American Pageant. Essay

Over time, there have been many different modifications to facilitate transportation and the economy. The transcontinental railroad is one factor that introduced the American indusrty. This immense industry turned into an even greater business and touched from coast to coast. Because of the railroads, urbanization and industrialization grew although the corruptions with scandals came as well. The nation was in a time of spurring even higher from starting in 1865. Before the railroads, the population was more scattered around farming areas. As the railroads grew, urbanization also expanded and began gathering around the railroads.Because the government gave a significant amount of land grants, the railroad companies, which were able to choose alternative mile-square sections, had much land that they did not use to build their railroads. President Grover Cleveland gave the unclaimed portions for land settlement in 1887. Although this was seen as the â€Å"giveaway† of land, the government ended up benefiting with long-term preferential rates for postal service and military traffic; the railroad corporations could also sell the land at an average of three dollars an acre.With new railroads in placed, people moved beside them and brought in business for the railroads and towns which gave the railroads another source of profit. Immigration also started uprising, with the Chinese and Irish working on the railroads. As the railroads traveled across the country, it gave the nation a way to get products or people across the country. Food and materials traveled to all from farms to towns and cities. People found it easier to move across the country; urbanization grew throughout the whole country rather than being scattered among the farms.The railroads were built because of industrialization and expanded it even further. As the railroad network snaked around the country, the economic growth did as well. The locomotives touched coast to coast offering what each sid e of the country had for the other. The west had many wealthy resources and the east had many workers. Raw materials traveled back and forth as so did the finished goods afterwards, such as steel for the generation of more railroads. The United States soon became the largest integrated national market in the world.As the railroads grew there was more demand for raw supplies from different parts of the country. The steel and wood for the railroads impacted greatly the forestry and mining industry while the coal industry also grew to power the trains; new factories and industries were built and powered to load more onto the new railroads. Millionaires greatly benefited from this, such as Cornelius Vanderbilt who was one of the most profitable amongst the new aristocracy. As the railroads expanded, so did industrialization, which made the United States economy one of the best that it has had over history.Although the effects of the railroads were mostly positive, there was the negative aspect of corruption and scandals came as well. Congress commissioned the Union Pacific Railroad, which the company received huge sums of money and land to build tracks. What the government did not know was that the corporation had frauds which were known as the Credit Mobilier; insiders from the construction company had reaped twenty-three million dollars in profits. Jay Gould was many of those who also executed many robberies. For nearly thirty years he gained money from the stocks of Erie, the Kansas Pacific, and the Texas and Pacific.One of the many different ways these million-dollar-thieves manipulated was â€Å"stock watering†. Originally coming from the definition of bloating up a cow to sell for more, the stock promoters were doing this but with the economy and stocks. The railroad stock promoters inflated their claims about a given line’s assets and profitability and sold stocks and bonds much higher than the railroad’s actual value. Railroad managers where therefore forced to charge much higher and compete against each other in order to pay the exaggerated financial obligations. In the midst of all the scandal, the Vanderbilt’s were involved as well.As many railroaders, they had to fight and bribe for rights. As long as there were railroads, and with their many positive effects, there was also corruption, competition, and scandal. The building of the transcontinental railroads changed the American economy immensely. It has changed the nation as a whole and spurred with a new way of supply and demand traveling all over the country. The new web of steel brought up urbanization, industrialization and corruption with scandals as well. The transcontinental railroads brought the country together with a new form of economy.

A Haunted House Essay

â€Å"A Haunted House† by Virginia Woolf, is a short story that tells the experience of a young couple, living in a house with a ghostly couple. The story begins with a â€Å"ghostly couple† looking for their treasure, in the house they previously lived in while alive. While alive, the ghosts lived in the house more than a century before the current residents. The woman died first, this is when the man left her and the house, he â€Å"went North, went East, saw the stars turned in the Southern sky. † Later when the man died, he returned to join the woman ghost at the house they occupied while together. Fearing, that the new couple may have found their treasure, the ghosts go from â€Å"room to room they went, hand in hand, lifting here, opening there. Opening windows, whispering not to wake us, the ghostly seek their joy. † The narrator, being aware that there are ghosts in the house, never feared being harmed. In the end, the author reveals that the buried treasure is â€Å"the light in the heart,† referring to all the different places in and around the house, where they had expressed their love to each other. The female ghosts says, â€Å"Here, sleeping; in the garden reading; laughing, rolling apples in the loft. Here we left our treasure. † It had never been missing. The major characters are the â€Å"Ghost† couple and the minor are the living couple; the ghosts are both dynamic characters. Through the entire story, the ghosts go from frantically searching for their treasure, even believing that the current residence may have found it. To realizing, what they were searching for was there the whole time. Therefore, changing the thought that they had lost their treasures, when truly their â€Å"treasure†, which was the love and joy they shared in the house was never lost and remained in the house all this time. As for the living couple, I believe they are both static characters. Their opinion of the ghosts or house never changes through the entire story. The conflict in this story is internal. As the ghosts search frantically going room to room. They realize, that the treasure they are looking for is not an actual tangible item, but â€Å"the light in the heart,† which is the love they held in their hearts and the memories they had in the house. The setting for this short story takes place in a centuries old two story house with a garden. The house sits on a tree-lined avenue close to a farm. With the description of â€Å"all the leaves were green in the glass†, you might think the season is most likely spring or summer. Therefore, I believe the setting to be general. The story is written from the first person point of view, through the perspective of the narrator who’s the new resident in the house. She lives in the house with her husband and she tells the reader about the ghost’s conversations and activities. Using first person point of view in this case builds suspense as the reader follows the narrator through this living â€Å"haunted† house. Woolf uses irony, stream of consciousness, and repetition to explain what is happening. By using stream of consciousness, she is able to tell the lives of the characters by revealing the associations and thoughts they have. For example, â€Å"Here we slept,† â€Å"Upstairs†, â€Å"In the garden†. These quotes let the readers know all the different places they shared their joy and love. The first use of irony is clearly in the title, â€Å"A Haunted House. † This haunting is unlike the stereotypical kind we might expect that produces a sense of fear and/or dread. The living couple had no fear of these ghosts in their house. The irony is the total opposite. Throughout the story, the author shows the reader the love and great memories the ghost couple shared in the â€Å"haunted house†. Virginia Woolf uses the repetition of the words â€Å"here† and â€Å"it† to describe the â€Å"treasure† and where it may be. The reader is informed that the ghost are trying to look for something, it’s not until the end of the story that the reader is informed what â€Å"It† was. With the use of streaming consciousness, irony, and repetition Virginia Woolf was able to portray the meaning of â€Å"A Haunted House. † That the joy and love shared between the ghost couple is the treasure of life and love. The theme of the story is man vs love. The central idea is that love is everlasting and conquers all. Even after death, the love and joy remains hidden within us all, if you know where to look.

Chapter 4 Back to the Burrow

The imminent arrival at their house of an assortment of wizards was making the Dursleys uptight and irritable. Uncle Vernon had looked downright alarmed when Harry informed him that the Weasleys would be arriving at five o’clock the very next day. â€Å"I hope you told them to dress properly, these people,† he snarled at once. â€Å"I’ve seen the sort of stuff your lot wear. They’d better have the decency to put on normal clothes, that’s all.† Harry felt a slight sense of foreboding. He had rarely seen Mr. or Mrs. Weasley wearing anything that the Dursleys would call â€Å"normal.† Their children might don Muggle clothing during the holidays, but Mr. and Mrs. Weasley usually wore long robes in varying states of shabbiness. Harry wasn’t bothered about what the neighbors would think, but he was anxious about how rude the Dursleys might be to the Weasleys if they turned up looking like their worst idea of wizards. Uncle Vernon had put on his best suit. To some people, this might have looked like a gesture of welcome, but Harry knew it was because Uncle Vernon wanted to look impressive and intimidating. Dudley, on the other hand, looked somehow diminished. This was not because the diet was at last taking effect, but due to fright. Dudley had emerged from his last encounter with a fully grown wizard with a curly pig’s tail poking out of the seat of his trousers, and Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon had had to pay for its removal at a private hospital in London. It wasn’t altogether surprising, therefore, that Dudley kept running his hand nervously over his backside, and walking sideways from room to room, so as not to present the same target to the enemy. Lunch was an almost silent meal. Dudley didn’t even protest at the food (cottage cheese and grated celery). Aunt Petunia wasn’t, eating anything at all. Her arms were folded, her lips were pursed, and she seemed to be chewing her tongue, as though biting back the furious diatribe she longed to throw at Harry. â€Å"They’ll be driving, of course?† Uncle Vernon barked across the table. â€Å"Er,† said Harry. He hadn’t thought of that. How were the Weasleys going to pick him up? They didn’t have a car anymore; the old Ford Anglia they had once owned was currently running wild in the Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts. But Mr. Weasley had borrowed a Ministry of Magic car last year; possibly he would do the same today? â€Å"I think so,† said Harry. Uncle Vernon snorted into his mustache. Normally, Uncle Vernon would have asked what car Mr. Weasley drove; he tended to judge other men by how big and expensive their cars were. But Harry doubted whether Uncle Vernon would have taken to Mr. Weasley even if he drove a Ferrari. Harry spent most of the afternoon in his bedroom; he couldn’t stand watching Aunt Petunia peer out through the net curtains every few seconds, as though there had been a warning about an escaped rhinoceros. Finally, at a quarter to five, Harry went back downstairs and into the living room. Aunt Petunia was compulsively straightening cushions. Uncle Vernon was pretending to read the paper, but his tiny eyes were not moving, and Harry was sure he was really listening with all his might for the sound of an approaching car. Dudley was crammed into an armchair, his porky hands beneath him, clamped firmly around his bottom. Harry couldn’t take the tension; he left the room and went and sat on the stairs in the hall, his eyes on his watch and his heart pumping fast from excitement and nerves. But five o’clock came and then went. Uncle Vernon, perspiring slightly in his suit, opened the front door, peered up and down the street, then withdrew his head quickly. â€Å"They’re late!† he snarled at Harry. â€Å"I know,† said Harry. â€Å"Maybe – er – the traffic’s bad, or something.† Ten past five†¦then a quarter past five†¦Harry was starting to feel anxious himself now. At half past, he heard Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia conversing in terse mutters in the living room. â€Å"No consideration at all.† â€Å"We might’ve had an engagement.† â€Å"Maybe they think they’ll get invited to dinner if they’re late.† â€Å"Well, they most certainly won’t be,† said Uncle Vernon, and Harry heard him stand up and start pacing the living room. â€Å"They’ll take the boy and go, there’ll be no hanging around. That’s if they’re coming at all. Probably mistaken the day. I daresay their kind don’t set much store by punctuality. Either that or they drive some tin-pot car that’s broken d -AAAAAAAARRRRRGH!† Harry jumped up. From the other side of the living room door came the sounds of the three Dursleys scrambling, panic-stricken, across the room. Next moment Dudley came flying into the hall, looking terrified. â€Å"What happened?† said Harry. â€Å"What’s the matter?† But Dudley didn’t seem able to speak. Hands still clamped over his buttocks, he waddled as fast as he could into the kitchen. Harry hurried into the living room. Loud bangings and scrapings were coming from behind the Dursleys’ boarded-up fireplace, which had a fake coal fire plugged in front of it. â€Å"What is it?† gasped Aunt Petunia, who had backed into the wall and was staring, terrified, toward the fire. â€Å"What is it, Vernon?† But they were left in doubt barely a second longer. Voices could be heard from inside the blocked fireplace. â€Å"Ouch! Fred, no – go back, go back, there’s been some kind of mistake – tell George not to – OUCH! George, no, there’s no room, go back quickly and tell Ron -â€Å" â€Å"Maybe Harry can hear us, Dad – maybe he’ll be able to let us out -â€Å" There was a loud hammering of fists on the boards behind the electric fire. â€Å"Harry? Harry, can you hear us?† The Dursleys rounded on Harry like a pair of angry wolverines. â€Å"What is this?† growled Uncle Vernon. â€Å"What’s going on?† â€Å"They – they’ve tried to get here by Floo powder,† said Harry, fighting a mad desire to laugh. â€Å"They can travel by fire – only you’ve blocked the fireplace – hang on -â€Å" He approached the fireplace and called through the boards. â€Å"Mr. Weasley? Can you hear me?† The hammering stopped. Somebody inside the chimney piece said, â€Å"Shh!† â€Å"Mr. Weasley, it’s Harry†¦the fireplace has been blocked up. You won’t be able to get through there.† â€Å"Damn!† said Mr. Weasley’s voice. â€Å"What on earth did they want to block up the fireplace for?† â€Å"They’ve got an electric fire,† Harry explained. â€Å"Really?† said Mr. Weasley’s voice excitedly. â€Å"Eclectic, you say? With a plug? Gracious, I must see that†¦.Let’s think†¦Ouch, Ron!† Ron’s voice now joined the others’. â€Å"What are we doing here? Has something gone wrong?† â€Å"Oh no, Ron,† came Fred’s voice, very sarcastically. â€Å"No, this is exactly where we wanted to end up.† â€Å"Yeah, we’re having the time of our lives here,† said George, whose voice sounded muffled, as though he was squashed against the wall. â€Å"Boys, boys†¦Ã¢â‚¬  said Mr. Weasley vaguely. â€Å"I’m trying to think what to do†¦.Yes†¦only way†¦Stand back, Harry.† Harry retreated to the sofa. Uncle Vernon, however, moved forward. â€Å"Wait a moment!† he bellowed at the fire. â€Å"What exactly are you going to -â€Å" BANG. The electric fire shot across the room as the boarded-up fireplace burst outward, expelling Mr. Weasley, Fred, George, and Ron in a cloud of rubble and loose chippings. Aunt Petunia shrieked and fell backward over the coffee table; Uncle Vernon caught her before she hit the floor, and gaped, speechless, at the Weasleys, all of whom had bright red hair, including Fred and George, who were identical to the last freckle. â€Å"That’s better,† panted Mr. Weasley, brushing dust from his long green robes and straightening his glasses. â€Å"Ah – you must be Harry’s aunt and uncle!† Tall, thin, and balding, he moved toward Uncle Vernon, his hand outstretched, but Uncle Vernon backed away several paces, dragging Aunt Petunia. Words utterly failed Uncle Vernon. His best suit was covered in white dust, which had settled in his hair and mustache and made him look as though he had just aged thirty years. â€Å"Er – yes – sorry about that,† said Mr. Weasley, lowering his hand and looking over his shoulder at the blasted fireplace. â€Å"It’s all my fault. It just didn’t occur to me that we wouldn’t be able to get out at the other end. I had your fireplace connected to the Floo Network, you see – just for an afternoon, you know, so we could get Harry. Muggle fireplaces aren’t supposed to be connected, strictly speaking – but I’ve got a useful contact at the Floo Regulation Panel and he fixed it for me. I can put it right in a jiffy, though, don’t worry. I’ll light a fire to send the boys back, and then I can repair your fireplace before I Disapparate.† Harry was ready to bet that the Dursleys hadn’t understood a single word of this. They were still gaping at Mr. Weasley, thunderstruck. Aunt Petunia staggered upright again and hid behind Uncle Vernon. â€Å"Hello, Harry!† said Mr. Weasley brightly. â€Å"Got your trunk ready?† â€Å"It’s upstairs,† said Harry, grinning back. â€Å"We’ll get it,† said Fred at once. Winking at Harry, he and George left the room. They knew where Harry’s bedroom was, having once rescued him from it in the dead of night. Harry suspected that Fred and George were hoping for a glimpse of Dudley; they had heard a lot about him from Harry. â€Å"Well,† said Mr. Weasley, swinging his arms slightly, while he tried to find words to break the very nasty silence. â€Å"Very – erm – very nice place you’ve got here.† As the usually spotless living room was now covered in dust and bits of brick, this remark didn’t go down too well with the Dursleys. Uncle Vernon’s face purpled once more, and Aunt Petunia started chewing her tongue again. However, they seemed too scared to actually say anything. Mr. Weasley was looking around. He loved everything to do with Muggles. Harry could see him itching to go and examine the television and the video recorder. â€Å"They run off eckeltricity, do they?† he said knowledgeably. â€Å"Ah yes, I can see the plugs. I collect plugs,† he added to Uncle Vernon. â€Å"And batteries. Got a very large collection of batteries. My wife thinks I’m mad, but there you are.† Uncle Vernon clearly thought Mr. Weasley was mad too. He moved ever so slightly to the right, screening Aunt Petunia from view, as though he thought Mr. Weasley might suddenly run at them and attack. Dudley suddenly reappeared in the room. Harry could hear the clunk of his trunk on the stairs, and knew that the sounds had scared Dudley out of the kitchen. Dudley edged along the wall, gazing at Mr. Weasley with terrified eyes, and attempted to conceal himself behind his mother and father. Unfortunately, Uncle Vernon’s bulk, while sufficient to hide bony Aunt Petunia, was nowhere near enough to conceal Dudley. â€Å"Ah, this is your cousin, is it, Harry?† said Mr. Weasley, taking another brave stab at making conversation. â€Å"Yep,† said Harry, â€Å"that’s Dudley.† He and Ron exchanged glances and then quickly looked away from each other; the temptation to burst out laughing was almost overwhelming. Dudley was still clutching his bottom as though afraid it might fall off. Mr. Weasley, however, seemed genuinely concerned at Dudley’s peculiar behavior. Indeed, from the tone of his voice when he next spoke, Harry was quite sure that Mr. Weasley thought Dudley was quite as mad as the Dursleys thought he was, except that Mr. Weasley felt sympathy rather than fear. â€Å"Having a good holiday, Dudley?† he said kindly. Dudley whimpered. Harry saw his hands tighten still harder over his massive backside. Fred and George came back into the room carrying Harry’s school trunk. They glanced around as they entered and spotted Dudley. Their faces cracked into identical evil grins. â€Å"Ah, right,† said Mr. Weasley. â€Å"Better get cracking then.† He pushed up the sleeves of his robes and took out his wand. Harry saw the Dursleys draw back against the wall as one. â€Å"Incendio!† said Mr. Weasley, pointing his wand at the hole in the wall behind him. Flames rose at once in the fireplace, crackling merrily as though they had been burning for hours. Mr. Weasley took a small drawstring bag from his pocket, untied it, took a pinch of the powder inside, and threw it onto the flames, which turned emerald green and roared higher than ever. â€Å"Off you go then, Fred,† said Mr. Weasley. â€Å"Coming,† said Fred. â€Å"Oh no – hang on -â€Å" A bag of sweets had spilled out of Fred’s pocket and the contents were now rolling in every direction – big, fat toffees in brightly colored wrappers. Fred scrambled around, cramming them back into his pocket, then gave the Dursleys a cheery wave, stepped forward, and walked right into the fire, saying â€Å"the Burrow!† Aunt Petunia gave a little shuddering gasp. There was a whooshing sound, and Fred vanished. â€Å"Right then, George,† said Mr. Weasley, â€Å"you and the trunk.† Harry helped George carry the trunk forward into the flames and turn it onto its end so that he could hold it better. Then, with a second whoosh, George had cried â€Å"the Burrow!† and vanished too. â€Å"Ron, you next,† said Mr. Weasley. â€Å"See you,† said Ron brightly to the Dursleys. He grinned broadly at Harry, then stepped into the fire, shouted â€Å"the Burrow!† and disappeared. Now Harry and Mr. Weasley alone remained. â€Å"Well†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢bye then,† Harry said to the Dursleys. They didn’t say anything at all. Harry moved toward the fire, but just as he reached the edge of the hearth, Mr. Weasley put out a hand and held him back. He was looking at the Dursleys in amazement. â€Å"Harry said good-bye to you,† he said. â€Å"Didn’t you hear him?† â€Å"It doesn’t matter,† Harry muttered to Mr. Weasley. â€Å"Honestly, I don’t care.† Mr. Weasley did not remove his hand from Harry’s shoulder. â€Å"You aren’t going to see your nephew till next summer,† he said to Uncle Vernon in mild indignation. â€Å"Surely you’re going to say good-bye?† Uncle Vernon’s face worked furiously. The idea of being taught consideration by a man who had just blasted away half his living room wall seemed to be causing him intense suffering. But Mr. Weasley’s wand was still in his hand, and Uncle Vernon’s tiny eyes darted to it once, before he said, very resentfully, â€Å"Good-bye, then.† â€Å"See you,† said Harry, putting one foot forward into the green flames, which felt pleasantly like warm breath. At that moment, however, a horrible gagging sound erupted behind him, and Aunt Petunia started to scream. Harry wheeled around. Dudley was no longer standing behind his parents. He was kneeling beside the coffee table, and he was gagging and sputtering on a foot-long, purple, slimy thing that was protruding from his mouth. One bewildered second later, Harry realized that the foot-long thing was Dudley’s tongue – and that a brightly colored toffee wrapper lay on the floor before him. Aunt Petunia hurled herself onto the ground beside Dudley, seized the end of his swollen tongue, and attempted to wrench it out of his mouth; unsurprisingly, Dudley yelled and sputtered worse than ever, trying to fight her off. Uncle Vernon was bellowing and waving his arms around, and Mr. Weasley had to shout to make himself heard. â€Å"Not to worry, I can sort him out!† he yelled, advancing on Dudley with his wand outstretched, but Aunt Petunia screamed worse than ever and threw herself on top of Dudley, shielding him from Mr. Weasley. â€Å"No, really!† said Mr. Weasley desperately. â€Å"It’s a simple process it was the toffee – my son Fred – real practical joker – but it’s only an Engorgement Charm – at least, I think it is – please, I can correct it -â€Å" But far from being reassured, the Dursleys became more panic- stricken; Aunt Petunia was sobbing hysterically, tugging Dudley’s tongue as though determined to rip it out; Dudley appeared to be suffocating under the combined pressure of his mother and his tongue; and Uncle Vernon, who had lost control completely, seized a china figure from on top of the sideboard and threw it very hard at Mr. Weasley, who ducked, causing the ornament to shatter in the blasted fireplace. â€Å"Now really!† said Mr. Weasley angrily, brandishing his wand. â€Å"I’m trying to help!† Bellowing like a wounded hippo, Uncle Vernon snatched up another ornament. â€Å"Harry, go! Just go!† Mr. Weasley shouted, his wand on Uncle Vernon. â€Å"I’ll sort this out!† Harry didn’t want to miss the fun, but Uncle Vernon’s second ornament narrowly missed his left ear, and on balance he thought it best to leave the situation to Mr. Weasley. He stepped into the fire, looking over his shoulder as he said â€Å"the Burrow!† His last fleeting glimpse of the living room was of Mr. Weasley blasting a third ornament out of Uncle Vernon’s hand with his wand, Aunt Petunia screaming and lying on top of Dudley, and Dudley’s tongue lolling around like a great slimy python. But next moment Harry had begun to spin very fast, and the Dursleys’ living room was whipped out of sight in a rush of emerald-green flames. Chapter 4 Back to the Burrow The imminent arrival at their house of an assortment of wizards was making the Dursleys uptight and irritable. Uncle Vernon had looked downright alarmed when Harry informed him that the Weasleys would be arriving at five o’clock the very next day. â€Å"I hope you told them to dress properly, these people,† he snarled at once. â€Å"I’ve seen the sort of stuff your lot wear. They’d better have the decency to put on normal clothes, that’s all.† Harry felt a slight sense of foreboding. He had rarely seen Mr. or Mrs. Weasley wearing anything that the Dursleys would call â€Å"normal.† Their children might don Muggle clothing during the holidays, but Mr. and Mrs. Weasley usually wore long robes in varying states of shabbiness. Harry wasn’t bothered about what the neighbors would think, but he was anxious about how rude the Dursleys might be to the Weasleys if they turned up looking like their worst idea of wizards. Uncle Vernon had put on his best suit. To some people, this might have looked like a gesture of welcome, but Harry knew it was because Uncle Vernon wanted to look impressive and intimidating. Dudley, on the other hand, looked somehow diminished. This was not because the diet was at last taking effect, but due to fright. Dudley had emerged from his last encounter with a fully grown wizard with a curly pig’s tail poking out of the seat of his trousers, and Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon had had to pay for its removal at a private hospital in London. It wasn’t altogether surprising, therefore, that Dudley kept running his hand nervously over his backside, and walking sideways from room to room, so as not to present the same target to the enemy. Lunch was an almost silent meal. Dudley didn’t even protest at the food (cottage cheese and grated celery). Aunt Petunia wasn’t, eating anything at all. Her arms were folded, her lips were pursed, and she seemed to be chewing her tongue, as though biting back the furious diatribe she longed to throw at Harry. â€Å"They’ll be driving, of course?† Uncle Vernon barked across the table. â€Å"Er,† said Harry. He hadn’t thought of that. How were the Weasleys going to pick him up? They didn’t have a car anymore; the old Ford Anglia they had once owned was currently running wild in the Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts. But Mr. Weasley had borrowed a Ministry of Magic car last year; possibly he would do the same today? â€Å"I think so,† said Harry. Uncle Vernon snorted into his mustache. Normally, Uncle Vernon would have asked what car Mr. Weasley drove; he tended to judge other men by how big and expensive their cars were. But Harry doubted whether Uncle Vernon would have taken to Mr. Weasley even if he drove a Ferrari. Harry spent most of the afternoon in his bedroom; he couldn’t stand watching Aunt Petunia peer out through the net curtains every few seconds, as though there had been a warning about an escaped rhinoceros. Finally, at a quarter to five, Harry went back downstairs and into the living room. Aunt Petunia was compulsively straightening cushions. Uncle Vernon was pretending to read the paper, but his tiny eyes were not moving, and Harry was sure he was really listening with all his might for the sound of an approaching car. Dudley was crammed into an armchair, his porky hands beneath him, clamped firmly around his bottom. Harry couldn’t take the tension; he left the room and went and sat on the stairs in the hall, his eyes on his watch and his heart pumping fast from excitement and nerves. But five o’clock came and then went. Uncle Vernon, perspiring slightly in his suit, opened the front door, peered up and down the street, then withdrew his head quickly. â€Å"They’re late!† he snarled at Harry. â€Å"I know,† said Harry. â€Å"Maybe – er – the traffic’s bad, or something.† Ten past five†¦then a quarter past five†¦Harry was starting to feel anxious himself now. At half past, he heard Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia conversing in terse mutters in the living room. â€Å"No consideration at all.† â€Å"We might’ve had an engagement.† â€Å"Maybe they think they’ll get invited to dinner if they’re late.† â€Å"Well, they most certainly won’t be,† said Uncle Vernon, and Harry heard him stand up and start pacing the living room. â€Å"They’ll take the boy and go, there’ll be no hanging around. That’s if they’re coming at all. Probably mistaken the day. I daresay their kind don’t set much store by punctuality. Either that or they drive some tin-pot car that’s broken d -AAAAAAAARRRRRGH!† Harry jumped up. From the other side of the living room door came the sounds of the three Dursleys scrambling, panic-stricken, across the room. Next moment Dudley came flying into the hall, looking terrified. â€Å"What happened?† said Harry. â€Å"What’s the matter?† But Dudley didn’t seem able to speak. Hands still clamped over his buttocks, he waddled as fast as he could into the kitchen. Harry hurried into the living room. Loud bangings and scrapings were coming from behind the Dursleys’ boarded-up fireplace, which had a fake coal fire plugged in front of it. â€Å"What is it?† gasped Aunt Petunia, who had backed into the wall and was staring, terrified, toward the fire. â€Å"What is it, Vernon?† But they were left in doubt barely a second longer. Voices could be heard from inside the blocked fireplace. â€Å"Ouch! Fred, no – go back, go back, there’s been some kind of mistake – tell George not to – OUCH! George, no, there’s no room, go back quickly and tell Ron -â€Å" â€Å"Maybe Harry can hear us, Dad – maybe he’ll be able to let us out -â€Å" There was a loud hammering of fists on the boards behind the electric fire. â€Å"Harry? Harry, can you hear us?† The Dursleys rounded on Harry like a pair of angry wolverines. â€Å"What is this?† growled Uncle Vernon. â€Å"What’s going on?† â€Å"They – they’ve tried to get here by Floo powder,† said Harry, fighting a mad desire to laugh. â€Å"They can travel by fire – only you’ve blocked the fireplace – hang on -â€Å" He approached the fireplace and called through the boards. â€Å"Mr. Weasley? Can you hear me?† The hammering stopped. Somebody inside the chimney piece said, â€Å"Shh!† â€Å"Mr. Weasley, it’s Harry†¦the fireplace has been blocked up. You won’t be able to get through there.† â€Å"Damn!† said Mr. Weasley’s voice. â€Å"What on earth did they want to block up the fireplace for?† â€Å"They’ve got an electric fire,† Harry explained. â€Å"Really?† said Mr. Weasley’s voice excitedly. â€Å"Eclectic, you say? With a plug? Gracious, I must see that†¦.Let’s think†¦Ouch, Ron!† Ron’s voice now joined the others’. â€Å"What are we doing here? Has something gone wrong?† â€Å"Oh no, Ron,† came Fred’s voice, very sarcastically. â€Å"No, this is exactly where we wanted to end up.† â€Å"Yeah, we’re having the time of our lives here,† said George, whose voice sounded muffled, as though he was squashed against the wall. â€Å"Boys, boys†¦Ã¢â‚¬  said Mr. Weasley vaguely. â€Å"I’m trying to think what to do†¦.Yes†¦only way†¦Stand back, Harry.† Harry retreated to the sofa. Uncle Vernon, however, moved forward. â€Å"Wait a moment!† he bellowed at the fire. â€Å"What exactly are you going to -â€Å" BANG. The electric fire shot across the room as the boarded-up fireplace burst outward, expelling Mr. Weasley, Fred, George, and Ron in a cloud of rubble and loose chippings. Aunt Petunia shrieked and fell backward over the coffee table; Uncle Vernon caught her before she hit the floor, and gaped, speechless, at the Weasleys, all of whom had bright red hair, including Fred and George, who were identical to the last freckle. â€Å"That’s better,† panted Mr. Weasley, brushing dust from his long green robes and straightening his glasses. â€Å"Ah – you must be Harry’s aunt and uncle!† Tall, thin, and balding, he moved toward Uncle Vernon, his hand outstretched, but Uncle Vernon backed away several paces, dragging Aunt Petunia. Words utterly failed Uncle Vernon. His best suit was covered in white dust, which had settled in his hair and mustache and made him look as though he had just aged thirty years. â€Å"Er – yes – sorry about that,† said Mr. Weasley, lowering his hand and looking over his shoulder at the blasted fireplace. â€Å"It’s all my fault. It just didn’t occur to me that we wouldn’t be able to get out at the other end. I had your fireplace connected to the Floo Network, you see – just for an afternoon, you know, so we could get Harry. Muggle fireplaces aren’t supposed to be connected, strictly speaking – but I’ve got a useful contact at the Floo Regulation Panel and he fixed it for me. I can put it right in a jiffy, though, don’t worry. I’ll light a fire to send the boys back, and then I can repair your fireplace before I Disapparate.† Harry was ready to bet that the Dursleys hadn’t understood a single word of this. They were still gaping at Mr. Weasley, thunderstruck. Aunt Petunia staggered upright again and hid behind Uncle Vernon. â€Å"Hello, Harry!† said Mr. Weasley brightly. â€Å"Got your trunk ready?† â€Å"It’s upstairs,† said Harry, grinning back. â€Å"We’ll get it,† said Fred at once. Winking at Harry, he and George left the room. They knew where Harry’s bedroom was, having once rescued him from it in the dead of night. Harry suspected that Fred and George were hoping for a glimpse of Dudley; they had heard a lot about him from Harry. â€Å"Well,† said Mr. Weasley, swinging his arms slightly, while he tried to find words to break the very nasty silence. â€Å"Very – erm – very nice place you’ve got here.† As the usually spotless living room was now covered in dust and bits of brick, this remark didn’t go down too well with the Dursleys. Uncle Vernon’s face purpled once more, and Aunt Petunia started chewing her tongue again. However, they seemed too scared to actually say anything. Mr. Weasley was looking around. He loved everything to do with Muggles. Harry could see him itching to go and examine the television and the video recorder. â€Å"They run off eckeltricity, do they?† he said knowledgeably. â€Å"Ah yes, I can see the plugs. I collect plugs,† he added to Uncle Vernon. â€Å"And batteries. Got a very large collection of batteries. My wife thinks I’m mad, but there you are.† Uncle Vernon clearly thought Mr. Weasley was mad too. He moved ever so slightly to the right, screening Aunt Petunia from view, as though he thought Mr. Weasley might suddenly run at them and attack. Dudley suddenly reappeared in the room. Harry could hear the clunk of his trunk on the stairs, and knew that the sounds had scared Dudley out of the kitchen. Dudley edged along the wall, gazing at Mr. Weasley with terrified eyes, and attempted to conceal himself behind his mother and father. Unfortunately, Uncle Vernon’s bulk, while sufficient to hide bony Aunt Petunia, was nowhere near enough to conceal Dudley. â€Å"Ah, this is your cousin, is it, Harry?† said Mr. Weasley, taking another brave stab at making conversation. â€Å"Yep,† said Harry, â€Å"that’s Dudley.† He and Ron exchanged glances and then quickly looked away from each other; the temptation to burst out laughing was almost overwhelming. Dudley was still clutching his bottom as though afraid it might fall off. Mr. Weasley, however, seemed genuinely concerned at Dudley’s peculiar behavior. Indeed, from the tone of his voice when he next spoke, Harry was quite sure that Mr. Weasley thought Dudley was quite as mad as the Dursleys thought he was, except that Mr. Weasley felt sympathy rather than fear. â€Å"Having a good holiday, Dudley?† he said kindly. Dudley whimpered. Harry saw his hands tighten still harder over his massive backside. Fred and George came back into the room carrying Harry’s school trunk. They glanced around as they entered and spotted Dudley. Their faces cracked into identical evil grins. â€Å"Ah, right,† said Mr. Weasley. â€Å"Better get cracking then.† He pushed up the sleeves of his robes and took out his wand. Harry saw the Dursleys draw back against the wall as one. â€Å"Incendio!† said Mr. Weasley, pointing his wand at the hole in the wall behind him. Flames rose at once in the fireplace, crackling merrily as though they had been burning for hours. Mr. Weasley took a small drawstring bag from his pocket, untied it, took a pinch of the powder inside, and threw it onto the flames, which turned emerald green and roared higher than ever. â€Å"Off you go then, Fred,† said Mr. Weasley. â€Å"Coming,† said Fred. â€Å"Oh no – hang on -â€Å" A bag of sweets had spilled out of Fred’s pocket and the contents were now rolling in every direction – big, fat toffees in brightly colored wrappers. Fred scrambled around, cramming them back into his pocket, then gave the Dursleys a cheery wave, stepped forward, and walked right into the fire, saying â€Å"the Burrow!† Aunt Petunia gave a little shuddering gasp. There was a whooshing sound, and Fred vanished. â€Å"Right then, George,† said Mr. Weasley, â€Å"you and the trunk.† Harry helped George carry the trunk forward into the flames and turn it onto its end so that he could hold it better. Then, with a second whoosh, George had cried â€Å"the Burrow!† and vanished too. â€Å"Ron, you next,† said Mr. Weasley. â€Å"See you,† said Ron brightly to the Dursleys. He grinned broadly at Harry, then stepped into the fire, shouted â€Å"the Burrow!† and disappeared. Now Harry and Mr. Weasley alone remained. â€Å"Well†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢bye then,† Harry said to the Dursleys. They didn’t say anything at all. Harry moved toward the fire, but just as he reached the edge of the hearth, Mr. Weasley put out a hand and held him back. He was looking at the Dursleys in amazement. â€Å"Harry said good-bye to you,† he said. â€Å"Didn’t you hear him?† â€Å"It doesn’t matter,† Harry muttered to Mr. Weasley. â€Å"Honestly, I don’t care.† Mr. Weasley did not remove his hand from Harry’s shoulder. â€Å"You aren’t going to see your nephew till next summer,† he said to Uncle Vernon in mild indignation. â€Å"Surely you’re going to say good-bye?† Uncle Vernon’s face worked furiously. The idea of being taught consideration by a man who had just blasted away half his living room wall seemed to be causing him intense suffering. But Mr. Weasley’s wand was still in his hand, and Uncle Vernon’s tiny eyes darted to it once, before he said, very resentfully, â€Å"Good-bye, then.† â€Å"See you,† said Harry, putting one foot forward into the green flames, which felt pleasantly like warm breath. At that moment, however, a horrible gagging sound erupted behind him, and Aunt Petunia started to scream. Harry wheeled around. Dudley was no longer standing behind his parents. He was kneeling beside the coffee table, and he was gagging and sputtering on a foot-long, purple, slimy thing that was protruding from his mouth. One bewildered second later, Harry realized that the foot-long thing was Dudley’s tongue – and that a brightly colored toffee wrapper lay on the floor before him. Aunt Petunia hurled herself onto the ground beside Dudley, seized the end of his swollen tongue, and attempted to wrench it out of his mouth; unsurprisingly, Dudley yelled and sputtered worse than ever, trying to fight her off. Uncle Vernon was bellowing and waving his arms around, and Mr. Weasley had to shout to make himself heard. â€Å"Not to worry, I can sort him out!† he yelled, advancing on Dudley with his wand outstretched, but Aunt Petunia screamed worse than ever and threw herself on top of Dudley, shielding him from Mr. Weasley. â€Å"No, really!† said Mr. Weasley desperately. â€Å"It’s a simple process it was the toffee – my son Fred – real practical joker – but it’s only an Engorgement Charm – at least, I think it is – please, I can correct it -â€Å" But far from being reassured, the Dursleys became more panic- stricken; Aunt Petunia was sobbing hysterically, tugging Dudley’s tongue as though determined to rip it out; Dudley appeared to be suffocating under the combined pressure of his mother and his tongue; and Uncle Vernon, who had lost control completely, seized a china figure from on top of the sideboard and threw it very hard at Mr. Weasley, who ducked, causing the ornament to shatter in the blasted fireplace. â€Å"Now really!† said Mr. Weasley angrily, brandishing his wand. â€Å"I’m trying to help!† Bellowing like a wounded hippo, Uncle Vernon snatched up another ornament. â€Å"Harry, go! Just go!† Mr. Weasley shouted, his wand on Uncle Vernon. â€Å"I’ll sort this out!† Harry didn’t want to miss the fun, but Uncle Vernon’s second ornament narrowly missed his left ear, and on balance he thought it best to leave the situation to Mr. Weasley. He stepped into the fire, looking over his shoulder as he said â€Å"the Burrow!† His last fleeting glimpse of the living room was of Mr. Weasley blasting a third ornament out of Uncle Vernon’s hand with his wand, Aunt Petunia screaming and lying on top of Dudley, and Dudley’s tongue lolling around like a great slimy python. But next moment Harry had begun to spin very fast, and the Dursleys’ living room was whipped out of sight in a rush of emerald-green flames.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - Essay Example He lives life like a trapped bird, because society expects him to be good in actions and attitudes. Dr. Jekyll chooses to be a good person, the perfect Victorian model that Evangelicals are proud of. Inside, however, he battles his Id that he has contained too much. He does not give in to his selfish desires, such as by doing philanthropic work, and as a consequence, his subconscious learns to love selfish and lethal desires. Soon, his appearance gives way to the inner self. The inner self, when it breaks free, becomes wild and strong. Dr. Jekyll turns to Mr. Hyde, the full expression of his innermost desires. This paper shows that when the inner self is fully imprisoned though appearance, it will be repressed, but not forever; and when it is released, it will destroy the humanity of a person. Wendy Perkins, in â€Å"Critical Essay on Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,† examines the role of the ideologies, utilitarianism and Evangelicalism, in shaping Victorian England during the ninete enth century. These ideologies opposed each other and affected the context of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Perkins stress that these ideologies forced people to choose between being hedonistic and being moral, which are both extremes that do not do the soul and identity any good at all. She argues that through this novel, Robert Louis Stevenson criticizes Victorian society. Dr. Jekyll would not have created an evil alter ego, Mr. Hyde, if he had enough channels to express his â€Å"desires.† Perkins uses the characters of Utterson and Enfield to describe what norms should be during Victorian times. Utterson represents the â€Å"human side that refuses to condemn others.† Perkins is saying that if people did not focus on being good alone, then freedom of expression has been more tolerated, if not widely promoted. Enfield has the â€Å"same temperament as Utterson.† He stands for moderation in attitudes and behaviors. Utterson and Enfield shame Evangelicals and utilit arians who focus on their own goals and values. These characters are examples of tolerance and moderation that utilitarianism and Evangelicalism lacked. Perkins argues that society has made it harder for people to balance their conflicting desires. Utilitarianism justifies the creation of Mr. Hyde, since he enables Dr. Jekyll to fully express his desires, even evil ones. Utilitarianism says that it is right to pursue pleasure and eliminate pain. Mr. Hyde provides pleasure, though not in the normal kind. He makes Dr. Jekyll feel free to be whoever he wants to be. Dr. Jekyll also uses the â€Å"duplicity† of his characters to balance his conflicting urges and norms. Evangelicalism, however, compels Dr. Jekyll to kill himself, since he can no longer control Mr. Hyde. As a result, the ending satisfies Victorian norms. In the end, Dr. purifies the world from the existence of a malignant tumor like Mr. Hyde. Perkins stresses that utilitarianism and Evangelicalism are two extreme id eologies that pushed Dr. Jekyll to create Mr. Hyde. These ideologies do not promote sobriety and do not help people balance their different needs and interests. Perkins emphasizes that it is important for people to have a sense of balance in their lives, or else, they will also produce their Mr. Hyde, who cannot be controlled anymore. In â€Å"The Prisonhouse of my Disposition,† Daniel Wright explores that duplicity is not the main goal of Dr. Jekyll. He contends that such analyses are superficial and incomplete. He presents a psychological view of the novel, where the double

Technological and cultural determinism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Technological and cultural determinism - Essay Example 2. Apply these theories to recent discourse about new forms of television, whether high definition TV, 3-D TV, online TV, etc. The discourse may come from a website, an advertisement, a TV program, a newspaper/magazine article, a blog, etc.   Just like other deterministic theories, technological determinism, and cultural determinisms seeks out to explain the historical and social phenomena in terms of one determining factor. It is considered to be a doctrine of casual or historical primacy. In other words, technological determinism is used to describe ways in which technology has influenced the evolution of human. Technology such as television online TV, advertisement among other technologies have played a significant role in creating new spaces for human to inhibit on a physical or a mental basis (Winston 789). Therefore, humans have adapted to these new spaces in that the patterns of their discernment are progressively altered without any resistance. Since technological determinism is merely putting the idea that technology is critical to people’s lives, there are various aspects of discourse that may invoke technological determinism. Social construction is a very critical aspect in invoking technological determinism. Social construction is considered to be a technological determinism since it is capable of explaining a great part of various technologies including Television, Computers, and Photography among others. 4. Identify either a law of supervening social necessity OR a law of suppression of radical potential (these are likely, not fore-grounded in the example; they require an analysis of the broader cultural determinisms for the emergence of this technology).   The law of suppression of radical potential is among the first ideas that are discussed in Winston book. This law relates to misunderstanding of media. The laws state that, when a

Social and Situational Crime Prevention Strategies Research Paper

Social and Situational Crime Prevention Strategies - Research Paper Example The most widely recognized definition of crime prevention in the latter part of the 20th century refers to the difference between social and situational strategies of crime prevention—social strategies are generally called ‘community crime prevention’ (Stenson, 1991, p. 63). Many argue that the concepts of social and situational prevention are quite contemporary, even though the principles they support are not. This paper analyzes the strengths, weaknesses, and applications of situational and social crime prevention strategies. Social crime prevention focuses mostly on transforming social environments and the impulses of lawbreakers. Social crime prevention strategies hence are likely to place emphasis on the creation of programs, like activity-based courses and youth associations, to discourage existing or possible delinquents from future criminal behavior. Jon Bright claims that one of the main advocates of social crime prevention is the United Kingdom, which â €Å"aims to strengthen socialization agencies and community institutions in order to influence those groups that are most at risk of offending† (Stenson, 1991, p. 64). On the other hand, situational crime prevention strategies primarily involve ‘opportunity reduction’, like monitoring of activities in public places (e.g. parking lots, shopping malls, etc.) through surveillance equipment, to lessen opportunities for criminal activities. Both social and situational crime prevention strategies are likely to be ‘multiagency’ in focus, instead of being motivated by a single agency, like law enforcement (Lowman & MacLean, 1992). The top radical criminologist, Jock Young, has identified multiagency crime prevention measures in this way: â€Å"Multiagency intervention is the planned, coordinated response of the major social agencies to problems of crime and incivilities† (Lowman & MacLean, 1992, p. 64).  

Soy Whipped Topping Business Plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Soy Whipped Topping Business Plan - Assignment Example Soy foods and products include several whipped toppings that are basically made from rice, soy and even coconut. Both rice and soy whips in the market are either in spray cans or boxes. These products normally have a lifespan of a year and are supposed to be refrigerated. The soy whipped topping are good when used with cakes, fruits, desserts, pies, cappuccinos and even beverages such as chocolate tea. The most popular soy whipped toppings currently in the market belong to two brands; Soyatoo and Viana. Soyatoo soy whip brands include: blue-rice whip, brown-cocoa whip and the red-soy whip which are normally in boxes or spray cans of three hundred milliliters (ML). Despite the different colors the three products are made from similar inputs. Over the recent past, different individuals in United States and Europe have continued to develop interest in soy foods and products. This has further increased the demand of these products in the American market. This industry is basically made of various key players. Some of these players in this industry are developing while others have quite established their brands in different markets of the world. This is the reason why some consumers in America have in the past raised concerns regarding some existing soy whip products in the market and more specifically on issues of lactose presence as well as the functioning of the whip spray cans. As true entrepreneurs, we considered this as a good opportunity that required intervention and we decided to start a business of making soy whipped toppings and target lactose intolerant people in the market amongst other. Our soy whipped topping products will be in line with the respective customer’s needs and also of substantially high q uality. When starting a business, it is normally important for one to start by deciding on the particular form of business to operate since each form of business develops a different legal operating structure different from the others. In

There is an ongoing debate about the cost-benefit relationship of Essay

There is an ongoing debate about the cost-benefit relationship of internal controls and their ethical implications - Essay Example investigators cited that the bank lacked strict safeguards against clients laundering money, following a suspicion that illicit drug money was streaming through their internal account. The Regulations by the Federal Reserve require banks to install tight internal controls in order to detect any criminal involvements in their operations (Silver-Greenberg, 2013). This is because weak controls facilitate drug dealers and terrorists to launder money through the financial institutions. The ethical implication of Citigroup’s case is that it failed to observe the Federal’s rules of having complex control mechanisms. In this regard, money laundering might have occurred to sustain the drug traders. Banks need to ensure that they scrutinize their clients to determine the sources and the recipients of the huge sums of money. It is also evident that the management tried to manipulate its financial statements to hide transactions involving the drug dealers. The bank failed to show the money streamed through its Mexican branches into the US, which was an indication of weak controls. The Federal Reserve claims that the bank does not oversee its operations, which leads to funneling of money in support of sanctioned individuals and countries (Silver-Greenberg, 2013). The accounting ethical standards involve the reporting of accurate financial information without manipulations. This implies that organizations should not tamper with their accounting books to make them appear more profitable to the shareholders and investors. For instance, Citigroup had tampered with its records after the money laundering fraud in the backdrop of increasing dividends. Financial institutions need to observe the Bank Secrecy Act by removing tainted cash through recording of doubtful-activity reports (Silver-Greenberg, 2013). This implies that the Citigroup management failed to comply with the rules set by the Federal Reserve, which led to probing into its activities. In order to strengthen

Coperate social responsibility Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Coperate social responsibility - Essay Example This paper describes almost all the CSR activities of these two companies. Beside that paper also provides a descriptive view of stakeholder models of these two companies. Finally there is a comparative analysis of CSR activities of Microsoft and Tata. This comparison is made on the basis of their operating zone and industry in which they are operating. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been defined in various ways over the time. Most experts believe that the foundation of CSR is good corporate citizenship. It is also believed that CSR is founded on acknowledgement by the organizations that they need to clearly understand and manage the massive influences of business on the society in order to benefiting both society and company as a whole (Marsden and Andriof, 1998). According to McIntosh and Andriof refers to the understanding of the corporate leaders regarding the fact that each and every activity of an organization has flow-on effect on both inside and outside of the company. Company’s activities would have effect on everything starting from customers to communities and environment. Several management writers argue that corporate social responsiveness deal with the capacity of any business organization to respond to various social pressures (Foley, Jayawardhena, October 2001). In this paper CSR would be discussed in the context of two multinational companies, one is from a developed economy and another is from a developing economy. Microsoft is chosen as the representative of developed economies and TATA is chosen as the representative of developing economies. Software giant Microsoft provides software service and creative business solution to its huge customer base. The company was founded in 1975 by Bill gates and Paul Allen. Various products of Microsoft include different versions of windows, MS-DOS, Office XP, .NET, 2007 Office system etc. (AEA Member Directory, n.d.).

Write an annotation entry consisting of a Citation, a brief Summary, Essay - 6

Write an annotation entry consisting of a Citation, a brief Summary, and a short paragraph Evaluation of the text below - Essay Example w implementation in the American society by exposing the flaws in the present justice system, which is crucial for ensuring equality in law application in the future. Goodman and Gonzà ¡lez present a scenario in which the police in Ferguson, Missouri apply the law discriminatively. Critically dissecting the text, racial discrimination is perpetuated using the very justice system that is expected to protect all citizens of the United States. There is overt discrimination in the manner in which the police handle individuals of different racial backgrounds, with the blacks facing the wrath of the law. It is my belief that a just legal system should ensure that laws are applied equal to all people irrespective of their races or ethnicity. Assessing the presentation, several questions emerge. Are African Americans inherently inclined to crime? Is the police department practicing racism under the cover of law implementation? Nonetheless, the voices in the in the presentation offers a cred ible argument by citing the U.S. Justice Department confirmation discrimination in the police and city courts in Ferguson, Missour. The presentation is inspiring as it hints at a possibility of improving the law to ensure a better society devoid of racial discrimination in future. Goodman , Amy and Juan Gonzà ¡lez. Michelle Alexander: Ferguson Shows Why Criminal Justice System of "Racial Control" Should Be Undone. A daily independent global news hour, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. Accessed March 12, 2015.

Technology & humankind Essay Example for Free

Technology humankind Essay Technology has done a lot for human beings. Without the development in technology it is possible that the pyramids would never have been built and neither would we be able to communicate with each other from remote places all over the world. Some say that these technological advances such as the internet and cellular phones are a boon on society and humankind yet there are also those detractors who say that it is has not simplified life in so much as it has complicated matters. One of these things is the impact that television has on society. In order to arrive at a more concrete understanding of the issue at hand, it is interesting to apply what has been discussed to a current issue. One of these issues is the effect of media, particularly television, on the moral fiber of today’s youth. This will be discussed in brief to provide an accurate detail of just how these media effects theories can be applied to today’s social problems. As a quick glimpse at the recent events that grace the newspaper’s headlines show, there is indeed a growing concern over the violence that happens in schools all over the country (Chomsky et al 2002). The issue is not limited to the increased teenage pregnancies or even drug abuse. It encompasses a whole range of issues such as bullying and perhaps the most frightening, schools shootings (Chomsky et al 2002). With all of these problems plaguing not only the education system but also the entire nation as of late, the question that comes up is whether or not this is actually caused by the violent television shows and movies in the cable TV programming. While there has been no irrefutable data that lends credence to the theory that violent shows in television is the real culprit behind today’s misguided and often violent youth, there can also be no argument against the statement that though violence on television may not be the sole cause, it is one of the contributory causes (Fisher et al 2004). There are a number of media effects theories that solidify the argument that it is violence in media or in television that has led to the deterioration in the moral foundation of today’s youth (Gauntlett 1998). A good example of this would be the â€Å"Hypodermic Needle Model†, which is a theory that the influence of media is so powerful that it can be used to â€Å"inject† messages into the minds of the audience and control them (Gauntlett 1998). While it is not being suggested that television is being used a medium to brainwash today’s youth and turn them into an army of zombies for the media, it is being proposed, however, that the programming and quality of shows on television, such as violent programs, has a profound effect upon the youth (Shanahan and Morgan 2000). The influence, therefore, that television has upon the youth is undeniable. While this influence may have waned in the advent of the internet age and YouTube, it still bears a considerably large amount of influence over the younger children who are not able to access such media devices (Fisher et al 2004). Therein lays the danger; young children with impressionable minds are exposed to violence on television leading to a deterioration in the moral and ethical foundations of today’s generation. Another interesting theory to correlate the cause, violence in television, with the effect, violent behavior of the youth, is the postmodernist thought on the approaches to the Media Effects Theory (Gauntlett 1998). The main ideas of this theory rely on the fact that the ideas and perceptions of individuals has already been preconditioned by media in a sense that whatever input or meaning that is derived from media is already placed in a predefined context (Fisher et al 2004). This school of thought therefore suggests that in analyzing the behavior and effects the fact that media has already preconditioned the minds of the individuals and influenced the reception (Shanahan and Morgan 2000). As such, given the volatile nature of the mind of a child, the input that a child receives from violent programming on the television creates a preconceived notion of what the real world is like. By showing violence on television, a child may think and perceive that such behavior is actually socially acceptable (Fisher et al 2004). Studies have shown that there have been causal links found between aggressive and violent behavior in children and the type of television programs that these children generally watch. This can also be applied to the infamous Columbine shooting wherein the investigators have theorized that the motivation for the shooters may have been influenced by forms of media (Fisher et al 2004). As stated in one of the reports, â€Å"Among the many theories that have surfaced regarding the motivation for this incident the most prevalent one remains the effect that media has on the minds of today’s youth. † (Fisher et al 2004) While there are those who theorize that it was the fact that the shooters were isolated from the rest of their classmates thus prompting feelings of helplessness, insecurity and depression, as well as cultivating a strong desire for attention, the attention has been focused on the effect violent video games such as Doom, which the shooters frequently played, and rock music such as Rammstein. Every day the world searches for answers for many of the would-be â€Å"avoidable† tragedies such as school shootings, gang wars and juvenile teen violence. The reason for the term â€Å"avoidable† stems from the fact that many consider these as effects of media influences and morally condemnable social behavior (Fisher et al 2004). While media and television, in particular, are not the main causes for these tragedies, it cannot be denied that they have contributed to these problems (Fisher et al 2004). There may not be an easy solution for this but by identifying the causes that have led to this dilemma a big step has been taken to rectify this situation and to prevent more disasters such as this from ever happening again. There are some things that we really don’t need in life. We must learn to lessen our dependencies on technology and live (if possible) without using them too much. Our ancestors were able to live without microwave ovens and television I don’t see why we can’t. This all may just be future talk but one thing is certain. Today’s society has become so dependent on the benefits that technology has brought in making online life possible that we have come to a point of no return where we can no longer imagine life without it. If you think otherwise, turn off your cellular phone and unhook the jack of your computer and see how long you can survive without it. References: Chomsky, Noam Herman, Edward (1988, 2002). Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media. New York: Pantheon. Gauntlett, D. (1998) Ten things wrong with the effects model' in Harindranath, R. , and Linne, O. , (eds) Approaches to Audiences A Reader London: Arnold. http://www. leeds. ac. uk/ics/theory/effects. htm Fisher, Deborah , Hill, Douglas , Grube, Joel , Gruber, Enil . (2004) Sex on American Television: An Analysis Across Program Genres and Network Types. Journal of Broadcasting Electronic Media 48:4, 529-553 Gerbner, G. , Gross, L. , Morgan, M. , Signorielli, N. (1986). Living with television: The dynamics of the cultivation process. In J. Bryant D. Zillman (Eds), Perspectives on media effects (pp. 17-40). Hilldale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Ps I Love You Film Review Essay Example for Free

Ps I Love You Film Review Essay â€Å"Finding someone you love and who loves you back is a wonderful, wonderful feeling. But finding a true soul mate is an even better feeling. A soul mate is someone who understands you like no other, loves you like no other, will be there for you forever, no matter what. They say that nothing lasts forever, but I am a firm believer in the fact that for some, love lives on even after were gone.† This quotation comes from book â€Å"PS I love you†, written by Cecelia Ahern, and perfectly describes the novel. This book is definitely for women, when you read this you can find yourself laughing and crying all at once. Holly and Gerry had a perfect life. They are happily married, they lived in Dublin closed to their friends and family, the world lies at their feet. When Gerry dies, Holly is devastated. At the day of her 30th birthday, the man who was her soul mate, her lover, has left her. The only one who can help her is the person who is no longer there. But before he died, Gerry wrote a series of letters, some kind of guide includes a mission for Holly to get her life back on track. Over the years which they were together Garry has always been the organized one and long before he became sick he joked with Holy that if he died before her, he would leave her a special list of things to do to assure her life ran smoothly without him. And he kept his promise. Holly discovers that her mother has a large envelope for her. One for each of the remaining months of the year. Letters are delivered in surprising ways, each contained a new adventure or challenges and each signing of in the same way: â€Å"P.S. I Love You†. Its a bittersweet tale that not only focuses on death but also celebrates life and the joy that is found in living. And although Holly eventually finds peace through the letters that Gerry has left behind, its her family and friends that play the biggest part in helping her to let go and move on from grief. Hollys mother and best friends begin to worry that Gerrys letters are keeping Holly tied to the past, but in fact, each letter is pushing her further into a new future. Gerrys first instructions are not only to Holly, but also to her best friends, to get out and celebrate Hollys birthday together. Denise and Sharon seem to represent two aspects of life, Sharon is married and is on her way to building a family, while Denise is still single. She is looking for the right guy, but she does not want to waste time, so she has her checklist. She is definitely not shy but the most importantly, she is a good friend. Hollys friend Sharon is married to John, who, as often happens with couples, was Gerrys best friend. John is in a bit of a strange position because he loved Gerry, too, and maybe he is feeling a little left out. John thinks he will never have another friend like Gerry. The next character is The new bartender in Patricias pub, Daniel meets and forms an instant attraction to Holly at, of all places, Gerrys wake. Is interesting, and spontaneous and he says things that are unpredictable, and does not feel the need to apologize if people are taken aback. He becomes a shoulder for Holly to lean on because he is the one person among her friends who didnt know Gerry so theres no reason for him to tread lightly or walk on eggshells when his name comes up, which she finds refreshing. Daniel is brave enough to speak his mind, and I think that is helpful to Holly in dealing with her loss. With Gerrys words as her guide, Holly embarks on a journey of rediscovery in a story about marriage, friendship and how a love so strong can turn the finality of death into a new beginning for life. The tasks range was different, from getting a new job to singing karaoke in front of a nightclub audience. With some help from her friends, and her noisy and loving family, Holly aversely embraces each of the tasks and discovers along the way that she has more inner strength than she could ever have imagined. She also struggle with feelings of guilt when she meets a handsome man who is clearly attracted to her. The love story is told in a unique way. The main character must started to live without her husband. He was the earth she lived, the ground she stepped and air she breathes. She did not have a proper job, she was not ambitious, she did not have any hobbies. Everything she did in her life revolved around Gerry. They were talking about how unpredictable life could be as one didn’t always get what one expected. No matter how many times you read this book, it will always brings you a smile on your lips with tears in your eyes. This is one of those books that make you cry from the time it starts, then later on lifts you up with some comedy, proceeds with an aura of hope and some heart-warming flash-backs. Cecelia Ahern has written this book brilliantly, she describes the emotions and struggle of life. Author also has taught me a valuable lesson about the true meaning of living and the divide between life and death, and gave the lesson about what it takes to lead meaningful and purposeful life. I really enjoyed it book. It is a romance, but it explores a hard issue. I would recommend this book to anyone that loves a good dramatic, and funny fiction story. Of the front of the book you can find a quote: Everyone needs a guardian angel and I hope we all do.

The Complexity Of Culture Cultural Studies Essay

The Complexity Of Culture Cultural Studies Essay So why is culture so complex? According to the popular writer Raymond Williams, culture is one of the most complicated words in the English language. The study of culture is far too complex to be studied only from the viewpoint of one specific scientific discipline, or to be based on one specific model. In a world as complex as ours, each of us is shaped by many factors, and culture is one of the powerful forces that acts on us. Culture is not a set of objects and behaviors, but a context, specific to a particular time and place, in which meaning is made (Geertz 1973) (Schall). Cultural contexts include important patterns, attitudes, and values such as language use and communication patterns, religious beliefs and rituals, the tools and artifacts of daily life, familiar relationships, gender roles, and many other characteristics. Because of the complex, multifaceted nature of culture, understanding a specific group, whether ones own or that of others, requires study from several dive rse perspectives. Although each perspective will shed light on the systems of meaning within that group, the different perspectives will not necessarily fit together into a neat, unified cultural portrait (Rosaldo 1989) (Schall). In order for a researcher to make sense of the complexity of cultural concepts, relevant prior knowledge and a comprehensive understanding of cultural variation is a prerequisite to effectively comprehending cross-cultural studies. According to Joe Novak, the creator of concept mapping, when concept maps are used, the material to be learned must be conceptually clear and presented with language and examples relatable to the learners prior knowledge. Concept maps can be helpful to meet this condition, both by identifying large general concepts held by the learner prior to instruction on more specific concepts, and by assisting in the sequencing of learning tasks though progressively more explicit knowledge that can be anchored into developing conceptual frameworks (Novak). In the following sections I offer up a series of approaches designed to aid a researcher in unraveling the complex nature of cultural variation and ways of simplifying cultural understanding. Gaining sufficient knowledge and understanding of culture can become a complex task in itself making it necessary for one to develop specific strategies and approaches to the problem. Any approach should encompass key terms, essential cultural concepts and principles, as well as multifaceted foundational theories. This should provide the knowledge necessary to understand and simplify complex models and studies designed for the purpose of illustrating culture differences across an array of situations. So where should one begin in developing their cross-cultural knowledge? Establishing a glossary of terms that define some of the significant concepts in one or more topics that lend themselves to research investigation using cross-cultural data is necessary. For the purpose of cross-cultural communication, cultural literacy should begin with the basic terms such as culture and communication. Culture can be defined as, a system of symbolic resources shared by a group of people. In every cross-cultural situation, groups of people with different systems of symbolic resources come in to contact by communicating with one another. Communication can be defined as, the practice of creating and exchanging meanings or symbolic resources. It is clear that culture and communication are interrelated, therefore, cross-cultural communication can be defined as a process of interaction between two groups of people with different systems of symbolic resources. ( Klyukanov) Understanding these terms wi ll enable one to see how and why people identify with each other and form cultures through the process of cultural identification. Cultural identification simply allows us to define our own cultural selves. Before embarking upon the quest for understanding of other cultures, it is necessary to break down and understand ones own culture. Anthropologists Kevin Avruch and Peter Black explain the importance of culture this way: Ones own culture provides the lens through which we view the world; the logic by which we order it; the grammar by which it makes sense. Everyone has a culture. No one can ever fully separate themselves from their own culture. While it is true that anyone can grow to understand and value a range of different cultures and communicate effectively in more than one, one can never overcome his own, or any other culture, to achieve an all encompassing perspective on culture. As was mentioned previously, it is necessary and important for one to gain knowledge in the study of cross-cultural communication. The nature of knowledge is very complex; however the complexity of the cross-cultural world can be exposed by combining two complimentary approaches: the objective (scientific) approach and the subjective approach. In the objective approach, knowledge is viewed as an object, the world consists of concrete variables and people behave in patterned and predictable ways. From an objective standpoint, all observers of a culture would see the same thing, knowledge is external to all people and the watchful observer captures this knowledge and characterizes it in meaningful fashion. The subjective approach represents the other side of the knowledge gaining process. This approach aims to interpret and understand interactions and cultural meanings that are internal to people. The combined implementation of these approaches highlights the methodical, relational, an d opposing nature of cross-cultural communication which includes an array of cross-cultural knowledge. Edward T. Hall, a respected anthropologist and cross-cultural researcher, identified Ten Primary Message Systems which he classified as Interaction, Association, Subsistence, Bisexuality, Territoriality, Temporality, Learning, Play, Defense, and Exploitation. From his ten primary message systems, Hall devised an interrelated Map of Culture. Halls map makes it easier for researchers to pinpoint complexities in understanding target cultures. The process of constructing a system of meanings known as cultural mapping explains how every culture develops ideas about the world and its place in it. The main types of meanings which form a culture map include: beliefs, attitudes, values, norms, mores, laws, and world view. It is important to understand that all of these ideas are interconnected. Culture maps provide structure and give rationality to universal knowledge established about people and the social world, providing expectations about typical patterns of behavior and the range of like ly variation between types of people and their characteristic actions and attributes. Understanding and applying these concepts can aid researchers in breaking down the complexities of cross-cultural variation. Another set of means that are typically presented are global cultural dimensions. These variables are very wide in scope, are related to all cultures, and can be used for the purpose of assessing cultures. Global cultural dimensions vary from researcher to researcher, this section attempts to identify and provide the most commonly discussed dimensions which include: Individualism/Collectivism, Power Distance, Masculinity/Femininity, Uncertainty Avoidance, and High-Context/Low Context Communication. Researching several ethnographies and studying the approaches presented by anthropologists, philosophers, and writers whose work has laid the foundations for the field of cultural studies will provide further depth and understanding. Below are a few examples of theà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. According to Hans Gullestrup the complexity of cross-cultural studies, as well as cultural studies, are especially related to the following observations or facts: 1. The relativity of each culture the cultural hierarchy 2. The co-incidence of the cultures the cultural categories 3. The changeability of each culture the cultural dynamic 4. The ethical problems related to cross-cultural studies A researcher will base his or her work on different paradigms and a differing understanding of culture depending on the situation and the purpose (Hans Gullestrup). For these reasons, Gullestrup argues that theoretical and analytical models are needed for cultural and cross-cultural studies formulated as frame models, or as a kind of framework, where each researcher or cultural actor can relate to one other with his own data, observations, and experiences when trying to create an understanding of a particular cross-cultural situation, according to his or her needs, as well as to the four factors mentioned above. As mentioned previously, anthropologist Edward T. Hall When we approach another culture, a tendency exists to generalize, placing experiences in wide-ranging categories or types. The best we can do is to make sure generalizations are as accurate as possible and avoid overgeneralizations, especially those beginning with All. When attempting to describe a certain culture, we must be careful and ensure that the culture we classify is the one that was observed. If we come across another culture and fail to notice obvious differences then the all we have done is stereotyped and our interaction with that culture has become extremely unreliable. To avoid stereotyping, it is necessary to test generalizations against the actual behavior and values of those being encountered in the observed culture. Cross-cultural communication is successful when our observations and reflections of people from other cultures are accurate. Two useful approaches for counteracting mistakes of oversimplification and generalization of a culture are Culture-General and Culture-Specific approaches. Concentrating on cultures broad characteristics, is macro and global in scope and defined as Culture-General. With over 200 national societies throughout the globe, over 5,000 languages, and endless subgroups interrelated by ethnicity, race, religion, common history, politics, and culture, it becomes virtually unfeasible to thoroughly sort out the full range of cultural practices found in each society. Culture-General ideas and frameworks are useful and provide researchers tools necessary to understand principles, categories of behavior and world views, ideas and values, how to learn another culture, and how to successfully and effectively navigate cultural boundaries. Culture-general approaches to interaction describe general contrasts that are applicable in many cross-cultural situations. For example, Edward T. Halls classificat ion of high-context low and low-context cultures is a culture-general comparison that implies a source of miscommunication between many diverse societies. This approach is based on more conceptual categories and generalizable skills, and represents the etic form of cultural knowledge. Etic knowledge is essential for cross-cultural comparison because such comparison essentially requires standard units and categories (Lett). General cultural characterizations can be narrowed by using a Culture-Specific approach, based on ethnographies, is an intercultural form of emic cultural analysis. Emic knowledge is essential for an intuitive and empathic understanding of a culture (Lett). Culture- Specific refers to the distinctive qualities of a particular culture. It can also be a means of studying cross-cultural communication when the culture characteristics of a particular culture are examined and used to explore the broad, general characteristics of the structure of cultures. At the culture specific level, differences between two particular cultures are assessed for their likely impact on communication between people of those cultures. Cultural observers must always be ready to modify existing conceptualizations when new experiences do not fit into the original universal category. Simply, one-size fits all conceptualizations are not effective in cross-cultural communications. Clifford Geertz, in his book The Interpretation of Cultures, attempts to simply cultural variation by saying, The concept of culture I espouse, and whose utility the essays below attempt to demonstrate, is essentially a semiotic one. Believing, with Max Weber, that man is an animal suspended in webs of significance he himself has spun, I take culture to be those webs, and the analysis of it to be therefore not an experimental science in search of law but an interpretive one in search of meaning. It is explication I am after, construing social expressions on their surface enigmatical. But this pronouncement, a doctrine in a clause, demands itself some explication.

Gender Roles and Marriage in The Proposal by Chekhov and Country Lovers

In the following essay I will compare and contrast gender roles and marriage between â€Å"The Proposal† by Anton Chekhov and â€Å"Country Lovers† by Nadine Gordimer to showing how women tried to survive in controlling their identity. This essay will compare and contrast each of the characters used by two very different writers. The early 1900’s era was not kind to people in their struggle for what they tried to accomplish with their lives. Nadine Gordimer was born 1923 in Africa. She was against the opposition that the black people of Africa had to face and stressed this issue in her writings. She was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1991. Anton Chekhov was also famous for Russia’s Pushkin Prize in 1888 and like Gordimer, he also wrote many short stories but sometimes ventured out into theater with several plays. Both writers lived abroad sharing the use of conflict in their writings such as unrealistic expectations, endowment and social status. They used symbolism more as a contrast instead of a comparison, but compared lower class to higher class status for each of their characters in the two short stories that will be featured in this paper. In the article written by Gordimer that is titled â€Å"Twenty-one Years Later she states that â€Å"since 1980 other media have taken over from the printed word as the most powerful means of free expression. I remain as totally opposed to censorship as ever, but I am in a quandary when I touch the wrong button on television set and find I’m confronted with a couple making Shakespeare’s ‘beast with two backs’ in a truly beastly and violent sexual display that certainly could frighten any of the many children left to amuse themselves playing the channel keyboard of television. I’m more co... ...p107, 2 p. Contemporary Review Company, Ltd. Gordimer, N., 2001 Twenty-One Years Later, Biography, spring, Vol. 30 Issue 2, p. 277, 2 p. Kenyon, O., 1989 Women Writers Talk, Carroll & Graf Publishers, ISBN-10: 0881847054. Miller, R., 2008 Sweat. February 8, Collins Harper, Retrieved Website:http://www.zoranealehurston.com. Ritchi, D., 2003 Doing Oral History, New York: O U P. Seyhan, A., 2001 Writing Outside the Nation, U K: Princeton University Press. Singh, G., & Kumari, D., 2011 History Revisited in Oral History by Nadine Gordimer, Language in India, February, Vol. 11 Issue 2, p 296-303, 8 p. Trump, M., 1986 The Short Fiction of Nadine Gordimer, Research in African Literatures, Fall, Vol. 17, Issue 3, p 341-369, 2 p. Winkelmann, J., 2002 â€Å"Restless Legs† in â€Å"The Wedding Proposal†, Acta Neurologica Scandinavia, April, Vol. 105 (4), p. 349-350.

Chinas Rise Essays -- Chinese History, Mao

China’s last dynasty ended one hundred years ago, and the last great dynasty ended one thousand years ago. (Dharmananda)Nonetheless, China is rising out of the ashes in modern times. China became a communist nation in nineteen hundred and forty nine. (Woods, 2009) With the help of the U.S.S.R., China made multiple nuclear weapons in the nineteen fifties. This sparked the start of China’s military modernization and their reemergence to the international community. China’s international policy is to promote world peace. They hope to do so by staying neutral and only defending their interests, and not instigating. The only contradiction in China’s policy is that it interferes with Tibet and Taiwan. If Taiwan ever tries declaring independence, China will declare war on them and it just so happens the United States is an ally of Taiwan. The global superpower of today is the United States of America. (Vale, 2010) The United States has the strongest military for ce in the world, with the most funding of any country by billions of dollars. The United States is also China’s number one trading partner, so if China were to oppose the United States, China’s economy would crumble. China’s rise is not a threat to global security. Pre-communist China was a nation in turmoil. In the nineteen forties the country was in a civil war, between the Nationalist’s and Communist’s. China’s economy was in shambles. The weapons that the Communist’s used were primarily from the U.S.S.R. and the Nationalist’s used weapons from the U.S.A. (Global Security, 2005) When the Communist’s won the war, the U.S.S.R. continued to support the Communist regime of China. In the nineteen fifties China began their nuclear weapons program, building multiple nuclear bombs... ...ates they would lose their number one trading partner by almost $70 billion dollars. (Prasad & Gu, 2009)The loss of the United States would devastate the Chinese economy. China at this point in time isn’t ready to oppose the United States. China’s rise is not a threat to global security. They promote peace and international development. Their international policy is not a threat to global security. The only issue they have is if Taiwan ever declares independence. If China declares war on Taiwan then the United States would declare war on China. Global security relies on the United States for their military force. If China were to oppose the United States they would lose. Since China depends on United States for trade they wouldn’t go to war against them. Global security is not threatened by China’s rise because China and the United States depend on each other.

Ancient Romes Animal Cruelty for Entertainment :: essays research papers

â€Å"The Romans are often characterized as loving violent and cruel entertainment in the amphitheatre. It has been suggested that the games served the dual purpose of providing entertainment for the people and maintaining the political status quo.† In today’s society, the killing of humans and animals usually means a jail term, and seeing someone die is not something people go and see for fun. Violence was glorified in Rome hundreds of years ago. All the crimes they committed were condoned, accepted and glorified. There were four different genres of such entertainment in the games held in amphitheatres (Amphi-theatres are outdoor arenas. "theatres in the round": Amphi- meaning "round" in Greek.) : Gladiatorial combat, the theatrical execution of foreigners, beast shows, as well as chariot racing. Watching someone or a beast kill another was applauded for the method, skill, or artistry used in the slaughter. The games themselves provided ways for Rome to demonstrate the power of their empire, as huge investments of wealth, time, and emotion was put into the games. Death became a spectator sport with the viewers and the viewed both contributing to a wild and gory performance. Already by the late Republic magistrates were spending huge amounts of money on these games. The Latin word for gladiatorial games is Munus which means obligatory offering. This reflects the origin of these games as funerary offerings to the dead. While magistrates in the Republic may well have put on ga mes to gain popular favour, this was in their private capacity and not as magistrates. Only gradually did the gladiatorial shows come to be assimilated with the games put on by magistrates. While the most popular games were 'chariot racing' and simulated naval battles, fights in the amphitheatres, shown in these mosaics include gladiator V gladiator, gladiator V animal (pic 2) and animal V animal, were a common feature. Less common, but not infrequent was the release of wild beasts from the pits into the arena where hundreds of criminals had earlier been positioned. These spectacles all deeming to be very entertaining to spectators. Throughout the history of the Republic, there was a difference between the gladiatorial contests and other forms of spectacular entertainment. The Romans did not invent the concept of gladiatorial fighting; there is some uncertainty as to the exact source. One ancient source says it was the Etruscans, a non-Indo-European people who lived directly north of the Romans.

Industrial And Organizational Psychology Paper Essay

The field of industrial and organizational (I/O) psychology has been studied since the infancy of psychology itself (Spector, 2008). In the beginning, I/O psychology was wholly concerned with the industrial side of the field—which concentrated on the management aspects of business and emphasized human resources—as opposed to the organization side, which is concerned with improving work conditions in the workplace. Yet, as the field has grown over the years it has come to include the full spectrum of industry and organization. Strictly speaking, I/O psychology is defined as, â€Å"†¦an applied field that is concerned with the development and application of scientific principles to the workplace† (Spector, 2008, p. 5). On a practical level, the aim of I/O psychology is to, â€Å"†¦improve the quality of the environment for employees as well as to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of employee behavior in that environment† (Barnes-Holmes et. al. , 2006, p. 56). The concise definition and practical application of I/O psychology are only the capstone to an understanding of the length and breadth of the field. A full examination of the evolution of I/O psychology as well as an explanation of the role that research and statistics play in I/O psychology are needed to form the foundation on which the capstone is placed. Evolution of I/O Psychology I/O psychology has its roots in the late 1800s and early 1900s when early psychologists were trying to apply the theories of psychology to the organization of business (Spector, 2008). Two scientists are attributed with the founding work of I/O psychology: Huge Munsterberg and Walter Dill Scott. Both were university professors that had an interest in employee selection and the application of new psychological tests to the subject of industry. In fact, two of I/O psychology’s foundational books, The Theory of Advertising (1903) and Psychology and Industrial Efficiency (1913) were written by Scott and Munsterberg, respectively. The methodological next step beyond Scott and Munsterberg came in 1911 when Frederick Winslow Taylor developed his theory of â€Å"Scientific Management†, which puts for a scientific procedure for the managing of production workers on the factory line. The field of I/O psychology took a leap in technological applicability when Frank Gilbreth, an engineer, and Lillian Gilbreth, a psychologists, combined the knowledgebase of their respective fields into one eclectic theory of human factors—which is wholly concerned with the design of technology for use by people (Spector, 2008). Ironically, it was the destruction of World War I (WWI) and World War II (WWII) that most furthered the development and relevance of I/O psychology. During WWI several psychologists, led by Robert Yerkes, produced the Army Alpha and Army Beta group tests, which were designed to gauge mental ability to the end of proper unit placement. Before WWII the APA proper was not concerned with the practice of psychology in the real-world, but limited itself to experimental psychology. However, in 1944 Division 14 of Industrial and Business Psychology was formed within the APA to address the need for a practice side of I/O psychology. In 1970 Division 14 was reorganized as the APA Division of Industrial and Organization Psychology and is today referred to as the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP). Over the past century the field of I/O psychology has grown to include work conditions and work satisfaction—the organization side of the field—into the theoretical and academic body of research that the field encompasses. As an example, the current organizational explanation of individual goals and self-regulatory activities takes an integrative perspective, incorporating the person, the social situation, and environmental factors into one theoretical framework (Kanfer, 2005). Today I/O psychology is applied to both scientific research in the laboratory and practice in the field to deal with the issues and problems that affect businesses and organizations of the day. Research and Statistics in I/O Psychology There are two main settings in which I/O psychology takes place: research and practice (Spector, 2008). Both settings greatly overlap in the real-world, everyday work of I/O psychologists. The practice division of I/O psychology applies psychological principles to the work environment, business structure, and hiring practices of industries and organizations; whereas, the research division develops the aforementioned psychological principles to be used in the practice of I/O psychology. No matter the setting, I/O psychology utilizes the scientific method to determine the underlying psychological principles and applicable practices relevant to businesses and organizations. Four concepts necessary to the extrapolation of the cientific method onto the subject-matter of I/O psychology include: 1) the research question; 2) research design; 3) measurement and; 4) statistics. A research question that is testable through the avenues of the scientific method must be specific and usually includes precise theoretical predications about the outcome of the research—hypothesis. The great power of the scientific method comes through the manipulation of independent variables and subsequent observation of dependent variables to the end of unraveling the affects of confounding while simultaneously isolating causal and correlated variables. The basic structure of research design can be invasive—as in the case of control groups—or simply observational in nature. The several types of research design consist of: survey designs (questionnaires)—both cross-sectional and longitudinal, observational designs—both obtrusive and unobtrusive; and qualitative studies, which entail the use of non-quantitative data to substantiate psychological principles.