Friday, December 27, 2019

Bilbo From Homers The Odyssey - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 2 Words: 518 Downloads: 4 Date added: 2019/04/01 Category Literature Essay Level High school Tags: Odyssey Essay Did you like this example? In Homers The Odyssey, the main focus is not the Trojan War, but the main characters, Odysseus, journey back to Ithaca. The journey shows how Odysseus develops many skills, and becomes more wise and understanding. He swallows his pride and arrogance because those traits are what have caused his cursed journey from Poseidon. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Bilbo From Homers The Odyssey" essay for you Create order His journey is both physically and mentally demanding, and the main focus of a journey is what caused these character developments. In many other works of literature, a journey is the central focus and helps develop the character in certain ways. In J. R. R. Tolkiens, The Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins is presented a journey to retrieve the dwarves treasure from Smaug. When Baggins accomplished the quest, his character had developed in many ways. The journey was what developed his character, and it was what added to the story as a whole. Bilbo shows traits of cowardice and reluctancy, but shows traces of adventurousness. Later in the story, when Bilbo finds the ring of invisibility, he also meets Gollum who presents a sort of test. Gollum challenges Bilbo with riddles, and Bilbo is shown to be clever with riddles as well. As Bilbo escapes with the ring, he leaves Gollum alive instead of killing him because he believes it is unfair. This shows that Bilbo is both clever and kind. This character development shapes the character that Bilbo becomes, and alters peoples views of him in the story. Later when Bilbo kills the giants spider without the help of his travel mates, he states that he feels,[Like] a different person, and much fiercer and bolder in spite of an empty stomach, as he wiped his sword on the grass and put it back into its sheath. Because this happened, Bilbo shows more bravery and heroism. He feels that he himself is heroic, because after killing the spider, he names his dagger Sting. This event leads to a change of mind and heart in Bilbo, giving him the confidence to accomplish much greater acts. Nearing the end of Bilbos journey, Bilbo uses his cunning to steal a golden cup and the Arkenstone from the fearsome dragon, Smaug. This shows Bilbos bravery from stealing two precious items from something extremely dangerous. Though he is reluctant to face the sleeping dragon, he goes anyway. Even after he stole the precious items, he was also able to identify Smaugs weak spot. Because of his courage, he was able to inform Bard about Smaugs vulnerability, which eventually lead to Smaugs demise. Because of Bilbos decision to go on the journey, Smaug was killed and brought peace to middle-earth. The dwarves treasure was retrieved, and Bilbo returned home with riches. Apart from those, Bilbo had gone through a sort of maturing, becoming more brave and courageous. His journey allowed him to overcome things that before his journey, he couldnt have ever imagined completing. Bilbos journey developed his character, and so the same with Odysseus journey back to Ithaca from Troy. Bilbos journey throughout the land followed a path that the the Odyssey portrayed; the goal doesnt shape you, the journey does.

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

Application Of Your Identity Fall Into The Bioecological...

Introduction How does each part of your identity fall into the bioecological perspective, approach towards development? Urie Bronfenbrenner, the man who developed this system says â€Å"we cannot fully understand development without considering how a person is influenced by each of these levels†. (Feldman,2017, p.22) The different levels of the human ecosystem are; microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, microsystem, and the chronosystem. The easiest way to follow the pattern is imagine we are going up a ladder as we develop one step at a time. Microsystem The first system we encounter when talking about the bioecological perspective is the microsystem. This level is best described as day to day interactions between parents, caregivers, teachers,†¦show more content†¦When it comes to school performance, you may think it is a good thing to make your friends laugh during class, or to disrupt the teacher to get attention if you don’t get any at home. In contrast, kids who get praised for good behavior as well as good grades seem to listen more and try to learn the material the teacher is teaching them that day. This was a rough one for me, yes, I had plenty of love at my house growing up, but where I had ADHD I was always distracting the class which interfered with my learning, and my classmates’ ability to focus. Second, formal operational during this time is developing and giving adolescents the ability to think differently from when they were younger. This stage they are seeing past plain, and seeing vivid possib ilities of different things. Two examples of social/emotional changes would be drugs or alcohol and what personal relationships shaped who I am. First, â€Å"Others drink, for the same reason that some use drugs; It releases inhibitions and tension, and it reduces stress†. (Feldman, 2017, p. 381) During this time, adolescences are figuring out who they are, and testing the limits. I never fell into this category, but one of my next-door neighbors would come to my house and we would sneak around back just so she could have a cigarette without her parents knowing. This brings into my next point, your microsystem is first built on who you hang out with, and what their attitudes are like that will

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

Foreign Aid Essay Example For Students

Foreign Aid Essay As time progresses humankind seeks to better itself. We strive to make life easier, faster, and more efficient. Currently we have telescopes that can see objects light years away, satellites that can track you around the planet, cars that adjust the seat and steering wheel to separate drivers, and computers that fit in your hand and perform a million calculations a second. But not everyone in this world has this technology. In parts of the world there are people who are still advancing, they are hundreds of years behind the technological leaders of this world. They only have the simple hand tools we discarded decades ago. They might have cars and trucks but those are technologies developed elsewhere. These people are falling behind in the world and appear to be falling faster. The people in the country are hungry and in need of jobs but we cannot be responsible for their welfare. We cannot make them dependant on our handouts they need to become educated and learn to support themselve s within their borders. United States foreign aid is a bad thing because it hurts their economies, creates over-population, and we spend money that could be used closer to home. United States aid hurts Third World countries because we blanket them in security and their economic problems remain hidden. Their failing economic system will not collapse as long as we keep feeding them money. The point of foreign aid is to help the country get back on its feet, and they never will if they never fix their broken economic system. The country can sit and ignore the underlying problems because they no longer have to worry about the screwed up system they have, as long as the United States keeps pumping the money in they wont have to worry. This will trap the United States into unending aid. We will never turn our back on a country in need, and if they start to fail because we withdraw our money we will just reinstate it. Between 1945 and 1983 the U.S. gave away $321 billion in foreign assistance, concessional loans, military aid, and humanitarian assistance. (Cato Policy Report, 1991) The Clinton administration task force admitted that, Despite decades of foreign assi stance, most of Africa and parts of Latin America, Asia and the Middle East are economically worse off today than they were 20 years ago. (Conservative Chronicle, 1994)United States financial aid does not help the problem it stabilizes it until its withdrawn. Another factor of foreign aid that hurts the aided country is over-population. The biggest cause of over population is sending foreign countries supplies of food. The land can only support so many people and their technology does not allow for surplus. Naturally when you run out of food the population will cease to grow. Adding food to a country increases the amount of people that can live in the country. Because there is more available food the population will grow thereby crowding the country causing a scarcity of resources such as clean water, growing room for food, and jobs. When the availability of food increases people become less dependent on their private farms. This can allow them the opportunity to move into the citie s causing over-crowding and increasing the size of slums. If the United States continues to give food to these countries the population will continue to grow thus increasing the demand for food. What needs to occur is farmers in the country need to increase the amount of food the farms yield so they can support themselves. To quote Mr. Slattery, If you give a man a fish hes not hungry for a day, if you teach a man to fish he will never be hungry again. A final reason why we shouldnt aid Third world countries is, if the government would stop sending supplies and money to foreign countries there would be less money within the country. Money that we could use to use therefor allowing us to get out of our deficit, create jobs, and give more money to the poor people of our country. The amount of food that exported to needy countries can be used to stop starvation in our country. We have this enormous surplus of food that can be used just as well here as abroad. The people in starving cou ntries need to learn how to maximize their food production and create the surplus needed to allow them time to educate themselves. Free handouts affect the country that is giving and receiving. We lose food that can be given to our needy and it helps inflate their population. Government expenditures on foreign aid as a proportion of the GDP grew from nineteen percent in 1961 to thirty-five percent in 1985. (Cato Policy Report, 1991)On the flip side there are some reasons why we should aid other countries in need. Foreign aid remains an extension of the American character. It is human nature to help others in need. Americans feel compassion for poverty stricken people, and they want to try and raise the living status of less-fortunate people to a level similar to their own. Look at all the charities in the world that help needy people. The money donated has saved millions of children over the years. The infant mortality rate is dropping in Third World countries, and hope is rising. A iding helpless people makes Americans feel good about themselves and increases the chances of survival of children in underdeveloped countries all over the world. .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233 , .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233 .postImageUrl , .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233 , .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233:hover , .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233:visited , .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233:active { border:0!important; } .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233:active , .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233 .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u1af9c32648dafd89b1e97ca244254233:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: The great depression Essay SummarySending money to foreign countries for aid also helps setup small makeshift hospitals to help people stricken by diseases that normally would not be fatal in the United States. The money and doctors sent to these countries have stopped epidemics of the flu from wiping out children that normally wouldnt have to worry that a cold could kill. Smallpox for example was only lingering in countries that couldnt afford the vaccinations to eradicate it. With the United States intervention smallpox has been eliminated from even these poor countries. This improves the quality of life dramatically, and reduces the amount of death. The helping hand of the United States is making smaller differences like this that are slowly improving the quality of Third World inhabitants lives. The third reason why the United States should aid other countries is that we have a surplus of food in this country. Americans are the most overweight people in the world. , we have the food to spare. The farming technology within our country is advances to the point that only a few farmers and machines are needed to run farms that are hundreds of thousands of times the size of farms in third world countries. American farmers want to sell their extra crop rather than scale back operations. The easiest way to get rid of food in a country full of overfed people is to give it to the underfed people. The United States government buys this food and ships it to countries that are hungry. In this way our farmers make more money and stimulate our economy. So by sending food out of the country we are also helping ourselves. Americans are compassionate? How is it we feel sorry for people in other countries and can ship ton after ton of food to starving countries, but we dont feel quite sorry enough to give that food to starving people in our own country. The food is also choking the starving country. Overpopulation is the biggest problem in Third World countries. We are encouraging over growth within these countries and that is hurting more than it is helping. It is good that we care for them but supplying food is not the way to go about fixing it. In 1985 thirty-five percent of our GDP was being spent on helping other countries with their problems. The amount we send grows every year. If the United States would apply these funds to its own problems we could eliminate famine and unemployment within our borders. Second, eliminating diseases within these countries has its downside also. The population in Third World countries was originally controlled by lower amounts of food and disease, now we are eliminating those barriers. Without those factors in the ecosystem population has skyrocketed. Normally the environment wouldnt allow more people than it could support, we are actually causing more famine by packing the land with extra people to feed. If the fifty percent of the children dont die from disease like they used to, you now have twice as many new people to feed. When we withdraw our aid the land will not support that number of people and they will start to die off. If that ever starts to happen that compassion factor will kick in and Americans will throw more money out and start the cycle all over again. Finally, the surplus of food in this country would be more helpful in eliminating hunger in our country. If we continue to send food to starving countries we are not encouraging them to improve themselves we just make them dependant on handouts. We need to reserve the food for starving people in out country. The food sent overseas to Third World countries is also encouraging over population. People arent starving as much anymore so they are multiplying and creating more people to starve, unless we increase our aid and its cost to us. The solution is to stop sending the food. .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef , .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef .postImageUrl , .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef , .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef:hover , .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef:visited , .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef:active { border:0!important; } .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef:active , .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ub408be903f0040f5cd26f80c8f2af5ef:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Hippie culture EssayBecause it causes overpopulation, hurts foreign economies, and spends money that could be used closer to home, United States aid is not a good thing. Although the United States is known as the helping hand throughout history, foreign aid is not helping as much as it is hurting other countries. These countries shouldnt be given money and food, but rather be educated as to ways they can improve themselves. Once the aid runs out they will need to fend for themselves. If we were to give them some of our technologies and educate them, we would make a bigger difference. Foreign aid is not a necessary thing that the United States has to partake in. We need to adjust our techniques for helping other countries rather than dumping money and food on a problem and hope it cures itself. Bibliography:

Tuesday, December 3, 2019

James Jerome Hill Essay Example

James Jerome Hill Essay James J. Hill was a self-made millionaire; through hard work and determination he came back from losing an eye to becoming the Railroad Tycoon.Hill went through many professions and dreams, but it was the railroad and his family that stole his heart forever.Among other things Hill wanted to be a doctor, a steamboat officer, and of course a Railroad Tycoon.However what set him apart from the crown was his ability to do what all others had failed, to build a population around a railroad, and not a railroad around the population. James J. Hill was born on September 16, 1838 in Rockwood, Ontario.When he was very young Hill was shot in the eye with an arrow leaving him permanently blind in one eye.James J. Hill then moved to St. Paul, at the age of 18, determined to be a trapper, but he soon became fond of the city, and decided to start a steamboat company.James. J. Hill then went on to marry Mary Theresa Mehegan, together they had 10 children, of which 1 died at infancy.They had 3 boys l eaving 7 girls.James J. Hill died in St. Paul, MN on May 29, 1916 at the age of 77 years old. The death of James J. Hills father interrupted his early education, but later he returned to school at Rockwood Academy, who gave him free tuition.Between the time his father died and the time he returned to school, he was working to help support his struggling family, as a clerk at the age of 14. James J. Hillsfirst job was as a clerk, this taught him how to use and invest money to make the greatest profits.He then went on to work as an agent for the St. Paul and Pacific Railroad.Here he realized that the wood that they were using for fuel was not as efficient as coal.So he and other set up a fuel, freighting, merchandising, and warehouse company known as Hill, Griggs, Company.This company had a well-established monopoly over the fuel business in St. Paul and the nearby region.He then set up a steamboat business th

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

Free Essays on Final Thoughts

The main topics of the â€Å"Final Thoughts† section of our readings deals mainly with oppression. The first reading in this section is titled â€Å"Can White Heterosexual Men Understand Oppression?† written by Cooper Thompson, whom is in fact a white, heterosexual male, himself. Thompson elaborates on oppression of women, gays, lesbians, bisexuals, black people and basically anybody who is not a white, heterosexual male themselves. Thompson goes on to claim â€Å"I began to hear and read about the privileges I get as a man, as a white person, and a heterosexual. I was able to see how oppressed persons – particularly women, people of color, and lesbians and gay men – are denied some of the rights I have†. He goes on to state that â€Å"heterosexual white men in this society tend to have a dualistic view of the world: we are either right or wrong, winners or losers. There is only one truth, and we will fight with one another to determine whose truth is right. To understand oppression requires that we accept others’ experiences as truthful, even though they may be very different from ours.† In many ways I disagree with the claims made by Cooper Thompson. I am a white, heterosexual male myself and I can think of numerous times that I myself have been oppressed. Now maybe my oppressions were not to the level or extent of many of the oppressions of minorities, but I do believe that white, heterosexual men do have a good understanding about oppression. Also, when Thompson claimed that white heterosexual males are either winners or losers and so on and so forth, he is merely describing all of man’s desire and drive to be number one, and this can tie back into many previous readings and postings. At an early age, boys are taught to be competitive and are taught to want to win. Losing was seen as something a girl would do and it would jeopardize one’s masculinity. I believe that this trait of e ither winning or losing, or bein... Free Essays on Final Thoughts Free Essays on Final Thoughts The main topics of the â€Å"Final Thoughts† section of our readings deals mainly with oppression. The first reading in this section is titled â€Å"Can White Heterosexual Men Understand Oppression?† written by Cooper Thompson, whom is in fact a white, heterosexual male, himself. Thompson elaborates on oppression of women, gays, lesbians, bisexuals, black people and basically anybody who is not a white, heterosexual male themselves. Thompson goes on to claim â€Å"I began to hear and read about the privileges I get as a man, as a white person, and a heterosexual. I was able to see how oppressed persons – particularly women, people of color, and lesbians and gay men – are denied some of the rights I have†. He goes on to state that â€Å"heterosexual white men in this society tend to have a dualistic view of the world: we are either right or wrong, winners or losers. There is only one truth, and we will fight with one another to determine whose truth is right. To understand oppression requires that we accept others’ experiences as truthful, even though they may be very different from ours.† In many ways I disagree with the claims made by Cooper Thompson. I am a white, heterosexual male myself and I can think of numerous times that I myself have been oppressed. Now maybe my oppressions were not to the level or extent of many of the oppressions of minorities, but I do believe that white, heterosexual men do have a good understanding about oppression. Also, when Thompson claimed that white heterosexual males are either winners or losers and so on and so forth, he is merely describing all of man’s desire and drive to be number one, and this can tie back into many previous readings and postings. At an early age, boys are taught to be competitive and are taught to want to win. Losing was seen as something a girl would do and it would jeopardize one’s masculinity. I believe that this trait of e ither winning or losing, or bein...

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Paper Crafting Assistance from the Professionals

Paper Crafting Assistance from the Professionals â€Å"What is an English essay?† While this sounds like the easiest thing on the planet, we often get asked this question. As a student, you know the drill! There’s no way you will evade crating an English paper. This is just one of those essays that you have to write at one point in your academic life. Are you confident that you have the necessary skills to complete this paper? Do you even have the time to write this paper by yourself? Are you certain that you will ace this paper? Most students cannot craft their papers for varied reasons. First, they lack time to handle their assignments because they are tied up with other responsibilities, such as studying for exams, going to class, and completing other papers. Probably, they just want to relax and have a good time with friends. Other students are not skilled enough to complete these papers by themselves. They lack the know-how to craft these assignments, and they need assistance or a guide on how to go about it. Our service is the answer to all your assignment problems. Leave your paper to us if you’re looking for a professional writer that can create a persuasive paper and meet your deadlines. Still, if you need help on how to write an English essay step by step, you’ve come to the right place. We will guide you that way you can create an outstanding paper for yourself. Guidelines on How to Write an English Essay Creating such a paper may sound easy, but it isn’t. You must put several things into consideration before starting. If you need guidance on how to create such a paper, then you’ve come to the right place. Our service understands how students struggle with creating even the simplest papers. It is very normal to struggle with creating an essay even if you have been doing it for decades. However, once you master how to do it, it gets easier. Our guide is intended to make life easier for you. We have compiled a list of guidelines and tips that can help you while writing an English essay. Make use of them to increase your chances of getting a good grade in your assignment. The Guide on How to Start an English Essay Now that your professor has handed you an assignment, you are conflicted on how to begin an English essay. The first thing that you need to understand is what you are being asked of. Do you understand what the question or topic expects of you? There are important terms that you have to look out for since they act as guidelines on how you should come up with your response to the topic question. Comprehending what is expected if you will not only enable you to structure your paper properly, but it will also show you the direction in which you should take your research to answer the questions effectively. If you are to write on a topic of your choice, make sure you choose something that you’re passionate about, but it still has to be relevant. Next, research on the topic. If you intend to achieve high marks, make use of academic research articles. You must go through several sources before choosing the most relevant for your topic. Once you’re done conducting your research , create an outline of how your paper will look like. These are requirements that have to be adhered to in the structure of an English essay. Even though questions may be different and education levels may be varied, all these papers will follow a similar structural basis every time. Crafting successfully is dependent upon comprehending the structural rules. Your paper has to begin with an introduction which will sum up how you intend to answer the question, and the course that your arguments will follow. The main body will follow what has been set out in your introduction. Present your arguments coherently and logically, and link your paragraphs so that they flow from one to the next. Finally, the conclusion should sum up what you have presented and deliver the message that you intend the audience to take away with them. Next, refine your arguments. Ensure that once you’re done with the first draft of your paper, you refine your arguments. Make sure that they particularly address the question, and that your content flows coheren tly. You can take a break once you’re done, and start later after you’ve relaxed. Alternatively, you can read out your text aloud to judge on the flow and coherence. Finally, make sure that your paper adheres to the basic formatting guidelines that have been laid out by your professor. If you fail to do so, there is a chance that you perform poorly despite crafting a good paper. Additional Tips for Writing an English Essay You must utilize these tips on how to make an English essay. Make the most out of them if you hope to attain an excellent grade: Planning Will Come in Handy Even if it will seem like a waste of time, especially when you’re caught up with other academic responsibilities, it is always important that you brainstorm for a while before starting your paper. This will enable you to come up with the best-supporting ideas, instead of those that just come into mind, then position them in your paper accordingly. Make sure that your best supporting idea which makes the strongest case, and the one that you have the most knowledge on coming first. Even if you have the best-written paper, you can fail because you placed your arguments ineffectively. Aim for Variety Make use of vocabulary and sentences of varying complexity. Stop using the same words over and over. Constant Practice Good writing cannot happen overnight. Constantly practice mastering the art of crafting good English essays. Order from Our Service Today for Top-Notch Assistance Going through our guide is one thing. Comprehending how to write a good English essay is an entirely different thing. Don’t feel frustrated even though you haven’t grasped the entire process. We are at your service if you need assignment help. Order from our service today, and leave all your assigning burdens to a professional writer capable of handling them.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Corporate governance - Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Corporate governance - Law - Essay Example According to Andreasson (n.d. P 2) corporate governance in emerging markets is a critical issue where companies are constantly struggling for investors to raise capital base. About the scope of governance, Abdulla and Valentine (2009, p89) point out that â€Å"corporate governance includes all types of firms and its definitions could extend to cover all of the economic and non-economic activities† p 89. This needs to be embraced by the UK in its bid to improve its corporate governance. One way by which the UK can improve its corporate governance as shall be discussed in diversity is by incorporation of corporate governance and the complexity theory which encompasses many approches integrated into the governance system. Because the perception that the stakeholders about a company is an elastic issue that depends on the corporate image created by the company there has been experienced varying business performances by corporations in the financial and stock markets. This has led to the new wave seeking to transform the way legislative and procedural policies are made and employed by companies to stay afloat in the internal and external market. Therefore board actions on corporate management need effective monitoring so as to avert the corporate failures resulting from traditional corporate strategies as experienced in the UK capital markets. Their short-term policies are feared to be the main reasons for the low efficiency and low return on invested capital yet the companies largely depend on public equity financing amidst their many financial access options (DoB 2010, p 10). A look at the Bitish policies on company opertations shows an emphasis on the accountability of the directors to the shareholders while they set the policies for the company (FRC 2010, p9-11). However the weakness in the Companies Act 2006 which allows for freedom by companies to adjust corporate rules using their constitutions remotely diminishes the corporate sense of the shareholder s who are the main contributors of investment through public equity funds. This calls for real improvement that will address the weaknesses that have led to failure of many corporate organisations which lies in the role played by the company directorate (Kiarie 2007, p2). Kiarie identifies the non-specificity of the management roles in the companies especially the non-executive directors (NEDs) whom she says must play an important role in checking the power wielded by CEOs based on their independance and autonomy. This is possible if the companies willingly offer relevant and sufficient information other than the one the NEDs solicit for use in decision making and judgment. Therefore the NED should be part of the shareholder pressure on the corporate board that would enhance the value of the firm in form, of policies and strategies (Brenner, 2008 p 3-5). It is realised that most companies are reluctant to freely disclose their portfolio in the bid to cut on costs and keep competitor s at bay a fact that has made the shareholdders and the NEDs in darkness on the exact positioning of the company in the corporate market in what Brenner calls â€Å"free rider problem† p 5. This in a way has been the reason for mixed responses from stakeholders ranging

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Conference paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Conference - Research Paper Example The discussion of this paper focuses on the different cultural perspectives and how this influences the personal and social interactions of the students and scientists’ perceptions. Personal interaction is the manner in which individuals interact with each other in a group or a community through communication. The language of people to a great extend determines how an individual interact with each other. There is high power vested on personal relations, with communication playing a vital role in unifying the members of a particular group (Eby & Allen, 2012). Communication plays an important role in ensuring a smooth running of events in a group or community. Language as a form of communication unites the people speaking the common language. Differences in communication and language could be a source of conflict. It is believed that language classifies people into different social and is responsible for people’s ethnicity and social grouping. Social interaction is the way in which two or more people who are mutually oriented interact with each other through acts, actions, or practices (Argyle, 2007). The behaviour of these people affects each of the parties’ subjective experiences or intentions. Parties involved in this form of relationship should be aware of one another and put each other into consideration. Such a relationship requires the parties to behave towards each other, portraying the mutual consent of the existence and presence of the other person. Trust is essential to the success of the social interaction, and secret spying on the other party without their consent is likely to bring issues into the relationship. The behaviour of the parties influences the success of social interaction. According to Nganga & â€Å"University of Wyoming† (2006), people need to be aware of their cultural influences as they relate to one another in the society. Students of different backgrounds and cultures sharing the same learning facilities need to

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Friedrich Nietzsche Essay Example for Free

Friedrich Nietzsche Essay Existentialism provides a moving account of the agony of being in the world. The spirit of existen- tialism has a long history in philosophy. But it be- came a major movement in the second half of the 20th century. Existentialism is not a systematic body of thought like Marxism or psychoanalysis. Instead, it is more like an umbrella under which a very wide range of thinkers struggled with ques- tions about the meaning of life. Much of the appeal and popularity of Existential- ism is due to the sense of confusion, the crisis, and the feeling of rejection and rootlessness that Euro- peans felt during World War II and its aftermath. Existentialism’s focus on each person’s role in cre- ating meaning in their life was a major influence on the Phenomenological and Humanistic traditions in psychology and on the â€Å"human potential† move- ment that emerged from them. Rene Descartes (1596-1650) said, â€Å"Conquer your- self rather than the world. †. To modern existential- ists this means that the World itself has no real meaning or purpose. It is not the unfolding expres- sion of Human Destiny or a Divine plan, or even a set of natural laws. The only meaning is that which we create by acts of will. To have a meaningful life we have to act. But we should act without hope. Acting is meaningful but it doesn’t create meaning that lasts beyond the acts themselves or beyond our own lifetime. You are what you do – while you are doing it – and then nothing. (Very depressing. ) In The Myth of Sisyphus, Albert Camus (pronounced â€Å"Kam-moo†) (1913-1960) describes life as a kind of hopeless, endless, uphill labor. Hence, the only true problem is that of suicide. Yet, he rejects nihilism; for the human being must fight and never accept defeat. The problem is to be a saint without a God. The last judgment takes place everyday. The human being must do his best, try for what he can within the confinements of his situation. Camus describes Sisyphus condemned by the gods to push a stone up a hill over and over, only to have it roll back down each time he reaches the top. A task that can never be completed. But he finds meaning in the fact that Sisyphus at least gets to decide each time whether to carry on or end it all. Camus says, The struggle itself toward the heights is enough to fill a mans heart. One must imagine Sisyphus happy. Although there can never be any meaning in Sisy- phus’ task, there is meaning is choosing each time to continue. Despite encompassing a staggering range of phi- losophical, religious, and political ideologies, the underlying concepts of existentialism are simple: Mankind has free will. Life is a series of choices, creating stress. Few decisions are without any negative conse- quences. Some things are irrational or absurd, without explanation. If one makes a decision, he or she must follow through. Notes on Existentialism by Tanweer Akram. The fundamental problem of existentialism is con- cerned with the study of being. The human beings existence is the first and basic fact; the human be- ing has no essence that comes before his existence. The human being, as a being, is nothing. This nothingness and the non-existence of an essence is the central source of the freedom the human being faces in each and every moment. The human being Notes on Existentialism Compiled for PSY 345 (Fall 2004) Existentialism Notes 2 has liberty in view of his situation, in decisions which makes himself and sets himself to solves his problems and live in the world. Thrown into the world, the human being is con- demned to be free. The human being must take this freedom of being and the responsibility and guilt of his actions. Each action negates the other possible courses of action and their consequences; so the human being must be accountable without excuse. The human being must not slip away from his re- sponsibilities. The human being must take deci- sions and assume responsibilities. There is no sig- nificance in this world, this universe. The human being cannot find any purpose in life; his existence is only a contingent fact. His being does not emerge from necessity. If a human being rejects the false pretensions, the illusions of his existence hav- ing a meaning, he encounters the absurdity, the fu- tility of life. The human beings role in the world is not predetermined or fixed; every person is com- pelled to make a choice. Choice is one thing the human being must make. The trouble is that most often the human being refuses to choose. Hence, he cannot realize his freedom and the futility of his existence. Basically existence is of two types: authentic and inauthentic forms of existence. Authentic existence is contrasted with dynamic and is the being-for- itself, rising from the human beings bad faith, by which the human being moves away from the bur- den of responsibility, through this beliefs in dogma and by regarding himself as subject to outside in- fluences and his actions to be predetermined. There is a striking contrast between the authentic and the inauthentic forms of being; the authentic being is the being of the human being and the inau- thentic being is the being for things. Yet, authentic being is only rarely attained by the human being; still it is what the human being must strive to gain. The inauthentic being-in-itself is characteristically distinctive of things; it is what the human being is diseased with for his failure to see himself as and act according as a free agent and his impotency to reject bad faith. Things are only what they are. But the human being is what can be. Things are deter- mined, fixed, and rigid; the human being is free; he can add essence to his life in the course of his life and he is in a constant state of flux and is able to comprehend his situation. The human being does not live in a pre-determined world; the human be- ing is free to realize his aims, to materialize his dreams; hence, he has only the destiny he forges for himself because in this world nothing happens out of necessity. The human being hides himself from freedom by self-deception, acting like a thing, as if he is a pas- sive subject, instead of realizing the authentic be- ing for the human being; this is bad faith. In bad faith, the human being shelter himself from re- sponsibility by not noticing the dimensions of al- ternative courses of action facing him; in bad faith, the human being behaves as others demand of him by conforming to the standards of accepted values and by adopting roles designed for him; in bad faith, the human being loses the autonomy of his moral will, his freedom to decide; in bad faith, the human being imprisons himself within inauthentic- ity for he has refused to take the challenge of re- sponsibility and the anxiety that comes along with his freedom. Anxiety ascends from the human beings realiza- tion that the human beings destiny is not fixed but is open to an undetermined future of infinite possi- bilities and limitless scope: The emptiness of fu- ture destiny must be filled by making choices for which he alone will assume responsibility and blame. This anxiety is present at every moment of the human beings existence; anxiety is part and parcel of authentic existence. Anxiety leads the human being to take decisions and be committed. The human being tries to avoid this anguish through bad faith. But the free human being, in his authenticity, must be involved; for his own actions are only his, his responsibility is to himself, his being is his own. The human being must be com- mitted. To be committed means not to support this in place of that, but to attach a human beings total- ity to a cause; it is the human beings existential freedom that leads to total commitment. Existentialist thinkers begin from the human situa- tion in the world; the condition of despair, the modes of existence, the human beings tendency to avoid authentic existence, his relation to things, his own body, and to other beings, with whom he can- not come into genuine communication, and the sufferings of life. Starting from the study of being, each existentialist thinkers originate their own doc- trines, with their own emphasis on particular as- pects. Very often their viewpoints is conflicting and sometimes contradictory; yet this philosophi-cal attitude of being, as a whole, can be described as the existentialist movement, which stresses upon the being of the human being. Existentialism Notes 3 Additional Notes on Existentialism Existentialism, philosophical movement or ten- dency, emphasizing individual existence, freedom, and choice, that influenced many diverse writers in the 19th and 20th centuries. Major Themes Because of the diversity of positions associated with existentialism, the term is impossible to define precisely. Certain themes common to virtually all existentialist writers can, however, be identified. The term itself suggests one major theme: the stress on concrete individual existence and, consequently, on subjectivity, individual freedom, and choice. Moral Individualism Most philosophers since Plato have held that the highest ethical good is the same for everyone; inso- far as one approaches moral perfection, one resem- bles other morally perfect individuals. The 19th- century Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard, who was the first writer to call himself existential, reacted against this tradition by insisting that the highest good for the individual is to find his or her own unique vocation. As he wrote in his journal, â€Å"I must find a truth that is true for me . . . the idea for which I can live or die. † Other existentialist writers have echoed Kierkegaards belief that one must choose ones own way without the aid of universal, objective standards. Against the traditional view that moral choice involves an objective judgment of right and wrong, existentialists have argued that no objective, rational basis can be found for moral decisions. The 19th-century German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche further contended that the indi- vidual must decide which situations are to count as moral situations. SubjectivityAll existentialists have followed Kierkegaard in s tressing the importance of passionate individual action in deciding questions of both morality and truth. They have insisted, accordingly, that per- sonal experience and acting on ones own convic- tions are essential in arriving at the truth. Thus, the understanding of a situation by someone involved in that situation is superior to that of a detached, objective observer. This emphasis on the perspec- tive of the individual agent has also made existen- tialists suspicious of systematic reasoning. Kierke- gaard, Nietzsche, and other existentialist writers have been deliberately unsystematic in the exposi- tion of their philosophies, preferring to express themselves in aphorisms, dialogues, parables, and other literary forms. Despite their antirationalist position, however, most existentialists cannot be said to be irrationalists in the sense of denying all validity to rational thought. They have held that rational clarity is desirable wherever possible, but that the most important questions in life are not accessible to reason or science. Furthermore, they have argued that even science is not as rational as is commonly supposed. Nietzsche, for instance, asserted that the scientific assumption of an orderly universe is for the most part a useful fiction. Choice and Commitment Perhaps the most prominent theme in existentialist writing is that of choice. Humanitys primary dis- tinction, in the view of most existentialists, is the freedom to choose. Existentialists have held that human beings do not have a fixed nature, or es- sence, as other animals and plants do; each human being makes choices that create his or her own na- ture. In the formulation of the 20th-century French philosopher Jean Paul Sartre, existence precedes essence. Choice is therefore central to human exis- tence, and it is inescapable; even the refusal to choose is a choice. Freedom of choice entails com- mitment and responsibility. Because individuals are free to choose their own path, existentialists have argued, they must accept the risk and respon- sibility of following their commitment wherever it leads. Dread and Anxiety Kierkegaard held that it is spiritually crucial to rec- ognize that one experiences not only a fear of spe- cific objects but also a feeling of general apprehen- sion, which he called dread. He interpreted it as Gods way of calling each individual to make a commitment to a personally valid way of life. The word anxiety (German Angst) has a similarly cru- cial role in the work of the 20th-century German philosopher Martin Heidegger; anxiety leads to the individuals confrontation with nothingness and with the impossibility of finding ultimate justifica- tion for the choices he or she must make. In the philosophy of Sartre, the word nausea is used for the individuals recognition of the pure contin- gency of the universe, and the word anguish is used for the recognition of the total freedom of choice that confronts the individual at every mo- ment. Existentialism Notes 4 History Existentialism as a distinct philosophical and liter- ary movement belongs to the 19th and 20th centu- ries, but elements of existentialism can be found in the thought (and life) of Socrates, in the Bible, and in the work of many premodern philosophers and writers. Pascal The first to anticipate the major concerns of mod- ern existentialism was the 17th-century French phi- losopher Blaise Pascal. Pascal rejected the rigorous rationalism of his contemporary Rene Descartes, asserting, in his Pensees (1670), that a systematic philosophy that presumes to explain God and hu- manity is a form of pride. Like later existentialist writers, he saw human life in terms of paradoxes: The human self, which combines mind and body, is itself a paradox and contradiction. Kierkegaard Kierkegaard, generally regarded as the founder of modern existentialism, reacted against the system- atic absolute idealism of the 19th-century German philosopher G. W. F. Hegel, who claimed to have worked out a total rational understanding of hu- manity and history. Kierkegaard, on the contrary, stressed the ambiguity and absurdity of the human situation. The individuals response to this situation must be to live a totally committed life, and this commitment can only be understood by the indi- vidual who has made it. The individual therefore must always be prepared to defy the norms of soci- ety for the sake of the higher authority of a person- ally valid way of life. Kierkegaard ultimately advo- cated a â€Å"leap of faith† into a Christian way of life, which, although incomprehensible and full of risk, was the only commitment he believed could save the individual from despair. Nietzsche Nietzsche, who was not acquainted with the work of Kierkegaard, influenced subsequent existential- ist thought through his criticism of traditional metaphysical and moral assumptions and through his espousal of tragic pessimism and the life- affirming individual will that opposes itself to the moral conformity of the majority. In contrast to Kierkegaard, whose attack on conventional moral- ity led him to advocate a radically individualistic Christianity, Nietzsche proclaimed the â€Å"death of God† and went on to reject the entire Judeo- Christian moral tradition in favor of a heroic pagan ideal. Heidegger Heidegger, like Pascal and Kierkegaard, reacted against an attempt to put philosophy on a conclu- sive rationalistic basis—in this case the phenome- nology of the 20th-century German philosopher Edmund Husserl. Heidegger argued that humanity finds itself in an incomprehensible, indifferent world. Human beings can never hope to under- stand why they are here; instead, each individual must choose a goal and follow it with passionate conviction, aware of the certainty of death and the ultimate meaninglessness of ones life. Heidegger contributed to existentialist thought an original em- phasis on being and ontology as well as on lan- guage. Sartre Sartre first gave the term existentialism general currency by using it for his own philosophy and by becoming the leading figure of a distinct move- ment in France that became internationally influen- tial after World War II. Sartres philosophy is ex- plicitly atheistic and pessimistic; he declared that human beings require a rational basis for their lives but are unable to achieve one, and thus human life is a â€Å"futile passion. † Sartre nevertheless insisted that his existentialism is a form of humanism, and he strongly emphasized human freedom, choice, and responsibility. He eventually tried to reconcile these existentialist concepts with a Marxist analy- sis of society and history. Existentialism and Theology Although existentialist thought encompasses the uncompromising atheism of Nietzsche and Sartre and the agnosticism of Heidegger, its origin in the intensely religious philosophies of Pascal and Kierkegaard foreshadowed its profound influence on 20th-century theology. The 20th-century Ger- man philosopher Karl Jaspers, although he rejected explicit religious doctrines, influenced contempo- rary theology through his preoccupation with tran- scendence and the limits of human experience. The German Protestant theologians Paul Tillich and Rudolf Bultmann, the French Roman Catholic theologian Gabriel Marcel, the Russian Orthodox philosopher Nikolay Berdyayev, and the German Jewish philosopher Martin Buber inherited many Existentialism Notes 5 of Kierkegaards concerns, especially that a per- sonal sense of authenticity and commitment is es- sential to religious faith. Existentialism and Literature A number of existentialist philosophers used liter- ary forms to convey their thought, and existential- ism has been as vital and as extensive a movement in literature as in philosophy. The 19th-century Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky is probably the greatest existentialist literary figure. In Notes from the Underground (1864), the alienated anti- hero rages against the optimistic assumptions of rationalist humanism. The view of human nature that emerges in this and other novels of Dostoyevsky is that it is unpredictable and per- versely self-destructive; only Christian love can save humanity from itself, but such love cannot be understood philosophically. As the character Alyo- sha says in The Brothers Karamazov (1879-80), â€Å"We must love life more than the meaning of it. † In the 20th century, the novels of the Austrian Jew- ish writer Franz Kafka, such as The Trial (1925; trans. 1937) and The Castle (1926; trans. 1930), present isolated men confronting vast, elusive, menacing bureaucracies; Kafkas themes of anxi- ety, guilt, and solitude reflect the influence of Kierkegaard, Dostoyevsky, and Nietzsche. The in- fluence of Nietzsche is also discernible in the nov- els of the French writers Andre Malraux and in the plays of Sartre. The work of the French writer Al- bert Camus is usually associated with existential- ism because of the prominence in it of such themes as the apparent absurdity and futility of life, the indifference of the universe, and the necessity of engagement in a just cause. Existentialist themes are also reflected in the theater of the absurd, nota- bly in the plays of Samuel Beckett and Eugene Ionesco. In the United States, the influence of exis- tentialism on literature has been more indirect and diffuse, but traces of Kierkegaards thought can be found in the novels of Walker Percy and John Up- dike, and various existentialist themes are apparent in the work of such diverse writers as Norman Mailer, John Barth, and Arthur Miller. Conclusion Existentialists make endless claims. They never bother to show how they reached their claims or if these are, indeed, true. The existentialists when he pretends to present a representation of reality pro- vides no cognition; unverifiable assertions may well express powerful and even necessary emo- tions and passions, but thats best left to the arts and literature. Existentialism is a highly passionate philosophy and, from the outset, seems to aim at a dynamic and fashionable life-style. Also it is mostly unsys- tematic and pays little attention to logic or science. Whatever one makes of its metaphysical claims, one cannot deny that existentialism was able to provide a moving account of the spirit of the con- temporary world and the nausea and frustration of survival. Indeed, it is basically for its richness in psychological insight and its impact on culture that existentialist philosophy will continued to be stud- ied.

Friday, November 15, 2019

Databases, Forms, and Reports Essay -- Database Organization Design Es

Databases, Forms, and Reports This paper will discuss databases, forms and reports. Why has the use of databases increased dramatically? What factors should be considered when designing a database and why? How would you go about designing forms and reports from scratch? In conclusion, a summation will be given along with closing thoughts. Database Usage A database is an organized collection of information or data. It is a collection of organized information in which a computer can easily select and display different fields of data. Databases have been in use since the earliest days of electronic computing, but the vast majority of these were custom programs written to access custom databases. Unlike modern systems which can be applied to widely different databases and needs, these systems were tightly linked to the database in order to gain speed at the price of flexibility. As computers grew in capability this tradeoff became increasingly unnecessary, as a number of general-purpose database systems emerged. With the implementation of relational and object-oriented databases, companies found that the use of databases were much more productive and cost effective. Productivity and cost effectiveness being two of the main factors as to why the use of databases has increased dramatically over the years. Most recently there has also beco me a growing interest in using company data to improve business performance. Queries around business performance analysis were the top datab...

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Diversity of human potential Essay

Gardner meanwhile developed the concept of multiple intelligences to reflect diversity of what human beings can do. He argued that there aptitudes or different propensities including linguistics, logical-mathematical, musical, bodily-kinesthetic, spatial, interpersonal and intrapersonal intelligences. Learning as a social behavior Bandura’s social learning theory extends the concept of the human potential and noted the role of obtaining competencies through the process of response consequences or observational learning which is essentially imitation or modeling. Modeling according to this theory has four components. Attention, the first component is perception of the significant attributes of a particular behavior. Retention is the next component or coding or committing the behavior to memory. Motor reproduction is the ability to reproduce the modeled behavior. The fourth component is motivational or reinforcements – the necessary push to do set of actions associated with the particular behavior (Bandura, 1975). The three basic psychological concepts outlined above just about cover the domain of psychology and points us to the direction that although there are individual competencies or potentials what happened if these individuals co-exists at particular setting. Bandura posited learning would be impossibility without a social setting even assuming the individual has the potential to learn (Bandura, 1962, , 1975). Accounting for variations. Levels of permanence and variability defines features of the individual like body shape which is relatively permanent than mental recognition or perception which could change quickly which may be internal or influenced by external factors. If modeling is a way of learning accounting for changes through time would be the next step, which is progression. In the case of suicide which has very strong negative association Kolb’s experiential learning cycle model would be helpful and may provide an expanded understanding on how groups or social networks form. This is very important as it has been shown modeling or experiencing losing someone because of suicide is a difficult phase which has proven significant as shown by Bearman and Moody, in terms of suicidal ideation or making the person who committed suicide a model figure (Bearman & Moody, 2004). Kolb identified four phases which has interesting interrelationships if taken not as phases but states of mind which is simultaneously being processed. Psychological diversity would be immense because of possibilities of dominance of each of the state of minds. Concrete experience (CE) and abstract conceptualization (AC), for example could be taken as off tangent to each other as experience could be taken as activity which is cyclical in itself but abstraction and conceptualization (AC) is progressive. Human potential may have been the same in the past 300 years but the explosion of knowledge because of science and technology what Bruner may call as powerful amplifiers. Reflective observation (RO) and active experimentation (AE) meanwhile in context of CE and AC could explain possible changes or how situations develop. To tie these all up is talking about the process cognition. As applied to understanding of the complex act of committing suicide, we see that actual experience or feeling the pressure from the environment as continuing until the final act. It is easy to understand what clinical psychologist would point out that suicidal tendencies should be seen as a form of mental illness an irrational behavior wherein the mind or the will has ceased to function. Kolb’s model is posited on the positive or rational thinking and development towards a higher plane of competence and learning as the rule or trend of human behavior. But still we could use Kolb’s and others thinking on human development as operative albeit the outcome is generally considered unacceptable. A lot of cases tends to point out there are risky social situations which may push some people into progressive stages until the act of committing suicide. For this we explore the sociological perspectives.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Japan Invades China (1931-37)

Japan invades China (1931-37) Japan’s main objectives of invading China in 1931 were to destroy communism and poses control over neighboring areas on the Asian continent. It was believed such a control was necessary to be able to issue possible military threats and inquire the natural resources needed to insure Japan’s economic independence. â€Å"By defeating Russia in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905, Japan acquired possession of Russia’s Liaodong Peninsula Leasehold, which she renamed the Kwantung Leased Territory, and the South Manchurian Railroad† (BJorge, 2011).After Korea was captured in 1910, Manchuria was filled with mineral wealth, gorgeous farmland, and potential value as a defensive Korea from both China and Russia. In the 1920s, many of the Kwantung army believed Japan should take over Manchuria just like they did in Korea. Plotting began to conquer Manchuria with direct military action which led to the first invasions of China in th e 1930s. (BJorge, 2011) The plan was made to be easy; a railroad on the Southern side of Mukden was made to explode to give the Kwantung an excuse to attack the nearby Manchurian army stations and the storage of weapons in the city.Once that was complete, the Kwantung army was easily expandable until all of Manchuria was captured. The government officials of Tokyo tried to stop the plot, but the Kwantung army attacked before the warning was issued. The bomb was set off on September 18, 1931 and the Kwantung army started moving into action. (BJorge, 2011) China turned to the League of Nations for support. At the time, the nationalist government did not want a war with Japan and either did the Japanese government and therefore ordered the Kwantung army to fall back and negotiate a reasonable solution.But the Kwantung army refused and continued attacking other cities and ended up sending troops into Manchuria. The Kwantung army was very powerful because of their popularly Japanese citi zens. Even though it was unacceptable for the Kwantung army to disobey, the separation of Manchuria from China would be in Japan’s favor. (BJorge, 2011) In May 1935, Japan’s Tinainjin fort demanded all Guomindang military units and officers to leave the Hebei state. Jiang Jieshi was still dedicated to his goal of destroying his communist enemies. Japan, it seemed, was well on the way to achieving her goal of separating north China from Nanjing government administration† (BJorge, 2011). In October 1935, the Japanese prime minster wanted China to accept Manchukuo to join with Japan to build up north China’s economy. This proposal was seen as impossible for the reason of the anti-Japanese anger in China. The anger forced Jiang to end his anti-communist cause. (BJorge, 2011) On the night of July 7, 1937, some Chinese fired shells where the Japanese troops were planning at the Marco Polo Bridge, which is about ten miles from Beijing.Japanese thought a missing s oldier was caught by the Chinese and the Japanese officer ordered a search. On July 8, when his requested was denied, he bombed the city. Chinese tried to attack the Japanese but failed. Several days later, five divisions were made in Japan by the Japanese War Ministry, four divisions were sent to southern Hebei, and the Japanese troops from Manchuria attacked northern China. Then on July 19, an agreement was signed, by the Chinese general Song Zheyan, to withdraw troops from Wanping. Six days later a fight broke out close to the Marco Polo Bridge and Japanese troops detained the bridge.On July 28, the Chinese evacuated to save themselves before it was too late, while Japanese forces captured Tianjin two days later. That was the day Jiang decided that he will lead Japan and fight to finish the operation until the end. (Beck, 2007) On August 11, Jiang Jieshi moved 80,000 men into Shanghai. China tried to air force bomb the Japanese warships, but ended up missing and killing hundreds of civilians in Shanghai. At the end of August the Chinese forces tried to fight and attack the Japanese in Shanghai, but were unsuccessful and turned back to the defensive side in September and October.The Chinese lost 250,000 soldiers compared to 40,000 Japanese soldiers. In November, thanks to French priest Jacquinot de Bessage, some Chinese civilians were given a place to live after losing their home. (Beck, 2007) The Shanxi capital Taiyuan fell on November 9. In late September, the Communists won at Pingxingguan successfully killing about 500 Japanese and gained a hundred equipment trucks. They would have retrieved more, but the remaining Japanese destroyed their equipment and committed suicide. Beck, 2007) The Japanese broke through enemy lines in Shanghai and Chinese began withdrawing toward Nanjing on November 11. Jiang felt the world was on his side, even though the League of Nations did not take any action, and the signing of the non-aggression pact with the Soviet Union h ad no impact. But Japan was well on their way of completing their mission; the forces took over Beijing in September, Shijiazhuang in October, Taiyuan in November, Qingdao in August, and Jinan in December. (Beck, 2007) The former warlord Tang Shengzhi was ordered to hold Nanjing.The Japanese were promising the civilians to treat them well as their follow Chinese soldiers were killing and robbing people to take everything they could to escape. Jiang refused to stop fighting and the Japanese began bombing on December 10. Before the Japanese army arrived, half of the population had already left Nanjing. â€Å"The Presbyterian missionary W. Plumer Mills had learned of Bessage’s neutral zone, and the Americans and Europeans organized a safety zone that included Nanjing University, Ginling Women’s Arts and  Science College, the American embassy, and Chinese government buildings† (Beck, 2007).On November 22, the International Committee was made for the Nanjing Safety Zone. Three days later Adolf Hitler was asked to negotiate with the Japanese government to respect the neutral zone for the noncombatants. After all of that was settled, the Japanese continued their bombing to the military targets. More than one hundred thousand people were protected in the Safety Zone. (Beck, 2007) On December 12, Tang Shengzhi abandoned Nanjing and the Japanese troops entered the city the next day.For the seven weeks after that they killed about 30,000 Chinese soldiers, thrashed most of the civilians not in the safety zone, and burned most of the city. Between 20,000 and 80,000 women were raped or taken as slaves. It was estimated more than 200,000 Chinese civilians were exterminated by Japanese soldiers in Nanjing after the war. The Japanese dragged and murdered some of the ex-soldiers in the Safety Zone. â€Å"Jiang and Yan Xishan approved the Communist base in the Jin-Cha-Ji border region on January 22, 1938, but that was the first and last Communist base beh ind enemy lines that the Nationalists recognized† (Beck, 2007).The outcome of this invasion was terrible on China as the Chinese’s soldiers tried to fight to survive but were weaken and about 30 million Chinese civilians were forced to leave their homes and live in regions of their country unfamiliar to them as immigrants. Japan believed the invasion was going to be quick and easy, but they found themselves stuck in an unexpected marsh as China refused to surrender and the invasion turned into the beginning of the second Sino-Japanese War. Since it was too late to escape this battle, Japan reacted to the outbreak of war in Europe, which in time led them to attack the United States.With this action, Japan made China become part of World War II and with the defeat, Japan was forced to give up everything they gained in China since 1931. With the result of the war, the Japanese failed their main objective for the reason that the communist’s strength grew greater than it ever was. This marked the end of Japanese expansion. Reference List Beck, S. (2007). China at war 1937-1949. Retrieved from http://www. san. beck. org/21-5-ChinaatWar1937-49. html Benton, G. (2012). The Battle for China: Essays on the Military History of the Sino–Japanese War of 1937-1945. China Journal, (67), 189-191.BJORGE, G. J. (2011, November 13). China, invasion of (1931, 1937–1945). Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary. wiley. com/doi/10. 1002/9781444338232. wbeow112/pdf Burrell, R. S. (2011). The Battle for China: Essays on the Military History of the Sino-Japanese War of 1937-1945. Naval History, 25(2), 78. Cho, A. (2011). In a Sea of Bitterness: Refugees During the Sino-Japanese War. Library Journal, 136(15), 88 Falk, S. (2011). Varied Fare. Army Magazine, 61(6), 73-74. Farrell, B. P. (2011). Book Review: The Battle for China: Essays on the Military History of the Sino-Japanese War of 1937—1945.Edited by Mark Peattie, Edward Drea and Hans van de Ven . Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. 2011. xxv+614 pp. US$65 hbk. ISBN 978 0 .. War In History, 18(4), 566-568. doi:10. 1177/09683445110180040809 Historical Boys' Clothing. (2005, February 05). Second sino-japanese war: Japanese invasion of china (1937-45)). Retrieved from http://histclo. com/essay/war/ww2/camp/pac/china/w2c-inv. html History Learning Site. (n. d. ). The japan. Retrieved from http://www. historylearningsite. co. uk/china_war. htm Wikipedia. (n. d. ). Second sino-japanese war. Retrieved from http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Second_Sino-Japanese_War

Friday, November 8, 2019

7 Ways to Get Promotedâ€Beyond Just Working Hard

7 Ways to Get Promoted- Beyond Just Working Hard Think you can just slog away as diligently as you can and then everything else will fall into place? Think again. Just putting your head down and working hard is not enough. Don’t just imagine some omniscient presence is watching your performance at every turn and taking note of how well you’re doing. Here are a few concrete things to do to put yourself in a position to be promoted, beyond just showing up and working hard.1. Do something significant.So many rookies ask for a raise or a promotion without having done anything to earn it. Sure, they’ve worked hard. But they haven’t done the kind of specific work needed to grow as a leader or apply their talents and skills in a targeted way to help the company with what it needs most. Rise above. Then ask for a raise.2. Keep track of your successes.You should keep a running document of your accomplishments. Project start and end dates, significant milestones, quantifiable results, and thanks or congratulatory notes. This will be your arsenal when the time comes to prove your worthiness for promotion.3. Log professional development.Anytime you participate in a professional development activity- and you should be doing this!- log it. Keep track of courses, dates, names, contacts, etc. And file any new licenses or certificates you achieve, as well.4. Build a support team of mentors.You can’t get where you want to go without help. It takes a village- or, really, a team. Build bridges between you and your colleagues, supervisors, peers, managers, etc. Think about the ecosystem in which you’re operating. Learn its quirks and learn to thrive as a member of that climate. The best thing about scoring good mentors is that you might just land yourself a sponsor or ally who might be in the decision-making room when you aren’t and can make your case.5. Think ahead.Long before your review, sit down with your boss and make sure you know what tangible goals you should be working tow ards. Make sure you know the metrics you’ll be judged on when it comes time for promotion. Make a list of desired (or required) achievements. Then make sure your review is scheduled when it’s supposed to happen. If your first review comes and goes with no promotion, make sure you ask your boss what you’d need to do in the next six months to get there.6. Don’t wait to lead.Leadership opportunities won’t necessarily come to you. You have to seek them out. Lead a project, chair a committee, take charge of something. This will give you the exposure and visibility you need. Then just make sure you’re doing excellent work and maintaining your new role as leader.7. Branch out.It’s not just all about your company. Make sure to stay current. Network, interact, and yes, even interview at different companies in your field. Your employer isn’t the be all and end all. Anything could happen. Staying fresh and connected to the greater industr y not only means you’ll land on your feet if any shake-ups or lay-offs come around, but also that you will be seen as more valuable when the promotions start coming around.

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Free Essays on An Observation

I observed a 4-year old program. A. When I got there they were eating lunch and they all seemed to be very active there were 3 boys that were quite riled up and the teacher handled it by splitting them up and just talking in a quiet voice. They then lined up after eating and emptied their trays and milk cartons and walked to their lockers and put their lunch bags in them, by themselves. When we got to the classroom they had a bit of free play time and I observed quite a bit of sharing and cooperating for the most part. And they all cleaned up after themselves. When the teacher sang the clean up song. They then got out their carpets (pieces of carpet that had their names on the back) and put them on the floor and sat on them waiting for the teacher to start circle time. They did the calendar by having the leader come up and point to the numbers on it and they then told him what number came next. Next they said the days of the week and counted the children. After counting the children the teacher held up owls with a c hild's name on it and the children knew almost all the names by recognizing the letters in the name. After that was all done they read a weekly reader. This was very interesting they were able to pick out the right fire truck on the pages when the teacher said the name of it. And listened very attentively. They then colored and played some more and the ones who were coloring colored firedogs to bring to the fire station with them when they went. I watched as the children played and decided what they wanted to do. Some wanted to play with blocks and others wanted to play house, and they were asking others to play with them. This classroom was very open and not very demanding. I thought that the children had a lot of fun while playing and learned a lot also. Like for instance they learned the important rules of fire safety because the teacher had set up a fire station work area. And also by playing together with blocks or... Free Essays on An Observation Free Essays on An Observation I observed a 4-year old program. A. When I got there they were eating lunch and they all seemed to be very active there were 3 boys that were quite riled up and the teacher handled it by splitting them up and just talking in a quiet voice. They then lined up after eating and emptied their trays and milk cartons and walked to their lockers and put their lunch bags in them, by themselves. When we got to the classroom they had a bit of free play time and I observed quite a bit of sharing and cooperating for the most part. And they all cleaned up after themselves. When the teacher sang the clean up song. They then got out their carpets (pieces of carpet that had their names on the back) and put them on the floor and sat on them waiting for the teacher to start circle time. They did the calendar by having the leader come up and point to the numbers on it and they then told him what number came next. Next they said the days of the week and counted the children. After counting the children the teacher held up owls with a c hild's name on it and the children knew almost all the names by recognizing the letters in the name. After that was all done they read a weekly reader. This was very interesting they were able to pick out the right fire truck on the pages when the teacher said the name of it. And listened very attentively. They then colored and played some more and the ones who were coloring colored firedogs to bring to the fire station with them when they went. I watched as the children played and decided what they wanted to do. Some wanted to play with blocks and others wanted to play house, and they were asking others to play with them. This classroom was very open and not very demanding. I thought that the children had a lot of fun while playing and learned a lot also. Like for instance they learned the important rules of fire safety because the teacher had set up a fire station work area. And also by playing together with blocks or...

Sunday, November 3, 2019

How Can Social Change Be Brought About, Especially in a Totalitarian Essay

How Can Social Change Be Brought About, Especially in a Totalitarian Society Like the One Nafisi Describes - Essay Example In order to break the silence or discover possibilities to exercise their free will, individuals must strive to resist to such pressures on individual level. If only people realize what a deadly solution silence is, they would never choose to resort to it. It is a manifestation of the weakness and inability of individuals to stand for their basic human rights. In order to fight the system, Nafisi had to create a little world of her own with a like-minded group of students in order to evade the restrictions of the totalitarian regime they were living in. The classic literary works they studied together opened new vistas for their inner struggles to break the silence and to stand for their rights and this is how they survived in such suffocating circumstances with little efforts. â€Å"†¦ like Lolita, we tried to escape and to create our own little pocket of freedom.† (Nafisi, 435) They developed a strong bond during their struggle to keep their spirits alive and to carve o ut a little space for themselves and also learnt how to handle unfavorable circumstances. This is what Gladwell says about the Power of Context: â€Å"†¦ the Power of Context says that what really matters is little things.†(242) If people wait for radical social changes to take place, they must start by taking the first little steps themselves. Nafisi and Gladwell argue that environment plays an important role in shaping human behaviors. People tend to think and act differently under different circumstances and they even develop different perspectives of life in different situations. It was for this reason that reading Lolita in Tehran became an altogether different experience. â€Å"This then is the story of Lolita in Tehran, how Lolita gave a different color to Tehran and how Tehran helped redefine Nabakov’s novel, turning it into this Lolita, our Lolita.†( Nafisi, 420) Gladwell also emphasizes upon the strong impact of environment on human actions. Our b ehaviors undoubtedly reflect our familial and educational backgrounds, mentalities, and genetics- but most importantly they are shaped and governed by the environments we live in. We pick up cues from the environment and act or react accordingly. â€Å"The impetus to engage in a certain kind of behavior is not coming from a certain kind of person but from the feature of the environment.† (Gladwell, 238) In totalitarian regimes, it is incumbent upon individuals seeking social change to voice their concerns. The environmental factors might be discouraging and disheartening, but it is within human powers how they behave in particular situations. It is important to have will power, voice and the determination to express yourself through sensible and methodological actions. Social change can be brought about on the grassroots-level of totalitarian societies by instilling a general awareness about free will and the right to exercise it through words and actions. Rampant and radical movements can be easily undermined by such political systems by force; however, awareness about basic human rights seeps in the deepest layer of societies over the years. Such changes evolve slowly out of the dire need of the citizens to express their free will. In a totalitarian society like the one Nafisi describes, individuals are forced to redefine their behaviors particularly in public. People are forced to practice such customs in which they do not believe in; and they are expected to act and behave like the tools of a totalitarian system. If given an opportunity to

Friday, November 1, 2019

Ethics in Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ethics in Business - Essay Example Whenever there is discussion about saving or preserving ecosystem, majority concentrates about land and very few people pay attention to sea and species living in it. The attention of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and towards preserving fish and limiting annual catch limit is worth appreciating, as very few people pay attention to this aspect of the ecosystem. It is really very important for balanced Ecosystem. This proposed regulation will certainly affect people in fisheries business as with the implementation of this regulation Annual Catch Limit will be fixed, and people in fisheries business will be able to catch fish up to the specified annual catch limit only. 2) The proposal is to make changes to 5 fishery ecosystem plans in order to create a method or rule to specify annual catch limit (ACLs) & accountability measures (AMs) (Sutinen Jon G., 2005). The suggested proposal will be helpful in balancing eco system and mainly concentrates on the problem of over fishing. The proposal specifies that fishery management plan of every council must contain a method to specify annual catch limit, to prevent over fishing. Accountability measures are also needed to diminish or correct any surpass of annual catch limit.

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Interview Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 8

Interview - Essay Example The room itself had an unmistakable aura of grandeur about it. It was old but that wasn’t the only attribute, something struck me when I realized that these walls had been privy to the conversations of some of the greatest minds the world has ever seen.   ‘Oh crap’ I thought, ‘I actually have to answer this question’. While responding, I realized that even though this was an interview to study economics, the professors were interested to see how well I could synthesize different information from a variety of subjects. In this particular case it was perhaps political science and later in the interview, there was a great deal of mathematics involved. Furthermore, this interview was not the usual question and answer session that I had been used to in school; it was an open ended discussion with the experts. I disagreed with some of their opinions on several economic issues and gave some of my own. The dialogue that the interview entailed was nothing like I had previously encountered and therefore provided me with a distinct intellectual challenge.   In comparison with other experiences which have aided my intellectual development, this interview certainly holds the highest rank. My experiences at Model United Nations conferences were full of dialogue and debate regarding critical issues; the topics of discussion were provided beforehand whereas this interview truly tested my thinking skills and ability to adapt to a completely new situation. Alternatively, the training that the school’s Math team and I are currently partaking for the International Schools Mathematics Teacher’s Foundation (Hague, February 2012), has also been a challenge due to the intensity of our work and the fact that we are forced to synthesize information and topics we have previously seen in regular Math classes. However the interview holds more weight as it involved the synthesis of more than one

Monday, October 28, 2019

Dysfunctional Families in Today’s World Essay Example for Free

Dysfunctional Families in Today’s World Essay Children are supposed to grow up together with their parents. A family environment helps them not to feel depress(ed). They learn that their feelings and needs are important and can be expressed. Children growing up in such supportive environments are likely to form healthy, open relationships in adulthood. Family dysfunction can be any condition that interferes with healthy family functioning. In most families, there occurs some periods of time where functioning is impaired by stressful circumstances. These stressful events could be a death in the family or a parents serious illness, among others. But for healthy families, the moment the crisis is over, then normal functioning resumes. In dysfunctional families, however, problems tend to be chronic. The children then do not consistently get their needs. As a result, the negative patterns of parental behavior tend to be dominant in their childrens lives. Healthy families are not families who never argue or have disagreements. These families may have yelling, bickering, misunderstanding, tension, hurt, and anger but not all the time. In healthy families, emotional expression is allowed and accepted. Member of the family can freely ask for and give attention. Rules tend to be made explicit and remain consistent, but with some flexibility to adapt to individual needs and particular situations. Healthy families allow for individuality; each member is encouraged to pursue his or her own interests, and boundaries between individuals are honored. Children from healthy families are consistently treated with respect, and do not fear emotional, verbal, physical, or sexual abuse. Parents can be counted on to provide care for their children. Children are given responsibilities appropriate to their age and are not expected to take on parental responsibilities. Finally, in healthy families, everyone makes mistakes; and most importantly, mistakes are allowed. II. The rise of dysfunctional families and its impact in society There are many types of dysfunction in families. Some parents choose to under-function. They leave their children to fend for themselves. On the other hand there are some parents who over-function. These parents seem to never allow their children to grow up and be on their own. Others are inconsistent or violate basic boundaries of appropriate behavior. Below is a brief description of some types of parental dysfunction along with some common problems associated with each. Deficient Parents Deficient parents hurt their children more by omission than by commission. Frequently, it is because of a chronic mental illness or a disabling physical illness that contributes to parental inadequacy. Parental emotional needs tend to take precedence over the needs of the children. The children, on the other hand, are often asked to be their parents caretakers. Thus, children tend to take on the adult responsibilities at a young age in these families. They are robbed of their own childhood, and they learn to ignore their own needs and feelings. Because of this experience, where these children are simply unable to play an adult role and take care of their parents, they thenoften feel inadequate and guilty. These feelings continue into adulthood. Controlling Parents Unlike the deficient parents described above, controlling parents fail to allow their children to assume responsibilities appropriate for their age. Often, the controlling parents are driven by the fear of becoming unnecessary to their children. These parents then continue dominating and making decisions for their children, even if they are already well beyond the age at which this is necessary. This fear leaves them feeling betrayed and abandoned when their children become independent (Forward, 1989). On the other hand, these children of controlling parents frequently feel resentful, inadequate, and powerless. Transitions into adult roles are quite difficult, as these adults frequently have difficulties making decisions independent from their parents. When they act independently these adults feel very guilty, as if growing up were a serious act of disloyalty. Alcoholic Parents Alcoholic families tend to be chaotic and unpredictable. Rules that apply one day do not apply to another one or to the next instance that you happen to be part of. Promises are neither kept nor remembered. Expectations vary from one day to the next. Parents may be strict at times and indifferent at others. In addition, emotional expression is frequently forbidden and discussion about the alcohol use or related family problems is usually nonexistent. Family members are usually expected to keep problems a secret, thus preventing anyone from seeking help. All of these factors leave children feeling insecure, frustrated, and angry. Children often feel there must be something wrong with them and this is the reason that makes their parents behave this way. Mistrust of others, difficulty with emotional expression, and difficulties with intimate relationships carry over into adulthood. Children of alcoholics are at much higher risk for developing alcoholism than are children of non-alcoholics. Abusive Parents Abuse can be verbal, physical, or sexual. Verbal abuse such as frequent belittling criticism can have lasting effects, particularly when it comes from those entrusted with the childs care. Criticism can be aimed at the childs looks, intelligence, capabilities, or basic value. Some verbal abusers are very direct, while others use subtle put-downs disguised as humor. Both types are just as damaging. Definitions of physical abuse vary widely. Many parents, at one time or another, have felt the urge to strike their child. With physically abusive parents, however, the urge is frequent and little effort is made to control this impulse. Striking a child has much to do with meeting the parents emotional needs and nothing to do with concern for the child. Often, parents erroneously justify the abuse as a process of discipline that is intended to help the child. Physically abusive parents then create an environment of terror for the child. This is particularly worse since the violence is often random and unpredictable. Abused children often feel anger. Children of abusive parents have tremendous difficulties developing feelings of trust and safety even in their adult lives. While parents may justify or rationalize verbal or physical abuse as discipline aimed at somehow helping the child, there is no rationalization for sexual abuse. Sexual abuse is the most blatant example of an adult abusing a child purely for that adults own gratification. Sexual abuse can be any physical contact between an adult and child wherein that contact must be kept secret. The demonstrations of affection that occurred then such as hugging, kissing, or stroking a childs hair that can be done openly are quite acceptable and even beneficial. When physical contact is shrouded in secrecy then it is most likely inappropriate. Sexual abuse happens to both boys and girls. This act is perpetrated by both men and women. It cuts across lines of race, socioeconomic level, education level, and religious affiliation. In most cases, sexual abuse is part of an overall family pattern of dysfunction, disorganization, and inappropriate role boundaries. Responsibility for the sexual abuse in all cases rests entirely with the adult. No child is responsible for being abused. Most sexually abused children are too frightened and scared of the consequences for themselves and their families. In most cases, they do not risk telling another adult what is happening. As a result of this bottling-up, they grow into adulthood carrying feelings of self-loathing, shame, and worthlessness. They tend to be self-punishing and have considerable difficulties with relationships and with sexuality. When problems and circumstances such as parental alcoholism, mental illness, child abuse, or extreme parental rigidity and control interfere with family functioning, the effects on children can sometimes linger long after these children have grown up and left their problem families. Adults raised in dysfunctional families frequently report difficulties forming and maintaining intimate relationships, maintaining positive self-esteem, and trusting others; they fear a loss of control, and deny their feelings and reality (Vannicelli, 1989). There is a great deal of variability in how often dysfunctional interactions and behaviors occur in families, and in the kinds and the severity of their dysfunction. However, when patterns like the above are the norm rather than the exception, they systematically foster abuse and/or neglect. Abuse and neglect inhibit the development of childrens trust in the world, in others, and in themselves. Later as adults, these people may find it difficult to trust the behaviors and words of others, their own judgement and actions, or their own senses of selfworth. Not surprisingly, they may experience problems in their academic work, their relationships, and in their very identities. In common with other people, abused and neglected family members often struggle to interpret their families as normal. The more they have to accommodate to make the situation seem normal, the greater is their likelihood of misinterpreting themselves and developing negative self-concepts (e. g. , I had it coming; Im a rotten kid). III. The relationship between religion and dysfunctional families Dysfunctional family members have common symptoms and behavior patterns as a result of their common experiences within the family structure. This tends to reinforce the dysfunctional behavior, either through enabling or perpetuation. The dysfunctional family usually suffers from a variety of issues that may require the help of trained professionals. This is in addition to prayer and other spiritual disciplines. Some of those issues include: (1) Individual personality differences and personal issues; (2) Unresolved issues from the past; (3) Marital and family problems due to domestic violence and abuse, infidelity, and poor communication; (5) Financial problems and poverty; (6) Separation/divorce resulting in grief and loss and abandonment issues, depression, and sometimes a lack of financial support; (7) Mental and physical health problems; and (8) Spiritual disconnection. Any of the aforementioned problems can create high levels of distress, and failure to seek help can be lethal. Furthermore, when a major trauma strikes, families are rarely prepared to deal with it, and if they are unaccustomed to seeking outside help, family members may never recover emotionally. Many people stay away from connecting with God in a Christian community because they feel they are not good enough. Maybe they are overly critical of themselves, or maybe they know they have not lived the way God would want them to live. They may be afraid that Christians in church will judge them and reject them, and so they stay away. They say, God couldn’t really love someone like me. God must be angry with me. They could also be very adept at meeting the perceived expectations of others through self-denial. Denial, repression, splitting, and a false sense of self are often well-developed defense mechanisms. The black and white thinking expressed in such conflicting pairs of opposites as God vs. devil, church vs. world, sin vs. righteousness, leads to repression of anything that might possibly be construed as unacceptable. Constant self-monitoring and rigid self control, along with confession of every sin in prayer, are often considered the only means of avoiding divine condemnation. In the literalism characteristic of fundamentalism, an evil thought or feeling is regarded as just as sinful as an evil act. Impulses and feelings may be considered demonic in origin. In truth, religion can play a part in furthering the dysfunction of families. For one who has a dysfunctional family, its teachings of obedience, respect for authority and quiet compliance further enforce the debilitating situation. But when you dig deeper into what religion is, you will see clearly what God wants. Religious Institutions throughout history have used fear, control and manipulation to build kingdoms made by man. They have left many wounded or dead in the battlefield of Satans kingdom. Religion is a powerful tool of the enemy. An extreme example of this is The Taliban and Bin Laden. Religion teaches obedience to law. And Christ teaches grace. But the scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. Galatians 3:22-23. Learning to trust wholeheartedly in God, and depend on Him to break free from whatever bondage, will bring emancipation from these bondages, and make an impact in our broken society. The church should be the one institution where the spirit of fear does not exist and coercion and manipulation are not practiced. IV. Healing dysfunctional families Two centuries ago there was relatively little dispute over the existence of God, or the societally beneficial effect of popular belief in a creator. In the twentieth century extensive secularization occurred in western nations, the United States being the only significant exception (Bishop; Bruce; Gill et al. ; Sommerville). Theists often assert that popular belief in a creator is instrumental towards providing the moral, ethical and other foundations necessary for a healthy, cohesive society. Many also contend that widespread acceptance of evolution, and/or denial of a creator, is contrary to these goals. As he helped initiate the American experiment Benjamin Franklin stated; â€Å"religion will be a powerful regulator of our actions, give us peace and tranquility within our minds, and render us benevolent, useful and beneficial to others† (Isaacson: 87-88). Changes in family life have transformed our society in the last thirty years. One of the biggest has been the virtual disappearance of the male-breadwinner lifestyle and the emerging dominance of the dual-earner couple. Working wives and mothers face questions about the effects of their choices on their childrens welfare and their own health under the strain of the second shift, while their husbands confrontand respond to in a variety of waysnew opportunities to construct a masculine identity not focused exclusively on breadwinning. Leaders in education, business, and government debate what policies should be in place to help people manage their work and family lives and who should bear the cost of work-family management. Changing patterns of family formation and disruption have also created widespread concern and vociferous policy debates. High divorce rates raise questions about the effects of divorce on childrens well-being and future success and how to make blended families work. The problems facing single-parent families have become a focus of policy makers, religious leaders, and the national media. Debates about homosexual unions have led to battles over gay and lesbian marriage in a number of states and many local controversies over what legal rights should be extended to homosexual partners. Delayed marriage and childbearing mean that more American households comprise single adults and childless couples, and remaining childless throughout life has become much more common, fueling concern among some about the decline of the family. All of these changes have led to an increasing pluralism in family life and a new consensus that there are many kinds of loving, caring families. Most people spend some portion of their adult lives outside of a nuclear family, forming and reforming family-like connections periodically over the course of their lives, causing many to rethink long-held assumptions about the necessity of marriage and parenting for adults happiness, security, and well-being. But this pluralism is intensely contested and debated for both moral and social philosophical reasons. Not everyone agrees about what constitutes the good family and what kinds of families are morally legitimate. Many people see the family as the bellwether of our society and find the rapid and numerous changes in family life over the last few decades to be troubling. Some even argue that a devaluing of family life, and especially of lifelong, heterosexual marriage, inevitably leads to a decline of the nation. These debates also focus on questions of resources and inequality. Who has access to the rights that marriage confers? Why does divorce lead to a reduction in women and childrens standard of living, and what can be done to change that? Making Changes Changes in family life have been a central concern for religious leaders, activists, and local communities of faith. Throughout American history, religion and family have been intertwined and interdependent institutions. Congregations, parishes, and synagogues have provided an important context for families to spend time together and have shaped the religious education and moral development of children and youths. Sociologists have long noted that marriage and parenthood make religion more important to people and increase their participation in local congregations. Sometimes, children who come from dysfunctional families continue in their roles because they are waiting for their parents to give their permission; to change. Like most people, parents in dysfunctional families often feel threatened by changes in their children. As a result, they may thwart efforts to change and insist that the children change back. Some specific changes one can do are: (1) Identify painful or difficult experiences that happened during your childhood; (2) Make a list of your behaviors, beliefs, etc. that you would like to change; (3) Next to each item on the list, write down the behavior, belief, etc. that you would like to do/have instead; (4) Pick one item on your list and begin practicing the alternate behavior or belief. Choose the easiest item first; (5) Once you are able to do the alternate behavior more often than the original, pick another item on the list and practice changing it, too; (6) Believe in God’s grace that he will heal all the painful experiences in your list (in no. 1) and pray His love will help you change all the behaviors listed and free you from bondage. References: Bishop, George. (1999). â€Å"What Americans Really Believe, and Why Faith Isnt as Universal as They Think. † Free Inquiry 19(3): 38-42 Bruce, Steve. (2001). â€Å"Christianity in Britain, R. I. P. † Sociology of Religion 61: 191-203. Forward, S. (1989). Toxic parents: Overcoming their hurtful legacy and reclaiming your life. New York: Bantam Books. Gill, R, C. Hadaway and P. Marler 1998 â€Å"Is Religious Belief Declining in Britain? Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 37: 507-16 Isaacson, Walter. (2003) Benjamin Franklin: An American Life. New York, Simon Schuster. Meeting the Needs of Dysfunctional Families Catechist, January, (1993) Sommerville, C. (2002) â€Å"Stark’s Age of Faith Argument and the Secularization of Things: A. Commentary. † Sociology of Religion 63: 361-72 Vannicelli, M. (1989). Group psychotherapy with adult children of alcoholics: treatment techniques and countertransference. New York: Guilford Press.