. Martin, Charles Tolliver, and Kara Walker. Literature [pic] Langston Hughes, a notable African American poet of the Harlem Renaissance. African American literature has its roots in the oral traditions of African slaves in America. The slaves used stories and fables in much the same way as they used music. These stories influenced the earliest African American writers and poets in the 18thcentury such as Phillis Wheatley and Olaudah Equiano. These authors reached early high points by telling slave narratives. During the early 20th century Harlem Renaissance, numerous authors and poets, such as Langston Hughes, W. E. B. Dubois, and Booker T. Washington, grappled with how to respond to discrimination in America. Authors during the Civil Rights era, such as Richard Wright, James Baldwin and Gwendolyn Brooks wrote about issues of racial segregation, oppression and other aspects of African American life. This tradition continues today with authors who have been accepted as an integral part of American literature, with works such as Roots: The Saga of an American Family by Alex Haley, The Color Purple by Alice Walker, and Beloved by Nobel Prize-winning Toni Morrison, and series by Octavia Butler and Walter Mosley that have achieved both best-selling and/or award-winning status. Museums The African American Museum Movement emerged during the 1950s and 1960s to preserve the heritage of the African American experience and to ensure its proper interpretation in American history. Museums devoted to African American history are found in many African American neighborhoods. Institutions such as the African American Museum and Library at Oakland and The African American Museum in Cleveland were created by African Americans to teach and investigate cultural history that, until recent decades was primarily preserved trough oral traditions. Language Generations of hardships imposed on the African American community created distinctive language patterns. Slave owners often intentionally mixed people who spoke different African languages to discourage communication in any language other than English. This, combined with prohibitions against education, led to the development of pidgins, simplified mixtures of two or more languages that speakers of different languages could use to communicate. Examples of pidgins that became fully developed languages include Creole, common to Haiti,and Gullah, common to the Sea Islands off the coast of South Carolina and Georgia. African American Vernacular English is a type variety (dialect, ethnolect and sociolect) of the American English language closely associated with the speech of but not exclusive to African Americans. While AAVE is academically considered a legitimate dialect because of its logical structure, some of both Caucasians and African Americans consider it slang or the result of a poor command of Standard American English. Inner city African American children who are isolated by speaking only AAVE have more difficulty with standardized testing and, after school, moving to the mainstream world for work. It is common for many speakers of AAVE to code switch between AAVE and Standard American English depending on the setting. Fashion and aesthetics [pic]. A man weaving kente cloth in Ghana. Attire The cultural explosion of the 1960s saw the incorporation of surviving cultural dress with elements from modern fashion and West African traditional clothing to create a uniquely African American traditional style. Kente cloth is the best known African textile. These festive woven patterns, which exist in numerous varieties, were originally made by the Ashanti and Ewe peoples of Ghana and Togo. Kente fabric also appears in a number of Western style fashions ranging from casual t-shirts to formal bow ties and cummerbunds. Kente strips are often sewn into liturgical and academic robes or worn as stoles. Since the Black Arts Movement, traditional African clothing has been popular amongst African Americans for both formal and informal occasions. Another common aspect of fashion in African American culture involves the appropriate dress for worship in the Black church. It is expected in most churches that an individual should present their best appearance for worship. African American women in particular are known for wearing vibrant dresses and suits. An interpretation of a passage from the Christian Bible, every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head , has led to the tradition of wearing elaborate Sunday hats, sometimes known as crowns. Hair Hair styling in African American culture is greatly varied. African American hair is typically composed of tightly coiled curls. The predominant styles for women involve the straightening of the hair through the application of heat or chemical processes. These treatments form the base for the most commonly socially acceptable hairstyles in the United States. Alternatively, the predominant and most socially acceptable practice for men is to leave ones hair natural. Often, as men age and begin to lose their hair, the hair is either closely cropped, or the head is shaved completely free of hair. However, since the 1960s, natural hairstyles, such as the afro, braids, and dreadlocks, have been growing in popularity. Although the association with radical political movements and their vast difference from mainstream Western hairstyles, the styles have not yet attained widespread social acceptance. Maintaining facial hair is more prevalent among African American men than in other male populations in the U. S. In fact, the soul patch is so named because African American men, particularly jazz musicians, popularized the style. The preference for facial hair among African American men is due partly to personal taste, but because they are more prone than other ethnic groups to develop a condition known as pseudofolliculitis barbae, commonly referred to as razor bumps, many prefer not to shave. Body image The European aesthetic and attendant mainstream concepts of beauty are often at odds with the African body form. Because of this, African American women often find themselves under pressure to conform to European standards of beauty. Still, there are individuals and groups who are working towards raising the standing of the African aesthetic among African Americans and internationally as well. This includes efforts toward promoting as models those with clearly defined African features; the mainstreaming of natural hairstyles; and, in women, fuller, more voluptuous body types. Religion While African Americans practice a number of religions, Protestant Christianity is by far the most popular. Additionally, 14% of Muslims in the United States and Canada are African American. Christianity [pic] A river baptism in New Bern, North Carolina near the turn of the 20th century. The religious institutions of African American Christians commonly are referred tocollectively as the black church. During slavery, many slaves were stripped of their African belief systems and typically denied free religious practice. Slaves managed, however, to hang on to some practices by integrating them into Christian worship in secret meetings. These practices, including dance, shouts, African rhythms, and enthusiastic singing, remain a large part of worship in the African American church. African American churches taught that all people were equal in Gods eyes and viewed the doctrine of obedience to ones master taught in white churches as hypocritical. Instead the African American church focused on the message of equality and hopes for a better future. Before and after emancipation, racial segregation in America prompted the development of organized African American denominations. The first of these was the AME Church founded by Richard Allen in 1787. An African American church is not necessarily a separate denomination. Several predominantly African American churches exist as members of predominantly white denominations. African American churches have served to provide African American people with leadership positions and opportunities to organize that were denied in mainstream American society. Because of this, African American pastors became the bridge between the African American and European American communities and thus played a crucial role in the American Civil Rights Movement. Like many Christians, African American Christians sometimes participate in or attend a Christmas play. Black Nativity by Langston Hughes is a re-telling of the classic Nativity story with gospel music. Productions can be found a African American theaters and churches all over the country. Islam [pic] A member of the Nation of Islam selling merchandise on a city street corner. Despite the popular assumption that the Nation represents all or most African American Muslims, less than 2% are members. Generations before the advent of the Atlantic slave trade, Islam was a thriving religion in West Africa due to its peaceful introduction via the lucrative trans-Saharan trade between prominent tribes in the southern Sahara and the Berbers to the North. In his attesting to this fact the West African scholar Cheikh Anta Diop explained: The primary reason for the success of Islam in Black Africaconsequently stems from the fact that it was propagated peacefully at first by solitary Arabo-Berber travelers to certain Black kings and notables, who then spread it about them to those under their jurisdiction Many first-generation slaves were often able to retain their Muslim identity, their descendants were not. Slaves were either forcibly converted to Christianity as was the case in the Catholic lands or were besieged with gross inconviences to their religious practice such as in the case of the Protestant American mainland. In the decades after slavery and particularly during the depression era, Islam reemerged in the form of highly visible and sometimes controversial heterodox movements in the African American community. The first of these of note was the Moorish Science Temple of America, founded by Noble Drew Ali. Ali had a profound influence on Wallace Fard, who later founded the Black nationalist Nation of Islam in 1930. Elijah Muhammad became head of the organization in 1934. Much like Malcolm X, who left the Nation of Islam in 1964, many African American Muslims now follow traditional Islam. A survey by the Council on American-Islamic Relations shows that 30% of Sunni Mosque attendees are African Americans. African American orthodox Muslims are often the victims of stereotypes, most notably the assumption that an African American Muslim is a member of the Nation of Islam. They are often viewed by the uneducated African-American community in general as less authentic than Muslims from the Middle East or South Asia while credibility is less of an issue with immigrant Muslims and Muslim world in general. Other religions. Aside from Christianity and Islam, there are also African Americans who follow Judaism, Buddhism, and a number of other religions. The Black Hebrew Israelites are a collection of African American Jewish religious organizations. Among their varied teachings, they often include that African Americans are descended from the Biblical Hebrews (sometimes with the paradoxical claim that the Jewish people are not). There is a small but growing number of African Americans who participate in African traditional religions, such as Vodou and Santeria or Ifa and diasporic traditions like Rastafarianism. Many of them are immigrants or descendants of immigrants from the Caribbean and South America, where these are practiced. Because of religious practices, such as animal sacrifice, which are no longer common among American religions and are often legally prohibited, these groups may be viewed negatively and are sometimes the victims of harassment. Life events For most African Americans, the observance of life events follows the pattern of mainstream American culture. There are some traditions which are unique to African Americans. Some African Americans have created new rites of passage that are linked to African traditions. Pre-teen and teenage boys and girls take classes to prepare them for adulthood. They are typically taught spirituality, responsibility, and leadership. Most of these programs are modeled after traditional African ceremonies, with the focus largely on embracing African ideologies rather than specific rituals. To this day, some African American couples choose to jump the broom as a part of their wedding ceremony. Although the practice, which can be traced back to Ghana, fell out of favor in the African American community after the end of slavery, it has experienced a slight resurgence in recent years as some couples seek to reaffirm their African heritage. Funeral traditions tend to vary based on a number of factors, including religion and location, but there are a number of commonalities. Probably the most important part of death and dying in the African American culture is the gathering of family and friends. Either in the last days before death or shortly after death, typically any friends and family members that can be reached are notified. This gathering helps to provide spiritual and emotional support, as well as assistance in making decisions and accomplishing everyday tasks. The spirituality of death is very important in African American culture. A member of the clergy or members of the religious community, or both, are typically present with the family through the entire process. Death is often viewed as transitory rather than final. Many services are called homegoings, instead of funerals, based on the belief that the person is going home to the afterlife. The entire end of life process is generally treated as a celebration of life rather than a mourning of loss. This is most notably demonstrated in the New Orleans Jazz Funeral tradition where upbeat music, dancing, and food encourage those gathered to be happy and celebrate the homegoing of a beloved friend. Cuisine [pic] A traditional soul food dinner consisting of fried chicken, candied yams, collard greens, cornbread, and macaroni and cheese. The cultivation and use of many agricultural products in the United States, such as yams, peanuts, rice, okra, sorghum, grits, watermelon, indigo dyes, and cotton, can be traced to African influences. African American foods reflect creative responses to racial and economic oppression and poverty. Under slavery, African Americans were not allowed to eat better cuts of meat, and after emancipation many often were too poor to afford them. Soul food, a hearty cuisine commonly associated with African Americans in the South (but also common to African Americans nationwide), makes creative use of inexpensive products procured through farming and subsistence hunting and fishing.