Wednesday, July 31, 2019
Lead Contamination in Agro-Based Products as Current Public Health Threat in Bangladesh
Lead contamination in agro-based products as current public health threat in Bangladesh A. M. M. Maruf Hossain1*, M. Shahidul Islam2, Md. Moklesur Rahman1, Md. Mustafa Mamun1, M. Azizul Islam Kazi2, and Syed Fazle Elahi1 1Department of Soil, Water and Environment, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Dhaka; 2Analytical Research Division, BCSIR Laboratories, Dhaka. *Corresponding author Abstract: Agro-based products are primary to all human food sources. Contamination in these is also the easiest way of human health getting affected in large scale. Among the myriad of agro-based products, commercially produced milks and eggs were sampled. Chicken eggs were sampled from Dhaka and its nearby other seven districts covering the central region of Bangladesh. Dhaka, Narsingdi, Kishoreganj, Mymensingh, Tangail, Gazipur, Narayanganj, and Munshigonj were selected for the study. Twelve eggs were randomly sampled from each district’s egg stock market. In Dhaka, Gazipur, and Tangail’s market both brown and white colored eggs were found. Six eggs from each type were sampled from these three districts. In the rest five districts only brown colored eggs could be found. Commercial liquid milks of 13 prominent milk producers have been sampled with replication. Introduction: Poultry plays a vital role in the economy of Bangladesh in recent years. The contribution by livestock is 3% of the total GDP (BBS, 2004) and nearly 10% of the agricultural GDP (Poultry Business Directory, 2007). As food poultry provides meat and egg. An egg is a good source of energy, protein, and fat. A 50 g weighing grade A chicken egg provides estimated values of 297 KJ energy, 6g protein, 5g fat (1. 5g saturated, 2. 0g monounsaturated, and 0. 8g polyunsaturated), and 190mg cholesterol. Chicken eggs are the most commonly eaten eggs, and are highly nutritious (FAO, 2007). They supply a large amount of complete, high-quality proteins (which contains all essential amino acids for humans), and provide significant amounts of several vitamins and minerals, including vitamin A, riboflavin, folic acid, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, choline, iron, calcium, phosphorus and potassium. Again liquid milk is an important source of fat, lactose sugar, and proteins (Casein, Albumin). Egg and milk are essential contexts to our daily diet. Bangladesh has a long historical record of raising poultry under traditional backyard farming. In 1935 improved variety of birds were first introduced in the countries. In the long run it is in the early nineties that a number of private parent stock farms have started their operation to produce commercial Day Old broiler and layer Chicks. Today for commercial egg production layer chicks from these farms are being used. Commercial egg production mostly uses the layer breeds of Hyline Brown, Hyline White, Hisex Brown, Hisex White, ISA Brown, Lohman Brown, Shaver White, and Shaver 579. The prominent milk producers have their own farms in Bangladesh. They produce and market both pasteurized and UTH (ultra high temperature) processed milks. For egg and milk urban people depend completely on commercially produced products while rural people have some practice of backyard farming. As industrial and agricultural practices are not strictly regulated and maintained environment-friendly in Bangladesh, contamination can happen in many ways especially with heavy metals. For this reason a widely distributed egg samples have been collected from Dhaka and its surrounding other seven districts where industrial activities and hence pollution is most prevalent. Similarly a number of liquid milks were sampled with replication to reflect a representative picture. Materials and Methods: Sampling area for egg: The egg sampling area constituted eight districts including capital Dhaka and covered the central region of Bangladesh. Dhaka, Narsingdi, Kishoreganj, Mymensingh, Tangail, Gazipur, Narayanganj, and Munshigonj were selected for the study. Twelve eggs were randomly sampled from each district’s egg stock market. In Dhaka, Gazipur, and Tangail’s market both brown and white colored eggs were found. Six eggs from each type were sampled from these three districts. In the rest five districts only brown colored eggs could be found. The sampling area is shown in gray color in Figure 1. Figure 1: Map of Bangladesh representing the darkened study area Milk sampling: Commercial liquid milks of 13 prominent milk producers have been sampled with three replications in each. These covered liquid white, mango, chocolate, and banana milks. Aarong – white, Aarong – chocolate, Aarong – mango, Milkvita – white, Milkvita – chocolate, RD – white, RD – mango, RD – banana, Amo – white, Amo – chocolate, Amo – mango, Pran – white, and Starship – chocolate liquid milks were selected for the study. Sample pretreatment: ? The egg samples were boiled in deionized water and after complete boiling albumen and yolk were separately oven-dried at 80oC to remove all moisture. The samples were oven-dried unless the difference between two readings of weight was found negligible. Each of oven-died albumen and yolk were treated and analyzed separately. ? A portion of the liquid milk samples were used for density measurement. Milk samples were treated and analyzed as it is. Sample preparation method: The samples were prepared by using HNO3 – HClO4 digestion (Kebbekus & Mitra, 1998). Since the samples were of organic origin with a very high organic content, HNO3 – HClO4 digestion was preferred over the more common HNO3 extraction for the determination of heavy metals. This strongly oxidizing digestion decomposes organics quickly and efficiently. Sample analysis: Analysis of all prepared samples was performed through atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS). BDH standard solution was used for preparation of lead (Pb) standard curve. During the sample preparation for arsenic determination, hydrochloric acid (at least 11. 6 ml concentrated HCl for 100 ml total sample) and KI (at least 1 %) were added. For the other heavy metals no special treatments were done. Hydride vapor generation technique was used in the determination of arsenic and mercury. Chromium, cadmium, lead, and arsenic determination were done in air-acetylene flame whereas mercury determination was done in cold vapor. The lead (Pb) contamination in eggs is calculated by using the average parameter values of total 96 eggs sampled, where albumen and yolk have been studied separately in each egg (Table – 1). Table – 1: Average physical parameters for 96 egg samples from 8 districts Average physical parameter |Average |Standard error | |Whole weight of eggs, g |55. 5098 |0. 7590 | |Shell: albumen: yolk ratio |1: 4. 8672: 1. 9775 |NA | |Albumen raw weight, g |34. 4401 |- | |Albumen moisture content, % |84. 0603 |0. 1512 | |Albumen dry weight, g |5. 900 |- | |Yolk raw weight, g |13. 9930 |- | |Yolk moisture content, % |51. 3656 |0. 1616 | |Yolk dry weight, g |6. 8054 |- | The lead (Pd) contamination in comme rcially produced chicken eggs in Bangladesh is presented in Table 2 (average dry weight basis). Revise SPSS with all new â€Å"data†Table – 2: Pb contamination of chicken eggs in Bangladesh Sample classes |Pb in Egg albumen |Pb in total |Pb in Egg yolk |Pb in total |Total Pb in each |Pb in total egg | | | µg/g |Egg albumen | µg/g |Egg yolk |egg (albumen + |(albumen + yolk), | | |(dry weight) | µg |(dry weight) | µg |yolk),  µg | µg/g | | | |(dry weight) | |(dry weight) | | | | |Values for 6 |5. 905 |30. 6918 |18. 3190 |124. 6680 |155. 3599 |12. 6356 | |Brown Egg |samples | | | | | | | |(Dhaka) | | | | | | | | | |St. error |1. 1043 | – |4. 439 | – | – | – | |White Egg (Dhaka) |Values for 6 |11. 1847 |61. 4041 |6. 4769 |44. 0777 |105. 4818 |8. 5790 | | |samples | | | | | | | | |St. error |1. 7396 | – |2. 627 | – | – | – | |Brown Egg (Narsingdi) |Values for 12|10. 4818 |57. 5453 | 15. 0153 |102. 1849 |159. 7302 |12. 9911 | | |samples | | | | | | | | |St. error |2. 3770 | – |3. 458 | – | – | – | |Brown Egg |Values for 12|9. 4945 |52. 1248 |10. 6030 |72. 1574 |124. 2822 |10. 1080 | |(Kishoreganj) |samples | | | | | | | | |St. error |0. 5917 | – |0. 7616 | – | – | – | |Brown Egg Mymensingh)|Values for 12|9. 4769 |52. 0279 |5. 7009 |38. 7969 |90. 8248 |7. 3869 | | |samples | | | | | | | | |St. error |1. 1593 | – |0. 6024 | – | – | – | |Brown Egg (Tangail) |Values for 6 |11. 565 |60. 7000 |5. 4060 |36. 7898 |97. 4898 |7. 9290 | | |samples | | | | | | | | |St. error |4. 4361 | – |1. 8938 | – | – | – | |White Egg (Tangail) |Values for 6 |11. 3587 |62. 594 |0. 7730 |5. 2602 |67. 6197 |5. 4996 | | |samples | | | | | | | | |St. error |2. 4524 | – |0. 4713 | – | – | – | |Br own Egg (Gazipur) |Values for 6 |6. 8734 |37. 7349 |1. 755 |11. 4023 |49. 1372 |3. 9964 | | |samples | | | | | | | | |St. error |2. 0868 | – |0. 6178 | – | – | – | |White Egg (Gazipur) |Values for 6 |5. 9167 |32. 4825 |2. 2874 |15. 666 |48. 0491 |3. 9079 | | |samples | | | | | | | | |St. error |2. 1738 | – |1. 2855 | – | – | – | |Brown Egg |Values for 12|0. 7702 |4. 2285 |5. 4222 |36. 9002 |41. 1288 |3. 451 | |(Narayanganj) |samples | | | | | | | | |St. error |0. 4071 | – |1. 9852 | – | – | – | |Brown Egg (Munshigonj)|Values for 12|11. 3360 |62. 2346 |8. 8177 |60. 0079 |122. 2426 |9. 9421 | | |samples | | | | | | | | |St. rror |2. 3649 | – |2. 7654 | – | – | – | Maximum permissible limit in chicken meat is 0. 1  µg /g and in chicken fat is 0. 1  µg /g(1). The average statistics for all egg samples are presented in Table 3 . Table – 3: Statistics of all egg samples |Total sample number |192 | |Mean |8. 1611 | |Std. Error of Mean |0. 5253 | |Minimum |ND* | |Maximum |34. 5637 | * = Not detected The average lead (Pb) contamination picture in commercially produced liquid milks in Bangladesh is presented in Table 4. Table – 4: Pb contamination picture in liquid milks in Bangladesh |Sample classes |Average density |Volume as packed, mL|Average Pb |Standard error |Average total Pb | | | | |concentration in | |in packet,  µg | | | | |sample,  µg/mL | | | |Aarong – white |1. 0207 |250 |0. 8102 |0. 2451 |202. 500 | |Aarong – chocolate |1. 0511 |200 |1. 5344 |0. 2675 |306. 8800 | |Aarong – mango |1. 0554 |200 |0. 9447 |0. 3961 |188. 9400 | |Milkvita – white |1. 0226 |250 |0. 9739 |0. 3212 |243. 4750 | |Milkvita – chocolate |1. 0548 |200 |1. 2925 |0. 6512 |258. 5000 | |RD – white |1. 193 |230 |1. 9657 |0. 1987 |452. 1110 | |RD – mango |1. 0523 |200 |1. 6984 |0. 4812 |339. 6800 | |RD – banana |1. 0552 |200 |1. 209 |0. 5012 |241. 8000 | |Amo – white |1. 0257 |250 |1. 4943 |0. 1246 |373. 5750 | |Amo – chocolate |1. 0577 |200 |0. 181 |0. 1789 |163. 6200 | |Amo – mango |1. 0619 |200 |0. 8997 |0. 8047 |179. 9400 | |Pran à ¢â‚¬â€œ white |1. 0256 |200 |1. 2886 |1. 0079 |257. 7200 | |Starship – chocolate |1. 0508 |200 |4. 7589 |1. 4347 |951. 7800 | Maximum permissible limit in milks is 0. 02  µg /mL(1). The average statistics for all milk samples are presented in Table 5. Table – 5: Statistics of all milk samples |Total sample number |39 | |Mean |1. 5145 | |Std. Error of Mean |0. 2165 | |Minimum |ND | |Maximum |7. 0713 | Standard for lead (Pb) content of milk and poultry products: Comparing the obtained data from the egg and milk samples with the standards set in â€Å"Codex general standard for contaminants and toxins in foods (CODEX STAN 193-1995, Rev. -2006)†, it is evident that these foods are heavily contaminated with Pb in Bangladesh. In case of both egg and milk, the average Pb levels are about hundred times higher than the maximum permissible limits whereas the maximum respective values are quite large. 1. CODEX STAN 193-1995, Rev. 2-2006. http://www. codexalimentarius. net/web/index_en. jsp 2. Kebbekus, B. B. , and S. Mitra. (1998). Environmental chemical analysis. (Blackie Academic & Professional, London). [pic]
Tuesday, July 30, 2019
Politics and the English Language Answers Essay
In Orwell’s essay Politics and the English Language, Orwell expresses his raw opinion on the deterioration of the English language and how politics is a cause for the â€Å"vagueness and incompetence†that writing has succumbed too. Though the title of the essay introduces politics first and the English language last, Orwell’s thesis seems to consist of neither; it consists of the silliness of modern human writing. He states in the second paragraph, â€Å"It becomes ugly and inaccurate because our thoughts are foolish, but the slovenliness of our language makes it easier for us to have foolish thoughts.†His thesis is a broad statement that engulfs the horrible habits of politicians who use pre-made phrases that ultimately lead to a passage that makes no sense at all. Orwell discusses his view on the English Language after he scrutinizes several passages that he uses as examples throughout the essay. With these examples, he explains the quality of writing that is used commonly throughout writers using modern English. From start to finish of his essay, Orwell analyzes the mistakes, bad habits, inability to express meaning in writing pieces. On page two, Orwell says, â€Å"The writer either has a meaning and cannot express it, or he inadvertently says something else, or he is almost indifferent as to whether his words mean anything or not. This mixture of vagueness and sheer incompetence is the most marked characteristic of modern English†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Despite Orwell’s expression of the negatives in writing today, he isn’t completely hopeless; for he gives solutions and tips on how to overcome poor writing habits. Throughout his explanation and argument, Orwell stresses the incompetence, vagueness, and carelessness in writing that is commonly used in literary expositions. Orwell goes on to list general problems with writing techniques and the appearance of meaning clarity. First, he talks about the use of dying metaphors. In this paragraph, Orwell explains that people use these dying metaphors â€Å"because they save people from inventing phrases for themselves.†He analyzes the use of these metapho rs and how some are sucked out of their original meanings without the writer noticing themselves; completely altering the meaning of the metaphor or text. Next, Orwell describes the use of â€Å"verbal false limbs,†or the use of more syllables in a sentence to show symmetry. He notes that people use fancy, pre-made phrases to replace simple conjunctions and prepositions to cushion their sentences. These pre-made phrases are used almost instantly and can ruin the meaning and clarity a text almost indefinitely. Third, Orwell goes on about the use of pretentious diction used mainly by political, scientific, and sociological writers. Pretentious diction is explained to be the use of trendy, foreign phrases and sophisticated words to show culture and elegancy. But Orwell argues that these fancy phrases are â€Å"an increase in slovenliness and vagueness†in writing. Lastly, Orwell talks about the abuse of meaningless words. He explains that writers may use a word has one meaning, but they use it in a text dishonestly with their own personal definition. These poor habits of writing are seen continuously and exemplify the demise of the English Language. Orwell’s issues are valid because the vagueness and meaningless texts are examples of the ha bits and mind of the writer. its because of the poor writing habits that Orwell says, â€Å"it consists in gumming together long strips of words which have already been set in order by someone else, making the results presentable by sheer humbug.†Overall, Orwell explains the negative aspects of writing and writing habits in the modern English Language. However, Orwell remains hopeful about the improvement and changes of writing. Throughout his essay, Orwell continuously stresses the deterioration of the English Language and the vagueness and meaninglessness modern literacy. He presents six questions that every writer should ask themselves while writing: â€Å"What am I trying to say? What words will express it? What image or idiom will make it clearer? Is this image fresh enough to have an effect?†¦Could I put it more shortly? Have I said anything that is avoidably ugly?†Not only does he present these questions writing, he gives six quick tips to break bad habits in writing. He explains that writers should never use any type of figurative speech that is seen regularly in print, should use short words instead of long words, for writers to throw out useless words, to use the active if you can replace the passive an d to use everyday English instead of foreign phrases or scientific words. As Orwell’s last tip, he says â€Å"break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.†Orwell feels that breaking poor writing habits and following these tricks will allow anyone to achieve meaningful and clear writing. â€Å"The great enemy of clear language is insincerity.†(59) Orwell displays several different passages in his text that are unclear and vague to even the writer. By being unclear, one can falsify the meaning of their writing, making it insincere. This quote from Orwell’s essay is a prime example of why clarity is so important in writing, especially for politicians who often use pre-made phrases, assuring vagueness and loss of meaning. Orwell writes in his essay, â€Å"†¦ready-made phrases†¦will perform the important service of partially concealing your meaning even from yourself.†This quote explains how important it is to be clear in writing the English Language so that words written are truthful and clear to the read and to the writer themselves. â€Å"But if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.†(59) Orwell’s quote about thoughts and language corrupting each other brings us back to the thesis of his essay: â€Å"it becomes ugly and inaccurate because our thoughts are foolish, but the slovenliness of our language makes it easier for us to have foolish thoughts.†Through these two quotes, Orwell expresses that the deterioration of the English language and of the writing skills makes it easier for us have corrupt our minds with ugly thoughts. These ugly thoughts allow us to have corrupt language; making it both language and our human thoughts to blame. The longer we use poor language, the easier and faster it will get stuck in our minds and thoughts. The longer these ill habits of writing are imprinted in our minds, the easier it is to have foolish thoughts to cause more corrupt writing.
Monday, July 29, 2019
How Colors Affect Us Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1
How Colors Affect Us - Research Paper Example Colors have the abilities to affect human beings in many ways such as individual’s life, psychological state, and health. one of the reasons why colors have the ability to influence people’s lifestyle is because we naturally react on multi-level of association with colors. She further explains that there exists social, culture and personal relationships with certain colors,†Colour continues to play an important role in the world today and people, corporations and institutions are using it as a powerful tool of communication. Some colors send universal messages and these colors can used for a product, web site, business card, or logo to cause powerful reactions. We cannot ignore the significance of color in our today’s world. The four psychological primary colors include red, yellow, blue, and green. They relate to the body, mind, and emotions while essentially balancing the three. Red elevates excitement levels, and can speed up our decision making process. This is why we considered Las Vegas the city of red neon. Students subjected to red light before exams are more likely to perform dismally. Blue color demonstrates many positive attributes such as intelligence, trust, efficiency, serenity, duty, understanding, logic, calm, and reflection. Its can sometimes be interpreted as cold, aloof, unfriendliness, and lacking emotion. Yellow color is often associated with optimism, self-esteem, confidence, emotional strength, extraversion /friendliness and creativity. It can also come out negative as irrational, fearful, emotionally fragile, depressing, anxiety or suicidal.Green stimulates a general feeling of balance accompanied by positive attribute such as harmony, refreshment, universal affection, peace, restoration reassurance, environmental consciousness, equity, and tranquillity. On the other hand, it demonstrates boredom, blandness, Violet is stimulus for spiritual awareness, vision,
Sunday, July 28, 2019
EC202 SLP Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words
EC202 SLP - Essay Example If a country has a high GDP, it means it is healthy and has low unemployment, higher wages and hence higher spending power. Hence, Novartis would be more profitable in countries with higher GDPs where it can sell its products at a higher price. ii. Balance of Payments: Since Novartis is in a highly regulated industry (pharmaceuticals) Balance of Payments indicator becomes very important macro-economic indicator for Novartis. If a country is in fiscal deficit, it is likely that the government will induce a spending cut on its healthcare budget, and thereby the government would push Novartis to lower its drugs’ prices. iii. Interest Rates: Novartis being a multi-national pharmaceutical company engages in a number of foreign exchange transactions/flows across the globe. Hence, differences in interest rates would affect the relative worth of currencies in relation to one another (esp. forex changes between euro, CHF and USD). 2. What do these indicators suggest about the current o r future condition of your organization? With regards to the current economic crisis in the US, the macro-economic factors would have a negative effect on the condition of Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation. The US Congress recently passed a $38 billion spending cut bill (Reuters) that is anticipated to cut budgets of various government run healthcare and social programs.
Saturday, July 27, 2019
The Product of Coca-Cola in South Africa and Canada Assignment - 9
The Product of Coca-Cola in South Africa and Canada - Assignment Example However, the South African website has a direct link on its homepage to the company’s sustainability strategy, while it also has a list with graphics of the different brands offered by Coca-Cola, which the other does not. In addition, the South African website has the company’s mission on the home page, while the Canadian website only links to activities charitable events. Companies that sell their products in the US and foreign markets may face various risks with regards to grey market goods. Companies may intend to sell products in foreign markets due to consumer preferences for packaging and formulations that differ between domestic and foreign markets, which may also result in different product pricing in relation to the foreign country’s economic status (Sugden, 2013). One risk lies with loss of goodwill in the domestic market due to differently packaged or constituted goods entering the market, despite them being authentic. In addition, grey markets could also damage the relationship of the company with its distributors that have to compete against lower-priced but authentic products (Sugden, 2013). Finally, the company may suffer profit margin and sales volume decline as authentic products purchased cheaply abroad undercut their sales in the domestic market.Â
Friday, July 26, 2019
Performance Management For a Profit Organization Thesis
Performance Management For a Profit Organization - Thesis Example This section summarizes the study or the convenience of the readers. The first section of the study is the introductory part which includes a background of performance management and its external and internal factors. The external factors which affect performance management are share prices, environment of the market, competition, reputation, regulatory environment, etc. On the other hand the internal factors are the employees, management, labor unions, suppliers, etc. The performance management techniques and produces utilized by profit-making organization are effective or non-effective would be identified through the research that is done in this study. The critical review of the literature contradicted the stated problem of this research. The problem was that the current performance management procedure or practices are not effective. However, the critical review of literature has been put forward to prove the fact that the present performance management frameworks in profit-making organizations are proving to be effective. The literature review has been streamlined with research objectives and problem areas in order to find an effective solution. The traditional performance management framework was based on remuneration and financial performance of the company. The employees, their skill, and performance appraisal was planed based on their last drawn salary of the individual. However, this scenario has changed now. The performance, productivity, creativity, skill, and enthusiasm of the employees to contribute towards the sustainability of the company are taken into account in case of performance management as well as performance appraisal. Training and development are very effective in such case because the low performing employees are not punished, but they are given the opportunity to enhance their skill and knowledge, so that they can also pull themselves up. In the research methodology part it has
Human Resource Management, Extrinsic and Intrinsic Award Essay
Human Resource Management, Extrinsic and Intrinsic Award - Essay Example These rewards are more relevant in low power-distance countries with good governmental support systems (Buelens et al., 2006, Pg. 232). Hence the need for extrinsic or intrinsic rewards should be gauged with reference to these social and cultural contexts. However in the era of globalization, making a choice between intrinsic or extrinsic becomes difficult. Balancing between these two extremes is a must for a modern day manager. As a manager, creating congenial environment that encourages intrinsic motivation will develop into intrinsic rewards at a later point. Framing rewards and recognition programs (extrinsic rewards) that complement an individual's intrinsic motivation will yield efficient results as well. E.g. recognizing the quick learning curve of an employee re-asserts the fact that intrinsic rewards such as learning will be rewarded if they are in line with company objectives. Overall balancing is an act of recognizing employee motivation rather than making choices on their behalf. What is the relationship between an employee's salary and his or her feeling of worth Explain your rationale from the viewpoints of an employee and a manager. How can managers create a balance between the two Total words: 250 Employee's salary can have a positive/negative feeli... 177-179). Hence a perception of fulfillment of these needs increases the feeling of worth and vice-a -versa. From an employee view-point salary should compensate for skill sets, previous experience, job responsibilities and be comparable with best in the industry. However a higher need for esteem fulfillment is also cognitively linked to salary in an employee's mind. From a manager's aspect salary is only flexible to the extent that it remains within the band prescribed by the organization for a particular level. Salary accounts to cost if the manager is responsible for a cost location. Hence in terms of worth, manager has fewer strings to influence the perception considering only the $ value of salary. Manager can create a balance by providing a salary structure that reflects the perception of worth in the employee's mind such as performance related pay, recognition for additional responsibilities handled etc. Apart from basic need fulfillment, employee perception can be influenced by fulfilling the need for esteem. Higher responsibilities, skill variety, task identity and significance (Buelens et al., 2006, Pg.193-194) - All these can be part of the overall job package apart from salary, which will influence the perception of worth positively. As a conclusion, compensation should be seen as a continuum of satisfying needs and flexed within boundaries to improve the perception of worth. What type of compensation component would you like to have through your employer that is not currently offered Explain your rationale. Explain both the benefits and negatives this component will bring to you as an employee and will bring to the company. Total words: 257 Performance based pay is the new component preferred.
Thursday, July 25, 2019
SOW-425 Assignments Soccial Walfare Policy & services Assignment
SOW-425 Assignments Soccial Walfare Policy & services - Assignment Example The help to increase relevance of social work professional in the society and ensure that the social needs of future generations are systematically catered for (Peterson, 2013). It has been reported that the rate of poverty and economic inequality will increase significantly. For instance the level of poverty has been projected to increase in the next decades at a rate of sixteen percent. The impact of poverty to personal life are numerous, among those impacts include; it denies a person an access to quality education, it further denies person an opportunity to access better healthy cares because most of poor people may not have necessary funds to pay for the best hospitals. Additionally, poverty leads to poor living standards for instance most poor people lives in poor housing facilities and can’t afford the best meals. Further, poverty causes people to engage in criminal acts such as stealing, prostitution and drug trafficking in a bid to move on with life. Additionally, poverty affects children’s in numerous ways. For example children’s from poor families may not be in a position to access quality education (MacNeil, 2010). Research indicates that children from poor families tend to die during birth and infancy. Moreover, children from poor have /been reported to suffer malnutrition related complications because their parents can’t afford healthy food. Additionally, children’s from poor families view education as a way to rescue themselves from poverty unlike those from the rich families. Moreover, poverty affects our society in numerous ways. For instance, in a society where there majority of people are poor, the cases of socials evils such as prostitution, drug trafficking and theft have been reported to be substantially higher (MacNeil, 2010). The impacts of economic recession are numerous. For example, economic recession has the impact of causing the number of children living in abject poverty to increase significantly. Additionally, the
Wednesday, July 24, 2019
Individual Reflection and Personal Development Plan Case Study
Individual Reflection and Personal Development Plan - Case Study Example The components of 'personal development' include changes in the individual from minor alterations in work routines to changing habits leading to major developments. Role development entails in far reaching consequential changes such as adapting to a new role to suit individual as well as organizational requirements such as changes in work schedules, changes in organizational goals et al. Before seeking to bring about behavioral changes in others, managers must first identify their intra and inter personal skills, which they have or should acquire to be effective in the new role. They are: Intra-personal skills: Self-awareness, self-monitoring and stress-management skills Inter-personal skills: Communication, motivation, team building, conflict management and feedback. Inter-organizational skills: Networking alliances Yukl mentions supporting, developing, recognizing, rewarding and conflict management as essential managerial behavior for "building and maintaining co-operative relationships." These behaviors may have other objectives such as "to influence task motivation and facilitate effective completion of the task." (Yukl 1998, p. 94) Drucker argues that 'managing oneself', essentially begins with making an inventory of individual strengths and asking the question: 'how do I perform'' While it is not possible to change oneself, one can change one's way of working to improve performance. (Drucker 2005) Managers can learn effectiveness by adopting a pro-active approach of not just acquiring knowledge but to putting it to practice and holding themselves accountable for their actions. This involves four stages: understanding why events have occurred the way they did (reflection);... Managers can learn effectiveness by adopting a pro-active approach of not just acquiring knowledge but to putting it to practice and holding themselves accountable for their actions. This involves four stages: understanding why events have occurred the way they did (reflection); thinking about the application of theoretical frameworks to practical situations and their consequences (conceptualization); implementing concepts to influence/motivate behavior (implementation) and evaluation of emotional and informational outcomes of plan implementation (immersion). Kolb’s questionnaire is a useful tool to analyze managerial learning style of these four aspects. The questionnaire has forty questions to be rated on a scale of 1 to 7. Some of the questions read as: â€Å"I often spend time thinking about what I am really trying to achieve†, â€Å"I am often more interested in novel ideas than in those that are practical†and â€Å"I regularly devote time to seeking f eedback on my projects†etc. (Kolb 1985). The answers are then tabulated in ten rows of four columns each starting with answers to questions 1 - 4 in the first row. The questions thus arranged in four vertical columns pertain to ‘reflection’, ‘conceptualization’, ‘implementation’ and ‘immersion.’ Areas in which the manager scores high are his/her strengths and those in which he/she scores less than the mean score obviously need improvement. The objective of mapping self-awareness is to develop the ability to identify and diagnose important differences with others.
Tuesday, July 23, 2019
Role of Technology in Citizens' Social and Economic Development Coursework
Role of Technology in Citizens' Social and Economic Development - Coursework Example Many voluntary organizations have initiated numerous technological projects in rural areas to help improve the living standards of those in rural areas. The result is an increased penetration of technology in these areas. Technology has made tremendous impacts among the rural population, making work easier and improving living standards in many fronts, and despite the deterioration of societal values associated with it, it should be promoted.The penetration of technology in rural areas has come as good news to many rural dwellers. The positive aspects of this penetration are evident. The most conspicuous aspect is the increase in production. Clearly, economies, which have embraced technology, have registered improved productivity. For instance, in the agricultural sector, the use of modern farming techniques and tools has significantly improved the level of output. As opposed to traditional farming practices such as the use of simple tools like hoes, use of tractors, fertilizers, and irrigation have had a tremendous impact on food production, almost assuring food security despite the high population in the society. In offices, automation has played a pivotal role in increased yields (Raj, 2005). Previous manual operations, which consumed a lot of time, have been automated. The emergence of ATMs in the banking sector has allowed clients to transact easily and within less time.Additionally, technology has incorporated rural areas in the global village. Through globalization, the world has become â€Å"one big village†where information is passed and shared almost instantly. Technological inventions continue to reduce the distance between people. The use of emails, social sites such as Facebook and Twitter, phones, tablets, and fax has allowed people to keep in touch as if they are in the same geographical location. News spread faster because of technology. Ideally, it is honest to say that one can make a trip to the entire globe from a remote village withi n seconds courtesy of technology.
Monday, July 22, 2019
Alcohol and Drug Abuse Essay Example for Free
Alcohol and Drug Abuse Essay Alcoholism and drug abuse in the workplace or school can no longer be ignored by employers and institutions as they contribute to poor performances. Excessive use of alcohol and drugs leads to addiction, which is never addressed by most companies leading to a decrease in an employee’s morale. Drug usage and alcoholism may also make an employee behave inappropriately, disrupting a firm’s operations due to too much tension and frustrations. It also affects the relationship between employees and their clients, not forgetting the negative effect it has on the family that ends up changing how a worker performs at his or her place of work. Burroughs explains that, alcoholism causes an employee to miss work due to hangovers, a factor that causes disruptions at the place of work, causing employees to lose a lot of money. Drug abuse and alcohol reduces employee’s ability to concentrate at work, hence the inability to make right decisions. It also causes employees to produce low-quality jobs, lack of motivation and impaired skills. Employees can be laid off from their jobs or face disciplinary actions from their place of work due to alcoholism as most employees can not tolerate poor performance (2003). According to Wells, (2005), employees can assist employees with alcohol and drug addiction in establishing supportive programs such as Employee Assistance Programs. This program will give employees and their family members, referrals to available community resources and activities. Employers can also encourage employees to seek treatment and rehabilitation at the firm’s expense. Recovery will help employees to change as they feel valued by their organization. They will work on changing their behaviors to avoid disappointing the employer. Employees can seek treatment on their own to avoid the risk of losing jobs. In addition, it is important for employees to avoid bad companies that affect their behaviors’ and encourage the use of drugs and alcohol. It is important for employees to associate with non-alcoholics, to help them reduce bad drinking habits. References Walls, J. (2005). ‘The Glass Castle’, 2nd Edition, Scribner: New Jersey. Burroughs, A. (2003). ‘Dry’. 1st edition, St. Martins Press: New York. Source document
Sunday, July 21, 2019
Responses to Genocide: Political and Humanitarian Strategies
Responses to Genocide: Political and Humanitarian Strategies Political expediency and humanitarian imperatives in response to genocide This dissertation examines the humanitarian crisis in the Sudanese region of Darfur during 2003-2004, a situation that has continued through to 2005. Recent reports from the World Food Programme estimate that the violence carried out by the tacitly government-supported militias against the non-Arab civilian population in the region has left 3.5 million people hungry, 2.5 million displaced by the violence and 400, 000 dead. The Darfur crisis has been a humanitarian disaster unseen since the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. It has been a situation that ultimately foreign governments and international organisations have been unable to ignore. Chapter two examines firstly the theoretical questions behind humanitarian intervention. The realist theory of international affairsis at the heart of the debate – realism suggests that states should puttheir own security and self interest before any moral obligation to intervene. Set in the context of Darfur, there was nothing within the individual national interest of other individual states to intervene, yet at some point in the crisis the common assumption moved towards afeeling that intervention on the basis of humanity was required. The Rwandan genocide of 1994 and the international response at the time isused as an example of realism dictating the initial response of theinternational community, only to be overtaken by a more moral based response once the sheer scale of the crisis and human rights abuses became apparent. Chapter three looks at events in Darfur in detail, from the beginnings of the crisis to the current situation. Using media sourcesas well as reports from organisation such as the UN and Human Rights Watch, this chapter summarises the main events of the crisis, with examples of the indiscriminate violence used by the government-backed Janjaweed militias against the civilian population in Darfur. The response of the Sudanese government along with the steps it took to prevent humanitarian intervention are describes, as are the actions, or in many cases, the inaction of sections of the international community.  The actions of the Sudanese Government would appear to be driven by the state centric realism that Webber and Smith term â€Å"acentral driving force for human motivation, namely a quest for power†Chapter Four attempts to analyse events in Darfur against the theoretical frameworks detailed in chapter two. Realist assumptions continue to carry a certain weight in international politics, but there are examples of some more ethical policy making within the international community. The roles of the Sudanese Government, the UN, the US and other Western nations are looked at against theoretical positions. Chapter Five offers some conclusions on the internationalresponse to Darfur. At the heart of any analysis of the international response to thecrisis in Darfur lies the question why should anyone care about Darfur.Whilst theories supporting just wars and humanitarian intervention fromthe likes of Kaldor and Walzer argue that there is a basic humanmorality that requires states that are able to intervene to stop thesuffering of oppressed people, a realist perspective, one thatrepresented the initial international response to Darfur, is that thekey value of national interest is independence and security. It is aquestion that has been at the crux of international relations forcenturies – intervention in the affairs of another sovereign state isan issue that has generated much debate. State sovereignty has long been a fundamental pillar of internationalsociety and non-intervention has ensured that individual states canmaintain their political independence and territorial integrity.International organisations have generally supported this principlewith, for example, Resolution 2131 of the UN General Assembly in 1965stating: â€Å"No state has the right to intervene, directly or indirectly in theinternal or external affairs of any other state. Consequently, armedintervention and all other forms of interference or attempted threatsagainst the personality of the State or against its political,economic, or cultural elements are condemned†. Regional organisationshave taken a similar stance – the Organisation of American Statestotally prohibits direct or indirect intervention in the affairs ofanother state. A wide range of political theory also supports the viewthat sovereignty is all-important and one state should not interfere inthe affairs of another. Nonetheless, international affairs since the establishment of thenation-state have seen intervention by states in the affairs of otherfor a number of reasons. The earliest interventions were for economicand strategic reasons and to secure territorial security – nineteenthcentury European interventions in Africa and Asia to establish coloniesserve as an example of this. In the early twentieth century the USbegan to utilise a different type of intervention, intervening in theaffairs of Central American states such as Nicaragua to encouragedomestic political order, reduce economic corruption and reinforce itsown influence in the region. Such action drew the attention of realistcritics who have influence US foreign policy thinking more recently.Realists have alleged that the adherence to moral principles and thefailure in the past to understand the â€Å"power essence†of interstaterelations has led to unwise and unsuccessful policies , for example tofailed humanitarian int ervention in Somalia. Certainly, the memories ofSomalia will have effected thinking on a political and humanitarianresponse to Darfur. The Cold War saw intervention across the globe by the two superpowerseither to enhance their own strategic security or to advanceideological goals, for example the USSR moving to strengthen communismin Czechoslovakia in 1968 or the US challenging anti-democratic forcesin Grenada in 1983. It is however, humanitarian intervention that is most relevant to thesituation in Darfur, an type of intervention that according to JackDonnelly is foreign intervention that seeks â€Å"to remedy mass andflagrant violations of the basic rights of foreign nationals by theirgovernment†  The failure of states and subsequent abuses of humanrights in the latter stages of the twentieth century have presentedother governments with numerous scenarios where they have to makedecisions as to whether military intervention for humanitarian reasonsis justified. It is a complex issue that poses a number of legal andmoral issues. Amstutz argues that humanitarian intervention presents a legalchallenge to the accepted systems of state sovereignty along with amoral challenge to the right of self-determination. Whilst the demandfor order, justice, stability and human rights may override theseconcerns, politicians are also faced with the decision as to whether,how and when their country should instigate humanitarian intervention.Such interventions can generally be justified if two criteria are met:firstly that humanitarian intervention be in the interests of theintervening state, i.e. that it perceives the human rights abuses inthe foreign state as a general threat to the order, legitimacy andmorality of global society, or as a particular threat to its owneconomic prosperity; secondly that the intervention must be in theinterests of the civilian population of the intervened state and thatthe legal and moral issues around military intervention can bejustified by the overall good that is accomplished. NATO intervent ionin Bosnia can be seen as an example of a situation that met the formercriteria, the situationsin both Rwanda and Darfur would appear to meetthe latter. Michael Walzer who has written extensively on just war theory andintervention argues that humanitarian intervention should be seen asdifferent from instigating a military conflict. As well as the legalistargument against intervention in the affairs of another state, there isalso the difficulty of intervention in a country that has not committedaggression against another state – there is a danger that interveningstates can be seen as portraying the message treat your people the waywe believe you should or be subject to the threat of armed punishment.Walzer nonetheless believes that even if intervention threatens theterritory and political independence of another state, there are timeswhen it can be justified. The onus of proof of justification howeverlies with the leader of the state that intervenes and this can be aheavy burden, â€Å"not only because of the coercions and ravages thatmilitary intervention brings, but also because it is thought that thecitizens of a sovereign state have a right, insofar as they are to becoerced and ravaged at all, to suffer only at one another’s hands†. Arguments that states should, regardless of how they are governed,should be left to deal with own affairs and influenced by the thoughtsof John Stuart Mill who argued from a utilitarian viewpoint stronglyfor the right of a single political community to determine its ownaffairs – whether or not its political arrangements are free is not anissue for other states – members of any political society mustcultivate their own freedom in the way that individuals must cultivatetheir own virtue, self-help rather than intervention from an externalforce must be the way towards a just society. Such arguments do notstand up when applied to some of the systematic and well-documentedhuman rights abuses of the twentieth century – foreign governments makedecisions based on a realist perspective not to intervene, butnon-intervention based on the idea of self-determination is to avoidthe issue and hide behind outdated ideas. There is a point at whichrealism has to be put aside and so me form of moral stance must betaken. For Walzer, there are three situations in which theinternational resistance to boundary crossings can be ignored: 1. when a particular set of boundaries clearly contains two or morepolitical communities, one of which is already engaged in a large-scalemilitary struggle for independence; that is, when what is at issue issecession or ‘national liberation’ 2. when the boundaries have already been crossed by the armies of aforeign power, even if the crossing has been called for by one of theparties in a civil war, that is, when what is at issue iscounter-intervention; and 3. when the violation of human rights within a set of boundaries is soterrible that it makes talk of community or self-determination or‘arduous struggle’ seem cynical or irrelevant, that is, in cases onenslavement or massacre His criteria present a realistic scope for intervention. For all theideas of ethical foreign policies there has to be some realism ininternational relations in that states cannot simply intervene in everydispute between neighbours or outbreaks of political unrest in otherstates. Walzer’s criteria, particular his third, limit interventionwhen serious abuses of human rights appear to be taking place. At thispoint, political expediency and national self-interest should be putaside. Ultimately, Walzer’s thinking lead him towards an ethical theory ofpeace on the basis of sovereignty and other widely accepted states’rights. His values form the basis of a legalist paradigm, which providethe moral and legal structure for maintaining international peace. Hislegal paradigm also outlines the criteria for use of force tointervene. Its six key principles are: 1. An international society of independent states exists; 2. The states comprising the international society have rights,including the rights of territorial integrity and political sovereignty; 3. The use of force or threat of force by one state against another constitutes aggression and is a criminal act; 4. Aggression justifies two types of action: a war of self-defence bythe victim and a war of law enforcement by the victim and any othermembers of the international society; 5. Nothing but aggression justifies war 6. After the aggressor state has been militarily repulsed, it can be punished. Irrespective of the situation in a particular state and the legal ormoral issues around any form of intervention, the realist view ofinternational affairs can lead statesmen to decide againstintervention. Realists from Thucydides, Hobbes and Machiavelli throughto the likes of Kissinger and Waltz remain strictly sceptical aboutmoral concepts within international relations and assume that statesgoing to war or engaging in any form of intervention are more motivatedby power and their own national security than any moral issues. Thephrase â€Å"all’s fair in love and war†is often applied to the realistperspective with Walzer writing â€Å"referring specifically to war,realists believe that it is an intractable part of an anarchical worldsystem, that it ought to be resorted to only if it makes sense in termsof national self-interest† – in effect there are no moralconsideration in regard to military intervention, the human rightsabuses occurring in another state are of little importance to realists,intervention will only be considered if it is considered to beeconomically or strategically of value to the intervening state or itsleaders. This value can be political on occasions. There is littledoubt of the power of modern media to put pressure on politicians. TheUS intervention in Somalia and NATO action in Bosnia were to someextent related to public pressure on politicians to do something aboutscenes being broadcast into the homes of the electorate. Thinking on humanitarian intervention has had to adapt more recently tothe new type of wars that have proliferated across the globe since theend of the Cold War, for example the conflicts in the former Yugoslaviadriven by ancient ethnic hatreds. Certainly with the demise of thestand off between two military superpowers there has been greater scopefor the UN and individual states to become involved in conflictresolution and throughout the 1990s the UN has found itself constantlyinvolved in providing humanitarian aid, establishing safe havens,disarmament and demobilisation operations, monitoring and maintainingceasefires. New wars have involved a blurring of the distinction between war(usually defined as violence between states or organised politicalgroups), organised crime (violence undertaken by privately organisedgroups for private purposes, usually financial gain) and large-scaleviolations of human rights (violence undertaken by states orpolitically organised groups against individual). Some of the ethnichatred that has fuelled new wars has in particular led to terriblehuman rights abuses; events that put moral pressure on others states toconsider intervention. Mary Kaldor suggests that there are two types ofresponse to new wars – one is to draw on the old war idea of the nationstate and look for solutions along the lines of intervention and peacekeeping whilst the other response is a more negative and fatalisticoutlook: â€Å"because the wars cannot be understood in traditional terms,they are thought to represent a reversion to primitivism or anarchy andthe most that can be done there fore is to ameliorate the symptoms. Inother words, wars are treated as natural disasters.†Kaldor’s view rightly challenge the realist assumption that statesshould not involve themselves in humanitarian intervention unless thereis some advantage to be gained in a self-interested pursuit of power.What is required is a more political response to new wars and theattacks on human rights that accompany them. The internationalcommunity should be looking towards politics of inclusion that capturethe hearts and minds of protagonists and any such politicalmobilisation should override traditional geopolitics or short termdomestic concerns. This type of thinking moves closer to a type ofneo-realism which places more of an emphasis on the structural featuresof the international system and avoids the stress on the often anarchicstriving for power that reflects traditional realism. The drawback tothe neo realist approach is that its reliance on the determining impactof the structure of the international system allow policy makersrelatively little discretion. This can be seen to some extent in Darfuras representative from various states struggled to find a solution tothe crisis that met with consensus. There have of course been embarrassments for individual states andinternational organisations with attempts at humanitarian interventionin the 1990s, setbacks that will give weight to realist theory thatsovereign states should on the whole be left well alone. Kaldorconcludes that humanitarian intervention has had mixed success: â€Å"at best, people have been fed and fragile ceasefires have beenagreed†¦.at worst the UN has been shamed and humiliated, as, forexample, when it failed to prevent genocide in Rwanda, when theso-called safe haven of Srebrenica was overrun by Bosnian Serbs, orwhen the hunt for the Somali warlord Aideed ended in a mixture of farceand tragedy†. Nonetheless, the arguments for humanitarian intervention remain strong.Darfur is as good an example as any for this. As Orend writes â€Å"whyshould foreign states, which themselves respect human rights, be barredin principle from intervening in such illegitimate regimes?† Rwanda in particular serves as an example of both foreign states andinternational organisations initially taking a realist stance only toeventually to be spurred into action by the sheer scale of the genocidetaking place. In France’s case, the links between the powerful elitesin the two countries had long been established – not only had Francelong supported the Hutu regime but Francois Mitterand and RwandanPresident Habyarimana were personal friends, whilst their sons, JeanChristopher and Jean-Pierre were also friends and business associates.The two countries had mutual economic interests and there is evidencethat Jean Christopher was one of France’s biggest arms dealers to Rwanda. The French response to the developing crisis, when it came, was farfrom glorious. Rather than intervene to provide further killings itdecided to pull out its troops. In the previous week, the first of thegenocide they had evacuated as many as 1361 people including 450 Frenchnationals and 178 Rwandan officials and their families. No otherRwandan nationals were evacuated, not even Tutsi personnel from theFrench embassy or well-known opponents of the regime who had alreadybeen targeted by the militia. The role of the United Nations mission (UNAMIR) has receivedconsiderable criticism in analyses of the genocide. The UN had its owninternal politics to contend with and its policies on Rwanda were inturn determined to some extent by realist self-interest. As anorganisation it was largely reliant on the support of its most powerfulmembers on the Security Council. These nations, mindful of thedisastrous US intervention in Somalia were wary of investing troops andfinances into another African conflict. Realism came to the forefrontof the early decision making process. Human Rights Watch, in additionto criticism of the UN for not taking heed of Dallaire’s warnings, isalso critical of the scale of the mandate itself. It describes thedetails of the mandate as follows: â€Å"Not only was the UN slow, it was also stingy. The United States, whichwas assessed 31 per cent of UN peacekeeping costs, had suffered fromthe enormous 370 per cent increase in peacekeeping expenses from 1992to 1993 and was in the process of reviewing its policy on such operations. Quite simply the UN was not equipped to keep the peace in Rwanda.Members on its influential Security Council did not have the politicalwill to get involved, nor were they willing to take on the financialburden. The US and the UK, although less involved in Rwanda thanFrance, were similarly guilty of happily ignoring warnings of possiblegenocide and working towards the maintenance of the status quo. Bothhad sold arms to the Hutu regime and had trading links with Rwanda.Both also had little desire to see their own troops caught up as partof an UN force in Rwanda. The theory of non-intervention, as opposed torealism is another view that opposes humanitarian intervention. The keyassumptions and values for this concept are †¢Ã‚ the existing anarchic international system is morally legitimate †¢Ã‚ peoples have a right to political self-determination †¢Ã‚ states have a juridical right to sovereignty and territorial integrity †¢Ã‚ states have an obligation to resolve conflicts peacefully †¢Ã‚ force is a illegitimate instrument for altering the existing territorial boundaries Non –intervention theory argues in favour of an internationallegitimacy of states in which existing states are entitled to autonomyand domestic legitimacy which assumes that states are entitled torespect and support when they fulfil their core obligations as states.In terms of domestic legitimacy, in the light of the fact that thereare wide disparities in conceptions of human rights, this canessentially be interpreted that whether a state is entitled tonon-intervention depends largely on its subject’s approval of theregime itself. The counter-arguments of realism and moral intervention continue toplay a major role in international politics and are likely to continueto do so. It is a sad fact that the list of oppressive governments andmassacred populations is lengthy. Walzer points out that for every Naziholocaust or Rwanda there will be a number of smaller examples ofinjustice and abuse – so many that the international community cannothope to deal with. On a small scale at least, Walzer’s suggestion thatâ€Å"states don’t send their soldiers into other states, it seems, only tosave lives. The lives of foreigners don’t weigh that heavily in thescales of domestic decision-making† rings true – humanitarianintervention in smaller-scale situations is simply not realistic. Agreater test for the moral resolve of NGOs and wealthier nations istheir response in the face of large-scale humanitarian disasters andhuman rights abuses, again using Walzer’s words, when deal ing with actsâ€Å"that shock the moral conscience of mankind†. Ethical questions around the issues of international moral obligationstowards nations suffering from oppressive regimes and human rightsabuses are not easily resolved. Whilst humanitarian aid or interventionis generally seen as a morally correct route of action, politicalexpediency quite often takes precedence. Whilst it is generallyaccepted that, as Grotius believed, war ought not to be undertakenexcept for the enforcement of right and when once undertaken it shouldbe carried on within the bounds of law and good faith,  national selfinterest does not always allow for a strategy led by such moralincentives. In Darfur, the action of the Khartoum Government couldcertainly not be described as driven by moral incentives whilstelsewhere early responses to the crisis were driven by politicalexpediency Major states have to ask themselves which moral valuesshould influence their foreign policies and which international valueis more important – sovereignty or human r ights? The answer should behuman rights, yet there is a fine line between using these values froma moral perspective or manipulating them into a realist opportunity toindulge the national interest with intervention elsewhere. There areother difficult questions – do human rights violations justify foreignintervention and at what scale? Does international political moralityrequire the removal of illegal military regimes and the restoration ofdemocracy? There are countless regimes around the world to which theworld might turn its attention and ask itself these questions. For themost part, small conflicts and small-scale abuse of human rights are,rightly or wrongly, ignored. The situation in Darfur from 2003 onwardshowever gave the international community a scenario that it could notignore. The world had to make decisions upon hundreds of thousands oflives would rest. Chapter Three – The crisis in Darfur The current situation in Darfur can be traced back to February 2003when fighters from the Sudanese Liberation Movement (SLM) and theJustice and Equality Movement (JEM) launched joints attacks againstgovernment garrisons in protest at what they saw as decades ofpolitical oppression and economic neglect by the Sudanese government.The attacks came at the same time that there had been high hopes of apeace settlement to the war in southern Sudan that had been ongoingbetween the government and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army(SPLM/A) since independence in 1965. The government’s response was unequivocal. Citing the rebels as anaggressive force against the state it set out to crush the rebellion byforce and utilised the powerful force of Arab Janjaweed militias toattack not particularly rebel soldiers but the civilian populationsfrom where the rebels would have originated. The government expectedto crush the revolt, partly as it had done so in 1991 when a SPLA unitinfiltrated Darfur, and partly as it expected a lack on internationalinterest as Darfur was an internal Northern Sudanese issue with noChristian population and no oil interests involved. Khartoum –ledmilitary activity in late 2003 to early 2004 was brutal (â€Å"acounter-insurgency of extraordinary ferocity†) and carried out whilstthe government prevented any humanitarian aid reaching the civilianpopulation. It was an action led by political expediency withabsolutely no regard for the human rights of an innocent civilianpopulation. Hugo Slim describes th e military action as completelydisproportionate to the targeted guerrilla warfare of the two Darfurinsurgent groups and states that â€Å"systematic and widespread governmentand Janjaweed assaults on civilians, their villages, theirinfrastructure and their livelihoods along with forced displacement andland-grabbing, intended to make it impossible for the terrorised andevicted populations to return. As this went on, the Government alsoenforced what was almost a complete ban on humanitarian aid accessingthe country between October 2003 and February 2004. Early talks on the crisis saw the Khartoum Government deliberatelystonewall on major issues. It objected to upgrading the small AUobserver force from 300 to 3500,with an increase in its mandate toinclude protecting civilians, and was then forced to accept thismeasure by the UN Security Council. It was a realist approach – lookingsolely after its own interests and using delay in an internationalresponse to move along with its aim to displace the population ofDrafur. Government and Janjaweed Cooperation There is little realdoubt that the government has worked closely with the Janjaweedmilitias. Human Rights Watch (HRW) investigations concluded thatgovernment forces and militia troops have taken part in massacres andsummary executions of civilians, burnings of towns and villages andforcible depopulation of areas across Darfur. †We are the government†has been a common response of Janjaweed at checkpoints and whenentering villages and HRW reports that â€Å"the government and itsJanjaweed allies have killed thousands of Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa –often in cold blood, raped women and destroyed villages, food stocksand other supplies essential to the civilian population.†. In the early stages of the conflict, the Sudanese government barelyattempted to conceal its close working with the Janjaweed. Mans writesthat â€Å"the Janjaweed militias are said to be of largely Chadian originand finance themselves through plunder and pillage, reportedly enjoyingimplicit support from the Government in Khartoum.†But this isunderstating the relationship between the two. In April 2004, theSudanese Foreign Minister, Mustafa Osman Ismail, admitted a commoncause with the Janjaweed stating â€Å"the government may have turned ablind eye to the militias†¦This is true. Because these militia aretargeting the rebellion.† President Bashir also had spoken on 31December 2003 of the government’s determination to defeat the SLArebellions and warned darkly that â€Å"the horsemen†would be one of theweapons it would use. There is other clear evidence of well established links between thegovernment and Janjaweed leaders. Many of the militia leaders areestablished emirs or omdas from Arab tribes who have previously workedin government. For example, Abdullah abu Shineibat, an emir of the BeniHalba tribe is a Janjaweed leader in the Habila-Murnei area, whilstOmar Saef, an omda of the Awlad Zeid tribe is leader of the Janjaweedfrom Geineina to Misterei. Other evidence pointed to a similarconclusion of complicity between government and militia: Janjaweedbrigades were organised along army lines with forces wearing similaruniforms and officers using the same stripes; militia forces used thesame land cruisers and satellite phones as army personnel and there isevidence that Janjaweed members were given assurances that they wouldnot face local prosecution for crimes, with police forces beinginstructed to leave them alone. Again, the prevailing issue here ispolitical expediency overcoming any possible humani tarian response.Both the Government and Janjaweed had interests in devastating Darfur –there was political gain for the Government and financial gain for theJanjaweed. Both took the realist option of looking after themselves. Government and Militia forces attack civilians One of the mostnotable traits of the crisis in Darfur has been the fact that bothgovernment and militia forces have largely ignored rebel forces,preferring to use their weapons against the civilian population inareas that rebels may have originated from. HRW investigationsuncovered 14 incidents in Dar Masalit alone between September 2003 andFebruary 2004 in which 770 civilians were killed. It also gatheredwitness testimony to mass executions in the Fur areas of Wadi Salihprovince over the same period. Aerial bombardment of civilians has also been commonplace. The SudaneseGovernment has made extensive use of attack aircraft, dropping bombsloaded with metal shards to cause maximum injury and also utilisinghelicopter gun ships and MiG jet fighters. Bombing has also beendeliberately targeted at villages and towns where displaced citizenshave gathered – for example on August 27 2003, aircraft carried out anattack on the town of Habila which was packed with displaced civiliansfrom surrounding areas. 24 were killed. Government and Janjaweed forces have also systematically attacked anddestroyed villages, food stocks, water sources and other essentialitems essential for the survival of villages in West Darfur. Refugeesin Chad have confirmed a sweep south east of Geneeina in February 2004saw the destruction of a number of villages including Nouri, Chakoke,Urbe, Jabun and Jedida. The International Response The international response to the situation in Darfur has been mixed,characterised by a willingness to condemn the Sudanese Governmentalongside a dragging of heels in actually intervening to stop what theUS Government has labelled genocide. Alex De Waal suggests thatpolitical repercussions for the Sudanese Government were gravewriting: â€Å"International attention and condemnation exceeded allexpectations, culminating in Darfur being brought before the UnitedNations Security Council in July 2004†This analysis however fails tomention the scale of the crisis in the preceding months and suggests amore positive and effective response by the international communitythan was actually the case.. The international community may eventuallyhave come around to taking Darfur seriously – but much later than wasrequired. As Hugo Slim concludes: â€Å"the international community has notdenied, but it has delayed and dithered. Once engaged it fumbled andtook far too long to achie ve a united and sufficiently assertiveresponse.† There was a notable reluctance from the UN in particular to use theword genocide in relation to Darfur, a similar pattern to that had beenfollowed in Rwanda a decade earlier. It was in fact US Secretary ofState Powell that announced on September 9th 2004 that the USgo
Links Between Language and Culture
Links Between Language and Culture The objective of my research My research is based on understanding about how culture is linked to language and verse-visa. This topic wonders me sometimes; I was unable to get a better understanding. I know it is very confusing, hard to understand as people always argue about it and limited of resources to actually find out about the truth. There are too many researchers giving different interpretation and perceptions about language and culture. I am very curious and interested in giving my own opinion and do some research of what has been described liked before. I hope that my reader will have bigger picture. The context of my article is as follows: Jump to: The differences between language and culture How language and culture connects with each other? How language interacts with culture? How language interacts with context? How words are extracted from culture? How phrases are extracted from culture? (example of the Mayas)(Chinese words or characters) Why culture and language is important? Biography The difference between language and culture Language is a form of communication that is used by human beings and animals. Through this communication, is used through either none and verbal communication. Studying just language can be classify as phonology and grammar where phonology represents sounds which has different sets of phonemes that makes understand and learn the proper pronunciation. Grammar can further be categorized as morphology which combing sounds and morphemes are sounds combined in larger units used in making a normal speech. Non communication is another type of communication that includes facial expressions, tone of voice, sense of smell, sense of touch, and body motions. Language is always argued but it is said that language is a component of culture because much of the rest of it normally transmitted orally. Its impossible to understand the subtle nuances and deep meaning of another culture without knowing its language well. Culture gives the perceptions of identification within a society, where we are identifying individually or group. Language influences our culture and the way how we think as most people say that language is part of our culture because its the way how we used and see it within our environment, therefore its the way how we interpret it because anthropologies found out that it depends how people identify or categorize things in the environment and that provides important insights into the interests, concerns, and values of their culture. It influence our language because from since we were born, we have our first language, the language we are the language we were thought this comes from our parents generation, therefore our native language is part of our identity and which tells us more about our culture. Like for example, in Belize, there are three kinds of Mayas existing, namely Mopan, Kekchi, and the Yucate, but the big question always rose as to how we differentiate ourselves. We identify ourselves by the language we speak, the culture we are living, our beliefs, although some things are simila r but we have different approaches of doing things. Language is all about culture and culture is all about language, because this is main basic product of human, then human uses language to communicate with this then commutation brings the culture to the society. For example as mentioned culture is a product of language and language is a product of culture therefore these interpretation how the world see language and culture and to assume culture is to know a culture is knowing a language. Its not necessarily that one should know a culture or must know the culture, in my personal opinion it there must be something that should be known, because this relates each other. For example, I am in Taiwan studying, I do know little about their language, and little about their culture which fits to know the reality about the people and the environment. While others do know about the culture but know a little or none about the language. Nevertheless with further research I found out about an article published in 1990 by the world declaration on education for all (WDEFA) mentioning literacy in the mother tongue strengthens cultural identity and heritage. Based on my understanding, since language relates to each other, any mother tongue language spoken should be maintained so keep up the culture meaning that that language should be readable and writable. Comparing and looking at the history of the Mayas, the most interesting part of Maya is there writing systems, like their pictograph the picture images with universal meaning, ideographic-picture image with arbitrary meanings, logograph which is the units in writing representing whole words, syllable units represent syllables and alphabet units representing sounds that are How language and culture connects with each other? Language and culture are connected in several other intricate and dynamic ways. The language is a product of culture and simultaneously the culture is shaped by how the language allows us to view it. In any kind of language things are view differently but it must orient in a friendly manner. The background of most inhabitants of a culture are similar because we centuries ago we tend to hear the same stories that were said. Language connects culture in many ways, through changing the needs and trends in culture, For example words and expressions maybe needed to express concept that are been discovered or even been invented. These discovery or inventions are used in everyday life. Since culture describes the way live and think while language shows the way we speak and express ourselves becomes changeable from time to time and places, for example, there are some words that described or distinguish people living in rural or urban areas. On the other hand some words used mean the opposite in different places; both can have a positive or negative point of view so there particularly these happen due to changes in culture. How language interacts with context? Context is a notion used in the language science (linguistics, sociolinguistics, discourse analaysisi, pragmatics, semiotics) in two different ways namely as verbal and social context Verbal context referes to surrounding text or talk of an expression(word sentence conversational turn, speech act ext) influences the way we understand the expression Social context were defined in terms of objective social variables such as those of class gebder or race more rescently, tend to be defined interms of social indentity being construed and displayes in text and talk by languages uses Language interacting with context form are extremely difficult to delineate because sometimes things are hard to differentiate especially when deciding whether certain things belongs to a culture and also when making decision The context of culture is language socialization, ths merges ti the communication practices with the context of culture. Studying the language perspective is the pursuit of cultural underpinning thea give meaning to the communication interaction between expert and novice member within and cross contexts of situation. Researchers theorize about culture within different theoretical frameworks, looking culture to which includes bodies of knowledge, structures and of understanding, concepts of the world, and collective representation which are extrinsic to any individual and contain more information that any individual could know or learn. How words are extracted from culture? Extracting words from culture are the most difficult to describe because culture concentrates from various aspects of human life and history. An example of words extracted from culture is tequila as that is essence of Mexico which symbolizes its culture. The other article that I had read is about the Chinese folk model of facial expressions which was analyzed at linguistic perspective view. This research was provides how facial expression are perceived and interpreted by people in the Chinese language. Also the findings are about how facial is encoded from culture view of perceptions and conceptions of a face which are not commonly reflects in the English language Let me continue about how the Mayas got their words. The Mayas spoke many languages as well and the languages are transcribed via hieroglyphs and other written on substances. They painted their words on bark paper that has disintegrated, while just two were presumed to be prestigious forms of the Maya language which were said to be from southern area and one from the Yucatan peninsula, Epigraphy, which means writing on something, refers to writing on an enduring substance like stone. As such, it was impressed, inscribed, or chiseled rather than written with the stylus or reed pen applied to ordinarily decaying media like paper and papyrus. Common topics of epigraphy include epitaphs, dedications, honors, laws, and magisterial registers The Rosetta Stone, which is housed in the British Museum, is a black, possibly basalt slab with three languages on it (Greek, demotic and hieroglyphs) each saying the same thing. Because the words are translated into the other languages, the Rosetta Stone provided a key to understanding Egyptian hieroglyphs As the origins of the Maya languages are rose in the western hemisphere from three major families, then splitted into dialects, as the time changes, the languages were changing too and became distinct. There were words, vocabulary that reflects importance things in every culture, most of the time one word can having different meanings in different cultures. The language structure of the mayas sounds similar, while the features difference in meanings based on sounds namely pitch of vowels, glottalization of consonants, glottal stop. The history studied mention that when the Spanish developed the roman alphabet for the maya language they ignored glottal and tone distinctions. The maya language is considered to be polysynthetic referring to one complex word expressed many ideas and the word order are structured as verb-object-subject or verb subject. There is no femine and masculine pronouns but prefixes signal the genders for example naixil Few researchers like Woodbury view the purpose of languages that its linked to essential cultural content. He first described what can be transmitted and interpreted by the native speaker is more complete than if another language is used to convey the same message. For example the use of directional in Man and other Mayan languages is a linguistic trait which conveys and decisive meanings besides the idea of direction. These speakers can communicate and comprehend the metaphorical ideas that are added to messages. Secondly he describe that if a group of people loses their native language, their cultural heritage is also lost. Another example will be some of the Chinese words linking to Chinese culture and beliefs. Like for example a wedding cards that are designed, it is design in a traditional that refers to good blessing, a drawing or a word written or a Chinese character ?on the card signifies blessing, unlimited fortune and happiness. Chinese characters usually have one or more meanings and some of them are particularly loved by Chinese people. Here is the top ten list of the lucky ones. Fu Blessing, Good Fortune, Good Luck Fu is one of the most popular Chinese characters used in Chinese New Year. It is often posted upside down on the front door of a house or an apartment. The upside down fu means good luck came since the character for upsite down in Chinese sounds the same as the character for came. Lu Prosperity It used to mean officials salary in feudal China. Fengshui is believed to be the Chinese way to health, wealth and happiness. If you are interested in Fengshui, you may check out the book The Feng Shui Kit. Shou Longevity Shou also means life, age or birthday. Xi Happiness Double happiness is usually posted everywhere on Chinese weddings. Cai wealth, money Chinese often say money can make a ghost turn a millstone. It is to say money really can do a lot of things. He harmonious People harmony is an important part of Chinese culture. When you have harmonious relations with others, things will be a lot easier for you. Ai love, affection Dont need to say any more about this one. Just want to point out ai is often used with mianzi together. Aimianzi means be concerned about ones face-saving. Mei beautiful, pretty The United States of American is called Mei Guo in the short form. Guo means country so Meiguo is a good name. Ji lucky, auspicious, propitious Hope all is well. De virtue, moral De means virtue, moral, heart, mind, and kindness, etc. It is also used in the name for Germany, i.e., De Guo. How phrases are extracted from culture? Phrases are extracted from culture that express or expand imagination of a reader and a listener Why culture and language is important? Culture is so important because these practices can continue to be passing on to generations to generation and younger generation will be able to see and read about what had existed long ago. This refers to practices of beliefs, religion, lifestyle, or traditions and festivals and this is what makes a community representing culture. Any culture represents the principle of an individuals life because it is so unique for this counts the attitudes, personality, and other behavior characteristics. While language is main tool used every day, be it different dialect, it still makes us survive. This is the only we can communicate or spread ideas from one to another. Therefore language make us identify ourselves of who we are and while culture describe what we do. Language and culture is so important when doing business, presently in most parts of the world things are quite good because they interact with each other and by being successful each country needs to understand the different languages and most of all needs to know the general background of a countrys culture. The main advantage of being able to speak another language is that it allows easy communication among each other. Therefore learning another language gives us deeper understand of the culture, gives sensitivity to have us maintain strong relationships. Biography I am the second child of Mr. and Mrs. Cresencio Cho Sr. born on September 11 in a lovely village named San Antonio Village, Toledo District, Belize. My primary school days were great; I enjoyed it a lot and earned few awards. My secondary education was quite challenging but I still made it through with the help of my parents. After completing my high school, I began working as receptionist at a resort, cashier at the one of the high schools cafeteria in southern Belize, then became interested in teaching, did three years of elementary teaching under the Catholic mission, then decide to change my career. I apply for a scholarship with the international cooperation development fund of Taiwan and I was fortunate to receive it, and thats how I came to Taiwan, Presently, I am a senior student, majoring in business administration. My hobbies are cooking, chatting, singing, listening to music, and sewing, meeting new friends. I love travelling, since 3 years living in Taiwan, I love the country, environment, the convenience it has and of course the people who are always welcoming. I became interested in taking this class with professor Blundell, language and culture, I really enjoyed the content of the class, especially in sharing his experience, this motivate me that I want to experience the same if I get the opportunity although my major is business. I mostly enjoyed the outing arrangement, visiting the museum, this make the class more interesting getting to know more about Taiwans culture especially to learn about the indigenous people. Learning about the indigenous people of Taiwan makes me compare my cultural background, I belong to the indigenous group of my country Belize known as the Mayas, particularly I belong to the Mopan Maya group, Belize has three types of Mayas, the Mopan, the Ketchi, the Yucate. From what I observe and learn, we do have some similarities in our lifestyles. The only difference is the way how live, because like for example, ancestral objects can still be seen, the offerings, the beliefs, This class is very beneficial, if theres another similar course as this one, I will be more than interested to learn more. I am willing to share my knowledge based on what I have seen, I have heard what I have learned, what I personally experience being here for four years.
Saturday, July 20, 2019
Sports History and Sports Halls of Fame :: Sports
Sports History and Sports Halls of Fame Below are websites dealing with sports history, particularly those halls of fame which exist. In the dead of winter, many people's interest turn to sports, and the nominees and inductees are announced for many halls, including professional baseball and professional football. Professional Baseball Hall of Fame http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/ This website discusses the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. The site combines baseball history and the Hall of Fame itself. The rotating exhibits at the museum are prominently featured, along with the members of the Hall. The site also discusses the rules for induction. Among the items available for the Hall of Fame members are their lifetime statistics, their biographies, pictures of their plaques, and desktop wallpaper. For those interested in analyzing the history of baseball elections, the results of the past votes are available. An online catalog of the museum's holdings is accessible here. The baseball history here is good, if sometimes not overly evaluative. The exhibits at the museum are also portrayed, and among the current exhibits are one on Ichiro Suzuki and another on Sports Illustrated. Information about visits is here as well. Basketball Hall of Fame http://www.hoophall.com/ This hall of fame (located in Springfield, Massachusetts), unlike baseball and football's hall of fames, represents all of basketball in one hall. (The other halls have separate halls for college and professional). Among the items on the site are information about the Hall of Famers, running from James Naismith, who invented basketball, to Medowlark Lemon, to Phog Allen, to Lynette Woodward. Five whole teams are also honored as members, including the Harlem Globetrotters, the New York Rens and the Buffalo Germans. Three people, Lenny Wilkens, Bill Sharman and John Wooden, are honored both as players and as coaches. The history here, outside of the hall, is generally good if not extensive and includes interesting sections on the original rules of basketball and the story of how the Hall of Fame was founded. Pro Football Hall of Fame http://www.profootballhof.com/ This hall of fame, located in Canton, Ohio, honors the game of pro football. The site includes information about visiting the hall, the history of the hall, and the hall of famers. Like most other halls, it lists the inductees, provides short biographies of them, and details the induction process. Information about this year's class is featured prominently, as the finalists were just announced. History of the NFL is provided, although it is not featured prominently.
Friday, July 19, 2019
China Essays -- essays research papers
â€Å"Government in China: three perspectives†In the Ming period of government in China, it is evident that the characteristics and learning of the emperor are essential to the essence of good government. Under the Confucian system, it was vital to conform to the strict hierarchical structure of the social and political codes which formed the foundation of the system: therefore, the basis of good government was something which permeated all levels of society but was ultimately inspired by, and dictated by, the higher levels of the power structure and ultimately the emperor. Within the hierarchy, there were certain aspects of rights and responsibilities which could not be transcended and which ensured that each member of society retained their appropriate place within the overall structure. There would invariably be those above, to whom one owed deference and respect, and those below, to whom one owed protection. No-one was isolated, but rather seen as an integral part of a network which could only function successfully if everyone played exactly the role which was allotted to them, and did not attempt to transcend their designated status. The concept of government, therefore, was something which was dictated from the top of the power structure but permeated to all its levels. Government of the country, of a province, of a household, were all aspects of the same strictly enforced social order and each level could be seen as reflecting the pattern of the one above. However, according to Confucian practices it was not sufficient to understand good practice and to put it into effect, it was also essential to demonstrate to others that the individual was aware of their particular place in the social and political hierarchy. There was therefore a heavy reliance on custom and ritual, which affected every aspect of everyday life and acted as a constant reiteration of the dictates of the hierarchy. To carry out these rituals not only reinforced one’s social standing, both to oneself and to others, but also showed that the lower orders of the social structure maintained their faith in, and obedience to, the higher orders. In this way not only could the government be maintained, its efficiency could be seen to be exemplified at all levels of the social and cultural hierarchy. This strictly codified and rigidly enforced system, however, was at least to some extent de... ...hose who are at the top of the hierarchy and disseminate their virtues to those below. If this system breaks down, becomes corrupt or deteriorates into a faà §ade, then only the outward trappings of order remain, in the practices of ritual: there is no inner core of wisdom and sagacity of which these practices should be the outward representation. Government may continue to function, but it is no longer motivated by the virtues and philosophies which originally motivated it, and the continuation of custom and ritual loses its meaning and significance. We see this in ‘Woman Wang’, for example, in the way that marriage is perceived: the Confucian ideal in which the man is superior, but has a responsibility to respect and protect the woman, has gone and in its place is an abusive relationship where the power remains, but the impetus to protect is gone. Wang is still confined by custom to her marriage, but it is no longer the enlightened hierarchy of Confucianism but the darker control relationship of a patriarchy. References Huang, R. (1986) 1587: a year of no significance. Yale University Press. Kuhn, P. (1990) Soulstealers. Harvard. Spence, J. (1978) Death of Woman Wang. Penguin.
Female Stereotypes and Stereotyping in The Big Sleep Essay -- sleep
Female Stereotypes and Stereotyping in The Big Sleep    "Small and delicately put together . . ." (5). "Tall and rangy, strong looking . . ." (17). Chandler's descriptions of Carmen and Vivian, respectively, highlight his use or misuse of the typical female stereotypes in, The Big Sleep. From the initial physical description that Chandler gives, the reader can quickly see that the women are complete opposites. Carmen lacks color and does not appear to be healthy while Vivian is "worth a stare" (17). Carmen has sharp predatory teeth while Vivian has, "hot black eyes" (17). Chandler characterizes Carmen as the petite, helpless female who needs protection. Vivian, on the other hand, is a physically impressive, powerful woman. The importance of the physical appearance of the women dwindles as the book progresses. It becomes clear that Chandler wrote a misogynistic novel as the mental abilities of the women become the focal point. Both women are cunning. Carmen, on the other hand, is "baby-like," (5). As Chandler reveals more about Carmen, we find that Carmen is a child trapped in a woman's body. When Marlowe finds Carmen naked in his bed, he addresses her like a child. In an effort to get her dressed, he asks, "Now will you dress like a nice little girl" (155). She reacts like a naughty child and refuses to get dressed until he threatens to throw her out on the street. Marlowe's contempt for Carmen is grounded in the fact that she is a woman who is able to manipulate him. Carmen knows what she wants and she does not know how to handle rejection. Vivian is characterized as a smart, sly, but not necessarily noble woman. In the end, it appears that Marlowe respects, but does not care for her. She is a... ...y simple words to describe Vivian, such as beautiful, long, and slim. The metaphor that he uses to describe her legs is amazing. He said that her legs and ankles had, "enough melodic line for a tone poem" (17). After all of the simple words, this metaphor is extremely effective. Chandler used enough descriptive words that even a person who had never seen a tone poem would understand a metaphor. Playing with descriptions of characters is the way that Chandler fits them into stereotypical roles as women who should be feared. Carmen is crazy and Vivian is a seductress who has the same mental abilities as Marlowe. His descriptions of the characters are detailed and they tell the reader just enough to allow her to fit the character into an inappropriate stereotypical group. Work Cited Chandler, Raymond. The Big Sleep. New York: Vintage Books, 1996.
Thursday, July 18, 2019
La Belle Sans Merci: A Ballad
Keats belonged to the genre of the Romantics. He penned the poem ‘La Belle Sans Merci’ in the year 1819. Being a Nature poet, a tinge of pathos and the delightful re-creative power of Mother Nature weave through all his poems. John Keats seems to have experimented for the first time with the Ballad form of poem and this explains the reason of the Leigh Hunt, in 1819 to publish the poem with slight modifications (Friedlander, 2005), though the original seems to have an irresistible appeal to many readers.This essay shall retain the original version for the purpose of analyses, and try to explore the different dimensions of literary aspects like the ‘ballad’, alliterations, metaphors similes, characterizations; and finally, the beauty of the ballad which the poet has tried to paint. The Theme: Is about an unknown person, assumed to be the poet, meets a knight, who is almost in his death- bed.The pitiable condition of the knight who was â€Å"alone and palely loitering†(line 2) makes the poet wonder as to what may have made the knight to â€Å"ail†(line 1) so badly, that he looked â€Å"haggard and woebegone†, â€Å"pale†as a lily and the healthy â€Å"rose†(line 11) color in his cheeks fast fading. The knight then narrates his sad tale of pleasure and pain, as though in half dream to the poet. In the ‘Meadows†there, the Knight meets with an attractive young women†, whom he addresses as â€Å"Full beautiful – a faery's child, Her hair was long, her foot was light, (line14-16).To the reader, it seems as if the â€Å"Belle†with her â€Å"long hair and wild eyes†bewitches him; though she seems to reciprocate his fascination too, with her â€Å"looked at me as she did love, And made sweet moan†(lines 19-20). The knight seats her on top of his horse and walks by her side and they go to her â€Å"elfin grot†(line 29) – grotto, she sings and declares her love for him â€Å"sure in language strange she said – I love thee true†(line 27-28). His (the knight’s) desire for her is so complete and deep that he â€Å"kisses†her â€Å"wild eyes shut†even though he is unsure of her language and they put each other to sleep.The dream in the sleep seems to be a warning, to the knight. Though the knight elucidates his dream, he makes it clear that he longs for her; despite the premonition in his dreams, in which the likes of kings and princes warn him that she was an imposter of death, â€Å"They cried – ‘La Belle Dame sans Merci’ Hath thee in thrall! †(34-35). Furthermore, even in his dream the condition of the others who have been the victims of her wily responses, shock the knight. Indeed the Knight seems to wake from his dream only to find that his â€Å"Belle Dame†gone and she probably never was, a reality.A similar idea is portrayed by the poet in his poe m â€Å"Ode to a Nightingale†too, in the last two lines wherein the poet says Was it a vision or a waking dream? Fled is that music; – do I wake or sleep? (John Keats) Literary Analyses: The poetic form used here is the â€Å"Ballad†– is a small narrative poem, that sings of dramatic actions or legends of love, death, betrayal, courage or all the above, just as here it is the fatal love that the knight and all her predecessors felt for the unearthly woman.Two distinctive features of a ballad – the incremental repetition and stanza, mark this poem. ‘Incremental repetition’ is the occurrence of one or more lines again and again, with minor changes simultaneously advancing the story; ex. the first two line of this poem: â€Å"O WHAT can ail thee, knight-at-arms, Alone and palely loitering? †occur repeatedly in the second and the last stanzas, respectively. The ballad stanza is generally of four lines. The first alternate lines c ontain four accents, the second alternate – usually the second and fourth lines contain three accents.Keats being a Nature poet has utilized skillfully the art of rhyme and repetition, to impress upon the reader the mood and the darkness of the setting; for example in the second stanza, second line, the words â€Å"So haggard and so woe-begone? †and (line 17) in the fifth stanza, â€Å"a garland for her head,†etc. The musical quality of the ballad is enhanced by the fact that Keats deploys the similar rhyme-endings in the second alternate lines that is the second line and the last line.For example, in Stanza VI of the poem, the second and the last line rhyme thus: â€Å"And nothing else saw all day long, †¦.. A faery’s song†(lines 22-24). As regards the charaterization part of it, there are three principle characters in the poem; one is the poet or the anonymous speaker who during the course of his â€Å"sojourn†, comes to the place wherein he meets the knight who is quite restless. The poet’s wonderment at the once-active knight and his account of the lady or the â€Å"Belle Dame†is well documented.The second character is that of the knight himself and his narration starts form the fourth stanza onwards. His amazement at the sudden appearance of the woman, her eyes, her incomprehensible language, and his craving for the woman, despite the negative connotation of the dream all carry elements of an intrigue to the reader. The third character is the woman, and she is a sort of mythical. Keats seems to put a question mark in the minds of the reader with this subtle references to the ‘elf’’ and the â€Å"faery’s child†etc.And he loved her, kidded her, knowing fully well that there is a strange and undiscovered part in her. In fact, it seems as if the poet enjoys her unearthly trait, and also knowing that it was temporary. There is the inherent and subtle reference t o Nature in lines like these: â€Å"The squirrel’s granary is full, And the harvest’s done. I see a lily on thy brow, with anguish moist and fever dew†(lines 7-10). Here, the use of metaphor â€Å"lily on thy brow†is to be noted. The lily is always associated with paleness.In line 11, â€Å"And on thy cheeks a fading rose†fading rose stands for draining away of color from the cheeks. Conclusion: Keats has used various means effectively and skillfully to bring out the elements of mystery and beauty in this ballad. It is said that just before the creation of this poem Keats read Spencer’s account of Florimel, who is an enchantress that disappears (Friedlander, 2005). But, this elfin beauty is an unique creation Keats and bewitches the reader in a very different and alluring manner.
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