Free Essays on Globalizing Language

Throughout history, adventurers, generals, merchants, and financiers have constructed an ever-more-global economy. Today, unprecedented changes in communications, transportation, and computer technology have given the process new momentum. As globally mobile capital reorganizes business firms, it sweeps away regulation and undermines local and national politics. Globalization creates new markets and wealth, even as it causes widespread suffering, disorder, and unrest. It is both a source of repression and a catalyst for global movements of social justice and emancipation. Globalization also allows multinational corporations to manufacture products in many countries and sell to consumers around the world. Money, technology and raw materials move ever more swiftly across national borders. Along with products and finances, ideas and cultures circulate more freely. As a result, laws, economies, and social movements are forming at the international level. Many politicians, academics, and journalists treat these trends as both inevitable and (on the whole) welcome. But for billions of the world’s people, business-driven globalization means uprooting old ways of life and threatening livelihoods and cultures. Experts disagree about the rate at which languages are disappearing: some say that by the end of the century half will have gone, some say 90%. But whenever a language dies, a bit of the world's culture, history and diversity dies with it. This is slowly coming to be appreciated. The EU declared 2001 to be â€Å"European year of languages†, and it is striking that even France- whose hostility to linguistic competition is betrayed by the constitution's bald statement that â€Å"the language of the Republic is French†- now smiles more compassionately on its seven regional tongues (Alsatian, Basque, Breton, Catalan, Corsican, Flemish and Provenà §al). Yet the extinction of most languages is probably unstoppable. Television and radio, bo... Free Essays on Globalizing Language Free Essays on Globalizing Language Throughout history, adventurers, generals, merchants, and financiers have constructed an ever-more-global economy. Today, unprecedented changes in communications, transportation, and computer technology have given the process new momentum. As globally mobile capital reorganizes business firms, it sweeps away regulation and undermines local and national politics. Globalization creates new markets and wealth, even as it causes widespread suffering, disorder, and unrest. It is both a source of repression and a catalyst for global movements of social justice and emancipation. Globalization also allows multinational corporations to manufacture products in many countries and sell to consumers around the world. Money, technology and raw materials move ever more swiftly across national borders. Along with products and finances, ideas and cultures circulate more freely. As a result, laws, economies, and social movements are forming at the international level. Many politicians, academics, and journalists treat these trends as both inevitable and (on the whole) welcome. But for billions of the world’s people, business-driven globalization means uprooting old ways of life and threatening livelihoods and cultures. Experts disagree about the rate at which languages are disappearing: some say that by the end of the century half will have gone, some say 90%. But whenever a language dies, a bit of the world's culture, history and diversity dies with it. This is slowly coming to be appreciated. The EU declared 2001 to be â€Å"European year of languages†, and it is striking that even France- whose hostility to linguistic competition is betrayed by the constitution's bald statement that â€Å"the language of the Republic is French†- now smiles more compassionately on its seven regional tongues (Alsatian, Basque, Breton, Catalan, Corsican, Flemish and Provenà §al). Yet the extinction of most languages is probably unstoppable. Television and radio, bo...

Everything You Need to Know The Great Gatsby Era

Everything You Need to Know The Great Gatsby Era SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips The Great Gatsby takes place during a time that's now known as the Jazz Age or the Roaring 20s. Wondering what the world was like when Jay Gatsby struck it rich in bootlegging? Curious to see how much Daisy and Myrtle's struggle for more echoes the lives of real women? Interested in the other ways that The Great Gatsbyera matters to the plot of the novel? This article will guide you through the historical, economic, and social movements of the 1920's as they relate to events, themes, and characters in The Great Gatsby. Why DoesThe Great Gatsby EraMatter? Understanding what the world was like during the time the novel is sethelps you in all sorts of ways: Figuring out an author's assumptions. Writers are products of their time, so knowing what they would have assumed to be true makes reading their work richer. For instance, inThe Great Gatsby, it's taken for granted that the Jewish gangster Meyer Wolfshiem would need the WASP-y face of Jay Gatsby to make some of his deals, since Wolfshiem wouldn't have been allowed to join or participate important political and business networks. Getting a deeper grasp of character. To get a really good sense of why characters in the novel do what they do, it's useful to know the specific historical circumstances they are dealing with. For example, it's all well and good to assume that Daisy should leave the boorish Tom, but divorce would have been way more complicated for a woman in the 1920s than it is today. Developing a richer interpretation of symbols, motifs, and themes. Knowing the hot-button issues of the novel's day gives you a good second way to support arguments about the importance of a particular theme, or your reading of the meaning of a symbol. (Of course, the primary support for these arguments should come from the text itself!) Suppose you wanted to analyze the importance of cars in The Great Gatsby. It would help your argument to talk about the sudden skyrocketing prevalence of cars on the road in the 1920s, connecting them to increased danger, status symbol consumerism, and modern life. Historical context: the giant arm propping up the baby that is your argument. When DoesThe Great GatsbyTake Place? The Great Gatsby was published in 1925 and is set in 1922, near the beginning of the decade. (See our article on this novel's publication and reception history for more.) As such, theGreat Gatsby era is theperiod in 20th century U.S. history nicknamed both the â€Å"Roaring 20s† and the "Jazz Age." The first nickname points toAmerica's post-WWIeconomic prosperity and the country's greater influence abroad. The second nickname refers to this period'schanging social norms and daring artistic movements. Gatsbyis now seen as both a product of and a record of the 1920s. What does this mean? Let's explore. Before The Great Gatsby: WWI and Modernism Although many previous events eventually influenced the 1920s, there are two crucialpieces of background history that you have to know. World War I World War I dramatically affected the United States in the 1920s (and, of course, shaped much of the 20th century all over the world as well). On the one hand, it elevatedthe U.S. into a world super power and ushered in a decade-long economic boom.On the other hand, its horrific death toll and seeming meaninglessness forever dispelled the idea of war as noble and glorious. Abrief recap of what happened. After the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir of Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1914, Austro-Hungary and its ally Germany declared waragainst Russia. Russian allies France and England were pulled in to defend Russia. The smaller European powers were forced into the war as well, based on whatever alliances they had made in the past.For the first three years, the U.S. remained neutral, instead profiteering from the war by selling supplies toboth sides of the conflict. But, in 1917, the U.S. was pulled into the fighting, fearing an alliance between Germany and Mexico. WWI was a war of trench warfare, chemical weapons, shrapnel artillery, and other gruesome technologies that had never been seen before. When you combine this level of mass destruction with the fact that most of the war was a territorial stalemate (no army advanced, no army withdrew - they were just locked in a horrible tie), it's easy to see how unaccountable the 40 million deaths the war caused were. The survivors of the war - both the veterans and those who came of age during the fighting - were called the Lost Generation. F. Scott Fitzgerald, though he didn't actually see any fighting during his time in the army, was a member of this generation. (See our brief biography of Fitzgerald to learn more.) You should know about WWI (and its aftermath) because: Both Nick Carraway and Jay Gatsby have military backgrounds. Gatsby's early romance with Daisy is heightened by the initial idealism that he was about to go fight in a noble and glorious endeavor. Some of the rumors swirling around Gatsby point to how fresh the war was in everyone's mind (that he was a German spy during the war, or that he is related to Kaiser Wilhelm, who ruled Germany during the war). Modernism and the Lost Generation The war and its devastating after-effects, particularly in Europe, fed into the creation of a new artistic movement: modernism. Modernism was all about breaking with the past. In contrast to 19th century writing that tended to reinforce the status quo, modernism rejected old-fashioned ideas like heroism and moral certitude. Similarly, modernism writers experimented with form and style rather than sticking with traditional forms of prose and poetry. Inspired by the devastation of WWI, writers in The Lost Generationembraced a cynical view of human nature. Fitzgerald himself waspart of a circle of modernists who regularly met inParis (others included Hemingway, Ezra Pound, Sinclair Lewis, and the painters Picasso and Matisse). Fitzgerald wroteThe Great Gatsby while in Paris, surroundedby this group. You can connect modernism withthe novel's descriptions of East Egg and West Egg extravagance. Like his fellow modernists, Fitzgerald was deeply critical of the wealth and capitalist success ushered in by the post-war boom, considering the new obsession with money and status shallow. What trench warfare looked like. Imagine spending weeks in this hole in the ground. The Great Gatsby Era:The Roaring 20s At the time when the novel takes place, the U.S. was in the middle of a tremendous economic boom and a soaring stock market that seemed to be on a permanent upward swing. At the same time, many of the social restrictions of the early 20th century were being rejected, and progressive movements of all kinds were flourishing. Prohibition, Bootlegging,and the Speakeasy Socially progressive activists in both the Democratic and Republican parties united to pressure the government to ban alcohol, which was blamed for all kinds of other social ills like gambling and drug abuse. In 1920, the U.S. passed the 18th Amendment, outlawing the production and sale of alcohol. Of course, this did little to actually stem the desire for alcoholic beverages, so a vast underground criminal empire was born to supply this demand. The production and distributionof alcohol became the province ofbootleggers - the original organized crime syndicates. Selling alcohol was accomplished in many ways, including throughâ€Å"speakeasies† - basically, underground social clubs. Since speakeasies were already side-stepping the law, they also became places where people of different races and genders could mix and mingle in a way they hadn’t previously while enjoying new music like jazz.This marked a shift both in how black culture was understood and appreciated by the rest of the country and in how women’s rights were progressing, as we’ll discuss in the next sections. If you understand the history of Prohibition, you'll make better sense of some plot and character details inThe Great Gatsby: Gatsby makes his fortune through bootlegging and other criminal activities. Gatsby's business partner Meyer Wolfshiem is a gangster who is affiliated with organized crime and is based on the real-life crime boss Arnold Rothstein, who was indeed responsible for fixing the World Series in 1919. Any time someone isdrinking alcohol in the novel, they are doing something illegal, and are clearly in the know about how to get this banned substance. Gatsby’s parties have a speakeasy feel in that people from different backgrounds and genders freely mix and mingle. One of the rumors about Gatsby is that he is involved in a bootlegging pipeline of alcohol from Canada - this is a reference to a real-life scandal about one of the places where illegal alcohol was coming from! Police emptying out confiscated barrels of beer into the sewer. Women’s Rights The 19th Amendment, passed in 1919, officially gave women the right to vote in the United States. Suffrage had been a huge goal of the women’s movement in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, so this victory caused women to continue to push boundaries and fight for more rights during the 1920s. The ramifications of this were political, economic, and social. Politically, the women's rights movement next took up the cause of the Equal Rights Amendment, which would guarantee equal legal rights for women. The amendment came close to eventually being ratifiedin the 1970s, but was defeated by conservatives. Economically, there was an increase in working women. This began during WWI as more women began to work to make up for the men fighting abroad, and as more professions opened up to them in the men's absence. Societally, divorce became more common. Nevertheless, it was still very much frowned on, and being a housewife and having fewer rights than man was still the norm in the 1920s. Another social development wasthe new â€Å"flapper† style. This term described women who would wear much less restricting clothing and go out drinking and dancing, which at the time was a huge violation of typical social norms. If you understand this combination of progress and traditionalism for women's roles, you'll find it on display in The GreatGatsby: Daisycontemplates leaving Tom but ultimately decides to stay. Jordan parties and doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to settle down. Myrtle flouts traditional rules by cheating on her husband but is killed by the end of the book, suggesting women are safest when they toe the line. Women's suffrage parade in New York City. Racial and Religious Minority History The post-war boom also had a positive effect on minorities in the U.S. One of the effects was thatJewish Americanswere atthe forefront of promoting such issues as workers rights, civil rights, woman's rights, and other progressive causes. Jews also served in the American military during World War I in very high numbers. At the same time, their prominence gave rise to an anti-Semitic backlash, and the revival of the KKK began with the lynching of a Jewish man in 1915. Another post-WWI developmentwas the Harlem Renaissance, acultural, social, and artistic flowering among African Americans that took place in Harlem, NY, during the 1920s. Artists from that time include W.E.B. DuBois, Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Countee Cullen, Louis Armstrong, and Billie Holiday. You can see the effects of these historical development several places in the novel: jazz music is a fixture of Gatsby’s parties, and almost every song that Fitzgerald describes is a real life piece of music. Nick's love of Manhattan as a diverse melting pot is illustrated by the appearance in Chapter 4 of a car with wealthy black passengers and a white driver. Tom Buchanan's racist rant in Chapter 1 and his fears that the white race will be "overrun" by minorities is based on the backlash that African American advancement occasioned. The novel includes Nick's anti-Semitic description of a Jewish character - Meyer Wolfshiem. There are modern theoriesthatJay Gatsby is may be half blackand that Daisy may actually be Jewish. Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes Automobiles The 1920s saw huge increases in the production and use of automobiles. Almost 1 in 4 people now had a car! This happened because of advances in mass production due to the assembly line, and because of rising incomes due to the economic boom. Car ownership increased mobility between cities and outer suburban areas, which enabled the wealthy to work in one place but live in another. Cars also now created a totally new danger, particularly in combination with alcohol consumption. If you're aware of the newness and attraction of cars, you'll notice that inThe Great Gatsby: The wealthiest characters own cars and use them to commute between Manhattanand Long Island. Cars are clearly used to display wealth and status - even Tom, normally secure in his superiority, wants to brag to George Wilson aboutthesuper-fancy Rolls Royce heborrows from Gatsby. Cars are tools of recklessness, danger, and violence - there are several car accidents in the novel, the most notable of which is when Daisy runs Myrtle over and kills her in Chapter 7. Death machine, or no, you have to admit that's a pretty cool-looking car. The Bottom Line Understanding historical context helps you in all sorts of ways: Figuring out an author's assumptions. Getting a deeper grasp of character. Having a richer interpretation of symbols, motifs, and themes. The Great Gatsby was published in 1925 and is set in 1922, a time nicknamedboth the â€Å"Roaring 20s† and the "Jazz Age." There are two crucialpieces of background history that you have to know to understand the novel: World War I.Its horrific death toll and seeming meaninglessness forever dispelled the idea of war as noble and glorious.The survivors of the war - both the veterans and those who came of age during the fighting - were called the Lost Generation. Modernism and the Lost Generation.Modernism was all about breaking with the past, experimenting with form and style, andembracing a cynical view of human nature. The Great Gatsbyera was distinguised byan economic boom, the rejection of oldsocial restrictions, and progressive movements of all kinds: Prohibition, Bootlegging,and the Speakeasy.The U.S. bannedalcohol, ushering ina vast underground criminal empire, including speakeasies -underground social clubs. Women’s Rights.The 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote.Politically, the women's rights movement next took up the cause of the Equal Rights Amendment.Economically, there was an increase in working women.Societally, divorce became more common, and the "flapper" style was born. Racial and Religious Minority History.Jewish Americanswere atthe forefront of promoting progressive causes.Another post-WWI developmentwas the Harlem Renaissance, acultural, social, and artistic flowering among African Americans. Automobiles.Car ownership increased mobility between cities and outer suburban areas, andcreated a totally new danger, particularly in combination with alcohol consumption. What’s Next? Learn more about how The Great Gatsby was received when it first came out, and also read about the life ofits author, F. Scott Fitzgerald. Excited to dive in? Check out our articles onGatsby’s title, its opening pages and epigraph, and itsfirst chapter. Or, zoom out toa summary of The Great Gatsby, along with links to all ourgreat articles analyzing this novel! Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Current Issue In Accounting (Accounting Theory) Essay

Current Issue In Accounting (Accounting Theory) - Essay Example Accounting is considerably a measurement tool since it assesses the value and returns of the company in comparison to the costs. The measurement of fair values (FV) of assets is inclusive of numerous aspects, for example, market risk or credit risk. According to Schroeder, Clark & Cathey (2010) the U.S GAAP standards differ in specificity of the valuation models. Some corporations determine the fair value (FV) of their assets and liabilities as a net amount, and not them in their singularity. The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) emphasizes that is imperative for corporations to associate their measurements on their business strategy approach (Schroeder, Clark & Cathey 2010). Part A: Measurement in Accounting Theory Measurement of financial statements encompasses the inclusion of accounting principles that will establish the true worth of the corporation of item (Schroeder, Clark& Cathey 2010). Some of the regulators of financial institutions argue that measurement of all f inancial instruments can generate predicaments in assessing the true value of the commodities. As such, measurement in accounting entails a collection of theories that conform to particular items but not a general formula. According to Christian and Musvoto (2011), there is no single approach to measurement theory. They assert that measurement theory in accounting can exist in two forms, which include â€Å"Representation Theory of Measurement† and â€Å"Classical Theory of Measurement† (Christian & Musvoto 2011). Representational measurement is what accounting standards are utilizing to in valuing the progress and items of an institution. Measurement models a. Historical cost Historical Cost entails recording the financial assets in the market value that was given to acquire it during the purchase period. The value of the asset is recorded inclusive of the liabilities that were considered during the exchange at their market values. The historical cost comprises of det ermination of the present value of the item after deducting the depreciation amount of the commodity over the years in use. The original value of the asset will be depreciated using two approaches either the â€Å"straight line method† or the â€Å"reducing balance method† (Walton & Aerts 2006). These depreciation adjustments will depend on the specification of the accounting principles applied by the company. The deductions on the assets of the institutions are made to the prior valuations and not the current values of the assets (Pratt 2011). The assets and liabilities held for trading functions is recorded under the market value method but the long-term financial products, for example, loans are measured under the historical cost approach. Advantages of Historical cost The asset is valued at the initial price and not at the market value thus making it easier to ascertain the useful life of the asset. Initial costs are better at ascertaining the true value of the com modity and an individual can prudently determine the gains from it (Walton & Aerts 2006). In addition, historical cost is easily comprehensive than the alternative measurement models since it entails adjustments to the consideration value of the asset. Subsequently, it is not intricate to calculate the historical cost, unlike other models since most of the costs have been determined. Disadvantages According to Walton &

Advise to Toan Regarding the Action with Brookland Greens Pty Ltd Assignment

Advise to Toan Regarding the Action with Brookland Greens Pty Ltd - Assignment Example Toan is observed to be a developer who had appeared previously in the government auction and also bid or owned a land from the auction. Furthermore, Toan wanted to buy or hold another land from the government auction to be held recently. In order to own another land from the auction, Toan formed a proprietary company with whose name he thought of taking part in the auction. Moreover, after appearing in the auction Toan in lieu of his company was able to bid successfully for another land in the auction. However, the authority of the auction refused to handover the land to Toan and its company, saying that they had already owned a land before from the previous auction and were violating the rules of the auction, as a result, they cannot own this land. After the refusal from the authority, Toan sued the government authority for not handing over the second land to the company by demonstrating the fact that the land was purchased by his company and not by himself. And there was no provisi on preventing him to conduct such an act. It is assumed that apparently, it is not Toan who appeared in the auction second time, rather it is Toan’s company who took part in the auction for bidding for land. According to the formulated law in an auction by the government, the process opted by Toan is legal and he is not violating the rules. This is because for the first time Toan bid for a land in the auction in lieu of his own name, however in the second time, Toan attempted to bid for a land in the auction under an enacted company for the sole purpose of bidding for the land. Thus, it can be said that from the viewpoint of intention, Toan is violating the auction rules laid by the government. A case study ‘Australian Law- Law of Business Association’ has been considered to present advice for Toan. The case states that Mr Main is a person who bid for a land from the local government council held an auction. Furthermore, he desired to own or bid for another land from the subsequent auction of government. In order to own another land, he formed a company.  

Quotes from Genesis Essay Example for Free

Quotes from Genesis Essay â€Å"From now on you must circumcise every baby boy when he is eight days old, including slaves born in your homes and slaves bought from foreigners. This will show that there is a covenant between you and me. † Genesis 17:11 â€Å"Early the next morning Abraham gave Hagar some food and a leather bag full of water. He put the child on her back and sent her away. She left and wandered about in the wilderness of Beersheba. † Genesis 21:14 Take your son, God said, your only son, Isaac, whom you love so much, and go to the land of Moriah. There on a mountain that I will show you, offer him as a sacrifice to me. Early the next morning Abraham cut some wood for the sacrifice, loaded his donkey, and took Isaac and two servants with him. They started out for the place that God had told him about. † Genesis 22:2-3 â€Å"I want you to make a vow in the name of the LORD, the God of heaven and earth, that you will not choose a wife for my son from the people here in Canaan. You must go back to the country where I was born and get a wife for my son Isaac from among my relatives. Genesis 24:3-4 â€Å"I knelt down and worshiped the LORD. I praised the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me straight to my masters relative, where I found his daughter for my masters son. † Genesis 24:48 â€Å"Jacob answered, First make a vow that you will give me your rights. Esau made the vow and gave his rights to Jacob. Then Jacob gave him some bread and some of the soup. He ate and drank and then got up and left. That was all Esau cared about his rights as the first-born son. † Genesis 25:33-34 â€Å"The LORD blessed Sarah, as he had promised, and she became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham when he was old. The boy was born at the time God had said he would be born. Abraham named him Isaac, and when Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God had commanded. Abraham was a hundred years old when Isaac was born. † Genesis 21:1-5 â€Å"That same night Jacob got up, took his two wives, his two concubines, and his eleven children, and crossed the Jabbok River. † Genesis 32:26 â€Å"For his first son Er, Judah got a wife whose name was Tamar. Ers conduct was evil, and it displeased the LORD, so the LORD killed him. Then Judah said to Ers brother Onan, Go and sleep with your brothers widow. Fulfill your obligation to her as her husbands brother, so that your brother may have descendants. Genesis 38:6-8 â€Å"They saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted against him and decided to kill him. They said to one another, Here comes that dreamer. Come on now, lets kill him and throw his body into one of the dry wells. We can say that a wild animal killed him. Then we will see what becomes of his dreams. Genesis 37:18-20 â€Å"Then Joseph gave orders to embalm his fathers body. It took forty days, the normal time for embalming. The Egyptians mourned for him seventy days. Genesis 50:2-3 â€Å"The king said to Joseph, God has shown you all this, so it is obvious that you have greater wisdom and insight than anyone else. I will put you in charge of my country, and all my people will obey your orders. Your authority will be second only to mine. I now appoint you governor over all Egypt. The king removed from his finger the ring engraved with the royal seal and put it on Josephs finger. He put a fine linen robe on him, and placed a gold chain around his neck. He gave him the second royal chariot to ride in, and his guard of honor went ahead of him and cried out, Make way! Make way! And so Joseph was appointed governor over all Egypt. The king said to him, I am the kingand no one in all Egypt shall so much as lift a hand or a foot without your permission. Genesis 41:39-44 â€Å"He put up an altar there and named it for El, the God of Israel. Gen 33:20 â€Å"Abram was a very rich man, with sheep, goats, and cattle, as well as silver and gold. † Gen 13:2 â€Å"When he was about to cross the border into Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, You are a beautiful woman. When the Egyptians see you, they will assume that you are my wife, and so they will kill me and let you live. Tell them that you are my sister; then because of you they will let me live and treat me well. When he crossed the border into Egypt, the Egyptians did see that his wife was beautiful. Some of the court officials saw her and told the king how beautiful she was; so she was taken to his palace. Because of her the king treated Abram well and gave him flocks of sheep and goats, cattle, donkeys, slaves, and camels. † Genesis 12:11 â€Å"Laban said to Jacob, You shouldnt work for me for nothing just because you are my relative. How much pay do you want? Laban had two daughters; the older was named Leah, and the younger Rachel. Leah had lovely eyes, but Rachel was shapely and beautiful. Jacob was in love with Rachel, so he said, I will work seven years for you, if you will let me marry Rachel. Laban answered, I would rather give her to you than to anyone else; stay here with me. Jacob worked seven years so that he could have Rachel, and the time seemed like only a few days to him, because he loved her. † Genesis 29:15-20 â€Å"Abrams wife Sarai had not borne him any children. But she had an Egyptian slave woman named Hagar, and so she said to Abram, The LORD has kept me from having children. Why dont you sleep with my slave? Perhaps she can have a child for me. Abram agreed with what Sarai said. So she gave Hagar to him to be his concubine. (This happened after Abram had lived in Canaan for ten years. ) Abram had intercourse with Hagar, and she became pregnant. When she found out that she was pregnant, she became proud and despised Sarai. Genesis 16:1-4 Why it is Culturally Significant The various quotes from the book of Genesis can be said to an introduction to the Jewish culture. In the book of Genesis, we are made to see a glimpse of the way of life, the belief system and the norms that operate among the people that were soon t be called the nation of Israel. The practices of the people generally showed respect for God, respect for our fellowman, dedication to kinship and lifestyle patterned after the will of their creator. In the quotes above, one can deduce a lot from the culture of the Jewish people. Because the book is an introduction of what to come, we are being introduced to the Jewish culture vis-a-vis the Egyptian culture. The Jewish culture, as we see it in Genesis, is founded on the principle of trust in God and belief in God. It is this principle that embodies their actions and gives a direction to whatever they wan to do. Another thing that is significant about the culture in Genesis is that it is based on covenant. At various occasions in the book, we see a covenant relationship between God – Man and between Man – Man. This shows respect for their words and the value they place on promise and integrity. Furthermore, another significance that can be seen in the quotes above is the value that relationships play in the Jewish culture. Throughout the book, there is a sense of kinship and family bound among the Jews. Even when the other person is not in line, the culture teaches that we are one family and we should cover for the mistakes of our kinsman. An example is that of Abraham and Lot, and Joseph with his brothers. In addition to this, the culture in the book of Genesis shows the role and importance of destiny, choice and the place of precision of the word of God in the life of the people. It also shows the importance of a father’s blessing in the life of the son and the part that prophesy and covenant plays in the life of the people. How is it Different from Our Culture Although it might be argued that the establishment of our country s founded on the very principle of the Judeo-Christian beliefs and doctrines, there are some obvious difference in our culture today and that which is seen in the book of Genesis. An explanation to this might be the evolution of man and societies generally. As seen in Genesis, people were allowed to own slaves. This is in opposition to the American culture with is founded on liberty and freedom. In addition to this, the American culture does not incorporate polygamy unlike what we see in Genesis. Also, the idea of Judah’s transferring Er’s wife to the younger brothers when he died is not applicable to the American culture. The culture of sacrificing might be found in the American culture but not to the extent of sacrificing a human being. Furthermore, another thing that caught my fancy in the book of Genesis that is alien to the American culture is the birth of Isaac even when both Abraham and Sarah have passed their reproductive age. Apart from this, the American society is not a patriarchal society where the man rules and women are seen as the â€Å"weaker vessels†. Also, the manner in which marriage is recorded in the book of Genesis is quite different from what applies to the American culture. The practice of parents looking for a wife for the son or vise versa is strange to the American culture. As the book of Genesis records it, marriage is preferred between relatives, even as close as cousins. This can be seen in the union of Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca and Jacob and Leah and Rachel. Summarily, I discovered that unlike the Bible culture portrayed in the book of Genesis, The American culture does not give room for pre-destination and prophesy. It is part of the American belief and culture that we can be whatever we want to be. Reference: Good News Bible (1994); The Book of Genesis. United Bible Societies.

Peer Pressure and Academic Performance :: Peer Pressure Essays

Quantitative Research Question 1. What effect does peer support have on academic performance? 2. Does peer pressure affect the academic performances of adolescents in School? Hypothesis 1. â€Å"Peer pressure significantly influences academic performance†. 2. â€Å"Students who experience peer support have better academic performances, than those who do not have peer support†. 3. â€Å"Peer support influences academic performances†. 4. â€Å"Academic performance is associated to peer pressure and peer support†. Qualitative Research Question 1. How does peer pressure and peer support associate to academic performances? 2. How does peer support affect academic performances? Cho, Y., & Chung, O. (2012). The researchers investigated the relationship between conformative peer bullying and discovered that peer pressure and its resistance is linked to antisocial conformity. Conformative peer bullying is defined as â€Å"behaviours that supports and reinforces bullying and does not include initiating proactive actions†, (Cho, 2012. p. 521). Peer Pressure â€Å"influences a person to change his/her attitudes, values, behaviours, and relationship in order to conform to the norms of the peer group†, (Cho, 2012. p.521). Peer Conformity is â€Å"the inclination to adopt behavioral patterns that are considered as acceptable to the peer group†, (Cho, 2012. p.521). The researchers used the â€Å"four-point Likert scale† which rated from â€Å"1 = never; 4 = a lot† and the Participant Role Scale (PRS) to measure the variable â€Å"conformity’ and â€Å"peer pressure†, (Cho, 2012. p. 523 - 524 ). The participants consisted of 391 second year students from 21 different classrooms in Seoul, South Korea, out of which 285 were boys and 106 were girls, aged between 13-14yrs old. Between 14 to 18th July, 2008, the researchers obtained informed consent from the teachers and students. After peer assessment was acquired, the researchers distributed the â€Å"four-point Likert scale† survey questionnaires to 673 students in 21 classrooms of three middle schools. Students were given about 20 to 25 minutes to respond to the questionnaires. At the end of the analysis it was discovered that there was a positive correlation between peer pressure, peer conformity and confirmative peer bullying. The effect of bullying is greatly influenced by the bully’s personal characteristics. It also indicated that without a groups influence an individual might not resort to bullying or simply peer pressure drives people to act differently to please others to show their support or capabilities to be in the group. In conclusion, antisocial peer conformity is one of the causes that influences peer conformity bullying. It also showed that those who cannot resist are influenced more than those who can resist bullying.

‘Explore the nature of love in the extasie’: John Donne poetry analysis Essay

In his poem, The Extasie, John Donne describes his own attainment of a state of ecstasy (literally meaning, to stand outside of oneself), through his physical and spiritual proximity to his lover. In his earliest work (for example Elegie: To his Mistris Going to Bed, and The Flea) – which could be loosely termed his ‘lust poetry’ – Donne’s focus tends to be on (or at least around) the sexual act and the beauty of the human (and more particularly the feminine) form, whilst in his later work (such as his Holy Sonnets) he explores religion and death, this poem falls into the transitory phase of what could be termed Donne’s ‘love poetry’ (for example, The Good Morrow). Characteristically then, the main focus of The Extasie is his love for a specific woman (as opposed to women in general, or rather, any random woman – as is the case in his lust poems), and how this love is so transcendent that it leads to a platonic extasie. In the first stanza, the tranquillity of the setting is established, with the imagery of ‘a pillow on a bed’, a ‘reclining head’, suggesting relaxation, and the line ‘Sat we two, one anothers best’, suggesting serenity and the intimacy of the lovers. This continues into the subsequent stanza with the elegant, and yet deeply intense image of ‘Our eye-beames twisted, and did thred Our eyes, upon one double string’, which apart from highlighting the apparent totality of their absorption in one another, also alludes the contemporaneous belief that sight constituted ‘eye-beames’ being emitted from one’s eyes and illuminating your surroundings. In the 4th stanza, Donne starts to bring in more explicitly the spiritual union that begins to manifest out of the physical intimacy. Initially it may seem as if he is attempting to upset the otherwise peaceful setting, by introducing elements of conflict into in the line, ‘As ‘twixt two equall Armies, Fate Suspends uncertaine victorie’. However, if you take into account the fact that the use of epic military metaphors in relation to love is a common poetic motif (and was even more so in Donne’s time), it becomes clear that this is not the case, and that the intended effect is more to highlight the fact that the lovers are ‘eqaull’ in the relationship, and to link this simile to their souls hanging in the air, ‘twixt her, and mee’. Moreover, the idea that their souls ‘Were gone out’, to ‘advance their state’, is suggestive of Donne’s neo-platonic philosophy, and the idea of two souls, blending together to form an indivisible and perfect hybrid – as can be seen in the line, ‘he knew not which soul spake, Because both meant, both spake the same’, demonstrating the complete intellectual union between the two. The line ‘(all which before was poore, and scant,) Redoubles still, and multiplies’, goes on to suggest the idea that the souls reinforce each other’s weaknesses, whilst the line, ‘That abler soule, which thence doth flow, Defects of loneliness controulles’, continues this concept, showing the perfection of the ‘abler soul’, by highlighting the absence of any defects, even one such as loneliness, which are innate human response to certain situations. This leads on to the idea that the defect of mortality is also absent, and that the union is eternal – as evident in the line ‘For, th’Atomies of which we grow, Are soules, whom no change can invade’. These ideas all derive from the Plato’s concept of the Forms, in which it is theorised that for every material thing, a perfect form of it exists, of which the material form is merely a pale shadow or imitation. For Donne, it is the transcendence and perfection of the love between himself and the woman, that leads to their transition to a higher state (their Extasie is ‘by love refin’d’). Furthermore, the mingling of their souls which follows on from the extasie, has a purifying effect, ‘unperplex(ing)’ them, and resulting in him ‘part(ing) farre purer than he came’ – Donne realises in this poem, that intellectual and emotional intimacy that he experiences transcends bodily love, and that ‘it was not sexe’, but rather something beyond the physical world. In addition to this, Donne brings in the theme of alchemy to his presentation of love – something common throughout much of his poetry and generally during that period. Indeed, he presents love as the alchemist in the union of the souls – ‘Love, these mixt soules, doth mixe again, and makes both one, each this and that’ – imbuing it with the power to transform and transmute souls. This is also evoked in relation to the body in the 14th stanza – ‘Nor are drosse to us, but allay’ – in which he describes the body as being an alloy that strengthens the soul. This distinction between body and soul is also very Platonic; however, the way that the body is presented here, differs greatly from Plato’s attitude to it, and from the presentation of the body previously in the poem. For example, in the fifth stanza, ‘sepulchrall statues’, suggests a certain irrelevance and a lack of the vivacity of the soul, whilst the transcendence of the soul over the body, and the idea that, ‘They’are ours, though they’are not wee, Wee are Th’intelligences, they are the spheare’, objectifies the bodies as a mere inanimate vessel, subservient to the intellect. However, as Donne does go on to admit, ‘We owe them thankes’, as the initial physical intimacy was, ‘all our meanes to make us one’, and without ‘their forces, sense to us’, the union of their souls through their love, would never have occurred. Essentially then, Donne sets up the idea that in fact the body has its own intrinsic value upon which the soul is dependent, whilst going to describe that in fact, the body, which in spite of trying to ‘beget Spirits, as like soules as it can’, in order to govern itself, begins to fail without the presence of the soul (‘That subtile knot, which makes us man’. Essentially then, the conclusion would appear to be that body and soul are interdependent, and whilst it is clear that Donne ultimately values spiritual love over bodily love (perceiving the body as a ‘prison’, in which ‘a great Prince†¦lies’), he accepts the one’s reliance on the other, as after his experience of Extasie, he realises that in fact it matters little, as there is, ‘Small change, when we’are to bodies gone. ‘

Hamlet’s Emotions in the First Soliloquy Essay

In the play Hamlet, Shakespeare creates a rich emotional fabric in Hamlet’s first soliloquy. From the first lines of the soliloquy, we can find such emotions as depression, disillusion, anger, and even the hatred and disgust for Hamlet’s mother and uncle. The first line in the soliloquy shows us depression: â€Å"O! that this too too solid flesh would melt,/Thaw and resolve itself into a dew† (Shakespeare 42). Hamlet’s depressive spirit is explained by that he is tired of life and wants to die. The reason for this is that all of the events, like King Hamlet’s death or Claudius’s marriage with Gertrude, Hamlet’s mother, which happens with the Prince press on him. As for the being disillusion about the Queen, when she marries Claudius, Hamlet asks himself â€Å"why, she would hang on him,/As if increase of appetite had grown† (Shakespeare 42). Hamlet feels disillusioned about his mother because after two months when his father dea d, she married Claudius. In Hamlet’s opinion his mother betrayed his fathers love. Also Hamlet feels too angry with his uncle, so he compares Claudius with his father, who was â€Å"so excellent a king† and says about the new king â€Å"that was, to this,/Hyperion to a satyr† (Shakespeare 42). The young Prince can’t understand how his uncle can be a better king than his father. Hamlet is angry with Claudius because that â€Å"satyr† married his mother and called Hamlet his son, without asking his opinion or wish. Hamlet is not only angry with his uncle, but also he hates Claudius: â€Å"My father’s brother, †¦/within a month,/Ere yet the salt of most unrighteous tears/Had left the flushing in her galled eyes† (Shakespeare 44). Hamlet hates his uncle because Claudius seduced his mother. But the strongest emotion Hamlet has in my mind is disgust about his mother: â€Å"a beast, that wants discourse of reason† (Shakespeare 42). Young Hamlet thinks that his mother betrayed his father love while marrying Claudius. Also Prince thinks that his mother is like all other women, he thinks that she is a prostitute. In the first soliloquy Hamlet has a rich emotional fabric, which is made up from the strongest emotions that form Prince of Denmark’s character.

Step by Step Guide to Tracing Your Family Tree

Step by Step Guide to Tracing Your Family Tree You have a little knowledge about your family history, a few old photos and documents and a consuming curiosity. Here are some basic steps to start you on your family tree adventure! Step One: Whats Hiding in the Attic? Begin your family tree by gathering together everything you have - papers, photos, documents and family heirlooms. Rummage through your attic or basement, the filing cabinet, the back of the closet... Then check with your relatives to see if they have any family documents they are willing to share. Clues to your family history might be found on the backs of old photographs, in the family bible, or even on a postcard. If your relative is uneasy with lending an original, offer to have copies made, or take pictures or scans of the photos or documents.   Step Two: Ask Your Relatives While youre collecting family records, set aside some time to interview your relatives. Start with Mom and Dad and then move on from there. Try to collect stories, not just names and dates, and be sure to ask open-ended questions. Try these questions to get you started. Interviews may make you nervous, but this is probably the most important step in researching your family history. It may sound cliche, but dont put it off until its too late! Tip! Ask your family members if there is a genealogy book or other published records within the family. This could give you a wonderful head start!   Step Three: Start Writing Everything Down Write down everything you have learned from your family and begin to enter the information in a pedigree or family tree chart. If youre unfamiliar with these traditional family tree forms, you can find step by step instructions in filling out genealogical forms. These charts provide an at-a-glance overview of your family, making it easy to track your research progress.   Step Four: Who Do You Want to Learn About First? You cant research your entire family tree at once, so where do you want to begin? Your moms side or your dads? Select a single surname, individual, or family with which to begin and create a simple research plan. Focusing your family history search helps keep your research on track, and reduces the chance of missing important details due to sensory overload.  Ã‚   Step Five: Explore Whats Available Online Explore the Internet for information and leads on your ancestors. Good places to start include pedigree databases, message boards, and resources specific to your ancestors location. If youre new to using the Internet for genealogy research, start with Six Strategies for Finding Your Roots Online. Not sure where to start first? Then follow the research plan in 10 steps for finding your family tree online. Just dont expect to find your entire family tree in one place!   Step Six: Familiarize Yourself with Available Records Learn about the wide variety of record types that may be able to help you in your search for your ancestors including  wills;  birth,  marriage,  and  death records;  land deeds;  immigration records; military records; etc. The Family History Library Catalog, the FamilySearch Wiki, and other online finding aids can be helpful in determining what records might be available for a particular locality.   Step Seven: Utilize the Worlds Largest Genealogy Library Visit your local Family History Center  or the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, where you can access the worlds largest collection of genealogical information. If you cant get to one in person, the library has digitized millions of its records and made them available online for free through its free FamilySearch website.   Step Eight: Organize and Document Your New Information As you learn new information about your relatives, write it down! Take notes, make photocopies, and take photographs, and then create a system (either paper or digital) for saving and documenting everything you find. Keep a research log of what youve searched and what you have found (or not found) as you go. Step Nine: Go Local! You can conduct a great deal of research remotely, but at some point, you will want to visit the place where your ancestors lived. Take a trip to the cemetery where your ancestor is buried, the church he attended, and the local courthouse to explore records left behind during his time in the community. Consider a visit to the state archives as well, as they are likely to also hold historical records from the community. Step Ten: Repeat as Necessary When you have researched that particular ancestor as far as you can go, or find yourself getting frustrated, step back and take a break. Remember, this is supposed to be fun! Once youre ready for more adventure, go back to Step #4 and choose a new ancestor to start searching for!

How to break technology addiction and improve concentration - Emphasis

How to break technology addiction and improve concentration How to break technology addiction and improve concentration New research from Kent Universitys psychology department confirms what many of us already know from experience. Far from helping us become more efficient, the constant interruption of technology is weakening our ability to concentrate and slowing us down at work. With inboxes pinging and smartphones winking at us, were increasingly giving in to tempting but non-essential diversions and researchers say we could be wasting nearly one-fifth of our time in the process. No wonder so many of us are no strangers to working late. Lead us not into temptation The study came about after lead researcher Ulrich Weger noticed that his own progress at work was continually thwarted by email notifications luring him away from the task at hand. The experiment charged about 100 volunteers with reading text on a computer. During the task, they were interrupted by a one-minute verbal message, such as a phone call, and were asked to continue reading the text when it reappeared onscreen. The researchers used eye-trackers to follow the volunteers visual journey in returning to the task. Since they went back to the text at an earlier point than where they left off, each interruption caused an average 17 per cent increase in the total time to finish reading the whole passage. The study also found that it took volunteers significantly longer to read the text when it was accompanied by background speech or music. A return to concentration So, what of the resulting ideas for combating the problem? Weger suggests a daily concentration exercise, where you focus on a simple object for a few minutes. As soon as you become aware that your thoughts have drifted onto something else, gently bring them back to your chosen object. Its worth it, according to Weger: After practice, you get more competent at shielding yourself against the countless tempting stimuli in our world. Other solutions include: marking the point on the page where you temporarily stop reading (this accounted for 10 per cent of the time wasted in the study), turning off phones and email notifications, and making sure you dont sit looking out on, for example, a distractingly busy street. Burying phones in the garden and turning desks to the wall will undoubtedly appeal to some, but it probably wont work in the long run. We have a much simpler way to get the job done try some of our practical tips for beating writers block and the procrastination trap in our articles Forgiveness: the answer to writers block and Tips for breaking through the barrier. Reference: Reading resumption after interruptions: using eye movements to study the costs of interruptions during reading by Ulrich Weger.

Agree with Mr. G. Raymond article and write 3 pages, cite the sources

Agree with Mr. G. Raymond and write 3 pages, cite the sources. 4.1DF51 - Article Example on to employ electronic documentation systems in managing data and information in hospital facilities, and this is where the challenge to its effective implementation arises. In order to accomplish a considerable level of flexibility in the data that is used in computer based record system, the classification systems of nursing are essential, but they are not sufficient enough to represent aspects of the nursing profession. In consideration of actions and decisions that nurses make, it may not be very possible to encode such processes into a computer data system that can be reproduced or reapplied anywhere else (Henry, et al, 2005). In essence, the actions taken by nurses in providing medical care, and which are encoded as interventions must be considered as critical inputs in developing computer based record systems. The function and structure of classifications systems that exist and are meant to encode interventions by nurses cannot be accurate in depicting the nature of the work that nurses do in a way that can facilitate reusing of the data. To be able to capture and electronically represent in clinical context data that reflects an encounter of a patient with a practitioner in a health care facility is a significant challenge for system developers. To be able to encode data by employing standard classification and coding and yet be able to link it to resources that are based on knowledge such as clinical guidelines, may not be an easy thing for system developers to achieve (American Nurses Association, 1991). If standardization of language for nurses will inevitably require electronic or computer documentation of patient information and data, then the first concern that must be considered is the enormous start up cost for putting in place electronic systems for recording and processing medical data. This challenge is compounded by the fact that all charts, and which are numerous, be converted into electronic format. In advent, practitioners and other