John Alden Jr. and the Salem Witch Trials

John Alden Jr. (1626 or 1627 - March 25, 1702) was a soldier and sailor accused of witchcraft on a visit to the town of Salem and imprisoned in the 1692  Salem witch trials; he escaped from jail and was later exonerated. John Alden Jr.s Parents and Wife Father: John Alden Sr., a crew member on the Mayflower when it sailed to Plymouth Colony; he decided to stay in the new world. He lived until about 1680. Mother: Priscilla Mullins Alden, whose family and brother Joseph died during the first winter in Plymouth; her only other relatives, including a brother and sister, had remained in England. She lived until after 1650, and possibly until the 1670s. John Alden and Priscilla Mullins were married in 1621, probably the second or third couple among the colonists to marry in Plymouth. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in 1858 wrote The Courtship of Miles Standish, based on a family tradition about the couple’s relationship. Recent evidence suggests that the story may be based on fact. Priscilla and John Alden had ten children who lived past infancy. One of the two eldest was John Jr.; he and the other two eldest children were born in Plymouth. The others were born after the family moved to Duxbury, Massachusetts. John Alden Jr. married Elizabeth Phillips Everill in 1660. They had fourteen children together. John Alden Jr. Before the Salem Witch Trials John Alden had been a sea captain and a Boston merchant before he became involved in the events in Salem in 1692. In Boston, he was a charter member of the Old South Meeting House. During King William’s War (1689 – 1697), John Alden held a military command, while he also maintained his business dealings in Boston. John Alden Jr. and the Salem Witch Trials In February 1692, at about the time that the first girls were displaying their symptoms of affliction in Salem, John Alden Jr. was in Quebec, ransoming British prisoners held there after their capture in the raid on York, Maine, in January. In that attack, a group of Abenaki, led by Madockawando and a French priest, attacked the town of York. (York is now in Maine and was at the time part of the Province of Massachusetts.) The raid killed about 100 English settlers and another 80 were taken hostage, forced to march to New France. Alden was in Quebec to pay the ransom for the freedom of the British soldiers captured in that raid. Alden stopped in Salem on his return to Boston. There had already been rumors that he was, through his business, supplying the French and Abenaki side of the war. There had also apparently been rumors of Alden having affairs with Indian women, and even having children by them. On May 19, a rumor came to Boston through some escapees from the Indians that a French leader had been looking for Captain Alden, saying Alden owed him some goods that he had promised to him. This may have been the trigger for the accusations that followed just days later. (Mercy Lewis, one of the accusers, had lost her parents in Indian raids.) On May 28, a formal accusation of witchcraft—â€Å"cruelly torturing and afflicting several of their Children and others†Ã¢â‚¬â€against John Alden was filed. On May 31, he was brought from Boston and examined in court by Judges Gedney, Corwin and Hathorne. The court decided to put Alden, and a woman named Sarah Rice, into Boston jail, and instructed the keeper of the prison in Boston to hold him. He was delivered there, but after fifteen weeks, he made an escape from the jail and went to New York to stay with protectors. In December 1692, a court demanded that he appear in Boston to answer charges. In April 1693, John Hathorne and Jonathan Curwin were notified that Alden had been returned to Boston to answer at the Boston Superior Court. But no one appeared against him, and he was cleared by proclamation. Alden published his own account of his involvement in the trials (see excerpts above). John Alden died on March 25, 1702, in Massachusetts Bay province. John Alden Jr. in  Salem, 2014 series John Alden’s appearance during the Salem witch trials has been highly fictionalized in a 2014 series about the events in Salem.  He plays a man much younger than the historical John Alden was, and he is romantically linked in the fictional account to Mary Sibley, though this has no basis in the historical record, with intimations that this was his â€Å"first love.† (The historical John Alden had been married for 32 years and had fourteen children.)

Should Abortion Be Legal - 1548 Words

The definition of abortion is quite simple. Abortion is the deliberate termination of a human pregnancy, most often done within the first 28 weeks of pregnancy. Any life is precious, no matter if it is wanted nor unwanted. The way that a woman’s body can change within a few weeks and how much a baby can develop is pretty magical. When a couple have intercourse, they obviously know the consequences. Consequences being that if you do not use protection then a baby will be the outcome. Abortion is immoral and it is the killing of a precious human that has no say in anything just yet. When these adults are even questioning about having an abortion, they need to ask themselves, is it right killing a life that can later effect the world in some†¦show more content†¦To end an innocent child’s life using rather horrific procedures is not only wrong for doctors to perform, but it is morally wrong. When couples think about their options when having a child there are thre e options. One being that you can keep the baby, second being you can put it up for adoption, and lastly you can have an abortion. The people that usually have these abortions are younger women who do not fully understand what they are doing to a precious human life, or there are a selected few adults that know in their pregnancy that they will have very many complications and it would risk the child’s life anyways. Abortion is wrong in every way possible because it is wrongfully killing a human being that has no say in anything. This human can have a life, dreams, wishes, etc. Instead of having so many abortions these women can put these children up for adoption, so that other families get the chance to be able to have a family when they are not able to have their own. Another way that abortion is morally wrong is the fact that when a woman has an abortion it could later lead to having too many difficulties in later pregnancies in life if they do end up wanting children in t heir later future. Complications for example be that they could have later miscarriages, ectopic pregnancies being that this fetus develops outside of the womb, also being called a tubal pregnancy. Another reason that abortion

Managers Require Continuously Brainstorm †Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Managers Require Continuously Brainstorm? Answer: Introducation Managers require to continuously brainstorm the question of how can two of the incompatible values can ever be true. For instance, augmenting of the quality in the long-run needs short-term investment, thereby developing the quality costs while it banks money. Best of both Thinking: Managers need to endeavor for creating conditions that facilitate simultaneously for the materialization of contradictions through the process of creative tension. Examples of such can be restricted entrepreneurship and conventional innovation. The main idea behind it is in making individual values unambiguous by questioning both negative and positive qualities of two ostensibly conflicting paradigms (Smith, 2014). Expanding the space of construct and paradox time: During tome of low profits, managers tend to constrict controls, opposite to what they does in time of high profits, increasing the responsiveness factor to customers. Under current market circumstances, managers need to use innovative responses and belt-tightening in simultaneous manner. Similarly, according to Lavine, (2014), through the expansion of the time frame assist the managers in optimizing the paradox management through concentrating on alignment of short term with long term goals. Neither/nor Thinking: Paradoxically, this sort of thinking substitutes the both/and by centering on the result rather than the choice (Grabowski et al., 2015). Sometimes, the company management understands way before the consumers on the things that would best serve them. In such cases, it is the technology that pushes them. On other occasions, companies identify that the customers are well aware of the things they require, and they are the ones who lead the way (Reiche et al., 2017). The force of paradoxes of both technology push along with market pull helps in driving the organization along the road. Competing Values Framework: One of the key points of the Competing Values Framework (CVF) is that the companies are intrinsically conflicting entities and thereby, efficiency of the organizations are primarily opposing and might be mutually extensive. While employees and customers expect the organizations in maintain stability and assimilation through reacting to pressures from the external environment. These individuals are in the habit of functioning within the circumstance of compound and incongruous expectations (Cronin Genovese, 2015). Through this, CVF reflects on the conflicting criteria of efficacy that takes into account managerial leadership. References: Cronin, T. E., Genovese, M. A. (2015).Leadership matters: Unleashing the power of paradox. Routledge. Grabowski, L., Neher, C., Crim, T., Mathiassen, L. (2015). Competing values framework application to organizational effectiveness in voluntary organizations: A case study.Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly,44(5), 908-923. Lavine, M. (2014). Paradoxical leadership and the competing values framework.The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science,50(2), 189-205. Madsen, C. ., Schulze, P., Larsen, M. V. (2016). Paradoxes in Practice. InEight Symposium on Process Organization Studies. Reiche, B. S., Bird, A., Mendenhall, M. E., Osland, J. S. (2017). Contextualizing leadership: A typology of global leadership roles.Journal of International Business Studies,48(5), 552-572. Smith, W. K. (2014). Dynamic decision making: A model of senior leaders managing strategic paradoxes.Academy of Management Journal,57(6), 1592-1623. Tong, Y. K., Arvey, R. D. (2015). Managing complexity via the competing values framework.Journal of Management Development,34(6), 653-673. Zhang, Y., Waldman, D. A., Han, Y. L., Li, X. B. (2015). Paradoxical leader behaviors in people management: Antecedents and consequences.Academy of Management Journal,58(2), 538-566.

The wars by Timothy Findely is a thought provoking novel Essay Example

The wars by Timothy Findely is a thought provoking novel Essay The wars by Timothy Findely is a thought provoking novel. The novel portrays how Wars effects the lives and minds of ordinary people , it refers not only to the physical combat that takes place during the war but also refers to the internal psychological battles that takes place in the minds of soldiers who suffered from the effects of the violence and inhumanity during the World War 1. The novel reveals the horrors of war through the character of Robert Ross and his relationships with his family, his friends and people he came across in his life. The film adaptation of the novel however lacks in detail as if fails to portray Roberts character, especially through his relation ship with his father whom he considered as a mentor and a role model. The film also missed out the important scenes that show Roberts emotional pain and his distress over the inhumanity of war. The novel reveals the life of Robert Ross through his relationships. The novel from the beginning shows a strong father -son bond between Robert and his father Thomas Ross. The film how ever fails to show any such bond. The novel reveals that Robert always looked up to his father and considered his as a mentor and a role model. The movie dose not show such strong relationship as it dose not have scenes which portray the father and son relationship and described in the novel. Findely shows from the very beginning of the story, demonstrates the strong father-son bond between Robert and his father, Tom. Robert loved and respected his father very much, His father got him through it.(16). However in the movie there is no such reference of this kind. Moreover the film dose not show how much robbers missed his father during the war and when his father shows up in Montreal to pass from hand to hand a revolver and a hamper of food to him , .the sight of his father had lifted his spirits immeasurably(69). The film adaptation of the novel did a very poor job in showing a proper Roberts relationship with is father because of which we never saw an important side of Roberts character. The film also failed to portray a concrete image of Robert in his state of emotional distress and pain. The movie for example did not show how Roberts isolated his self during his training in Alberta. The novel reveals that after his sisters death Robert shunned all kinds of attachments and kept to himself, this is very effectively shown during his training at lethbridge, Alberta he wanted no attachments (28). The movie dose not contains any such scene or any reference to his seclusion, thus leaving out an important part of the novel as it showed how to what extent Rowenas death affected him and how he was dealing with his loss. Also, this is the part of the book where Robert is away from home, alone for the first time and this is directly after Rowenas death. We will write a custom essay sample on The wars by Timothy Findely is a thought provoking novel specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The wars by Timothy Findely is a thought provoking novel specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The wars by Timothy Findely is a thought provoking novel specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Thus, it helped the reader observe Robertss pain and suffering, the exclusion of this part of the book made it hard for the viewer to see how Robert dealt with his sisters death and how much guilt he had for not keeping his promise with Rowena. The movie as compared to the book seemed to miss out the very essence of the novel. The novel did an excellent job in showing Roberts pain and his reason for joining the army. While in the movie lacks in the detail and expression. The movie did not show Roberts meeting with Eugene Taffler when he was at training. This was also an important part as here Robert meets a man he considers as his role model and begins to admire. This shows that Roberts guilt had full control over him and he was more then willing to leave everything behind and kill hed found the model he could emulate-a man to whom killing wasnt killing at all but only throwing .(35). the exclusion of this scene thus makes it hard for the viewer to see Roberts character and his moti ves for joining the army. The movie also fails to show Roberts fragile state in of mind as when he comes across Eugene Taffler during his lousetown experience. This part although included in the movie failed at its purpose to show Roberts fragile state of mind and his loss of innocence. It did not include the scene where Robert sees Eugene Tafflers different and dark personality and thus did not show his of anger and disappointment as he considered Eugene as role model and wanted to follow his footsteps. The movie did succeed in showing the effects of war over people and suffering it caused. It showed how the soldiers were treated and under what conditions they fought. Nevertheless, it failed to show how the wars affect their state of mind. The novel expressed this part every effectively and was very clear in showing what went through their (soldiers) mind and how they reacted when they faced the reality of War. The movie did not contain any reference this part of the novel, thus failed in its primary objective to show the reality of War and the suffering caused by it.

Why did Charles I decide to dissolve parliament in 1629 Essays

Why did Charles I decide to dissolve parliament in 1629 Essays Why did Charles I decide to dissolve parliament in 1629 Essay Why did Charles I decide to dissolve parliament in 1629 Essay Essay Topic: History There were many factors that contributed to the breakdown in trust between Charles I and his Parliament in 1625-29, which finally led to his decision of dissolving Parliament. I intend on concentrating on the main key factors, which built up over a specific timeline, and give evidential and factual suggestion and analysis to show that Charless decision was not unjustified, yet incorrect on his behalf, where he is to blame. The first topic, which was Charless most troublesome in contributing to further problems, and Parliaments most influential power, was Parliaments reluctance to grant Charles money. Charles needed money from Parliament in 1625 for possible war against Spain. They offered i 140,000, yet this was inadequate. Charles was dissatisfied as he hoped Parliament would be as co-operative as the previous. This in itself was wrong as Parliament were not informed of the actual size of money wanted and the specific time to be offered. Tonnage and poundage was customs revenue (tax) traditionally granted to the King by the first Parliament of his reign and provided a large portion of his income. In 1625 this became an issue because Charles did not receive full amount and as Parliament were worried about the issues to which it would be used, and also they wanted to change the system this would prevent him granting more, therefore limiting his power. This in fact was a wrong move on Parliaments side as it pushed Charles further away. This also caused further problems as Charles carried on collecting. Charles was suspicious about Parliament, as he could not understand why they would not finance a war that they had approved. They also blamed Buckingham for mishandling the session and the Kings affairs; Charles regarded this attack as an attempt to undermine his authority. He then believed that conspirators wishing to undermine royal authority were leading the Commons astray. Vice-Versa, Parliament was confused at Charless refusal to negotiate with them in the usual way. They had found cause to doubt his word in breaking the promises of war and marriage negotiations. Neither Charles nor Parliaments actions in this case were justified. There was clear misinterpretation of Parliaments concerns, as they did not mean to offend. Between 1625 and 1627 Charles raised money by securing a loan against the Crown Jewels, and selling Crown land. Charless decision on a forced loan was controversial as it made the Crown poorer in the long term and was illegal and left people unhappy. The evidential conclusion to this was the occurrence of the Five Knights case. This proved to be important, as the protesters tried to test the legality of their imprisonment, which would then test the legality of the forced loans would have to be tested in court. The Attorney General (royal legal officer) on Charless side tried to change records, on Charless request, so when this story emerged Charless reputation was damaged. This was a decision Charles should have regretted that left Parliament seething. In 1628 Parliament offered five subsidies and tonnage and poundage. This was only dependant upon an agreement of the role of Parliament. Charles raised extra money he needed in 1628 by seizing goods from merchants who had refused to pay tonnage and poundage, one of whom was an MP. These methods increased Parliaments distrust of him, as they wanted some security for the future. The reluctance to grant Charles money in accordance to the first three points was Parliaments major downfall, which could be the largest contribution to the dissolution of Parliament in 1629. The second influential topic in the dissolution of Parliament was Parliaments dislike of the Duke of Buckingham, which was caused by foreign policy failures. In terms of foreign policy in 1625, Charles and Buckingham hoped to set up an anti-Spanish front to force the Hapsburgs to restore the Palatinate to Charles brother-in-law. They hoped to achieve this aim through: 1) an alliance with Christian IV of Denmark in exchange for financial support from England, whereby he would attack the Catholic Hapsburgs in north Germany. 2) Financially supporting the Dutch in the same cause. 3) An English army of 6000, to be provided for the German Protestant mercenary commander. 4) A sea war against Spain to try and cut off its supplies of gold and silver from South America. These steps when carried out were a failure on a large scale, which left Charles embarrassed. England landed itself in war with both Spain and France. Buckinghams decision to help the Huguenots, besieged by the French was horrendous. He led the disastrous military landing, which finished in a retreat in ships without helping the defenders of La Rochelle, who eventually surrendered to the French. Basic indication and logic suggest that this decision was bad for all and another cross on Charless achievements. The Duke of Buckingham became a focus of MPs discontent by the 1626 Parliament because he was influential on court and Charles. He had also moved towards Arminianism, which was suspicious when combined with lax enforcement of the laws against Catholics. Buckinghams control of the armed forces prompted fears that he was intending to seize control of the Government and establish a Catholic state. The commons identified him as a source off all its concern and refused to work with Charles while the Duke was in office. Charles reaction to this was annoyance and the dismissal of Parliament. Parliament had again made another error by refusing to work with the Duke, as there may could have been an easier solution, after all their main objective as Parliament and King is to ensure the smooth operation of the country and provide the best well being and society possible while creating a strong economy. Charles blamed Parliament for the assassination of Buckingham in 1628 because Felton said he had been inspired by the remonstrance, which named Buckingham as the cause of the nations ills. This may only be a minor factor, but was a major contribution emotionally in addition to Charles already growing unhappiness with Parliament. Another key factor in the long list in why Charles dissolved Parliament in 1629 was Parliaments fears of the Kings support of Arminianism and Charles fears of Puritan MPs. Charles helped the Arminian High Church party to become more prominent through his favour and proclamation, which attacked the Puritan mainstream of the Church of England. He further irritated Parliament and the Church of England (which to be noted he was head of) by allowing controversial and banned sermons to be published. This was unpopular with the Archbishop who was then suspended, which enraged many. A bad idea was apparent through replacing the Arch Bishop with a man who had influence and who could promote the Arminians, and attack Calvinist puritan ministers. The Arminian High Church promoted the divine right of the King, supported the forced loan and used Gods messenger as a defensive device. The King in this instance went with what he wanted, but what was not necessarily best for the country. This lack of thought and analysis of a delicate situation which he could of stepped down from or lowered his support suggests that his true objective and role as King was not met and only made situations worse for himself. The last topic with some specific significance to why Charles dissolved Parliament in 1629 was Parliaments attempts to stop what they saw as abuses of royal powers, and Charless reaction to these. To ensue that the Privy Council followed him even when Parliament didnt, Charles eliminated opponents, which narrowed the range of opinion represented on the Council, which also ceased to offer alternative advice after an open discussion. This sneaky form of deviation caused hot hostility and a prominent show of difference between the court and Parliament. What the court, Privy Council, and nobility wanted was often different to Parliament. Nobility were shielded from the reality of every day life in the land of the average person and therefore logically we can analyse that their decisions may have been incorrect for the ideal solution. On Charles behalf, this was a clear mistake. The Petition of Right introduced in 1628 by MPs was the definition of traditional rights of the subject, which had existed time out of mind. It laid out points stating the illegality of the forced loans, that no free man should be imprisoned without just cause shown, that soldiers should not be billeted on private individuals against their will, and marital law was illegal. The MPs introduced this because it acted as a safeguard, with the force of law. Charles did not accept this view of the role of Parliament and viewed the debates with deep disfavour. He wanted expressions of absolute trust and loyalty not restrictions on his freedom of action. Parliament were only alienating his affections further. When Charles tried to adjourn Parliament in 1628 after he was not granted customs, the speaker went to rise from his chair at the end of the session and was met with force by being held down by two MPs while another called out three resolutions. Sir John Eliots three were as a capital enemy to the King and commonwealth 1) anyone who promoted innovation in religion, popery or Arminianism 2) anyone who counselled the collection of tonnage and poundage without Parliamentary consent 3) anyone who voluntarily paid the duties. Charles dissolved Parliament after this because he was frustrated in his attempt to rule in accordance with tradition when the commons would not grant him the revenues that were traditionally due to him. In conclusion the four key areas, which included Parliaments reluctance to grant financial support, Parliaments hostility towards the Duke of Buckingham, the Kings support of Arminianism, and Parliaments attempts to stop abuses of royal powers, gradually caused a high amount of tension between the two. But I have also found extra reasons underlying within this area that all input significance into Charless final decision to dissolve Parliament in 1629. Distrust as a result of Charless manipulation of law in response to Parliaments reluctance to financially support him led to misinterpretation of each others intent, foreign policies and its failure with increased problems with the Duke, religion and Charless specific support of Arminianism with change to ranking within the Church, the repeated dissolution of Parliament, the war and its effects, and Charless personality and beliefs. These all had a significant part to play in why Charles I dissolved Parliament in 1629. I have analysed and interpreted events to finalise a short list of reasons, which I now believe do not fully justify Charles for having good reason to dissolve Parliament. Out of all the explored sources it is evident that Charles mistakes fully outnumber Parliaments.

Things You Need to Know About an Education Paper

Things You Need to Know About an Education Paper Things You Need to Know about an Education Paper Writing on an education topic may be very interesting and challenging at the same time, as it has a lot of issues to discuss. Some may be asked to describe latest innovations in teaching, others should share their experience in education and the rest needs to represent a certain thesis or statement. There is often a task to make surveys and examine different groups of people to come to a certain result. However, it is necessary not only to possess great writing skills but also to be a psychologist to be able to communicate with students or people of older age. That is why completing an education paper is one of the most challenging tasks any student has to face during college years. How an education paper should look like Despite the fact that every research paper differs, there are still a few common patters you need to follow to complete a great work on education. Its regular structure includes: It should be brief and laconic, conveying all the information you want to share with the reader; Introductory section. It can be called a business card of your whole work, as the reader decides whether he is interested in the subject and whether your paper is worth spending time on. Make sure you provide only main information on the topic, adding interesting details and value to the research; Body paragraphs. They are the skeleton of your work and contain a different number of paragraphs, depending on the quantity of arguments you have. However, you should always remember that this section should be a combination of a practical research and a theoretical part. First, you make your personal conclusions and then you back them with credible sources. Used methodology should also be included to this section; As all of you know, this section should be as laconic as possible and contain a summary of the work you have done. Paraphrase your thesis statement, write about the outcomes of your research and discuss the results. You may also write how your approach differs from those, which were introduced before. Useful tips Complete a deep analysis of the topic, gathering all the information you can find. However, you need to concentrate only on credible sources, even if they are taken from different websites; Make a plan of your work to always know what to write about; Select several aspects or key points to concentrate on; Always compare different sources to be sure that you are using honest information and actual data; Use infographics if appropriate. Charts and tables will help you to convey your thoughts; Always reread your paper to make sure that your research is interesting and useful; Spend some time and download similar examples online. They may be of a great help and you will be able to understand what the reader is expecting. It may be a work on higher education, an economic research and so on; Useful phrases, which you can use to open and close your paper may include: ‘In the first place..’, ‘Based on..’, ‘First and foremost’, ‘To conclude..’. Mistakes to avoid Choosing a very general topic, as it will be very difficult for you to concentrate on the subject; Collecting information from doubtful sources, like forums, internet magazines and so on; Leaving the task for the last minute; Adding too much data to the text. The reader will be easily bored if you fill your research with lots of numbers, charts and graphs; Not paying attention to grammar and lexis. Popular topics for your education research paper System of higher education; How government influences secondary education; Standards of education across the world; Quality of educational materials; Advantages of home schooling; Education as a way to prevent violence.

Problem solving Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Problem solving - Research Paper Example According to Raj et al (2014), as most organizations embrace the technology they come to a realization that cloud computing only increases value to the organization but with little challenges during adoption. Some of the notable benefits recorded with this technology include greater scalability, availability, quick access to infrastructure and reliability (Raj et al, 2014). Vendors of the cloud computing services include dell, IBM, Amazon, google, Microsoft and Oracle. IBM, one of the pioneers of cloud computing technology has been offering cloud computing to all users of the technology for the last decade. They have several products that cater for the different levels of users such as IT leaders, developers and business leaders. For instance, the Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) for integrating the IT infrastructure and applications for the IT leaders. The Platform as a service (PaaS) such as Bluemix platform enables the developers to create apps very fast. IBM also allows business leaders to run their daily business processes more efficiently and effectively using their wide range SaaS business applications (IBM, 2015). Amazon has been another major player in the field of cloud computing, they are one of the most preferred providers of private, public and hybrid cloud services. Their services are widely used by the health care organizations particularly for next generation DNA sequencing. In a recent summit in San Francisco, the company announced new services and improvements to their existing cloud computing services (Amazon Web Services, Inc., 2015). These new services include the Amazon WAM for deployment and management of apps for Amazon work spaces. Amazon has been the lead providers of cloud computing services such as the AWS and EC2 cloud services. During the summit, they introduced the AWS market place for the desktop applications. Additionally, Amazon introduced an

European Union, how successful was it at creating a single market Essay

European Union, how successful was it at creating a single market - Essay Example A free trade area is a form of economic integration wherein all barriers to trade, not only tariffs, are removed among participating nations although each nation maintains its trade barriers with other nations who are not members of the free trade area (Salvatore, 327). This was the situation in 1960 in the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) organised by the United Kingdom, Austria, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Sweden and Switzerland (Salvatore, 328). A customs union provides no tariffs or other barriers to trade among member nations of the customs union and, in addition, the custom union harmonises trade policies with the rest of the world (Salvatore, 328). According to Salvatore, this was the status in 1957 of West Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg (328). A common market goes further than a customs union by â€Å"also allowing the free movement of labour and capital among member nations† (Salvatore, 328). According to Salvatore, much of Europ e became a common market in 1993 (328). Finally, an economic union is a significant advancement from a common market because in addition to the free flow of labour and capital among the members of the union, the economic union unifies the fiscal and monetary policies of member nations of the economic union (Salvatore, 328). Fiscal integration in the European Union is not immediately apparent. However, one good evidence of monetary integration is the launching of the euro as â€Å"the common currency of more than 300 million Europeans on 1 January 1999† (Europa, â€Å"The history of the European Union†).1 A study of Kocenda and colleagues in 2008 indicated that the monetary union within the European Union did not â€Å"encourage fiscal convergence among its members† (1). Thus, viewed from the perspective of advancement from a preferential trade arrangement and growing into a free trade area, then into a customs union, then into a common market, and finally into a n economic union, the formation of the European Union itself can be credited as a solid achievement in the creation of a single market. However, it is also possible to see the European Union as an act of protectionism of member countries of Europe against the rest of the world. In this sense, one can also view the formation of the European Union as a possible obstacle to the creation of a single market worldwide: a group of nations operating as a bloc or club within the World Trade Organisation (WTO). 2.0. Mission of the European Union The European Union, however, is more than an economic union. It is a political union as well among countries sharing a common vision and objectives. Europa, the official website of the European U

Maureen Frye Essay Example for Free

Maureen Frye Essay Marureen Frye made numerous mistakes in trying to implement her plan, a plan that was going to directly affect the salespeople of Quaker Steel Company as well as the District Sales Managers (DSMs), among other departments in the company. Her major mistake was sending a short-descriptive memo to the sales representatives. Why was this a major mistake? For one, Frye is trying to change the way the sales people allocate their time between big and small accounts, and yet she has not spend enough time in the field and with these salespeople. Although her simulations to optimize sales efforts might be correct, they are based on cold numbers and computations, sitting behind a computer, without taking into account the human factor that goes into those sales efforts. She does not have a feel for how they operate, where does their current success come from, what do they think and feel about how they are doing their job, and above what do they think it can be improved. Not only did Frye ignore the salespeople but she did not make good use of the relationship she thought she had with the DSMs. In fact, she had discussed her project with the Chicago DSM and he had seems to like to idea, with indicates that if more effort was put to introducing her plan to the other DSMs, using her good relationships with them, they could possibly perceive the idea well too idea of using the middle man. If she had no time to spend on the field and get to know the salespeople better, she made the mistake of not taking advantage of the relationship between the DSMs and the salespeople. Due to the hierarchical level of the DSMs, she is probably closer to them. As it is mentioned in the article, the DSMs leave a lot of free space to the salespeople which means that they are used to making their own decisions. This fact shows that the DSMs and the Salespeople have a special communication to understating each-other and to get the work done well. Thus, if a new project needs to be implemented, the DSMs are the most probable people to get through the salespeople and having them on board about this project is significantly important. This powerful link should have been taken advantage by Frye. Not having considered the above-mentioned steps, thus working in person with the salespeople or/and lobbying with the DSMs, Frye should have at least used the power of her superiors, Israel and Bethancourt, not only by  approving it but also as means of enforcement. For example, have them sign the memo she sent or give a direct order to the DSMs for its application. However, needs to be emphasized that this solution used on its own, is a last resort one just because she didn’t make use of the other options. This option would definitely be interpreted as a scare tactic, however it might have worked. As a manager or as the leader of her project, Frye first needs to find the authority from within and then also use the power given to her from her bosses. This option could be best used in collaboration with the previous options.

Argument Against Charles Darwins Theory of Evolution Essay -- Natural

Charles Darwin proposed the theory of evolution to explain the origin, diversity and complexity of life. I will will disprove evolution by showing that natural selection only explains small evolutionary changes, collectively known as microevolution. Natural selection cannot drive large evolutionary changes, macroevolution. I will also show that the primordial soup, in which life supposedly evolved, did not exist. Neo-Darwinism incorporates the discoveries of modern science into Darwin's original theory while leaving the basic beliefs intact. Darwin proposed that individuals with favorable traits are more likely to survive and reproduce. Darwin called this process natural selection. Darwin did not understand how or why variation existed. Today scientists realize that variation arises through random changes (called mutations) to existing genes. Genes are the chemicals that determine the traits and characteristics of animals and plants. Every trait has one or more gene associated with it. Thus, natural selection provides the animals and plants with the best genes. Supporters of neo-Darwinism believe that natural selection operating upon random variation gave rise rise to all animals and plants. While the source of variation is random, the direction of evolution is not. In effect, natural selection removes chance, and it makes the theory of evolution plausible. If neo-Darwinism is correct then nu merous small successive changes guided by natural selection gave rise to all animals and plants. I will prove that natural selection is not a creative process. Its primary function is to preserve the status quo. Thus, new structures and organs must arise through chance. Natural selection can only preserve and optimize these new structures and organs after they evolve through chance. In other words, natural selection does not drive evolution, and the hypothesis on which neo-Darwinism is based is flawed. Natural selection drives microevolution. Microevolution is defined as evolution involving small changes. Microevolution does not require the evolution of new structures or organs, Therefore, microevolution does not involve the creation of new genes. Changes to existing genes (mutations) result in variation. Natural selection acts on this variation and preserves the best. So while the variation may be random, the process of microevolution is not. Natural... ...ific experiments can not test macroevolution, there is no direct evidence to suggest that the processes behind microevolution can also bring about the evolution of new structures or genes. In other words, microevolution should not be extended to support macroevolution. While punctuated equilibria may save evolution from the fossil record, it cannot save the theory from the more serious flaws. For example, the success of evolution is based entirely upon the ability of scientists to use microevolution to justify macroevolution. What is the difference between microevolution and macroevolution? Microevolution does not require new structures or organs. Macroevolution does. This implies that microevolution does not create new genes whereas macroevolution requires new genes. Two things should be clear from the examples offered above: 1.) Microevolution can bring about very large changes. 2). It is easy to make the same mistake that Darwin made. That is microevolution can accomplish a lot, so why not use it to explain macroevolution? For these reasons explained above, how can any person with a sound mind still believe in the outlandish fairy-tale that is called evolution?

Philippine Marriage Customs Essay

The Filipino people have strange marriage customs. Among the Mangyans in the southern end of Oriental Mindoro, courtship takes a romantic flavor. Under the magic splendor of the moonlight, young man takes his native guitar and blanket, goes to the girl’s hut, and sings to her. The girl comes out and goes with him to a forest. There, in some secluded spot, the man spread out a mat. The girl lies on it, while her suitor sits at her side pouring out his feelings in love songs the whole night through. The maid answers him in songs also. When the girl finally gives her consent, the two go to the girl’s parents for their blessings. In the Bicol lagpitaw (slingshot) custom, the parents of the boy propose by letter. The other party answers verbally or in writing. Sometimes, a son learns that he has proposed and been accepted only on his wedding day. One of the easiest and quickest marriage ceremonies in the Philippines are performed among the Bagobos in Mindanao. Portions of rice are laid out on a banana leaf. Then the bride and bridegroom serve each other some rice, bump their heads together and are pronounced married. Up north in Benguet, Mountain Province, Cupid wears a G-string; he is usually an older man armed with plenty of gab. It is during kanyaos that the Benguet Cupid begins to feel the match itch. Warmed up by the ricewine, the impish oldster known as kalon scouts for a prospect from among the men of marriageable age: from 16 up. The â€Å"chosen† would be enlightened on the joys of matrimony and the horrors of bachelorhood. After the victim has been properly â€Å"softened† he has only to name the girl and the rest would be taken care of by the matchmaker. In the land of the Ibanags, when a young man’s fancy turns to love, his father turns poet. Usually, the father’s first concern is the right time for their sons to marry, usually between the ages of 16 and 18. The parents decide who will be the right girl. They employ the help of two respected and prominent friends to do the actual proposing. These two men called kumakagon intercept for the boy’s parents. On an appointed day, they go to the girl’s parents to ask for her hand in marriage. Marriages among the Batangans of Mindoro are partly by parental arrangement and partly by choice of groom and bride. When a child is born, the prospective bride or groom simply signifies his or her intention by telling the parents, â€Å"he or she is mine.† In this manner, the newborn becomes bethroted, without the cumbersome formalities of signing contracts or requiring witnesses. When the child is big enough to leave the parents, for instance at age three or four, the prospective husband or wife, as the case may be, claims it from the parents. Thereafter he or she cares for the child until it is mature enough for parenthood. In Sulu, the wedding, usually attended by relatives of the bride and the bridegroom dressed in very bright and flowing custom†s, climaxes months of careful preparation and negotiations between families. To them, marriage units not only two persons but two families as well. The Kalinga marriage is celebrated with a feast. The boy’s parents usually ask for presents from the girl’s parents. These are given as soon s the wedding is performed. Divorce is allowed. If this happens, the girl returns the dowry, usually resulting in a long family feud and a lot of vengeful killing. In Oton, Iloilo, it used to be the custom that both the bride and the groom have to cope with the wedding preparations or the timetable for planning marriage. Some Morong people who adhere to their marriage customs don’t simply announce any day for their marriage or wedding day. They believe that a wedding on Thursday brings suffering and sacrifices; on Friday some losses; Saturday will bring bad licks. For wealth, Morong people wed on Monday, Tuesday for health. But above all, they usually wed on Wednesday for good luck. In Quezon, a young man desiring to take a maiden for his wife must first be  put to a test. He lives with the maiden’s family but he has to show the best he can along all lines of work. He must be the first one to wake up in the morning. Every water container in the house should be filled before everyone gets up, a pot of coffee should have been boiled and firewood properly ready for cooking. After breakfast he goes to the kaingin and there he works until the sun is overhead. The rest of the day is spent either in the kaingin or in some other useful work. This trial marriage usually lasts  several years.

What Is Risk? (Report)

1Introduction 2What is risk? 2. 1Material world and risk 2. 2Case study 1: allotment 2. 3Case study 2: sun exposure 2. 4Risk society and Ulrich Beck (1992) 3Understanding and knowledge 3. 1Geoffrey Rose (1850) 3. 2Epidemiology 3. 3Uncle Norman and last person 5Conclusion 6References Title: Risk and understanding through expert knowledge and lay dispute Introduction This report will look at how modern society is a risk society, how expert knowledge is used to understand risk and how lay people respond. Case studies will be used to show how expert knowledge on understanding and managing risk is communicated.These will show how the lay person disputes risks and make decisions without following the expert knowledge. The work of sociologists of Geoffrey Rose (1850) and Charlie Davison and colleagues (1991) is used to show how the lay person disputes expert knowledge by using their own everyday knowledge and experience. What is risk? 2. 1 Material world and risk In modern society we live i n a material world that now provides us with material goods which previous societies didn’t have. However these new material goods can bring us benefits but also can bring us risks.Putting yourself, or something, at risk is putting yourself in a possible situation which would have a negative outcome. Thompson et al. did a study in 1989 on cyclists who wanted to try to manage the risk of a head injury by wearing a helmet while cycling. The results showed an 85% decrease in the risk of a head injury if a helmet was worn. However, research by Walker (2006) concluded that if a car was to overtake a cyclist wearing a helmet, they would drive closer. Using this expert knowledge some people may chose to not wear a helmet to keep divers at bay even though with a crash the risk of a head injury would be higher. . 2 Case study: allotment In 2003 Tim Jordan and his family had an allotment in Hackney in which they thought the soil was safe. Eighteen months after getting the allotment the ir local authority, sent them a letter telling them the soil was poisoned with arsenic and lead. The test used by the council measured the total amount of poison in the soil using soil plugs. These samples were sent to a laboratory where the level of poison was compared to ‘soil guidance values’ (Exploring Social Lives, 2009 p. 54). This was a well established tests scientists used to develop their expert knowledge about soil and poisons.The soil was then tested in a different way with a PBET (physiologically based extraction test). The basis of this test was to measure the level of poison in the soil that would enter the human body. The test tries to create a situation of the soil passing through the human digestive system of a two year old. This test showed that the level of poison in the soil was less then the earlier test. Both tests gave the public information about the level of poison and therefore the level of risk in gardening on that soil. But each test gave th e lay person different information making it difficult for them to be certain about the risk.This case study shows that expert knowledge if not always consistent. 2. 3 Case study 2: sun exposure The sun exposure case study concentrates on Glaswegians attitude towards sun exposure whilst knowing the risks. Simon Carter conducts research on the attitude towards sun exposure drawn from interviews and focus groups of tourists between ages 20 – 35 who regularly travel abroad. This research found that those involved were aware of health advice on how to protect themselves from the dangers of sun exposure and why. Glaswegians find going on holiday without a pre-holiday tan as embarrassing.The Glaswegian term ‘peely-wally’ is used to describe people who are pale ‘When you’re away and the sunglasses and white legs come out I’m ashamed to be Scottish †¦ it’s like if you see a group of peely-wally people then they are Scottish. ’ (Expl oring Social Lives, 2009 p. 75) Even though these people knew about the risks of sun exposure they decided not to follow the advise to decrease the risk of damaging themselves due to the idea of looking healthy with a tan. This is an example of expert knowledge being disputed by the lay public because getting brown and having a tan was more important than the risk of illness in the future. . 4 Risk Society and Ulrich Beck In 1986 reactor number four of the Chernobyl nuclear power complex exploded and released radiation causing 28 deaths and left 200 people sick with radiation (Spivak 1992). As radioactive material is invisible to the human eye, it was a challenge for humans to know exactly where had been affected. This meant the public who lived in the ‘fallout’ zone to the radiation became reliant on the expert knowledge of the risk they were faced, ‘open to a social process of definition’ (Beck, 1989, p. 88). Beck defined ‘risk society’ (Expl oring Social Lives, 2009, p. 0) to describe the social impact of risk and showed how the complex risks in society needed expert knowledge to explain them. Understanding and knowledge of risk 3. 1 Epidemiology Epidemiology is a way of understanding how illness and disease is transferred across populations by tracing how the infections move across countries. Epidemiology has also been used in understanding risk when experts have used data to work out the probability (chance) of a risk happening. Doll and Hill (1950) showed that a high percentage of people who smoked had lung cancer and so they argued that smoking was a risk.This expert knowledge is based on understanding a pattern rather than the cause of lung cancer. 3. 2 Geoffrey Rose (1850) Epidemiological research is always carried out on a whole group of people but when the risks are communicated they are aimed at the individual. Prevention paradox was defined by Geoffrey Rose (1850). It describes the situation where the solution to prevent a risk will offer the community benefit that may not apply to each individual. Rose describes it best by saying that the ‘measure that brings large benefits to the community offers little to each participating individual’ (Rose, 1891, p. 850). Rose uses vaccinations to describe prevention paradox. Not every child will suffer from the illnesses prevented by vaccinations however every child will have a vaccination in order to prevent the one child that would need it. ‘599 â€Å"wasted† immunisations for the one that was effective’ (Rose, 1981, p. 1850). 3. 3 Lay dispute of risk Davison et al. found that people in every day life talked about health and illness. They knew people who had followed all the health advice and still became sick and died and other people who had not followed any of the advice and had no negative effects.This results in a type of lay epidemiology through which people dispute the expert knowledge and reinforce the exp erience of individuals in their everyday life. 4. Conclusion As society has become more complex and the public have more choices of consumer goods and services that there are risk as well as benefits in these. Many of these risks are complicated to understand and so need experts to study and explain them. This has led to the risk society where expert knowledge is used to help the lay public understand the risks facing them everyday.There is evidence that the lay public disputes the expert knowledge and makes decisions not to follow advice, such as using sun protection. This is partly because expert knowledge can be contradictory with different studies showing different risks but also because the expert knowledge does not always match the individuals experience. 1295 Words Beck, U. (1989) ‘On the way to the industrial risk-society? Outline of an argument’, Thesis Eleven, vol. 23, pp. 86-103 Bromley, S. Clarke, J. Hinchliffe, S. Taylor, S (2009) ‘Exploring Social Li ves’ Carter, S. and Jordan, T. Chapter 2 Living with risk and risky living’, Open University, Milton Keynes. Carter, S. (1997) ‘Who wants to be a â€Å"peelie wally’’? Glaswegian tourists’ attitudes to sun tans and sun exposure’ in Clift, S. and Grabowski, P. (eds) Tourism and Health: Risks, Responses and Research, London, Pinter. Rose, G. (1981) ‘Strategy of prevention: lessons from cardiovascular disease’, British Medical Journal, vol. 282, pp. 1847-53 Walker, I. (2006) ‘Drivers overtaking bicyclists’ [online], http://drainwalker. com/overtaking/overtakingprobrief. pdf (Accessed 14 April 2009)

Gay Marriges essays

Gay Marriges essays The upcoming 04 election has many important political issues; including the war in Iraq, the state of the economy, and the ban on same- sex marriage. Perhaps the most controversial of these is the debate on whether to ban same-sex marriage in the state constituion. Lori Aratani discusses this delicate topic in her article entitled, Gay marriage is a hot button issue in the presidential race, in the Knight Ridder/Tribune News. Her article analyzes this debate, and how it is attracting much attention from the voting public. Both candidates running for office have a firm stance on the issue and it has seemed to have divided the nation. President Bush is in favor of the constitutional amendment which places a ban on same-sex marriage. While Senator John Kerry, although not in favor of same-sex marriage, feels that it is up to the state whether or not to place a ban on this matter. Though it is impossible for any opinion to not carry a bias, Aratani remains fairly unbiased in her art icle. She discusses the current political climate, and the effect this issue is having on society as a whole. What was perhaps most effective on making this article unbiased, was the fact that is illustrated the issue as being a major political driving force. The author presented the opposing views of both candidates well, arguing both sides of the issue, presenting clear and accurate information regarding this delicate topic. As the author states, President Bush supports amending the U.S. Constitution to ban gay marriage...Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., the Democratic presidential nominee, doesn't support gay marriage, but he also doesn't favor amending the Constitution to outlaw it. He says states should be free to recognize same-sex civil unions... She went on to discuss how President Bushs running mate Dick Cheney does not necessarily support Bushs stance on the matter, although he says he defer[s] t ...

What Is the Jet Stream and How It Affects Our Weather

What Is the Jet Stream and How It Affects Our Weather Youve probably heard the words jet stream many times while watching weather forecasts on TV. Thats because the jet stream and its location is key to forecasting where weather systems will travel. Without it, there would be nothing to help steer our daily weather from location to location. Rivers of Rapidly Moving Air Named for their similarity to fast moving jets of water, jet streams are bands of strong winds in the upper levels of the atmosphere. Jet streams form at the boundaries of contrasting air masses. When warm and cold air meet, the difference in their air pressures as a result of their temperature differences (recall that warm air is less dense, and cold air, more dense) causes air to flow from higher pressure (the warm air mass) to lower pressure (the cold air mass), thereby creating high winds. Because the differences in temperature, and therefore, pressure, are very large, so too is the strength of the resulting winds. Jet Stream Location, Speed,Direction Jet streams live at the tropopause (about 6 to 9 miles off  the ground) and are several thousand miles long. Jet stream winds range in speed from 120 to 250 mph, but can reach more than 275 mph. Oftentimes, the jet houses pockets of winds that move faster than the surrounding jet stream winds. These jet streaks play an important role in precipitation and storm formation. (If a jet streak is visually divided into fourths, like a pie, its left front and right rear quadrants are the most favorable for precipitation and storm development. If a weak  low pressure area  passes through either of these locations, it will quickly strengthen into a dangerous storm.) Jet  winds blow from west to east, but also meander north to south in a wave-shaped pattern. These waves and large ripples (known as planetary, or Rossby waves) form U-shaped troughs of low pressure that allow cold air to spill southwards, and upside-down U-shaped ridges of high pressure that bring warm air northwards.  Ã‚   Discovered by Weather Balloons One of the first names associated with the jet stream is Wasaburo Oishi. A Japanese meteorologist, Oishi discovered the jet stream in the 1920s while using weather balloons to track upper level winds near Mount Fuji. However, his work went unnoticed outside of Japan. In 1933, knowledge of the jet stream increased when American aviator Wiley Post began exploring long-distance, high-altitude flight. Despite these discoveries, the term jet stream was not coined until 1939 by German meteorologist Heinrich Seilkopf. Meet the Polar and Subtropical Jets While we typically talk about the jet stream as if there was only one, there are actually two: a polar jet stream and a subtropical jet stream. The Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere each have both a polar and a subtropical branch of the jet. The Polar Jet:  In North America, the polar jet is more commonly known as the jet or the mid-latitude jet (so-called because it occurs over the mid-latitudes).The Subtropical Jet:  The subtropical jet is named for its existence at 30 °N and 30 °S latitude- a climate zone known as the subtropics. It forms at the boundary temperature difference between air at mid-latitudes and warmer air near the equator. Unlike the polar jet, the subtropical jet is only present in the wintertime- the only time of year when temperature contrasts in the subtropics are strong enough to form jet winds. The subtropical jet is generally weaker than the polar jet. It is most pronounced over the western Pacific. Jet Position Changes With the Seasons Jet streams change position, location, and strength depending on the season. In the winter, areas in the Northern Hemisphere may get colder than normal periods as the jet stream dips lower bringing cold air in from the polar regions. Although the height of the jet stream is typically 20,000 feet or more, the influences on weather patterns can be substantial as well. High wind speeds can drive and direct storms creating devastating droughts and floods. A shift in the jet stream is a suspect in the causes of the Dust Bowl. In spring, the polar jet starts to journey north from its winter position along the lower third of the U.S., back to its permanent home at 50-60 °N latitude (over Canada). As the jet gradually lifts northward, highs and lows are steered along its path and across the regions where its currently positioned. Why does the jet stream move? Well, jet streams follow the Sun, Earths primary source of heat energy. Recall that in spring in the Northern Hemisphere, the Suns vertical rays go from striking the Tropic of Capricorn (23.5 ° south latitude) to striking more northerly latitudes (until it reaches the Tropic of Cancer, 23.5 ° north latitude, on the summer solstice). As these northerly latitudes warm, the jet stream, which occurs near boundaries of cold and warm air masses, must also shift northward to remain at the opposing edge of warm and cool air. Locating Jets on Weather Maps On surface maps: Many news and media that broadcast weather forecasts show the jet stream as a moving band of arrows across the U.S., but  the jet stream isnt a standard feature of surface analysis maps. Heres an easy way to eyeball the jet position: since it steers high and low pressure systems, simply note where these are located and draw a continuous curved line in-between them, taking care to arch your line over highs and underneath lows. On upper level maps: The jet stream lives at heights of 30,000 to 40,000 feet above Earths surface. At these altitudes, atmospheric pressure equals around 200 to 300 mb; this is why the 200 and 300 mb level upper air charts are typically used for jet stream forecasting. When looking at other upper level maps, the jet position can be guessed by noting where pressure or wind contours are spaced close together.

Airlines Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Airlines - Essay Example Enron Corp. was the result of merger between Houston Natural Gas and Internorth. There was a shift to unregulated energy trading markets from regulated transportation of natural gas. Enron was a Fortune 500 company and was in #7 in 2001 was deleted from New York Stock Exchange. According to the mangers of Enron who reviewed the accounts of the company, during California energy crisis Enron has kept undisclosed reserves of up to $1.5 billion in trading profits. Enron came under fire from politicians of price gouging. The hidden reserves would have doubled the Enron's reported profits. It is also reported that Enron manipulated reports on reserves to have steady profit growth to Wall Street and credit rating agencies. The executives also claimed that the reserves were held back and used to fulfil the political and financial ends. In 1990 Enron reported its total revenue as $10 billion and in the next subsequent ten years it grew by $101 billion. It emerged as one of the fast growing companies in the United States. The main reasons for its collapse is not due to the core energy operations but the company's new ventures in dot com sector and investments Internet and communication business. According to investigators of the security of exchange commission gone into investigate the case, have interviewed witnesses to come to a conclusion that the methods or practices violated the laws for doctoring quarterly earning refers to start cookie jar reserves. The existence of Enron reserves puts strange twist to it. The executives of Enron inflated profits and concealed losses with official balance sheet. Partnership in this scenario of reports that Enron has shown wrong accounts in December 2000, the company filed for bankruptcy protection but interviews with more than a dozen ex-Managers and Executives revealed that the Enron many a time paid the profits on trading to meet the needs of politicians and financiers. The major portion of the gains were Shown on paper only on long term contracts only had it been the cash that could have put off liquidity crisis that led to its collapse. As per one of the former Executives, before a few months of Enron bankruptcy, the reserves were depleted. It is common to use reserves to manage profits through it is unlawful. The former long time chairman and company's president chief executive were aware of the reserves and felt them proper. Judy Leon, Skilling's spokes woman said that Skilling did have any knowledge of unlawful and illegally activity with the reserve account. Further she said that many kept in credit reserves to save the Enron form the risk as California facilities could be bankrupted by the crisis, which may lead to situations where they cannot pay their debts. Slowly the Enron's activities came into light when the then CEO Jeffrey Skilling resigned in August 2001 from his position without giving any proper reason. This was the starting phase of its collapse. In October Enron incurred first quarterly in four years that was up to $1 billion because of poor business performance. In November 28 2001 Enron's debt was downgraded to below investment grade by the bond rating agencies. The Justice Department was handed over the Enron's case and it conducted a criminal investigation and the case was brought to the Senate and the House, which held

Women in the work place (is there still glass ceiling Essay

Women in the work place (is there still glass ceiling - Essay Example Seek sponsors and mentors: Mentors should always be able to couch or train you in areas of difficulty or less knowledge by just following their footsteps. They do not necessarily have to be people in high management levels. Those in the top may not have time for you. Sponsors are top or senior level persons or leaders who can make decisions in an organization. They must be willing to advocate for you. Be a risk taker: Adjust your attitude towards failure and never get scared. Keep venturing into several opportunities to improve your knowledge and experience. Have confidence and take time for personal networking for back up incase of a stumble. Develop emotional intelligence: You must bear self-awareness and learn to listen before you react. â€Å"Seek first to understand and then to be understood – Stephen Covey†. Ethics and your code of conduct mean a lot to the people that surround you. People always want to work with someone who has integrity, caring and

Wars and Attempts at Territorial Expansion are Often the Result of Essay

Wars and Attempts at Territorial Expansion are Often the Result of States' Rational Efforts to be Secure - Essay Example Different nations presented different strategies and reasons for war. The reasons for engagement in war and expansion of territories for different nations were diverse with the first reasons being the security dilemma. However, other nations engaged in war and expansion effort for different reasons. According to analysis of different wars that transpired within different areas of the world, the major reason for efforts to expand territories and take part in warfare was purely to make the nation or kingdom have more security compared to its enemies. This was considered a long-term assurance of safety, since the majority of the leader feared countries that had enormous population, since the populace had the capacity to provide large armies and other warfare equipments. Security was considered the most imperative aspect for any leadership mainly in the yester years since no permanent boundaries had been in place, as evident today where boundaries have been predetermined. Various wars an d expansion efforts were captured in an attempt to make certain countries secure from their enemies. The Crimean wars can be presented as one of the wars that involved expansion of territories in a bid to improve security for the attackers. ... Therefore, Russia was obtaining a solid foundation although Ottoman still possessed the greater parts of Balkan. Ottoman’s performance in the acquisition and expansion of the territories had been on a downward trend at that moment after episodes of significant conquers. The Russians were considered the protectors of the holy place for the Christians in the Ottoman’s territory. The French assisted in combating conflicts between the Christian and Orthodox thus obtaining regards from the Turks (Badem 64). In this period, Russia resolved to utilizing tension as an instrument to acquire authority over Constantinople together with the advantage it had regarding, contact with the Mediterranean. The move significantly cause panic for the French and Britain who profoundly objected the move since they had developed rivalries with Russia. They viewed the move as an upset of authority within the region. Soon after the refusal of the demands, war broke out in various areas around th e Turkish Empire. In response, Turkey established war with Russia thus leading to the large war between the two regions in the warfare of Oltenitza (Badem 99). Consequently, Russia overpowered Turkish forces through the utilization of the famous shell guns. However, the victory was short-lived with the affirmation of warfare on Russia by the Turkish allies mainly the French and the British. Turk gained further support from Austria since they had considerable opposition to the expansion plans that Russia depicted through subsequent conquers (Badem 65). Therefore, the three realized the objective of stumping Russia out of Balkans. In addition, the powers resolved to

Biological Criminal Behavior Profile of Andrea Yates

Biological Criminal Behavior Profile of Andrea Yates Judy Mazzucca Dysfunctional behavior or anxiety are two illness that produce results in the cerebrum. Experiencing these behaviors can cause indefinitely change to an individual. They are able to implement unrealistic things in the mind like voices, distrustfulness and pipedreams. At times, individuals with these type of diseases begin harming themselves. In different cases, when that does not feel sufficiently, the individual then will swing to harming and in some cases executing other individuals. Andrea Yates is exceptionally outstanding for her horrendous wrongdoings against her youngsters. Mrs. Yates is somebody who profoundly experienced dysfunctional behavior (post birth anxiety and baby blues psychosis). These sorts of dysfunctional behavior ladies endure subsequent to bringing forth their children, they are intense diseases. It took psychiatric medication and people in general a considerable measure time to acknowledge how genuine it can get. The case of Andrea Yates conveyed a different insight to humanity. July 2, 1964, Andrea Yates was born in Houston Texas. Yates was an extremely timid yet splendid young woman. Andrea Yates moved on from her secondary school, Milby High, as valedictorian in the year 1982. At the point when Yates graduated, she went ahead to go to the University of Texas for their wellbeing and science program. After diligent work and devotion, Yates was so pleased with her reviews that she graduated and turned into an enrolled nurture. Shortly after moving on from school she wedded the man she had always wanted, Rusty Yates. Right after marriage, Yates found she was pregnant with their first child. The married couple were very happy about the news. Not far after the birth of their son Yates hinted at some minor baby blues. Inside the following five years Yates brought forth two other youngsters, the couple at the season of their third tyke were living in Florida in a 38-foot trailer, with next to no family bolster. They chose to move back home to Texas. When they gav e back, the family acquired a 350 ft. transport to live. A man let them know whether they proceeded with their corrupt ways their kids would smolder in hellfire. Yates acknowledged this, it stayed with her yet that did not prevent them from having more kids (AE.2012). In 1999 Yates and her significant other respected their fourth youngster, another kid into their effectively substantial family. Until this point, Yates was adapting to the misery which was minor yet being a homemaker of four youngsters, the worry of life was inflicting significant damage. A couple of months in the wake of brining home her fourth tyke Yates sank further into her post birth anxiety. Yates was so stressed and overlmed by June of 1999 that she considered the thought of taking her own life. After being in the hospital for seven days, Yates never admitted that she was emotionally unstable. Later sent home and provided with medicine to treat the post pregnancy anxiety, she noticed it was working well for her. Yates stopped the medication after the fourthteen day which made her wosen. Yates was fantasizing and unable to care for her small children. It was so critical that she started talking with the characters from television. In July, she begged her husband for him not to get in the way of her taking her own life as she held a knife on her neck. Corroded, her significant other, then conceded her to doctors facility again for a ten-day assessment. Having to follow up with her doctor, he noticed that Yates was not mentally stable. The doctor changed Yates medicines and she was able to go home to her family. As 1999 finished, Yates appeared to turning into the mother she needed and should have been. She was taking her meds, making the most of her kids and life appeared to be less distressing for her. As the year 2000 gets started, Yates comes to the surprise of being preganant with her fourth child. Her daughter was born in November of 2000. Back again into early 2001, Yates started to become hysterical. Yates doctor had to remove her from taking Haldol. Her doctor came to the conclusion that Yates was not in her right state of mind. The doctor thought that Yates was being affected for being a mother of several children. He essentially requesting that her concentrate on being solid and remain positive. This was simpler said than accomplished for Yates and nobody could foresee what this one activity would be trailed by. As 1999 finished, Yates appeared to turning into the mother she needed and expected to be. She was taking her meds, making the most of her youngsters and life appeared to be less unpleasant for her. Against her doctors will, Yates becomes pregnant with her fifth child. November 30, 2000 Yates and her husband bring a girl to this world. They are now pour boy and one girl, she tries hard to get comfortable with her life. In March 2001 Yates hit a hurricane and gradually began to winding wild, particularly after the demise her dad prior that month. Yates ran into talk with her therapist toward the finish of March of 2001 in the wake of talking with her he chose to take her off Haldol. Her therapist felt Yates was not in a long haul insane state, he recently felt that being a mother five was unpleasant now and again and life would improve for her. He basically requesting that her concentrate on being solid and remain positive. This was less demanding said than accomplished for Yates and nobody could anticipate what this one activity would be trailed by. In May of 2001 Yates came back to the clinic she was there for then days in light of the fact that into her stay Yates asserted that she was fine and that she simply expected to figure out how to deal with her life and stress better. Be that as it may, not long after her arrival home from this visit Yates started to self-hurt once more, quit conveying, declined to sustain her youngsters and had started to peruse the book of scriptures lavishly. Yates was persuaded that in the event that she didnt do what the voices were advising her to do that her youngsters would be sent to damnation for all endlessness. On June 20, 2001 Yates went into her lavatory feeling the tub with water while her youngsters played in the family room, nobody could envision the arrangements that were disentangling in Yates head as the voices squeezed her squeezed her. Yates wrapped up the tub and got the most youthful kid, her lone little girl first. From her she advanced from the most youthful to most establish ed holding every one under the water suffocating them. One by one Yates laid them on the quaint little inn mind she thought she had spared her youngsters from the doors of hellfire, to her in her mind they were currently blessed messengers, and they were spared. Yates spouse, Rusty, returned home later that night to make a horrifying disclosure he strolled in the space to discover every one of his youngsters laying their as though they were dozing yet upon him looking nearer he realized that they were no more. All Yates could state to him and the police was, the fiend said on the off chance that they lived and I didnt spare them he would take them to damnation to blaze, I spared them. Yates remained in a mental state week after the wrongdoing had happened, she demonstrated no feelings toward what she had done asserting that she was not a decent mother. She went ahead to state her children where terrible and that her youngsters were not growing effectively either. In the wake of being captured Yates needed to have a few specialists and therapists come into see her since she achieved a point where she would not nourish herself or deal with herself period. On the outside world thought Yates case was flooding the sensationalist newspapers and news, and the crazy piece of that was a considerable measure of mother felt for her and comprehended in light of her condition with post pregnancy anxiety and baby blues psychosis. Other however felt nauseated by the wrongdoing yet one thing was without a doubt Yates was not treated legitimately for her condition. Yates lawyers contended energetically and utilized the way that her specialists and specialists neglected to give her appropriate care for the most part as a result of protection issues yet none the less Yates was a ticking time bomb that needed legitimate prescription and treatment to help her with her issues. In 2002, Yates was sentenced to capital murder, sentenced to life in jail with conceivable parole once the forty years is finished. There was an annulment for Yates conviction in July 2006 because of proof her legal counselors spoke to on her mental state, Yates was then found not liable because of craziness. Not long after the decision Yates was transported to Vernon Texas mental office called North Texas State Hospital. Ideal on time in 2007, in any case, Yates was relocated again to another mental recuperating office in Kerriville, Texas as she posed not to be a hazard to staff or herself. Subsequent to examining and checking on this case one can be left with question toward the end, why did Andrea Yates carry out this awful wrongdoing? The appropriate response is dysfunctional behavior, this is a genuine condition regardless of what sort of emotional instability a man may have and it should be tended to and treated effectively. Dr. Gerald Harris, who is a clinical therapist, has talked with Yates on a few distinct events to attempt and comprehend why and furthermore analyze precisely what is new with her. On those visits Yates had expressed similar things that she has initially that the demon had been conversing with her, that she should have been rebuffed for not being a decent mother to her kids, and that her kids were terrible as a result of her and her decisions (Crime and Punishment.2012). Yates was experiencing baby blues psychosis, even after that could have formed into jumpy schizophrenia which adds to the voices and fantasies. The individual, as Yates, is not in tuned with reality and they cant understand what is genuine or separated of their creative energy. For Andrea Yates the demon, the voices and her inclination towards life and her kids where all genuine for her she couldnt characterize that line. On account of the times of research, which missed the mark for Yates in her time since we were still not as cutting edge with maladjustment even that short a period prior, we can now characterize prior phases of psychopathy. The main issue is they imitate a considerable measure of different things so most guardians dont get on until its past the point of no return when taking a gander at it prior on in an individuals life, these are ceaseless lying, taking and needing to begin battles. Yates obviously did not demonstrate any manifestations in early life it was not until after her third youngster that post birth anxiety and baby blues psychosis assumed control. At the point when a lady is encountering post pregnancy anxiety a lady will ex perience the manifestations of being jumpy, whimsical, and silly. Some lady dont understand that they are experiencing this and in some cases to not connect for help since they dont comprehend what is going on. Without treatment or help these manifestations can advance bringing about a lady to fantasize, do self-damage, or mischief others incorporating their youngsters however in their mind they dont understand they are doing anything incorrectly to them it feels right and alright. These are the side effects and feeling that Yates experienced, yet help was there is quite recently fizzled her. Maladjustment of any sort is a genuine condition and ought to dependably be dealt with so. References Crime and Punishment. (2012). Retrieved from  http://www.about.com/people/andrea_yates AE. (2012). Retrieved from  http://www.biography.com/people/andrea-yates-235801

Franz Haydn Essay -- Music Composer Haydn Biographies Essays

Franz Joseph Haydn Joseph Haydn is regarded as one of the greatest composers of the classical period. He is often called the father of both the symphony and the string quartet, and he founded what is known as the Viennese classical school, which consisted of himself, his friend, Wolfgang Mozart, and his pupil, Ludwig van Beethoven. During his lifetime, he produced a mind-boggling amount of music. He lived from the end of the baroque period to the beginning of the romantic period, and presided over the transition between them. Franz Joseph Haydn was born in Rohrau, Austria, on April 1, 1732, to Mathias and Anna Maria Koller Haydn. Joseph Haydn's parents had twelve children, but, sadly, six of them died during infancy. His surviving siblings included two brothers, Johann Evangelist and Johann Michael, and three sisters, Anna Maria Franziska, Anna Maria, and Anna Katharina. Many references give March 31 as Haydn's birthday, but official records disprove this. It is rumored that his brother, Michael, was the source of this inaccuracy. Supposedly, Michael didn't want it said that his big brother came into this world as an April Fool. At age seven, young Joseph entered the choir school at St. Steven's Cathedral in Vienna, where he was to remain for the next nine years. During his early years, he became interested in composing music, but he had no formal training until his late teens, when he worked for Italian musician and composer, Niccolà ² Porpora. He avidly studied music, including the works of C. P. E. Bach, and held several music-related jobs in Vienna during the 1750's. His earliest composition, Missa Brevis in F, comes from this period, as does Der Krumme Teufel (The Lame Devil), a burlesque opera, which Haydn composed in 1752. This opera was banned shortly after it's opening, however, because a local nobleman thought that the main character was his caricature. Then, in 1758, Haydn got his first regular musical job as musical director to Count Ferdinand Maximillian von Morzin in Lukavec, Bohemia, where he wrote his first orchestral compositions. The Morzin orchestra performed Haydn's first symphony, which he conducted from the harpsichord. On November 26, 1760, he married Maria Anna Keller. Maria Anna, who was Joseph's elder by four years, was bad tempered, disliked music, and was unable to clean the house or bear children. She enjoyed makin... ...s of his death spread, and, because of the invasion, his funeral went largely unnoticed. His remains were moved several times after his death, and his body now rests in Eisenstadt. During his lifetime, Joseph Haydn composed 107 symphonies, about 50 divertimenti, 84 string quartets, about 58 piano sonatas, and 13 masses. In all, his surviving musical works include over 750 compositions and over 330 songs. (A large number of Haydn's works were destroyed in the 1770's, so these totals would be even higher had it not been for the two fires.) He produced such an abundance of works during his long career that a man named Anthony von Hoboken compiled a directory of the master's works, the title of which translates to Joseph Haydn - Thematic-bibliographic Listing of his Works. This three-volume directory was so helpful in sorting through the massive quantity of music that most of Haydn's works are now known through their Hoboken reference number as well as their title. Undoubtedly, Franz Joseph Haydn is one of the greatest composers of all time. His music, widely acclaimed during his day, has since made him immortal. Very few can stand shoulder to shoulder with this great master.

Effective Leadership through Communication Essay

An effective leader with a team of multicultural and multilingual individuals, requires basic skills in communication. This paper discusses some basic types of communication and a possible methodology to ensure that the communication is understood. Communication in different forms Firstly it is important to having a basic understanding of communication, Bonvillain discusses this when she states that language is: â€Å"The primary means of interaction between people. Speakers use language to convey their thoughts, feelings intentions and desires to others. Bonvillain then goes on to say that: ‘We learn about people through what they say and how they say it; we learn about ourselves through the ways that other people react to what we say; and how we learn about our relationships with others through the give and take of communicative interactions. ’ (N. Bonvillain, 2003 Language Culture and Communication, p. 1) Jeanne Brett, Kristin Behfar, and Mary C. Kern discuss communications within teams and further analysis the categorisations in a 2006 Harvard Business Journal: â€Å"People tend to assume that challenges on multicultural teams arise from differing styles of communication. But this is only one of the four categories that, according to our research, can create barriers to a team’s ultimate success. These categories are direct versus indirect communication; trouble with accents and ? uency; differing attitudes toward hierarchy and authority; and con? icting norms for decision making. † Both of these statements support that communication can be broken down in to different categories, but the categories differ depending on the context. In my opinion whether the communication is verbal (spoken language) or non-verbal (gesture or body language) or contextual (shared experience), discovering new cultures through experience rather than theory is not without its difficulties, small signals, that may easily be missed, can be key to the formation of a successful team. For example in southern India the simple act of saying thank you can leave an individual offended, this is because â€Å"thank you† is something a senior would say to a junior employee at work to show a power status, and so an individual thanking a peer would be impolite where as in the UK individuals are taught to say thank you from an early age for all transactions. An extremely common gesture in India is the head nod or wobble, this gesture does not necessarily relate to a yes or no response, it can mean â€Å"ok†, â€Å"I hear you speaking† or â€Å"I understand† this can be confusing and one individual in the conversation may not understand the route the conversation has taken if they are not aware of this gesture. This is supported in further research: â€Å"Communication in Western cultures is typically direct and explicit. The meaning is on the surface, and a listener doesn’t have to know much about the context or the speaker to interpret it. This is not true in many other cultures, where meaning is embedded in the way the message is presented. † (Jeanne Brett, Kristin Behfar, and Mary C. Kern Harvard Business Journal, 2006) As with the head nod the use of the smile can differ greatly wherever you are. In India I have been invited to a few weddings; it is the tradition here for the reception to be held prior to the ceremony. The reception consists of the Bride and Groom standing on a stage and all the guests joining them to have a photo taken, in these photos, no one smiles. From my research this is because, for the Bride this can be an unnerving experience, she is about to leave the comfort surroundings of her home, and step in to a new world of her husbands, the bride has been taught to appear shy, and the friends and relatives are respecting that tradition. Depending on the culture a smile can mean different things. In the German culture, according to Nees, a smile â€Å"is used with far more discretion, generally only with those persons one knows and likes† (Nees 2000. P. 93) where as in Korean culture, too much smiling is often perceived as the sign of a shallow person. Dresser notes that this â€Å"lack of smiling by the Koreans has often been misinterpreted as a sign of hostility†. (Dresser, 1996. 21). Challenge: How to manage when in the field In my opinion it is the reaction to these misunderstandings or communication barriers that is the key to the success or failure of the interaction, how the Team Leader reacts and the attitude they exhibit is the difference between learning the greater complexities of an individual’s culture and offending them. This is discussed further on in the paper, in techniques and tools. To ensure the success of a multi-cultural team a single unifying objective needs to be understood by all, Cartmill discusses this point: â€Å"Language lets us get vast numbers of big, smart fellow primates all working together on a single task – building the great wall of China or fighting World War 2 or flying to the moon. † (M. Cartmill, 1998, Gift of Gab p. 56) Putting this in the context of a Raleigh programme the objective remains the same for all, this is to complete a 3 month programme volunteering in remote communities whilst contributing to sustainable development. Although the end goal may be the same, the driving force or the motivation for each individual will be wildly different. For example one individual entered the Expedition to personally develop his social skills by living with a group of people in close proximity and to be taken out of his comfort zone; another individual wanted to be taken seriously and no longer seen as the group clown. For a Team Leader to be successful it is important that they understand the overall group objectives and individuals motivations, that the team leader has open communication channels with all individuals within the team, and that the individuals have the opportunity to share and express their own culture and identity. The Cambridge Encyclopaedia of Language states that: Cheering at a football game, reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, or shouting names or slogans at a public meeting can both re-enforce your group identification and reveal a great deal about you – in particular your culture, regional origins, social background, education level, occupation, age, gender and personality. (Crystal, the Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language, 1997. 13) A Team Leader can achieve this by using the structured personal development journals. The journal breaks down the expedition in to the 3 phases and askes appropriate questions to help the volunteer to think about and express their motivations and aspirations of the expedition. Once the volunteer fills the appropriate section the Team Leader has 1:1 sessions with all individuals in the team, this gives the individual time with the Team Leader specifically to discuss their development and any support they require from the Team Leader, this is also an opportunity for the Team Leader to provide feedback. By having this conversation and writing it down it provides a chronological account of the volunteer’s time on programme thus showing their journey through development and achievements. The Team Leaders and Day Leaders also run group sessions through facilitated reviews, to inform group bonding. E Griffin talks about this in A First look at Communication Theory (1994. p173) It is a very natural inclination when meeting someone to talk about a topic that both parties might enjoy; and should those talks prove interesting, it is equally natural for friendships to form and evolve. The more points of contact you can establish, the more comfortable you feel. Secondly facilitated sessions with the team over the first few weeks to unite them as one team, simple tasks such as a group contract and discussing â€Å"house rules† provides boundaries and a framework for individuals to work from, by doing this through facilitation the team are setting their own boundaries and gaining an understanding of each other, thus also providing a platform to challenge each other if the boundaries are breached. Techniques: Facilitation, Eric Burnes tools A useful tool or methodology I have found is Eric Burne’s Transactional Analysis (TA). In its most basic form the model teaches that there are 3 ego states, Parent (Taught), Adult (thought) and Child (felt), if you communicate with someone from the Child ego state the response you will receive is one from a Parent ego state and vice versa, and the most beneficial form of communication is Adult to Adult. In my opinion is that if this is taken in the context of communication (verbal or non) within multi-cultural teams, if a team leader can address all individuals as an Adult, an adult will respond, warranting a productive team or successful project. It is important to note that the different categories of communication are important at this point as only 7% of meaning is in the words spoken, 38% of meaning is paralinguistic (the way that the words are said) and the final 55% is in facial expression or body language. Adding to this the knowledge that cultural differences can be as simple as a smile, an adult response will encourage the individual to participate in the communication and explain rather than be mocked (child) or scolded (Parent). An example of this would be: The day leader of the group (the day leader is an individual from the team who is chosen by the team to be the temporary leader, and usually is in this position for 3 days) had allocated tasks for the group, on day 3 of their day leader duties there was unrest within the group,(this unrest was fueled by the day leader) a team of 4 had been working on one particular part of the project which was digging cess pits for sanitation units, the day leader had allocated herself to this task for the 3 days and was unhappy at the amount of time standing in a muddy hole. Due to her frustration and the teams bickering, she approached the Team Leader and started shouting about the situation (raised voice, arms crossed in front of body, emotive language = Child ego), how it was extremely unfair that they had this task and how disgusting standing in a puddle was. The Team Leader responded in a (calm voice of normal range, arms to the sides creating neutral body language = Adult ego state) and asked questions such as: Is there anything you could do differently to resolve the situation? How can we all ensure this does not happen again? The response from the day leader was instantaneous, the shouting stopped and the day leader re allocated the team to different roles, set up a rotation system with a suitable handover discussion and communicated the change to the entire team. This is an ideal scenario, the change in response was very fast. Sometimes it may take a few interactions from the Adult ego to bring the other individual to reciprocate appropriately. Conclusion This example demonstrates that the reaction of the Team Leader ensured that the â€Å"issue† was resolved. By doing this through questioning and facilitating a conversation, the day leader felt that they were in control of the group, and were empowered to make decisions, then communicate those decisions, better enabling the day leader to perform their role whilst being supported by the team leader. As it can be the first time they have lead a team, add to this cultural differences and language barriers and It can be a very confusing and intimidating time for a day leader, and the Team Leader should expect confrontations like this, When we talk about culture it is useful to understanding it can be broken down in to basic topics, such as why and when someone smiles, and accepting that it may differ from what we already know. This helps the individual to have an open mind and appreciate that everything they know about human behavior in their own environment, can, and should, be challenged, and the results are likely to appear different from what they currently know.

Bird in the House

REVISED Vanessa: Distressed Female In Margaret Laurence’s A Bird in the House By: Adeline Hartono #20336566 For: Professor Vardon Date: Monday November 14th, 2011 In Margaret Laurence’s A Bird in the House, the female characters in the story are helpless and distressed. Each character struggles to reach their own personal freedoms and is constantly battling through the ups and downs of life. This issue brings about the essence of entrapment, which is apparent in the collection.It can be further seen in regards to the female and main character, Vanessa Macleod. A Bird in the House tells a story about the life of Vanessa Macleod, the protagonist, and the rocky journey she endures throughout the process of growing up. Life is never easy for Vanessa, for she faces many challenges and tragedies throughout her childhood. In the collection, Vanessa possesses a unique quality in that she is able to find ways to deal and cope with the harsh events taking place in her life.One wa y in which she illustrates this is through her many writings of creative stories. When she wrote and developed ideas, Vanessa escapes any feelings of entrapment and helplessness; however, one of the hardest things Vanessa has to endure is the numerous losses of her loved ones: firstly, the passing of her beloved Grandmother Connor, whom she adored and loved very much, and shortly, in months after her death, the passing of her father, Ewen Macleod. Out of the two, the greatest lost in which Vanessa continues to struggle through is her father’s death.Throughout her childhood, she has always wanted to be closer with her father, but with the profession in which he holds, a doctor, it is difficult for the both of them to ever have any time to spend together. She not only believes that her father is the best doctor there is in Manawaka, but also the best doctor in the whole of Manitoba. With this being said, her father frequently travels out of town for work. During one winter in M anawaka, Vanessa’s father became very ill and had developed pneumonia.Almost immediately, in days after, he unfortunately passed away due to being unable to recover from the illness. In the days following her father’s death, Vanessa continues to fight back feelings of regret that she could have somehow been closer to her father and conversed with him more, â€Å"I took the letter and picture outside and burned them. That was all I could do for him. Now that we might have talked together, it was many years too late. Perhaps it would not have been possible anyway.I did not know† (Laurence 107) Hence, Vanessa never got the closure she has wanted with her father and this prevents her from fully reaching happiness. Although Vanessa has suffered the tremendous loss of her father, the pain and struggle of her life did not end there. She continues to endure obstacles while growing up, as she faces the dominance of her Grandfather Connor. Throughout the novel, Grandfathe r Connor is shown as someone of a high power who wanted things to go his way.He has a strong character and will, which gives him authority and as a result, overpowering almost all the members in Vanessa’s family. In one of Vanessa’s first creative stories, she realizes that her writing bears no relation to the life around her, but instead resembles her Grandfather Connor. She realizes that her Pillars of the Nation about pioneer life may well incorporate her Grandfather Connor, who is a real pioneer. She is troubled by the connection of the hateful old man she feared and fought with being apart of her creative writing so much so that she decides to set it aside.Only then does she see how similar she is to Grandfather Connor and how she will never be free of his control, â€Å"I had not thought it would hurt me to see it in other hands, but it did. I wanted to tell them to trim their hedges, to repaint the window frames, to pay heed to repairs. I had feared and fought the old man, yet he proclaimed himself in my veins† (Laurence 191) Thus, Vanessa continues to be trapped in the dominance of her Grandfather, and continually feels distressed and helpless.Ultimately, the theme of entrapment is evident in the book. One of the obvious ways in which readers see this idea clearly is in the character of Vanessa Macleod, the protagonist. The death of her father and the dominance of her Grandfather Connor prevent Vanessa from fully reaching happiness. As a result, she often struggles with feelings of regret and sorrow. All in all, the female characters in the book can be seen as distressed and helpless, for Vanessa was a perfect example of this.