International Management and Ethics: Culture Dimensions

INTERCULTURAL MANAGEMENT & ETHICS ACTIV-1 ACTIVITY 1 – TOPIC 1: CULTURAL DIMENSIONS DIALOGUE 1 1) Which cultural differences cause the misunderstanding or confusion? Which cultural dimensions can help us understand the situation? On my understanding of the situation – bearing in mind that when in a multicultural dialogue, many meanings can be found or understood by just context without the use of words – I believe that the confusion has its origin by the cultural difference amongh both characters. The conversation lied on Mr. Bakr’shoulders although Mr.Amstrong tried to redirect it to the field that was occupying his mind but without success. Mr Bakr has the strongest part of the dialogue: having a flexible concept of time, paying more attention to social talks –business small talks in this specific case – , focusing to address the conversation to become more social and mentioning the religion makes Mr. Amstrong to have a conflict with his cu ltural dimensions. Mr Bakr coming from an arab culture through this dialogue shows to be polychronic, particularistic, control oriented and collectivist.The reality could be a little bit different from my own words here. We need also to bear in mind the context where this conversation is taking place, the circumstances and sometimes, even the mood of the interlocutors. Mr Amstrong really wants to skip the social talk to stick into business but should he knew that Mr Bakr’s culture gives more importance to social talk rambling would have accept it and take some more time on this to try to redirect the conversation to his key point afterwards. 2) How do you think that the people involved feel in regards to his / her partner?How would they interpret the other party’s answers? I think in this case Mr Amstrong may have felt a feeling of frustration as well as distressed since he can think that Mr Bakr has been rude to him for avoiding the topic he wanted to talk about it. M r Bakr may have not probably even noticed Mr Amstrong’s troubles otherwaise he could have done something change it during their conversation. However Mr Bakr could also feel upset for Mr Amstrong’s insistence on the distribution subject. So from a small thing could become a big misunderstanding and depending on the context this could be a very grave problem.Maite Molina Sabate MIBTM INTERCULTURAL MANAGEMENT & ETHICS ACTIV-1 3) What would be helpful to avoid misunderstandings? Why is Mr. Amstrong unsuccessful trying to get the conversation where he wanted? This may be due to that Amstrong’s and Bakr’s cultural dimensions were just opposite to each other’s and neither of them tried to understand each other’s different cultures and respect that it is necessary to adapt oneself to other’s at some stage and show respect. And this should have been done by both parts. In real life this is not happening as often as it should.Most situations a re resolved by one of the characters taking the lead and the other respecting the culture difference and filling the gap as better as possible showing respect. But before introducing ourselves in another culture context –either by a meeting, a business trip or any sort of communication with someone from abroad – we should need be more conscious about the possible cultural differences and learn a little bit about customs and facts from that other culture in order to understand better the person who we will communicate with and the communication we will be holding.DIALOGUE 2 1) Which cultural differences cause the misunderstanding or confusion? Which cultural dimensions can help us understand the situation? I don’t see any confusion or misunderstanding in this second dialogue but an understanding. However if a subliminal confusion or misunderstanding is flowing it might be for the situation itself. Carolina’s priority is her daughter’s illness and so taking her at the doctor’s appointment whilst Alice is thinking in setting up a time to hold a meeting.Fortunately this meeting can be reschuled so there’s not a big problem on this situation. Cultural dimensions that could bring this situation would be from Carolina: polycronic (her sense of times and priorities can be diverse from anglo’s Alice), particularistic (decisions can be made by subjective decisions like in this case), a little bit egalitarian (in this case there’s no hierarchical since the meeting will be moved for everybody due to Carolina’s personal reasons and this brings us to the individualist concept as well.For Alice could be as follows: Hierarchical, collectivist (she moves the meeting’s day to meet Carolina’schedule) and harmony oriented since she is willing to adapt her and the fellow colleagues to Carolina’s needs. 2) How do you think that the people involved feel in regards to his / her partner? How wou ld they interpret the other party’s answers? I believe that in this situation Alice may feel frustrated since she cannot help but moving the meeting to help Carolina’schedule. Very understandable and comprehensive by her side but leaving business hierarchy and control aside.If every employee would ask for a change that would be needed and finding a date for a single meeting could be a nightmare every time that the question would arise. So some organization should be on demand or company’s policy to try to organize this gap at Maite Molina Sabate MIBTM INTERCULTURAL MANAGEMENT & ETHICS ACTIV-1 the same time as supporting employees that need some sort of help with personal and professional lifes. Carolina can feel very relieved to have Alice’s acceptance and support for the situation and very valuable for the company since not just understand the situation but change the date so she can assist. ) What would be helpful to avoid misunderstandings? In this cas e a good communication and having an internal policy to follow that would organize this and support either the employees as well as managers. Good communication is important because Alice could knew about Carolina’s problem earlier and reschedule the meeting beforehand and not just the day before. Carolina should know that a company needs an organization a hierarchegy so if she needs some time off that should be regulated and everybody that should need to be informed beforehand. Maite Molina Sabate MIBTM

Nestle: Marketing and Corporate Social Responsibility

01What are the responsibilities of companies in this or similar situation? Nestle. The world's leading Nutrition, Health and Wellness Company. Its mission of â€Å"GoodFood, Good Life† is to provide  consumers with the best tasting, most nutritious choices ina wide range of food and beverage categories and eating occasions, from morning tonight. The Company was founded in 1866 by Henri Nestle in Vevey, Switzerland, where itsheadquarters are still located today. Nestle employ around 280 000 people and havefactories or operations in almost every country in the world. Nestle sales for 2010 werealmost CHF 110 bn. Current controversyIn this particular case, the issue was that Nestle Alimentana, one of the world’s largestfood-processing companies had been the subject of an international boycott as a result of  the accusations that the company was directly or indirectly responsible for the death of  Third World infants. The charges were based on the sale of infant feedin g formula, whichsupposedly caused the mass deaths of  babies in the Third World. Corporate social responsibility of the company Corporate Social Responsibility refers to operating a business in a manner thataccounts for the social and environmental impact created by the business.It signifiees acommitment to developing policies that  integrate responsible practices into daily businessoperations, and to reporting on  progress made toward implementing these practices. Responsibilities are as follows 01)  Every multinational company like Nestle has a prudent Business policy whichcomes after deep scrutiny about the environmental, cultural impact of their activities. For  example  nestles  principles  are  no  advertisement  to  general  public,  no  sampling  tomothers , no use of commission or bonus for sales ,no point of sale advertisement , nofinancial and material inducement to promote products etc.So, every company shouldstick on their policy. 02)Arou nd the world every country countries has own law to protect its people fromillegal or illogical operation of companies. In this case every company should respectcountry’s law and they also should play their production and marketing activities withconsidering these laws. 1. What are the responsibilities of companies in this or similar situations? Any industry or company, in its attempt to expand operations and explore opportunities, employ marketing strategies that ultimately lead to one thing- sales objective/ target achievement.And many times over, this mindset resorted to different marketing/ promotional schemes, regardless of culture, lifestyle, beliefs, etc. across the globe. Marketing jargons like â€Å"scare tactics†, (eg Whitehall's Incremin: lack or iron among children can lead to death†, source: Health Today Philippine edition) â€Å"premium offers† (Bisolvon's â€Å"win a car, join†¦.. , source: Mercury Drug branch), â€Å"free if you buyà ¢â‚¬  (bundling of Colgate-Palmolive , shampoo + toothpaste) â€Å"save† ( Unilever's shampoos 33% savings in a bigger sachet pack) , are examples of this â€Å"mind-conditioning† among consumers.Nestle's case proved one point- we cannot undermine the marginalized sector of the society and use them to gain profits and increase market share. One case-in-point was how milk was promoted in the mid- 70's: Lactogen (Nestle) : â€Å"When breastmilk fails choose Lactogen† (ad in Sierra Leone) Klim (Nestle): † The child is going to die, because the mother's breast has given out, Mama o Mama the child cries, if you want your child to get well, give it KLIM milk (a radio ad in Africa) Another industry that remains controversial up to this time is the cigarette/ tobacco industry.For many years, issue on responsible marketing is challenged by several sectors. Despite the inclusion â€Å"smoking is dangerous to your health† in cigarette packs and the ongoing de bate † freedom of choice† – that consumers' will do what pleases them, incidence of lung cancer continue to rise in developing countries. Responsibilities of companies facing the same issue include the following: (1) Adhere to the policies set by regulating companies. For milk companies, follow the guideline stipulated in the â€Å"International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk substitutes† For cigarette ompanies, adhere to the Master Settlement Agreement† which stipulates the do's and don'ts in cigarette advertising. This can save the company in any potential threat or problem(2) Changing the culture or local practice doesn't happen overnight, add to that is the huge investment needed to teach how people should behave in a manner large companies want them to be. It is important to respect age-old practices and understand local dynamics (3) To say that third-world countries are a dumping ground of large multinationals maybe subjective because there are companies who conduct business ethically.In any respect, companies, big or small, should be responsible in educating its target market, be able to answer consumers' inquiries (Hotline is one good example), and begin to think the long-term benefits of each action to avoid damaging the equity of their company. 2. What could have Nestle done to have avoided the accusations â€Å"Killing Third World Babies† and still market its product? Nestle understandably wanted to come out strong in supporting its milk product line, especially that they have the muscle and money to hold different marketing programs.But rather than contradict age- old practice of breastfeeding and resort to scary campaigns â€Å"breastfeeding is not good at all†¦Ã¢â‚¬ , they should have concentrated on the additional nutrients breastfeeding moms can give to their children. The advertising hyped so much on the inefficiency of breastmilk. And its advertising campaign came out to be a desperate act of win ning new sets of customers. Misinformation also put Nestle in a bad light. With advertising comes responsibility to educate the consumers, no matter which country you are in.Another thing mentioned in the case is the inability of Nestle to comply with the implementing guidelines which provoked the consumers to continue rallying against Nestle. Reality is, even in the local setting, practices mentioned in the case (such as sampling todoctors, sponsorship in medical societies, direct advertising to consumers) is still evident. Legal pursuits can be avoided if Nestle abided with the guidelines. All in all, this problem could have been avoided if: †¢ Nestle concentrated on the nutritional benefits of infant formula, with proper clinical substantiation to back up its claim †¢ Uphold best ethical practices.Being one of the leading companies worldwide, they should set ethical standards and do not resort to cheap gimmickry to entice consumers †¢ Employ a wholistic approach. E ducate all perceived target group- doctors, mothers, schools, hospitals, pharmacies, nurses and midwives. By doing an integrated approach, it will uphold its commitment to deliver quality products to its market and be a reliable healthcare partner as well 3. After Nestle's experience, how do you suggest it, or any other company, can protect itself in the future? The recurring issue â€Å"to create the need or address the need† remains a challenge to most companies.Nestle is no exception. It wants to be a pioneer in changing the lifestyle and mindset of consumers during the early-mid `70s, coupled with their desire to expand operations to third world and developing countries to sustain its business growth. In this case, they are changing the practice (traditional breastfeeding) drastically and tried to create the need (infant formula) which is not highly present yet when they launched the campaign. Below are some ideas that can help protect other companies: †¢ Understandi ng the ever-changing consumer trends and practice is one way to

Reading Among Students Essay

Reading Among Students Reading  Among StudentsByAbdullah  I. Al FaifiIntroductionReading  in general is a big word that branches into so many topics. Nations advancement is based on education which includes reading as a main part of its elements. Therefore, whenever a nation wants to advance, reading must be one of its characteristics. Reading is not dedicated to certain people indeed. It is a gift for anyone can read and understand as well. But, there are places where reading must take place. In schools, it is expected that reading is a duty. Unfortunately, what is expected opposes the reality although there are few students do read. Then, we have two parties of students through which this research would survey its general topic. It is very strange to find people who have to read as one of their jobs; nevertheless, they even do not think to do. In specific levels, it is quite common that the majority of students do not read. Of course, such status did not happen haphazardly. There must be different reasons related to the main question why do not students read? On the other hand, there is a few numbers of those who read. Meanwhile, there are different stimulants urge them to read. Such students might read either outside reading which is in areas has nothing to do with their courses in the school or inside reading which means reading for studying. This particular point needs a practical answer given by the students themselves. As far as this research is concerned with students in the first rate, I will give priority to students themselves in some of my references. Simultaneously, I will not ignore books, articles, websites and other resources. As it is clear above, reading process is complicated area. Theorists always emphasize that whenever reading and studying become a kind of pleasure, everything will go smoothly. Almini, E. (2006) asserts that â€Å"one of the objectives is that students should take pleasure in reading in their free-time† (P. 6). This issue would be covered supported with convincing solutions. So, reading among students based upon so many questions, issues and problems are going to discuss is the central idea. This study would include questioning, interviewing, examining, investigating, quoting and finally analyzing so that a reader would receive a perfect view from which he can deal with this issue from various perspectives. Literature ReviewI found many writings deal with such ssue in details from different points of view although August, G. (2006) cited that â€Å"†¦it is surprising that there is little concrete research devoted to the development of good reading comprehension for adult readers† (P. 246). Certainly, I disagree with August because I found many articles for different people from different countries in Arabic and in English discussing readi ng among students from which I came up with different questions will be mostly the main bases of this work. Below, I am going to investigate the challenges that reading process faces among students beginning with reasons and finally ending with solutions. First of all, we must look for the reasons that cause ignoring reading process. In this area Mohandes, A. (2007) asks â€Å"are the expensive prices of books blocks the way of buying books? † (Riyadh News Paper). Mostly this is the main reason that many people agreed upon. Anyhow, I would examine it in a next section and we will see if it is really valid. Since students and schools are my main concern, I have to pay more attention to the process of reading in schools as long as it is a mere duty for them. As one of the main reasons behind neglecting reading in schools, the American author Stotsky, S. 2006) claims that â€Å"they also tell us that across grade levels, graphic organizers are least useful for elementary students as opposed to university population, result in little gain in student comprehension when used as a pre-reading activity. And may not be effective at all without direct by the teacher† (P. 10). Despite that the author here is throwing everything on the teacher, it is unfair indeed. I think that the teacher is a part of a united circle includes students and curriculum. Each one of them takes place in completing the whole circle although the teacher is the most important factor within the frame. The environment and the surroundings in general play a very significance role regarding. The factor of the environment can be looked at from the larger angle which includes everything around the reader even the weather as Dr. G, Sanstead. (2006) mentioned the importance of â€Å"understanding the effect of external factors on the health of individuals, families and communities† (P. 2). The other smaller circle is the family. In this regard  Hashem, N. (2003) points out that â€Å"a child will not be drawn to reading if his/her family does not read† (Riyadh News Paper). So, it is clear that the surroundings are another respectful factor. Students themselves are also responsible for this problem to a large extent. Taeb, M. (1419AH) provides three main reasons that cause abstention from reading. They are â€Å"reading a long book, difficult topics and the weakness of one’s language† (P. 26). Such reasons would create turning away from reading. It indicates that a student can familiarize himself with reading by avoiding these things. In other words, he must begin reading short books of simple topic. When he gets used to such kind of book, then he moves forward to a little bit longer books and so on. So far we have not zoom into the process of reading itself, I think it deserves to be investigated alone regardless of the other outside elements. Dr. Habibullah, M. (1421AH) points out very considerable aspect when he said â€Å"reading process cannot be excluded from the other related skills such as writing, speaking and listening† (P. 165). Hence, we ask that does that mean a good reader is also a good writer and listener? And what skill of these one should start with? Although it is a complicated matter, experts give us very excellent solutions. The previous quotation can be dealt with as a solution if we say that a student should improve all skills which are listening, writing and speaking altogether. Focusing on just reading is not enough. Furthermore, in the case of the teachers Alshalan, R. (1424AH) provides very good steps to help students to value books. He says â€Å"teachers have to give their students a free time for reading after which teachers should discuss with them what they have read. Through attractive indirect way, teachers should introduce some books for the sake of urging their students to buy them. Finally, teachers should set students in situation in which they should go to read books† (P. 28). Methodology  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Reasons behind Neglecting ReadingResearchers question that why people in general turn away from reading books. It is known that this is a big global problem. Mohandes, A. (2007) asks â€Å"are the expensive prices of books blocks the way of buying books? † He brings out convincing answer for his question by stating that â€Å"the expensive prices of books are not the reason because books are less expensive than video tapes†. Then, he demonstrates that â€Å"the reason is that people become aware that there are easy-to-find and easy-to-use sources where you can find any knowledge or information you need such as TV, video and internet† (Riyadh News Paper). As some people thought, it is an old traditional way to bather yourself reading a book consists of hundreds of pages while you can learn what you want through fast, easy and interesting way. To certain extent, we agree with them as long as you will reach the same result wither from a book or from a website but with some reservations. Such concept faces certain obstacles in fact. Is learning or through a website is as useful as learning through books. It is absolutely not true for many valid reasons. First, the great scientists in mostly all fields have learned basically from books but not from websites or video tapes. We really admit that the TV, websites and video tapes are factor to have knowledge. However, I think that they should take place as secondary factors. Second, books are available and easy-to-carry everywhere. The importance of this exact reason is that the process of reading and educating oneself becomes continual all the time. Hence, we can say that you learn something every hour while websites and TV lack this advantaged characteristic due to the fact that they are not available all the and thus the process of learning is limited. Third, although you need a little bit an extended time to reach the information that you look for, you will lose nothing at all because you are going to see another and concepts you did not pay attention to. Sometimes you will be attracted to another direction where you find more and more information but in the case of TV, websites and video tapes, you will be taken directly to the point without any further information. Now, we recognize the difference between the two ways and we see the advantages and the disadvantages of both of them. Consequently, books are extremely better than any other sources. The Process of Reading in SchoolsThe problem occurs in a case like schools where reading should take place as an obligatory task. In schools, there are three factors play the main role in this regard. The teacher, the students and the curriculums. The most effective factor is the teacher of course. He is the one who controls everything. Mostly, students dignify everything gets out of his mouth. Consequently, teachers undertake the problem of neglecting reading among students to a large extent. As will be shown later, 30% of the students in the secondary school that I made my questionnaire in responded negatively when I asked them that do their teachers encourage them to study? Alshalan, R. (1424AH) puts forward some techniques, most of the teachers do not use them. However, we cane take them as good methods for teachers in how to deliver encouragements to students. â€Å"Teachers have to give their students a free time for reading after which teachers should discuss with them what they have read. Through an attractive indirect way, teachers should introduce some books for the sake of urging their students to buy them. Finally, teachers should set students in situation in which they should go to read books† (P. 28). While I was discussing with him an issue concerning the method of teaching, Alfaifi, M. (2006) who works as a supervisor in The Saudi Ministry of Education told me that â€Å"supervisors always deliver lectures to teachers in various topics concerning the way of dealing with students. But the problem is that rare are those who respond and apply. Moving to the second factor who is the student, we should start from his inner side in fact. If there is no seriousness within the student himself or what is called the personal interest, surely we are going to end up with nothing. Therefore, we should concentrate on how to familiarize what is not familiar? The third factor which is the weakest one is the curriculums. It is extremely a secondary one because it is controlled first by the teacher and second by the student. Anyhow, it is the responsibility of those who are charged with writing the curriculums. They have to guide the learner step by step from nothing into the stage of creativity trying to involve a kind of pleasure so that a reader can find what attracts him. The Effect of The EnvironmentAs a human activity, reading cannot be excluded from its surroundings. Almost, the existent of reading is a result of many causes stimulates a reader to read. That means, if a student was grown up in a family where no reading activity is stimulated, reasonably, we expect to have no interest of reading from any figure of that family. That what roughly all psychologists claim. Hashem, N. (2003) claims that â€Å"a child will not be drawn to reading if his/her family does not read† (Riyadh News Paper). Here, the writer observes the importance of the environment that either encourages or discourages. Out of this point, we figure out the importance of the model because if we agree that the environment may encourage or discourage, it means that we are moving around the idea of having a model that a reader would imitate. The effect might take place out of the family. An encouragement to read may occur eventhough the narrow surrounding which is the family is not a good place for that. That is exactly what happened to me. I remember that one of my colleges called Alshrimi, K. (2006) advised me â€Å"you have to read as much books as you can so that you become an intellectual man†. I directly answered â€Å"I am fed up with my courses in the collage. How it comes that you want me to bather myself with outside books again†. Although my answer merely reveals no possibility to think about reading, I was within myself seriously thinking to dive into the world of books. Statistics Analysis and ResultsIn the case of schools where reading from books is necessarily required task for students, there is no way to avoid this certain process. The problem is caused essentially by having students who are not accustomed with books from the beginning. As a result, they reject and even hate books. I made a questionnaire in Ibn  Almother Secondary School. I set forth various questions concerning reading in the case of studying and reading outside books in general. I come up with almost the following results.

Classical Music Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Classical Music - Essay Example Classical music is deeply rooted in the western liturgical and secular music. The development of classical music can be traced back from the 11th century to the present time. The main subject matters became to be codified between 1550 and 1900; this period is referred to as the common practice period. The history of classical music has been organized into various periods of development. When we talk about the history of classical music, we basically refer to thousands of years in its development and the considerable western influence and the ancient eastern music of the Asian continent. The various periods of classical music include: medieval, renaissance, baroque, classical, romantic and the contemporary period. The period between the years 0 to 1400 AD, was described as the medieval period. It is the longest period of the classical music history. During this period, Saint Gregory is credited for organizing the larger parts of classical music that developed in first centuries of the Christian church. Saint Gregory was the pope from 490 to 604.

Management Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 3

Management - Research Paper Example These four functional areas are subdivided into a large number of narrow business functions specific to each functional area. It has been observed that business organizes their structure according to business functions. The business functions which are associated with production management includes the management of material, carry out research and development for refining existing product lines or developing new products. It also includes the task of conducting various quality control tests to ensure customer satisfaction. Thus, the functional area of production management deals with planning the plant layout and deciding about plant locations for different products (Elsy, 2009). The functional area of marketing management includes the business functions of marketing a product to the targeted consumer segments, sales forecasting, providing customer support and conducting promotional activities, taking sales orders and customer relationship management. Marketing management also involves the responsibility of conducing market research to collect and analyze data about the demand for the products and also the marketing strategies of competitors in similar markets. This also helps the management to design effective marketing mix to promote new products in existing markets or to introduce the existing products in new markets (Lussier, 2011; Boldi, Santini & Vigna, 2009). The accounting and finance functional area includes the business functions of financial accounting, allocation of funds for various activities and projects, planning, budgeting and control of funds and cash-flow management. It also deals with the various direct and indirect taxes that the organization needs to pay. The functional area of human resource management deals with the effective utilization of manpower. Human resources personnel are involved in the processes of recruitment and selection, training

Comparative Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 6

Comparative Analysis - Essay Example In Genesis 2, God created heavens and earth. In addition, after creating the land, God made it grow tree out of it in order to make it pleasant, and created rivers passing through it. Then, God created man to till the land (Genesis 1 and 2). The Mongolian creation story revolves around a father and two sons who lived in the world, which by then was made of the upper and under world and covered by water all over. The two boys decided to create dry land using mud then later created animals to stay on that land including the dog that first had very smooth skin, which could talk. The American Mayan creation theory talks of existence of two gods before the world attained its true form. These were the Maker and the Feathered Spirit who lived in utmost darkness, except for their glittering features. Consequently, the two gods collectively created the world and things in it, which happened instantly according to their thoughts. Darwin’s theory on the origin of species is another creat ion theory is based on the idea of variation. It argues that the many characteristics and adaptations that differentiate different species of organisms is an indication of possible evolution of species over time, which continually diverged. These creation stories reveal that there are two sides to creation, that is, naturalists vs. evolutionists. Contrary to what naturalists suggest, species are not created independently, neither are they immutable. Nevertheless, all these stories differ on how species developed into their current complex forms, but they are reconcilable in the fact that they share a common ground that creation started from an existing being or object ignited by some supernatural power. According to Genesis 1 story of creation, first there was heaven and earth, which was void without any form. Then God said, â€Å"Let there be light: and there was light† (Genesis 1),

Differences and Similarities between Existing Security Standards Essay

Differences and Similarities between Existing Security Standards - Essay Example As discussed before information security is essential for saving the data and assets of a business. Thus, businesses require being completely responsive for devoting additional resources to save data and information assets, as well as information security has to be a top concern for both governments and businesses (Government of the HKSAR, 2008). In addition, the ISO (International Organization for Standardization) has been offering directions and guidelines for customers, businesses, trade officials, governments and developing nations since its establishment in 1947. Additionally, all that knowledge goes into the building of innovative standards and the development and enhancement of accessible information security standards. In this scenario, the ISO 9000, the excellence management standard, is yet probably the most identifiable ISO standard to American businesses for the reason that of its influence in the United State all through the late 80’s as well as untimely 1990†™s. However, there are numerous top security standards that have been discovered with the passage of time. For instance, whole 27000 series is intended to cover numerous areas of information security as well as risk management: (JBwGroup, 2009; Government of the HKSAR, 2008) IS0 27000 – Information Security methods, basics as well as vocabulary ISO 27001 – Information Security Management System Requirements (available: 10/2005) ISO 27002 – Code of Practice (available: 06/2005) ISO 27003 – Planned ISMS Implementation ISO 27004 – Directions intended for Information Security Management Metrics as well as Measurement ISO 27005 – Guide intended for Risk Management (available 06/2008) ISO 27006 – Worldwide Accreditation Requirements (available 03/2007) However, business corporations that have adopted ISMS and attained self-governing 3rd party certification regarding their information security plans have gained a number of strategic benefi ts (JBwGroup, 2009; Government of the HKSAR, 2008). Moreover, from the above stated different information security standards I have chosen the ISO/IEC 27001. ISO- 27001 or ISO/IEC 27001:2005 is typically referred as the most excellent practice specification that facilitates businesses and corporations all through the globe to build up a best-in-class information security management system (ISMS). In addition, these security and safety standards were published jointly by the ISO (international security office) and the international electro-technical commission (IEC). In this scenario, the British standard BS7799-2 was the predecessor for ISO 27001 (IT Governance Ltd., 2011; WikiBooks, 2009; Arnason & Willett, 2008; ISO, 2011; Praxiom Research Group Limited, 2011). In this information technology based age, information and information systems are very important for the businesses. Keeping this fact in mind, ISO 27001 establishes specific needs and requirements which have to be followed , as well as against those requirements organizations’ information security management systems are audited and certified. In addition, ISO 27001 is intended to harmonies with ISO 14001:2004, ISO 9001:2008, ISO 20000 as well as various other security standards established for efficient management system integration. In this scenario, the ISO27001 standard allows the organizations to produce a structure to comply with a lot of authoritarian standards. Additionally, all the United Kingdom businesses have to obey following standards:

Slavery in Ancient Rome Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Slavery in Ancient Rome - Research Paper Example There were unskilled slaves many of who had been condemned to slavery as punishment, or had been captured in war, and these were given very hard tasks to perform such as working on farms, in the mines or at mills and their living conditions tended to be very brutal and this made their life expectancy very low. It can therefore be said that slavery in ancient Rome was a part of its everyday life and that this institution is one of the core pillars, which kept this state running. A large number of the slaves in the Roman state were acquired through the warfare made by its army that always brought back captives in their hundreds and thousands from each war that they went to fight. Many of these wars were wars of expansion in which the defeated enemies were captured as well as civil wars and these captives were often sold to slave traders who in turn took them to the market and sold them to the highest bidder. In addition to those slaves captured in war, a large number of them came throu gh the slave traffic of Thrace and perhaps the most famous Thracian importee was Spartacus, who years later would come to lead a great revolt against his new masters (Koester 766). Piracy was among the biggest contributors to the slave market because an increase in the activities of pirates also led to an increase in slavery in the Roman state because they ensured a large supply of slaves from the places they raided. Most slaves worked in unskilled jobs from prostitution and cleaning to mining, shepherding and manning oars. However, there are some who worked in relative comfort as secretaries and physicians (Bradley 477). In addition to the tasks, which they were given as their duties, slaves had very few rights and in fact, they were not allowed to refuse their masters anything, even if it was unwanted sexual advances. In the Roman state, the largest number of slaves was used for agricultural labor because the growing size of both the population and the empire needed plenty of food to sustain them. Therefore, it is true to say there tended to be more slaves in the rural areas than in the urban areas and these worked on the farms. Slaves used to be assigned to mines as punishment for perceived transgressions against their masters, and this was the same as sentencing them to death because the chances of surviving long in the mines were very slim. Farm slaves faired fairly well considering that they had plenty of food to eat where they worked as well as their work being seasonal unlike other slaves who had to work very hard throughout for their masters, while household slaves of the rich families of Rome enjoyed the highest standards of living among the slaves of this state. Moreover, it was very rare for them to be whims subject of their masters compared to other slaves because many of them had specialized duties, which they tended to carry out without being asked by their masters. Many of these household slaves had lodgings, which were far much better than tho se of some of the free Roman population were and in fact, they often did much better than the latter economically. These household slaves could be found doing very specialized jobs such as working as barbers, hairdressers, and even as teachers and

Business Start-Up from Scratch Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Business Start-Up from Scratch - Essay Example Smart thinking should be employed in order to have potential for growth (Marinel 5). Factors to consider when starting There are various factors to consider before starting a business. One factor is the area of expertise and knowledge. The entrepreneurs must come together and evaluate the level of expertise in providing the good or service they intend to market through their business. For a business to be successful, the business partners must have some experience in the field in which they want to invest. Many businesses fail due to lack of knowledge. The exposure could come from employment in other companies or organizations offering similar products or services. The knowledge should be reinforced by research into the prospects of the product faring well in the market to avoid frustrations. Every niche of a business requires a specific set of skills and, therefore, some require more expertise than others. The knowledge should be coupled with the desire to succeed. Many starters fai l in business due to diminishing passion once they face hardships. The people who want to start the company must, therefore, have a culmination of passion if the business is to take off the ground (Marinel 5). The second factor to consider is the market and demand for the product. Before investing in the product, it would be necessary to determine how much of the product will be sold in certain duration. This is a crucial marker for projecting the profitability. The main reason for starting a business is to make a profit and profit involves sale volumes. The product should be sold in areas where its demand is felt. Some products do well in the local market while others would do well in the international market. Extensive research should be done in order to determine the area in which the product will have enough demand to sustain the development of the business. The target customers should also be established. This helps in demarcating the market into various segments based on facto rs such as the lifestyle, age, and income. Accuracy in determining a market segment is essential to facilitate the recouping of the initial cost as well as driving the business forward. This becomes facilitated by the products ability to satisfy a need in the market. The product launch should also be timely in order to develop a customer base (Longenecker 28). Competition should be the next factor to consider. The entrepreneurs should be able to determine the level of competition they expect when entering the market. This is critical in determining whether they have a competitive advantage against the already established would be competitors. The competitive advantage receives creation if the customers perceive the product to be of superior quality than the others in the market. The product concept should be judged on the opportunity, for business it creates. A brilliant concept does not necessarily imply a fantastic investment opportunity (Longenecker 29). Technology of making the product should also be considered. With time, technological advances evolve in production of many goods in the market. Technological aspect makes a key factor in increasing the competitive advantage by being able to produce higher units of the product, and increasing the cost effectiveness. Once the product to be marketed has been determined, the investors should evaluate their technology to determine if it will help them satisfy the demand effectively, and whether it will reduce

Ethan Frome Essay Example for Free

Ethan Frome Essay Ethan Frome had nothing but sickness and trouble. His life revolves around taking care of one invalid after another, from his father, his mother to his hypochondriac wife and finally ending up as a disfigured and very image of â€Å"ruin of a man†. He failed to achieve any of his ambitions to leave town and become an engineer and did not succeed even in his desire to run away with Mattie Silver. Aside from poverty, the rigid moral character of Ethan prevents him from going against the social conventions in favor of his personal ambitions and fulfillment. Set in New England, in the rural town of Starkfield, Massachusetts, this literary piece was written by Edith Wharton in 1922. The bleak environment of seemingly endless winter aptly sets the tone of the story and the fate of Ethan Frome. A narrator who was forced to stay in Starkfield because of a workers strike was instantly fascinated by Frome’s appearance that looks quite old for a man of fifty-two and disfigured since an accident twenty-four years ago when he first saw him outside of the post office. He went on to find out more about him as he had the story, bit by bit, from various people, and, as generally happens in such cases, each time it was a different story (1). The story of Ethan Frome is a portrayal of a passive and unhappy man who is weighed down by his duty to his wife and his bitter existence as a poor farmer. Ethan had been in Starksfield since his youth when his father died and he had to come home to take care of his ailing mother and their farm. Prior to this event, he was taking a technological course in Worcester but the lack of money prevented him from realizing his dream to become an engineer. He decided to marry Zenobia Pierce or Zeena, his cousin who came to help him care for his mother, after the burial as he was afraid to spend the winter alone. Though Zeena was lively and cheerful at first, she later on fell silent and sickly. He woulf often think that had his mother died in the springtime he would not have thought of offering marriage to Zeena. Her illnesses became her obsession as she would go on a monthly trip to Bettsbridge to see her doctor. For rural towns like Starkfield, people with sickness or complications are common topic for conversations and are â€Å"singled out for a great fate†. Zeena’s illness became her weapon that she uses to take control of the household and of Ethan. Mattie Silver actually came to the Fromes to do the household chores in exchange for the food and shelter as she was also destitute after the death of her parents. Since she was not used to doing housekeeping, Ethan would help her out in doing her chores just so she would not incur the wrath of Zeena. Ethan eventually fell in love with lively and cheerful Mattie who gave Ethan respite from the isolation and loveless match with a sickly and whining woman. The illicit relationship however advances to no more than holding of hands as both Mattie and Ethan are too afraid to defy the forces of social and marital duties. The time came though that Zeena decided to send Mattie away because of a broken red pickle dish that is symbolic in the story of the marriage of Ethan and Zeena. The idea of living apart from each other was unbearable for Mattie and Ethan that upon the suggestion of the former, they went on to take a sleigh ride that would crash them into the big elm tree. The attempted suicide failed leaving Ethan disfigured and Mattie a paralyzed woman. The irony of the story is that in the end Zeena seem to overcome her illness and became the caregiver of the now invalid, whining Mattie and the lame Ethan. The entire life of Ethan Frome had been a series of dreams destroyed because of the circumstances of him being poor and his adherence to social duty. His opportunity to leave town and finish education to eventually become an engineer was hindered when his father died and he has a farm and an ailing mother to take care of. Their farm as he said was â€Å"side-tracked† when the railroads where put up and no more people came to town. He blames this as the cause as to why his mother’s condition deteriorated. It could also mean the lost opportunities for the town and also to him as the place got left behind in the course of development. Ethan was one of the people stuck in Starkfield, a place where most of the smart ones get away(14) as Harmon Gow, the stage driver in the story, aptly puts it. The bleakness that surrounds Starkfield, for one thing, is not an environment that would nurture youth and create a field for dreams to come true. The narrator in the story noted that although he initially felt invigorated by the clear blue skies and shocking white of snow, this was soon followed by long periods of cold and darkness that he begun to understand the deadness of the community (15). In an environment that was neither nurturing nor bountiful, Ethan is further subdued into the tangled web of harshness and scarcity. The Fromes practically had to eke living from what little they could get from their farm for their survival. The connection between the land and the people is symbolic in the story. The environment made life for the townspeople difficult such as when Ethan and another man had to struggle in the sleet just to be able to transport logs. Starkfield is isolation in itself, with the places beyond it seen as a place to â€Å"get away† so as to seek a different fortune or freedom from the drab and coldness of the place. The limitations of the environment coupled with poverty further intensified the lost potentials of Ethan Frome. There was the poignant scene where the narrator accidentally left his biochemistry book in the sleigh and later on sees it in Frome’s hand. Ethan was both fascinated and humbled by the book as he exclaimed, There are things in that book that I didnt know the first word about (18). It shows that Ethan’s curiosity and intellect had very few outlets in that kind of environment. For a fifty-two year old man who found excitement in a book, it is painful to think of what he could have been had he got the chance to explore his potentials. The conflict between personal passion and social convention is another theme portrayed in the story. The character of Zeena and Mattie were so different that the reader would readily understand the choice of Ethan between them. Mattie symbolizes beauty and energy in her ways, in the colors that she uses from the ribbons in her hair to the dish that she illicitly uses whereas Zeena possesses the deathly and sickly qualities in life. The sexual and emotional frustration in the marriage of Zeena and Ethan is symbolized by the unused pickle dish. Though shown as Zeena’s most prized possession, it remains at the topmost of the china closet left and unused. The barren relationship that they have is further portrayed with them not having children and hardly ever sharing a conversation. Ethan fell in love with Mattie and had come to hate Zeena but his strong sense of marital duty prevents him from deciding to be with Mattie. He acts with uncertainty and frustration under the looming shadow of his obligation to Zeena that it created a conflict in him. Ethan is also hesitant to leave his sickly wife for he believes that if he went away it would leave Zeena alone and penniless. Even in the moment when Zeena went away, her presence was greatly felt in imagined visions and in the symbol of the cat. Conventionally, the society upholds marriage as a sacred bond and is, in fact, at the apex of the set social orders. A man and woman are joined in marriage; it is protected by the norms of the society to keep the union intact. The critical eyes of the society is so that it could even permeate walls of intimate moments like the evening that Ethan and Mattie spent together when Zeena went away from the town to see a doctor. Their excitement though withered when the cat broke the dish and the looming figure of Zeena in their minds. Zeena’s absence bear more weight that her presence that conversation became impossible. The circumstance does not allow them to attempt to recreate a fantasy of life together, spending an evening as a husband and wife would. Their passion was shrouded by guilt and the unseen eyes of the society that both of them felt in the situation. As Ethan noted in the warm lamplit room, with all its ancient implications of conformity and order, she (Mattie) seemed infinitely farther away from him and more unapproachable (54). Conformity and order in the living room reminded Ethan that it belongs to Zeena and Ethan and could never be Mattie and Ethan. And when Ethan crossed the line when showed the slightest act of passion by kissing a piece of cloth that she was sewing, Mattie was spurred into retreating, scared of the repercussions with the transgression made. Poverty also limited the illicit lovers from taking serious step in pursuing an adulterous affair. Mattie, for one, was in a very precarious condition being dependent on the Fromes for her daily sustenance. Having nowhere else to go, she is also afraid of going into that kind of relationship with Ethan that could take away the refuge that she now has. Ethan, on the other hand, his duty to his wife and even to the Hales prevents him from acting on the situation like the loan that he planned to take from the Hale in able to elope with Mattie. Ethan did not only sacrifice his chance on love but he also sacrificed his ambitions just so he can fulfill his social duties. He had to give up his dream to move out of Starkfield and of becoming an engineer to care for his father, his mother and the farm. And upon the death of his mother, he end up in frustrated desire to fulfill his dreams for he was trapped in a marriage with a sickly wife whom he cannot bear to leave because of her condition. Though a sympathetic character, Ethan Frome can be also frustrating because of his lack determination to change the course of his life. He allows circumstances to take over him and did not decidedly pursue his interests and ambitions. Like the epitaph of the original Ethan Frome in the graveyard with his wife Endurance, he endures rather than act on his fate in pursuit of happiness and fulfillment. In his relationship with Mattie, instead of finding the courage to address his dilemma he opted for suicide with his lover, which he did not even decide on but took on upon the suggestion of Mattie. This was his only bold decision in the entire novel but this too ended up as a failure leaving him ruined and destined to live his entire life with an invalid lover and a controlling wife. Though Ethan is a sensitive and decent person he lacks emotional strength and determination. Instead of mustering enough courage to defy conventions, he chose not to take decisions and face the consequences of it, The deadened vitality of Ethan Frome from the decades of frustrations and his inability to rise up beyond the circumstances had left him in a situation where is â€Å"not much difference between the Fromes up at the farm and the Fromes down in the graveyard†.

Evaluation of Hemodialysis Patients’ Tumor Marker

Evaluation of Hemodialysis Patients’ Tumor Marker CEA tumor marker level associates comorbidity of hemodialysis patients Purposes: Hemodialysis (HD) affects serum concentration of biomarkers. However, it remains unclear about the effect of HD on the levels of biomarkers, and efficacy of biomarkers in HD. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of HD on commonly used tumor markers. Methods: A total of 28 unselected patients (22 men, 6 women) with end-stage renal disease (ESRD), treated with maintenance HD, were enrolled in this study. GOT and tumor markers CA-153, CA-125, and CEA are measured. Results: The mean age was 57.6  ± 12.6 years, HD duration was 51.0  ± 34.0 months. Tumor marker CEA level is correlated to Charlson’s score of HD patients, levels of CA153 and CA125 are not correlated to age, duration of dialysis and Charlson’s score. GOT level is correlated to age, and Charlson’s score. Mean value of CEA level (5.9 ±4.0 ng/ml compared to normal value of 3 ng/ml for non-smoker and 5 ng/ml for smoker) is larger than normal value. Levels of CA153 (13.3 ±11.6 U/ml), CA125 (35.2 ±38.9 U/ml) and GOT value (20.4 ±8.9 U/L) fall in normal range. Conclusions: Concentration of CEA tumor marker is correlated with Charlson’s score which strongly correlated with HD outcome. GOT value is correlated with age and Charlson’s score which implies liver function drop in long term HD patients. Keywords: biomarkers, End-Stage Renal Disease, evaluation, hemodialysis, CEA. Introduction Hemodialysis (HD) is widely used for kidney failure patients who may represent a variety of underlying causes, including diabetes, hypertension, and glomerulonephritis. The dialysis membrane in artificial kidney tube filtrates out small molecules especially for small molecular weight proteins (i.e., et. al. shows that cancer-free HD man demonstrated significantly lower PSA compared to controls [8]. Here we examine the serum level of commonly used molecular biomarkers, i.e., CA-153, CA125, CEA, and GOT of HD patients. Patient and materials Study subjects Experiments performed in this study complied with the current laws and regulations in Taiwan, Republic of China. All procedures are followed by the ethnical guideline and approved by Kaohsiung Armed Forces Hospital committee, Taiwan. A total of 28 persons between the ages of 37 and 76 years with end-stage renal disease, receiving dialysis treatment three times per week, were enrolled in a prospective study in March 2008. Dialysis was carried out using a Nikkiso DBB-22B dialysis machine with 4 hours session. Dialyzer with APS 18MD (Asahi Kasei, Osaka, Japan, polysulfone membrane, surface area 1.8 m2, in vitro clearances for urea, 198 ml/min for QB-200 ml/min). Blood flow rate was setting at 200 ml/min. Patients with vascular success insufficiency which can’t reach required blood flow rate was excluded. Ultrafiltration rate (512 ±85 ml/h) was adjusted according to the patients’ needs. The flow and temperature of the dialysate was 500 ml/min and 37oC, respectively. Vascu lar access was either via an arterio-venous fistula (sixteen treatments), graft (nine treatments), or a Perm catheter (three treatment). Serum CA-153, CA125, CEA, GOT levels were measured before and immediately after HD using low-flux membrane. Blood/serum collection Serum samples were collected from HD patients during and after the course of HD treatment. 5 ml blood was collected in EDTA tube. The serum were then stored in 4oC and processed within 12 hours. The serum samples were centrifuged at 2000 rpm for 10 min prior to splitting into aliquots and stored at -20oC. Laboratory methods The serum levels of CA-153, CA125, CEA and GOT were measured with Abbott Axsym analyzer (Abbott Laboratories, Abbott Park, III). The reference ranges of the markers were: CA-153, 0-31.3 U/ml; CA-125, 0-35 U/ml; CEA, 0-3 ng/ml for non-smoker, and 0-5 ng/ml for smoker; GOT, 0-32 U/L. Statistical analysis The data reported are means  ± standard deviations (SD). Pearson correlation coefficient (r) was used for analyses of linear associations. Because the concentrations of serum tumor markers were not normally distributed, significance of differences was assessed by Wilcoxon Matched-Pairs Signed-Ranks Test. The level of statistical significance was always set at P Results Baseline demographic and clinical data We analyzed 28 patients, of which 22 were men and 6 were women. The baseline demographic and clinical data are summarized in Table 1. All patients are diagnosed as end-stage renal failure. The mean age was 57.8  ± 12.6 years. Mean dialysis vintage was 51.0  ± 34.0 months. Measurement of tumor marker concentration of hemodialysis patients The mean value of CA-153, CA125, and GOT fall in normal range (16.5 ±16.3 before hemodialysis, and 18.6 ±16.3 after hemodialysis, compared with 31.3 U/ml normal value, 35.2 ±38.9 before dialysis, and 34.3 ±41.2 after hemodialysis, compared to Correlates of serum markers Correlations between serum markers levels and age, duration of dialysis and Charlson’s score are tested. Of all variables, patient age and Charlson’s score are correlated with levels of some serum markers. CEA level was correlated with Charlson’s score (r=0.42, p=0.03) (Fig. 1).GOT level was correlated with age (r=0.42, p=0.02) (Fig. 2) and Charlson’s score (r=0.48, p=0.01) (Fig. 3). Other variables, including CA-153, CA125 is not correlated with age (r=0.07, p=0.7; r=0.2, p=0.3, respectively), and also not correlated with duration of HD, Charlson’s score (Table 2). Direct effect of hemodialysis on concentration of serum markers Since the data of CA-153, CA125, CEA and GOT fail in normal distribution test, Wilcoson signed rank tested is chosen to compare groups before and after hemodialysis. Groups of CA-153, CA125, CEA, and GOT before hemodialysis are not significantly different to that after hemodialysis (Table 3). Discussion CA-153, CA-125, CEA are commonly used tumor markers. CA-125 is a glycoprotein with high molecular weight (> 200 kDa), and is a cancer antigen for monitor mesothelium especially for ovarian cancer. Recently, CA-125 is used to monitor mesothelial cell viability in PD patients [9,10]. CEA is carcinoembryonic antigen with a molecular weight about 180-200 kDa, commonly used for monitoring gastric cancer [11], weakly correlate with carotid atherosclerosis [12], and with prognostic value of colorectal cancer in PD patients [13]. The mean value of CEA of 28 patients is higher than normal value, which is consistent with previous reports that patients with ESRD are usually with higher risk of cancer, and with higher levels of tumor markers [14]. In our cases, patient no.2, 5, 9, 13 and 27 were expired within 1 year after diagnosis. Patient no. 2 is finally diagnosed as hepatoma, patient no. 5 is cirrhosis of liver and died in septicemia, patient no. 9 is died in leukemia, and patient no 13 is died in lung cancer. It shows that high levels of CEA correlated with Charlson’s score which implies poor outcome, however it remain further confirmation. CA-153 is correlated to risk of liver disease. Though 8% patients were diagnosed liver diseases, but their GOT value fall in normal range, and CA-153 values of them were also normal. There are many reports indicated that long term hemodialysis may affect levels of biomarkers. We showed that biomarkers alter non-significantly after one HD procedure. It is interesting that recent report indicated acute effects of HD treatment on up- or down regulation of apoptotic genes in blood leucocytes [15] Tumor markers were produced by neoplastic cells, and can also be secreted by normal tissue. Many chronic diseases, e.g., inflammation, chronic bronchitis, cirrhosis of liver and renal diseases, affect the metabolism and elimination of tumor markers, may contribute the long term elevation of tumor markers. Our data show that short term effect of HD on patients is not significant. And all 4 serum markers are not correlated with duration of HD. It seems that the response of patients to HD doesn’t directly affect levels of these serum markers. However, CEA and GOT are shown to be candidates markers for monitoring HD outcome as they are positively correlated with Charlsonà ¢â‚¬â„¢s score. Table I Baseline demographic and clinical data GFR, glomerular filtration rate; NPCR, normalized protein catabolic rate, *Modified Charlson’s comorbidity score is calculated according to Beddhu S, 2000. Table II. Correlation of serum markers and age, duration of HD, and Charlson’s score. Table III. Comparison of serum tumor markers before and after hemodialysis Legends to Figures Figure 1.Scatter plots, regression line, and 95% confidence intervals reflecting correlations between serum levels of CEA and Charlson’s score of 28 HD patients. Figure 2.Scatter plots, regression line, and 95% confidence intervals reflecting correlations between serum levels of GOT and Charlson’s score of 28 HD patients. Figure 3.Scatter plots, regression line, and 95% confidence intervals reflecting correlations between serum levels of GOT and age of 28 HD patients.

The Manager From Uzbekistan English Language Essay

The Manager From Uzbekistan English Language Essay This time, the manager from Uzbekistan is heading to Malaysia, to the beautiful country of forests and mountains, located in southeast Asia. Malaysia is a very interesting country that combines the features of the West and East cultures, it uses the development system of the Western culture, but at the same time, remains the traditions of the East. The people, who live there, Malaysians, are really proud of their country, their history and their culture. The formation of the Malay culture was influenced by many nations in the past, including local inhabitants, Malays who moved there, Chinese and Indian traders and, of course, the British colonizers. Even now the Malaysia is a multicultural country, where people of different nations live and cooperate together, especially Malays, Chinese, Indians and Eurasians. The unity is also supported in Malaysias motto, which is directly translated as Unity is Strength. The Malaysian constitution proposes the freedom of religion, nevertheless, it has clearly stated that the Islam is the main state religion and Malay is the main language. British influence can be observed in Malaysias governance as Malaysia is a constitutional monarchy with a king, who is a head of state, the Malay constitution is also based on English Law. I personally think that for Uzbek manager it wont be as hard to understand Malaysian culture as we have the same religion and some similar traditions, but anyway lets help him. Hofstedes framework Lets look at the Malaysia in the framework of the Hofstedes model, which measures such cultural dimensions as the power distance, individualism and collectivism, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity and femininity, long-term and short-term orientations. Power distance According to (http://geert-hofstede.com/malaysia.html), power distance is the degree, by which the society tolerates the inequality of power and authority and the division on social stratas. In other words, are people comfortable with the idea that their society consists of poor people as well authoritative and powerful people? The statistics from (cont) show that Malaysia has a very high score of 104 in power distance index, which means that inequality of people is encouraged in this country, there is a strong hierarchy and every person has his own place. In the organizations, boss or manager is the source of power and his decisions are right like the law, so they must be performed by lower ranking employees without any challenges. Anyway, lower ranking employees always expect to be told what they should do. In addition, it means that contact with the boss can be achieved only through the command line. According to (http://typeandculture.org/Pages/C_papers93/20Ismail.pdf), survey sh owed that 69,4% of Malaysian managers use the sensing-judging style or tell style of communication with their subordinates, they always control and tell employees what to do. Individualism and collectivism Further dimension, individualism and collectivism, as it can be understood, refers to how people are treated in the culture as an individual person or they tend to belong to a certain group, in other words, do people say I or we about themselves. The statistics from (cont) show 26 low score in individualism index, which means that collectivism is more developed in Malaysia. People belong to a certain groups and there is a strong relationship between the group members, so that the group members always take care of each other. Success is considered to be the result of the group work performance. The individual person who doesnt belong to any group isnt respected and even counted. According to (http://www.idjrb.com/articlepdf/malaysiamanagers.pdf) there are lots of Malay proverbs promoting collectivism and here are the few: A heavy load should be borne together as well as a light load ,As a bamboo conduit makes a round jet of water, so taking counsel tog ether rounds men to one mind. Uncertainty avoidance The third dimension is uncertainty avoidance referring to(http://www.contentfy.com/malaysia-analysis/) , which shows the degree by which cultures are afraid of uncertainty and try to avoid it. Again the statistics from (cont) shows 36 index, meaning that Malay culture is more tolerate towards uncertainty. While USA tries to control the uncertainty by rules or actions to minimize it, the Malay culture dont have against uncertainty rules and they just let it be the way it is. Due to risk about future, people are more flexible to changes there. Masculinity and femininity The next dimension is masculinity and femininity, which describes the main cultural traits of society. This time, referring to (cont) Malaysia has 50, which means that it has features of both masculine and feminine cultures. Masculinity can be seen in placing male traits such as competitiveness, power and success as the main cultural values, whereas, for feminine cultures the important values are the life quality and relationships. Of course, most Malaysians work very hard in order to be successful, and, as a collectivistic culture, they also dont forget about importance of maintaining good relationship within the group, therefore Malays mostly try to combine both in the workplace. Long-term and short-time orientation Finally, I am pretty sure that Malays as a people, who tend to have relaxed time nature and who value the strong relationships and success, would prefer long-term orientations as only long period of time can help to achieve success and strong relationships. In addition, (http://www.contentfy.com/malaysia-analysis/) states that Malaysians do not rely on the short term goals but rather they focus on long term goals to be achieved which make them one of the developing nations of the world. Halls model Now we will find out the communication style of Malays using the Halls framework, which proposes that there are high-context and low-context communication cultures. I would surely state that Malays are the high-context communication culture. This decision is right with reference to (http://businesscommunication.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/09ABC05.pdf), which clarifies that high-context communication cultures build close relationships, they use indirect messages and analogous language, and they widely use non-verbal messages in the communication. Close Relationships Firstly, Malays tend to build close relationships during communication. Malays are very hospitable, they always welcome their guests serving them with their traditional food and drinks. This tradition has been also used now in business meetings. The main intention here is to create a comfortable atmosphere for communication. The (same) notes that even during meetings, Malays firstly try to build the relationship with his partner asking him a lot of personal questions. Only after that, the partners get to the business. Indirect messages Further, Malays are comfortable to use indirect messages. They talk around things and leave the message to be understood by the interpreter. For example, instead of telling the friend directly: I need the ride to home, they say: Oh I am so tired and I need to go home on bus, expecting the message to be interpreted as a desire to get a ride. According to (same), in Malay culture, due to the mutual respect, it is impolite to tell straightly the desire as it sounds demanding, moreover, it is impolite to express negative feelings directly or to say no. Non-verbal language Thirdly, Malays use the non-verbal messages more in their communication, because their language contains less verbal information, as a result, the Malay interpreter is more sensitive to non-verbal language. For example, according to (same), in Malay culture if the boy acts impolitely by interrupting elders, the long-lasting look of parents is understood by the boy as a sign that he was rude, whereas in USA culture, the boy may just think that parents are listening attentively. Analogous language Finally, according to (same), Malay language is more analogous. One word in Malay language has several meanings at the same time. For example, according to (same) the word beri that is translated as give has 12 meanings in the English language. These 4 factors surely demonstrate that Malays belong to high-context communication culture. Laurents model Laurent has conducted a global research in order to compare the managerial styles in different countries. Managers authority The first interested question was to know the spread of the managers authority outside of the organization in different countries. In my opinion, as Malaysia has a very high power distance, I am pretty sure that Malay managers are autocrats within the organization as well as in the society. Due to the collectivistic culture, either manager is an autocrat in the group of company employees or more likely he belongs to the higher ranking group of managers. Bypassing hirarchy Secondly, Laurent was interested in finding whether the employees are able to bypass the hierarchy for a benefit of effective work or not. According to (webintec), one of the Asian countries, China, has 66% of disagreement in bypassing the hierarchy. With reference to (http://typeandculture.org/Pages/C_papers93/20Ismail.pdf) , I found that the Malay managers are the same as Chinese managers in their value systems. In Malaysia, the power distance is very high, so the bypassing is not appreciated, moreover, it is the sign of disrespect of authority. Manager is an expert Thirdly, Laurent wanted to know is it important for managers to know answers on all work-related questions. According to (webintec), Asian countries show the highest scores for this statement, agreeing that the manager should be an expert in the organization. I think it happens because mostly, in Asian companies, people begin their career from the very beginning, getting promotion with time and expertise. So, as a manager who has experienced everything in the organization, it is important to know answers on all work-related questions. Therefore, the employees there cant become managers until they improve their knowledge to perfect. The manager who doesnt know the answer loses his face. Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck culture Now it is time to focus on Kluckhohn and Stodtbecks cultural theories which will help us to determine the value orientations of Malays. There are six values to identify, they are the relationship with nature, time orientation, human nature, behavior, relationship with others and spatial usage. Harmony with nature According to (http://typeandculture.org/Pages/C_papers93/20Ismail.pdf), Malays live in harmony with nature. It means that Malays coexist with the nature in balance like it is proposed in Feng Shui. That is why there are still lots of forests in the Malaysia, according to (http://www.indexmundi.com/malaysia/resource-usage.html), 62,3 % of Malaysian area is still covered by forest. However, harmony also implies the partial usage of nature resources, otherwise, the furniture company couldnt operate without the supply of woods. Time orientation Secondly, (yes) states that the Malay culture focuses mostly on future in time orientation. This implies focusing on long-term goals and planning strategies to accomplish the future achievements. However, Malays also believe that changes in present leads to the success in future. People nature Thirdly, (yes) determines that Malays view their peoples nature as neutral they think there are good people as well as bad people with reference to ying-yang . Malays trust each other, but they also dont forget about being careful. For example, according to (http://www.ediplomat.com/np/cultural_etiquette/ce_my.htm) for Malays the trust in partner is more important than the written contract, that is why the Malay may ask to repeat spoken business terms, but anyway signs contract for safety. Behavior Further, (yes) inform us that Malays behavior style is being. Being is all about our internal motives to do something that we value or enjoying our lives. Relationship with others Then, due to the combination of the high power index and collectivism, the Malays are subject to hierarchical relation to others in society. In other words, people belong to groups, but depending on his social status. For example, higher ranking people would belong to elite group of high ranking employees. Spatial usage Finally, of course as a collectivistic culture, Malays prefer public spatial usage over private. Malays as a collective workers are used to public spaces. In my opinion, it would be the big room with the big table, where everybody could sit face-to-face in order to work together. Trompenaars model Finally, we got to the Trompenaars model of cultural analysis, where we will distinguish between universalism and particularism, neutral and affective relationships, specific and diffuse relationships, achievement and ascription, sequential and synchronous time approaches, internal and external controls. According to (http://www.via-web.de/universalism-versus-particularism/), Asian countries have particularism tendencies, therefore, the relationship is the determinant of what practices should be applied. For example, before thinking of business, Malays firstly build the relationship with their partner. Depending on level of trust and relationship gained, the terms of agreements may change. For Malays even the spoken contract terms are more crucial than those of written. According to (http://www.contentfy.com/malaysia-analysis/) , Malaysian culture is very neutral, which means that people there control their emotions. They dont show their thoughts and feelings. They try to orient more on reasons than on emotions to act upon. This happened due to the impact of the Asian culture, where respect to other people is emphasized through being neutral in feelings and calm. Thirdly, with reference to (http://www.stanford.edu/group/scie/Career/Wisdom/spec_dif.htm) , it is clear that most East Asian cultures tend to have diffuse relationships, where their relationship also spreads beyond the workplace. As a collectivism is developed in Malay, the new employees who enters the organization, also belongs to the company team, which means that he is interdependent on the group even beyond the office. The ascription is more practiced in Malaysia, because of the hierarchy and respect to elders. The statuses are given depending on the age and authority. The following words from (http://www.ediplomat.com/np/cultural_etiquette/ce_my.htm) surely prove my words: Malays judge people by who they are rather than what they do. Malay attitude towards time is synchronous, according to (http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/seven-dimensions.htm), they see past, present and future as interwoven, and therefore their view of time is flexible. For example, (http://businesscommunication.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/09ABC05.pdf) notes that even on malay weddings, flexible time scheduling can be observed, because even if the wedding was announced to be held at afternoon, the guests were coming after twelve and even few in the evenings. However, this situation is changing nowadays. Malays as people, who are Muslims, believe in external locus of control or or in fatalism with reference to http://www.contentfy.com/malaysia-analysis/. Fatalism is the strong believe that everything happening good as well as bad is happening by the will of the God, as a result, religious believers are driven by feelings combined with their religious faith. Recommendations: For Uzbek manager, high hierarchy situation would be beneficial because the employees would perform everything told without a doubt, although manager should be active and thoughtful as he is the only decision maker, excluding the boss. Also, if the manager would have a boss, he is strongly recommended not to challenge his decisions. The manager should keep in mind that, in Malaysia, where the collectivism is high, he is going to manage not individuals, but the groups. The performance of the groups is more effective than of individuals, if managed well. As the collectivism is encouraged, also it is advisable for manager to head to Malaysia in groups beforehand or to enter the company group in order to be respected. Uzbek manager should be careful with decisions, because it is risky and difficult to make right decisions in such uncertainty atmosphere as it is found in Malaysia, especially if he hadnt lived there before. The combination of masculinity and femininity allows male as well as female manager to be sent there. Also, it means that manager should not only focus on succeeding on masculine values, but also he should make relationships with other managers, as in such culture belonging to group plays an important role. Due to the long-term orientation, manager should be focused on improving performance and planning strategies in the long-run. According to (http://businesscommunication.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/09ABC05.pdf), Malays have strong feelings of hospitality, therefore they serve their guests with snacks and drinks. Moreover, this tradition is now being used in business meetings. In that case, our manager should at least try the servings to show respect against the partner. However, It is only the beginning, as this process only creates atmosphere for communication. According to (http://www.ediplomat.com/np/cultural_etiquette/ce_my.htm) , before getting down to business, Malays tend to involve the partner into a very long conversation with a lot of personal questions in order to build a trust and relationship, so, I would advise our manager to be patient. According to (http://www.ediplomat.com/np/cultural_etiquette/ce_my.htm), Malay businessmen may try to renegotiate even after drafted written contract, it happens because spoken contract terms are more important for Malays than written ones, therefore as a manager, be ready for it. In addition, Malay businessmen will insist on concessions, but wont give up something in exchange, therefore plan several meetings beforehand. According to (http://businesscommunication.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/09ABC05.pdf) expressing the desire and expressing negative feelings is impolite for Malays, therefore as a high-context communication culture, they will be sending indirect messages and using non-verbal signals a lot. For our manager, it means that he should be more sensitive towards the expressed words searching for their hidden context and pay more attention to the non-verbal signals as they will help to decode the context more accurately. Dont bypass the hierarchy in Malaysia, you will lose your face. According to (webin tec), in Asian countries, the manager should be able to answer to any work-related question of the employee. If he couldnt answer, he loses his face, therefore, I advise our manager to be experienced, knowledgeable and to research on everything about companys operations. My personal suggestion is to be ready to the change in the work atmosphere, as I am pretty sure that the group work of Malays will be conducted in one room, where it would be noisy and all people would be sitting face-to face and discussing everything together. According to (http://www.ediplomat.com/np/cultural_etiquette/ce_my.htm), Malays judge person by who he is, therefore, the manager should be chosen appropriately by age, gender, background, family, previous status and so on. I would suggest that he should be a very experienced and knowledgeable senior manager, preferably male, with a diploma from a famous university and with work experience in most powerful companies, in addition he should be from well-bred family, and also the important thing is that he should be powerful and from the high social stata. Keep in mind that Malays have flexible time nature, so dont be angry if he comes late, however, according to (http://internationalbusiness.wikia.com/wiki/Things_you_should_avoid_in_Malaysian_Business_Meetings), if you are hosting an event you should be punctual. According to (http://internationalbusiness.wikia.com/wiki/Things_you_should_avoid_in_Malaysian_Business_Meetings) left hands and feet is considered as dirty, therefore never use your left hand or legs to do something. However, business cards taken with both hands are the sign of respect. In addition, carefully examine the taken card as it is very respectful. According to (http://www.backpacking-tips-asia.com/malaysia-culture.html#.UKqRcoc3aP1All),Malays are so polite that they cant say no , so dont be too trustful with yes answers. Avoid making meetings on Friday as it is the religious day and Muslims go to the mosque. If you want to invite to a dinner, keep in mind that they dont eat pork and dont drink alcohol; in addition they eat Halal food. If someone gives you a gift, you should give something of the same value in exchange or invite somewhere, in addition, I would advise not to open the gift in the presence of gift presenter. Remove the shoes before entering someones house According to (http://www.backpacking-tips-asia.com/malaysia-culture.html#.UKqRcoc3aP1), if someone invites you, bring a gift but avoid wrapping it in white, blue or black as they symbolize death, also yellow too as it is a royal color. If you want to visit mosque, wear long clothing and cover your head. According to ediplomat, pointing with a finger is insult, keeping the hands in pocket is anger and hitting fist into cupped hand is obscene, in addition, it is not allowed to touch someones head as head is considered as the home of the soul, so dont do all this. According to http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/malaysia.html, the family is considered as the centre of the social structure, that is why elders should be always respected, and it is not allowed to smoke near to them. When introducing, you should first introduce senior or higher-ranking executives and women first According to http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/malaysia.html, the concept of face is different here as it is the indicative of good name, characters and reputation of the generations. And you can easily lose your face if you criticize, disagree or insult someone; if you earn shame to your group; if you challenge an authority; if you deny a request or dont keep your promise. It is also told that, face can be saved by keeping yourself calm. Dont smile as it has several good as well as bad meanings. There are lots of rooms for prayers in the streets, so dont mess them up with restrooms. To greet a person you should lightly touch someones both hands and then bring your right hand to your chest and say Salam. Handshake with women is not allowed, until she offers it first. Just in case, simple smile and nodding is enough as a greeting.

The Violence of Christopher Marlowes The Jew of Malta Essay -- Jew of

The Violence of Christopher Marlowe's The Jew of Malta      Ã‚   Christopher Marlowe's The Jew of Malta is a violent, bloody, destructive play that literally jars the senses.   Part of this is due to the modern reader's background:   we see the characters through modern eyes, with distinct views of "low class" and "high class."   It would be easy, as such, to discount The Jew of Malta as only appealing to the base interests of its time, and it would be only slightly less easy to protest that it has meaning beyond any crude first glance, and that the extreme acts presented are merely metaphors for deeper social commentary.   Steane writes:    There is a general feeling that this is a play of distinctive character, and an equally widespread difference of opinion as to what that character exactly is.   Few plays have been given more names: tragedy, comedy, melodrama, farce, tragical-comical, farcical-satirical, 'terribly serious' or 'tediously trivial'; 'terrifying', it seems, cannot be too heavy a term, nor 'absurd' too light [sic]. (166)    The Jew of Malta is extreme, and is meant to be extreme.   The protagonist, Barabas, is gleeful, scheming evil, and does not represent anything other than himself.   Barabas, with his frequent asides, betrayals on top of betrayals, and unending blood-thirst, is the eye of the play's chaotic, whirling storm.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Marlowe, too often seen in Shakespeare's shadow as an inferior whose modest body of work either pales to the mighty canon of Shakespeare or merely subtly influences him as a popular contemporary, produced in The Jew of Malta, and in Barabas, wit and savagery, perhaps to a degree foreign to most audiences.   Much is also made of Barabas as a Jew... ...ontested status of Huckleberry Finn).   But a given work, even as edgy a work as The Jew of Malta, can be reasonably expect a fair break from the "liberal arts" critical interpreters, who, doubtless, will reveal hidden meanings, as well as postulate new meanings, in this worthy work in the coming years.          Works Cited Deats, Sara Munson, and Lisa S. Starks.   "'So neatly plotted, and so well perfom'd': Villain as Playwright in Marlowe's The Jew of Malta."   Theatre Journal.   Vol. 44, 1992.   375-389. Eliot, T. S.   "The Blank Verse of Marlowe."   The Sacred Wood.   London: Methuen, 1964.   86-94. Henderson, Philip.   Christopher Marlowe.   New York: Barnes & Noble, 1974. Marlowe, Christopher.   The Jew of Malta.   Ed. James R. Siemon.   London: Black, 1994. Steane, J. B.   Marlowe: A Critical Study.   London: Cambridge UP, 1964.    The Violence of Christopher Marlowe's The Jew of Malta Essay -- Jew of The Violence of Christopher Marlowe's The Jew of Malta      Ã‚   Christopher Marlowe's The Jew of Malta is a violent, bloody, destructive play that literally jars the senses.   Part of this is due to the modern reader's background:   we see the characters through modern eyes, with distinct views of "low class" and "high class."   It would be easy, as such, to discount The Jew of Malta as only appealing to the base interests of its time, and it would be only slightly less easy to protest that it has meaning beyond any crude first glance, and that the extreme acts presented are merely metaphors for deeper social commentary.   Steane writes:    There is a general feeling that this is a play of distinctive character, and an equally widespread difference of opinion as to what that character exactly is.   Few plays have been given more names: tragedy, comedy, melodrama, farce, tragical-comical, farcical-satirical, 'terribly serious' or 'tediously trivial'; 'terrifying', it seems, cannot be too heavy a term, nor 'absurd' too light [sic]. (166)    The Jew of Malta is extreme, and is meant to be extreme.   The protagonist, Barabas, is gleeful, scheming evil, and does not represent anything other than himself.   Barabas, with his frequent asides, betrayals on top of betrayals, and unending blood-thirst, is the eye of the play's chaotic, whirling storm.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Marlowe, too often seen in Shakespeare's shadow as an inferior whose modest body of work either pales to the mighty canon of Shakespeare or merely subtly influences him as a popular contemporary, produced in The Jew of Malta, and in Barabas, wit and savagery, perhaps to a degree foreign to most audiences.   Much is also made of Barabas as a Jew... ...ontested status of Huckleberry Finn).   But a given work, even as edgy a work as The Jew of Malta, can be reasonably expect a fair break from the "liberal arts" critical interpreters, who, doubtless, will reveal hidden meanings, as well as postulate new meanings, in this worthy work in the coming years.          Works Cited Deats, Sara Munson, and Lisa S. Starks.   "'So neatly plotted, and so well perfom'd': Villain as Playwright in Marlowe's The Jew of Malta."   Theatre Journal.   Vol. 44, 1992.   375-389. Eliot, T. S.   "The Blank Verse of Marlowe."   The Sacred Wood.   London: Methuen, 1964.   86-94. Henderson, Philip.   Christopher Marlowe.   New York: Barnes & Noble, 1974. Marlowe, Christopher.   The Jew of Malta.   Ed. James R. Siemon.   London: Black, 1994. Steane, J. B.   Marlowe: A Critical Study.   London: Cambridge UP, 1964.   

Virginia Woolf as Feminist and a Psychoanalyst Essay -- Biography Biog

Virginia Woolf as Feminist and a Psychoanalyst When first introduced to the feminist and psychoanalytical approaches to literary criticism, it seems obvious that the two methods are opposed to each other; at the very least, one method -the psychoanalytic - would appear antagonistic to feminism. After all, there is much in Freud's earlier theories that a feminist would find appalling. It also seems to be a conflict that the feminists are winning: as feminist criticism gains in popularity, the psychoanalytic approach has apparently fallen into disfavour within the academic community. However, Freud's theories and psychological models continue to survive, and evolve, to the point where even certain feminists - namely the French - have employed aspects of Freud's theories to further their own studies. Critics such as Leclerc and Duras employ Freud's concept of the Oedipal Complex in their search for l'Ã ©criture feminine - a style of uniquely-feminine writing found in the pre-Oedipal stage that exists before the tyrannical foot of the father (the patriarchy) stamps it out. This is Psychoanalytic Theory and Feminism working together, to gain new insights into literature, old and new. Take, for instance, the works of Virginia Woolf: both the psychoanalyst and the feminist can find much of interest within her short stories and novels. Woolf is an important figure for feminists: not only was she one of the first female writers to gain the recognition she deserved during her own lifetime, but certain of her works, such as The Angel in the House and A Room of One's Own, were important and ground-breaking achievements in the female literary field. Feminist critics would approach Woolf's stories and essays by ... ...eminist, or a marxist, or even a deconstructionalist, even if but for a moment, by using multiple methods of literary analysis, a deeper and more fulfilling understanding of the text can be achieved. Works Consulted Blain, Virginia. "Narrative Voice and the Female Perspective in Virginia Woolf's Early Novels." Virginia Woolf: New Critical Essays. Ed. Patricia Clements and Isobel Grundy. London: Vision, 1983. 115-36. Fisher, Jane Elizabeth. "The Seduction of the Father: Virginia Woolf and Leslie Stephen." Women's Studies 18 (1990): 31-48. Hill, Katherine C. "Virginia Woolf and Leslie Stephen: History and Literary Revolution." PMLA 96.3 (1981) 351-62. Lee, Hermione. Virginia Woolf. London: Vintage, 1997. Squier, Susan M. Women Writers and the City: Essays in Feminist Literary Criticism. Ed. Susan M. Squier. Knoxville: U of Tennessee P, 1984. 114--33. Virginia Woolf as Feminist and a Psychoanalyst Essay -- Biography Biog Virginia Woolf as Feminist and a Psychoanalyst When first introduced to the feminist and psychoanalytical approaches to literary criticism, it seems obvious that the two methods are opposed to each other; at the very least, one method -the psychoanalytic - would appear antagonistic to feminism. After all, there is much in Freud's earlier theories that a feminist would find appalling. It also seems to be a conflict that the feminists are winning: as feminist criticism gains in popularity, the psychoanalytic approach has apparently fallen into disfavour within the academic community. However, Freud's theories and psychological models continue to survive, and evolve, to the point where even certain feminists - namely the French - have employed aspects of Freud's theories to further their own studies. Critics such as Leclerc and Duras employ Freud's concept of the Oedipal Complex in their search for l'Ã ©criture feminine - a style of uniquely-feminine writing found in the pre-Oedipal stage that exists before the tyrannical foot of the father (the patriarchy) stamps it out. This is Psychoanalytic Theory and Feminism working together, to gain new insights into literature, old and new. Take, for instance, the works of Virginia Woolf: both the psychoanalyst and the feminist can find much of interest within her short stories and novels. Woolf is an important figure for feminists: not only was she one of the first female writers to gain the recognition she deserved during her own lifetime, but certain of her works, such as The Angel in the House and A Room of One's Own, were important and ground-breaking achievements in the female literary field. Feminist critics would approach Woolf's stories and essays by ... ...eminist, or a marxist, or even a deconstructionalist, even if but for a moment, by using multiple methods of literary analysis, a deeper and more fulfilling understanding of the text can be achieved. Works Consulted Blain, Virginia. "Narrative Voice and the Female Perspective in Virginia Woolf's Early Novels." Virginia Woolf: New Critical Essays. Ed. Patricia Clements and Isobel Grundy. London: Vision, 1983. 115-36. Fisher, Jane Elizabeth. "The Seduction of the Father: Virginia Woolf and Leslie Stephen." Women's Studies 18 (1990): 31-48. Hill, Katherine C. "Virginia Woolf and Leslie Stephen: History and Literary Revolution." PMLA 96.3 (1981) 351-62. Lee, Hermione. Virginia Woolf. London: Vintage, 1997. Squier, Susan M. Women Writers and the City: Essays in Feminist Literary Criticism. Ed. Susan M. Squier. Knoxville: U of Tennessee P, 1984. 114--33.

European History Essay

The way the eastern civilization would live is how people dream of living today. The eastern peoples put others above themselves. The way the western civilization used to live is how we live today: caring about ourselves for the most part. Even though the eastern side of living is how most people wanted to live, there are some positive characteristics of the western side that are worth incorporating. A common problem today is that we don’t think. A trait of eastern culture is the being contemplative. There are countless problems that could be avoided if thought would have gone into the situation. Life is a strategy that is filled with decisions. It is inevitable that mistakes will be made, but there will be less if you think before you act. In life there are always consequences for your actions. What most people don’t realize is that there can be positive consequences. This is something that the western civilization honored; the rewards or the positive consequences of the life they lived. Having the good things in your life isn’t as rewarding as working for the grand prize. Towards the end of your life, what will you have that reflects what you work for? In the eastern civilization, working with less is held high in standards. As the years go by, people always want more and more but is it really necessary? For example, heated seats and electronic windows are nice in our vehicles but we don’t actually need them. The eastern peoples learned to work with what they were given, even if it was less than what they wanted. Technology is taking over the world. With this new interference with human life, the beautiful art of work will soon be forgotten. There are amazing things that humans can do as long as they work for it. The western civilization figured this out and put activity high on the list of standards. Life is short and there may be things that we miss if we don’t work to see what it has in store for us. Both the eastern and western civilization contain characteristics that would benefit the human race. A mixture of the two would be a perfect way to live. Placing others higher in value than yourself is a trait that isn’t common in the world today. Even though, putting others first is something great, you need to think about yourself too. You only have one life and one chance to make it the best. Do what makes you happy and you will see that others will come with you.