Wednesday, December 25, 2019

Biography of Albert Ellis, Creator of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy

Albert Ellis (1913-2007) was one of the most influential psychotherapists in history. He created rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT), which was part of psychotherapy’s cognitive revolution and served as a foundation for cognitive-behavioral therapy. Fast Facts: Albert Ellis Known For: Creating rational emotive behavior therapy, the first cognitive behavioral therapyBorn: September 27, 1913 in Pittsburgh, PennsylvaniaDied: July 24, 2007 in New York, NYParents: Harry and Hattie EllisSpouse: Dr. Debbie Joffe Ellis (also a psychologist)Education: City University of New York and Columbia UniversityKey Accomplishments: Founder of The Albert Ellis Institute; prolific author who wrote 54 books and over 600 articles. Early Life Albert Ellis was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1913. He was the oldest of three children. His father was a traveling salesman and his mother was an amateur actress. Because of his profession, his father was often absent, and when he was home, he was indifferent to his children. Meanwhile, Ellis said his mother was emotionally distant and self-absorbed. That left Ellis to care for his younger siblings. Ellis had a kidney disorder as a child, and between the ages of 5 and 7 he was hospitalized eight times. During those occasions his parents rarely visited and offered little emotional support. As a result, Ellis learned to deal with adversity on his own. At the age of 19, Ellis recognized he was incredibly shy. In order to change his behavior, Ellis decided to talk to every woman who sat alone on a bench in a nearby park. In a single month, Ellis talked to 130 women. Even though he only got one date out of the exercise, it helped him overcome his shyness. Ellis employed a similar technique to overcome his fear of public speaking. Ellis initially planned to become a businessman and a novelist. He graduated from the City University of New York with a degree in business administration in 1934.  He then went to work in business and spent his spare time writing. Ellis never had success publishing his fiction, however, he noticed he did have a talent for non-fiction writing. As he conducted research for a book he was writing called The Case for Sexual Liberty, Ellis’ friends started asking him for advice on the subject. It was in this way that Ellis realized he enjoyed counseling as much as he enjoyed writing. Ellis decided to pursue a degree in clinical psychology, receiving his master’s from Columbia University in 1943 and his doctorate in 1947. Dr. Albert Ellis, psychologist, stretched out in a recliner next to his desk, 1970. Bettmann  /  Getty Images Career Before Ellis earned his Ph.D. he’d already started a private practice. He was trained to use a psychoanalytic approach to therapy but became disenchanted when he realized it rarely helped his clients. He began to see psychoanalysis as too passive and too preoccupied with past trauma.  Ellis sought to develop a more active, present-focused approach to psychotherapy that could work in a minimal number of sessions. This led to the creation of rational emotive behavior therapy. Ellis looked to both psychologists like Karen Horney and Alfred Adler and to philosophers like Epictetus, Spinoza, and Bertrand Russell to come up with a therapeutic approach that challenged irrational thinking that led to problematic emotions and behavior. In REBT, the therapist actively disputes the client’s irrational beliefs while seeking to replace them with healthier, more rational ones. By 1955, Ellis no longer considered himself a psychoanalyst and instead was presenting and practicing what he then called rational therapy. In 1959, he founded the Institute for Rational Living, which is now known as The Albert Ellis Institute. Although his confrontational style of therapy raised the hackles of some in the field and earned him the nickname â€Å"the Lenny Bruce of psychotherapy,† his approach soon caught on and contributed to the cognitive revolution. Despite failing health, Ellis continued to lecture, write, and see dozens of therapy clients on a weekly basis until his death in 2007. Contributions to Psychology Ellis’ creation of REBT was groundbreaking. It is a pillar on which cognitive behavioral therapy is based, which is one of the most widely used forms of therapy today. As a result of Ellis contributions, Psychology Today declared â€Å"no individual — not even Freud himself  Ã¢â‚¬â€ has had a greater impact on modern psychotherapy.† As a result of his outsized impact on the field, a 1982 survey of clinical psychologists ranked Ellis as the second most influential psychotherapist in history, just behind Carl Rogers and before Freud. Ellis helped countless people by adapting the talk therapy of psychoanalysis into the short-term, practical approach of REBT and by paving the way for the cognitive revolution. Key Works Ellis, Albert. (1957). How to Live with a Neurotic.Ellis, Albert. (1958). Sex Without Guilt.Ellis, Albert. (1961). A Guide to Rational Living.Ellis, Albert and William J. Knaus. (1977). Overcoming Procrastination: Or How to Think and Act Rationally in Spite of Life’s Inevitable Hassles.Ellis, Albert. (1988). How to Stubbornly Refuse to Make Yourself Miserable About Anything — Yes, Anything! Sources Cherry, Kendra. â€Å"Albert Ellis Biography.† Verywell Mind, 31 July 2019. https://www.verywellmind.com/albert-ellis-biography-2795493Kaufman, Michael T. â€Å"Albert Ellis, 93, Influential Psychotherapist, Dies.† The New York Times, 25 July 2007. https://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/25/nyregion/25ellis.htmlEpstein, Robert. â€Å"The Prince of Reason.† Psychology Today, 1 January 2001. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/articles/200101/the-prince-reasonâ€Å"About Albert Ellis.† The Albert Ellis Institute. http://albertellis.org/about-albert-ellis-phd/â€Å"Albert Ellis.† New World Encyclopedia. 16 February 2019. https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Albert_Ellis#cite_note-times-6

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Cnn s Presidential Election Coverage - 938 Words

For this project, I chose to watch the CNN Presidential Primary election coverage. I watched the coverage on Super Tuesday, and also on Super Saturday. I wanted to see how they portrayed each candidate, and also who was represented in regards to the news anchors. Men were clearly represented more than women on both days, and white males were the most represented overall. While there were female news anchors dissecting the information, the main news anchors were males such as Wolf Blitzer. I found this interesting because the women seemed to play a smaller point in the coverage, only commenting on the results, while their male counterparts actually released and gave out the results. There were a few different cultures represented, with African Americans being represented the second most, and then hispanics. Relating to the candidates, it seems as if Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are receiving the most press even though other candidates are winning other states. I believe this is be cause news networks have a political race that they want to see (Clinton v Trump) and they will try to dissuade voters towards candidates such as Bernie Sanders and Marco Rubio for example. I find this very interesting because it clearly shows how the media can influence people s minds, and the election. During the coverage, the main anchors were white males, while there were some females discussing the events. The program was based on covering the primary election results from the DemocraticShow MoreRelatedPresidential Election Vs. Presidential Elections1264 Words   |  6 PagesAs we approach the final day of the US election, polls show vantage for Clinton, the representative of the democrat party over Trump, the representative of the republic party so far. FiveThirtyEight, Nate Silver s predictions and polling data for the 2016 presidential election between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, tells, 49.2% of the popular vote goes for Clinton and 44.5% of the popular vote goes for Trump. These popular votes conducted in November 2, 2016. Clinton and Trump are the only candidatesRead MoreAnalysis Of Donald Trump s Make America Great Again 1660 Words   |  7 Pagesbut Trump is somehow leading in the polls among the Republican candidates. This obvious contradiction of Trump being rewarded for his â€Å"bad behavior† occurs as a result of the media coverage of his campaign. Trump’s candidacy epitomizes the idea that â€Å"all press is good press.† Both the positive and negative media coverage Donald Trump has received since announcing his candidacy is extremely advantageous to his campaign. The foundation of Trump’s success can be attributed to many characteristics thatRead MoreNews : The Politics Of Illusion Essay1775 Words   |  8 Pagesthe Authority Disorder Bias. This bias is when blame is placed on the authority figure(s) when an event or scandal occurs that is negative. The developer of the bias pattern is scholar Lance Benn ett, defines the Authority Disorder Bias pattern in news media in his book â€Å"News: The Politics of Illusion† in which he describes that â€Å"there is bias in placing so much news focus on the largely emotional questions of Who s in charge? and Will order be restored?† He states that this â€Å"greater volume of criticismRead MoreMedia Bias In The Media1474 Words   |  6 Pagesbefore. Media can be defined as collective outlets for mass communication. In today’s society, massive amounts of media are consumed in a plethora of forms: newspapers, magazines, television, Internet, and social media. The 2007 U.S. Census Bureau s Statistical Abstract of the United States reports that adults and teens spend nearly five months out the year watching television, surfing the Internet, reading daily newspapers and listening to music (cited in ABC News, 2006). In correspondence withRead MoreWhy I Want To Work In Political Science1144 Words   |  5 Pagesplace where po litics is the main focus. So thats why I choose to work for CNN. And CNN is a company that employs people who have great knowledge and understanding of politics. Cable News Network is basic cable and satellite television news channel owned by turner broadcasting system. CNN was founded in the year 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner as a twenty-four cable news channel. CNN has numerous of affiliates, CNN primarily broadcasts from the Time Warner Center in New York City, andRead MoreThe 2008 Presidental Election: Change vs. Experience Essay2567 Words   |  11 PagesNovember 4, 2008 marked a monumental moment in United States history. American presidential elections were revolutionized because of the 2008 presidential election between democratic candidate Barack Obama and republican candidate John McCain. After eight years, President George W. Bush., Americans were waiting for, what would be the key word of this election - change. The U.S. had the opportunity to witness history with either the first African-American president or first female vice president.Read MoreEssay about Media Bias and Concentration3948 Words   |  16 PagesMedia Bias and Concentration After witnessing a hotly contested election and the massive amounts of campaigning done by both parties in effort to inform the public and reach as many voters as possible, one question still remains poignant: Where do we get our information? The myriad landscape that is the media today, can be accessed from almost anywhere, and has, in many ways, entrenched itself in American culture, replacing what used to be standard outlets of information. Television and printRead MoreMedia Bias And Its Effect On Society1499 Words   |  6 Pagesagree or disagree, with social media platform like Twitter, many find that they cannot speak their minds on their because there is always someone who disagree if they have a public opinion. Along with political opinion, many people have different presidential candidates that they would like to be becoming the United States president while the other will not agree. The first amendment does allow free speech along with the others. Without it many filters o f communication would not be available to us.Read MoreNegative Campaigning Has Been An Essential Part Of Any Successful Political Strategy Essay2490 Words   |  10 PagesNegative campaigning has been described in a multitude of ways over the years, including, â€Å"As American as apple pie† and â€Å"A campaign’s secret weapon† (Shea and Sproveri 416). Since the Election of 1800 when Jefferson ran against Adams (and hired an accomplice to uncover information about Adams’ personal life), negative campaigning has been an essential part of any successful political strategy (Swint). The reason politicians turn to attack campaigning before meaningful policy discussion is, simplyRead More Medias Impact on Politics Essay3263 Words   |  14 Pageswill happen with this country as a whole in the long run. So what is the best way to find out what’s going on with our government? Why the media of course. The media plays a major part in every aspect of the g overnment including what happens in elections, the reporting of major military operations and how the American people will react to certain political situations or scandals. Here are some the ways that the media affects the way we think when it comes to the government. The Right to Laugh:

Monday, December 9, 2019

Cultural Competencies For Nurses Impact on Health and Illness

Question: Describe about the Case Study on Cultural Competencies For Nurses in the Impact on Health and Illness? Answer: A) According to the case study we can see that Mrs. G has visible breathing trouble and after the tests and examination it is clear that she has also got acute pneumonia due to prolonged bout of flu. Apart from that the tests have also revealed that she has mental problems as well. She suffers from hypertension and remains distressed and has recently reported to have chest pain when enquired by the nurse. According to World Health Organization definition Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. Hence, according to the given definition Mrs. G could be referred as healthy when she is free of all kinds of mental and physical illness. She will have to be eradicated of all kinds of illness which she carries now so that she can be called healthy. The trouble of physical diseases like chest pain and pneumonia, the breathing problem will have to be cured along with that we will have to make sure that her flu does nt come back as it was the root cause of pneumonia in her body. Secondly her mental illness will have to be cured in order to transform her into a healthy person. The cause of hypertension and stress will have to identify through counseling and then will have to be addressed. Overall it could be said that she will have to be free of all kinds of diseases which includes both mental and physical illness so that she can be declared to be in good state of health. B) Over the years there have been a lot of research on the subject of illness and many scholars have defined the term illness in different ways. Hence, there are different definitions to illness. For the present case study and based on the condition of Mrs. G it could be said that she fits perfectly with a definition of illness (Dayer-Berenson 2014). In her case illness could be defined as the state of being unhealthy in the body or mind. She is in a state where her body and mind both are affected by disease. The body and mind are not working normally due to physical and mental trouble that she is in. It is very important for the responsible doctors and healthcare specialists to effectively communicate with her regarding her mental and physical problems (Du Pr 2010). It becomes extremely important for the doctors and nurses to identify the key problems that she is suffering from in order to be able to address those issues successfully and help her get cured (Payton 2009). Since she f its with one of the definition of illness it is very important to take extra care of her and try to resolve the physical problems of breathing, addressing the flu and curing the pneumonia so that a longer period of time could be invested to address the mental issues of hypertension and stress (Radley 2009). Hence it could be said that with her present state she could be declared ill as her body and mind have stopped working normally. C) Mrs. G is suffering from hypertension on the other hand she also has other physical diseases. Though physical diseases are easy to cure but at the same time if the patient is affected by mental illness it is often seen that physical diseases do not get cured very fast. In this case it is quite relevant since Mrs. G has hypertension (Rogers Pilgrim 2014). Hypertension is means she has high blood pressure and high blood pressure affects the heart perilously. Medicines work very slow as the blood pressure is high and heartbeat rate is fast since the heart pumps the blood very fast. Hypertension is one of the major causes of strokes and heart attacks, dementia, kidney problems and ophthalmic problems (Steiner 2014). Hypertension is a major cause of vascular dementia which prevents the brain from working and the person loses cognitive power and thinking capacity. She has been obstinate in ignoring medication in the first place which has taken a toll on her health. Mrs. G has responded very slow to the medication and treatment as she has hypertension the medicines take a lot of time to dissolve in blood and it acts late on the body. In most of the cases it has been seen that hypertension causes brain damage as the intricate nerve mechanism in our brain cannot stand the excessive pressure of blood and they rupture which leads to brain damage (Waugh Grant 2014). The lifestyle of Mrs. G has been quite unconventional due to this problem of hypertension she has already shown positive signs of level one dementia by keeping herself stressed which can be seen clearly and on the other hand it has also reflected on the physical development of her body and mind, but with her mental ailments taking the back seat through effective psychological treatment she has been less ignorant to medication in the later part. Though she is old and its quite natural to develop eye problems but hypertension problems of her could be held responsible for the deteriorating conditions of her ophthalmic state. There have been no signs of diabetes but its just a matter of time that she develops this problem as well (Weiss Lonnquist 2012). Overall it could be said that her mental condition is far more important than her physical condition and hence, it is quite important to effectively treat her mental condition of hypertension. If hypertension can be reduced or treated properly then the other physical ailments will be gone very soon as she will start responding to the medications instantly and conspicuous positive change will reflect in her (Weiss Lonnquist 2012). References Dayer-Berenson, L., 2014.Cultural Competencies For Nurses: Impact On Health And Illness. Jones Bartlett Publishers. Du Pr, A., 2010. Communicating about health: current issues and perspectives. Payton, A.R., 2009. Mental health, mental illness, and psychological distress: same continuum or distinct phenomena?Journal of health and Social Behavior,50(2), pp.213-227. Radley, A., 2009.Works of illness: Narrative, picturing and the social response to serious disease(Vol. 8). InkerMen Press. Rogers, A. and Pilgrim, D., 2014.A sociology of mental health and illness. McGraw-Hill Education (UK). Steiner, R., 2014.Health and illness(Vol. 2). SteinerBooks. Waugh, A. and Grant, A., 2014.Ross Wilson anatomy and physiology in health and illness. Elsevier Health Sciences. Weiss, G.L. and Lonnquist, L.E., 2012.Sociology of health, healing, and illness. Prentice Hall.

Sunday, December 1, 2019

Money Makes You Happy free essay sample

The inventor and statesman Benjamin Franklin said, Money never made a man happy yet nor will it. There is nothing in its nature to produce happiness. Money can and in most cases does buy you everything your heart wishes. With money you would be able to live a comfortable life with everything you wanted around. You can have flat screen TVs to expensive Jewelry, the sky Is the limit when youre spoiling with the benefits of your hard work. But does that necessarily make you happy? Would having everything be as great as It seems? There Is nothing like the feeling of shopping with no Limit.When you can have everything you want and are fortunate enough to buy anything you want, It can be a dream come true for most people. Then again we as humans are programmed to want things that we simply cant have. Things that can be bought most of the time the very same things we couldnt afford at one point or the other. We will write a custom essay sample on Money Makes You Happy or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page That does bring about a slight bit of happiness around. But does that really make people happy? To a certain level it does. It gives us a rush of having something new in our lives. Something we could stare at and be fascinated with for a few moments before the next better thing comes along and distracts us again.The desire to have what we consider the better things would convince us that one will be happier than we were ever before. That then becomes a habit, which will make one want more than needed. While yea money can does in fact make one happy, its only temporary. Try and look back at one time you might have bought something and regret buying It a few days later. Money gives you things that give you some level of happiness. Its nothing like the things in our everyday lives that make us really happy. Things like family, friends or Just the feeling of being alive.

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

The Great Gatsby8 essays

The Great Gatsby8 essays In the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Jay Gatsby is a mysterious man living in the West Egg district of Long Island. Gatsby is extremely wealthy and owns a mansion with a large swimming pool, a fancy car, and dozens of servants. Every Saturday night, he throws extravagant parties which many people, most of whom haven't even been invited, attend. No one really knows anything about Gatsby, except that he is rich and generous. However, many rumors are created about him. Some say that he was a German spy during the war and some say that he killed a man. As the summer progresses, Nick Carraway the narrator who is also Gatsby's neighbor, learns more about who Gatsby really is, or rather who he isn't and reasons why he lives his life as he does. Nick doesn't approve of Gatsby's lifestyle and the way he earns his money, but nevertheless he sees Gatsby as superior to those who surround him. Nick admires the romantic hope that motivates Gatsby to pursue his dreams. Jay Gatsby's greatness is a result of his naive belief that he can make his dreams a reality. In the beginning of the novel, Nick sums up Gatsby's character and the reasons why he respects him. "...Gatsby who represented everything for which I have an unaffected scorn. If personality is an unbroken series of successful gestures, then there was something gorgeous about him...This responsiveness had nothing to do with that flabby impressionability which is dignified under the name if the 'creative temperament'it was an extraordinary gift for hope, a romantic readiness such as I have never found in any other person and which is not likely I shall ever find again."(6) Nick makes it very clear that he doesn't agree with the way Gatsby makes and uses his money. Although Nick comes from a very wealthy family himself, he was taught to work hard for his money. Nevertheless, he does find himself admiring Gatsby. He values Gatsby's hope, no matter how false...

Saturday, November 23, 2019

The Blog of Unnecessary Quotation Marks

The Blog of Unnecessary Quotation Marks Last week I wrote an article about quotation marks, and I did not cover the topic of their overuse. Quotation marks are often used to emphasize a word when they are grammatically unnecessary or incorrect. Thankfully, another blogger has taken on the gallant task of locating errant quotation marks so that I can take a rest on this one. I just had to share!   the blog of unnecessary quotation marks Also note: Using single quotation marks is also not grammatically correct, unless you are quoting something within a quote. For instance: Grandma always used to say, I live every day by the words, A stitch in time saves nine.' Single quotation marks simply dont belong anywhere else. And thus concludes Part 2 of the Quotation Mark Quandary.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Lab report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 5

Lab Report Example The initial angle’s complementary values result in the same range but the heights are different. 45o is the projection angle with the maximum range. For this experiment, the velocity is still constant in the x-direction (vox = vx = constant). The only difference is that the velocity has a y-component (vo = (vox2 + voy2)Â ½ ). For both experiments, the initial velocity is the same (vox = vo cos q and voy = vo sin q). To find the motion’s equation, Δy = v0y t + Â ½ a t2, t was solved: There is a significant difference between the theoretical range and the experimental range. Errors could have occurred due to incorrect readings because of parallax and calculation errors because of rounding off. These experiments, despite having quite evident errors, the angles with the highest range are 400 and 450. The experiment further emphasized the independence of x- and y-components in projectile motion (Serway, Vuille & Faughn,

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Technical Paper Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Technical Paper - Case Study Example Moreover, there are some limitations associated with the SIEM such as number of events per second to be generated, based on the logs being generated from the system and pulled by the SIEM agents Firewall. (2007). Vulnerabilities in network security are regarded as the â€Å"soft spots† that are evidenced in every network. These vulnerabilities exist in the network as well as individual devices that constitute the network. HTTP, FTP, and ICMP are not secure essentially. Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) and SYN floods are associated with the inherently vulnerable structure upon which TCP has been designed Various types of network equipment such as firewalls (Agnitum outpost persona firewall pro 2.0.2004), switches, routers; all have security weaknesses that must be acknowledged and safeguarded against. Those include the following weaknesses: Network administrators or network engineers are required to understand the configuration weaknesses and accurately configure their computing and network devices to counteract the common configuration weaknesses. This common problem occurs upon turning on JavaScript in web browsers which enables attacks by means of hostile JavaScript whilst accessing untrusted sites. Some complications also take place due to IIS, Apache, FTP and Terminal Services. Significant security problems come about because of misconfigurations of the equipment itself. For instance, misconfigured routing protocols, certain access lists or even some SNMP community strings can open up large security holes. The unauthorized discovery and mapping of systems, services, or vulnerabilities is referred to as Reconnaissance. It is also known as information gathering and it commonly manifests before an actual access or denial-of-service (DoS) attack. Reconnaissance is rather comparable to a thief casing a neighbourhood in search of vulnerable homes to break into, like easy-to-open doors, windows left

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Presidents of the Vietnam War Essay Example for Free

Presidents of the Vietnam War Essay President Nixons move to end the war in Vietnam and propagate peace there is the most noble move compared to that of the John F. Kennedys and Lyndon Johnson, who, at that time have deployed 500,000 soldiers, more than 300 of which are held prisoners. More so, the citizens were divided over the purpose of the war. Nixon plotted a strategy to end Americas involvement in that struggle without sacrificing the dignity that it has upheld in the global scene. With his strong intentions, he was instrumental in the signing of a peace treaty that benefited both countries.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   John F. Kennedy views the war as only a small part of a bigger struggle between freedom and communism, an idea that he widely advertised to the Americans. His stand on Americas defense for freedom in Vietnam is rooted from the legal relationship that it tried hard to uphold. With this, JFK pursued all possibilities of winning the war. His pledge to â€Å"pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and success of liberty† (John F. Kennedy, 1962) was considered ambitious.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Lyndon Johnsons move to give support to Diem in order to make sure that the waging of war against the communist was not effective in the course of the Vietnam War. His obvious support to continue waging war and sending young soldiers made him the antagonist by many Americans who felt that by doing so, it is synonymous to genocide with a different purpose.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   President Nixons intentions handled the Vietnam War best since he made sure that the war was fought in a manner he knows will be a win-win situation to both countries. Works Cited Herring, George C. Americas Longest War The United States and Vietnam, 1950-1975. America in crisis. New York: Wiley, 1979. Small, Melvin. Antiwarriors The Vietnam War and the Battle for Americas Hearts and   Minds. VietnamAmerica in the war years, v. 1. Wilmington, Del: Scholarly Resources, 2002.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Comparing Female Identity in To The Lighthouse, Heat of the Day and Under the Net :: comparison compare contrast essays

Female Identity in Virginia Woolf’s, To The Lighthouse, Elizabeth Bowen’s, Heat of the Day and Iris Murdoch’s, Under the Net After reading Virginia Woolf’s, â€Å"To The Lighthouse†, readers are left with the disturbing reality of the role of a woman during this time period.   The characters of Mrs. Ramsay and Lily Briscoe portray these demeaning roles.  Ã‚   However, instead of completely giving in to the domination of men, they are starting the woman’s movement of resistance in the period of the beginning of World War I.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Likewise, in Elizabeth Bowen’s novel, â€Å"The Heat of the Day†, different female roles emerge from the characters which help present change in the identity of women and power.   The two main female characters, Stella Rodney and Louie Lewis, among others in this World War Two time-framed novel, carry working class jobs.   They are starting to change the stereotypical views of women just being housewives and serving their â€Å"husbands†.  Ã‚  Ã‚   These characters allow readers to plainly see that women are capable of and deserve equality on the same level as men.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This essentially paves the road to other novels of this time after World War II, such as Iris Murdoch’s, â€Å"Under the Net†.   In this novel women are starting to receive respect for their positions in the world.  Ã‚   Men are recognizing their significant value in society.   This can be seen by the relationship between the characters of Jake Donaghue and Anna Quentin. Victoria Glendinning further exemplifies the correlation between these 20th Century novels.   She is a contemporary fiction writer and biographer of Bowen, Rebecca West, and Trollope, among others.   Glendinning states that,   â€Å"She [Bowen] is a major writer†¦She is what happened after Bloomsbury†¦the link that connects Virginia Woolf with Iris Murdoch and Mrielk Spark†.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   These highly regarded and well-respected female authors are showing that women can and do hold power in our society.   These authors send the message to readers that women throughout time have been and still are fully capable of thinking for themselves.  Ã‚   They can hold their own ground without having to subject themselves to the dominance of the males, be it in writing novels, raising a family, working in a factory, or pursuing a singing career.   Thus, they as all women, deserve to be held in respect for their achievements and deserve equality.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In reference to Virginia Woolf’s novel, â€Å"To The Lighthouse† she takes the major female characters of Mrs.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

How does Stevenson use the specific technique to explore the idea of good and evil? Essay

In this essay I will explore how good and evil is presented in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde written by Robert Louis Stevenson. At the age 35, Stevenson produced his masterpiece. It is very rare for a novel so old to be still commonly read now. This shows just how well written this novel is. Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is a story about an enthusiastic scientist fascinated with life and death. Curious about human life, Jekyll is determined to change his physical appearance/personality. After successfully engineering his own physical appearance, people are shocked, appalled and astonished at the outcome of it. Stevenson was born on November 13, 1850 in Edinburgh. He was from a prosperous family, containing members of the legal professions and ministers of the church. His nanny and a nurse called Alison Cunningham taught Stevenson about good and evil. Good and evil and her taught influenced him to write Dr.Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Jekyll is a scientist/doctor who covered up the secret of life full of cruel accomplishment. He feels that he is battling with himself between what is good and what is evil. In chapter 9 after drinking the potion the respectable Jekyll transform himself to younger, cruller and barbarous Mr. Hyde. Dr.Jekyll has many friends and friendly personality but Mr. Hyde has not. He becomes mysterious, secretive and violent. Mr. Hyde grows in power as the time goes by, he takes the potion again and he is no longer confident letting go of his evil side. Religion and science were two dominant forces during Stevenson’s time. The rapid development of science caused controversy throughout the churches man was questioning religion and it is trustworthiness. I believe that Stevenson was trying to demonstrate this in the novel. An eager, apprehensive doctor was delving in to the realm of unknown. Transforming a life is no simple everyday experiment meddling with the power of God can have serious consequences. In Jekyll’s the consequences were fatal. Jekyll’s love of doing experiments and being evil caused the death of innocent people and his eventual demise. Perhaps Stevenson was trying to prove that being evil must have its limitation. Even knowledge has its boundaries. I came to believe that Stevenson was trying to pass the message to people that there is light and dark in all mankind and he wrote Dr.Jekyll and Mr. Hyde to portray his emotions that he thought about good and evil. In this way Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde story is the same, as Macbeth who wants to be a czar and famous forever or also them both wants to be as powerful as god is. But they both are failure, not successful, they cannot be gods. Now I am going to examine how the specific techniques that are used to explore the idea of good and evil. In the Victorian times London was city of poverty, disease and desperation. At the same time London was a city of crime, where theft or violent assault happened either in early hours of the morning or late at night. In the novel of Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Places are used as a metaphor to show apprehension, uncertainty and enthusiasm. In the Novel of Dr.Jekyll and Mr. Hyde the Buildings is described as ‘Sinister block’ to give us an image of Jekyll’s building describing it as vile, nasty and a terrible place to be and live in. When Stevenson was writing Jekyll and Hyde, lots of crime was happening in London. ‘London was startled by a crime of singular ferocity’ this quotation suggests that a vicious criminal activities were happening in London, one eminent murderer at the time was jack the ripper, a serial murderer who murdered prostitutes during the night time. The area where Mr. Hyde lived were dingy and crowded at night it was the kind of place where you would meet beggars, hobos and criminals ‘The dismal quarter of Soho’ indicates that he did lived in a Dodgy area which was not very nice, and Stevenson mention this to display how dangerous it could be for some ordinary people . Moreover I think one of the reasons why Robert Louis Stevenson describes the places such as this in detailed is because at the time there was no TV or cinema and people would have to see the places from Stevenson’s description. London is described as one of the most atrocious city `like a district of some city in a nightmare` Stevenson is comparing London city to a nightmare and giving his audience an image of old, offended and an extremely obnoxious place to imagine with. In the novel of Dr.Jekyll and Mr. Hyde weather is used to create a chaotic and evil atmosphere to emphasis something very surprising is going to happen ‘Fog rolled over the city, night was cloudless†¦ but the wind was continually changing†¦ it was a wild, cold, seasonable night of March’ this quotation suggest that heavy mist was in London, night was bright but the wind was constantly wavering. And also in this quotation Stevenson is using ferociousness of the weather to show sign of Danger and create an evil atmosphere to grab the reader’s attention and change its readers mind. Further more it tell us that something hideous is awaiting and going to happen and that can be sign of ‘Jack the ripper’ Murdering a prostitute. In Dr.Jekyll and Mr Hyde Satan is recognized as a symbol of ultimate evil. Mankind’s reaction to temptation has been revealed to us in the Adam and Eve story. In the novel Stevenson was trying to compare Satan to Mr. Hyde by saying that he has ‘Satan signature’ which means that he has similar attitude, style and has all the ingredients in a way for him to be a Satan, Stevenson is trying to explore how bad some individuals can be. Stevenson explores how Dr.Jekyll is going to transform himself in to Hyde. He also tell us what Jekyll is to say about himself before being transformed† He thanked me with smiling nod, measured out a few minims of the red tincture and added on of the powder† He says that he always wanted to do what he loved mostly doing experiment which shows he is happy with himself and doesn’t care about what other people think about him when they sees him. I think this is a magnificent example from Stevenson exploring that no one is born evil; however they are transformed in to a brutal person. The Victorians believed that animals were a lower form of life and man was superior to animals. In the novel Mr. Hyde is compared to a beast and in Victorians view he is lower than man and they thinks that he should be excluded from their society. â€Å"Great flame of anger, stamping with his foot, brandishing the cane and carrying on-as the maid described it — like a madman† this quotation suggest that he is trampling his victims under foot and Stevenson displays him like a beast, unwanted, and portray him like a dog. Furthermore this quotation suggests that beast cannot be a form of their society because Victorians were strong fundamentally religious. When Stevenson was nine years old Charles Darwin published ‘The origin of species’ introducing theory of evolution. Many people saw this as an attack on religion because it is impossible to believe that God created the universe in seven days. A lot of people in the Victorian era came to believe that they had to chose between the two, but some people thought that science had become dangerous and was interfering in the matter which only God had control over. Stevenson describes character of Mr. Hyde immoral, because he trampled on a girl and clubbed an old man to death is significant because they are the most vulnerable people in society and so it is especially atrocious. The effect of Mr. Hyde in the other characters is disgraceful, outrageous and unbelievably terrifying. One day when Utterson and Enfield was walking they past Jekyll’s window, as they have not seen him in for a long time and his facial expression terrify them. His expression change to †abject terror and despair† Enfield and Utterson both describes him as dreadful, hopelessness and monstrous human being that other human are scared of him. Dr Lanyon become seriously ill and dies as result of seeing Jekyll transform into Hyde in front of his eyes. In here the readers view change about science and also they might start to acknowledge the fatal consequences of science and its effectiveness to mankind. And Mr. Hyde actions reveal that how bad some individual can be? His life is †shaken to its roots† this quotations suggest that he (Utterson) is horrendously scared to death. Other character like Dr. Lanyon and Utterson is described as good Because I strongly believe that Stevenson is trying to pass the message to people that we can be good or evil, it is our choice, but he is also trying to pass the message to people that in reality being good known its foundation, but being evil not, so Stevenson in sensibility is trying to say being evil should known its disadvantages. Mr Hyde is described as †Solid reliable yet full of contradictions† which means he says something but does something else completely strange and unusual and embarrassing. He is not completely evil neither he is good. In my opinion Stevenson is trying to portray many of his personal views in this novel. His thoughts on how society can turn an innocent person into a cruel vicious person are imperative in the novel Jekyll and Hyde. I believe that due to mass rejection and overall prejudice shown. Stevenson is trying is to prove that no one is born evil; how ever they are turned in to a creature of appalling nature by their respective surroundings. In conclusion I think that Stevenson was really successful in using specific technique to explore the ideas of evil. Characters like Utterson were described as `large, well made, smooth faced man` in the novel. He is a good lawyer and well respected in the community, I think Stevenson uses him to represent the rational lives of Victorians and may also express that weren’t all people in Victorians era bad like Mr. Hyde but there were mostly well respected, like Mr.Utterson a truly amiable man indeed . When Utterson think about Mr. Hyde he says â€Å"If he be Mr. Hyde, I shall be Mr. Seek.† Which I think is very clever and funny, clever because ones he catch Mr. Hyde he might call the police to take him away. Funny `cause they are like want to play a game. Describing Mr. Hyde as ugly, deformed, small, dissipate and hairy in the novel, I think Stevenson was trying to reveal dark side of a person to its Victorian audience, saying everything is unpleasant about Hyde. when Mr. Hyde murders sir Danvers crew an important member of parliament at the time, after that he roughly wanted to change himself, avoid using anymore violence, stops killing other innocent people but can’t because the power of science seem too strong for him and he realizes that he is battling between himself in trying to freeze his evil side behind but it seem impossible to transform back to his friendly and entrusted character which was the dignified Mr. Jekyll and I think this is one of the most remarkable techniques but adequately true at the same time used by Stevenson to answer the Victorians question about Charles Darwin’s ideas that human’s had a dual nature and ones they get in to their evil habit they can’t change it and it look like Dr.Jekyll would be Mr. Hyde permanently. Stevenson is using Charles Darwin idea to express his own idea about science. He is saying that scientists (Jekyll) who play with the nature have to understand what they do that affect people’s life’s, they had to be responsible and make sure they are not harmed. Robert Louis Stevenson used Mr. Hyde in this novel to personify many of his feeling and thoughts. The downfall of the Dr.Jekyll from an intelligent and caring being to a homicidal beast shows just how society can play a part turning someone in to a real individual. I thought that Stevenson has successfully achieved his aims in clarifying the commingled of human being. Overall I thought, evil is explored using many different devices. Stevenson creates an evil atmosphere using the weather to set the scene. He uses animal imagery- like descriptions for Hyde to show that nothing that evil can be human. However, evil is not always so distant from good as Dr. Jekyll was a combination of both.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

The Message in Girl in Translation

There always have been immigrants since the early days in the United States. The number of immigrants continues to grow throughout periods of time. â€Å"As in 2006, the number of immigrants is 37. 5 million. After 2000, immigration to the United States numbered approximately 1,000,000 per year. A recent survey by Gallup showed that there are about 165 million adults worldwide named the United States as their top country where they would like to migrate permanently† (Immigration, Wikipedia).What is the reason why there are such a large number of people wanting to go to America, even though they are well aware of the difficulties awaiting for them there? Girl in Translation is one of the books that can help to answer the above question as it tells the story of Kimberly, an immigrant in America. Through Kimberly, I can see that despite many hardships, an immigrant can still achieve the American dream of a better life through hard work, persistency, and determination. Like most o f the immigrants, the first difficulty Kimberly and her mother encountered in America is the language barrier and the culture shock.They arrived from Hong Kong with little English which became a serious problem for Kimberly when she started school. On her first day at school, she could not understand what Mr. Bogart was saying, he was angry at the things she did not understand, he thought she was a cheat and gave her a zero (25-27). Kimberly must have been very afraid and humiliated. Back home at Hong Kong, she had been the top student of her class, she was used to receive praise and prizes from her teacher, but now, she thought that she was â€Å"a stupid student with a weight on [her] heart†. The American culture was a far cry different from Kimberly’s culture.She was taught to show respect to the teachers by sitting straight with hands folded behind her backs, standing up when spoken to and addressing Mr. Bogart sir. However, these gestures are not common in America and they seemed to make Mr. Bogart think that Kimberly was mocking him. The other hardship Kimberly and her mother had to endure in their first years in America was their living condition. They arrived from Hong Kong with nothing but debt. That debt was to no one else other than her aunt Paula. There was a saying: â€Å"Blood is thicker than water†, but unfortunately, this saying was not true in Kimberly’s case.Her aunt thought that Kimberly and her mother owned her a life debt that could never been repaid, because she had brought them to America (256). She gave them an illegal place to live. The author described the way they lived so vividly that filled the readers with emotion. Their apartment was in a terrible state. It lacked heat and real furniture. The wind can blow through the windows where â€Å"the windowpanes were missing or cracked† in the middle of New York City winter. They had to live under the same roof with roaches and mice running around. They had to keep the oven on during the winter days as it was their only source of heat.They had to cover their body with layer and layer of clothes but still, that was not warm enough. What really helped her family survive that winter was the cloth used to make stuffed animal in the toy factory trash. They wanted to take the warm material home right away but they were afraid of being late for work. It is very emotional when they kept worrying that other people might take it, that it might not be there when they finished their job. The material, which only was trash to other people, was really a treasure to them, made them â€Å"laugh with joy†.I could not help feeling sad for them when reading this scene: We must have been a funny sight, dressed up at home as tow large stuffed animals, but we didn’t have the luxury of minding. Since then, I have wondered if we would have survived the winter without that gift from the gods. The material was heavy and carpet like, not having been intended as clothing, and when I slept under our new blankets, I woke with my limbs aching from the weight. However, at least they covered our entire bodies at once, unlike the piles of clothes we’d used in the past, and they were warm (77).To earn a living, Kimberly and her mother worked at the clothing factory managed by Aunt Paula’s husband. Due to the author’s superb description technique, readers can imagine and have a clear image of the factory and feel the need and desperation from the people who work there. The immigrants were working in an unhealthy environment, they are always covered with sweat and fabric dust, they were â€Å"deafened by the roar of a hundred Singer sewing machines†. They had to stay all night when there was a shipment going out. They were paid 1 to 2 cents a piece, which is illegal.There were other children like Kimberly working at the factory, they all hoped to help their parents finish their work earlier and earn some more money. Some of these children would finally end up replacing their parents to work in the factory while their children, like them, would come to help. It was the circle of the factory life that many immigrants could not escape. Kimberly’s mother did not want this to happen to her child, she said to Kimberly: Most people never leave this life. It’s probably too late for me. My days of being a refined music teacher are over.That’s what a parent is for, to do whatever is necessary to give her child a good life. But you, don’t forget you were the smartest student our primary school in Hong Kong had ever seen. Nothing can change how bright you are, whether your current teacher knows it or not. Most important, nobody can change who you are, except for you (48). Then, Kimberly said: â€Å"I’m going to get us both out of here, Ma, I promise. † (48) She had a great desire to save her mother and she from this miserable life filled with backbreak ing labor. She decided to use her talent for school to make that dream come true.First of all, she needed to perfect her English. Therefore, she bought a dictionary, which cost a fortune, and â€Å"try to memorize all the words†. She borrowed books from the library, began with â€Å"the embarrassingly thin ones for little kids† (86). She was good at math and science but she had to struggle with other subjects that contained too much English. While the other kids in her class were giving up when they had trouble with Mr. Bogart, Kimberly tried harder at school because she wanted the accomplishment of a top student again as well as she realized that education was the only way to escape the factory life.Her hard work resulted in her scholarship to Harrison school, where she could develop her learning ability to the fullest. And finally, she was given a full scholarship to Yale. Kimberly was a strong girl. This side of her personality was proven when she fought Luke, the b ully in the sixth grade. She did not run, instead she strengthened her mindset by thinking that her ancestor was one of the greatest warriors and so was she. Besides, she thought that if she did not solve this problem right away, it would follow her day after day (90-91). This was exactly the way she fought against her situation.She did not run from it and give up. She would go to school and tried to be an exceptional student, regardless of her weak English and being out of place with other students. Then she would go to work at the factory and do her homework at night. Kimberly was very tolerant to these hardships. There is no success without any sacrifice. Kimberly’s greatest sacrifice was giving up Matt and raised their son alone. It was selfish of her when depriving her son of the right of knowing his father. However, I cannot blame her. Matt could have been a block to her success as he did not share Kimberly’s ambition for a brighter future.Matt told Kimberly to s tay in China town and not go to Yale. Matt was old-fashioned and he thought that the man was the person to support the family, not the other way round. He just cared about the present when he and Kimberly were happy and that was enough (266-67). Matt said: â€Å"Kimberly, my climbing can’t reach your heights (226). † Matt seemed tough on the outside but he lacked the fighting spirit, the willpower to fight against his situation. He accepted his life in China town even though it is a not very good living condition. He already gave up school to work full time.Matt could not look far into the future; he did not have Kimberly’s ambition for a better future and her desire to get out of their poor life. Through Matt and Kimberly, readers can see that while many immigrants are caught up in the challenges of cultural and financial difficulties of life, the one that are able to get out of their situations is achieved through education and hard work. Kimberly took a bette r choice of working toward her long-termed goal. She sacrificed her love, and was able to overcome that through determination and great willpower for the hope of building a better future and getting out of her current situation.Girl in translation is a typical story of an immigrant. Just like Kimberly, many immigrants have a great desire to become successful, as they know how it is to live in poverty. As long as they work hard and have determination, they can make that dream come true as America is the land of opportunity. Education was the way Kimberly chose to get out of the hardship. The other immigrants can also choose this way to become success since America has one of the best education systems in the world.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

THE HISTORY OF THE GUITAR Essays - String Instruments, Guitar

THE HISTORY OF THE GUITAR Essays - String Instruments, Guitar THE HISTORY OF THE GUITAR The guitar is a fretted, stringed instrument, and is a member of the lute family. It originated in Persia and reached Spain during the twelth-century, where it?s versatility as both a solo and accompanying instrument were established. The theory of the guitar was discovered in the early centuries. They found that the sound of a bowstring could be enhanced by attaching a resonating chamber -most like a tortiseshell- to the bow. From the bow came essentially three main types of stringed instruments: the Harp family, which was the sound of plucked strings indirectly transmitted to an attached sound box. The second was the Lyre family, which was strings of a fixed pitch are attached to the directly to a sound chamber. And the third was the Lute family, this was were the pitch of strings was altered by pressing them against a neck that is attached directly to a sound chamber. Within the Lute family came two groups. The lutes proper which had rounded backs and the guitar type instruments w ith their flat backs. Guitar-shaped instruments appear in stone bas-relief sculptures of the hittites in northern Syria and Asia Minor from as far back as 1350 B.C. The word guitar also has origins in the middle and far east, deriving from gut, is the Arabic word for four, and tar, the Sanskrit word for string. The earliest European guitars did have four courses of gut strings. A 2 course is a pair of strings tuned in unison. These early guitars were distinguished from lutes by body sides that curved inward to form a waist and by four courses of strings. Some but not all early guitars had a flat back, while lutes always had a flat back. In the Middle Ages and the Renaissance the lute was the dominant fretted instrument. The lute with was pear-shaped and had five or more courses of strings was generally regarded as a higher class of instrument. By 1546 the guitar had gained enough popularity to merit the publication of a book of guitar music. By this time guitars had added another course, and modern tuning had come into existence. Chord positions were the same as they are today. The frets of the early guitars were made of gut and tied around the neck. This made placement of frets very difficult. The early guitars were also much shorter in length than todays guitars. The second most popular instrument during the Middle ages was the cittern. It was more like the modern guitar than any other during that time. It had metal strings, fixed frets, a fingerboard that extended onto the top, a flat back, and a movable bridge with strings anchored by a tailpiece; and it was played with a quill or plectrum(pick). But this modern instrument soon lost its popularity and disappeared by the late 1600?s. Through the 1600?s and 1700?s the guitar design changed very little, although interest increased around luthiers. In the 1770?s the first guitars with six single strings appeared, 3 blowing the evolutionary lid off the instrument. Within the next few decades, numerous innovations followed: body waists became narrower and body bouts changed shape, becoming circular in northern Europe and more oval shaped in southern Europe. Inlaid frets of brass or ivory replaced the tied on gut frets and the neck was extended one full octave(12 frets) clear of the body. Metal tuners with machine heads began to replace friction pegs, and strings were anchored by bridge pins, replacing the method of tying strings to the bridge. By the 1820?s most of the fingerboard extended all the way to the soundhole. As rapidly as the guitar changed so did it?s acceptance. By the 1800?s the Lute had all but disappeared. One of the best known makers of this new-style of guitar was Johann Georg Staufer of Vienna. Staufer and another maker Johann Ertel in 1822 designed a fingerboard raised off the top of the guitar, and experimented with different fret metals, settling on an alloy of brass,copper,silver, and arsenic. The first half of the 19th century was a time of great experimentation for the guitar. And many of the innovations that were credited to 20th century makers were actually tried a

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

A History of Camels in the US Army

A History of Camels in the US Army A plan by the U.S. Army to import camels in the 1850s and use them to travel through vast stretches of the Southwest seems like some comical legend that never could have happened. Yet it did. Camels were imported from the Middle East by a U.S. Navy ship and used in expeditions in Texas and California. And for a time the project was thought to hold enormous promise. The project to acquire camels was masterminded by Jefferson Davis, a powerful political figure in 1850s Washington who would later become the president of the Confederate States of America. Davis, serving as secretary of war in the cabinet of President Franklin Pierce, was not a stranger to scientific experiments, as he also served on the board of the Smithsonian Institution. And the use of camels in America appealed to Davis because the War Department had a  serious problem to solve. Following the end of the Mexican War, the United States acquired vast tracts of unexplored land in the Southwest. And there simply was no practical way to travel in the region. In present day Arizona and New Mexico there were virtually no roads. And going off any existing trails meant venturing into country with forbidding terrain ranging from deserts to mountains. Water and pasturage options for horses, mules, or oxen were non-existent or, at best, hard to locate. The camel, with its reputation for being able to survive in rough conditions, seemed to make scientific sense. And at least one officer in the U.S. Army had advocated for the use of camels during military campaigns against the Seminole tribe in Florida in the 1830s. Perhaps what made camels seem like a serious military option were reports from the Crimean War. Some of the armies engaged used camels as pack animals, and they were reputed to be stronger and more reliable than horses or mules. As leaders of the American military often tried to learn from European counterparts, French and Russian armies deploying camels in a war zone must have given the idea an air of practicality. Moving the Camel Project Through Congress An officer in the U.S. Armys quartermaster corps, George H. Crosman, first proposed the use of camels in the 1830s. He thought the animals would be useful in supplying troops fighting in the rough conditions of Florida. Crosmans proposal went nowhere in the Army bureaucracy, though it apparently was talked about enough that others found it intriguing. Jefferson Davis, a West Point graduate who spent a decade serving in frontier Army outposts, became interested in the use of camels. And when he joined the administration of Franklin Pierce he was able to advance the idea. Secretary of War Davis submitted a lengthy report which took up more than an entire page of the New York Times of December 9, 1853. Buried in his various requests for Congressional funding are several paragraphs in which he made the case for appropriations for study the military use of camels. The passage indicates that Davis had been learning about camels, and was familiar with two types, the one-humped dromedary (often called the Arabian camel) and the two-humped central Asian camel (often called the Bactrian camel): On the older continents, in regions reaching from the torrid to the frozen zones, embracing arid plains and precipitous mountains covered with snow, camels are used with the best results. They are the means of transportation and communication in the immense commercial intercourse with Central Asia. From the mountains of Circassia to the plains of India, they have been used for various military purposes, to transmit dispatches, to transport supplies, to draw ordnance, and as a substitute for dragoon horses.Napoleon, when in Egypt, used with marked success the dromedary, a fleet variety of the same animal, in subduing the Arabs, whose habits and country were very similar to those of the mounted Indians of our Western plain. I learn, from what is believed to be reliable authority, that France is about again to adopt the dromedary in Algeria, for a similar service to that in which they were so successfully used in Egypt.For like military purposes, for express and for reconnaissances, it is believed the dromedary would supply a want now seriously felt in our service; and for transportation with troops rapidly moving across the country, the camel, it is believed, would remove an obstacle which now serves greatly to diminish the value and efficiency of out troops on the western frontier.For these considerations it is respectfully submitted that the necessary provision be made for the introduction of a sufficient number of both varieties of this animal to test its value and adaptation to our country and our service. It took more than a year for the request to become a reality, but on March 3, 1855, Davis got his wish. A military appropriations bill included $30,000 to fund the purchase of camels and a program to test their usefulness in Americas southwestern territories. With any skepticism tossed aside, the camel project was suddenly given considerable priority within the military. A rising young naval officer, Lieutenant David Porter, was assigned to command the ship sent to bring back the camels from the Middle East. Porter would go on to play a critical role in the Union Navy in the  Civil War, and as Admiral Porter he would become a revered figure in late 19th century America. The U.S. Army officer assigned to learn about camels and acquire them, Major Henry C. Wayne, was a West Point graduate who had been decorated for valor in the Mexican War. He later served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. The Naval Voyage to Acquire Camels Jefferson Davis moved quickly. He issued orders to Major Wayne, directing him to proceed to London and Paris and seek out experts on camels. Davis also secured the use of a U.S. Navy transport ship, USS Supply, which would sail to the Mediterranean under the command of Lt. Porter. The two officers would rendezvous and then sail to various Middle Eastern locations in search of camels to purchase. On May 19, 1855, Major Wayne departed New York for England aboard a passenger ship. The USS Supply, which had been specially outfitted with stalls for camels and a supply of hay, left the Brooklyn Navy Yard the following week. In England, Major Wayne was greeted by the American consul, future president James Buchanan. Wayne visited the London zoo and learned what he could about the care of camels. Moving on to Paris, he met with French military officers who had knowledge of using camels for military purposes. On July 4, 1855, Wayne wrote a lengthy letter to Secretary of War Davis detailing what he had learned during his crash course in camels. By the end of July Wayne and Porter had met up. On July 30, aboard USS Supply, they sailed for Tunisia, where an American diplomat arranged a meeting with the countrys leader, the Bey, Mohammad Pasha. The Tunisian leader, when hearing that Wayne had bought a camel, presented him with a gift of two more camels. On August 10, 1855, Wayne wrote to Jefferson Davis from about the Supply, anchored in the Gulf of Tunis, reporting that three camels were safely aboard the ship. For the following seven months the two officers sailed from port to port in the Mediterranean, endeavoring to obtain camels. Every few weeks they would send highly detailed letters back to Jefferson Davis in Washington, detailing their latest adventures. Making stops in Egypt, present day Syria, and the Crimea, Wayne and Porter became fairly proficient camel traders. At times they were sold camels which exhibited signs of ill-health. In Egypt a government official tried to give them camels which the Americans recognized as poor specimens. Two camels they wanted to dispose of were sold to a butcher in Cairo. By the beginning of 1856 the hold of USS Supply was filling up with camels. Lieutenant Porter had designed a special small boat which contained a box, dubbed the camel car, which was used to ferry camels from land to the ship. The camel car would be hoisted aboard, and lowered down to the deck used to house the camels. By February 1856 the ship, carrying 31 camels and two calves, set sail for America. Also aboard and headed to Texas were three Arabs and two Turks, who had been hired to help tend to the camels. The trip across the Atlantic was plagued by bad weather, but the camels were finally landed in Texas in early May 1856. As only a portion of the Congressional expenditure had been spent, Secretary of War Davis directed Lieutenant Porter to return to the Mediterranean aboard USS Supply and bring back another load of camels. Major Wayne would remain in Texas, testing the initial group. Camels in Texas During the summer of 1856 Major Wayne marched the camels from the port of Indianola to San Antonio. From there they proceeded to an army outpost, Camp Verde, about 60 miles southwest of San Antonio. Major Wayne began using the camels for routine jobs, such as shuttling supplies from San Antonio to the fort. He discovered the camels could carry much more weight than pack mules, and with the proper instruction soldiers had little problem handling them. When Lieutenant Porter returned from his second voyage, bringing an additional 44 animals, the total herd was about 70 camels of various types. (Some calves had been born and were thriving, though some adult camels had died.) The experiments with camels at Camp Verde were considered a success by Jefferson Davis, who prepared a comprehensive report on the project, which was published as a book in 1857. But when Franklin Pierce left office and James Buchanan became president in March 1857, Davis left the War Department. The new secretary of war, John B. Floyd, was convinced the project was practical, and sought Congressional appropriations to purchase an additional 1,000 camels. But his idea received no support on Capitol Hill. The U.S. Army never imported camels beyond the two shiploads brought back by Lieutenant Porter. Legacy of the Camel Corps The late 1850s was not a good time for a military experiment. The Congress was becoming increasingly fixated on the nations impending split over slavery. The great patron of the camel experiment, Jefferson Davis, returned to the U.S. Senate, representing Mississippi. As the nation moved closer to Civil War, its likely the last thing on his mind was the importation of camels. In Texas, the Camel Corps remained, but the once promising project encountered problems. Some of the camels were sent to remote outposts, to be used as pack animals, but some soldiers disliked using them. And there were problems stabling the camels near horses, who became agitated by their presence. In late 1857 an Army Lieutenant named Edward Beale was assigned to make a wagon road from a fort in New Mexico to California. Beale used about 20 camels, along with other pack animals, and reported that the camels performed very well. For the next few years Lieutenant Beale used camels during exploratory expeditions in the Southwest. And as the Civil War began his contingent of camels was stationed in California. Though the Civil War was known for some innovative experiments, such as the Balloon Corps, Lincolns use of the telegraph, and inventions such as ironclads, no one revived the idea of using camels in the military. The camels in Texas mostly fell into Confederate hands, and seemed to serve no military purpose during the Civil War. It is believed most of them were sold to traders and wound up in the hands of circuses in Mexico. In 1864 the federal herd of camels in California was sold to a businessman who then sold them to zoos and traveling shows. Some camels were apparently released into the wild in the Southwest, and for years cavalry troops would occasionally report seeing small groups of wild camels.

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Ethics In The Media Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ethics In The Media - Essay Example In order to establish this concept of ethics in media, the method of self-regulation is used. Self-regulation in essence, aims to set minimum standards on ethics to guarantee that journalists pertain to rules of conduct while representing information through the media. Ethics become necessary in this regard because any source of media would be regarded as untrustworthy by the people if it presents distorted information. In the current generation the high levels of competition in the media industry could result in severe losses. Many problems could arise due to not respecting the ethics in a particular situation. Ethics ensure a reliance on a culture that understands personal boundaries of people, refrains from lies and deceitful dealings and does not use unfair means to achieve personal gains (Chiyamaka 4). Applying ethics to media would obviously mean by extension that no social, moral or professional harm should be caused to those involved. When these ethics are applied in the form of rules, it would guarantee the general public that their private lives are respected and no personal harm is caused to any of them. The spirit of democracy is hampered if a code of ethics is not followed by the media because no freedom is present since, people are controlled through the watchful eyes of the media lurking to catch up on their every move. Therefore, the judgements should always be rational on the part of media, keeping in mind the fact that there are lives and sensitive matters such as the relationships between different countries involved (Chiyamwaka 3). A prominent book basically covered the idea of social and religious factors when it comes to ethics in the research media. A case was the recent publication of the cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad in a Danish Newspaper, which was an offence intended towards all Muslim readership (Ward & Wasserman 142-143).The whole idea that a religion is being disrespected is horrendous and does not respect any of the rules of et hics. This caused a tremendous outcry in the media and people carried out mass protests against this act because it went out rightly against a particular system of belief. This also occurred upon the planning of the international Burn the Quran Day (Ward & Wasserman 143-145). This was shown on different news channels without having a hint of hatred or realization that this act was wrong. The reason why this might be so popular in the United States is because of the reason that media has been given the same freedom as human beings. This is one of the articles in the constitution, which says: â€Å"Congress shall make no law†¦ abridging the freedom of speech or of the press† (Johnson et al 1). This was passed in 1971 as the 1st Amendment, in the Bill of Rights in the U. S. Constitution. According to this concept, the U. S. claims that every system has a presence of checks and balances. This means that the media will try to establish the fact that internal checks and balanc es will control and mishaps in the media (Johnson et al 4). Ethics are synonymous with fairness, justice, impartiality and their presentation of truth just as it is. These ethics play a significant role in shaping a society, especially for its reformation. The media plays a major role in the lives of people today all

Thursday, October 31, 2019

Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 218

Essay Example In addition to this, the book offers the guidance that is helpful to the students involved in academic writing for the purposes of the summary of the ideas and facts in a book (Gerald, Birkenstein, and Russel, 117). An academic writer will in this instance be able to sharpen his or her ideas. Bright ideas will make him or her learn the ways that can enable him or her express him or herself before others by using the original ideas from his or her mind. As a result, the academic writer, in this case, will develop a paper that is free from plagiarism (Gerald, Birkenstein, and Russel, 128). Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein consider academic writing as a recent research that outlines the processes used in writing through use of short chapters and understandable languages. In this way, the authors argue that academic writing will publish quality materials through use of these elements (Gerald, Birkenstein, and Russel, 145) Since the implementation of the Manitoba’s education policies in the Canadian education system, performance of the science and math’s related subjects has the worst record that also still continues to deteriorate as time continues to elapse (Behiels, 69). The results take place despite Manitoba spending on each K-12 student than any province in the country apart from Alberta (Levin, 74). Even the average student today can’t handle these subjects as was before since the introduction of the policies in the curriculum of the Canadian education. In this instance, the education authorities in the country exercised the mediocrity of the highest order in implementing the Manitoba education policies (Behiels, 87). The reason for this explanation of their level of mediocrity is that they implemented the policies without evaluating their impacts on the children. In addition to this, the officials also seem that received some bribery to ensure the implementation of the wro ng education policies in the system of Canadian education. As a result, it

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

The Ancient World Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Ancient World - Article Example Question 2.Through the Roman Literature and Art, we are able to learn a lot about how Roman women could have power through their ability to influence men so as to achieve their objectives. For instance in the Thucydides’, History of the Peloponnesian War, we learn the great role that the women played in the Peloponnesian War. Also, in Livy’s book, The History of Rome from its Foundation, (Gochberg, 338- 400), we see the great political influence that the Roman women had in the development of the Roman Empire. Also, in, Xenophon the Laws and Customs of the Spartans (Gochberg 160-172), we find the great roles that women played in the ancient Greece’s culture and politics through influencing men on various matters. Question 3. Roman culture has had lasting influence upon the neighbours of the Roman Empire. Some of the areas in which Roman culture has had lasting influence include in the areas of art, architecture, Religion and language. For instance in Demosthenes, First Philippic (B&L 247-251), we find how Hellenistic culture spread to all the neighbours of Greece. Also, in Livy’s book, The History of Rome from its Foundation, we find how the Greece politics influenced politics of the neighbours of Greece. ... Herodotus’ Histories explains how Roman -Spartan war took place in 195 BC., and lastly in the Livy’s book, The History of Rome from its Foundation, we see how war emerged following Rome’s attempt to impose their culture upon other people. Question 5. Emperors used religion to support their power. In his book, The Golden Age, Apuleius discusses how emperors used religion as a tool to support their power. This is also discussed by the Historian Josephus in, Jewish War (Mellor 331-345). We find the same discussion on this immoral behaviour of emperors in the book, The History of Rome from its Foundation, (Gochberg, 338- 400), by Livy. Part 2 Many ancient civilizations were characterized by one group of people being empowered through a marginalization of another group of people. The marginalization of one group of people by another was a result of a war in which the losers in war were made slaves by their conquerors. In this paper we are going to look at three groups of people who were continually marginalized by others. The three groups of people that we are going to look at and who were marginalized by their neighbours are the people of Macedonia, Spartans, and the Syrians. Marginalization of the Macedonians resulted from a war between the Romans and the Macedon state, led by Philip V (Robin and Mattern- Parkes, web). This war was fought in between the years 200-197. The result of the war was that King Philip of Macedon was defeated and he was forced to relinquish all his possessions in South of Greece. King Philip had, however, put up a very spirited resistance against the Romans although eventually he was defeated. Through this war, the people of Macedon were dominated and enslaved by the Romans. The result of this domination was

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Concept of Flexibility in Architecture

Concept of Flexibility in Architecture 1.0 Introduction An Overview Of The Terminology And The Conceptual Framework This chapter aims to define the meaning of the term ‘flexibility’, †Adaptability’ and ‘typological variety’ are the other concepts that related to ‘flexibility’. Both N.John Habraken (2008) and Tatjana Schneider and Jeremy Till (2007) mention that flexibility and adaptability have overlapping meanings,but the colloquial and the technical meaning can provide a departure point for their clarification and the conceptual framework of the study. The meaning of the typological variety is more obvious, it points to freedom of choice (Duygu Albostan, 2009) The English colloquial usage of the word â€Å"flexibility† is : capabilities of being bent,pliancy. Susceptibility of modification or alteration; capacity for readily adaptation to various purposes or conditions;freedom from stiffness or rigidity. (Oxford English Dictionary Online,2009) It is important to refer professional or researchers who point out the technical meanings of the concept of flexibility ,according to their changing senses over time. Andrew Rabeneck, David Sheppard and Peter Town published two articles related to flexibility and adaptability. The articled entitled â€Å"Housing Flexibility† (1973) and â€Å"Housing Flexibility/Adaptability?† (1974) â€Å"Flexibility†is proposed against â€Å"tight-fit functionalism† (p.698) They introduced the term †tight-fit functionalism† that refers to the unhealthy situation of mass housing in the twentieth century of Europe.They explain it as miniaturized living areas with the cell types rooms which do not allow any changes(1973,p.698) The unsuccessful attempts in flexibility are criticized for they may lead to what they call the ‘fallacy of freedom through control†.(1973,p.701) Flexibility housing should be capable of offering â€Å"choice† and â€Å"personalization†. (1973,p.701) Rabeneck, Sheppard and Town involve the scope of flexibility in housing project. They see flexibility as a tool to make the minimal housing environments capable of offering for ‘choice’ and ‘personalization’. They criticize flexibility can lead to too technical or complicated housing projects. The adaptability approach,in contrast to the flexible,emphasizes planning and layout rather than constructional technique and services distribution.It is based on carefully considered variations in room sizes, relationship between rooms,slightly generous openings between spaces and little overt expression of room function.(Rabeneck, Sheppard Town, 1974, p.86) Rabeneck, Sheppard and Town claim that flexibility relates to design decisions about the permanent and fixed parts of the building:the structural system and service spaces, whilst adaptability related to consideration about the architectural layouts of the remaining spaces such as the organization of the rooms, their dimensions, the relation between the rooms and their functions. The concept of flexibility deals with the ‘constructional technique and services distribution†. (1974, p.86) As previous, they claim the flexibility related to structural system and services spaces, in â€Å"Housing Flexibility/Adaptability?† (1974) they again emphasize on the construction technique and the position of service spaces. They also compare the flexibility with adaptability. They claim that adaptability more towards the architectural layout. Herman Hertzberger emphasized the importance of the concept of flexibility in architectural design in his book entitled Lessons for Students in Architecture (1991). According to Hertzberger flexibility suggest and open-ended solution,which refers to what is called ‘rhetotic value’of flexibility that defines by Schneider and Till (2005). Flexibility signifies-since there is no single solution that is preferable to all others-the absolute denial of a fixed, clearcut standpoint. The flexible plan starts out from the certainly that correct solution does not exist Although a flexible set-up admittedly adapts itself to each change as it presents itself, it can never be the best and most suitable to any one problem;it can at any given moment provide any solution but most appropriate one. (1991, p.146) From Hertzberger’s perspective, flexibility refers to the caple of proposing different solutions for diverse users with no certain single solution but most appropriate one. He discussed flexibility in a different perspective by introducing the term ‘polyvalence’ which means a characteristic of a static form, a form that can be put into different users without having undergo changes itself, so that a minimal flexibility can still produce an optimal solution. (1991, p.147) Steven Groà ¡k discussed the difference between flexibility between flexibility and adaptability from a different perspective in his book entitled The Idea Of Building: Though and Action in the Design and Production of Buildings (1992). The spatial organization and internal environment may be suitable for only a limited array of uses. Here we should distinguish between ‘adaptability’, taken to means †capable of different social uses†, and â€Å"flexibility†, taken to means â€Å"capability of different physical arrangement†. The building’s capacity for accommodating changed uses will depend on the extent to which it is adaptable and/or flexible. (Groà ¡k, 1992, p.15-17) Groà ¡k tries to explain the the adaptability related to the use of space whilst flexibility refers to different physical arrangement.He emphasize that flexibility is valid not only for interior but also for the exterior adjustments. In this respect,it can be inferred that Groà ¡k agrees with the definition of Rabeneck, Sheppard and Town. Gerard Maccreanor explained the relation between the concepts of flexibility and adaptability by emphasizing the flexibility includes adaptability as well.(1998) Flexibility is a â€Å"designed idea that leads to the collapse of the traditional layout†. (1998, p.40) Adaptability is a different way of viewing flexibility.The adaptable building is both transfunctional and multifunctional and must be allow the possibility of changing use; living into working,working into leisure or as a container of several uses simultaneously. Adaptability is not primarily concerned with a designed idea of flexibility based on the collapse of the traditional layout. An apparent robust identity and enduring presence within an urban context is required that allows the building to cope with future needs and changing conditions. (Maccreanor, 1998, p.40) Flexibility has for a long time been a subject of interest for architects. In the years to follow this resulted in many buildings with open, changeable planning around fixed service cores.One conclusion is that flexibility doesn’t simply imply the necessity of endless change and breakdown of accepted formula. On the contrary, the buildings that have proven to be the most adaptable, were those not originally planned for flexibility. (Maccreanor, 1998, p.40) Maccreanor points out flexibility is neither a characteristic of indeterminate space that allows â€Å"endless change†, nor is it a characteristic of detrminate space with too much technical equipments.In other words, if architects leave thir buildings open for infinitely different solutions for the users;they lead to â€Å"open-endedness † (Scheneider Till, 2005, p.158) and â€Å"uncertainty† (Hertzberger, 1991, p.117). By the same token,if architects put more emphasis on flexibility through building with movable partition, they will create â€Å"false neutrality† as a result of too much technical or strictly defined spaces (Schneider Till, Theory, 2005, p.158). They are the two controversial approaches to flexibility in architectural design that belong rather to â€Å"the rhetoric of flexibility† by Schneider Till (2007, p.5) Gerard Maccreanor has a different view about flexibility. He said that flexibility does not imply ‘an endless change’. He also asserted that the building which are not originally design for flexibility, can be the most adaptable one. Adrian Forty (2000) deals with flexibility as an issue that requires long-term thinking in architectural design. The incorporation of â€Å"flexibility† into the design allowed architects the illusion of projecting their control over the building into the future, beyond the period of their actual responsibility for it. (Forty, 2000, p.143) The confusion in meaning of â€Å"flexibility† is based on two contradictory roles: †it has served to extend functionalism and so make it variable† and â€Å"it has been employed to resist functionalism. (200, p.148)

Friday, October 25, 2019

Book Review of Fiddling for Norway: Revival and Identity, by Chris Goer

Missing Figures Book Review of Fiddling for Norway: Revival and Identity, by Chris Goertzen. After extensive field research in Norway, Chris Goertzen explores and sorts a folk genre, which by nature resists tidy taxonomy. Fiddling for Norway: Revival and Identity is a successful ethnographic documentation of a musical tradition that is learned primarily by insiders through oral/aural channels and by customary example. Implicitly he asks: how can a book culture audience understand a tradition that does not depend on notation for maintenance or transmission? Likewise, how might we classify a collection of such music? He begins by describing in detail how the revival of Norwegian fiddling took place in the later nineteenth century and what its dimensions and scope have been up to the present. Goertzen’s field methods include participant-observation of local and national fiddle contests in Norway, starting with a year-long stay, while teaching at the University of Trondheim in 1988-1989. He attended the District Fiddle Contest in 1988, the largest national fiddle contest for the normal fiddle, in Rà ¸ros. There he was able to hear and record players from around the country play two contrasting tunes each, which gave Goertzen a large collection to consider. He later returned to Norway during the summers of 1991 and 1993 and conducted interviews, made more field recordings, and mined the largest archive of music for the fiddle, Rà ¥det for Folkemusikk og Folkdans (the Council for Folk Music and Folk Dance), at the University of Trondheim for past interviews and field collections. Goertzen points out that the archival holdings privilege the oldest of musicians and repertories, indicating a belief of Norwegian scholars that â€Å"the pres... ...luable book with appeal for ethnomusicologists, scholars of Scandinavian and European culture, historians, and lay audiences. As Goertzen says, these fiddlers, their large repertoires, and the holdings in archives comprise a diachronic living museum of enormous size. Chris Goertzen has done the English-reading public a great service by producing such a splendid study of this lively folk institution. Works Cited Cowdery, James R. 1990. The Melodic Tradition of Ireland. Kent, OH: Kent State University Press. Geertz, Clifford. 1988. Works and Lives: The Anthropologist as Author, pp. 1-24. Stanford: Stanford University Press. Fiddling for Norway: Revival and Identity, by Chris Goertzen. University of Chicago Press, 1997. ISBN 0-226-30049-8 (cloth), 0-226-30050-1 (paper), notation, bibliography, index, 16 figures, 17 plates, xv, 347 pp. Cloth $57, paper $22.50

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Literature Essay

Narrative- â€Å"Only Daughter† by Sandra Cisneros In â€Å"Only Daughter,† Sandra describes her struggled life of being an only daughter of a Mexican-American family with six sons. She uses Spanish words to explain her family’s background and tradition. She explains how she accomplished her goal because of father wanting her to get married. She explains her life with past and recent events. Description- â€Å"Words left Unspoken† by Leah Hager Cohen In the story â€Å"Words Left Unspoken,† Leah describes her relationship with her grandfather. Leah describes thoroughly what her grandpa would do to catch her attention, or to speak to them without having to talk. She also explains how her grandmother, father lived in a small place where you couldn’t even stretch out your arms without hitting the other person in the room. Comparison and contrast- â€Å"Two Ways to Belong in America† by Bharati Mukherjee In the story â€Å"Two Ways to Belong in America,† Bharati describes her sisters and her relationship. They are on different sides of in the debate over the status of immigrants. Mukherjee tells us the differences between her sisters and herself live since they had gotten in America. She makes the essay with sympathy saying that she believed that people that worked in the U.S. should be able to become immigrants. Classification and Division- â€Å"Mothers Tongue† by Amy Tan In the story â€Å"Mother Tongue,† Amy describes how she changes the way she speaks when she’s with her mother. She and her husband don’t notice when she changes English because they are so used to it. Amy also explains how her mother’s tongue was the one to help her get her senses with the world.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

China’s One Child Policy

The policy was put onto place In 1979 as â€Å"an aggressive effort to Improve standards of living and the economy through population control† (CNN). The initial policy that was put into place was much stricter than the policy most people are familiar with now. This is because the original plan was meant to be short-term (only a couple of decades), however it's success of preventing nearly 400 million births made China leaders think twice about terminating the plan altogether and instead revised the policy Into what it is today (CNN).This essay will be breaking down the one child policy by looking Into a variety f different aspects such as; the company that oversees the policy and what rewards or punishments they hand out, the baby boomers effect on the policy and the reason the leaders implemented it, and prior attempts to control the population. As well as the current population standings, the well-known daughter to son ratio problem, how it affected one families plan, and c urrent feelings by the locals towards the policy. The one-child policy Is known by those that abide by It as the â€Å"family planning policy. Understanding the policy In China Is difficult as there are many exceptions and rules. The family planning policy states that married urban couples are only allowed one child. However, exceptions include rural families, ethnic minorities, couples who themselves only have one sibling, and foreigners residing in China. According to Maria Trichina, the NIFOC (The National Population and Family Planning Commission of China), Is a state agency responsible for overseeing population control, reproductive health and family planning across China.The NIFOC was created to help families make decisions about their child, designate rewards to abiding families, and enforce penalties when it is disobeyed. Everyone who falls under the policy in China is personally responsible to practice family planning and use proper contraceptive methods. Those that play b y the rules are offered a number of perks such as special financial assistance, longer maternity and honeymoon breaks, â€Å"Certificate of Honor for Single-Child Parents,† loans, along with other rewards.Those that disobey the strict law can be fined up to half of their annual household income or be subject to confiscation of their household items. The â€Å"excess† children themselves may personally be subject to health and education disadvantages. Trichina) All of these penalties and rewards make having a single child very attractive and make most couples not even consider having a second child. The way the policy is set up Is very smart and lucrative, making nearly 97% of the country follow It's guidelines. Hays) 1979 as the â€Å"baby boomers† of the sass's and ass's were beginning to reproduce. The reason for the sudden worry of the population in China came when leaders realized that China was home to a quarter of the world's population on Just 7 percent o f the world's land (Hester). The population increase during the sass through 1979 introduced a large number of problems in China. With such a rapid increase, came the government's inability to provide for its citizens the way China's citizens were used to the way that was previously possible.Also, leadership argued that rapid population growth would â€Å"retard achievement of the four modernization (industry, agriculture, science and technology, and defense) by hampering attainment of full employment and by cutting into increases in capital accumulation, living standards, and education† (Bonaparte) The rule was implemented in order to return the country AAA higher standard of living, education, and economic reform.Because the long term effects of the policy have not been felt and there are still a number of people in China that were born before the policy, it is uncertain if China's goals to make a better life for its citizens have been fulfilled. Judging by the number of ch ildren born under the one child policy that plan to follow it with their own families, the policy obviously has its perks. But before this law was enforced, a number of other options were attempted. A number of other options were researched and attempted before the law went into effect, many failed efforts to control the population took place.Although the policy seems harsh, the one child policy was not implemented on a whim. In 1971 the Chinese government introduced a birth-limitation campaign called â€Å"longer-later- fewer. † In this plan men and women would have longer periods between the births of their children, wait until they were older to have their first child, and have fewer than the average children. Fewer than average was three children if you were a rural dwelling couple and 2 for those in the Urbana (Bonaparte).Due to the lack of success f that program, the decision was made to limit couples to having Just two children in the year 1977, followed by Just one ch ild in 1979. China will maintain its one-child policy for at least another decade as nearly 200 million Chinese will enter child- bearing age over the next 10 years. Minister Ghana Weighing told the China Daily newspaper, abandoning the policy during this period would cause â€Å"serious problems and add extra pressure on social and economic development. However, the exact details of the continued policy will be less strict and will include exceptions and options such as being able to apply for certificates to allow the birth of a second child. Another revision of the policy has not yet been started, however the grip is a lot less tight and more families are able to have more than one child while still following the rules, and falling under the exceptions. The successes of the policy can be seen in the current population standings versus where the country was headed prior to the policy beginning.It is hard to reflect what the exact population goals were and what the current populat ion is as a number of sources contradict each other yet each claim to be en discontinued in China in the late sass and since population counts have been restarted in 1975 they have never been referred to as reliable. This shows that the population goal was not set in stone and that the actual population in China is unknown. According to sources, the estimated population in China has been continually growing since 1953 when the death rate began falling significantly and the birthrate increased, creating a 2. 8 percent population growth rate.The increase was initially embraced by the public and the leaders of China saw the population growth as part of the countries strength. A growing population following hundreds of years of war, epidemics, rebellions and the collapse of imperial authority was a welcomed change. (Kane) However, when the reality of the increasing population hit home and the effects of the growing population started effecting communities, the policy began being designe d. When it was introduced, it is said the leaders had a goal in mind; in 1979 they hoped the population of China, in the year 2000, would be at approximately 1. Billion. The 2000 census showed the population at 1. 27 billion, however many people argue that this is an underestimate because the census neuters in China is the same committee that is meant to be in charge of population control. Whether the population actually decreased or not is hard to say, but what has been proven is that per woman, the fertility rate has dropped from 2. 9 children, down to 1. 7. (Hester) China's population, which now stands at about 1. 3 billion, is growing at the rate of 0. 6 percent and is expected to peak around 1. 6 billion by 2050, according to the U. S. State Department. CNN) Following the peak, it is expected to drop off drastically resulting in the population numbers desired by leaders in China. As a whole, the policy has helped prevent approximately 250 million births since 1979. The greatest difference in population has come from those in urban areas, as those in rural settings are less keen on the rule. Although the rule only officially applies to those living in urban areas, couples in rural landscapes are also advised and sometimes pressured to follow the one child policy as well. Even before the rule went into effect, nearly 90% of urban couples had already decided to have only one child.This was in part due to the small living spaces and the hours Chinese workers are expected to put into a Job. Add to that the exhausting tasks of caring for a family and the majority of couples can't fathom having more than one child. Rural families, on the other hand, need larger families to financially support them as they grow older as they tend to have limited savings and no pensions (Kane). Discouragements of larger families include â€Å"financial levies on each additional child and sanctions which ranged from social pressure to curtailed career prospects for those in govern ment Jobs† (Kane).Specific measures varied across each individual community, but in a tight knit community, the pressure o adhere to the one-child policy is high. Having what they call â€Å"unapproved pregnancies† which are children that are not approved by the family planning authorities, can bring problems to more than Just the defiant family. For example, if a couple was to have an unapproved pregnancy in a community and this birth caused the community to exceed the yearly birth quota, then other families who had previously been approved to have a child, would have to wait until the next year and families in China.Not only do families feel pressure in having children, they also feel pressure in the gender of the child they have. A well-known effect caused by the one child policy in China, is the preference of having a son over a daughter. Before the policy was implemented, the ratio was about 105 males to every 100 females overall in China, but currently the ratio s tands at 114 males to every 100 females. The desire to have a son rather than a daughter is due to the tradition that in the parents' old age, the daughter moves in with the parents of the son to care for them.In the event that a daughter is born instead off son, families abiding by the one child rule, more often peasants, dispose of the infant RL and try again, this time hoping for a son. This practice is called sex selective infanticide. Another well-known reason to dispose of the daughter is so that when the child grows up and tries to start a family, the families' last name tied with the daughter won't have a chance to be tarnished by a daughter breaking the one child policy. Beliefs in China are that an infant does not own life until they are six months old; therefore getting rid of the infant daughter is not seen as a crime.The method used, most commonly by the father, is to place the infant in a bucket of cold water that Chinese refer to as â€Å"baby water†. In a stud y done in 1980, for every 1000 infants being born across China, 53 were being disposed of, but in the rural areas of the country, the ratio was much higher (Kane). In some communities of China, one out of every three daughters born are disposed of. The boy to girl ratio proves to be troubling for China in the future, but as of now, no measures are being taken to prevent this common practice. Families struggle to decide whether to keep the daughter or try again for another, in hopes that it is a boy.Many people were frustrated when the rule was set in place in 1979. Going from the â€Å"longer-later- ewer† rule that did allow more than one child, Just a certain amount of space between each birth (usually 3 years), to having Just one child, ruined a lot of couple's family plans. Especially those who had already had one child, a girl, and were planning on trying again later for a boy. Most couples had to accept the plan and were â€Å"plagued† with the reality that their one child would be a girl and would likely leave them in their old age. But some couples broke the new rule, and tried for a son.Penalties faced for having another child included losing workforce â€Å"points† and even personal belongings. Some locals surveyed say it was worth it, but others, who had a daughter a second time, are now even more devastated. The only way to gain back those points and reclaim their confiscated items is for the woman to be permanently fixed by a licensed doctor. Almost all couples breaking the rule and having a second child are forced to undergo such procedures. For traditional families, it can be heartbreaking. However, for a number of more modern families, the policy is becoming understood and even accepted.Some say having only one child ensures better care, including better nutrition, dress, education, and more attention. These modern couples embrace the one child rule, understanding that â€Å"the best care can be given to a child when there is only one child to care for† (Ghana). Modern couples understand the policy and some even chose to undergo the procedure after their first child to avoid being punished. These are the government or NIFOC. While there are some that agree and abide, there are still some that will fight it until it is taken out of practice.Those that fight it may not be beneficiaries of some of the positive results the policy has produced. Even some of the only daughters are enjoying benefits that, without the policy, would not have existed. Since the policy implementation over 30 years ago, a number of children born under the one child policy are now adults. Feelings towards the policy are across the board, but the statistics are not. A number of studies done show that children born under the policy, especially girls, tend to have a better life than those with multiple siblings.One obvious reason for that is the family with one child is not scolded by the government with fees, income confiscati on and other humiliations. But in the studies there are other reasons that children are better off as an only child. For example, â€Å"many one child families are made of two parents and one gather. With no male heir competing for resources, parents have spent more on their daughters' education and well-being, a groundbreaking shift after centuries of discrimination† says Jeffery Hays, an expert on the one child policy.In 1978, women made up only 24. 2 percent of the student population at Chinese colleges and universities. By 2009, nearly half of China's full-time undergraduates were women and 47 percent of graduate students were female, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. (Hays) This is the first time in China's history that school enrollment between males and females are near equal. So, although the policy might be hard to understand and frowned upon by many, the statistics can't be denied, having Just one child in China ensures that child a better life.In stud ying and reading of the family planning policy in China I believe that it is a very difficult rule to dissect. There are obvious reasons that the policy was set into place, and had it not been implemented, the population of China would have far outgrown the resources that country has to offer. I think the biggest issue that comes into play is the tradition of sons moving in with their parents to care for them. This is the largest reason that the surviving birth rate of females is so low and males is so high.It is hard to say to abandon the tradition and have elderly care in a home or find another way, however in China, the act of a tradition so strong between families it makes that idea unrealistic. I do think that something needs to be done that alters the tradition into something that welcomes both males and females into the world before China is overrun by males and the men to women ratio is even worse than it currently is. Overall I think the policy had to happen and it would no t be horrible if other entries took this idea into consideration.