Culture and Diversity: Understanding Islam Essay

Abstract: An important part of this course, this research paper is on diversity and multiculturalism and its social, cultural and ethical impact on individual citizens, groups of people and society at large is about understanding Islam. This paper will contain information on teaching of Islam and how they are interpreted and practiced in different countries and cultures, including the United Stated, Great Britain, the Middle East, India, Pakistan and other Asian countries. Additionally, how is it contrasted with Christianity and Judaism, how do these understandings impact the ways that Muslims and non- Muslims interact and communicate with one another? Introduction Islam is highly controversial and sensitive issue in today’s world and there are many misconceptions about its beliefs, values and goal. Through this research paper, I would like to go over this issues in more detail and I hope to understand the problems and have a correct understanding on Islamic beliefs. For example, many Americans believe that most Muslims live in the Middle East, while in reality Indonesia has many more people of the Islamic faith. This paper will help me and the readers to understand what this means is that Islam, like Judaism and Christianity, is practiced in many different cultures, and it both shape and shaped by those cultures. In order to have clear understanding, the definition of Islam and Muslim  have to be defined. Islam is the religion that Muslim people practice, the same exact way that Judaism is the religion followed by Jews, and that Christians follow Christianity (see http://www.ask.com). I. What is teachings of Islam? (Advanced in Natural & Applied Science. 2012, Vol.6 issue 3, p365-373. 9p.) A. Islam is not merely a religion rather than it is a deen (that is a balance of worldly and godly affairs). Thus, Islam is a way of life where religion and culture are one, not separate. B. The core elements in Islamic culture are universal; Muslims can take on every elements in every culture that is not against the Qur’an and Sunnah. C. the Qur’an emphasizes that the universe is created with purpose and the creation of physical environment too has its purpose. D. In Islam, humans are encourage to gain knowledge through using all senses, about themselves and the physical environment around them in order to know Allah and obtain faith (Iman) and taqua.The Qur’an is constantly reminding people that every aspect in life is integrated. II. How they are interpreted and or practiced in different countries and culture including U. S, Great Britain, Middles East, India, Pakistan, Russia and other Asia countries? A. There are many misconceptions and stereotyping of Muslims and Arab are partly rooted with insufficient and through incorrect education. (Culture & Religion Review Journal. 2013, Vol.2013 Issue 1, p143- 158. 16p. B. Middle East people practiced variety of religion by the beginning of the seventh century c.e. One of these deities called Allah 9 Arabic name for God). When Muhammad was born in Mecca around 570 c.e. Muhammad started to receive messages from Allah and soon started to spread God’s messages. Not all of Mecca citizen were receptive to messages initially, many wealthy regarded as a threat to their power and position. Mecca’s leaders persecuted Muhammad and his followers and Muhammad and his followers moved to Yathrib, where the first Islamic government was establish (Carr, Melissa S. Who are the Muslim? 2003, p4 – 8. 5p). C. Islam’s spread into East and Southeast Asia occurred through peaceful ways, particularly trade and missionary work. Southeast Asian voluntarily and gradually adopted Islam. It was accepted and practiced with elements of pre Islamic religious beliefs (such as animism, Buddhism and Hinduism). It is more tolerant of other religion faith than their Middle Eastern or North African  counterparts. Today Muslim missionaries are still active and funded greatly by Saudi Arabia and other oil producing Persian Gulf states (Terrorist Group.2006, pN.PNG.5p). D.In Cultural & Religious Review Journal.2013, Vol.2013 Issue 1, p143-158. Hosseini, Hengameh stated about several misconceptions and stereotyping about Muslims and Arabs in the U.S. due to historical, political, and education-related reasons. The author stated that many misconceptions and stereotyping is due to influence of media such as TV evangelists and radio talk show hosts. The author stated that through these media many Americans have negative perceptions of Muslims such as: strict religion, long robes, veiled women, always praying, Mecca, holy war, Arabs, violence, terrorism, no women’s rights, Allah, Quran, poverty, dark skin, harems, inequality, military war, anti- American, and strong belief. In Another article by Journal of Alternative Perspectives in the Social Sciences. Dec2010, Vol. 2 Issue 2, p472-494. By Iribarnegaray, Deanna mentioned that following events of 9/11, the military approach of â€Å"the War on Terror† has resulted in the conflation of the mainstream vision of Islam with militant Islam and some Muslim communities in the West are suffering from Islamophobia. But Islam is steadily spreading in U.S and other part of Western countries. E To related Islam to recent bombing in Boston Marathon, I would like to add Russia in this paper and see how Russia is adapting and interpret Islam. According to the 2002 census, the Muslim population of Russia was 14.5 million people. By 2008, the number of Muslim citizens exceeded 15 million, not taking into account legal and illegal migration. ( Alexei V Malashenko. Social Research Vol 76: No 1: Spring 2009) The Russian Muslim population is multiethnic (Islam is the faith of 38 native peoples of Russia) and multicultural. Each of the two large groups are the Tartars and Bashkir, has its own religious traditions, history, and historically different relations with the center (Moscow and kremlin). Islam in Russia is not only has a role in religion but it has a role in social and political area as well as in financial structures. (Alexei V. Malashemko, Social Research Vol 76.) F. Indonesia has the world’s largest Muslim population; 86 % of its 245 million people are Muslim. And one the  island of Java, where more than half of the nation’s population lives, more than 90 % of the people are Muslim. Indonesia is the one of the largest Mecca for religious pluralism and they keep interreligious relations and continue Indonesia’s tradition of Pancasila –the â€Å"five principles†. But Indonesian Muslims, who practice religious pluralism are being threatened by Islamic puritanism by FPI or Islamic Defenders Front. (Pinault, David, Commonweal. 9/28/2012, Vol. 139 Issue16) III. Contrast with Christianity and Judaism According to Carr, Melissa S. in Who are the Muslims, 2003, p4-8, the people living in the area of Middle East practiced a variety of religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Zoroastrianism. During early the early part of the 7yh century a new monotheistic religion, Islam emerged in the Arabian Peninsula. The similarity between all three of the world’s major monotheistic faith has origins to the patriarch Abraham, Judaism and Christianity through Abraham’s younger son from his first wife, Isaac, and Islam through his older son, Ishmael. This was the major development of the different faith started. Muslims believe Muhammad was the last in a line of the prophets to whom God had given divine prophesies. Despite these similarities, there are major basic differences between Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. Muslim consider the commandments of the Jewish Torah, that was ascribed to Moses, and Jesus’ teachings as recorded in the Christian Gospels to be divinely inspired, but they believed that although Jesus relayed God’s divine message, Christians later changed the scriptures by adding into them the claim that Jesus was the Son of God. Therefore Muslims consider it Islam’s primary mission to proclaim God’s undistorted messages and replace the older Jewish and Christian traditions with the newer and more original Islamic ones. Islam respect both the Torah and the Bible, they consider the Qur’an, the messages received by Muhammad as the final, and most important messages to humanity from God. IV. These understanding impact the ways the Muslims and non- Muslims interact  and communicate with one another. The understanding of different faith will affirm the importance id dialogue between people of different faiths, it is important not only in multi- religious contexts but equally where there is a large majority of a particular faith. IT is vital to protect rights of minority groups and religious freedom and to enable all to contribute to the common good of all in the community. In conclusion, I can say that like in many religion and especially as in Christianity, Islam has also come a long ways and took the similar path as many other major religion and have a same mission mind as Christianity. Islam teaching is more readily accepted in more third world where they need financial support and where it is very open to many religion unlike Middles Eastern countries. Many say pluralism is the way of getting close to unity between different religions but that also brings a question of how they will keep the authenticity of original but that also brings question of how they will keep the authenticity of original messages of its religion. References Carr, Melissa S. Who are the Muslims? 2003, p4-8. 5P Lribanegaray, D. (2010). Considering Relations between Islam and the West in Three†discrpent Experience†: From Ivasion to Retribution. Journal of Alternatitve Perspectives in the Social Science, 23. Hosseini, H. (2013). International diversity and its problems: Teaching Islamic culture at an American institution. Culture & Religion review journal, 2013(1), 143-158. Malashenko, A. V. (2009). Islam in Russia. Social research, 78(1), 321-358. Sicherman, H. (n.d.). Islam in Asia. In H. Sicherman (Author), Islam in Asia. Mason crest. Yaabcob, M. (2012). Islamic Teachings on the Environment. Advanced in Natural & applied science, 6(3), 365-373.

Particle Accelerators

What are particle accelerators used for? A particle accelerator is a device that uses electric fields to propel electrically charged particles in a vacuum, which approach the speed of light, towards each other and collide. The result hopefully being that the kinetic energy in the particles and other energy converted into subatomic particles or various types of nuclear radiation. There is more than one type of particle accelerator; they come in two basic types: †¢Linear †¢Circular Linear Accelerators The linear accelerator, or linac, uses microwave technology to accelerate electrons in a part of the accelerator called the â€Å"wave guide†. Particles pass through a line of hollow metal tubes enclosed in an evacuated cylinder. Within a hollow conductor there is no electric field so a charged particle travels at constant speed inside each of the tubes. Between one tube and the next there is a potential difference which varies in size and direction as an AC voltage is applied to the series of tubes. Bunches of charged particles are accelerated from tube to tube, moving with the voltage wave as it travels along the linac. The largest linac in the world, at Stanford University, is 3. 2km long. It is capable of accelerating electrons to an energy of 50 GeV. Stanford’s linac is designed to collide two beams of particles, accelerated in turn by the linac and temporarily kept in storage rings. The two most important problems in the linac design are the accelerator cell voltage flatness and the transverse mode impedance of the cell. Disadvantages †¢The device length limits the locations where one may be placed. †¢A great number of driver devices and their associated power supplies is required, increasing the construction and maintenance expense of this portion. If the walls of the accelerating cavities are made of normally conducting material and the accelerating fields are large, the wall resistivity converts electric energy into heat quickly. On the other hand superconductors have various limits and are too expensive for very large accelerators. Cyclotron The cyclotron was the first circular accelerator. A cyclotron is somewhat like a linac wrapped into a tig ht spiral. Instead of many tubes, the machine has only two hollow vacuum chambers, called dees, that are shaped like capital letter Ds back to back. A magnetic field, produced by a powerful electromagnet, keeps the particles moving in a curved path. The potential difference between the dees constantly alternates in direction, so that every time the particles reach the gap they experience a forward acceleration. Within each dee the particles travel at constant speed during each half-revolution. As the particles gain energy, they spiral out towards the edge of the accelerator, where finally they exit. Advantages of the Cyclotron †¢Cyclotrons have a single electrical driver, which saves both money and power, since more expense may be allocated to increasing efficiency. Cyclotrons produce a continuous stream of particle pulses at the target, so the average power is relatively high. †¢The compactness of the device reduces other costs, such as its foundations, radiation shielding, and the enclosing building. The world’s most powerful cyclotron, the K1200, is capable of accelerating nuclei to an energy approaching 8 GeV . Synchrotron The synchrotron is the most recent and most powerful member of the accelerator family. It consists of a tube in the shape of a large ring through which the particles travel; the tube is surrounded by magnets that keep the particles moving along the centre of the tube. The particles enter the tube after already having been accelerated to several million electron volts. They are accelerated at one or more points on the ring each time they make a complete circle around the accelerator. To keep the particles in a rigid orbit, the strengths of the magnets in the ring are increased as the particles gain energy. In a few seconds, the particles reach energies greater than 1 GeV and are ejected, either directly into experiments or towards targets that produce a variety of elementary particles when struck by the accelerated particles. The synchrotron principle can be applied to either protons or electrons, although most of the large machines are proton-synchrotrons. Differences between Cyclotron and Synchrotron †¢Synchrotron has a single ring unlike the cyclotron which has two. †¢Synchrotron is surrounded by magnets, cyclotron has two magnets in all. †¢Synchrotron accelerates the particles at one or more places as opposed to cyclotron which accelerates the particle with the potential difference between the two dees. †¢Synchrotron is much cheaper way to achieve high energy particles than the cyclotron and therefore the original cyclotron method is no longer used. Particle Detectors Particle Detectors are instruments used to detect and study fundamental subatomic particles and are one of the most important pieces of equipment in the particle accelerator. The particle detector sees the particles and the radiation after the collision created by a particle accelerator. Geiger Counter A â€Å"Geiger counter† usually contains a metal tube with a thin metal wire along its middle, the space in between them sealed off and filled with a suitable gas, and with the wire at about +1000 volts relative to the tube. It measures ionizing radiation, and detects photons, alpha, beta, and gamma radiation, but not neutrons. An ion or electron penetrating the tube tears electrons off atoms in the gas, and because of the high positive voltage of the central wire, those electrons are then attracted to it. In doing so they gain energy, collide with atoms and release more electrons, until the process snowballs into an â€Å"avalanche† which produces an easily detectable pulse of current. With a suitable filling gas, the flow of electricity stops by itself, or else the electrical circuitry can help stop it. The instrument was called a â€Å"counter† because every particle passing it produced an identical pulse, allowing particles to be counted but not telling anything about their identity or energy. Cloud Chamber The fundamental principle of the cloud chamber was discovered by the British physicist C. T. R. Wilson. The cloud chamber consists of a vessel several centimetres or more in diameter, with a glass window in the top and a movable piston forming the lower side. The piston can be dropped rapidly to expand the volume of the chamber. The chamber is usually filled with dust-free air saturated with water vapour. Dropping the piston causes the gas to expand rapidly and causes its temperature to fall. The air is now supersaturated with water vapour, but the excess vapour cannot condense unless ions are present. Charged nuclear or atomic particles produce such ions, and any such particles passing through the chamber leave behind them a trail of ionized particles (see Ionization) upon which the excess water vapour will condense. This makes the course of the charged particle visible as a line of tiny water droplets, like the vapour trail left by an aeroplane. These tracks can be photographed and the photographs then analysed to provide information on the characteristics of the particles. A cloud chamber is often operated within a magnetic field. The tracks of negatively and positively charged particles will curve in opposite directions. By measuring the radius of curvature of each track, its velocity can be determined. Heavy nuclei such as alpha particles form thick and dense tracks, protons form tracks of medium thickness, and electrons form thin and irregular tracks. Although the cloud chamber has now been supplanted almost entirely by later devices, it was used in making many important discoveries in nuclear physics. Bubble chamber The bubble chamber, is similar in operation to the cloud chamber. In a bubble chamber a liquid under pressure is kept at a temperature just below its boiling point. The pressure is lowered just before subatomic particles pass through the chamber. This lowers the boiling point, but for an instant the liquid will not boil unless some impurity or disturbance is introduced. The high-energy particles provide such a disturbance. Tiny bubbles form along the tracks as these particles pass through the liquid. If a photograph is taken just after the particles have crossed the chamber, these bubbles will make visible the paths of the particles. As with the cloud chamber, a bubble chamber placed between the poles of a magnet can be used to measure the energies of the particles. Many bubble chambers are equipped with superconducting magnets instead of conventional magnets. Bubble chambers filled with liquid hydrogen allow the study of interactions between the accelerated particles and the hydrogen nuclei.

Music paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Music paper - Essay Example There is no doubt that the outward appearance of these two is very dissimilar to each other, however, both are alike. Starting from the basic elements of the two, they are analogous. The elements of music can be taken to be different manifestations of the elements of visual arts. For example, color in visual arts can be comparable to harmony in music. Color is a very important element of visual arts – use of color is what makes the piece of art stand apart: the amount as well as the technique in which color is applied to a visual art piece will definitely go a long way in qualifying and categorizing it. Moreover, if color is not properly or appropriately used, it can have a devastating effect in visual arts. Similarly, in music, harmony is what sets a piece of music apart from the rest. Harmony, or lack of it, can make a certain piece of music enjoyable or unpleasant. Also, harmony can also help in classifying music, just like color does in visual arts. Moreover, value, a way of analyzing the intensity of color in visual arts, can be parallel to timbre in music, which analyzes the intensity of tone in music. Often, visual artists use the intensity of color, or lack thereof, to portray a certain feeling through the piece they are creating. Such is the case in music as well: musicians also take advantage of timbre in their musical piece to portray certain emotions or to give a certain feel or effect to their creation. The use of space in visual also has its parallel in music. There is a certain sense that visual arts can give with their use of space, not only in helping in its classification but also in the overall effect or feel of the piece. Varying use of space can make the same subject matter have different feels in various manifestations of visual arts. In music, the counterpart of use of space can be rhythmic sense. It is through rhythmic sense or rhythm that music is often arranged. And just like use

Systems Analysis and Design Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Systems Analysis and Design - Essay Example Giving fee forms are taken as underlying objects in the hierarchy followed by level of education (primary/secondary). Students are ultimate next object who choose courses and then submit fee in order to confirm their registration (Mukherjee, Davulen and Ifer). Top down approach is always cost effective because it involves incremental ways; data is added in chunks and is manageable as compare to bottom up where we move from concrete to abstract level. Greater control is present over resources only necessary information is pre-programmed. Previously, the real estate was managed through Database where all the information related to apartments, terraced houses and duplex units were stored in tables. Database collapsing results into loss of all application programs and more time and cost was required (Govardhan and Munassar). Data was retrieved through complex queries. Now when shifting to object oriented paradigm a new horizon is achieved as it defines methods through characteristics; like names, properties and behavior. Traditional structure used procedures whereas, object oriented uses mythology based on object named as programming language objects. A well-defined control flow is maintained as the work is distributed in classes which can be reused and

MIH 521 Health Program Evaluation (Mod 2 CBT) Essay

MIH 521 Health Program Evaluation (Mod 2 CBT) - Essay Example The goals of the diabetes program are to oversee the development and adoption of internationally agreed standards and norms, to promote and contribute to the surveillance of diabetes, is compilations and mortality, to contribute to the building capacity for the prevention and control of diabetes, to raise awareness and to act as an advocate for the prevention and control of the disease. With these goals in mind the experimental designs with pretest/posttest control group might be the best design to use. This would be because it would tell us if the people are learning anything from the program that has been developed. The characteristics of this design according to (attc-ne.org) are that it is experimental with a random group which receive a pretest before and a post test after the information is given through the program. This particular design needs to use controls on all seven of the threats to validity which are, history, maturation, testing, instrumentation, selection, mortality, and statistical regression. There are issues, however with this design including the fact that it is very possible to get into difficulty with validity. Stakeholders are also important here as they are in every study. ... any in other countries, Africa for example, that are victims of the blindness as well as the renal disease and peripheral vascular disease and have little access to healthcare. Chronic disease has become an issue all over the world and this creates stakeholders everywhere. This is a very expensive disease for all of the populations and the cost to each of the healthcare systems is tremendous. Worldwide, diabetes causes about 5% of the deaths every year. 80% of the people with diabetes live in low and middle income countries. Most of the people with diabetes in low and middle income countries are middle aged (45-64) and it is expected that deaths from diabetes will increase by 50% over the next 10 years (who.gov). This tells us of just a few of the stakeholders in this case. Using Jung's grid to evaluate this program shows several thing. This program targets those people with hyperglycemia but it also targets those that do not. There is the hope that making people aware will allow prevention of the disease in the long run. There are clear goals and objectives as listed above and they are very specific to address the specific problem. The long and short term goals are noted and there are multiple worldwide strategies involved including partnering with governments of the countries most in need and providing large amounts of education in an attempt to raise awareness. There is also a great deal of information provided on the internet at this time which includes a booklet on blindness and how to prevent that from happening and what dialysis is and how to try to prevent renal disease. There is great health communication as noted above and resources available for the general public and for healthcare workers that are looking for supporting literature and statistics.

Job Satisfaction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 22500 words

Job Satisfaction - Essay Example Employee satisfaction is the most important factor for the successful operation of companies nowadays. When the employees are satisfied, it improves the performance and productivity of the company and contributes towards the profitability. On the other hand, low job satisfaction has negative results such as increasing cost, decreasing profits and customer dissatisfaction. In order to be successful companies need to concentrate on increasing employee’s satisfaction so that employees’ retention rate can be increased. Past studies have shown that employees’ satisfaction can be increased by the following: †¢ a sense of engagement and decision-making responsibilities †¢ use of skill and abilities †¢ opportunities to advance †¢ opportunities to learn new skills †¢ positive communicative relationships with supervisors, and †¢ good pay and training. Job satisfaction has been defined by Locke as â€Å"the pleasurable or positive emotional state that results from an employee's job or experience associated with the job†. Moreover as discussed in, job satisfaction is â€Å"the fulfilment and gratification that comes from work†, it is not really the money or the benefits received but the positive feelings experienced from accomplishing tasks. Every job holds the potential to provide certain levels of satisfaction related to individual employees. Job satisfaction is an important factor especially in high risk environment like oil and gas in terms of the potential hazard towards the safety of an employee.

Acquisition of International Power in UK by Gaz de France Essay - 1

Acquisition of International Power in UK by Gaz de France - Essay Example Mergers have been one of the most effective options for companies seeking growth and expansion. This is because merger has the potential of ensuring rapid and speedy turnovers in terms of the revenue, market size customer base and physical infrastructure of a company. This however does not mean that mergers are free from challenges. In this report, it was not the merits of the merger between International Power and Gaz de France that are reviewed but also any challenges that the companies involved must look out for. This is preceded with a detailed description of both companies. This description is very necessary for this report because it is only after having a detailed understanding of the companies involved, their history, their mission and vision, their strategic plans, and of course their projected growth rate that the merger that has taken place can best be analysed in the interest of both companies. Comprehensive macro analysis is also conducted for both companies as this is a lso necessary in judging the economic viability of the merger. Finally, there is a detailed scrutiny of the valuation of the merger. The valuation was done in comparison with not only the macro economic factors outlined earlier but with other micro economic factors such as project depreciation rates, projected inflation rate and projected interest rates are concerned. Concluding, suggestions are made for the companies as to how they can ensure maximisation of the economic stand they have taken and the economic journey they have just began. Brief description of both companies International Power has been one of United Kingdom’s power houses when it comes to established and flourishing businesses. The company was commissioned in 2000 following a demerger by National Power. Since that time, the company’s performance has seen it being listed on the London Stock Exchange and FTSE 100 Index. The Guardian (2012) notes that International Power has attained a sustained growth r ate on the various stock markets. The graph below is a clear indication of the success rate of the company on the London Stock Exchange. Source: The Guardian (March, 2012) Clearly, International Power is an appreciating company when it comes to revenue. The company’s basic business is in power generation. As a power (electricity) generation company, International Power has been touted to have the capacity of producing a gross of 72,360 megawatts of power and a net production of 42,225 megawatts of power (International Power, 2011). This makes the company a global leading competitor in the power generation industry. Gaz de France Suez also has a very good history and operational background. Operationally, both GDF Suez and International Power are in the power generation sector. Additionally, GDF Suez goes beyond power distribution into the distribution of power, generation of natural gases, and also into the generation of renewable energy for its numerous clients around the wo rld. Before the year 20008, the company was simply known as GDP or Gaz de France because it had not merged with Suez Environment, the company in which Gaz de France has up to 35% market stake in. Due to the continuing market urge of the company, it is listed on a number of stock markets including the Euronext Exchanges. The company continues to undertake massive growth and expansion activities including the constructions of â€Å"a gas-fired combined cycle power plant of at least 1,500MW and an associated water desalination plant with a capacity of 102 to 107 MIGD (464 to 486 thousand m?/day)† (GDF Suez, 2012). Macro Analysis The macro economic indicators of companies go long ways to influence, inform and affect their decisions and policies on growth and expansion. Knowing that Gaz de France’

Understanding the Childhood Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Understanding the Childhood - Essay Example The essay "Understanding the Childhood" talks about the maladjustment or maltreatment during childhood which more often than not surfaces in some form of societal contradictions and confrontations in a child’s later life. The paper also discusses a school, not as an institution that had strict administrative procedures. The primary right of a child is not to be affected by social prejudices and legal structures, if any, that might be prevalent against their parents. All actions taken by legal, social, governmental and non-governmental bodies that might affect children must be taken with the best interest of concerned children in mind. United Nations has also declared in its charter that, except under extraordinary circumstances, therefore, State should ensure that a child is never separated from their parents. The world body has also been unambiguous in its censure of illegal human trading in children and has directed State to take the most stringent measures to prevent any su ch nefarious activity. A child, like any other adult human being, will be entitled to freedom of opinion, thought and expression and will also be entitled to their right of privacy. However, Helen Penn draws our attention to the fact that notions of childhood is not the same in every region of the world and varies much wider than can be conceived by a Westerner. Just to place her argument in proper perspective, hence she draws the example of poverty as viewed in the Western world and elsewhere.

Managing and leading people Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words - 1

Managing and leading people - Essay Example Failure to examine the wellbeing of the employees impacts directly on the profitability and profitability of the organisation. Also, failure by the management to support the wellbeing of the employees has various effects on the business such as increased operation costs and poor public relations (Rees and French, 2013). There are different descriptions of well being of employees in various employment contexts. According to research, the workers’ wellbeing should balance their needs with those of the company. In this case, the concept of wellbeing refers to the creation of an environment for the promotion of a state of satisfaction among the workers as well as achieves their maximum potential for personal and organization’s benefit (Anjum, 2010). The wellbeing of the workers entails more than the aspect of preventing sickness at the workplace. It involves a wider bio-psycho-social structure that includes mental, physical and social health. Normally, employees are mentally and physically capable of contributing at the workplace and become more engaged to their work under good working conditions. Well-being at the workplace, therefore, does not involve the management of the cultural and physical environment with the aim of safeguarding workers from harm. However, it requires corporations to assist individuals to maximise their mental and physical health. The approach for wellbeing benefits individuals both inside and outside the work environment (Jibeen, 2013). In addition, it promotes various aspects of the workplace such as productivity, morale and commitment. Positive wellbeing at the workplace can also benefit the community that is essential for enhancing the public relations of the organisation. It is important for the ma nagement and leadership of various organisations to support the wellbeing of the employees because of various reasons such as promotion of employees’ morale, commitment, transparency, productivity, public relations and efficiency

Anesthesia and Awake Craniotomy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Anesthesia and Awake Craniotomy - Essay Example Such recording is termed electrocorticography (ECoG). The use of ECoG allows a "topographical map" to be made of the brain. This map shows the locations of primary and secondary epileptogenic discharges, as well as the route and extent of the spread of such electrical activity. [3, 4, 5 and 6] At our institution, patients undergoing craniotomy while awake usually have a tumor or epileptic foci removed. Patients who undergo the removal of a tumor close to a motor, speech, or sensory area generally are awake before resection is begun so that neurological function can be tested.[7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12] In these patients, ECoG is not usually performed. However, other physiological monitoring, such as sensory evoked responses (SER) and/or electromyography (EMG), may be used. [13] Patients who undergo removal of an epileptic focus in the brain are also generally awake for neurological function testing. In addition, ECoG is almost always performed. Awake testing includes some or all of the following: immediate and/or delayed memory, association, and/or pattern discrimination of words and/or pictures, and other related tests.[14, 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19] Awake testing may also include motor movement in response to electrical stimulation, voluntary motor movement, muscle strength, and other related tests. [20] These tests are often complex and subtle, and require that the patient's consciousness not be impaired by anesthetic or other drugs. The other types of monitoring that may be performed include ECoG, SER, and/or EMG. These modalities are all impaired in a dose-related manner by many anesthetic drugs. Clearly, if the aforementioned testing is to be used, the interference of anesthetic drugs is not wanted.[21 and 22] Our approach to anesthetic management for awake craniotomies has evolved over more than 30 years in cooperation with surgeons at our institution internationally known for their work in this area. The approach we use today is an improvement over the one we used decades ago and, no doubt, the approach we will use several decades from now will be different than the one we use today. The follow sections describe our current guidelines. Guidelines for awake craniotomy Goals At each stage of the procedure, our management goals are tailored to the specific needs at that stage. One of the rather alarming aspects of our approach is that even though the patient is anesthetized for parts of the procedure that don't require the patient to be awake, we do not secure the airway with a laryngeal mask airway (LMA), endotracheal tube, or similar device. Thus, one of our goals is careful monitoring of the airway to prevent undetected airway obstruction. A large proportion of the patients undergoing awake craniotomy at our institution have epilepsy that is not controllable with drug therapy. In such patients, seizures may occur during surgery. Thus, a second goal of anesthetic management is prompt treatment of grand mal seizures. The knowledge of being awake and under surgical drapes while their brain is being operated on concerns many patients. Thus, a third goal of anesthet

Hamlet Essay Essay Example for Free

Hamlet Essay Essay Good morning teachers and students, our understanding of Hamlet takes many turns and the most important of these is in act 3 scene II. As a pivotal scene in William Shakespeare’s play, audiences gain an understanding of the characters and their actions leading up to this point. Many of the themes in the play come to light in this scene as the plot gathers pace and it is for all these reasons I chose this scene. Our understanding of a text is greatly affected by the context in which scenes take place. Act 3 Scene 2 transpires after a series of turbulent events and the increasing surveillance of Hamlet’s life. In the preceding scene Hamlet considers suicide in the â€Å"To be or not to be,† soliloquy after learning that his father’s sudden death was in fact a murder by his uncle Claudius’s hand. He plans to prove the ghost’s word by watching his uncle’s reaction to a play that follows the events of Hamlet’s father’s death. Hamlet also confronts Ophelia and denounces her and women in misogynous diatribe overheard by the spying Polonius and Claudius. After hearing this Claudius decide to export Hamlet to England with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, as â€Å"madness in great ones must not unwatched go†. The latter gives audiences insight to later events in the play. Context is the basis of our understanding of certain lines, soliloquies and actions and overall affects our understanding of the entire play. The ‘Play within a play’ scene is a pivotal scene in Hamlet and its significance resounds throughout the rest of the play. It is a scene dripping in dramatic irony because Hamlet triumphs over the king in full public view while Claudius deals in secret to obtain information. The scene comes as the action following Hamlet’s musings of death, and the relative inaction of the first two acts. Knowing he was correct about his father’s murder Hamlet is emboldened and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern then sets out to confront his mother fracturing numerous relationships. Furthermore, Claudius’s sudden exit from the play raises the question whether he was reacting to the guilt of murdering his brother or to the act of Lucianus, the murdering nephew of king Gonzago in the Mouse Trap, possibly foreshadowing his own death. Either could be the trigger of Claudius’s decision too have Hamlet killed in England. The significance of this particular scene is undeniable because of its importance is upheld throughout the rest of Hamlet and this is why it affects audiences understanding of the entire play. As a pivotal scene, many themes in Hamlet are present including action versus inaction, espionage, revenge and deceit. These mix into a tangible cocktail to which audiences are more likely to pay attention to and gain better understanding. The scene provides the first ‘action’ in the play after driving uncertainty of the first two acts, the audiences reaction epitomised in a player’s line â€Å" so after Pyrrus’ pause, a roused vengeance sets him to work†. Revenge is the motive behind Hamlets writing of the play. Espionage makes another appearance in Hamlet’s urging Horatio to ‘observe my uncle. If this occulted guilt do not unkennel itself in one speech, it is a damned ghost we have seen† Rosencrantz and Guildenstern deceitfulness comes to an end when Hamlet turns the tables on them using the metaphor of how he was played like a pipe then later abandoning and sending them to their deaths. The presence of themes allows audiences to make connections with dialogue and leads to heightened understanding of the play and this is why act 3 scene 2 is crucial to the understanding of the entire play. A plethora of literary devices is used throughout the scene causing the meanings of numerous lines to be left up to the audience’s interpretation. Use of dramatic irony, alliteration, metaphor, pun, repetition and others highlights lines that are of greater importance for example, Hamlet’s mocking â€Å"what, frightened with false fire! † to his uncles reaction to the murder as well as the extended metaphor of hamlet being a pipe played upon by Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. The dramatic irony of the scene is important, as it is Hamlet’s action that snowballs into the different outcomes. Hamlet’s rhyming flattery to Horatio is full of literary techniques like alliteration (need example), possibly highlighting his desperation to keep one faithful friend by his side or adoration or want of Horatio’s balanced character. Hamlets jovial punning makes light of all that said to him by authority figures, this being an attempt at showing possible rebelliousness or more likely showing his enthusiasm for the outcome of the play’s impact on the king. We do not know which part of the play Hamlet scripted so it can be assumed that some of his own feelings are showing through the repetition of love and fear whether this be about his love of Ophelia or incestuous thoughts about Gertrude. Understanding of act 3 scene 2 is crucial to our understanding of Hamlet. This is assisted through the uses of literary techniques, the presence of many themes to capture audience’s attention, the significance of these and the context in which the scene takes place. These combine to make this scene of upmost importance to our interpretation of the entire play and that is why it was chosen. 5min14secs Matt: I’ve re-worked your speech below using as much as possible, cutting out the repetition, and suggesting where examples from the play are needed to illustrate your point. We can add these in tomorrow as I want you to go through this process of selecting appropriate egs with me. Apologies for typos – something is rotten in the state of our computer (ref to the play, sorry! ) â€Å"The play is the thing in which I’ll catch the conscience of the king† [Good morning teachers and students, our understanding of Hamlet takes many turns and the most important of these is in act 3 scene II. As a pivotal scene in William Shakespeare’s play, audiences gain an understanding of the characters and their actions leading up to this point. Many of the themes in the play come to light in this scene as the plot gathers pace and it is for all these reasons I chose this scene. Too vague: needs a more dramatic opening eg rhetorical question, or fabulous quote or natty and relevant anecdote or recent current happening that you can relate to this scene to catch the audience attention. The intro needs also not to waste words that could refer to specific context, themes, dramatic techniques, particular character development and plot development. Adding language aspects into this intro may be overdoing it but the word play on the idea of the â€Å"play† and â€Å"play within the play† might work. ] e. g. Can you think of a more delicious irony or more dramatic way of catching out a murderous hypocrite like Claudius than putting on a play in full public view that shows two audiences – the court of Denmark and us how he killed the rightful king? Especially since we know that Claudius has set up all those who are closest to Hamlet, except for the faithful Horatio, to spy on him in secret! I chose this play within the play scene – Act 3 Scene II – for a number of reasons: firstly, for the lovely dramatic irony I just mentioned; secondly, it is pivotal in terms of resolving Hamlet’s doubts and advancing the plot towards the final bloody end; thirdly, it is very satisfying drama, with lots of action following on from the lengthy musings and relative inaction of Hamlet’s famous. â€Å"To be or not to be† soliloquy; in addition it reflects a number of key themes and preoccupations of the play, including that of surveillance; and finally it is incredibly dramatic and beautifully written, with lots of the fantastic and funny word play, vivid images and other literary and dramatic techniques we all love about Shakespeare. This scene, as I said in the introduction, is pivotal in terms of the action of the entire play, and also in terms of Hamlet’s evolution, from inactive to hyperactive. In the preceding scene Hamlet considers suicide after learning from the Ghost that his father’s sudden death was in fact a murder by his uncle Claudius. The Ghost is a mysterious character about whom there are considerable doubts does he represent the troubled state of Denmark following the death of a beloved and heroic king and/or does he represent H’s traumatised mind following the sort of tragedy that would unhinge most of us. [ref to a critic here? ]. Whatever we say about Hamlet and his tendency to overdo the thinking aspect of life, he does approach problems with a fair and scientific mind: he does resolve to kill his father’s murderer, but, fair enough, as death is reasonably permanent, even for Shakespeare’s religious audiences, he set up the play within the play as a kind of controlled test for his uncle, whom the Ghost purporting to be King Hamlet has said killed him: He tells Horatio to observe his uncle during the  play as well and â€Å"after we will both our judgments join in censure of his seeming†: this does indicate that Hamlet, despite his understandable hatred of Claudius, is a fair man, who is also aware of the seriousness of killing the man who is now King of Denmark. Elizabethan audiences would have recognised Hamlet’s hesitation about killing the King as reasonable, just as they would have seen his vengeance once his suspicions had been confirmed, as justified. This scene also follows Hamlet’s misogynist confrontation of Ophelia which is overheard by the spying Polonius and Claudius, who decides at this point to export Hamlet to England with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, since â€Å"madness in great ones must not unwatched go†. Since Ophelia had also been encouraged to spy on Hamlet, we now have his dastardly uncle, his school friends, and his fiance, not to mention his mother, keeping a close watch on Hamlet: no wonder he needed a theatrical outlet! However, seriously, we see here a recurring and important theme in the entire play, that of spying and surveillance. The Michael Almereyda directed film version of Hamlet with its constant CCTV cameras and Hamlet’s speaking into the cameras provide the perfect representation of the sense of inescapable surveillance that Hamlet feels he is under throughout the play. : FIND QUOTES re SPYING IN THIS SCENE. Another key theme of this play within the play scene. amd to the entire play, that relates to the spying is that of deceit, and of illusion masking the reality. The play Hamlet devises to catch the King out is called â€Å"The Moustrap†, and its aim is to depict the exact way in which Claudius killed his brother, that is, by pouring poison into his ear, not the commonest way to kill someone! If King Claudius reacts is a guilty manner, presumably this demonstrates his guilt. So Hamlet’s goal is to unmask his uncle in front of the entire court, including the wife he has won so wrongfully. Plays are a theatrical form of illusion, masquerading as reality, just as Claudius in killing the rightful king, marrying his widow and acting as a legitimate King, is masquerading. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are similarly masquerading as Hamlet’s friends, while in reality they are deceitfully reporting on his actions and words to his treacherous uncle. The play within the play traps Claudius just as Hamlet himself must have felt trapped within this world without honesty and fidelity. The theme of honesty and reliability, those qualities that Hamlet craves and finds in no-one but his friend Horatio, provides a key to a deeper understanding of Hamlet’s apparently cruel behaviour towards his mother and also Ophelia, and also to Polonius and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. â€Å"Give me that man/That is not passions’s slave .. and I will wear him/ in my heart of hearts†: Hamlet, having suffered the worst tragedy one can imagine, finds no person in his circle whom he can trust except for Horatio. [ repetition Our understanding of a text is greatly affected by the context in which scenes take place. Act 3 Scene 2 transpires after a series of turbulent events too vague – what events? References like this read like padding and markers know it! ] and the increasing surveillance of Hamlet’s life. The play within the play leads us to a focus on another potent theme of this scene and of the entire play: revenge! â€Å" So after Pyrrus’ pause, a roused vengeance sets him to work†. Revenge is the motive behind Hamlet’s writing of the play, and once his suspicions have been confirmed, Hamlet is ready to turn his vengeful thoughts into action. This scene is brilliant drama! There is beautiful dramatic irony in Hamlet’s selection of a play to trap the guilty king. And there is lots of discussion of theatrics, and how the players should speak their lines, which reveals Shakespeare’s own deep understanding of the craft of acting, the more realistic version being more like his own preferred style: â€Å"Nor do not saw the air too much with your hand the purpose of playing,.. is to hold the mirror up to nature†, that is to act as one would speak and act out such lines in reality. Critics say that Shakespeare is having a go here at the plays of Chrsitopher Marlowe and the players such as Edward Alleyn at the Rose Theatre, who was known for a rather exaggerated approach to acting. Whatever the origins of these descriptions of how NOT to act, they are very funny, and must have made an Elizabethan audience as well as myself, a 21 century lad, laugh! â€Å"O it offends me to the soul to hear a robustious periwig-pated fellow tear a passion to tatters: etc. [we need egs of each of these Use of dramatic irony, alliteration, metaphor, pun, repetition and others] Shakespeare’s literary teachniques also work brilliantly in this scend. As well as the dramatic irony, we have superb play on words combining wioth the extended highlights lines that are of greater importance for example, Hamlet’s mocking â€Å"what, frightened with false fire!  phor of hamlet being a pipe played upon by Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. The dramatic irony of the scene is important, as it is Hamlet’s action that snowballs into the different outcomes. Hamlet’s rhyming flattery to Horatio is full of literary techniques like alliteration (need example), possibly highlighting his desperation to keep one faithful friend by his side or adoration or want of Horatio’s balanced character. Hamlets jovial punning makes light of all that said to him by authority figures, this being an attempt at showing possible rebelliousness or more likely showing his enthusiasm for the outcome of the play’s impact on the king. We do not know which part of the play Hamlet scripted so it can be assumed that some of his own feelings are showing through the repetition of love and fear whether this be about his love of Ophelia or incestuous thoughts about Gertrude. Understanding of act 3 scene 2 is crucial to our understanding of Hamlet. This is assisted through the uses of literary techniques, the presence of many themes to capture audience’s attention, the significance of these and the context in which the scene takes place. These combine to make this scene of upmost importance to our interpretation of the entire play and that is why it was chosen. 5min14secs Character development – in this question

Rawls Principles Of Justice Philosophy Essay

Rawls Principles Of Justice Philosophy Essay What is justice. Merriam-Webster defines justice as the quality of being just, impartial, or fair; the principle or ideal of just dealing or right action; conformity to this principle or ideal. For our purposes, justice is also seen as a concept that is balanced between law and morality. John Rawls states that justice is the first virtue of social institutions. He states that justice is best understood by a grasp of the principles of justice which are expected to represent the moral basis political government. These principles indicate that humankind needs liberty and freedom to the extent that they do not harm others. He believes, correctly I agree, that justice is significant to human development and prosperity. Rawls states that the challenge of justice is to ensure a just distribution of primary goods that include powers and opportunities, rights and liberties, means of self-respect, income and wealth among others. He disputed the earlier predominant common source of injustice, the utilitarianism theory (which states that justice is best defined by that which provides the greatest good for the greatest number of people). The theory of utilitarianism completely ignores the moral worth of an individual. This theory does not take into consideration the minority aspect of the population. Rawls writes about one such example of this mistreatment of the minority in relation to how the Jewish people were treated by the Nazis in Germany. In respect to the mistreatment of minorities, Rawls writes that you cannot reimburse for the sufferings of the distressed by enhancing the hoys of the successful. Fairness, according to him, occurs when the society makes sure that every individual is treated equall y before the law and given a chance to succeed in a socially-moderated life. He developed a concept that he deemed the original position, which gives people a chance to decide on the principles of justice from a veil of ignorance. This original position is a hypothetical situation where no one has any advantage over another. I find the veil of ignorance very interesting. Behind this veil, all individuals are specified as rational, free and morally equal beings in society. They do not know anything of themselves, their natural abilities, or their set position in the society in which they live. They have no idea of their sex, race, nationality, or individual tastes. Would they choose differently if they werent aware of these things? Would their society be less judgmental? I firmly believe so. I believe they would make choices about their lives that would adopt a strategy that would maximize the prospects of the not-so-well off, and make society a better balanced society. According to Rawls, the people in the original position, behind said veil of ignorance, wou ld adopt principles that would monitor the assignment of rights and duties and regulating the distribution of social and economic advantages in the society. His difference principle allows inequalities in the distribution of goods when the states inequalities benefit the least well off members of the society. However, Michael Sandel, noted author of Justice: Whats the Right Thing to Do?, would state that the idea of the veil of ignorance is unachievable. He argues that we are entangled with our communities, our pasts, and our sense of the possible future. If we are ashamed of what our country does, or proud of it, we are tacitly admitting that we are claimed by moral ties that we have not chosen and implicated in the narratives that shape our identity as moral agents. Sandel also believes the just society can be better achieved through a more emotional, patriotic and even religious appeal, rather than through Rawlss abstract liberalism. Sandel thinks that Rawlss liberal theory of justice fails because the neutrality of values associated with it begins with the false assumption that citizens are unencumbered selves totally unbound by any history, civic loyalties, sociopolitical circumstances, aims and attachments. We are all undeniably entwined with our communities. Other than Sandel, another critic of Rawlss position is Susan Moller Okin, author of, Reason and Feeling in Thinking About Justice. One would think that Rawlss theory would support feminist thinkers who seek to overturn the injustices suffered by women. The original position being supposedly blind to gender and tradition, and so, it seems, are the principles of justice Rawls derives. However, Susan Okin has several arguments against Rawlss theories, or in favor of adjustments to his theories. One of her first problems is that Rawlss theory is limited to public justice the deliberators are meant to be heads of families not necessarily gendered but entails that justice does not apply within families. Thus sacrifices for domestic arrangements such as childbearing, childcare, and housework, traditionally made by women, are simply not considered. He simply assumes families are just institutions, which in my opinion is far from true. Rawls also stresses the role of proper moral developm ent, which he believes is to take place within families. Upbringing must be both loving and just. However, how can a proper upbringing take place if the women of the family are not placed on equal foundations with the men? Rawls underplays the role of emotion in rational decision-making. This is not to say that only women use emotions to make decisions, but that the idea that anybody could make any decision free from emotional influences is a characteristically male attribute. Nevertheless, Okin thinks that in the right hands, Rawlss original position, which is blind to gender and tradition, has the potential to provide a framework for critique of systems which are gender-biased. Its just that Rawls fails to do this. The general conception of this principle is that all primary goods, such as liberty and opportunity, self-respect, incomes, and wealth, are supposed to be distributed equally unless an unequal distribution of any or all of these primary goods are to the advantage of the least favored. The good is the satisfaction of rational desire thus making the goods different, but all people having a right to said goods. All individuals have equal right to the most general of basic liberties. Economic and social inequalities are to be set in a way that they are both rationally projected to be everyones advantage, and to be attached to positions that are open to all people in society. Rawls writes about three general principles of justice. The first said principle is the principle of greatest equal liberty. This principle states that each person has an equal right to the most basic liberty. It determines the basic rights that should be retained such as, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the political liberties to vote, run for office, own property, and to have freedom of speech. These have to be protected to guarantee the development and prosperity of others. The second of Rawlss principles is the principle of fair equality of wealth and opportunity. According to this principle, everyone should have the same opportunities to make wealth, work, or govern in a public office. The only difference being the knowledge and skills of the individual. He states that it is in everyones advantage if positions of authority are accessible for any person to lead the community. The third principle of Rawls indicates that any social and economic inequalities should be arranged so that they are to th e greatest benefit to the least advantaged individuals in society. It indicates that for any effective change to be considered as an improvement, it should affect the least privileged. This principle is often referred to as the difference principle. Another critic of Rawls is Robert Nozick, author of Anarchy, The State and Utopia, which was primarily written to refute the theories of John Rawls. Specifically, Nozick takes issue with Rawls conception of distributive justice as it pertains to economic inequalities. Rawls wrote that economic inequalities should only be permitted if they are to the benefit of society, and especially if they are to the benefit of its least advantaged members; this has come to be known as the difference principle. Nozick believed that no one had any business permitting economic inequalities at all. To Nozick, as long as economic inequalities arise from voluntary exchange, they cannot be unjust. Rawls saw the importance of liberty, but he also saw the tragedy of inequality, particularly as it pertains to extreme poverty. To Rawls, it is unconscionable that some should be born into a life of misery and poverty while others enjoy great wealth without lifting a finger. To Nozick, the unconscionable thing is that anyone should feel the justified in appropriating property that is rightly entitled to someone else. I believe that while Rawlss theory of justice is admirable, it does have some flaws and weaknesses. Rawlss theory is not a formula for deciding what is right and wrong, but a framework for proposing principles of justice. No one can really know what a specific set of people would actually decide if they didnt know what sort of people they would be, what sort of lives and what appetite for risk they would have. But that does not mean the thought experiment cannot be used as a test. Would people who knew they could turn out to be Jewish, in a context of historic embedded anti-Semitism, agree to principles which allowed public bodies to impose anti-Jewish quotas, purportedly as a way to avoiding the possible consequences of anti-Semitism? Unlikely.

Patriarchy In Twilight Saga English Literature Essay

Patriarchy In Twilight Saga English Literature Essay Its easy to observe the expansive reach of the Twilight saga. For starters, it is a cash-cow. To date, the four book series has sold approximately 85 million copies (Grossman) and has claimed the top four spots on USA Todays year-end bestseller list for the years 2008 and 2009 (Minzesheimer and DeBarros, Sellers;Twilight Sweeps). Twilight saga merchandise though sold in multiple retail outlets single-handedly brought retailer Hot Topic back from the depths of economic gloom and doom in 2008 (Odell).  [1]  The film adaptation of Twilight grossed $380 million at the box office (more than 10 times what it cost to produce) before earning over $3 million in DVD sales on its first day of release (Armstrong) while New Moon performed even better earning more than $700 million worldwide before its DVD release in March 2010 (The Twilight Saga: New Moon). Beyond the economic impact, the series inspires Beatlemania-type fanaticism among its growing, primarily female, fan-base. Conduct a G oogle search for Twilight fansite, and youll get almost 1.2 million returns. Furthermore, a November 10, 2008 scheduled appearance in San Francisco by Robert Pattinson (the actor portraying Edward Cullen in the film adaptation of Twilight) was cancelled after he was swarmed by fans. The melee also resulted in a broken nose for one fan, while another lost consciousness (News from WENN). Pattinson made the following remarks about the impassioned Twilight fandom: People know my name, ambush me in public, try to figure out what hotel Im staying at, ask me to bite them and want to touch my hair. It feels surreal (Bell). These are but a few examples that demonstrate the massive impact the Twilight saga has on audiences. The widespread audience response might cause some to wonder just what it is about Twilight that appeals so much to fans. There are others, like myself, who have chosen to question the impact the Twilight narrative may have on readers specifically female readers perceptions of culture. While there are many aspects of the Twilight narrative being debated by fans and critics alike, themes of patriarchy and misogyny are of particular interest (Mann; Myers; McClimans and Wisnewski; Housel). The Twilight Saga is Just Entertainment, Right? Why Should We Care? Before we can enter into a proper analysis about the impact of patriarchal and misogynistic themes in Twilight, its first important to understand why wed want to analyze an artifact of popular culture at all. An older academic view situates popular texts like the Twilight saga as low art, or mass produced schlock meant to dupe unsophisticated audiences, like us, into passivity (Horkheimer and Adorno; Benjamin). Postmodern cultural studies scholars, however, see popular culture as an aspect of mass culture (Storey, Cultural Theory), or the values and ideas that members of a society form from common exposure to the same cultural activities, communications media, music and art, etc.  Thus, examining popular culture texts exposes how they are used assert social values upon others (Barthes). Female-targeted popular culture artifacts like the Twilight saga are sites that are especially worthy of examination since they place the female/feminine experience at the forefront of media criti que (McRobbie and McCabe; Modleski; Radway; Ang; Mellencamp). The central concern of feminist media analyses is to examine patriarchal ideology as it relates to power and agency in society (Baumgardner and Richards; Durham; Storey, An Introduction; van Zoonen). Analyzing texts through a feminist lens can serve as a means of exposing and critiquing patriarchy in popular media and, in the process, help to liberate audiences from traditional, stereotypical representations (Durham). It is also a way to understand the concept of gender as a social construction, and posits media texts as critical sites for the negotiation of gender roles. If we read the Twilight saga closely, we might conclude that it promotes what Cynthia Enloe calls a Culture of Imminent Danger, which she defines as a culture sustained by the classical patriarchal caveat that women are in the sort of danger from which only rational men can protect them (234). One way in which the Twilight saga reinforces a Culture of Imminent Danger is seen in the roles of the adult male and female characters in the series. For example, male characters are written into roles or occupations that reflect the role of protector. Charlie, Bellas father, is the police chief in Forks; Carlisle Cullen, Edwards father, is the most prominent doctor in town; and Billy Black, Jacobs father, is a Quileute tribe elder. Meanwhile, the female characters in Twilight, are symbolically annihilated that is they are largely trivialized and either symbolized as child-like adornments who need to be protected or they are dismissed to the protective confines of the home (Tuchman 8). The ro le of Bellas mother, Renee, is muted throughout the story we know only that she has decided to follow her new husband to spring training camp in Florida and that she is childlike and harebrained (Meyer, Twilight 4). Before Renee remarried, Bella saw herself as her mothers caretaker. Esme, Edwards mother is also superficially presented. As the matriarch of the Cullen clan, she is characterized only by her ability to love passionately and her strong mothering instincts (Meyer, Twilight 307, 368). Bella, too, has been seen by some as falling victim to symbolic annihilation. In the discussion topic Bella, is she a bad influence for teens? on the TwilightMoms.com fan site, for example, fans express concern that Bella is a weak character because she sees herself less beautiful than Edward, less intelligent, and clumsier than everyone else. Bella, because she is the weak and vulnerable one, is in constant need of care and protection she is dependent upon Edward for survival. Indeed, we see what happens to Bella when she is abandoned by the protective influence of Edward she becomes a lost moon (Meyer, New Moon, 201). Later, when Bella and Edward visit Renee in Eclipse, Renee remarks to Bella that her role in her relationship to Edward is that of a satellite, or something (Meyer, Eclipse, 68). A satellite can be understood as any object that moves around a larger object. The comparisons of Bella to a moon or other satellite are significant since they symbolically place Edward at the center and Bella in the periphery. This scenario illustrates Edwards role as the actor and Bellas role as the reactor in the Twilight saga. When Edward moves, so does Bella. When Edward leaves, Bella, too, checks out. Likewise, it implies that the orbiter is the least valuable one in the relationship. Take, for example, the Earths relationship to the Sun. The Earth as a support system for human life is important in its own right, but the Sun has far more importance. Without the Sun, the Earth is annihilated. Without Edward, Bella is annihilated. Because the symbolic annihilation of women in media fails to address the full range of womens real-life goals and potential, it plays an important role in establishing and normalizing ideology that helps those in power (read: men) stay in power. But, Bella exists in a world much different than ours. How much potential can we expect Bella to posses in a situation where she is forced to battle super-human forces? Meyer acknowledges this when responding to critics. She says: There are those who think Bella is a wuss. There are those who think my stories are misogynistic-the damsel in distress must be rescued by strong heroà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ I am not anti-female, I am anti-human. I wrote this story from the perspective of a female human because that came most naturally, as you might imagine. But if the narrator had been a male human, it would not have changed the events. When a human being is totally surrounded by creatures with supernatural strength, speed, senses, and various other uncanny powers, he or she is not going to be able to hold his or her own. Sorry. Thats just the way it is. We cant all be slayers. Bella does pretty well I think, all things considered (Meyer, The Story). Im willing to buy Meyers explanation to an extent. But, just because the Twilight saga narrative is set against a backdrop of fantasy does not mean its capabilities for reinforcing the oppressive ideology that exists in our real-world go unrealized. For example, Bella only becomes strong by conforming to the masculine standard put forth by Edward (that is, by becoming a vampire). Of course, Edward cannot reverse himself to his human form, but when Bella changes for Edward, it legitimizes a longstanding cultural norm of women adjusting their desires to accommodate those of her male partner.  [2]  As with the satellite analogy, this aspect of the Twilight saga highlights Edwards superiority over Bella. Edward Is The Worlds Best Predator, Isnt He? Everything About Him Invites You In. When readers buy a romance novel, they are being sold more than just the book. The ideology of romance exemplified by lessons of gender subjectivities and sexual difference in a patriarchal structure embedded in the patriarchal and misogynistic themes present in romance genre is also being sold (Brown; Cooper). The romance narrative of the Twilight saga teaches us that if social order is to be successful and maintained, then the most notable compromises will have to be made by women. This lesson establishes, then, that if women wish for patriarchy to be neutralized in society they will have to be the ones to do it. We see this perspective manifested in the online comments of several readers comments that largely are critical of Bella for failing to overcome the patriarchal constraints present in the Twilight saga (see for example beka; Jost; North; Seltzer; or any of the myriad of fan posts on TwilightMoms, Twilight Lexicon, and other fansites). However, men and women exist togeth er in society and, as such, any fair reading of the Twilight saga would also be looking at Edwards responsibility in perpetuating oppressive ideas about gender roles in human society. Perhaps the most profound way that Edward Cullen reinscribes an oppressive patriarchal ideology is that he demonstrates the classic signs of a batterer. Many readers might disagree with my assessment by pointing out that Edward is motivated by his intense desire to protect Bella and he only has her best interests in mind. The framing of Edwards actions as being in Bellas best interests is precisely what makes them so dangerous. This viewpoint normalizes and legitimizes masculine power over females for the reader. As for how Edward demonstrates signs of a batterer, one need only refer to the criteria established by nationally known domestic violence trainer and consultant Lydia Walker. As part of her Getting a Firm Foundation training, Walker has developed a list of seventeen behaviors seen in people who abuse their partners. Walker warns that if the person has several (three or more) of these behaviors, a strong potential exists for physical violence the more signs a person has, the more likely the person is a batterer. Edward exhibits at least seven of these behaviors (in varying degrees) at different points in the Twilight saga.  [3]  These are: Jealousy Of course, the tension between Edward and Jacob is at the forefront of the story, but Edward expresses his displeasure in many of Bellas potential suitors, In Twilight, for example we are most acutely aware of his dislike for Mike Newton. Edward tells Bella that when Mike asked her to the school dance, he was surprised by the flare of resentment, almost fury that he felt (Meyer, Twilight 303). Edward is surprised by his feelings, remarking that jealousy is so much more powerful that I would have thought. And irrational! (304). Controlling behavior Walker defines controlling behavior as those actions that are attributed to a concern for a womans safety and well being. We see one example of Edwards controlling behavior in Twilight when he follows Bella and her friends to Port Angeles. Walker also warns that controlling behaviors are frequently manifested in the abusers lack of willingness to let a woman make personal decisions. We see Edwards controlling behavior reappear later in the same chapter when he tells Bella when she needs to eat (even when she insists that she isnt hungry), and again when Bella is recovering in the hospital in the last chapter Edward calls for the nurse to administer pain medication to Bella even though she is clear that she does not need them (Meyer, Twilight 477). In Eclipse, Edwards attempts to control Bella are particularly disturbing as he continuously attempts to prevent Bella from visiting Jacob. First, he disconnects the cables to her car battery. Later, he manipulates Al ice into participating in a kidnapping plot designed to keep Bella away from La Push. When he finally agrees to let her go, he does so only if he can take her there and pick her up himself. Perhaps the most appalling example, though, is in Breaking Dawn when Edward attempts to arrange for an abortion for Bella without any discussion from her or her permission. Quick involvement Most battered women dated or knew the abuser for less than six months (many for less than three months) before they were married, living together, or engaged. An abuser comes on like a whirlwind (Walker). Chapter one of Twilight tells the reader that Bella moves to Forks in January. It is not until March that Bella and Edward decide to become a couple (Twilight Chapter 10). By Prom in May, shes ready to give up her mortality for Edward (Twilight Epilogue). In fact, the entire story only spans two years. Unrealistic expectations Walker characterizes unrealistic expectations in terms of possessiveness and states that abusive people will expect their partner to meet all of their needs. At one point, Edward tells Bella that he is anxious à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ to be away from [her], and that he gets distracted à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ worrying about [her] (Meyer Twilight 188-9). Edward is relentless in keeping Bella close to him, unrealistically worried that some great harm will come to her. Edward tells Bella: You are my life now (314). Blames others for feelings The abuser will tell the woman you make me mad, youre hurting me by not doing what I tell you, I cant help being angry' (Walker).  The abuser is, of course, responsible for what he thinks and feels, but will use his feelings to manipulate his partner. One example of Edward acting in this way can be found in the meadow scene in Twilight. Prior to this point, Edward has made his desire for Bella known, but it is not until they are in the meadow that he drops his mask to show Bella the true extent of the danger he poses to her. Hes frenzied as he explains all the ways in which he could easily destroy her, and then blames Bella when he feels he has lost control (Meyer, Twilight 263-5). Later, when Bella and Edward kiss before meeting the rest of the Cullens for a game of baseball, he forcefully pulls himself off of her when he loses control and proclaims: Damn it, Bella! à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Youll be the death of me, I swear you will (363). Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Walker warns women to look out for sudden mood changes in which one minute the abuser is really nice and the next minute hes exploding.   She explains that explosiveness and moodiness are typical of people who abuse their partners since these behaviors can intimidate and frighten the victim and are reflections of the abusers use of threats and manipulation to establish and maintain power and control. The entire first part of Twilight (certainly until Bella is rescued in Port Angeles by Edward in Chapters eight and nine) is focused on Edwards odd behavior towards Bella that vacillates between amusement and pure contempt. At one point, his behavior causes Bella to say to Edward, I cant keep up with you, and question him as to whether he has a multiple personality disorder (Meyer, Twilight 84, 82). Even after Edward makes his true feelings for Bella known and while he continues to keep his emotions in-check around Bella, hes prone to the occasional swing. Any force during a conflict This may involve a batterer holding a woman down, physically restraining her from leaving a room, or pushing/shoving her (Walker). In Chapter five of Twilight, Bella faints during a blood-typing exercise in her Biology class. Edward convinces the school secretary to excuse them from class so that he can escort her safely home. Bella relents, happy to get out of class, but is fully intent on seeing herself home. When Bella moves to the drivers seat of her truck, Edward physically restrains her by pulling the back of her jacket, telling her, Where do you think youre going? (Meyer, Twilight 103). Later, Bella is restrained again, this time by Edwards brother Emmett (under Edwards direction) as they rush to flee James after the baseball game. While trying to decide how to counter James inevitable attack, Edward decides to take Bella away from Forks. When she protests, Edward orders Emmett to secure her by her wrists and forcibly strap her into the harness of the Jeep they are using to escape (381). Of course, not everyone will see it this way. Some will see Edward as he is presented as the ideal, romantic, doting boyfriend and rationalize that his actions are justified because they were enacted with Bellas best interests in mind and because Edward, as a vampire, has physical and mental capabilities that Bella, as a mortal, does not possess. But, we cannot let Edward off the hook just because he is a vampire and not a living, breathing person. While personhood is certainly linked to humanity, Nicolas Michaud suggests that one does not necessarily need to be human to be a person: Personhood should be granted to those who demonstrate certain qualities such as consciousness and self motivated activity; those who demonstrate certain capabilities such a practical reason and affiliation should also not be denied the ability to flourish if they so choose (45). Edwards respect for the human soul, his choice to drink animal blood instead of human blood, and his attempt to assimilate in to Forks society demonstrate his desire to pass and be accepted as a person and not a vampire. Therefore, if Edward wants to enjoy the benefits of personhood in our society, we have to demand of him the same standards that we would expect from any other male in it regardless of any supernatural power he may possess. There are those that will argue that even though Edward exhibits these tendencies, he does not cross the line to become a full-fledged physical abuser. However, while physical violence is one method by which men control women and maintain their supremacy, patriarchy does not need to be enforced by using violence alone. In this case, Edwards actions create an environment where Bella cannot love Edward without loathing herself. He demonstrates that, despite the claim to the contrary, he is actually very far from perfect. Yet, Bella still sees herself as subordinate to him. She consistently reminds the reader and herself that she is not good enough for Edward. Because the Bella/Edward relationship is presented as fated and Edwards actions are justified as being for the benefit of Bellas safety, we permit Bella to respond in ways that would concern us if we saw it manifested in others close to us. We condone her continued disregard for her own personal safety. We allow her to isolate h erself from her family and friends. We accept her explanations for her repeated injuries. Bella literally gives up her life for love. Edwards controlling behavior coupled with Bellas justification of it creates a situation in which the females subordination becomes not only acceptable to readers, but rational as well. Can Romance Narratives be Anything But Oppressive? The abuse narrative present in the Twilight saga becomes especially problematic when viewed with an understanding of the romance genre. Romance as a genre is frequently characterized by the quest for an ideal heterosexual love relationship between a strong, dashingly handsome, young man and a beautiful, vulnerable, self-sacrificing young woman (Burnett and Beto). These qualities of romance stories are at the forefront of the Twilight saga. While these aspects of romance can be read as contributing to the perpetuation of patriarchal ideas about gender roles, romance can also be interpreted as the ultimate feminist genre. Catherine Asaro reminds us that the plots of most romance stories are centered on the desires of the heroine; her values are given priority and she always ends up getting what she wants. Bella spends four books telling us, the readers, that she wants to achieve immortality as a vampire and spend eternity with Edward while still being able to keep her best friend and Edwards rival suitor Jacob around. Breaking Dawn sees Bella fighting for her right to bear a child. She ultimately achieves all of this. Asaro also asserts that romance novels are unique in that they adhere to the female gaze. Laura Mulveys concept of the male gaze rests in the assumption that the audience is forced to view the action and characters of a filmic text through the perspective of a heterosexual man. Examples of its manifestation in filmic texts are seen in camera shots focusing on the curves of the female body, cleavage, or other sexualized positioning of women. In romance novels, however, the male form is the one under the heaviest scrutiny its features extolled upon in great detail. In fact, the female heroine is frequently described with just enough detail to humanize her, while leaving enough information out of the picture so that the reader might insert herself into it. In Twilight, Bella frequently compares Edward to the mythical Greek god Adonis. Her description of his facial features is specific. We see Edward, through her eyes as perfect and angular with high cheekbones, a strong jawline, and a straight nose and full lips. His hair, which is always messy, is an unusual, eye-catching shade of bronze while his eyes are topaz. Bella, on the other hand, is described to the reader far more simply she has long brown hair and brown eyes. Texts presented through the female gaze are significant in two distinct ways. For one, that the heroine is presented as an everywoman can be seen as empowering to female readers who are often only presented with representations of female characters that fade into the background unless they have qualities deemed important' (Asaro). Readers are able to recognize aspects of themselves in the narrative. Also, it legitimizes female sexuality and debunks the myth that women dont notice men in that way. Physical attractiveness is just as important for females as it is for males. Female sexuality is further legitimized in romance in that the heroine is rarely punished for engaging in sexual acts and can frequently be seen as the initiator of such acts. In Twilight, it is Bella who is eager to consummate the relationship she has with Edward and Edward who is resistant to give in without being married. Still, there is plenty in the saga to support the charges that the Twilight narrative is potentially harmful. Even though Edward never crosses the line into domestic violence, his behavior is still troublesome since the heavy consumption of romance narratives can, over time, influence readers interpretations of appropriate behavior for men and women in romantic relationships. In The Killing Screens, George Gerbner discusses his cultivation theory, which was developed to help explain the cumulative and overarching impact repeated media exposure has on the way we see the world in which we live. It emphasizes the effects of media consumption on the attitudes rather than the behavior of audiences. In short, heavy exposure is seen as cultivating attitudes which are more consistent with the world of media than with the everyday world. Gerbner argues that media cultivates attitudes and values which are already present in a culture, normalizing and reinforcing more dominant values, while mak ing other, more underlying ideas more salient. In a society such as ours where masculine ideology is already privileged; where we already have historical struggles with creating safe, egalitarian spaces for women; and where we already struggle with violence and intimidation, Gerbners theory tells us that extended consumption of the over-representation of patriarchy in the Twilight saga can normalize and legitimize acts of oppression that we might witness or experience in our own lives. When abuse is made to be fun and entertaining, we run the risk rationalizing and justifying it and fail to see the tragedy in it when we come across it in our real lives. Viewing the Twilight saga through this lens moves the conversation from the question of, What are romance narratives like those in Twilight doing to women? to What are women doing with them? Romance has been, perhaps, one of the most denigrated popular culture genres (Asaro; Wethington; Holmes). Common complaints include the lack of diversity and scope of romance narratives (typically seen as a result of the demands of powerful commercial forces and publishers looking to quickly churn out formulaic narratives that have previously proven to be profitable); and the genres consistent reliance on conservatively rigid messages about race, gender and male-female relationships; and the objectification of human bodies in explicit, almost pornographic, sexual representations (Wethington). Not everyone buys into these criticisms. Feminist media scholar Janice Radway was one of the first to take seriously the pleasure that women readers consistently seem to find in romance. According to her inf luential text Reading the Romance, women use romance as a way to set up a quiet space for themselves. They not only vicariously enjoy status positions and spaces of nurturing through the books that they do not enjoy in the real world, but romance stories also provide a fictional space in which readers can rehearse and make sense of their individual identity and role in society (Radway; Burnett and Beto). The role romance plays in preparing individuals how to behave in their public lives is even greater for young readers than what it may be for adults. Girls will use romances as an alternative to a romantic relationship when one has not yet presented itself. Romance novels act as safe spaces to gain insight on how to meet boys, what kinds of things they might say to them, and what dating is like. For them, romance novels act as beginners manual for adolescence (Cherland and Edelsky; Christian-Smith; Willinsky and Hunniford) Audiences appear to carry the lessons and desires cultivated through repeated exposure to romance narratives in their youth with them throughout their lives. For example, a generation ago, at the height of the coming-of-age teen romance flick, there emerged two archetypes for the ideal boyfriend Jake Ryan and Lloyd Dobler. Jake Ryan, of course, was the cool, super-popular, super-rich, Porsche-driving, way-too-hot-to-be-in-high-school hunk who caught the Plain Jane Samantha Bakers eye in the film Sixteen Candles. Lloyd Dobler, on the other hand, was an unpretentious, earnest, boombox-hoisting everyman who was thoroughly devoted to the super-smart Diane Court in the film Say Anything. Its been more than 25 years since Sixteen Candles was in theaters and 20 years since Say Anything was released, yet women coming of age in the 1980s still find themselves longing for their Jake or their Lloyd but, not finding him. (Stuever, Real Men; Steuver, What I Did). There is evidence that the same desire audiences have for a relationship with Jake and Lloyd also exists for Edward Cullen, regardless of the age of the audience member. For example, on the discussion forum for the TwilightTeens.com fansite, for example, one can find a multitude of discussion threads in which young fans deliberate questions like On a scale of 1 to 10, how lucky is Bella Swan [to be with Edward Cullen]?; Could you see yourself dating a guy like Edward?; or What do you like about Edward? Additionally, Emily Reynolds interviews and surveys with female adult readers of the Twilight saga revealed that it was Bella with whom readers most frequently identified and whose behaviors they most saw in themselves, making it easy for the reader to slip into Bellas shoes. This identification most frequently manifests itself in a desire to be romantically linked with Edward. According to one of Reynolds participants: I would leave my husband for someone like that (30). The difference, of course, is that seeking out a Jake Ryan or a Lloyd Dobler though destined to end in disappointment is not likely to meet with a violent end, though seeking out an Edward Cullen might. Is it all bad? It is not my goal to vilify the Twilight saga. It is okay to enjoy things that are entertaining and fun, but we should not dupe ourselves into believing that our entertainment media does not also assist in formulating our ideas about our culture. Popular media help shape a worldview in audiences that re-inscribes dominant positions of power and authority (Althusser; Gitlin; Hall), which in Eurocentric cultures like ours is white, patriarchal capitalism (Fiske qtd. in Meyers 7). Patriarchy is the primary oppressor of females in a society (Firestone; Greer; Millett). Since patriarchy does not necessarily operate as an explicit, perceivable reality (meaning, we dont always recognize it when we see it), we must review the aspects of our culture pop culture included that perpetuate patriarchal ideology and cause it to be normalized. What are, in fact, dangerous ideas that devalue the female in society are too frequently seen as legitimate choices in the Twilight saga choices made in th e name of true love or in the face of supernatural forces. When presented through these lenses, Bella and Edwards relationship is seen as romantic and desirable when in any other world it would be destructive. We have to remember that patriarchy, while notable for marginalizing females, does not operate free from feminine influence (Enloe). Social systems are not made solely of men; women are also contributing members. As such, a patriarchal society relies on the participation of all members men and women to endure. Therefore, as destructive as Edward is in the Twilight narrative, the real danger exists when we fail to confront patriarchy and oppression when we encounter it. It is advantageous that Twilight appeals to readers across several generations because it can be used as a framework for encouraging discourse between adults and youth about how female oppression occurs in society. Only future analysis will tell if these conversations are happening. Lets hope that they are.

Making a new deal Essay -- essays papers

Making a new deal The politics of laborers have made them a vital and vibrant part of American history. One has only to study the underlying political causes of the first labor movements to understand why. Few will doubt that one of the most important parts of labor history occurred with the working-class experience in Chicago from the 1920s to the late 30s. During this era, many workers petitioned the government and employers for changes. Some groups of those workers were successful and others were not. Lizabeth Cohen, in Making a New Deal, takes a different approach from traditional labor historians. She examines the effects that ethnic workers had on the successes and failures of the earliest labor movements. Though striking workers were not endemic to Chicago, labor historians who begin their research in that city will be getting one national story (Cohen, 7). There are several reasons why Chicago is a logical beginning. In many ways, the nascent laborers of Chicago set the groundwork for the numerous benefits contemporary workers have. Earlier labor movements, like so much other history, were centered in Chicago (Cohen, 7). It just so happens that extraordinary political changes in labor took place during the interwar period, and Chicago was the largest industrial city in America then (Cohen, 7). Because Chicago was replete with ethnicity, it is also possible to conduct comparative labor studies. Finally, other than New York, no city had as many strikes as Chicago (Cohen, 12). By 1919, America had its first major strike in which four million people—or one in every five—Americans participated (Cohen, 12). These workers sought to protect their jobs and to solidify their wartime wages. One tool for doing so, of course, was the strike. Another was organizing a political party. Although local, futile, and ephemeral, a new political party was formed with the sole purpose of incorporating change into the common laborer’s working environment. Its candidates had no success in local elections; the party foundered. In fact, the 1919 strike was deemed a failure on the whole (Cohen, 13). Reasons for the failure abound, such as the â€Å"Red Scare tactics of government, employer combativeness, and the AFL’s ambivalence about organizing non-craft workers into unions† (Cohen, 13). In Chicago, there was one other significant reason why the labor movements th... ...ion leadership knew how to and did thwart the divide-and-conquer tactics of businesses. Legislation was more pro-worker, and striking became easier. Workers, no longer getting major benefits from their community, made greater demands from their employers in order to complement those benefits provided by the government. They were getting much of what they sought with relative ease after 1942. A legal pattern for addressing grievances had been set for the workers of today. Cohen adequately shows why ethnic workers should not be avoided in the study of labor history. She assiduously takes the workers of the 1920s and 30s out of their working environment and also examines them in a social setting. Using that method, Cohen proves that the ethnicity of certain workers is just as important as other traditional factors in studying labor history. Her work, consequently, will also be of significant use to political and social historians. While not an intention of Cohen, she shows that democracy was alive and well in a polyglot city. Lizabeth Cohen demonstrates in Making a New Deal that magnificant feats can be accomplished when ethnic prejudices are set aside and Americans come together.

Waterford Meadows, Waterford, Michigan :: Free Descriptive Essay About A Place

I grew up in a Waterford Michigan in a neighborhood called Waterford Meadows. The neighborhood consisted of middle-working class citizens, almost entirely Caucasian Americans, nuclear family households (domestic unit consisting of parents and their unmarried children), and the men were the breadwinners while the women homemakers. Today Waterford is a growing township; commercial buildings on every corner, new subdivisions, bigger roads, and high class dining restaurants. When I was a child, in the early eighties, Waterford was not as populated as it is today. Many who lived there where elderly people living in much older homes. Waterford doesn't have a down town area were people can take a Sunday stroll but it does have an abundance of beautiful lakes. Hence that's where the name comes from. With every road that's traveled there is a lake to be seen or one near by. Often the lakes are taken for granted by people who live here. We often forget there beauty and how rare it is to have so many surrounding us. Summers and winters tend to never be boring around Waterford. A trait that most of us who live here learn is how to swim at a young age. It is vary rare to find a person who doesn't know how to swim in Waterford. There are always lakes to ski on, jet ski, or tube in for some summer fun and always lakes to ice-skate on in the winter. Waterford's only other landmark would be the Waterford Wave Pool. This place is a big attraction in both the summertime and wintertime. People of all ages and from different areas come and join the fun at the Wave Pool. It is basically a small water theme park located in Waterford. In the summertime there is a gigantic pool where more then 200 people can swim in and every 10 minutes a bell rings and waves start to form. To the left of the big pool is a kiddies pool where the young ones swim. Towards the back are two gigantic water- slides. There are places to eat, a playground, and plenty of water to swim in. In the wintertime a gigantic toboggan run is made, its nickname is the "Fridge." There are also many Ice Skating rinks. It is a place to relax while having fun with family and friends during the changing of the seasons. A unique feature of Waterford is the fact that 4 townships neighbor it; West Bloomfield, White Lake, Walled Lake, and Union Lake.