Julius Caesar- Brutus Cassius Who Is the better leader

In William Shakespeare?s Julius Caesar, Brutus and Cassius are very influential characters. Each character makes many mistakes with the assassination plans and the strategies at Philippi. Each man has his reasons for their mistakes, if it is either their idealism, being uncompassionate or not, fully thinking for their actions. Brutus and Cassius are very contrasting people; one man is better suited to be a leader of a battle and an Empire, than the other. That man is: Marcus Brutus. Although Brutus makes many consequential mistakes, his errors are made because his nobleness outranks his intelligence. Whereas for Cassius, his mistakes are made from poor decision making. Brutus himself knows that he is often too honourable and not as†¦show more content†¦Cassius has no morals like the Brutus does. We learn a lot about the ?evil, mischievous, deceptive? Cassius in one of his soliloquy. He reflects on the weakness of Brutus and how he is better than Brutus. He says that is he had been Brutus and Brutus him, he would not of joined the conspiracy. ?Well, Brutus, thou art noble; yet I see, / Thy honourable mettle may be wrought / ?If I were Brutus now, and he were Cassius, / he should not humour me.? (Act I Scene II, L. 308 ? 309, 314 ? 315). In the same soliloquy we learn that he is a very deceptive person. He decides that he will throw letters into Brutus?s house, chair that he as wrote. Brutus will think the letters are from citizens, who disagree with Caesar and the future of Rome. ?I will this night/ In several hands, in at his window throw, / As if they came from several citizens, / Writings, all tending the great opinion / That Rome holds of his name; wherein obscurely / Caesar?s ambition shall be glanced at:? (Act I, Scene II, L315 ? 320.) Deceptiveness is one of Cassius gr eatest strengths. A man who is as deceptive as Cassius is not fit to lead a battle, not to mention an Empire. They have one final obvious reason why Cassius is indisputably not suited for leader is that in troubled times he loses control, and does not know what to do. Before the assassination Cassius is veryShow MoreRelatedNiccolo Machiavellis The Prince and Shakespeares Julius Caesar958 Words   |  4 Pageslessons idealistic and unrealistic for leaders. Machiavelli wrote his book, The Prince, to show the ruling Meddici family that the world is not a fairy tale. Prior to Machiavelli writing The Prince, the majority of books depicted people as virtuous and ethical. However, The Prince is not the only work of literature that manifests Machiavellian techniques. William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar utilizes similar methods. As shown in Julius Caesar and The Prince, a leader who follows Machiavelli’s advice willRead MoreJulius Caesar Character Analysis1546 Words   |  7 Pagesplays, The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, it demonstrates that being too trusting of someone could end with b ad consequences. In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, one of the main characters, Brutus, trusted his best friend, Cassius, with everything. Brutus trusted that Cassius was right about him being a new ruler of Rome, how killing Caesar would make a safer and better living space for the community, and that the people would support Brutus while he was leading. Cassius saw that Brutus trusted him. He knewRead MoreA Historical Overview Of Julius Caesar Essay1452 Words   |  6 PagesA Historical Overview of Julius Caesar (Shakespeare style) The fate of a nation determined by one man. With classic alliances and betrayals, the tale of Julius Caesar is still regarded as one of the greatest betrayals in human history. The fate of Rome was heading toward a dictatorship. Only the Roman Republic could stop Julius Caesar from ruling Rome. Little did the Roman Republic know that this assassination would later cause Octavian Caesar to become the first Emperor of the Roman Empire in 27Read MoreExamples Of Envy In Julius Caesar838 Words   |  4 Pagesplay Julius Caesar written by legendary playwright, William Shakespeare. Brutus and Cassius, Julius Caesars good friends are envious of the love Casaer is shown by the romans and they are willing to throw aside friendship and loyalty because of envy which propels them into the action of killing Caesar for power and praise. Envy is easy and almost always evident in the hunt for power in Julius Caesar, this is evident in Brutus’s motives for killing Caesar, Cassius motives for k illing Caesar and AntonysRead MoreThe Action Of Leading A Group Or An Organization1143 Words   |  5 Pagesgood leader is a person who has diligently worked hard for themselves, has good communication,confidence,commitment, and intuition. Brutus, a tragic hero in the play, Julius Caesar, is a great example who has some significant good and bad leadership and language qualities. He is one of the â€Å"conspirators† whose main intention of murdering Julius caesar was because of the well-being of Rome. He was brainwashed and manipulated by the cunning, Cassius. He was very shrewd and didn’t want Julius CaesarRead MoreMarcus Brutus: Shakespeares Tragic Hero in The Tragedy of Julius Caesar1238 Words   |  5 Pagesillustrates Marcus Brutus as a tragic hero in the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. Shakespeare defines tragic hero as a flawed character who has good fortune, and then loses all he has prized, leading to his misfortune, but a tragic hero must have that momen t of enlightenment, that moment where a character can see that he caused his own downfall and receives the blame for his own tragedy. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar is based on an historical event- the assassination of Julius Caesar; however, theRead More Brutus is the Tragic Hero in Shakespeares Julius Caesar Essay927 Words   |  4 Pages The tragedy â€Å"Julius Caesar† by William Shakespeare should be renamed â€Å"Brutus† because Caesar is not the tragic hero. He is only in a small portion of the play and does not possess a major tragic flaw; however Marcus Brutus fits the description of tragic hero much better than Julius Caesar. Typically, tragedies are named after the tragic hero, which Aristotle describes as: a person of noble birth with a tragic flaw that leads to his or her downfall because of that flaw. Brutus exhibits all of theseRead MoreThe Tragic Hero Of Marcus Junius Brutus Minor Essay1418 Words   |  6 Pages27, 2015 Tragic hero Marcus Junius Brutus Minor was the son of Marcus Junius Brutus Maior and Servilia Caepionis. His father was killed by Pompey the Great in dubious circumstances after he had taken part in the rebellion of Lepidus; his mother was the half-sister of Cato the Younger, and later Julius Caesar s mistress. Some sources refer to the possibility of Caesar being his real father,despite Caesar s being only 15 years old when Brutus was born. Brutus uncle, Quintus Servilius Caepio, adoptedRead MoreTragic Flaw of Brutus678 Words   |  3 PagesThe play Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare, entails the rise and fall of Julius Caesar and Brutus, the man plotting against him. At the opening of the play Julius is being celebrated for his victory over Pompey. Later, he is offered kingship; but Caesar refuses the crown. On the ides of March Brutus and some other men come before Caesar to plead a case; except, their only motive is to kill Caesar. Antony, Caesar’s right hand man, pretends to sid e with the conspirators after Caesar is killed,Read More Julius Caesar Essay1688 Words   |  7 PagesJulius Caesar William Shakespeare has written many plays that touched millions of people throughout the centuries. His works are still the most controversial ones favored by many Literature critics because his plays generate spontaneous debates on issues such as friendship, revenge, human ambitions and moralities that lead to dynamic discussion among people. In the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, friendship vs. duty is one of the major themes that is developed. Ones struggle over the choice

Essay about Absurdism in The Stranger by Albert Camus

The Stranger by Albert Camus focuses largely on the concept of absurdism. Camus uses family and personal relationships, or the lack of it thereof, to show the isolation that the main character, Meursault, undergoes in the novel and it’s effect on him overall. Camus utilizes the protagonists’ character development as a tool to further his plot of the novel. The absence of family and personal relationships tied in with the particular recurring topics of the novel are crucial in both the development of the protagonists’ characters as well as the plot as it affects the portrayal of the main character. Towards the beginning, Camus introduces the absence of family, thereby beginning the character development of the protagonists in their†¦show more content†¦This excerpt from the novel shows his overall attitude towards the death of his mother, not wanting to see her for the last time before she is gone forever, which leads the reader to question the personalit y of this man. With the death of Ramone’s dog, Meursault â€Å"realized [Ramone] was crying† which in turn led him to â€Å"[think] of Mama†. However, he overcomes this thought by telling himself that â€Å"[he] had to get up early the next morning† and therefore â€Å"[he} went to bed without any dinner†. Camus incorporates the death of Ramone’s dog in order to once again display the strong contrast between Ramone’s reaction to his dog’s death compared to Meursault’s reaction to his mother’s death. Ramone is mourning over a member such as his dog passing away, and on ther other hand Meursault is indifferent towards the death of his mother. This greatly works in the development of the plot of the novel throughout the novel as he is indifferent towards other aspects of society as well and is condemned for his attitude towards his mother when he is put through trial. Keeping this in mind is essential in the understa nding of some ideas presented later on in the novel. Furthermore, Camus uses family and personal relationships as a way to develop the protagonists’ isolation in the novel, working in providing context for the developing plot. In The Stranger, the author uses this methodologyShow MoreRelatedAbsurdism In The Stranger, By Albert Camus983 Words   |  4 Pages The novel The Stranger written by The French author Albert Camus was published in 1942. The author wrote about what he felt and his views on the world and society. He had very unconventional ideas about morality and believed that life has no rational meaning. These ideas and thoughts are what make this book absurd and very eccentric. Camus philosophy led to what was later known as Absurdism. Absurdism is the need to look for a meaning to life and their inability to find one In theRead MoreDefinition Of Absurdism In The Stranger By Albert Camus1490 Words   |  6 Pagesdefinition of absurdism is stated on Merriam-Webster dictionary as the â€Å"philosophy theory about the belief that the universe is irrational and meaningless, the search for order brings the individual into conflict with the universe† ( Merriam Webster). The absurdist philosopher Albert Camus once supported the philosophical belief by saying an individuals should embrace the absurd condition of human existence while also defiantly continuing to explore and search for meaning (Albert Camus). Camus is knownRead MoreThe Topic of Defiance of Societal Rules in The Stranger Through Absurdism1018 Words   |  5 PagesThe Stranger by Albert Camus there is a prevalence of characters breaking societal rules, but as a result these characters face the consequences. Albert Camus connects these actions to the overarching themes of the books in order to convey his message more effective ly. To what extent does the topic of defiance of societal rules in The Stranger convey the theme of Absurdism in the novel? The sub-themes of femininity, individuality, and isolation connect to the overarching theme of absurdism as anRead MoreAlberts Aimless Absurdity898 Words   |  4 PagesIn Albert Camus’ novella, The Stranger, he exposes his beliefs on absurdism through the narration of Meursault. Camus’ definition of absurdism is a philosophy based on the belief that the universe is illogical and meaningless. Camus, founder of absurdism and French Nobel Prize winning author, sends the reader his underlying theme that life is meaningless and has no ulti-mate significance. This underlying theme of life’s absurdity is extremely personal to Camus through his own individual experiencesRead MoreLiterary Analysis: How Meursault Is Indifferent in the Stranger, by Albert Camus874 Words   |  4 PagesLiterary analysis: How Meursault is indifferent in The Stranger, by Albert Camus Although Meursault is the title character and narrator of Albert Camus’ short novel The Stranger, he is also a somewhat flat character. His apparent indifferent demeanor may be a convenience to Camus, who mainly wanted to display his ideas of absurdism. And as a flat character, Meursault is not fully delineated: he lacks deep thought and significant change. His purpose is that of a first-person narrator whose actionsRead MoreAnalysis Of Meursault A Stranger To Society1026 Words   |  5 Pagesrealizes how meaningless and pointless life is and accepts his fate- wishing only that the crowds would scream their hate for him on the day of his execution. Albert Camus accurately depicts Meursault as a stranger to society, to himself, and to human emotions in general, while arguing for the philosophy of absurdism. Meursault is a stranger to human emotions. In Part I, preceding Maman’s funeral, Meursault sits by the window in his apartment. He makes observations of the happenings on the streetRead MoreThe Rebel by Albert Camus787 Words   |  3 PagesAlbert Camus and the Notion of Rebel Published in 1951, ‘The Rebel’ by Camus traces the concept of ‘man in revolt’ through history and literature and history. Camus offers his perspectives on society and where the limits of governance should be set. Looking at various incidents in the course of history, Camus makes special mention of his life-long, passionate battle against the cruelty of capital punishment, and murder by trial. Camus also mention the support Communism gives to such judgment evenRead MoreThemes of The Stranger by Albert Camus1439 Words   |  6 Pages Is there any logical meaning of living? Is life worth living? These are the main questions that Albert Camus attempts to answer throughout the novel The Stranger. Albert Camus is a French-born Algerian who lived through the conflict between the French and the Algerians in the mid 20th century which later erupted into a formal war. Camus won nobel prizes for his writing, which delineates many philosophical ideas. Meursault, the ma in protagonist of the novel, lives life as a physical being and showsRead MoreThe Stranger By Albert Camus1411 Words   |  6 PagesThe novel The Stranger, written by Albert Camus, encompasses contemporary philosophies of existentialism and absurdism. Existentialist and absurdist philosophies entail principles regarding that one’s identity is not based on nature or culture, but rather by sole existence. The role of minor characters in The Stranger helps to present Camus’s purpose to convey absurdist and existentialist principles. The characters of Salamano and Marie are utilized in order to contrast the author’s ideas about contemporaryRead MoreAnalysis Of The Absurd 1184 Words   |  5 PagesThe Absurd It is safe to say the idea of absurdism can be linked to meaningless, and other such words that express a destination without the means to there and vice versa. In Camus’ famous fictional novel, he shows how one’s perception of life can be effected when faced with death. The Stranger reflects Camus’ philosophical stance on absurdism. There is no truth, no certainty, or any unwavering, non-relative laws in life. There is no sense in pursuing impossibilities. But if life is in a sense pointless

Comparing the Views on Abortion of Thompson and Marquis free essay sample

Judith Jarvis Thompson and Don Marquis both have markedly different views on the topic of abortion. Thompson generally argues that there are cases where abortion may be morally permissible, due to the rights of the mother, while Marquis argues that abortion is almost always morally wrong, except under extraordinary circumstances, because the fetus has a future life. In this paper, I will evaluate the arguments of both parties, as well as identify what premises, if any, they both agree on. In addition, I will supply my own reasoning for why I believe that Marquis presents the more successful argument. The general philosophical problem discussed between Thompson and Marquis is whether or not abortion is morally permissible, and, if so, under which conditions abortion could be seen as morally permissible. In â€Å"A Defense of Abortion,† Thompson begins by stating the traditional argument against abortion used by Conservatives, which states that the fetus is a person and that killing a person is, in essence, murder, and thus morally wrong. She then provides her â€Å"Violinist Argument,† where a person has been kidnapped and connected to the circulatory system of a famous violinist. The violinist has a disease that can only be cured if their blood is filtered through the kidneys of the â€Å"donor† for nine months. Thompson argues that, while doing so would be a very nice gesture, it is not expected of the donor and therefor it would not be morally wrong if the person decided to unplug his or herself from the violinist and cause the violinist to die. (353) Thompson bases this off of the premise that doing so would not be violating his right to life, but would simply be denying him the use of the donor’s body, which is something that he does not have any rights to. Next, Thompson follows up the argument about the violinist with her argument about the expanding child: A mother is trapped inside of a house with a rapidly growing child and will be crushed to death within minutes unless she decides to kill the child. This argument brings up the possibility of a third party intervening and killing the child so that the mother is saved. This is likened to pregnancy, where a doctor may or may not agree to perform an abortion. Because of this, the mother would be denied her full rights and  the right to decide what is done to her body. Because the mother has no reason to be threatened by the fetus, and the fetus has no reason to threaten the mother, both parties are innocent. (356) Therefore, a third party should not be able to intervene and decide, in essence, who lives and who dies. By likening the house to the mother’s body during pregnancy, Thompson also brings up the idea that the mother is the â€Å"owner† of the house, which opens up the possibility that the mother’s desire to do as she pleases with her own body carries more weight than the fetus’s right to life because the mother is already allowing the fetus to use her body. Thus, a third party should not be able to make any decisions about an abortion and the mother should be the only one to decide whether or not a fetus is to be aborted. Lastly, Thompson gives her â€Å"people-seeds† argument in which small seeds drift through the air and can sprout into a person if it becomes attached to carpet or upholstery inside of a home. In this argument, a woman buys the best mesh screens (a metaphor for birth control) that are designed to keep out the seeds, but as it is possible, a screen is defective and lets a people-seed into the home. This, being a metaphor for voluntary intercourse where a woman is aware of the inherent risks of pregnancy, argues that, even though a woman may become pregnant unintentionally, that does not necessarily mean that the fetus has a right to the body of the mother. She uses an analogy of an intruder to show this: just because a woman opens a window, knowing that someone could enter through it, does not rob her of her right to rid her house of an intruder if one would happen to enter. This is likened to rape, where a woman would retain her right to remove a fetus from her body. Thompson identifies that some opponents of her argument would say that someone could simply choose to live in a home with bare floors and furniture or a home with sealed doors and windows to avoid the threat of a people-seed, but Thompson then likens such an arrangement to choosing to get a hysterectomy, just so a woman can safeguard herself against the possibility of being raped and impregnated. Clearly, this would be an extreme measure to take for the sake of prevention. In â€Å"Why Abortion is Immoral,† Don Marquis searches for a concrete argument as to why abortion is immoral. Anti-abortionists adamantly try to compare a fetus to an adult human, while pro-choicers argue that a fetus lacks any of the defining features that make it a person that  would support the traditional argument that killing a fetus is wrong because it is a person. Because of this back-and-forth battle between the different sides of the abortion debate, Marquis proposes that one must first identify why killing a person is seen as wrong. If such a premise is true, it can be used as a strong argument for why abortion is wrong. Marquis simply argues that, because a fetus has a human-like future, it would be immoral to abort it. A human-like future implies that the fetus has a future and has potential to do things in its future life. To abort the fetus would be to deprive the person it would eventually become of any future experiences, activities, projects, and enjoyments that would have constituted one’s future. (367) Marquis then explores possible objections to his argument, one being the topic of euthanasia. Marquis argues that, because someone that desires to be euthanized has no enjoyable future, they are not bound by his argument and that killing them would not be immoral. In addition, Marquis also states that his argument would be compatible with arguments that contraception is immoral. Because there is no actual being that is being deprived of a future life at the time that contraceptive measures become effective (in other words, there are only sperm and an ovum), Marquis’s argument retains its soundness. There are not any premises of Marquis’s argument that Thompson accepts. She doesn’t believe that a fetus has an inherent right to life, nor does she believe that any right to life takes precedence over what the mother desires to do with her body. In certain cases where the mother desires to become pregnant, the fetus may in fact have a right to her body, but the desire of the mother to do what she wishes with her body still takes precedence. In my opinion, Marquis gives the more successful argument. The fact that aborting a fetus would deprive the future being of a future life can be applied to both sides of the argument. Even if pro-choice supporters argue that a fetus is not a person, the fact still remains that it has the potential to be a person, and as such, has the potential for a future. While Thompson does make some very valid points in her argument, her main point about the violinist contains a major flaw. Whereas the donor would be confined to the bed for 9 months and would be unable to continue to live her life, a pregnant mother is still able to do other things while carrying a child. Yes, she may have to make adjustments to her daily life and there will undoubtedly be sacrifices that have to be  made due to her pregnancy, but she is still able to life a relatively normal life while being a productive member of society. Thus, while the baby is still using the mother’s body and its resources, it is not nearly as restricting to the mother as the violinist is to the donor. In addition to the violinist argument, the people-seed argument can also be challenged by Marquis. Even though a mother may consent to intercourse with the knowledge that it is possible for her to get pregnant, she is still responsible for the fact that the fetus now has a future. Thus, because the fetus has a future, the mother is responsible for at least attempting to carry the fetus to term so that it might live and have the capability to fulfill its future. At the risk of sounding clichà ©, if it was the future of a fetus to eventually grow up and become a person that would develop a cure for AIDS, and the mother decided to abort the fetus, then the mother has deprived the fetus of a future that would have, unbeknownst to anyone, changed the world. Both Thompson and Marquis provide very convincing arguments for their view s as to the morality of abortion. On their own, each argument presents a compelling case to support the author’s views on the morality of abortion. After comparing the two against each other, however, I believe that Marquis provided a more successful argument. It was much more concise than Thompsons, and could also be applied to both sides of the debate, whereas most of Thompsons points of argument could only be applied to a position that feels that abortion is mostly morally permissible.

Dolls House/ Scarlet letter Essay Example

Dolls House/ Scarlet letter Paper Often, besides portraying the dynamic changing character straightforward, authors will interweave a certain object that symbolizes the protagonist throughout the course of the story. A couple good examples of this can be shown using Nathanial Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter and Henrik Ibsens A Dolls House. While both have different symbols, they both portray the women protagonists in the story, its meanings changing over time. For The Scarlet Letter, the protagonist Hester Prynnes symbol is the letter A sewn onto her dress while in A Dolls House, Nora Helmers symbol is the Christmas tree her family gets for the holidays. In the beginning of the book, each symbol means one thing, while at the end of the story it takes on a completely new meaning, almost the opposite. In The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynnes symbolic letter A retains a benevolent meaning by the end of the story, while at the beginning that was far from, somewhat opposite, of what it was supposed to mean. Adulterer. Accused of committing adultery while waiting years for her husband to come home to her, a scarlet letter A is embroidered upon the chest of Hester. In the beginning of the novel, in fact, the letter is depicted as an obnoxious token of shame that stands out on her bosom while she is standing upon the scaffold for the whole world to see her. And when she is holding her baby in front of her, evidence of her so called crime, it is said that one token of her shame would but poorly serve to hide another. From the beginning of the novel, described as the wearer of the scarlet letter instead of her name Hester, the letter came to define her and made her lose all the other aspects of herself. We will write a custom essay sample on Dolls House/ Scarlet letter specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Dolls House/ Scarlet letter specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Dolls House/ Scarlet letter specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Throughout the course of the story, events constantly happen to remind her of the scarlet letter she shamefully seems to bear. In one instant at Governor Bellinghams house when her daughter is looking at some armor, Hester notices that it is like a convex mirror and the scarlet letter was represented in exaggerated and gigantic proportions, so as to be greatly the most prominent feature or her appearance. In another part of the story, Hesters daughter Pearl starts gathering handfuls of wild flowers, and flinging them, one by one, at her mothers bosom; dancing up and down, like a little elf, whenever she hit the scarlet letter. Yet again, to Hester it is another moment constantly reminding her of what she did. The change all starts in Chapter thirteen, called Another View of Hester, the title alone foreshadowing a change in meaning of the symbol. The symbol not only becomes forgotten and disregarded; it becomes almost sacred and symbolizes someone of a higher status. Described with a positive connotation, glittering in its fantastic embroidery, the letter is now a familiar object to the townspeople. Hester became a shoulder to cry on; one to aid those in need, feed the poor, and cure the sick. Able. In A Dolls House, what Nora goes through is almost opposite of what happens to Hester. While Hester slowly increases her status in society, Nora Helmer deteriorates along with the Christmas tree throughout the course of the short play. This is clearly seen by examining minute descriptions, stage directions and clear physical depictions of both Nora and the Christmas tree. The tree is somewhat mentioned in every scene, nonchalantly in the background of where the action is taking place. From the beginning of the play, when the porter is helping her bring the tree in, to throughout the play when she is slowly decorating the tree little by little, the tree is noticed one way or another. There is more than one parallel between Nora and the tree, symbolizing her not only psychologically, but physically as well. Psychologically, as stated earlier, Nora gradually becomes a disheveled mess, once anxiety fills her at the thought of her secret being revealed by Krogstad, which in turn would make Torvald extremely mad at her. Supporting this, she is described as being alone in the room, walking about uneasily. Similarly, this is at the point in the story, the beginning of Act II, when the Christmas tree is also described as a sorry mess. In a corner, it is stripped of its ornaments with burnt-down candle-ends on its disheveled branches. Moving along to the similar physical representation of Nora and the tree, the discussion of decorations are essential. First off, Nora decorates the tree just as Torvald seems to decorate and dress her for the party. Similarly, she disallows the children from seeing the tree before it looks pretty with all of its ornaments, just like she will not let anyone see her in her new dress until the night of the party. Apart from just the fact that Nora and the tree are both merely decorated, the actual ornaments can be looked at in a way to symbolize her lies she tells. As the tree loses its di cor and beauty, that is how much closer the truth is getting to being revealed. On that tangent, in the beginning of the play in Act I, Torvald tells Nora, Keep your little Christmas secrets to yourself, my darling. They will all be revealed to-night when the Christmas tree is lit, no doubt. This is what could be the beginning of where the parallelism between Nora and the tree actually starts. Interestingly, although this is before the part where the reader actually knows about Noras lies and what Krogstad has on her, once looked back upon this part can be seen as a defining beginning to the symbolism. Although the symbols portrayed the main character in each novel, their meanings changed in different ways, one positively and the other negatively. In The Scarlet Letter, the meaning symbolic letter A changed from adulterer to able, upbringing Hesters position in society from one of shame to one people could look up to. On the other hand, in A Dolls House, the physical state of the Christmas tree slowly worsens over the course of the play, representing the decline of Noras psychological state. While one woman had more luck than the other in the fact that her symbol changed for the better, the style of writing in terms of symbolism that both Hawthorne and Ibsen had were very similar.

Analysis of Stilles Ganges Next Life Essays

Analysis of Stilles Ganges Next Life Essays Analysis of Stilles Ganges Next Life Essay Analysis of Stilles Ganges Next Life Essay Essay Topic: Burial Rites Bathing in the Ganges is a religious tradition that is an integral part of daily life in India. It represents a purification of the soul, as Stille states, â€Å"†¦[A] river that, because of its divine origin, is pure and purifies all those faithful who immerse themselves in her,† (598). However, presently, there exists a dilemma that threatens the survival of this tradition: the poor condition of the river. The river is polluted with â€Å"raw sewage, human and industrial waste, the charred remains of bodies, and animal carcasses† (598). In the Ganges’ Next Life, Alexander Stille contrasts traditional and modern values. Traditional Hindu values, yet somewhat primitive, reflect thousands of years of experience and practice. Modern values, on the other hand, are adapted to contemporary practices and focus on immediate needs. As a result, religious and ethical conflicts arise when compromising between preserving rich cultural traditions and ensuring environmental safety. Stille points out the large contrast between traditional and modern values. Hindu tradition is demonstrated through religious burials, bathing practices, and the use of obsolete boats for travel; it values worship, family lineage, and respect for leaders. â€Å"All Hindus seek to have their ashes scattered along the Ganges at their death, and it is considered particularly lucky to die in Varanasi because from there, your soul will travel straight to heaven,† Stille writes to show their appreciation of this ancient tradition (599). In contrast, modern values include money, education, political power, environmental issues, and technologies such as television, the internet, and waste treatment plants. The two values seemingly conflict, for the traditional religious values seek more spiritual and intangible goals, rather than the superficiality of modern goals. Also, Mishra faces a moral dilemma because acceptance of the modern value of environmental safety requires rejection of the ancient tradition of bathing in the Ganges, Stile demonstrates: â€Å"There is a struggle and turmoil inside my heart,† Mishra says. â€Å"I want to take a holy dip†¦ But at the same time, I know what is B. O. D. †- biochemical oxygen demand- â€Å" and I know what is fecal coliform. †¦ For Mishra, this struggle of the heart is particularly acute because he has a complex double identity: he is the mahant- the head- of Sankat Mochan Temple, one of the principal temples of Varanasi, and he is also a professor of hydraulic engineering at Banaras Hindu University. (598) Nevertheless, he recognizes that environmental safety and other modern ideals cannot be avoided. Demonstrating his acceptance of technology’s ubiquity, Mishra says, â€Å"These things- satellite television, this internet surfing- are with us whether we like it or not† (610). As technology advances and expands, the disparity between the two ideals becomes increasingly noticeable and unavoidable. Although modern and traditional values are very distinct, they have already begun to merge in many aspects of Indian life. For example, television, a relatively new technology, has been adapted for the traditional purpose of worshipping. Indian families set up television sets on altars and worship before them when viewing religious films. At a glance, this practice appears to be sacrilegious and almost sinful. However, they are not worshipping the technology, but rather utilizing the technology to worship their gods. Also, when celebrating the wedding anniversary of the gods Shiva and Parvati, Indians decorate shrines with flashing electric lights pulsing disco music. In the western world, such decor often denotes sacrilegious activities, but â€Å"ordinary Indians were clustered around them in devout worship, just as they would have been a generation or millennium ago† (610). The integration of traditional and modern values indicates a new era of lifestyle consisting of combined ideals. Mishra believes that the disparity among values can be overcome by compromise and finding a median. In order to find a solution to the ecological disaster that is the river, he understands that he must turn to western technologies. †¦This has taken Mishra far from the traditional, religious role of mahant and brought him into contact with politicians in New Delhi, American State Department officials, and environmentalists and scientists around the world†¦Like India itself on the eve of the new millennium, Mishra is trying to incorporate what is best from the West to preserve the Hindu traditions that he loves. 600) However, western technology alone cannot solve the problems of the Ganges. By seeking help from the western world, Mishra takes on a nontraditional role that bonds tradition and technology. Oswald’s water cleanup technology will in fact help to preserve bathing in the Ganges by cleaning the polluted water that endangers the tradition. The two values are bo th essential to optimally cleaning the Ganges, Stille illustrates: â€Å"The mahant is also convinced that science and religion have to mesh if the Ganges is to be saved,† states Stille (610). Thus, in order to optimally and successfully clean the Ganges, love for the river and its tradition, and the western desire to prevent ecological disaster must be united. The cleanup of the Ganges, or the â€Å"test of India’s condition† is test of India’s culture’s ability to assimilate modern ideals. While maintaining a sense of tradition, Stille demonstrates that India must learn to integrate modern culture and technologies into daily life. Thus, compromise is necessary to save the Ganges by keeping in mind both tradition and new ideas.

Foreign Marriage Customs essays

Foreign Marriage Customs essays In the Bosnian culture it is very common to see new couples moving in with the husbands parents after they marry. Usually the husband is already living with his parents because its rare that any of them move out until after they marry. The reason many couples make these choices is because of respect for their families, shortage of money, and the need for emotional support. New couples move in with the husbands parents because it shows a sign of respect for the husbands parents from the brides position. It is common that the parents have to give approval of marriage, so to thank tem the bride moves in to their home. At that point the bride completes most of the work around the house and starts learning to cook unless she already learned it at home. This shows the parents that she is ready to take are of their son and after that usually the husbands parents help them out monetarily to building a home of their own. Another reason the new couple moves in with the husbands parents is the shortage of money. Since you rarely see any students work while they are going to school, logically once they graduate from a university they dont have much saved up. Most couples marry soon after graduation. The easiest decision seems to be just to move in with the husbands parents and try to save up as much as possible. Usually the couple lives about two to three years with their parents before moving out. At that point they have a decent amount saved up and in most cases the family helps them out financially as well. While the respect and lack of money are good enough reasons to move in with them, the main reason is for emotional support. Many say that the first few months and years are the toughest in marriage. This way there is family for you to point you in the right direction, teach you the basic values of marriage and to help you solve any problems that you might encounter ...

Innovative Design Protection Act (IDPA) of 2012 Essay

Innovative Design Protection Act (IDPA) of 2012 - Essay Example The paper "Innovative Design Protection Act (IDPA) of 2012" will provide a succinct description of the primary features of the 2012 IDPA, discussing how the act is going to revolutionize the legal defense of designs in the US. The new version makes provisions that require detailed written notices to be issued to suspected infringers and a 21-day suspension on the start of an action following that notice without the accrual of damages during these three weeks. The act has many far-reaching effects on the design industry within the US. At its core, the act is primarily focused on not only protecting designers, but also protecting their creativity, as well as job security. It proffers copyright protection to all fashion designs in the US. The act revises the meaning of the term useful article in order to include, among others, articles of apparel such as tote bags, eyeglass frames, handbags, clothing, wallets, purses and belts. However, the act excludes, from legal protection, all desig ns that are embodied in useful articles whose designers or owners make public. This legal protection is deterred if such publication occurs more than two years prior to the date of the request for registration, specifically in vessel hull designs. Additionally, the legal protection is excluded for useful articles whose publication takes place more than three years prior to the date when protection of the design is provided, specifically in the event of fashion designs. The act also deters the consideration of the absence.... The act ideally sets out the full term of protection at three years for fashion designs and at least a decade for designs of vessel hulls (Richman, Denton & Behr 2012, p. 117). The provisions of the law require the owners of all fashion designs to offer written notifications of the design protection to all persons the design owners have sufficient reasons to believe have violated or will probably violate these protections. The act additionally makes illegal all actions aimed at the infringement of fashion designs from the start until three weeks after such written notice is served to the defendant (The Library of Congress n.d., p. 1). The act is quite significant to the design industry since it provides pertinent modifications to the infringement criteria applicable to sellers, retailers, distributors and importers of infringing articles who were not necessarily involved in making the articles. Another critical importance lies in the act’s revision of provisions dealing with a cting without knowledge, affirming that it does not constitute an infringement to create, sell, import of distribute articles embodying designs that were created without knowledge, either reasonably inferred from all circumstances or actual occurrences, that the designs were protected and were copied from protected designs (Jimenez & Kolsun 2009, p. 154). Moreover, the act declares that it does not constitute an infringement under specified federally guaranteed protections of original designs, to engage in the provisions of services such as telecommunications services, location tools for Internet information and Internet access services, as well as

Analysis Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Analysis - Assignment Example A higher ratio is recommended since it indicates the firm’s ability to raise revenue from the investments. The 7th year had the best performance with approximately 24% return on equity this was followed by the 5th year; the 7th year exceeded the investor’s expectations while the 5th met the investor’s expectations. This is favorable to the stockholders since it implies that for every dollar invested the shareholder received 24 cents. The worst periods were 8th, and 10th year with negative ROI meaning the company was operating at a loss and 9th year when the ROI was 0. Stock Prices -Stock prices in most cases show the firm’s performance, a method of communicating to the public. The prices are expected to increase as the company grows. From the graph the investors have been expecting the prices to grow, the 5th and 7th years met these expectation while the rest of the years failed to do so. This is a bad image of the company and shows inefficient operations. In conclusion, the EPS, ROI, and stock prices are necessary tools to indicate on the firm’s performance and management efficiency. It is clear from the analysis that the 7Th year was the best performed followed by the 5th year. Poor performances were in 8th, 9th and 10th

Career Choices Essay Example for Free

Career Choices Essay Introduction Making the perfect career choice is a lifetime decision that will have a lasting impression on your life and the life of your future family. As we all grow up in life we hear from our parents and mentor’s that if you decide to choose a career that you dislike, you can spend a life time living a miserable lifestyle and your career will have a short life span. In vice-versa, if you find something that you love to do in life and you are  able to make that into a long lasting career. It will seem like you have never worked one day in your life. Throughout time, many working class individuals have chosen to pursue educations in careers that will lead to a future living a stable lifestyle but it is not what their true passions are in life. So they are stuck doing something that they hate in life just because they have to work in order to provide a sufficient lifestyle for themselves and family. Another critical aspect that you must take into consideration when making a career choice is to make a valid consideration on whether you can grow inside of the career decision you make or will you remain static performing one position for the rest of your life. The reason why a lot of individuals choose to go to college is because they are stuck in a dead end job that has no momentum to further gain a promotion or advance in pay. In my opinion, entrepreneurship should be every individual’s long term goal in life. The ultimate decision making factor in choosing a career and working for a prominent company is to get the working experience making mistakes under another companies supervision, so when you begin to start your own company you will already have the experience to make smart business decisions and know how to make your company prosperous. Even though there are a lot of great career choices out there in the world, I believe that a career in either health and wellness or software engineering would be the best fit for me because they will give me the opportunity to grow, both fields are very challenging, and they both will give me the opportunity to prosper and own a private company. 1 The Importance of Having A Software Engineering Technical Career Since the late 1940’s the software engineering field has been growing rapidly as a challenging and profound profession for a lot of software students that would like to inquire skills that helps to maximize the quality and create database software. Since this time excellent software programmers have found ways to improve these components by increasing their speed, security, usability, cost, testability, size, readability, and stability. Engineers have developed business software that have changed the world and has adapted this same concept onto many home computers so consumers can have the same usability as larger corporations from the comfort of their own laptop computer. Computer innovation has evolved greatly since the 1940’s with higher advanced platforms that are able to integrate businesses with consumers easier, through the invention of the World Wide Web. Laptop computers along with tablets have created an easier and more efficient way to access the internet with access to public networks that can be routed from any major hotel or fast food restaurant, and mobile phone technology that has been designed by Mac and Android allow consumers to stay connected to the world from the comfort of a palm sized device. It takes a very talented array of programmers to design these devices and with the world of technology at the forefront of driving innovation; this career field is here to stay. With stability also come growth and business opportunities for talented engineers to step up and continue driving this career field to unknown places. Opportunity For Growth Recently CNN money came out with an article titled â€Å"Best Jobs in America† which had a detailed listing of the top 100 careers in America with great pay and growth potential. It was not a surprise to see software architects at the top of the list at number 1 with a 10 year job growth forecast of 34% beating out other leading career opportunities such as physician assistants coming in at number 2, and management consultant coming in at number 3. CNN has stated, 2 â€Å"Like architects who design buildings, they create the blueprints for software engineers to follow and pitch in with programming too. Plus, architects are often called on to work with customers and product managers, and they serve as a link between a companys tech and business staffs† (CNN Money, 2010). Making this a well-diversified career field where you get the opportunity to work inside a comfortable office setting but also visit customers at their facilities and help out with customer service issues at remote locations. Along with the exceptional growth potential this career path shares, it also can create amazing entry level financial stability as well as stated in figure 1 below: 10th%| 25th%| 75th%| 90th%| As you advance your experience and expertise in the software engineering career field, programmers have the option to choose a specific craft such as a technical support engineer, C++ software engineer, or lead software engineer where your average annual income can range from $63,000 upwards to $120,000 a year easily based on an individual’s knowledge. The Challenge Even though ultimate career stability along with a great compensation plan and benefits sounds great from the outside looking in we must also understand that with great opportunities also comes a great challenge. Programming in laments terms can be contributed to learning a second language such as 3 Spanish. It takes a lot of dedicated time to perfecting this skill along with training. Depending on your decided expertise there may be a ton of syntax and logical instructions that you have to learn in order to program effectively and unfortunately most of this time is spent outside a classroom or job setting really learning the craft at home on an individual’s personal time. But in a more positive perspective a lot of these languages such as Java, C#, and Visual Basic derive from the parent language of C++ so if you are able to get a great concept for this computing language the others will come fairly efficient for beginning programmers. Another positive aspect to this career field is since there are such high demands for these positions a lot of companies offer entry level programming positions offered to developers that have no experience so this will give individuals the opportunity to work under mid and senior level technicians to learn the ropes. A lot of individuals stray away from challenge, growth, and hard work but this is a career field that awards individuals for hard work, and gives techs the opportunity to learn a new aspect of the business every single day which makes this career field interesting. Below in figure 2 is a progression  chart that shows the career path a software engineer should take in order to become great at their craft and make a nice 6 figure income. Progression chart| A career progression chart generally resembles the one below. It may vary from company to company. | Role| Years of experience| Trainee software engineer| 0-1| Software engineer| 1-2| Senior software engineer| 2-4| System analyst| 3-5| Project leader| 5-8| Figure 2 ExpressComputerOnline.Com career roadmap for software engineers 4 Building A Business One could only imagine that one day a company that was started in your parents garage would evolve and become a multi-billion dollar company that has millions of dedicated customers, and releases innovative products that changes the world every year. Well this is not a dream anymore; it has actually been a reality for major companies such as Google, Apple, and Macintosh which have all started out of garages. The biggest disadvantage the many software developers face when building their own business is they do not have a lot of business experience, but with help from outsourcing agencies such as fog creek which specializes in the development and startup of technology companies they state that â€Å"if you have an innovative product that can compete for market share versus other companies all you have to do is market, sale, price, and hire exceptionally well† (Fog Creek Software, 2011). Which is not an easy process but if you are able to do it effectively your business will have a fair chance of competing in a vastly competitive marketplace. How A Health And Wellness Career Will Create A Great Business Career Individual health and wellness have been in the forefront of the world for many decades now being led by activist groups and government agencies  initiating â€Å"Go Green† marketing campaigns and household tax credits for individuals and homeowners who convert their lifestyles to a more healthy and energy efficient environment. CNN states that health and wellness physicians â€Å"Perform routine care such as physicals and tests, counseling patients, and even prescribing medication, all under a doctors supervision. Todays doctor shortage will only worsen as boomers age and health care reform brings more patients into the system, creating a huge need for this field† (CNN Money, 2010). 5 So even with an aging population this will continue to be a career path that will always be in high demand. Opportunity For Growth On the CNN money web article that was published earlier in the year physician’s assistants that also are in health and wellness practices partake in the number 2 position with a 39% 10 year annual growth forecast. Even though going green and living health is not new in the minds of many Americans a lot of individuals have not accepted the lifestyle thus living in an unhealthy environment. Statistics have shown that just in woman alone â€Å"Recent national data show that 82.1 percent of Black women and 75.7 percent of Hispanic women are overweight or obese compared to 59.5 percent of White women (Ogden, 2012).† This shows that there is still a lot of room for growth in this industry and still barriers to break down before this money making opportunity really explodes. In college classrooms instructors have put a major emphasis on students teaching their patients how their living environments vastly effect there personal health and living an unhealthy personal lifestyle will have a vastly negative effect on their health. With more educators out there pushing the idea and government agencies pushing the effort there is a ton of room for growth in this industry. Health and wellness physicians make a pretty comfortable lifestyle as represented below in figure 3, and it is also pretty fulfilling knowing that you are changing individual lives by helping them improve their health. The Challenge With any career field that is rewarding and has a tremendous opportunity for growth there are some challenges and risk that must be taken into consideration. Just like with the software engineering career path there is a journey that needs to be taken before you have the appropriate authority to recommend patients for certain treatments and products. There was an article posted in the New England Journal by Michael Porter which makes an argument that states, â€Å"By shifting our focus on value, simply defined as quality divided by cost, we can lower costs and improve quality (Porter, 2011)†. So in order to make this a rewarding career path, consumers would have to switch their focus as well which makes this a difficult path to choose. Education will not be a hard factor to fulfill because there are tons of institutions that offer individuals certification opportunities and there was an article on livestrong.com that supports health and wellness professionals that states, â€Å"If you have a passion for health and wellness, sharing your interest can enrich the lives of others as well. College majors in kinesiology or exercise science can teach skills for exercise and wellness careers but may not be required to obtain certifications (Case, 2011).† 7 Building A Business Building a Health and Wellness Company may not be easy but if we are able to get it off the ground and running it does offer a tremendous reward and fulfillment knowing that you are offering individuals great products and services that will change their lives by allowing them to live a healthier fulfilling lifestyle. There are even lots of companies out there in the market today which assist business minded individuals such as Melaleuca in helping individuals start their own health and wellness companies. They provide products along with customer service to those who are small companies and need outsourcing to get started. This helps break down a lot of barriers and makes the transition into entrepreneurship a lot easier. Conclusion Developing a career in software engineering or health and wellness can be very growth orientated, lucrative, and rewarding careers that both give back to the community. Even though there are a lot of great career choices out there in the world, I believe that a career in either health and wellness or software engineering would be the best fit for me because they will give me the opportunity to grow, both fields are very challenging, and they both will give me the opportunity to prosper and own a private company. I was always told in my life that as you begin to mature in life an individual should always have three forms of income coming in which first is a primary income which results from a regular steady job. The second is an alternate income which may result from a part time job or secondary business. While the last form of revenue may result from investing or savings income. My final career choice decision is to pursue software engineering as my primary income since I have dedicated so much time and effort towards learning the craft, and pursuing my bachelor’s degree in Computer Information Systems will help me get a great entry level position with a great starting pay. Plus I have a passion for innovation and enjoy the challenge of learning something new every day. Second, I also have a passion for helping others and with the sales background that I currently have it would be an excellent opportunity for me to build a business starting a secondary health and wellness company selling health certified products to homeowners that wish to live a healthy and clean lifestyle. References Case, H. (2011, June 14). Exercise wellness careers. Retrieved from http://www.livestrong.com/article/325785-exercise-wellness-careers/ CNN Money. (2010). Best jobs in America. Retrieved from http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bestjobs/2010/snapshots/1.html CNN Money. (2010). Best jobs in America. Retrieved from http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bestjobs/2010/snapshots/2.html Fog Creek Software. (2011, June 12). Building great software companies. Retrieved from http://www.fogcreek.com/guide/ Ogden, C. (2012, January 10). Overweight and obesity in the u.s. Retrieved from http://frac.org/initiatives/hunger-and-obesity/obesity-in-the-us/ Porter, M. (2011, March 6). The value proposition for health care. Retrieved from http://cfplt.com/the-value-proposition-for-healthcare-a-challenge-for-physician-leadership/

Green Grass, Powerful Women Essay -- essays papers

Green Grass, Powerful Women White culture misinterpreted, ridiculed and even outlawed native beliefs. Natives, in turn were forced to live according to the absurdities of the white man. In Green Grass Running Water, King portrays these absurdities through four old Indians and a coyote that are trying to fix the world. This task becomes very difficult for them, when the Christian God appears and messed everything up. Now they are confused and the world is in chaos. King shows how illogical and foreign the natives found the Christian religion; especially in it’s views on Women’s inequality. It all started â€Å"in the beginning.† Everything was fine with this [Indian] beginning until that crazy Christian God (or dog) got a hold of the world and mixed everything up. So, there was a Sky World and in that sky world was a woman. Big woman. Strong woman. First Woman. First woman falls from the sky world into the water world and decides she better make some land. G O D thinks this is ok, but a garden would be better. First woman makes a garden and lives there with Ahdamn. Nobody knows were Ahdamn came from, but things like that happen, you know. (King, 40) At first this novice Christian G O D does not realize that there is anything wrong with First Woman being called Strong Woman. Naturally, no (Christian) G O D in their right mind would let a woman have a name with that much power. This new G O D also does not realize the insignificant role that Adam plays or the humiliation that he brings with a name like â€Å"Ahdamn†. Aside from his name, Ahdamn is a foolish man. While First Woman is busy finding them something to eat, Ahdamn is naming the animals. You are a microwave oven, Ahdamn tells the Bear. We got to get you some glasses, says the Bear. You are a telephone book, Ahdamn tells the Cedar Tree. You’re getting closer, says the Cedar Tree. You are a cheeseburger, Ahdamn tells Old Coyote. Everything is fine and G O D does not think anything is wrong until First Woman comes across that forbidden tree. It has all sorts of goodies such as apples, melons, bananas, hotdogs, fry break, corn, potatoes, pizza, and extra-crispy friend chicken. But G O D does not want anybody eating his food and so his Christian rules are made and women are suppressed. In this next story G O D has more control over the situation and is... .... She has to grab his face to keep his attention; and second, Alberta’s control over him. She holds all the cards, he is just a player in her game, and he’s about get loose. She doesn’t really need him, in fact, if she can find a way to do without him, it’s done. She would rather have a one-night stand or be artificially inseminated than to have a man tag along. It is clear that the role of a man is very diminished, not needed to make the baby and not wanted to raise the baby. This is outside of the social Christian norms, but Luckily Alberta is a Strong Woman, an Indian woman and has the economic means to support a child on her own, which is more than she can say for Lionel. Poor Lionel is left in the dark with no role to play but that of a child whose fate is controlled by the women around him. The four old Indian’s must have done something right, despite the Christian G O D getting in the way of their culture and messing up their story. Even outside of this novel, we live in a chaotic world of mixed up stories and combined religions. We are a Christian nation (thanks to the Christian G O D) but we also hold true to our Native origins of female superiority.

Lifespan Development and Personality

Oprah Winfrey’s development as an individual has a very unique and interesting perspective in terms of Psychological development. Ms. Winfrey is a product of an â€Å"accidental conception† by her parents. Her mother was a house maid and her father was a coil miner. At the age of 6 and 14, she was raped and sexually molested by her uncle and cousin. Her mother was often not around to help her and guide her. Ironically, even though she was having a hard time at home, she still excelled in school and had scholarship to support her education. As a growing child, she was used to poverty and hardships.After the incident of sexual molestations, she was forced to live with her dad. During these times, Oprah was helped by her dad to focus on her studies. At an age of 18 she won the Miss Black Tennessee Beauty pageant and then later on was given a job at a local radio station. Her exposure to media later evolved as she aspired to become a prominent figure in American Television years later. The forces that made big differences in her life are her childhood experiences and family as well as her experiences in her late adolescent years. The mixture of her bad memories and her successful life can be accounted on how she managed the anxieties and problems in which she might have encountered in the process of her maturity as a person.Oprah can be said to have a bad environment growing up. The way of life she lived in the poverty stricken places she grew up on might had opened her eyes on the realities of life even on   a tender age. She was not nurtured well also because her mother was irresponsible. Her father helped her to focus on her studies in her adolescent years but still had missed out a lot of important years in the childhood days. Fortunately, she overcame all adversities with her innate ability to be diligent in her goals.Even though she underwent a depressing phase in her childhood, she was also compensated later on by good education and support f rom her father. Emotionally, she might have chosen to become depressed and angry at life. In fact, she showed signs of rebellion at age 14 when she got regnant but eventually lost her baby. You can see the transition of her life as she was guided by her father. She became more focus and determined in life.There was less hostility in her environment as she entered the late adolescent and it helped her to become the person she is today. Today Oprah is known to be the good moral type of person. She is a philanthropist and helps the needy people in America as well as other parts of the globe. Her view of morality can be traced back to how she saw the injustices in her society in her childhood. The oppression of black people, the life her parents lived, and the way her classmates made fun of her due to her poverty opened her eyes on what’s right and wrong. Her ability today to empathize and sympathize is really a product of her first hand experience with the good and bad experienc es her had.Going back to her moral and emotional development, I want to focus more on the negative experiences she had in her childhood. We can see that Oprah went through a lot in her childhood. In Erik Erikson’s theory of development, she was at around stage three when her sexual molestation experiences happened. This stage is important since this is a stage where a crisis in a person’s development happens (initiative-guilt). The fact that family plays the biggest role in this stage makes her more vulnerable to level on more guilt than initiative. Instead of helping her feel purposeful and learn new skills, her family at that time mistreated her. In her next stage of development (industry and inferiority), she might had leveled on more inferiority than industry.This is where she was having troubles in school and starting to rebel on her family. She might have a sense of â€Å"inertia† or inferiority complex due to the fact that she had not strong support syste m in her family. When â€Å"inertia† happens, the child usually avoids doing something she was not able or failed to do properly (Boeree, 1997). In Oprah’s situation she might had given up on building good relationship with her family. Fortunately she was able to over come it as time went on and she stayed with her father. As she progress on to the stage five (ego-identity and role confusion crisis), she looked like she was successful in balancing out the crisis due to the fact her father offered social support for her and she was excelling in her studies.This might had giver her good amount of confidence to share herself to others and to be comfortable to be oneself. Her excellence in school and constant exposure to media might led her to develop a good social support system. Together with her father’s guidance, she had a healthy support system that helped her achieve many goals in her life. A good social support system of friends and family is vital in everyon e’s growth and security in life. After a turbulent childhood, she was able to find good connection to the world by her achievement. Later on in her life, she was one of the most powerful women in television and Hollywood. She helped people who needed help. She influenced politics. President Bill Clinton even singed an â€Å"Oprah bill† for the creations of a database of child abusers. She opened schools for people who can’t afford to go school. She directed her passion of helping other children and victims of catastrophe. She is said to be one of the most credible and influential Americans in history.Two theories of personality best apply for Ms. Winfrey. Abraham Maslow’s theory of heirrachy of needs can help us understand how Oprah’s traits and actions develop through her career and as a person. In her childhood, she was stuck on surviving on the first level of needs (physiological needs). As she grew older, she was given more and more support by her father, colleagues and friends. She was able to climb up the hierarchy of needs. By the time she was in her 20’s, she had already fulfilled the safety, belonging and esteem part of the hierarchy of needs. Today, she is seen to help others and use her past dispute in life as her tool to help and change other people’s lives.She is on a level in which she is self-actualizing and reaching out to help other since she had already fulfilled her own needs. Being in this self-actualization state, people who reached this usually has the continuous desire to fulfill his potential to become more and more of what you want (Boeree, 1997). In connection to this theory, Viktor Frankl’s theory of transcendence is a good approach in her case. Ms. Winfrey’s painful past could have destroyed her internally and made her a depressed person throughout life but instead she was able to transcend her experience to something useful to the world.She channeled her pain and suffer ing to counseling others in her show. She gave moral support to women who were abused and children who were in the same situation as her.   In comparing the two theories, Viktor Frankl stated that self-actualization is the side-effect of transcendence. In conclusion, the theory of transcendence of Frankl best accounts her behavior. Oprah’s actions and behaviors towards finding meaning in her life and helping others can be seen more of a spiritual and self less acts rather than Maslow’s theory in which people satisfy their own self-actualization needs thus resulting to helping others. Oprah over came a lot of adversities and trial in life and was able to overcome many â€Å"noogenic anxiety† that might have come in her way. She can be said to have found meaning in what she does today. She transforms her life’s experiences and lessons to something for the betterment of others.ReferencesBoeree, C. (1997). Retrieved on 24 April 2008 fromhttp://webspace.ship .edu/cgboer/perscontents.htmlBoeree, C. (1997). Retrieved on 24 April 2008 fromhttp://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/erikson.htmlBoeree, C. (1997). Retrieved on 24 April 2008 fromhttp://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/frankl.htmlBoeree, C. (1997). Retrieved on 24 April 2008 fromhttp://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/maslow.htmlDinh, M. & Murphy, J. (2008). Retrived on 24 April 2008 fromhttp://people.com/tag/oprah-winfrey/Unknown. (2008). REtrived on 24 April 2008 fromhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oprah_Winfrey

Research Paper on Office Etiquette

Midterm Research Paper on Office Etiquette BUSI 472 Organizational Ethics Dr. Jack Brown, Professor Bill Williams Stop University April 17, 2010 As I get close to graduation, I think more about the skills I've developed here at Liberty University which one of most important skills is respect and consideration for coworkers. Office etiquette fosters leadership, quality of your business and enhances your career. Without proper office etiquette, you risk your image, limit your potential, and jeopardize relationships, which are fundamental to business success. Office etiquette is formally perceived as good manners, business executives have found that office etiquette enhances their success because it differentiates them in an aggressive market. Good office etiquette will allow you to be confident in a variety of situations. Before going any further in the discussion of the importance of office etiquette we should clarify the question. â€Å"What exactly is office etiquette? † This question can differ from person to person because of the perception of what office etiquette is. After reading the text I have come to the conclusion that office etiquette is about how to conducting yourself respectfully and courteously in your office. Some things to come up with that people overlook when it comes office etiquette. The first impression is probably the most important, because you are the ambassador of your office. You always should act professionally and honestly, wearing appropriate office attire, and being neat, clean and as conservative as the office requires. The attributes of office etiquette and good manners is to be respected and courteous at all times and everybody, good office etiquette is easily achieved with a little forethought and in practice.

The Grand Illusion Essay Example

The Grand Illusion Essay Example The Grand Illusion Essay The Grand Illusion Essay To wage a modern war is to fuse into a gigantic machine the resources of our most advanced technologies. Petroleum, rubber, and a host of other chemicals are the fuel of War; light and heavy materials its armor. Without aluminum, magnesium, tin, tungsten, molybdenum, quinine those looking to wage a total war cannot survive very long. The buttress of the Allied strategy rested secure in the knowledge that they, not Germany, controlled these resources and could therefore restrict German access to them. Blockade enforced by British dreadnaughts and backed by the US navy had been the basic element of Allied hope to thwart the German menace. Simple in its grandeur and apparent impregnability, this barricade of the sea lanes had the semblance of a wall which a mailed fist could never breach. In 1914, the Schleiffen Plan called for a swift and overpowering march to Paris as the coup de gri ce to end the war. However, since the Schleiffen Plan was not diligently obeyed, the Great War lasted longer than originally expected and resulted directly in a German defeat, a complication the axis powers did not account for. The tourniquet of the British Royal Navy constricted the German arteries of supply. By 1917, the German resource coffer that was needed to fuel its war machine was sucked dry and her people were withering away from starvation. Forced at last to surrender to the Allies, Germany studied this imprisoning cordon with great detail. With the cunning and aggression of Germany militancy eliminated from the world stage, the Allied forces finally relaxed. As the world order was gradually restored, science and technology forged ahead. In the early 1920s, German industry became evermore integrated and as a result, its dependence on the outer world for resources increased dramatically. However, with every addition to the myriad of materials NOT found within the Reich, it seemed to the Allied powers that the German threat was virtually eliminated. Without the necessary materials essential to technological progress, Germany was bound to her Allied captors. To begin with, Germany had absolutely no oil reserves; for a new war to be waged she would require a fathomless amount of petroleum. Conversely, the United States and Britain commanded more that half of the worlds oil supply. Germany had no rubber; Britain controlled a significant proportion of the world supply. From the context clues surrounding Germanys economic and financial state of affairs, the Allies concluded that it would be impossible for Germany to engage in rearmament and to escape the strangulation brought about by a dearth of strategic resources. The Great War revealed vital weak spots in the German armor the difficult task of rearming would be futile unless any new war could be started with a wider margin of advantage than it did in 1914. This requisite superiority required that Germany become an absolute autarky with the ability to provide for all its domestic needs. Was this economically possible when the Nightmare of Versailles continually haunted Weimar Germany? The Treaty emaciated the German military machine, slapped crippling monetary reparations on her, removed swathes of land from the German Empire, and left her in no viable economic position for wage any future wars. Of course, this was the consensus in the short run; Germany knew it had to focus on domestic policy and the rebuilding of its devastated country in the short-run. However, in the long run, Germany harbored a devious hidden agenda In hindsight, it can be assumed that the sweep of German aims in the early 20th century had but one reoccurring theme: world domination. Viewed by its captors as the have-not power on the Continent, Germany could not have asked for a better predicament to become a fortress of self-sufficiency. Hitler had the ruthlessness and cold, cruel realism to consolidate a position of power out of the collapse of the German economic structure. Resultantly, the vast centralized cartel organization which characterized German industry became a tool in the hands of a disillusioned dictator who no longer embraced private profit, but operated solely to serve his ruthless political ambitions. Thus, Hitler shouldered the conquest of the continent on the German industrialist. The First World War should have taught democratic nations that Germany used international cartels as the spearhead of aggression. Stronger in 1933 than 20 years prior, Germanys cartel brethren took back control of crucial industrial fields despite all the constraints imposed by Versailles to prevent their from doing so. With Hitlers compulsive determination to rearm, German controlled cartels simply served as the economic puppets of German interests. Neither before 1914 nor 1939 did Allied industrialists and financiers discover the truly destructive connotation of this outlook. Rather, to the savvy turn-of-the-century industrialist, cartels were considered as an efficient means of guaranteeing domestic monopoly. The industrialists operating businesses outside of the Third Reich thought of cartels in terms of low output, high prices, and maximized profits. However, the cartels of democracy were easy dupes and did not suspect that Germanys output was growing by leaps and bounds. These industrialists who consorted with German economic arrangements during the interwar period knew not what they did. Of course, history tells us that Germany lost WWI, but neither by this loss nor by the period of social unrest and inflation slowed the production of German industrial cartels. The failure of the allies to recognize that these cartels were not disarmed was their biggest mistake. This fait accompli, possibly due to the political myopia of the Allied powers, had repercussions in the war to come. Germanys consortium of cartels concealed from prying eyes what it could of its real operations. Armed with patents and secret know-how, the German cartels laid siege to the economies of prospective antagonists. These bold tactics, interlocked perfectly in design, are evident in the succession of maneuvers which characterized German policies in the 1920s. For example, rampant inflation liquidated the costs of the First World War and with a stabilized Mark in the mid 1920s, Germany extended an alluring invitation for foreign capital. The victors, not the vanquished, unknowingly provided the capital that helped fund Germanys reconstruction and later her massive rearmament program. In the late 1920s Germany made a portentous discovery: coal could be made into oil and oil could be made from rubber. The obstructions on the road to Armageddon were slowly being removed. While the rest of the world floated into oblivion, in Germany, war became certain. Lulled into a state of sleep, the world did not detect the direst omens of catastrophe. Sporadically, embedded in academic science journals and business reports, hints of German economic plans could be found. However, clouded in a haze of polysyllables the smattering of German blueprints evaded the eyes of the outside world. The Allied forces had characterized the German nation as economically dependent, unable to stand without the Allied crutch of raw materials and supplies.

The Seleucids and Their Dynasty

The Seleucids and Their Dynasty The Seleucids were the rulers of the eastern part of Alexander the Greats empire from June 312 to 64 B.C. They were Hellenistic Greek kings in Asia. When Alexander the Great died, his empire was carved up. His first generation successors were known as the diadochi. [See map of the Kingdoms of the Diadochi.] Ptolemy took the Egyptian part, Antigonus took the area in Europe, including Macedonia, and Seleucus took the eastern part, Asia, which he ruled until 281. The Seleucids were the members of the dynasty that ruled Phoenicia, Asia Minor, northern Syria and Mesopotamia. Jona Lendering names the modern states that comprise this area as: Afghanistan,Iran,Iraq,Syria,Lebanon,parts of Turkey, Armenia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan. The followers of the eponymous Seleucus I were known as the Seleucids or the Seleucid Dynasty. Their actual names included Seleucus, Antiochus, Diodotus, Demetrius, Philip, Cleopatra, Tigranes, and Alexander. Although the Seleucids lost parts of the empire over time, including Transoxania, lost to the Parthians in about 280, and Bactria (Afghanistan) around 140-130 B.C., to the nomadic Yuezhi (possibly the Tocahrians) [E. Knoblochs Beyond the Oxus: Archaeology, Art and Architecture of Central Asia (1972)], they held on to parts. It was only in 64 B.C. that the era of Seleucid rule ended when the Roman leader Pompey annexed Syria and Lebanon.

Enlightenment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 4

Enlightenment - Essay Example Neoclassical style had a significant impact on the Western culture. The style is typified in most of the Empire furniture made in Western cities such Paris, London, and New York. For example, Zimmerbild furniture was made in Berlin. Apart from this, the Neoclassicism style became a major force in academic art in Western countries. For instance, several European cities such as Munich as St. Petersburg were converted into true museums of Neoclassical architecture. Neoclassicism architectural style also has a very significant impact on the construction of buildings in Western countries. For instance, some public buildings in the United States are built in the neoclassical architectural style. A recent example of a building built in this style is the Schermerhorn Symphony Center in the U.S. The use of the neoclassical architectural design is also apparent in Britain. Examples of the works of the style include Quinlan Terry’s Maitland Robinson Library located at Downing College as well as Robert Adam Architects’ Sackler Library. Additionally, the majority of the private houses in Britain are also constructed in the neoclassical

Assault Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Assault - Term Paper Example Assault is divided into categories by the crime law, and police or court officials have the power to use force for arresting the offenders committing assault. While some states in United States continue to separate assault from battery, both are commonly combined under a single assault statue according to US common law system. (FreeAdvice, 2011). Simple and aggravated assault form two main categories of assault. Simple assault occurs when an offender puts another person in fear of receiving serious bodily harm or actually causes any kind of harm to that person, while aggravated assault involves particular circumstances that demonstrate profound defiance or disrespect for the value of human life. Aggravated assault also involves reckless threatening of harm or actual physical attack on the person who is at the receiving end, but it has to committed against a member who belongs from an influential or a protected class. A simple case of assault is upgraded into aggravated assault if cer tain facts inform the court officials that the assault is committed against a police officer, teacher, judge, or any person who performs supreme duties for the public. Some relief is provided regarding the rate of assault in US by the statistical records of Uniform Crime Report, January-June, 2010. Statistical data indicates that â€Å"law enforcement agencies throughout the Nation reported a decrease of 6.2 percent in the number of violent crimes brought to their attention for the first 6 months of 2010.† (The FBI, 2010). These violent crimes included assaults, rapes, and murder. This decrease is reported when compared with figures reported for the same time in 2009. This decrease in the rate of violent crimes in US is also supported by facts and figures provided by US National Crime Victimization Survey, 2009. â€Å"The overall victimization rate for violent crimes declined from 19.3 to 17.1 victimizations per 1,000 persons between 2008 and 2009.† (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2010). Basically, the decreasing rate of simple assault has contributed to the decline in overall violent crime rate. There are myriad impacts of assault on an individual and the community. It is an established fact that victims of child molestation suffer from long-term affects of mental disturbances and they are also often unable to connect the brutal abuse to the hardships experienced by them all their lives. Such people who are sexually abused by any of their relatives in their childhoods often become introverts in their adult lives. They even have to deal with the consequences of low self-esteem and poor confidence, and both of these things play a vital role in a person’s professional life. Anger, aggression, and depression problems are commonly found in people who have been repeatedly sexually abused in the childhood. Sexual assault can also induce an individual in turning towards alcohol and prescription medicines for seeking relief. Alcohol dependency is t hus gradually developed and this consequently, leads to the rapid development of antisocial behavior. In many cases of drug abuse, childhood sexual assault forms one of the most common factors regarding the psychology behind drug abuse. Sexual maladjustment also forms a common grave consequence of the sexual assault. Even if someone is harassed or

Language developmental pathways in middle school age Essay

Language developmental pathways in middle school age - Essay Example Middle school level education is an important factor which influences language and communication skills. Middle schools are schools that group students between the ages of 10 and 14. In some parts of the country, children from fifth to ninth grades are grouped together; in other parts, seventh- and eighth-graders are in one school. One of the most common middle school arrangements groups children from sixth to eighth grades.   As children grow they experience physical, intellectual, and emotional changes. The way they learn, feel, see the world, and relate to other people becomes different from when they were younger. It is from this age that a strong foundation for communication skill must be provided. Most parents feel Parents feel that athletics can teach their youngsters how to compete with others and also how to function as part of a team. There is, however, another activity which can help young children learn to be part of a team but which places less emphasis on competition and which is, in addition, less gender specific than athletics. That activity is debate. Debate is one of the ways that boosts up communication skills and way of expressing one’s views authentically. The main aims of conducting debates are enhancements of critical thinking, academic advancement and development and promotion of communication skills. A single topic is distributed among two or more groups in which some groups support the topic while the others would oppose it by expressing their views on that topic. Sodikaw (1985) believes that debate helps students develop the emotional maturity to win and lose graciously; acquire the social skills necessary to work with a colleague and compete against other students; and use spoken English in an increasingly sophisticated way. Huston (1985) stresses that the student should be encouraged to become adaptable to many different styles of communication. McClain (1989) argues that debate should be seen as a cooperative rather than a competitive endeavor. Some educators feel that debate should become more audience centered and focused on community issues rather than on tournaments (Stepp, 1989). Many college students who are involved in debate feel that the emphasis on tournament debating makes them too argumentative in everyday life. For younger children, a focus on developing communication skills rather than on competition in debate fosters attitudes of open-mindedness, fairness, and tolerance for the viewpoints of others. (Atwater, 1984) . The other way would be conducting speeches courses. A topic would be given and the student would be asked to prepare on it and deliver the speech. This not only increases knowledge regarding the topic but also removes

Countermeasures to Automobile-Exhaust Pollution Essay Example for Free

Countermeasures to Automobile-Exhaust Pollution Essay The world motor vehicle population exceeds 1 billion units at the moment. These vehicles are used for transportation of people and products across various places around the world. As a result, they emit many pollutants. This is attributable to the action of their engines burning fuel to release energy, which is an inefficient process. Firstly, they release particulate matter consisting of both organic and inorganic substances into the atmosphere, through exhaust emissions. Secondly, they release Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), which have carcinogenic effects. Pollution from vehicles is a universally acknowledged problem. However, it varies depending on the nation and its population. For example, pollution from cars contributes to between 50 to 90 percent of the total in urban areas. This may not be the same for rural areas. However, motor vehicles still present a disadvantage to the environment and human life. It is, therefore, prudent to develop countermeasures to automobile-exhaust pollution. Most of the world’s vehicles are operated on conventional hydrocarbons such as diesel and gasoline. By switching to fuel that maintains less pollution, the environmental impact of vehicles can be minimized. An alternative fuel technology that has the potential to meet this challenge is fuel cells. In this technology, hydrogen has maintained the best promise as a candidate to replace petroleum-based fuels. This technology utilizes hydrogen gas to create electricity. This electrical energy is converted to mechanical energy through an electric motor, which makes the wheels of an automobile to rotate. In this process, the emissions developed are pure water, Carbon (IV) Oxide and various oxides of nitrogen. This emissions are attributable to difficulties in storage and commercial production. Despite the release of oxides of carbon and nitrogen into the air, hydrogen fuel cells have a smaller footprint on the environment, when compared to conventional gasoline engines. However, such inefficiencies can be eliminated through use of concrete, as researched by a study at the University of Eindhoven (Yirka npp). The easiest method for manufacturing hydrogen gas at the moment requires mining fossil fuels, which has an environmental impact in its own right. However, new production techniques such as bacteria and biomass waste are expected to become conventional in the coming years. This will reduce the environmental impact of fuel cells, since the technology will lower oxides released into the air (Katsuhiko 3371). A hydrogen fuel cell works by the introduction of hydrogen at the cathode and oxygen at the anode. In the process, water is released out. Anions and cations from the cell are harnessed at the respective terminals, and energy is released. Hydrogen has a high energy content of around 150MJ/Kg or 61,100 BTUs per pound. This exceeds gasoline and its 20,900 BTUs of energy per pound. High energy content implies that less fuel is required to maintain the same amount of power in engines, or to travel the same distances. Similarly, it has a higher efficiency when used in combustion engines. Advanced hybrid engines such as that of the Prius maintain an efficiency of about 40% (Potera 38). However, hydrogen has an efficiency of about 75% when used as the lone source of fuel. This efficiency means that greater distances can be covered with less consumption of energy. However, introduction of additional hydrogen fuel cell cars has been hampered by infrastructural issues. There are limited facilities that allow fuelling to conventional commuters within their localities (Katsuhiko 3369). There are many electric cars (EVs) on modern roads. Examples may be seen from Tesla’s roadster and the Nissan Leaf car. These vehicles release virtually no emissions to the environment, therefore are a solution to automobile-exhaust problems. This is attributable to their engines, which do not burn fossil fuels in order to release energy. Electric cars use sets of linked batteries as their primary source of energy. These energy sources comprise materials such as lithium, lead and nickel-metal hydrides. These batteries typically consist of thousands of cells such as the lithium-ion type. They store energy that has been harnessed from electrical outlets at home, or the recharging stations that are found in some major cities. In the example of the Model S, the vehicle is charged through a ‘high power wall charger’. This device is replenishes the batteries around twice as fast as conventional power outlet would manage. Electric batteries are used to operate everything in the vehicle. They are used to run a controller which serves to run an electric motor. This motor is what rotates the wheels in EVs. Through recent breakthroughs in manufacturing, EV batteries can be mass-produced. There are now lower costs of ownership and maintenance to the consumer, when compared to the past. Batteries have a very high energy density, when compared to fuel cells. As a result, they offer higher mileage than traditional fuels. The Tesla Model S provides a good example of mileage. It can manage about 300 miles of travel at a speed of 55 miles per hour, out of its lithium ion batteries. Even conventional lead-acid batteries allow a range of 80 miles. EVs are characterized by high torque and low speeds. They are, therefore, very useful for usage within cities, where many vehicles are located in smaller vicinities than rural areas. They will help in reducing urban pollution since they do not release exhaust into the environment. The production of EVs often has higher environmental pollution than conventional cars (Lave and Hendrickson et al. 993995). Improvements in production are needed for the solution of such issues. However, the usage of such vehicles is limited by infrastructural issues, just as the hydrogen fuel cells. As a result, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has highlighted that only 4,000 EVs are currently running on American roads. This contrasts to gasoline-based vehicles which are in the millions. New breakthroughs in charging and fuel range are required for such EVs to gain critical mass of commuters. The larger the distance a vehicle is driven, the more pollutants it releases to the environment. According to the EPA, over one third of smog emissions are attributable to vehicle use in urban areas. However, more people have taken to the roads since the 1970s. Similarly, they have driven for longer miles hence attenuated the pollution problem. This has only served to attenuate the problem at hand. People usually drive for many reasons. Firstly, it may be as a means for arriving at work. Secondly, they do it to access leisure areas such as parks. Thirdly, they drive to shopping centers to do their groceries. There are ways that people can drive fewer miles while accomplishing all these needs. Firstly, they can involve themselves in carpools. This refers to the sharing of cars on journeys, between different people, such that several people drive in one car simultaneously. This is useful in that lower miles are collectively driven, hence reduced environmental pollution from exhausts. Through carpooling, people can get to work or leisurely places without inconveniences such as fuel costs, long drives and pollution. Carpooling is possible through websites, apps and pickup points. Use of public transport vehicles also achieves the same effect. People should use buses and other public transport means, whenever possible. Secondly, people can reduce the environmental footprint of their cars by combining errands into a single trip. This is especially useful in the case of families that own multiple cars. Instead of sending different people to pick up items needed by the family, one vehicle may be used to collect all these items. Shopping often requires the use of vehicles, since the luggage may be overbearing. In that respect, pollution can be reduced through use of the efficient e-commerce platforms such as Amazon. Individuals are able to meet their shopping needs while reducing their environmental footprint. The use of trucks for shipping goods is also useful since it allows collectively leaner environmental emissions when compared to many cars operated by shoppers. The internet has allowed various individuals to work at home. Similarly, it has enabled people to telecommute. It would, therefore, be environmentally beneficial if people used these tools instead of driving to work on each applicable day. These measures also reduce congestion in traffic. There will be fewer vehicles on the road, thus fewer delays that accumulate into environmental pollution through release of exhausts. In the modern world, settlement has been defined by work and educational opportunities. For example, people try to live as close to work as is comfortably possible. This has been attributable to efforts in reducing travel times, as well as associated fuel costs. According to the United States Census Bureau (npp), over 10 million Americans travel an hour each way to work. This has provided a challenge to the country’s urban planners and engineers. There has been a trend in altering commuting patterns through development of areas that provide ‘walkable communities’. This concept implies areas that require less motorized movements in order to get around (Fullerton Gan 303). Through walkable communities, commuters would be able to reduce their environmental footprints as they get around. Residential, leisure, business and industries are developed in a common area such that people get to each point devoid of cars. Alongside reduction of pollution, the quality of life is also improved for people residing in such locations, since they are able to exercise. Through use of alternative fuels, environmental emissions can be reduced. However, arguably the best approach to reducing such wastes would be an alteration of driving habits. In that respect, an effective method for reducing both fuel consumption and environmental emission would be a reduction in vehicle idle time. When people sit in their cars while their engine runs, they release exhaust just as they were driving. This happens during conditions such as traffic among others. In that respect, it would be prudent if people learn to switch of their engines in such circumstances. Manufacturers should also implement the start-stop systems across a wider range of cars. This will allow engines to switch off, when the cars are stationary. By stepping on the gas pedal, vehicles are able to start their engines immediately. This reduces the annoyances associated by drivers to starting their engines again. Cars of the past featured inefficient engines. They released more particulate wastes into the environment, while consuming more fuel than contemporary variants. However, some of these cars are still in service today. Despite good maintenance, older vehicles become less efficient than their original state. . Drivers should be encouraged to drive newer vehicles. For example, modern cars such as the Prius offer nearly triple the efficiency of older cars, in terms of fuel consumption and environmental consumption. Newer cars also adhere to modern emission controls that are set by the EPA and other responsible bodies (Dennis-Parks 799). In the United States, public transportation policy has been left to local authorities in cities and towns. As a result, the country lacks a homogenized transportation system. Schedules for buses and trains have difficulties in being followed. These systems are also characterized by slow speeds of movement. This has created frustration among users, who view cars as efficient modes of transportation. Similarly, American culture has often painted a tainted picture on public transport systems. The car has been portrayed as a symbol of achievement. The converse has been applied for transport systems such as buses. The American Public Transport Association states that usage of public transportation results into savings of over 35 million metric tons of Carbon (IV) Oxide on an annual basis. By switching to public transport for the average American round trip of 20, miles daily, an individual is able to reduce their annual emissions by over 4,000 pounds (Fullerton Gan 303, 304). Going to work is one of the key reasons behind owning a car in the United States. In that respect, companies can make a significant contribution to the efforts against environmental pollution. Firstly, they can provide shuttle bus services to their employees. In that respect, they can purchase or hire buses that will pick up and drop off employees at designated points, on each work day. This will assist in reducing vehicle emissions due to ride sharing. This can be seen through Google, which operates shuttle services for its employees. Secondly, companies can post ride-share boards in their premises. This will allow employee who live close to each other to commute on a single vehicle, thus saving fuel and the environment. Some companies have also assisted employees through creation of car cooperatives. These are services that allow employees to rent cars from a set location. In return, the employees pay small fees for their use of the cars. Such systems are very useful for people working in inner city districts, who need cars only on a rare occasion. This encourages them to use public and shared transport, as opposed to personal vehicles. It is estimated that the global urban population will almost double by the mid-21st century. As a result, alternate means of transportation need to be crafted for the urban populations. The use of motorized vehicles will only result into further environmental pollution in such areas. Urban dwellers will consequently be exposed to poor health and effects such as smog. In that respect, local authorities need to establish policies that encourage non-motorized commuting. Bike sharing programs are similar to car cooperatives, only that they are not characterized by polluting effects (Fullerton Gan 301). Different cities have made attempts at bike sharing programs. However, they are not meant to eliminate the use of motorized transport completely. Public transport and cars is used for commuting to centralized locations, where bicycles can then be accessed for movement within urban areas. Errands that exist within a radius of one mile are practical by foot. Similarly, bikes are useful for errands within five miles, which characterizes the inner city. Various cities around the world have embraced such measures. For example, the Chinese cities of Beijing and Shanghai have bike sharing programs that have operated very well. Cities may also embrace some measures, which may be rather draconian. For example, cars whose registration ends with odd numbers may be allowed access to roads on particular days of the week. This measure will allow a curtailment of excessive vehicles on roads. Similarly, it will encourage ride sharing programs. Cars have an impact on environmental pollution, especially in the urban context. In that respect, several measures can be observed, in the efforts of reducing exhaust emissions. New technologies such as hydrogen fuel cells and EVs will be useful in reducing emissions such as the oxides of carbon and nitrogen. However, of greater use is the adoption of efficient driving habits by commuters. Car manufacturers also have a role in the reduction of emissions. By rolling out start-stop technology to all cars, high environmental savings can be recorded. Driving to work is an important part of many American lives. Companies can assist in environmental efforts by providing their workers with ride sharing and shuttle facilities. Companies such as Google and Apple present a good example of how this can be implemented. Similarly, local authorities and urban planners have an important role in designing cities that will require little use of motorized vehicles. Through implementation of such measures, massive savings on environmental pollutants can be recorded. Works Cited Dennis-Parks, Reda M. Instructing the EPA How to Regulate Vehicle Emmissions. Ecology LQ, 30. (2003): 799. Print. Fullerton, Don and Li Gan. Cost-effective policies to reduce vehicle emissions. American Economic Review, 95. 2 (2005): 300304. Print. Hirose, Katsuhiko. Materials towards carbon-free, emission-free and oil-free mobility: hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles—now and in the future. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences, 368. 1923 (2010): 33653377. Print. Lave, Lester B, Chris T Hendrickson and Francis Clay Mcmichael. Environmental implications of electric cars.Science(Washington), 268. 5213 (1995): 993995. Print. Potera, Carol. Beyond batteries: portable hydrogen fuel cells. Environmental Health Perspectives, 115. 1 (2007): 38. Print. United States Census Bureau. Megacommuters: 600,000 in U. S. Travel 90 Minutes and 50 Miles to Work, and 10. 8 Million Travel an Hour Each Way, Census Bureau Reports American Community Survey (ACS) Newsroom U. S. Census Bureau. Census. gov, 2013. Web. 2 Dec 2013. . Yirka, Bob. Researchers find treating pavement with titanium oxide reduces air pollution. Phys. org, 2013. Web. 2 Dec 2013. .