Estrangement: Political Philosophy and Good Life Essay

Chapter two of Glenn Tinder’s, â€Å"Political Thinking: The Perennial Questions† on estrangement and unity asks us whether we as humans are estranged in essence. This question really sets the tone for the rest of the book, because if humans are estranged then we would not be living together in societies, therefore not needing political science to answer such questions that deal with societies. As Tinder describes it, † politics is the art of reconcilliation, and that the need for this art always arises from some kind of estrangement†(23). Tinder’s point does not answer the question of whether or not we are truly estranged in essence, that would be to easy! It merely suggests that with humans living in societies estrangement arises, not that we are estranged in essence. By deffinition estrangement signifies alienation: a separation from hostility. And it is derrived from the latin word extraneare: to treat as a stranger. So do humans by nature treat others as strangers, are they alienated from one another at there core? Tinder attempts to show us two such philosophers who would show us the two sides of this argument so that we may gain clarity and decide the essence of humans with the knowledge of great thinkers as our foundation. Those two great thinkers are Aristotle who believes that humans are not estranged, and Thomas Hobbes who subscribes to the idea that humans are estranged in essence. So with these two thinkers as the backbone of this debate we can get to the bottom of the question at hand. The seminal philosopher in the argument that humans are not estranged is Aristotle. In Politea, Aristotle states that: .. by nature man is a political animal. Hence man have a desire for life together, even when they have no need to seek each other’s help. Nevertheless, common interest too is a factor in bringing them together, in so far as it contributes to the good life of each. The good life is indeed their chief end, both communally and individually; but they form and continue to maintain a political association for the sake of life itself. Perhaps we may say that there is an element of good even in mere living, provided that life is not excessively beset with troubles. Certainly most men, in their desire to keep alive, are prepared to face a great deal of suffering, as if finding in life itself a certain well-being and a natural sweetness. (Aristotle, Politics Book II) If man indeed is a political animal, and our commmon interest does bring us together in the hopes of having â€Å"the good life† or eudeamonia then it seems somewhat impossible be estranged in essence. For, by the deffinition aforementioned of being estranged man would not and certainly could not live together, and certainly not for institutions to keep those bonds strong. Afterall who in their right mind would enjoy or choose living in a state of hostility. Aristotle would almost certainly dissapprove of this version of nature. Living in a state of hostility for him would be almost a tyrannical form of life with fear as the tyrant itself. Since Aristotle ultimately approves of a Monarchy aiming at the common interest he admits that humans do suffer from feelings of estrangement but that a single outstanding man (or small group) can, through reason, render useless feelings of estrangement in a society by way of distributive justice. Meanwhile, Thomas Hobbes asserting his viewpoint of pre-political man as a war, â€Å"of every man against every man† (Leviathan) he has little faith that man is not estranged. Hobbes alleges that the life of a man in his pre-political condition is, â€Å"solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short†(Leviathan) which certainly indicates a level of hostility that would prevent, even condemn, man to be able to live together in a society. In Hobbes’ world evrery man would be in constant fear of other men taking from them their freedom to do whatever they please and their liberty to live. Hobbes basically implies that man in the state of nature is in such a horrible condition that we actually seek peace through coming together under a social contract. Hobbes suggests that to get out of the state of nature that men must build a leviathan (government) that can sustain a social contract. Since Hobbes has such little faith in us to rule ourselves democratically, he suggests that an absolute elected monarchy would best suit us. This is an interesting choice because, he implys that we need a single man who can rule absolutely to battle forms of estrangement. In other words if we were left to our own devices with out the control of an absolute monarch we would kill ourselves. Fear has a lot to do with estrangement because people who are estranged live in fear of hostility from strangers. Hobbes is quoted as saying † fear and I were born twins†. Since fear is spawned from estrangement it is easy to see how Hobbes would not trust human nature in any sense of the word.

What Children Really Need

Parenting is one of the hardest things to do. It can be a very stressful task to do in your life but it is one of the greatest things as well. Right from the time they are born, from infancy to adulthood, children have a vast array of growing needs and expectations from their parents. Apart from basic needs like food, shelter, and clothing, children look to their parents to fulfill their many essential needs. I feel that children need loving homes, parental guidance, and a feeling of security from the time they walk through the front door after school to when they awaken each orning. They deserve the stability that comes with discipline and well-placed expectations. Parental love should be special in two respects. First of all, it should be constant and unconditional, which means it is always present, even when the child is acting in an unlovable manner. In addition, parents should be open in expressing and showing love so that children are never uncertain about its presence. This means parents should hug and praise their children at every available opportunity. Parents can also occasionally review their strengths and eaknesses with them and work together on any difficulties in communicating or collaborating. The parents can also help children learn work skills. By not assigning responsibilities around the house, nor making certain that deadlines are met, they can become irresponsible and ineffective. Another thing is that all children need parental guidance. Parents need to actively teach basic values and manners in order for them to get along well in society. By offering guidance to children when they have problems, parents need to state their thoughts in a few sentences rather han giving a lecture. It is helpful to many children to understand that your door is always open. For example, instead of obsessing about the need to be admitted to a good college, talk to them about life beyond those years. A parent could discuss the pros and cons of their own c areer. Children often respond to the question, â€Å"What do you want to be when you grow up† as, â€Å"I don't know. † If you don't have that open communication to redirect their ideas, they could continue to have a cloudy idea for their future. Also, children need a range of authentic role models. Having regular family meal discussions about people the family knows is a great practice. If communication about appropriate role models are not discussed, a child could look up to members of their clique, rock idols, and unwarranted athletes. Finally children need to feel secure in their world. If the family feels safe, then the child feels secure. As they grow up this sense of security is then internalized. Life is like a roller coaster with many stresses and setbacks. Children should know how to deal with these feelings of uncertainty. They need to also learn how to solve problems as well as resolve conflicts. In our home we discuss and practice these skills in everyday life situations. Parents do not need to overindulge their children with the latest video games, extravagant vacations, or too many extracurricular activities after school to feel safe and secure. If a parent relentlessly tries this with their children, they will be creating inflated egos that will surely burst in later years. In conclusion, parenting is not a simple task, and it is easy to become frustrated and uncertain at times. It often means putting aside your own thoughts and feelings in order to understand the whole child. Children have a continuing need for parental support and encouragement from infancy throughout young adulthood. It is possible to build a future that is better than the past. Keeping this in mind, the most important thing is to remember to provide your children with unconditional, loving homes, guidance, and a sense of security.

Literary Devices in Go Tell it on the Mountain by James Baldwin

In Go Tell it on the Mountain by James Baldwin, Compare and Contrast is shown throughout the novel. Baldwin had shown that there are characters that have similar situations, but other who contrast among themselves. For example, Florence and Elizabeth are similar because of their situations, while Florence and Gabriel clash because of their attitude and beliefs. Another example of compare and contrast is Frank and Richard being similar in nature, but Esther and Deborah being pictures of contrast.Florence and Elizabeth are both unfortunate women who don’t get the love that they deserve and both have the happiness taken away from them due to their last husbands. In Florence’s past, she sacrifices her childhood and youth to take care of her younger brother, Gabriel, and by doing her homework. She also neglects her education so she would send Gabriel to school and help her mother at home. When her mother falls ill, she takes the burden of attending to her sick mother and wor king to earn a living. For all Florence has done, her mother and Gabriel both take her for granted and they both fail to acknowledge her worth.Also when Florence leaves her home to preserve her chastity, her brother and mother both take it amiss. In New York, Florence meets a man, named Frank, who promises to provide her love and security. Frank does love her, but he doesn’t take the time to take care of her needs. He spends all of his money and leaves her to fend for herself and the house. When Florence tries to explain and show Frank his responsibilities in the house, she fails, and is soon forced to show Frank the door. Florence is unsuccessful when it comes to love and marriage. When she needs company and comfort, she is denied and left alone to have a lonely and miserable life.Elizabeth has the same situation. In her childhood, after her mother passed away, he is taken from her father by her aunt. During her youth, she falls in love with a man named Richard and plans to live with him in a strange city. Later on she becomes pregnant with his child out of wedlock and refrains herself from telling Richard about it. In this process, she suffers the consequences from her foolishness. Richard gets framed for a crime he didn’t commit, and is severely punished. Richard soon commits suicide and leaves Elizabeth when he can’t take the insults any longer. Elizabeth loses the man she loves and is left to raise the child by  herself.She’s punished for loving Richard and is left to struggle in the cruel world. Later in life, she meets Gabriel and falls in love with him. She believes that he is loving and caring, but after their marriage, she learns that Gabriel can be prejudice. She feels helpless against his violent behavior and resigns herself to the situation. For all she has done in their home, Gabriel hasn’t said one kind or loving word towards her. Once again, the man that she loved hasn’t provided her with the security and peace she needs. She is unlucky as Florence and is betrayed by life.Frank and Richard are both weak characters who yield to the pleasures in life. They are insecure Negroes and feel threatened by the power of the Whites and soon finds a route to escape their fears. Frank loves Florence and promises to respect her and secure her but soon forgets his responsibilities when money gets involved. He apologizes, but only to commit his mistake again, failing to provide security and harmony to her in their marriage. When Florence tells him to leave the house out of disgust, he leaves and lives with another woman, instead of trying to improve himself and to correct his life.

Marketing strategy of Pacific Coffee Company (Hong Kong) Essay

Marketing strategy of Pacific Coffee Company (Hong Kong) - Essay Example Coffee retail business is the most flourishing business in the economic recession. With every business facing difficulties in operations, coffee retail business enjoys growth. One such company is Pacific Coffee Company; subsidiary of China Resources Enterprise ltd. Due to the rapid growth of coffee consumption in the mainland China, the company has decided to blanket the market with company’s coffeehouses. It was found that the marketing strategies of the company were to some extent focused on becoming the largest retail of coffee provider and to attract the customers towards the company’s products. By this it was concluded that marketing strategy can play an essential role in the success of the company and to do so effective and efficient marketing strategies are required for the company to live up to their dreams. Some recommended strategies for the company were to enhance the implementation of technology into the business operations, expansion into new markets, diversification of the products, collaboration with banks, colleges and companies to allow selling of company’s products in their premises, promotional strategies, shifting the focus from retail business to under-serviced sectors, additional value creation and last but not the least online pre-ordering of the coffee to reduce the waiting time of the customers. By implementing above mentioned marketing strategies the company would have a competitive edge over the other players in the market. These recommendations would help the company to be the leader of the market with profitability, growth and greater opportunities. Table of Contents Executive summary 1 Introduction 3 Methodology 4 Situational analysis 4 Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning (STP) 6 Segmentation: 6 Targeting: 6 Positioning: 6 SWOT analysis 7 Strengths 7 Weaknesses 7 Opportunities 8 Threats 8 Recommended Objectives and Goals 8 Recommended Marketing strategies and Programmes 9 Penetrating the Market 9 New Target Audience 9 Global Expansion 10 Collaboration with Banks, Colleges and Companies 10 Expanding the Coffeehouses in Mainland China 10 Additional Value Creation 10 Introduction of iPhone Applications 11 Product Diversity 11 Promotional Strategy 11 Increasing the Service Time 11 Focusing on under-developed Sectors 12 Conclusion 12 References 14 Introduction Coffee ret ail business is one of the fastest growing businesses even in such economic conditions (Roast Magazine, 2012). Being inspired from the American and European coffee culture, Pacific Coffee Company (PCC) set its foot in Hong Kong market in year 1992 (Pacific Coffee, 2012a). Being a pioneer in such market, the aim was to provide the customers with â€Å"the perfect cup of coffee† in order to meet the thriving demand of the customers. With the passage of time, the company was known for its quality and a competitive position in the Hong Kong market (Pacific Coffee, 2012a). The PCC’s expansion in the Asian region was another success for the company. Due to the strong brand reputation, the company was able to expand in China, Singapore and Malaysia. With the main focus on Hong Kong’s coffee market, the company operates more than 100 shops in Hong Kong with 130 outlets in China, Singapore and Malaysia (Pacific Coffee, 2012a). With future expansion plan, the company†™s 80 percent shares were bought by China Resources from Chevalier Pacific Holdings (Leung and Lui, 2010). The aim of this expansion was to expand the business in China a lot faster and to be the China’s largest coffee-shop operator (Syed, 2010). In this report, marketing strategies of PCC would be assessed along with the value creation process of the company. The research would also highlight the key strengths and weaknesses of the company’s marketing strategies to provide significant information to the readers. Moreover, it includes the environmental analysis and recommendations for the company to improve the profitability, market share and value creation pr

Greece Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Greece Economy - Essay Example World wars and other local wars highly affect a market and it gives a bad impact on currency and bond of country. They badly affect on asset pricing. During Second World War it has been observed that bond prices of Australia, Japan and United States were badly affected. Other historical events also have a great significance on bonds and other assets. Important events urging U.S civil war has also showed a great impact on bond pricing and asset pricing. Wars highly affect markets and capitals as a result of which bond pricing and assets pricing faces downfall. The New York central exchange is one of the largest bond markets in world and its number of traded issues increased from 1000 to 6000. Currency has a great significance in country's economy. In past few years U.S dollar has faced lots of rise and downfall, same its rise and downfall highly affects U.S economy. Every currency's value and its related factors have direct impact on country's economy. In the past few years, U.S dolla r has been declining and facing troubles in international market with which U.S current account deficit has expanded. U.S. dollar declining and current deficit are linked together tightly. Internal and external environment highly affect on country's currency. Same in case of U.S. dollar in past few years U.S economy and U.S political issues highly affected its currency, that is the only reason U.S dollar is facing number of problems about rates in international market. Deficits only exist if a currency moves above its real exchange rate and such deficit can be removed by real depreciation. Short fall, high returns and other deficit affected a lot on U.S dollar and its rates. These are the basic facts by which U.S dollar has faced a mark able decline in past few years. All above mentioned factors have influenced dollar rate in past few years. All over, the recent and current situation U.S economy has influenced a lot in U.S economy and U.S deficit in past few years. Dollar is an offi cial currency in several parts of world. Dollar also refers as "smaller unit, seneiti, equates to "cent". In number of countries dollar is used as official currency for inner and outer money transaction.In finance, yield curve is a relationship between currency rates and its maturity dates. Treasury securities are closely concerned with yield curves and it is usually plotted on graphs. The curve is commonly known as "the yield curve". Term structure of interest rates" There are three types of yield curves: normal yield curve, steep yield curve, flat or hampered yield curve, inverted yield curve. There are number of theories for yield curve some of them are as follows: Market expectations (pure expectations) hypothesis, Liquidity preference theory, Market segmentation theory, preferred habitat theory. Chosen Currency: Dollar. U.S dollar in an official currency of United States of America, it is generally donated as "$". It is divided in 100 cents. Below is a yield curve of U.S dollar according to rates and date. Yield Maturity Fig: 1. Yield Curve is closely related to economic situations and it also helps a lot in obtaining future economic rates and market activities. This interest line helps a lot in examining the interest rates according to recent currency value and according to its maturity date. The yield curve is specially deigned keeping in mind the needs and current requirements. Yield curve shows current currency decline or rise in

Bhopal Union Carbide Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Bhopal Union Carbide Case Study - Essay Example With an incidental accident occurring in the year 1984, in Union Carbide Chemical Factory, in Bhopal in India, a lethal chemical gas was released in the air killing and injuring thousands of people who were living in the region. While several individuals were killed, thousands of others suffered from severe health illnesses even till death. The company was held responsible for the incident considering their lack of sincerity and effectiveness in maintenance of the equipments and units that caused the leakage on one hand and on the other hand could not prevent the spread of the chemical as well. Although the US Union Carbide Company had its holdings in the Indian Company; yet it was the Indian company and its members who were accountable for the incident (Bhopal-Union Carbide Case Study). The present study focuses on studying and analyzing the case and discuss on the ethical issues associated with the incident, and also issues such as liability of the members, the effect on the workfo rce, the effect on the management, and ways to reduce negativity. Analysis of the Case: As could be obtained from this particular case, the Indian Union Carbide Company can be said to have neglected severe issues in relation to the maintenance of its units and equipments which was significantly necessary as the factory was dealing with harmful chemicals. The management of the company should have been careful to understand that the slightest of the leakages or malfunctioning of the units or equipments could lead to such massacre. Particularly, when individuals were working within the factory, and also there were people living in the surroundings, the company should not have neglected even any minor issue in regard to handling of the chemicals and their leakages. It could be obtained from the case study that the company had been performing well initially and opportunities of jobs were also increased for the Indians at a time when the welfare of India could not be considered as healthy . However, gradually negligence occurred in the activities of the company and few years before the incident even the US inspectors detected faults and warned them of areas that needed repairing and monitoring. But, the Indian company did not take such warnings seriously and the result was the accident. It is clear from the case that if the company had been careful in its handling of chemicals, and in maintaining their units and equipments, then the incident would not have occurred in the first place. Even if it occurred, the company could have prevented the spread of the chemical in the air, but no equipments worked at that time. Hence the Indian company was to be blamed and was blamed, an incident that has left several lives into suffering till the present day. Ethical Issues Raised by the Case: The most essential ethical issue that could be observed from the case study is in regard to the responsibility of the company to provide for protection of the human lives. The company effec tively failed to protect the lives of its employees. Not only that, the company also proved to be inefficient in protecting its environment as the incident killed hundreds and injured thousands of people residing in the surroundings, affecting the entire area. Ethical issue arises as such an incident clearly reflects that the company had not been sincere in following and maintaining the safety procedures that it needed to. The focus of the company was only on increased production of pesticides and hence gained profits. Thus profits were given more value by the company than the protection and safety of human lives. The company did not care to ensure the fundamental standards of safety in the factory. Moreover, although the company was under the holding of its American company, yet the standards set by the American firm were not followed by the Indian company. Ethical issues can also be raised to be in the way the factory was built in a surrounding where so many people resided. The

Define plagiarism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Define plagiarism - Essay Example Instead of working hard in the library by reading books, or taking notes, one may get tempted to just search the Internet and copy information verbatim. This ‘cut and paste’ culture is to be condemned. Plagiarism can indeed be considered as "theft of intellectual property† because just like how the theft of physical property is an offence, borrowing a person’s work without acknowledgment is like theft. After all, a lot of mental effort and time would have gone into the original work. The least one can do is to properly acknowledge it. 1. Deliberate plagiarism is deliberately using another person’s work without any credit to the original work. It includes ‘cut and paste’ directly from a source, paying someone else to write the assignment etc (Study & Learning Centre, 2005). Deliberate plagiarism can be avoided by planning well ahead of the assignment, meticulously noting the sources, making rough drafts, having a proper communication with the tutor (Lehigh University, 2006), and avoiding the temptation of using another writer etc. 2. A citation is required whenever an â€Å"idea, quote (written or spoken), data, image or other content that is not yours unless it is common knowledge† (The Pennsylvania State University, 2007) is used. 3. If exact words or phrases are used, then they must be used within quotations. Only essential words or phrases must be quoted; entire paragraphs need not be quoted. The authors name must be mentioned in the quoted sentence (Stolley,

The Threat of Fraud Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

The Threat of Fraud - Assignment Example This causes considerable losses to companies and executives. Identity theft can be managed by ensuring stronger internal control and monitoring systems such as using the RCSA, encrypting sensitive data, and obtaining insurance for the executives. A workshop organized to sensitize executives on fraud would include a participatory and self-assessment session to monitor uptake of information by attendants.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Identity theft refers to the act of stealing or gaining another person’s identifying and personal information such as a social security number or credit card numbers by unauthorized means and using or having the intention to use the information fraudulently (van der Meulen, 2011). The first step in protecting executives would be to get insurance in the director and officer insurance form to cover against loss of wealth and associated assets. An executives signature can, for example, be used to fraudulently get a binding agreement with the company, which would be detrimental to the company such as using the executive’s identity to access credit lines, which are not approved. The company would need to ensure it and its and executives are under the Merchant Risk Council which is a group of over 7 800 merchants, financial institutions, law enforcement agencies and vendors who work together to enhance cyber frauds, for example, fi nancial institutions would have to call the company before processing a credit card application. Of course, improving cybersecurity at the business would be a viable step. Cybercrime occurs when three principal factors are present; opportunity, rationalization, and pressure as the fraud triangle shows.

Medecine Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Medecine - Personal Statement Example I exuberantly thought I would be showing my companions a wonderful sight of fireworks and they will be thankful they were with me. Nevertheless, my enthusiasm turned into a nightmare when our eyes started to burn. We bawled our eyes out because of the dreadful event and as a result of the tear gas fired by the army. I quickly turned back, pulling my brother and cousin who were already shrieking. As the older person among us, I strove to have my wits intact. I took my brother and cousin home. I went out again with a purpose in mind. On my way out, I saw several women, children and elderly people crying and screaming by the roadside as policemen scoured the area, striking civilians who fought. There were fear and cries of anguish all around and the sight was just unbearable. Covering my eyes with a cloth, I went to the nearest vegetable shack. I once read that onion bulbs can be used as protection against tear gas and so I bought as many as I can carry. I cut the onions in half and handed them to my family and some people who were suffering, crying for help outside our home. I instructed them to squeeze the onion s near their eyes so that the gas released from the onions will irritate their eyes and help get rid of the tear gas. When I was sure that my family members were safe in our house, I went out to see how things were going outside. There was chaos everywhere. Policemen were checking every person’s belongings as they tried to go home safely, vehicles were stopped for hours for the policemen to complete their inspections and those who fought against them were hurt. Masked, uniformed men were scattered around the area. They had shields to protect themselves from people who protested against such inhumane actions. Behind them were tanks where tear gases were expelled from. The army was in stark contrast with the unarmed civilians who wanted nothing but to stop the bloodshed and live peacefully. Bloody victims, destroyed cars, suffering and angry people, women

Japanese Folk and Myth in Anime Essay Example for Free

Japanese Folk and Myth in Anime Essay In order to answer the above question, we’ll need to set a line between myth and folklore. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Myth is defined as â€Å"a popular belief or tradition that has grown up around something or someone; especially: one embodying the ideals and institutions of a society or segment of a society†. According to the same dictionary, folklore is defined as â€Å"traditional customs, tales, sayings, dances, or art forms preserved among a people† and â€Å"an often unsupported notion, story, or saying that is widely circulated†. What does this say exactly? It basically explains that a myth is the idea of a society and that folklore is the medium for expressing the idea. Another notion that I’d like to present is that myths, in general, are used to explain indescribable occurrences and supernatural events, like creation, animals, gods, rain, death, bugs, creatures, and everything else that goes bump in the night. Within most Japanese myths, there is a creature or being that unintentionally causes a major event or does some significant action, and the vast majority of Japanese mythology deals with a great deal of gods, goddesses, spirits, and creatures (so many that the list literally goes from A to Z). Branching off of myth, folklore tells the tales of people and creatures, and how they overcome or succumb to a crisis or conflict. Most of these tales are about how the world came into being, and why things are the way they are. Some are as complex as to why the sun rises and sets and why death happens, to demons that haunt bathrooms (Aka Manto and Akaname). A lot of the legends told in mythology are deeply rooted in nature and intricately describe the coming of the varying lands and elements; earth, wind, water, fire, and lightning. Some deal with customs and traditions, while others are about legendary animals and even specific locations like a cave or an island. As stated above, there are many different categories in Japanese myth and folklore: Creation, landscape, seasons, life and death, spirits, and other lesser categories like animals and traditions. The concept of the creation myth is very simple and is greatly represented within the anime series Naruto and Pokemon. Naruto As the reader may or may not know is that Naruto is an ongoing Japanese manga comic drawn and written by Masashi Kishimoto. This series has become widely known throughout Japan, and since its inception has quickly claimed number one on many official and unofficial charts. The story of Naruto tells the take of a young boy of the same name. He is a ninja of the â€Å"Village Hidden in the Leaves†, also known as â€Å"Konohgakure (KOH-NO-HAH-GAH-KUR-REH). Approximately twelve years prior to the beginning of the series, a Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit attacked the village. The Hokage (literally shadow of fire), person/leader revered for being the wisest and most powerful, sealed the demon inside a newborn child, Naruto Uzumaki. Because the demon destroyed the village and took many lives, many people shunned Naruto and treated him as if he were the demon fox itself. This, however, drove Naruto to become the Hokage in order to gain the respect of the village. During the series he gets stronger and trains with his friends/teammates Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha, and the team captain Kakashi Hatake, along with countless other strong ninja, such as Jiraiya and, Orochimaru (main antagonist). Character: Naruto Uzumaki ?As stated above Naruto Uzumaki is the main protagonist of the series and a very adept ninja. As a child he was shunned by almost everyone in his village, and treated with hate and distain. This caused him to misbehave and act out in order to get the attention he wanted. Because of the prejudice and isolation he suffered, Naruto began to yearn for attention and acknowledgement, he also strove to become the Hokage. Since he became a ninja, however, he’s had to prove himself time and time again, showing that despite being a troublemaker, he is also a devoted and kind hearted person. In addition, over time his reasons for gaining the title Hokage have changed; being from wanting attention to wanting to protect his friends, loved ones, and his home. At times he can be childish, having a chubby green frog shaped wallet named â€Å"Gama-Chan†, being a picky eater, even mischievous, yet when someone or something is in danger he can become serious and will always help his friends, being loyal to a fault. Folklore: Naruto Uzumaki The first thing that I’d like you to notice are the whisker marks on both of his cheeks. This is from the Nine-tailed Fox spirit that resides within him. The demon fox is known as Kurama, and he is a Kitsune. Within the world of Japanese Myth and folklore, the kitsune are a popular subject for Japanese stories. According to legend they are a powerful, intelligent, and ancient race with many magical abilities, such as shape shifting and utilizing their wisdom and superior intelligence to cause either misfortune or joy. The way that they relate to the anime Naruto is that, like Naruto, kitsune are known to be mischievous and playful, yet can also be loyal and very powerful, like the title character himself. They are portrayed, more often than not, as tricksters that play pranks for either entertainment or vengeance, and being either kind or malevolent. Similar to the character, once a kitsune is convinced to complete an action it will put all of its effort and focus on it, even if it costs it its life. Character: Sasuke Uchiha Contrary to his current persona, Sasuke was a very kind and cheerful child. This changed, however, when his entire clan, including his parents, were killed in a massacre by his older brother, Itachi, leaving the two as the only surviving clan members and instantly orphaned. Since then, he’s become very cynical and even sadistic. Even at the age of seven, Sasuke was extremely talented, mastering techniques many years ahead of his time. He later joined forces with his childhood rival, Naruto along with Sakura Haruno, and the team captain Kakashi Hatake. At first, he was indifferent and felt superiority over his teammates, but opens up over time, seeing them as family and friends. His main goal was to kill his brother for the murder of their entire clan, which entailed his defection from his village. Prior to this, though, he is attacked and inflicted with Orochimru’s â€Å"Cursed Seal of Heaven† mark, giving him immense strength, and a reason to go after his brother. Three years pass since is defection and he has grown greatly, growing strong enough to defeat Orochimaru. Folklore: Sasuke Uchiha ?Before I begin I must say that this character in particular has a lot of allusions to Japanese myth and lore. In any well written story, the name is a key part of how the character may be perceived. This is true for many characters, but perhaps even more so for the character Sasuke. His name is derived from the character Sarutobi Sasuke, and when inspected the name can be broken up into saru (monkey) and tobi (jump). The famous shinobi (ninja) was known for his monkey like agility and acrobatic prowess. Even at a young age, Sasuke of Naruto was seen as a child prodigy, being skilled in weaponry and physically superior to his class mates. Artist’s rendition of imperial regalia An avid Naruto fan may also take notice of Sasuke’s ocular ability known as the Sharingan. The sharingan, also called the mirror wheel eye, is a genetic ability shared only by people within the Uchiha clan. The name itself and the symbols within it are allusions to the imperial regalia of Japan; the Yata Mirror, the sword known as Kusanagi, and the Magatama jewel. In myth the mirror was used to lure the sun goddess Amaterasu out of a cave, bringing sunlight back to the world, and represents the truth as it can only reflects what is truly in front of it. Upon closer inspection, one may notice that within the eye are up to three marks surrounding the pupil. The comma -like marks are known as Tomoe. The Tomoe represent a multitude of ideas and objects. The most prominent of them are that they represent the second of the imperial regalia, the Magatama jewel. Along with the mirror, the jewel was employed to lure Amaterasu out Tomoe highlighted in red f the cave where she hid. The jewels were also sacred gifts given to her by the god of jewels, Ame-no-Futodama-no-mikoto. The Tomoe also represents the war deity Hachiman. Ancient samurai would adorn their armor with this crest to bring good fortune on the battlefield. Susanoo Along with the mirror and the jewel, there is the Kusanagi Sword, or â€Å"Grass Cutting Sword† (? ) In the story, Susanoo earns a sword from vanquishing an eight headed snake (Yamata-no-Orochimaru) and pulls it from its body. He then presents it to her to settle an old rivalry between them. The sword then was called â€Å"Sword of Gathering Clouds of Heaven†, and it was in the possession of a skilled warrior, Yamato Takeru. In his battles he discovers that the sword is able to control the air in the direction in which it is cast. According to legend he was in tall grass field. An emperor then sent flaming arrows at him, trying to ignite the grass and burn him alive. In one foul swoop, Yamato cut down the entire field and sent the arrows back with the swords burst of air. In the anime, Sasuke wields a sword by the same name and it is able to â€Å"cut air†, levitate the sword, and transmit the user’s ability to control lightning. Furthermore, the original sword that Sasuke wielded was taken from his former master Orochimaru, a ninja who’s theme and transformation-or true self- was an eight headed snake. Aside from the mere appearance of the Sharingan, the ocular magnificence holds other powers. To understand this, we must go back and learn a little about Japanese Creation Myth. In the beginning there were two gods Izanami (first woman) and Izanagi (first man). They created the eight islands of Japan and brought fire to the world, but in doing so, Izanami lost her life while giving birth to the god of fire. Stricken with depression, Izanagi went into Yomi (Hell) to retrieve his beloved. In the darkness, he found Izanami. She told him not to look at her, whish confused him, but he agreed. He begged her to return with him, but she had already eaten the food of the underworld, and could no longer leave. She agreed, though, and told him that she needed to rest. After waiting for Izanami, Izanagi grew worried, so he ventured back into Yomi. He lit a torch this time and what he saw disgusted him; Izanami’s once beautiful and elegant body was ruined by decay and foul creatures. He let out a cry and ran to the entrance to the world of the living. She sent creatures after him, but he managed to escape. She exclaimed that if he left, she would take 1,000 people every day, as he escaped he replied to create 1,500 people, thus starting the cycle of life and death. After escaping from Yomi, Izanagi wished to cleanse himself. He discarded his clothing, which formed gods, and went into the river. As he washed his face, three major gods were created; Amaterasu from the left eye, Tsukuyomi from the right eye, and Suasanoo from his nose. These three controlled the sun, moon, and sea and storms respectively. In the anime the Sharingan has many abilities, yet the most feared of them are the techniques Amaterasu: the Heavenly Illumination, Tsukuyomi: the moon reader, and Susanoo: Tempestuous God of Valor. The Sharingan allows the user to cast inextinguishable flames that never cease until its target is incinerated and are described as the flames of hell, burning as hot as the sun itself. Sasuke is able to summon these flames out of his left eye, and from his right is the illusionary weapon Tsukuyomi. This is the ability to trap an enemy in a dream, or rather nightmare, and torture them through their mind by controlling senses. Along with Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi, there is Susanoo a summoned warrior that’s made of the user’s spiritual energy. The demon warrior is usually portrayed in cloth garments and wielding the sword of Kusanagi and the Yata mirror as a shield.

Crucial Role Of Traditional Healers Health And Social Care Essay

Crucial Role Of Traditional Healers Health And Social Care Essay In this paper a comparison of Western medicines and African traditional medicines shall be made. The purpose of this paper is to identify similarities and differences between Western and African conceptions of diseases, cure and effective patient care. According to Germov (2007, p. 8) Western Medicine is the conventional approach to medicine in western societies, based on the diagnosis and explanation of illness as a mulfunction of the bodys biological mechanisms. It encompasses a range of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness Hewson (1998). WHO defines Traditional medicine as the sum total of knowledge, skills and practices based on theories, beliefs and experiences indigenous to different cultures that are used to maintain health, as well as to prevent, diagnose, improve or treat physical and mental illnesses. Traditional medicine that has been adopted by other populations outside its own culture is often termed alternative or complementary medicine (WHO, 2008). Helwig (2005) claimed that primary healers in traditional African medicine are midwives, herbalist and diviners. Diviners focus on the root causes of sickness by the ancestral spirits (Helwig, 2005). Midwives use herbs and local plants to assist with pregnancy and childbirth (Helwig, 20005). Herbalists use animal, plants and mineral based medicines to cure diseases (Helwig, 2005). Herb market and herb trading is a very common practice in many African countries (Helwig, 2005). According to Okpako (2006) traditional African communities have three main groups of plants they use to cure serious illnesses, poisonous plants and plants for minor illnesses. Plants used for minor illnesses treat illnesses such as headaches; bruises and pain fever are used without consultation of spiritual healers (Okpako, 2006). Plants used for serious illnesses are used when dealing with life threatening illnesses and need the intervention of spiritual healers, what the patient gets is holistic treatment (Okpako, 2006). Okpako (2006) stated that as for the poisonous plants, many African communities recognise it just from experience with it or from accidental poisoning. Okpako (2006) claimed that in most African countries, many people western medicines are out of their reach as they do not have money to buy the drugs and so they resort to traditional medicine is it cheap. Traditional African medicine is based on accumulated experience of ancient Africans (Okpako, 2006). Traditional African medicines mode of transmission is spread by word of mouth and has hindered emergency of a generally accepted theory and hence of the systematic development of traditional African medicine as a self-regulating profession (Okpako, 2006). Traditional African medicine practitioners are healers who believe that their methods can cure many conditions including cancer, AIDS, mental problems, infertility, some sexually transmitted diseases, wounds and burns as well as many other ailments and conditions (Helwig, 2005) Good health is linked to a correct relationship between people and their supernatural environment (Helwig, 2005). According to Helwig (2005) among the traditional healers, being able to diagnose an illness is considered a gift from both God and the ancestors. Helwig claimed that a major emphasis is placed on determining the root cause underlying any sickness or bad luck. Illness is said to stem from lack of balance between the patient and his or her environment, (Helwig, 2005) Diviners may use plants not only for healing purposes but also to control weather and events, (Helwig, 2005). Helwig (2005) stated that in addition to plants, traditional African healers may employ charms, incantations and casting of spells. They are also skilled in psychotherapy and counselling (Helwig, 2005). African healing systems recognise the influence of the mind on the human well being (Helwig, 2005). They recognise the negative emotions such as fear, guilt and hate can lead to illness (Helwig, 2005). Rituals are undertaken to appease the angered ancestral spirits, patients need to make confessions in order for the spirits to forgive them and be well (Helwig, 2005). The rituals accompanying the use of herbal medicine is referred to as incantation. Incantation is a collection of carefully chosen words used to bring healing effect or resolving emotional conflict in the mind of the patient (Helwig, 2005). Spirits of the ancestors protect their living descendants, however ancestors demand from their descendants strict adherence to the moral laws laid down (Helwig, 2005). An immoral act for example incest is believed to annoy the spirits resulting in serious illness or misfortune (Helwig, 2005). According to WHO, 80% of the African population depends on traditional medicine for primary health care. In Ghana, Mali, Nigeria and Zambia, 60% of children with high fever resulting from malaria use herbal medicine at home. Lovell (2009) claimed that individuals suffering from pain, anxiety, depression, headaches and fatigue use alternative medicine. WHO estimates that several African countries practice traditional birth with the help of traditional midwives who uses indigenous plants to aid childbirth. WHO (2008) claimed that 70% to 80% of the population in western countries has used some form of alternative or complementary medicine for example acupuncture. As noted by Germov (2007) there are varied reasons why alternative medicine is so popular at the expense of western medicine. When people get sick they need to know the causes of the illness, suffering or even death (Germov, 2007). In Western medicine, the traditional view that illness was caused by spiritual evil is no longer valid. Alternative medicine that have an explanation to causes of illnesses and suffering have a greater appeal (Germov, 2007). The desire to achieve a more holistic form of care may be a motivating factor as to why patients choose traditional medicine (Lovell, 2009). In most African countries, drugs are out of reach to many people as they do not have the money to buy them. The only solution available is to resort to traditional medicine as it is cheap and reliable (Okpako, 2006). Most African people are so skeptical to try western medicine. The main reason is that they are afraid to try something new and prefer to continue using their old way of seeking medical help that is the use of traditional medicine(Okpako, 2006). As stated by Germov (2007) people have lost trust in western medicine. Many toxins found in the drugs have drove people away from the use of it. People have also lost trust in scientific experts, they blame them on almost all the environmental problems such as global warming, oil spills and even acid rain (Germov, 2007). Germov (2007) claimed that there is a good relationship between personal healer and patient. Personal healers take their time to listen and provide tailor made treatment to the individual client. By so doing they create a strong bond which can lead up to trust and loyalty. Wilcox Bodeker (2004) reported that in most African countries the rise in drug resistances and problems in accessing effective anti -malarial drugs in both remote and underprivileged areas has forced people to resort to traditional medicine as their source of treatment. As noted by Marlise (2004) friction is evident between western medicines that look at material causation to understand and treat an illness and traditional medicine that generally looks towards the spiritual origin such as witchcraft and displeasure by ancestors in order to cure an ailment. According to Marlise (2004) there has been media reports of traditional healers claiming to have a cure for AIDS and submit their patients to dangerous or ineffective treatments. Marlise (2004) stated that amongst some people in Africa, it is believed that if a sick person does not get treatment and dies, his or her spirit will cause more diseases. According to Marlise (2004) a number of traditional healers have seen a lucrative opportunity of curing people living with HIV/AIDS in the absence of biomedicine and a number of developing countries do not have access to anti-retroviral medication or adequate health care to those living with HIV/AIDS. The WHO describes the problems related to clinical data on traditional medicine as steming from the poor quality of data and also the methodology used as being below the stipulated standard. WHO (2008) claimed that traditional healers need to promote both their published and unpublished data inorder for them to gain support from the whole world. Lovell (2009) stated that the gap between western medicine and traditional medicine practitioners is increasing. As stated by Lovell, traditional healers do not believe that their practices are guaranteed worldwide and their argument is that the efficacy of their product has stood the test of time. All in all the use of western and African traditional medicine depends on an individuals beliefs and culture. It also depends on the availability of funds to seek treatment. In Africa most people cannot afford to source western medicine mainly because it is very expensive and so they resort to their traditional medication mainly because it is cheaper. Precautions need to be taken carefully as there are a lot of side effects associated with the continued use of traditional medicine. Some of the side effects might lead to convulsions or even death.

Importance of Patient-Nurse Communication Essay example -- Nursing, He

The primary focus in health care is to improve patients’ health status and quality of life. Many times nurses assist in treating or managing all the apparent medical conditions of the patients, but they fail to tackle the underlying causes of the disease due to inadequate patient-nurse communication. Continuing with this idea, Patak et al. (2009) proposed a call to action for nursing administrators to position patient-provider communication as a patient safety-care quality priority within the healthcare organization and incorporate bedside practices that achieve effective patient communication, especially with those most vulnerable to impair communication. Effective patient-provider communication is an essential component of patient care, and for communication to be effective the information must be completed, accurate, timely, unambiguous, and understood by the patient (Patak et al., 2009). Effective communication between nurses and patients require some very important skills from nurses. Nurses need to make sure that patients truly understand what using simple, common words and avoiding medical terminologies are saying. â€Å"Nurses need to recognize and acknowledge the emotional burden and individual concerns of the patients. Contributing factors that perpetuate ineffective patient-provider communication include the lack of a systematic method for nursing assessment, evaluation, and monitoring of patient-provider communication needs and interventions and a lack of standardized training of healthcare providers† (Patak, 2009, p. 372). The authors have thoroughly reviewed research conducted on effectiveness of nurse communication with their colleagues with complex communication needs. Another study conducted by Case, & W... ...(2007) Respite: Cultural Values in North American and Caribbean Caregiving. Canadian Journal of Communication, Vol 32 401-415 Jansen, J., van Weert, J., de Groot, J., van Dulmen, S., Heeren, T. J., & Bensing, J. M. (2010). Emotional and informational patient cues: the impact of nurses’ responses on recall. Patient education and counseling, 79(2), 218-224. McCaffrey, R.G., Hayes, R., Stuart, W., Cassell, A., Farrell, C. & Miller-Reyes C. 2010. A Program to Improve Communication and Collaboration Between Nurses and Medical Residents. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing  · Vol 41, No 4. Retrieve from: http://content2.learntoday.info/ Patak, L., Wilson-Stronks, A., Costello, J., Keleinpell, R. M., Henneman, E. A., Pearson, C. & Happ, M. B. (2009). Improving Patient-Provider Communication. A Call to Action. Volume 39, Number 9, pp 372-376.

Essay --

Muhammad was a revolutionary he broke many customary ways and beliefs. Muhammad’s revolution affected all aspects of life. His peace ended disputes of families, tribes and nations but most importantly with all human nature. To Muhammad religion was a comprehensive concept. It was also a set of dogmas and doctrines alone with rituals and ceremonies. Religion was a way of life for Muhammad. He came raise mankind to a higher place of peace and progress. Before the rise of Islam Arabia was a desert wasteland who’s once great trading cities have fallen on hard times. Arabia is the last of inhabited lands towards the south, and it is the only country, which produces frankincense, myrrh, cassia, cinnamon, and laudanum. (1) The population was divided into rival tribes and clans that worshiped local gods. In the uninhabitable desert zones a wide variety of Bedouin cultures had developed over the centuries based on camel and goat herding. Towns and agriculture flourished on a limited scale. Over the peninsula the camel nomads, organized in clans were dominant. Although urban Islam had been pressured by writers of the Muslim civilization, the Bedouin world, in which the religion came, shaped the career of its prophet, his teachings, and the spread of new beliefs. Mecca and Medina were large extensions of the tribal culture of the camel nomads. Their populations were linked to kingship by Bedouin peoples. Bedouin herders occupied most of the habitable portions of Arabia. Farmers and town dwellers carved out small communities in the western and southern parts of the peninsula. Foreign invasion in the inroads of Bedouins people had all but destroyed the civilization before the birth of Muhammad. Mecca, located in the mountainous regions along ... ... In both his revelations and personal behavior Muhammad joined his followers to be kind and generous to the people including slaves. He forbad the rich to exploit the poor through unrealistic rents or rates on interests for loans. In his last sermon he states, â€Å"Remember, one day you will appear before ALLAH and answer for your deeds. So beware, do not astray from the path of righteousness after I am gone†. (3) The prophet’s teachings and the revelations of the Koran soon were incorporated into an extensive body of law. This regulated most aspects of the lives of the Muslim faithful. They lived in a manor that would prepare them for the last judgment which in Islam would determine there fate in eternity a strong but compassionate god with a strict but socially minded body of law set impressive standards for the social interaction between adherence of the new faith.

Romantic Relationships During High School Essay -- Argumentative Essay

Are relationships in high school truly worth the potential heartache? Answers to this question vary, ranging from the enthusiastic â€Å"yes!† to the skeptical view of which cutting off one’s own third toe makes more sense to indifference. Yet, how can the value of a relationship be determined when the tumult of everyday teenage life may result in the potential loss or gain of a new relationship every week? One view may be relationships teenagers enter into are valuable practice for later in life, teaching those which engage in them how to interact with members of the opposite sex in a way which leads to marriage or family. Others, however, state the truism being a significantly low percentage of high school romances result in marriage. Although some may say the benefits outweigh the risks, relationships in high school are not feasible for many and may not be worth the effort put into them. On average, of all high school romances, only an estimated eight to 11 pe rcent result in matrimony (WikiAnswers 1). To me, this renders those useless relationships, the other eighty-nine to ninety-two percent, just passing time. From these statistics, it would appear romance in high school is not only stressful, but also relatively useless. Rather than devoting large amounts of time to one person, high school students should be out with a group of friends, having fun and doing whatever it is teens do. This brings up another concern for high school relationships: time. The time some students put into a relationship can become absurd. In this way, we come across the student who never seems to have their work done or never has time to work on their work. This free time would normally be used to do important tasks for school, but rather is us... ...lly prepared for such life experiences. Though not always negative, high school relationships are also not likely to have a drastically positive impact on students either. Levels of stress in life can be at their peak during years of development, though it may seem daunting, not all are incapable of balancing a relationship and life. Nevertheless, having a relationship, the stress to succeed in within the relationship, and the stress to not become the main topic of gossip for their peers in what should have been a private matter may magnify the pressures of everyday life. Works Cited U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. â€Å"Pathways to Adulthood and Marriage: Teenagers’ Attitudes, Expectations, and Relationship Patterns† Aspe.hhs.gov Web. 17 Nov. 2010. WikiAnswers. â€Å"What are the statistics on high school relationships?† Answers.com Web. 30 Nov. 2010.

Off Premise Laundry

TOPIC: OFF PREMISE LAUNDRY OFF PREMISE LAUNDRY * OPL MEANS LAUNDRY WHICH IS NOT PRESENT INSIDE THE HOTEL PREMISES. * THESE CATERS TO HOTELS ON A CONTRACT BASIS. * THEY CHARGE RATE ACCORDING TO THE TYPES OF LINEN / ARTICLE. * THEY CATERS TO MAINLY THOSE HOTELS WHERE SOMETIMES GUEST FLOW IS VERY LOW AND SOME RESORTS AND SEASONAL HOTELS ARE INCLUDE IN THIS. * MANY HOTELEIARS DOESNOT WANT TO INVEST A HUGE AMOUNT ON LAUNDRY SETUP SO THEY GO WITH OPL SERVICES. DEMERITS OF OPL * LESS CONTROL OVER STANDARDS AND QUALITY OF WASHING AND DRYCLEANING. * DELIVERY AND COLLECTION DELAYS. HIGHER PAR STOCK IS REQUIRED. * EXTRA COST FOR SPECIAL TREATMENTS. * LOSS OR DAMAGE OF ARTICLES IS HIGH. ELEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE CRITERIA FOR GUEST * Customer laundry is handled appropriately in accordance with establishment requirements. Communication maintained with providers of off-premises laundry services ensures clear understanding of establishment requirements * Customer laundry is returned to the customer c lean, dry, complete, and in condition specified by customer in a timely manner in accordance with establishment requirements. Range: condition – folded, pressed, dry-cleaned, laundered. * Customers are charged for laundry in accordance with establishment requirements . MAINTENANCE OF OPL FOR HOTELS * Establishment laundry is handled appropriately in accordance with establishment requirements. * Range: laundry – linen, bedding, towelling, staff uniforms, soft furnishings. * Documentation and recording processes for establishment laundry are maintained in accordance with establishment requirements. Storage area for customer and establishment laundry is kept free from infestation any signs of infestation are reported in accordance with establishment requirements. * Establishment laundry is checked to ensure it is clean, dry, complete and in condition specified on return, in a timely manner, in accordance with establishment requirements. CONCLUSION * A COMMERICIAL OR OFF-P REMISE LAUNDRY REFERS TOLAUNDRING ACTIVITIES PREFORMED OUTSIDE THE ESTABLISHMENTS. * THESE ARE GIVEN TO THE PERSON WHO IS SPECIALIZED IN THIS FIELD.

Pioglitazone: From discovery to clinical practice Essay

The most common type of diabetes is Type II diabetes mellitus which occurs in more that 90% of the cases of diabetes reported (Thomas, 2013). Type I diabetes is not as common  and is caused by destruction of the islet of Langerhans due to susceptibility of an autoimmune destruction leading to a reduced amount of insulin produced and glucose intolerance (Feinglos,2008). Type I diabetes is mostly diagnosed in children and young adults. Unlike diabetes type  I, Type II diabetes mellitus is mostly diagnosed in older people and is caused by unhealthy lifestyles (Thomas, 2013). Type II diabetes is characterized by production of insulin which does not perform its function. It in turn leads to a situation referred to as insulin resistance. The patients will suffer from low levels of insulin which functions as   a component  for the regulation of body sugar (Feinglos, 2008). The number of islets of Langerhans in the pancreas is normal or somewhat reduced. It is mostly characterized by hyperglycemia that is associated with the insufficient or dysfunctional insulin present in the body (Thomas, 2013). Abnormal coagulation, hypertension and diabetic dyslipidemia are also commonly reported to signify the occurrence of type II diabetes mellitus. The increased number of obesity cases has seen the diagnosis of diabetes mellitus type II in teenagers and young adults (Feinglos, 2008). In cases when the patient is not obese, there is a presence of high fat distribution in the body (Feinglos, 2008). People suffering from Type II diabetes mellitus, unlike type I diabetes, do not need regular injections of insulin (Thomas, 2013). The management of type II diabetes involves the control of the increased levels of blood sugar. It is, however, important to note that the reduction of the sugar levels should not surpass the normal blood sugar levels. Because most of the patients are overweight, exercise, a proper balanced diet and reduction of weight is fundamental in the management of type II diabetes mellitus (Feinglos, 2008). Pioglitazone                  Pioglitazone is a drug belonging to a class of thiazolidinediones and is used in the management and of type II diabetes mellitus (Schatz, 2000). Since the body is unable to control the increasing levels of sugar in the blood, pioglitazone is used to increase the sensitivity to insulin (Feinglos, 2008). The drug, however, does not cure the diabetes mellitus but only helps the body in maintaining  normal  blood sugar levels. It is an oral formulation and can be taken twice daily with or without taking meals (Schatz, 2000). It is able to achieve this by inhibiting the hepatic gluconeogenesis process and also increase peripheral and splanchnic glucose uptake which implies that there is a minimal occurrence of increased blood sugar levels (Feinglos, 2008). It effects can be seen in the short term and also in the long-term (Schatz, 2000). The use of pioglitazone can be done according to the doctor’s prescription. It also important to inform the docto r before stopping the use or if any complications arise while using pioglitazone.The development of pioglitazone is based on the discovery of gene SOCS3 (Suppressor of Cytokine Signaling-3) (Schatz, 2000). The elevation of the gene causes interferon resistance that in turn causes insulin resistance in the liver. Depletion of this gene has been made possible by pioglitazone which results in the reduced insulin resistance in the liver although it may cause systemic insulin resistance (Schatz, 2000). The suppression of gene SOCS3 by pioglitazone gives it the antiglycemic and ant diabetic property hence it has bee used in the management of the two cases. References Thomas, M. (2013).  Understanding type 2 diabetes: Fewer highs fewer lows better health. Wollombi, N.S.W: Exisle Publishing. Feinglos, M. N., & Bethel, M. A. (2008).  Type 2 diabetes mellitus: An evidence-based approach to practical management. Totowa, NJ: Humana Press. Schatz, H. (2000).  Pioglitazone: From discovery to clinical practice. Heidelberg: Barth Source document

Fashion and Art Essay

A controversial debate that has existed for many years, and will probably still be argued for many years to come, is the relatively close relationship that fashion and Art has. People in both the fashion and art industries (or as some artists like to call: ‘art world’) have very mixed opinions and ideas on the collaboration of fashion and art and how one may influence the other in the industry we live in today. â€Å"Art is Art and Fashion is an industry†, as quoted from in Michael Boodro’s ‘Art and Fashion’ (2007), he believes that Fashion is just a ‘man made’ craze that has only been popularised by the many followers in public that are cloned to consume the ideas of fashion. Boodro also believes that â€Å"†¦ fashion comes with no illusions attached† He believes that there isn’t a depth to fashion as there is in art, he believes art is an academia with vast depths of knowledge involved as to fashion, which is a shallow and very monochrome in it’s appearance, with no hidden messages. He goes on to explain that the interest in fashions first started in the late 1800s/early 1900s when only the rich and wealthy could afford artwork, in a form of portraits, then these painters created elaborate fashions in this paintings, learning the art of drapery and how to portray fabrics in the best possible light, For example: â€Å"Gustav Klimt, portraits of women, ‘designed’ dresses that were more prominent than his subjects†. Following on from this, Boodro then goes on to highlight some interesting links between art and fashion in how the artists has always formed the inspiration for the designer, such as: â€Å"Valentino has taken black and white geometric motifs from the Viennese artists Josef Hoffman and Koloman Mosen and embroided them in sequins and dresses† Many other examples there to highlight that a key to a designers success is by taking inspiration from previous art work by innovative and creative artists, which supports Boodro’s opinion that fashion is a follower and a form of art. â€Å"Clothes were placed in an extra-artistic sphere- where the most part they have remained†. This is taken from a contrasting piece of writing from ‘Fashion and Art’ by L. Svendsen (2006). As you can see, the Title ‘Fashion and Art’ is a reverse to Boodro’s ‘Art and fashion’, this is because, as quoted above, Clothes (fashion) were placed in an ‘extra-artistic sphere’, meaning that he sees Fashion as a seperate category to Art, and not a branched off form of art itself. Svendsen has a much more equal opinion for both sides of the opinion, he can pick out where Art and Fashion do merge into one, and also how Fashion has separated itself from art. He stated that in the early 1900’s, Fashion was very limited and boundaries were strict due to â€Å"Freedom was rather restricted, as the creations had to appeal to the aesthetic preferences of the customer†. Even though artists and art critics will strongly disagree that Fashion is a form of Art, even iconic designers such as Paul Poiret, one of the first iconic fashion designers of the early 20th Century stated â€Å"I am an artist, not a dressmaker†, designers hated how critics would limit their title to just a ‘dressmaker’, limiting their skills and talents instead of creative s that they dream to be acclaimed for. Another controversial quote though from a famous designer, Martin Margiela who insists that â€Å"fashion is a craft, not art† Moving into the 1920s and 30s with the Cubism perception in artwork replacing realism, Fashion also in turn started to become more abstarct, and this was when Haute Couture was born, designs became more elaborate and the previous boundaries that existed were lifted, giving designers a vast playground in which they could experience with their work and ideas. â€Å"Many Fashion Designers have used strategies normally associated with contemporary art rather than the world of fashion, by creating clothes that are better suited to exhibitions in galleries and museums than for actual wear†This shows a great link between fashion and art, it was evolving to become so abstract and outrageous that the best way for them to be displayed to their best potential was in galleries and museums, the same way as artwork would be, For example now in Museums such as the Victoria and Albert in London, there is now Fashion Archives, and many international designers have homed themselves there for one-off elaborate exhibitions. To conclude I think that I would categorise Fashion as a form of art, but not a direct result of art, I think many people have similar opinions of the two because they are such broad topics with an almost unlimited amount of space for creativity. I do agree that some of fashions many successful collections and campaigns stemmed from the innovative ideas of previous artists but some of the more successful fashion moments have been solely down to the creative minds of the designer If I had to categorize the fashion industry and the Designers work, I would place it under craftsmanship and creativity, as previously quoted by Martin Margiela. To finalise though I believe that art and fashion shouldn’t be labelled and the two should be able to intertwine to create magical and awe-inspiring pieces.

Semester Reflection

As the semester started, I had set my mind that I was destined to achieve a lot. During the start of the semester, I had several difficulties writing English assignments especially in terms of grammar. During the first week of the semester, I sat down, organized my thoughts and comprehended that throughout the semester, I had to achieve all that I had planned for. As a student of English, I had planned that throughout the semester, I had to improve my skills as a scholar, writer and critical thinker. Now that the semester has ended, I can reflect all the semester activities to depict how my writing skills and critical thinking skills have drastically improved. This paper presents a reflection paper of how this semester’s assignments have shaped me as a writer, critical thinker and scholar. Since the start of this semester, I have encountered many aspects of English that I can now understand. There are several ways through which I have shaped my writing skills over the course of the semester but one major activity of the semester that has helped me a lot especially in my writing and critical thinking skills is the semester writing assignments. During this semester, I got the opportunity to write several assignments. The two major writing assignments that helped me a lot in comprehending about the several aspects of writing were writing on â€Å"Obama’s acceptance speech† and â€Å"Downloading from torrent. † During these semester writings, it was quite interesting to learn the use of English writing skills under different circumstances. First, writing a paper on â€Å"Obama’s acceptance speech† instilled me with knowledge on how to analyze a speech and present the ideas and themes of the speaker. This assignment was also critical in shaping my critical thinking skills since I was able to critically analyze Obama’s speech in relation to its purpose and context. Writing this speech also enabled me acquire the skills of writing papers from first person context. I acquired the skills to use strong introductory phrases that hold the capability of capturing the reader. Flateby (p 190) argues that critical and creative writers must use descriptive words. I am now able to utilize descriptive words in my writings that are capable of creating a scenic imagination to the reader. I am also able to write a reported speech. These are writing skills that I gained after writing the paper on Obama’s acceptance speech. I believe that these are very critical skills that will help me throughout my entire course and even after my studies. Throughout the semester, I have gained skills necessary for understanding and utilizing logic while writing. I am now aware that for any writing to be scholarly, it must possess an introductory section, a body and a conclusion section. Further, I am now able to understand as well as utilize most of the basic techniques useful in pre-writing, revision and editing. Through writing the â€Å"downloading from torrents† paper, I acquired skills in word processing, sentence elements, and punctuation. Further, I developed some special skills in writing a website analysis which is a critical aspect in contemporary learning as argued by Flateby (p 182). As the semester folds, I believe that I have gained the prerequisite skills in writing and critical thinking. However, I need to improve much on some of the common problems in writing that seems to disturb me especially grammar. In regard to the development of my critical thinking aspects which cannot be depicted from my writings, I have gained several critical thinking skills from my writing assignments throughout the semester. Through writing assignments such as â€Å"downloading from torrents† and â€Å"Obama’s acceptance speech† I gained the skills necessary in summarizing a given reading using my original thoughts. When I was writing â€Å"Obama’s acceptance speech†, it was a required that one had to read and understand the speech then analyze it using own thoughts and perceptions. This helped in shaping my critical thinking aspects. As denoted by Flateby (p 190), critical thinkers must have the ability to form opinions. This is a skill that I have also gained through the semester’s writing assignments. This was acquired through writing the â€Å"downloading from torrents† assignment that required the students to form personal opinions about the website. I can now form opinions with ease as well as express it with precision and clarity through writing. Further, I am also able to deduce the premise of most writers after reading a number of scholarly writings. In deed, this semester’s assignments have shaped my writing and critical thinking skills. I am now able to understand the meaning of several written works, conduct a rhetoric examination, write opinion papers, and analyze speeches, write critical analysis papers as well as effectively reference my assignments. Though I found it challenging throughout the semester, I am now able to use several examples while writing my assignments. The semester’s activities have really paid me out. As the semester started, I had a mediocre performance but I can now ascertain that as the semester ends, I am now among the best students in the whole class. To improve my grammar in the coming semester, I aim at visiting the university English writing center where I will get help on grammar. I am also planning to enroll in a part time grammar class. Though the semester’s assignments helped me in improving my performance, I still owe it the efforts of my instructor and my fellow students who tirelessly helped me in my path to becoming a great writer, a better critical thinker and a scholar.

Visual Representations of Organization Theory Essay

Visual Representations of Organization Theory - Essay Example As quoted by Morgan, ‘communications theorist Marshall McLuhan noted that the last thing a fish is likely to discover is the water it is swimming in. The water is so fundamental to the fish’s way of life that it is not seen or questioned.’ (2006). Through this Morgan directs our attention to the concept of trap of favored ways of thinking. The fundamental role played by water to the fish analogues many mechanisms, ideologies, concepts upon which organizations are formed. Just the way, water is the world for a fish, and a fish cannot live out of water, so do organizations behave very often. Organizations tend to adopt certain culture, mechanisms, tools and practices which eventually become the fundamentals of the organization and its goals. These features reflect in the motivational aspects of the organization too which forces the employees to work in that direction ‘only,’ thus blocking creativity and other hidden business potential. In this course, o rganizations tend to adopt a kind of language, called as the organizational language which becomes the key factor of organizational growth as communication is vital for any organization’s success. Morgan relates this situation to the psychic-prison metaphor relating it to the trap of favored ways of thinking, and provides guidance to unleash hidden power and creativity. The trap of favored ways of thinking leads to closure of other avenues and opportunities, eventually leading to the situation of work becoming more of a norm or ritual and loss of innovation and creativity. In the process of favored ways of thinking, we tend to see only those things are familiar to us, and tend to ignore the rest. Though existence of creativity may not be the determining factor of any business, it can eventually turn so and, thus, lack of creativity has to be noticed. When the suppression of logic of what is significant is imposed by organizational control, this

Role of PACs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Role of PACs - Essay Example President Theodre Roosevelt in 1905 brought laws which could govern the conducts of aspirants during the campaign in order to reduce the abuses which had been reported. With him, came the Campaign Finance Act, which led to the limitation of wealthy individuals and special interest groups from funding aspirants. By this time, Political Action Committee (PAC) has been existing and they have had responsibilities in supporting the candidates and used a lot of money leading to the abuses. The successive developments in the PACs have been crucial in influencing the American political campaign as many of them are found of giving a larger amount of money to candidates with most recorded going to the presidential candidates and senators as well as governess. This paper will examine the roles of PACs and their activities in relation to presidency, congress among other things. Funding of Supper PACs The source of funding for PACs has for over the years remained unrealistic as many of the acts p assed have not been effective in managing the sources of funding to the candidates in efforts to minimize the election abuses. There have been a lot of funding sources to the PACs which have not been legitimized but, they are working showing how much the federal election commission is reluctant in putting the law into force. According to the federal Election Commission act of 1971, there was regulation of campaign spending and deterred abuses which were not to be disclosed to the public, as well as the individual’s contribution to the PACs. The act limited the individual’s contribution to $ 5,000 per year; it bared corporate organization and unions from directly contributing to the federal PACs. The act allowed the PACs to solicit contributions from executives, shareholders and members of their families. Since then, PACs have been solely mandated to solicit funds from individuals to a certain amount and prohibited unions and corporations from funding money for campaign s but instead for meeting administrative costs. However, the situation has since changed as the case file between Citizens United and the federal election commission in the Supreme Court allowed PACs to get unlimited funding from unions and corporations. PACs have a wider sources of funding ranging from cooperate organizations to individuals shares contributions (Welch et al 242). PACs Agenda The agenda of PACs has been to campaign for their presidential candidates in every manner. This has been achieved through spreading negative propaganda against their opponents by smearing campaign. They are meant to look for tactics and campaign strategies which will make their candidates excel through influencing more preferences towards him or her. Their agenda is to influence voters through mass adverts in the media which will be in their favor and goes against their opponents. Throughout their activities, they have influenced the outcome of the presidential and congress outcome as well as i nfluencing the public opinion and participation by the roles they play in campaigns for or against candidates. This has made them have a crucial agenda in determining the outcome of the presidential election, as well as the voter’s participation through the use of money (Luhr par 3). Similarly, they have an outstanding role in influencing the congress towards implementing policies,

Imagine you are writing a textbook chapter for criminology students, Essay

Imagine you are writing a textbook chapter for criminology students, where you are explaining one specific crime( choose between drink driving, mobile theft or - Essay Example However, as Siegel (2005) argues that there maybe concern regarding potential costs, insularity being one of them. A potential kind of insularity that specialised criminology studies can face is isolation from other areas of study from which it originated. Twenty years ago almost every criminologist had a Ph.D. level education in traditional areas such as sociology, psychology, political science or economics. Current breed of crime experts however, have doctorates in departments that are solely dedicated to crime and justice. Although this provides good grounds for specialised training in criminology yet it may not be a place to learn about anything besides it. In order to avoid this potential isolation, we need to maintain a steady flow of ideas to and from other disciplines. One way of doing that is through involvement of criminologists in those disciplines (Siegel, 2005). In order to understand perspectives of different disciplines, various aspects of criminal theories are evaluated against an example of some prevalent crime. These theories were developed on the basis of human nature consisting of classical and positive school. Moreover, increased maturity in criminology has sprung on sociological theories on formative and social development platforms. Bierne & Messerschmidt (1994) argue that examining a specific crime can help us understand the theories and adapt them in a way to help us recognize the nature of crimes. Hence, we can analyse a common crime of cell phone theft in our society to help us combine these theories. Experts present many causes as reasons for people to show criminal behaviour. Misguided arguments like criminal behaviour is a matter of choices and that people commit crimes because that is what the want to do has serious impact upon crime control measures. Direct intrusion techniques have been the classical approach towards crime control strategies. Since Bierne & Messerschmidt (1994) suggest

Bussiness interrogation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Bussiness interrogation - Essay Example An analysis of the foundation of motivation has been regarded as the first step towards the creation of successful organizations. Conversely, Allen and Gilmore (2006, pp.35), indicate that, Herzberg theory indicates that, Herzberg motivation theories of motivation are obliging to a proper understanding of the organization’s functions. In his work, Miner (2007, pp.84) argues that, the attributes that contribute to motivation and demotivation cannot be alienated from an understanding of the work place motivation. Motivation, which emanates from motivators, can be described as an intrinsic process that comes from within the individual. On the other hand, demotivators are extrinsic; that surround the individuals in the work place. Among the demotivators stated included, pay that was regarded as a short term motivator. After a while, employees were seen to be as demotivated as they were at the initiation of the time at the work place. This essay shall focus on the Coca Cola Company and the implication of Herzberg’s theory of motivation. Since the commencement of the company, its success story has always had its background on the motivation of employees in the organization. Through motivating employees, the company has managed to enjoy constant and consistent teamwork form its workers. In return, the employees have never compromised on the quality of products produced by the company. Herzberg’s theory, according to Sapru (2000, pp.76), revolves around two major factors that are inclusive of hygiene factors and the motivators. Hygiene factors are likely to cause dissatisfaction in the workplace if not put under scrutiny. Among the hygiene factors include, aspects like job security, safe working conditions, proper organizational policies as well as, quality of supervision along other factors. Sapru (2000, pp.76) argues that hygiene factors do not necessarily cause demotivation in the workplace, but if they are not incorporated in the work

Muslim World Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Muslim World - Essay Example In a religious sense, the term Muslim world refers to the whole people who follow the teachings of Islam. From a modern geopolitical perspective, this term is used collectively to refer to Muslim-majority countries and regions. During the period of Rashidun and Umayyads, the Caliphate grew quickly and the Muslim power expanded beyond the Arabian Peninsula. Although the Islamic dominance on political issues has notably increased over the last century, intrusion of Western powers into Islamic regions and other international conflicts reduced the influence of Islam in the contemporary history. During the period between the early 15th and early 20th centuries, the history of the Muslim world is characterized with particular events, processes, and encounters. This paper will discuss some major events in the history of the Muslim world such as Sunni reform movement, fall of Granada, and the fall of Constantinople. Sunni Reform Movement Deobandi Movement, a popular Sunni reform movement is one of the major events that rewrote the entire history of the Muslim world. As Sankar and Mandal describe, the movement began in India as a reaction to the British colonial rule, and spread to the neighboring countries like Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, etc. which later came to be the hub of this movement (62). Very recently its waves have reached South Africa and the United Kingdom. The term Deobandi derived from Deoband, the place where Darul Uloom Deoband, a Sufi School started in the year 1866 is situated. However after the partition of Pakistan and Bangladesh from India, India lost its prominence and Pakistan and Afghanistan became prominent promoters of this movement. The overwhelming prominence of Deobandi movement in Pakistan and Afghanistan soon made its spread to the other parts of the world. History Sunni reform movement is believed to have its origin in Asian countries like Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. However some say that the movement was first or iginated in India as a reaction to the British colonialists. Those who say that this movement is originated in India point that the Sufi school Darul Uloom Deoband, from which the term ‘Deobandi’ is derived, is situated in India. Nadwatul-Ulama Lucknow and Darul Uloom Karachi are two notable Hanafi seminaries of Deobandi Schools. However, the historians and Muslim scholars say that the movement was present in other neighboring countries of India at the same time. In this context it has to be noted that the founding fathers of Debandi Movement were very much influenced by the Wahabi Movement that was present in Saudi Arabia. The only difference between the Wahabis and the Deobandis is visible in their approach to Ashri and Maturidi creeds. While the latter ascribe to both the creeds, the former adhere only to the literal meaning of both the creeds. Currently the movement is spread across the world including South Africa and the United Kingdom. Though it reached these cou ntries very recently, it has become very strong in these countries. Consider how it is growing in the UK. At present, over 600 of the total 1500 mosques here are under the control of Muslim scholars who favor Deobandi Teachings. Adding further, around 17 Islam seminaries; there are total 26 Islam seminaries in the UK, are following the same teaching. It means that more than 80 percent of the total domestically trained Ulema or Muslim scholars are trained to follow Deobandi doctrines. Spreading of Sunni movement Currently Sunni movement is present in many countries and continents including the United Kingdom, South Africa and Asia, the continent where it actually originated. Now it has become

Auditing research paper on Apple Inc Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Auditing research paper on Apple Inc - Essay Example Another notable strategy that Apple has adopted is product diversification. Some notable quality brands that the company has initiated in the market include Macbook, Mac pro, Mac Mini, iPad, iPod such as iPod Nano and iPod Touch, iPhone, and Apple TV among others. Apple, which was established by the three pioneers in 1976, established its production lines in 1970s by introducing Apple III product in its effort to face the competitors including Microsoft and IBM. The company went public in 1980 whereby it sold its share at $22. Another notable aspect that made Apple to enjoy strong support from the consumers was the rebranding strategy initiated by Steve Jobs. For example, in 2007, Steve noted that the company, which was referred to as Apple Computer, Inc, would be known as Apple Inc, due to the shifting of the company activities to mobile devices from emphasizes on computers. As the result, Apple TV and iPhone were launched in the market. Despite the death of Steve in 2011, the company in its post-Jobs era has introduced quite a number of competitive brands such as iPhone 5, fouth generation Ipad, OSX Mavericks and seventh iOS As mentioned earlier, Apple is an information technology company with wide range of products that it sells in the international market. Apart from the smartphone, computer software and mobile devices the company produces, it has introduced Apple watch in its brand portfolio. The smartwatch, which was launched in 2014, is used together with an iPhone for it to work effectively. Apple has a culture of developing an ecosystem of suppliers who offer assistance to the company and who supports their business activities. Through the procurement website, Apple requires that all the suppliers must meet the highest standard of their services and goods. In addition, the suppliers are required to be very committed just like Apple on the matters of social responsibility. The suppliers are also required to notice the dynamic and

Promoting access to medical technologies - from Chile's perspective Research Paper

Promoting access to medical technologies - from Chile's perspective mun position - Research Paper Example Chile believes that this is one of the issues that international peace is being put on stakes. In order to bring peace in the world, there needs to be uniformity and equality among countries. Therefore, Chile positions the aspect of promotion of access to medical technologies for developing countries (World Health Organization). In the present times, Chile is determined to undertake treaties and agreements that would allow developing countries to benefit from it. Among these agreements, Trans-Pacific Partnership (TTP) seems to work effectively for negotiation from 12 countries. Chile is among these 12 countries that are committed to develop medical research and technologies in developing countries so that the current research protocol in the developed countries can be shifted or shared with the developing countries. Similar to these treaties are the forum discussion being held with Chile with Asian developing countries where effective and life-saving medicine research is being sponsored so that chronic diseases can now be treated. It is an evident fact that medicine and technology cannot be applied until constant lab work is done within the developing countries. For this purpose, Chile has proposed the initiation of university programs that will be aided by the country along with the infrastructure. Chile c ompletely understand that at this point where international politics have become increasingly critical, exchange of technology can surely be a way to bring peace and harmony. It will spread equality among developing and developed countries so that conflicts can be finished (Li). It is thus recommended that developed countries of the world must come forward and promote medical technologies access by forming legal and policy options. There needs to be effective research done on the empirical data confirming the assisted usage of medical technologies in developing countries (Zuniga, Marks and Gostin). It is

I Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

I - Essay Example This may result to inefficient allocation of resources and consumers to change their behaviors towards the market and so there is a need for the government to intervene. What more could happen if two large companies will merge? And these companies happen to cater services that are of importance to our fast moving lives- the telecommunications services? On November 24, 2011, an article entitled â€Å"AT&T Merger with T-Mobile Faces Setbacks† was published on nytimes.com by Edward Wyatt and Jenna Wortham. They talked about the problems that the two mobile companies, AT &T and T-Mobile, are facing with their planned merging. AT&T is one of the largest telecommunications services provider in the United States and even worldwide. Its services include wireless communications, local exchange services, long-distance services, data/broadband and Internet services, video services, managed networking, wholesale services and directory advertising and publishing. In March of 2011, it announced its plan to merge with T-Mobile which is owned by Deutsche Telekom. The former agreed to buy T-Mobile from Deutsche Telekom for $39 billion. But of course, the merger was subject to F.C.C. approval because the joining of the two companies would have required transfer of licenses to use public airwaves for cellular phone signals and wireless Intern et access (Wyatt & Wortham, 2011). Being a monopoly or even just a big player in an industry yields many advantages and if not properly monitored will affect the consuming individuals negatively. In the case of these telecommunications merger, different sectors from the society are paying close attentions. The Justice Department for example has said that the merger would severely restrict competition, Federal Communications Commission officials have added that AT&T’s confidential filings indicate the merger would eliminate jobs and consumer groups who closely monitored the actions of the authorities said that their combined actions indicated

Narrative Criticism of Gillian Welch’s “Caleb Meyer” Essay Example for Free

Narrative Criticism of Gillian Welch’s â€Å"Caleb Meyer† Essay Throughout this essay I will identify â€Å"Caleb Meyer† as a rhetorical narrative, criticize its form and function, and evaluate its effectiveness. In order to criticize â€Å"Caleb Meyer† using Rowand’s method of narrative criticism, I must first establish that it meets all of the criteria of a narrative according to Sonja Foss. The first criteria Foss requires is that the artifact contain two events. The song in fact includes multiple events, but for explanative purposes we will assign those two events as Meyer drunkenly wandering into the narrator’s yard and raping her, and the narrator slicing his throat with the broken bottle. Foss then requires that the two events in a narrative happen in a sequence of some sort, which, using the examples above, we can easily find to be true in a chronological nature. Meyer first assaults the narrator, and it is not until he does that she retaliates. Foss’s third standard for a narrative requires that the sequential events have a casual relationship. Again, using the events above, we can easily argue that without the first event (Meyer assaulting the narrator) the second event (the narrator slicing his neck with the bottle) would not have occurred, for there would have been no reason for her to retaliate against Meyer. The last criteria Foss requires is that the sequential, casual events be about a unified subject. All of the events that take place in the artifact, including those aforementioned, are about the interaction between Caleb Meyer and the narrator from the time he gets drunk and rapes her to the time she cuts his throat. Now that I have satisfied Foss’s requirements for a narrative and determined â€Å"Caleb Meyer† to be such, I am able to apply Rowand’s method of narrative criticism. According to Rowand, the main components of a narrative are the characters and their roles, the setting, the plot, and the theme. While on the surface many of these things may seem obvious to the audience, in order to discover the artifact’s rhetorical purpose it is important that we uncover more than just who, where, and why. There are two main characters in Welch’s song: the antagonist, Caleb Meyer, and the protagonist, the narrator. Caleb Meyer is established as a lonely, drunken abusive male whose purpose in the artifact is to create conflict to allow resolution (he rapes the narrator and pays the price). The narrator is a married woman whose husband has left her home alone while away on business. Her function is to tell a story and create Welch’s message. She is established as religious (prays to God and believes in Hell [Caleb Meyer your ghost is gonna wear them rattling chains]), brave, and resilient. Meyer represents the abusive, alcoholic male figure in society, while the narrator represents women who are taken advantage of and decide to put up a fight. A secondary character, Nellie Kane, is minimally important but adds to the severity of Meyer’s actions, as he is the narrator’s husband whom Meyer knows is not around to protect her. The setting in the narrative is a wooded area on a mountainside, although it is unspecific where exactly. Meyer asks the narrator if her husband has gone down the mountainside after emerging from where he lives â€Å"in them hollering pines. † This setting, including the fact that the narrator’s husband has gone to Bowling Green for work, creates a picture of a helpless, isolated woman in the woods. This forces the audience to empathize with the narrator as the antagonist attacks, knowing that there is no one to aid her after being thrown down by her hair and pinned beneath a drunken man. It is because of intrinsic humanitarian values that the audience cannot help but wish they could come to her relief, which makes the persuasiveness of Welch’s message more powerful. The plot of Welch’s song first provides that Caleb Meyer lives alone and drinks to pass the time, implying that he is an alcoholic. Lonely, he stumbles to the back of the narrator’s home and yells until she comes outside. We then hear the chorus, which consists of the narrator claiming that Meyer’s ghost will wear rattling chains, implying either that he is going to hell or that he will forever be tormented in the afterlife. Meyer then asks the narrator where her husband has gone and if he has left her alone, to which she replies that he has indeed left on business. Meyer then grabs her by the hair and pins her hands above her head as he lay across her dress, implying that he is attempting to rape her. The narrator begins to pray and finds the bottle of whiskey that Meyer had dropped, slicing his neck open as he bleeds all over her. Welch provides a fantastic crescendo into a climax, which includes a conflict and resolution in order to keep the audience engaged. The theme of â€Å"Caleb Meyer† stems directly from the plot. Meyer represents generic abusive, womanizing, and drunken men that sadly exist in society, while the narrator represents women who are imposed upon by them. Welch’s â€Å"Caleb Meyer† sends a message to women to be strong and independent, while it sends a message to men to mind their belligerence and forcefulness or there will be consequences, as seen in the death of Caleb Meyer. Another message that Welch may be trying to get across is that alcohol is wicked and leads to sinful behavior. One could even go as far as saying that her message is intended to warn men of the dangers of leaving their loved one’s side, however the supporting evidence for these two arguments are insignificant in comparison to the support for the message to women to stand against abuse. Gillian Welch’s â€Å"Caleb Meyer† not only meets all of Foss’s requirements of a narrative, but also establishes itself as a powerful narrative by persuading the audience to feel hatred and anger toward the actions of Caleb Meyer. It forces the audience to identify with the narrator, and understand that what she is experiencing is wrong. Certain audiences, women in particular, and abuse victims especially, identify greatly with Welch’s narrative because rape is the greatest fear of many women. However, men too can see the pain in the narrator’s words as Welch does a wonderful job evoking the emotions of the audience. It is because of her ability to do so that the crescendo is so effective, creating great relief when at the end of the song she sings â€Å"Then I felt his blood pour fast and hot / Around me where I laid† as the antagonist meets his rightful demise.