Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Essay Questions Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 11

Questions - Essay Example On the other hand, efficiency depends on the time an organization or its employees take to execute a task. An efficient organization has its employees executing tasks within the shortest time possible and utilizing resources optimally. In other words, the employees use the minimum amount of resources to get optimal results. For example, an efficient manager uses emails in communicating with the employees while an inefficient manager uses letters. Both effectiveness and efficiency are equally important for the organization to achieve a high level of success. For example, using the minimal resources to produce goods and services improves performance. Additionally, consistent results improve performance. They enhance consumer satisfaction thus increasing the demand for the goods or services. The managers can improve both effectiveness and efficiency at the same time. For example, they can achieve this by hiring the right workforce to do the right job. Such an employee would not only ensure consistency in results, but would execute his tasks at the minimum time possible. Through this, the organization will attain consistent results using the minimal resources as possible. Both would enhance the organization’s performance. In October 2014, Wal-Mart announced that it would cut benefits for all the associates that are working less than 30 hours a week. This is unethical for a company that has been in the news for numerous unethical practices over the last a few years. Labor activists are blaming the company for the unfair pay for its workers. According to the activists, the retailer focuses on employing low wage employees, part-time. The employees are crying over low wages (nytimes.com). Some of them cannot even afford the basic needs. This is unethical because it is the responsibility of an organization to ensure that their employees are living a decent life, by paying them a fair salary. In the

Monday, October 28, 2019

About Type 2 Diabetes Essay Example for Free

About Type 2 Diabetes Essay Around 2.6 million people in the UK have been diagnosed with diabetes. About nine in 10 of these people have type 2 diabetes. It usually affects people over the age of 40, but can develop at any age. People of African-Caribbean or South Asian origin are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes. It usually affects them earlier in life, from about the age of 25. Type 2 diabetes is becoming more common, particularly in children. Type 2 diabetes develops when your body can’t produce enough insulin or if your body doesn’t respond to insulin as it should. Insulin regulates the level of glucose in your blood. Glucose is a simple form of sugar found in foods and sugary drinks. It’s absorbed by your body as a natural part of digestion and is carried around your body in your blood. When glucose reaches your body tissues, such as muscle cells, its absorbed and converted into energy. Insulin is secreted into your blood by your pancreas, which is a gland located behind your stomach. If your cells dont respond properly to insulin, it can cause glucose to build up in your blood. This is called insulin resistance. If this happens, your pancreas needs to produce more and more insulin to overcome the resistance and control your blood glucose levels. Types of diabetes There are two main types of diabetes: type 1 and type 2. There are about two million people in the UK who have diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is the common form, affecting nine out of every 10 people with diabetes. Symptoms of type 2 diabetes Many people with type 2 diabetes have no obvious symptoms. Its often discovered during a routine medical check-up with your GP.If you do have symptoms of type 2 diabetes, you may: †¢pass more urine than usual See more: My Writing Process Essay †¢be constantly thirsty †¢have unexplained weight loss †¢be extremely tired †¢have blurred vision †¢have itchy skin around your genitals or get regular infections, such as thrush †¢notice that wounds such as cuts heal slowly If you have any of these symptoms, see your GP. nitially, some people find they don’t have any symptoms. So if you think you may be at risk of type 2 diabetes, speak to your GP about having a screening blood test.  Complications of type 2 diabetes If type 2 diabetes isn’t diagnosed or controlled properly, you can develop blood glucose levels that are either too high (hyperglycaemia) or too low (hypoglycaemia). Hyperglycaemia If type 2 diabetes is poorly controlled or you get an infection, glucose can build up in your blood and rise to high levels. This can cause you to: †¢be thirsty †¢pass urine excessively †¢have blurred vision †¢feel tired Very rarely, if you become dehydrated and your blood glucose rises to very high levels, you can develop a condition called hyperosmolar hyperglycaemic state. This can cause you to become drowsy and potentially unconscious. Hyperosmolar hyperglycaemic state is a medical emergency and needs to be treated in hospital. In the long-term, uncontrolled high blood glucose levels can increase your risk of: †¢kidney failure †¢blindness †¢nerve damage †¢heart disease †¢stroke Hypoglycaemia Sometimes, if your medication is too strong or you miss a meal, your blood glucose levels can become too low (hypoglycaemia). This only happens if you’re taking certain medicines such as gliclazide (or others of the same type), repaglinide or insulin (of any type). If your blood glucose is low, you may go pale, feel sweaty and become confused. If you develop hypoglycaemia, it’s important to eat or drink something containing glucose, for example fruit juice or some sweets. Causes of type 2 diabetes There are several risk factors that make you more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, including if you: †¢are overweight or obese – in particular, if you’re an apple shape with lots of fat around your abdomen (tummy) †¢have a close family member with the condition †¢are of African-Caribbean or South-Asian origin †¢are over 40 – your risk increases with age †¢have high blood pressure or have had a heart attack or stroke †¢don’t exercise regularly †¢have severe mental health problems †¢are a woman and have polycystic ovary syndrome and are overweight †¢are a woman and have had diabetes that developed during pregnancy (gestational diabetes) If you have a condition such as impaired glucose tolerance or impaired fasting glycaemia, this means the level of glucose in your blood is naturally higher than normal and you’re more likely to develop type 2 diabetes. Diagnosis of type 2 diabetes Your GP will ask about your symptoms and examine you. He or she may also ask about your medical history. You may need to have some of the following tests. †¢Urine test. You will need to give a sample to be tested for glucose. †¢Fasting blood glucose test. You will have a sample of blood taken from your arm to test for glucose. You will need to fast overnight before having this test. You may have this with a glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1C) test. HbA1C is a protein that is produced when you have high blood glucose levels over a long period of time. †¢Glucose tolerance test. This may be needed if your fasting blood glucose test is borderline. It measures how your blood glucose level changes over time after you have a sugary drink. You will need to fast overnight before having this test. Treatment of type 2 diabetes There isnt a cure for type 2 diabetes but it can be controlled. Some people can control their condition with lifestyle changes alone. Others need to take medicines or use insulin injections. Self-help By making the following lifestyle changes, you can help control your blood glucose levels. †¢Eat a healthy balanced diet with regular meals, three times a day. Include carbohydrates, such as pasta or potatoes in each meal. †¢Aim to do 150 minutes of moderate exercise over a week in bouts of 10 minutes or more. This will help you to stay a healthy weight and control your blood glucose levels. †¢Only drink alcohol in moderation and stick within the recommended limits. †¢If you smoke, give up. Smoking is unhealthy for everyone, but its especially important to stop if you have diabetes because you already have an increased risk of developing circulatory problems and cardiovascular  disease. Oral medicines If lifestyle changes alone don’t keep your blood glucose levels under control, you may be prescribed medicines. Some examples are listed below. †¢Metformin works by reducing the amount of glucose that gets released into your bloodstream from your liver. It also improves the way glucose is used by your muscles. †¢Gliclazide, glipizide, glimepiride and tolbutamide help your pancreas to produce more insulin. †¢Repaglinide and nateglinide also help your pancreas to produce more insulin, but work more quickly and last for a shorter time. †¢Acarbose lowers your blood glucose by slowing down the rate at which some carbohydrates are absorbed by your body. †¢Pioglitazone reduces your bodys resistance to insulin. †¢Sitagliptin, saxagliptin and vildagliptin help your body to produce more insulin at mealtimes. These medicines are usually taken between one and three times a day. Injections You may be prescribed other medicines such as exenatide or liraglutide. These medicines are given by injection and work by helping your body to make more insulin when it’s needed. They can also reduce your appetite and help you lose weight. If lifestyle changes and medicines can’t keep your blood glucose levels under control, you may need to have insulin injections as well as, or instead of, tablets. You will usually inject yourself with insulin once or twice a day, using either a small needle or a pen-type syringe with replaceable cartridges. There are several different types of insulin that work at different rates and for different lengths of time. Ask your GP for advice on which type is best for you. If you have insulin injections, you will need to monitor your blood glucose levels with a home test kit. This involves taking a pinprick of blood from your finger and putting a drop on a testing strip. A meter will read the result automatically. Your GP or diabetes specialist nurse will show you how to monitor your blood glucose levels and tell you how often you need to check it. Monitoring your blood glucose level You may also need to have your levels of HbA1C tested at least twice a year. The test is done by taking blood from a vein in your arm or sometimes a drop of blood from a fingerprick. It’s used to see how well you’re controlling your blood sugar  levels.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Witchcraft and the Town of Groton in 1671 Essay -- History Historical

Elizabeth Knapp sat perched on a small three- legged stool in front of a roaring fire in the hall of her family's home as the last late October light faded through the yellowish oilpaper windows. The wind had already picked up a taste of the winter bite that the early Massachusetts Bay colonists had grown to despise, and tonight it whipped down the chimney of the eight foot wide fireplace with a shrill, devilish whistle, causing the shadows projected by the bayberry wax candles to shimmy and waver against the rough hewn rafters. Elizabeth drew her red knit hood tighter down over her head and huddled towards the hearth. Her mother, also named Elizabeth, watched her from farther back in darkness of the hall, where she was mending a pair of breeches. By December, she knew, the wind whipping down the chimney could cause the sap emerging from the burning logs to freeze solid. The temperatures would make many a grown man in town wish to curl up and sleep away the winter until rising temperatures and longer days made Groton, just hewn from the Massachusetts wilderness a few decades ago, hospitable once again. Despite the gathering winter she felt relieved to see that her sixteen- year old daughter, now her only child after the early death of her son James, was acting normal again. For the past fortnight the younger Elizabeth had been carrying herself in a strange manner. While walking along normally she would sometimes cry out. Last week she had shrieked at extremely inappropriate time in Sunday dinner and that day in church she had been overcome with irreverent laughter. She was always quick to offer a reasonable excuse to spare the swift punishment usually dispensed to children at the time, but the extravagance and immodes... ...essen the symptoms. Bearers invariably die 10 to 25 years after the onset. Chorics have been dubbed everything for saints (the Catholic church recognizes four) to witches since the sixteenth century. References: Butler, Caleb. History of the Town of Groton. Boston, 1848. Dow, George F. Everyday life in the Massachussetts Bay Colony, Soc. for Preservation of N.E. Antiques, 1935. Earle, Allice M. Customs and fashions in old New England. Scribner and Son, New York 1893. Greene, Samuel A., Groton in the Witchcraft Times, University Press, Cambridge, MA 1883, 29pp. Greene, Samuel A., ed. Early Records of the Town of Groton 1662- 1707, University Press, Cambridge, MA 1883, 186pp. May, Virginia, Groton Houses. Groton Historical Society, 1978. Okun, Michael S., The history of adult onset Chorea, at www.medinfo.ufl.edu/histmed/okun/slide1.html

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Ideal and Goal Essay

As The Florida Bar grows, it becomes more important to articulate our ideals of professionalism and to emulate such ideals by deed. To The Florida Bar, Lawyer Professionalism includes: (1) a commitment to serve others; (2) being dedicated to the proper use of one’s knowledge to promote a fair and just result; (3) endeavoring always to enhance one’s knowledge and skills; (4) ensuring that concern for the desired result does not subvert fairness, honesty, respect and courtesy for others with whom one comes into contact, be they fellow professionals, clients, opponents, public officials, including members of the judiciary, or the public; (5) contributing one’s skill, knowledge and influence as a lawyer to further the profession’s commitment to serving others and to promoting the public good, including efforts to provide all persons, regardless of their means or popularity of their causes, with access to the law and the judicial system; (6) educating the public about the capabilities and limits of the profession, specifically what it can achieve and the appropriate methods of obtaining those results; and (7) accepting responsibility for one’s own professional conduct as well as others in the profession, including inculcating a desire to uphold professional standards and fostering peer regulation to ensure each member is competent and public-spirited. To reinforce and communicate the ideals of lawyer professionalism among our members, and particularly, to take the â€Å"abrasions† out of our conduct with others, particularly our colleagues at the Bar, The Florida Bar adopts the following statement of ideals and aspirational goals: 1. Commitment to Equal Justice Under Law and the Public Good Ideal: A Florida lawyer should, in both professional and personal conduct, recognize that a license to practice law is a privilege which gives the lawyer a special position of trust, power and influence in our society. This privilege brings corresponding duties, for which the lawyer is accountable to the public, namely, to use that position and power in an honest and fair manner which respects the dignity of others, promotes the public good, and protects our system of equal justice under the law. Goals: 1.1 A lawyer should at all times avoid the appearance of impropriety. 1.2 A lawyer should counsel and encourage other lawyers to abide by these ideals of professionalism. 1.3 A lawyer should at all times promote in the general public an understanding of the role of the legal profession in our system of equal justice under law. 1.4 A lawyer should encourage and support only those judicial candidates who by skill, knowledge, experience, integrity, temperament and commitment to public service are qualified to hold such positions. 1.5 When considering whether to advertise and what methods of advertising to use, a lawyer’s first goal should be to promote and protect public confidence in a just and fair legal system founded on the rule of law. 1.6 Upon being employed by a new client, a lawyer should discuss fee and cost arrangements at the outset of the representation, and promptly confirm those arrangements in writing. 1.7 In any representation in which the fee arrangement is other than a contingent percentage-of-recovery fee or a fixed, fiat-sum fee or in which the representation is anticipated to be of more than brief duration, a lawyer should bill clients on a regular, frequent interim basis. 1.8 When a fee dispute arises that cannot be amicably resolved, a lawyer should endeavor to refer the dispute to the appropriate fee arbitration panel. 2. Adherence to a Fundamental Sense of Honor, Integrity, and Fair Play Ideal: A lawyer should at all times be guided by a fundamental sense of honor, integrity, and fair play, and should counsel his or her client to do likewise. Goals: 2.1 A lawyer should not impose arbitrary or unreasonable deadlines for action by others. 2.2 A lawyer should not make scheduling decisions with the motive of limiting opposing counsel’s opportunity to prepare or respond. 2.3 A lawyer should not unreasonably oppose an adversary’s application for an order or an adversary’s request to insert a term or provision in a document. 2.4 A lawyer should never permit nonlawyer support personnel to communicate with a judge or judicial officer on any matters pending before the judge or officer or with other court personnel except on scheduling and other ministerial matters. 2.5 A lawyer should notify opposing counsel of all communications with the court or other tribunal, except those involving only scheduling or clerical matters. 2.6 When submitting any writ-ten communication to a court or other tribunal, a lawyer should provide opposing poraneously, and sufficiently in advance of any related hearing to assure both the court and opposing counsel have a reasonable opportunity to review it beforehand. 2.7 A lawyer should promptly comply with requests to prepare proposed orders. 2.8 When scheduling hearings and other adjudicative proceedings, a lawyer should request an amount of time that is truly calculated to permit full and fair presentation of the matter to be adjudicated and to permit equal response by the lawyer’s adversary. 2.9 A lawyer should immediately notify all counsel of any hearing time that the lawyer has reserved with the court or tribunal. 2.10 When there has been pretrial disclosure of trial witnesses, a lawyer should make a reasonable, good-faith effort to identify those witnesses whom the lawyer believes are reasonably likely to be called to testify. 2.11 During trials and evidentiary hearings the lawyers should mutually agree to disclose the identities, and duration of witnesses anticipated to be called that day and the following day, including depositions to be read, and should cooperate in sharing with opposing counsel all visual-aid equipment. 2.12 When there has been pretrial disclosure of trial exhibits, a lawyer should make a reasonable good-faith effort to identify those exhibits that the lawyer believes will be proffered into evidence. 2.13 A lawyer should not mark on or alter exhibits, charts, graphs, and diagrams without opposing counsel’s permission or leave of court. 2.14 A lawyer should abstain from conduct calculated to detract or divert the fact-finder’s attention from the relevant facts or otherwise cause it to reach a decision on an impermissible basis. 3. Honesty and Candor Ideal: A lawyer’s word should be his or her bond. The lawyer should not knowingly misstate, distort, or improperly exaggerate any fact or opinion and should not improperly permit the lawyer’s silence or inaction to mislead anyone. Goals: 3.1 In drafting a proposed letter of intent, the memorialization of an oral agreement or a written contract reflecting an agreement reached in concept, a lawyer should draft a document that fairly reflects the agreement of the parties. 3.2 In drafting documents, a lawyer should point out to opposing counsel all changes that the lawyer makes or causes to be made from one draft to another. 3.3 A lawyer should not withhold information from a client to serve the lawyer’s own interest or convenience. 4. Fair and Efficient Administration of Justice Ideal: A lawyer should always conduct himself or herself to assure the just, speedy, and inexpensive determination of every action and resolution of every controversy. Goals: 4.1 A lawyer should endeavor to achieve the client’s lawful objectives as economically and expeditiously as possible. 4.2 A lawyer should counsel the client concerning the benefits of mediation, arbitration, and other alternative methods of resolving disputes. 4.3 A lawyer should counsel the client to consider and explore settlement in good faith. 4.4 A lawyer should accede to reasonable requests for waivers of procedural formalities when the client’s legitimate interests are not adversely affected. 4.5 A lawyer should not invoke a rule for the purpose of creating undue delay. 4.6 A lawyer should never use discovery for the purpose of harassing or improperly burdening an adversary or causing the adversary to incur unnecessary expense. 4.7 A lawyer should frame reasonable discovery requests tailored to the matter at hand. 4.8 A lawyer should assure that responses to proper requests for discovery are timely and complete and are consistent with the obvious intent of the request. 4.9 In civil cases, a lawyer should stipulate all facts and principles of law which are not in dispute, and should promptly respond to requests for stipulations of fact or law. 4.10 After consulting with the client, a lawyer should voluntarily withdraw claims defenses when it becomes apparent that they are without merit, are superfluous or merely cumulative. 4.11 A lawyer should appear at a hearing before a court or other tribunal fully prepared to submit the matter at issue to the court or tribunal for adjudication. 4.12 A lawyer should not use the post-hearing submission of proposed orders as a guise to argue or reargue the merits of the matter to be determined. 4.13 A lawyer should not request rescheduling, cancellations, extensions, and postponements without legitimate reasons and never solely for the purpose of delay or obtaining unfair advantage. 5. Courtesy Ideal: A lawyer should treat all persons with courtesy and respect and at all times abstain from rude, disruptive and disrespectful behavior. The lawyer should encourage the lawyer’s clients and support personnel to do likewise even when confronted with rude, disruptive and disrespectful behavior. 6. Respect for the Time and Commitments of Others Ideal: A lawyer should respect the time and commitments of others. Goals: 6.1 Before scheduling a hearing on any motion or discovery objection, a lawyer should endeavor to resolve or narrow the issue at hand. 6.2 In scheduling depositions upon oral examination, a lawyer should allow enough time to permit the conclusion of the deposition, including examination by all parties, without adjournment. 6.3 Unless circumstances compel more expedited scheduling, a lawyer should endeavor to provide litigants, witnesses, and other affected persons or parties with ample advance notice of hearings, depositions, meetings, and other proceedings, and whenever practical, schedule such activities at times that are convenient to all interested persons. 6.4 A lawyer should accede to all reasonable requests for scheduling, rescheduling, cancellations, extensions, and postponements that do not prejudice the client’s opportunity for full, fair and prompt consideration and adjudication of the client’s claim or defense. 6.5 Upon receiving an inquiry concerning a proposed time for a hearing, deposition, meeting, or other proceeding, a lawyer should promptly agree to the proposal or offer a counter suggestion. 6.6 A lawyer should call potential scheduling conflicts or problems to the attention of those affected, including the court or tribunal, as soon as they become apparent to the lawyer. 6.7 A lawyer should avoid last-minute cancellations of hearings, depositions, meetings, and other proceedings. 6.8 A lawyer should promptly notify the court or tribunal of any resolution by the parties that renders a scheduled court appearance unnecessary. 6.9 A lawyer should be punctual in attending all court appearances, depositions, meetings, conferences, and other proceedings. 6.10 A lawyer should respond promptly to inquiries and communications from clients and others. 7. Independence of Judgment Ideal: A lawyer should exercise independent judgment and should not be governed by a client’s ill will or deceit. Goals: 7.1 A lawyer should counsel the client or prospective client, even with respect to a meritorious claim or defense, concerning the public and private burdens of pursuing the claim as compared with the benefits to be achieved. 7.2 A lawyer should at all times provide the client with objective evaluations and advise without purposefully understating or overstating achievable results or otherwise creating unrealistic expectations. 7.3 A lawyer should not permit the client’s ill will toward an adversary, witness, or tribunal to become that of the lawyer’s. 7.4 A lawyer should counsel the client against the use of tactics designed: (a) to hinder or improperly delay the process involved; or (b) to embarrass, harass, intimidate, improperly burden, or oppress an adversary, party or any other person and should withdraw from representation if the client insists on such tactics. 7.5 In contractual and business negotiations, a lawyer should counsel the client concerning what is reasonable and customary under the circumstances.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

True Purpose of Art in Podg

The True Purpose of Art Oscar Wilde was a very shrewd intellectual who through the teachings of Walter Pater and John Ruskin became a strong supporter of the aesthetics movement. This movement was one which wanted to shy society away from the fact that art had a purpose. They wanted simply to have art for art’s sake. In essence what this means is that art’s only true purpose is beauty and there are no underlying symbols, meanings, or derivations of art it is simply art.Oscar Wilde attempts to promote his beliefs about aestheticism in the book â€Å"Picture of Dorian Gray† through his use the character Basil Hallward, the picture of Dorian Gray, and the relationship between Lord Henry and Dorian Gray. Oscar Wilde uses Basil Hallward , specifically his perception of a perfect artist to support his argument that the purpose of art is to be beautiful. From the beginning of the book we can see that Basil has a strong tie to his artwork.In the first chapter when he goe s to visit Lord Henry and shows him the portrait of Dorian he tells Lord Henry that he will not exhibit his work because there is too much of the artist in the painting. This scenario leads Dorian to explain to Lord Henry what the an artist’s role truly is â€Å"An artist should create beautiful things, but should put nothing of his own life into them. We live in an age when men treat art as if it were meant to be a form of autobiography. We have lost the abstract sense of beauty. Someday I will show the world what it is; and for that reason the world shall never see my portrait of Dorian Gray. (30) What basil is saying in this quote is that society has lost the true essence of art and that the true purpose of an artist is to create something of beauty. That is why he will not show his portrait of Dorian to the world because he feels as if the portrait is not just beautiful it has a deeper meaning which relays not only beauty but some deeper emotion. Also the simple sentence structure in this quote also helps relay the fact that an artist’s job is to do the most basic job create something beautiful without it being complex. Wilde also explicitly uses the preface to help support promote the idea that art’s true goal is beauty.He does so by using a very bold quote â€Å"All art is quite useless†. What Oscar Wilde meant by this quote was that art is useless because it attempts to portray an emotion. It does not instruct or command but instead it just sits there waiting to illicit a temporary response from the viewer. In doing so art becomes a sort of temporary tattoo. In that it is short lived and even though it may be beautiful it will eventually be lost in the haze. Now by using the picture of Dorian Gray, Wilde attempts to show us what happens when art is given a purpose.In Chapter 7 Dorian first comes to realize that the portrait is aging while he does not and his response is â€Å"He had uttered a mad wish that he himself might remain young and the portrait grow old; that his own beauty might be untarnished, and the face on the canvas bear the burden of his passions and his sins; that the painted image might be seared with the lines of suffering and thought, and that he might keep all the delicate bloom and loveliness of his then just conscious boyhood. Surely his wish had not been fulfilled? Such things were impossible. It seemed monstrous even to think of them.And yet there was the picture before him, with the touch of cruelty in the mouth†(144). This quote proves that in fact the painting did have a purpose. That purpose being to show the dark change in Dorian as he ages. But why would Wilde go against his own beliefs? He did so to prove a point and that point being that only wrong can come from giving art purpose. The portrait ends up causing the death of Dorian and Basil , the original artist. As Dorian commits more and more sins the picture becomes more and more grotesque until finally it is so hideous that even Dorian cannot stand the sight of the picture.In the beginning of the book however Dorian adored the portrait. This goes to show that when art is given a purpose the art becomes ugly. This is Oscar Wilde’s view means that it is no longer art because the primary function of art is to be beautiful. So if an art is considered ugly than It is no longer art. So therefore whenever art is given a purpose that piece of art is then no longer considered art. Another way Wilde attempts to establish his views on the role of art and the artist is through the relationship between Lord Henry and Dorian Gray.In their relationship Lord Henry is the sculptor and Dorian is his piece of art. After his discussion with his uncle Lord Henry makes it his goal to influence Dorian in his own manner. But similarly with Basil and his portrait this piece of art also has a purpose and the purpose was to change the identity of the art work in order to satisfy Lord Henry’s pleasure of tainting another into his thought process. As you can well imagine this led the art to turn â€Å"ugly†. Ugly in the sense that Dorian became corrupted and evil.He committed the worst of sins and in the beginning what started off as the purest form of art became the most vile piece of art. So again when the purpose shifted from being beautiful to having a different purpose the art , or Dorian, becomes ugly and it is no longer in fact art. This is just another example which supports the fact that art can only be art if its purpose it to be beautiful. A recurring theme in this novel was the purpose of art and Oscar Wilde gives his opinion on this matter through the character Basil Hallward, the picture of Dorian Gray, and the relationship between Lord Henry and Dorian.Oscar Wilde understands the value of art and he believes that art is in fact only art when it has no other purpose but to be beautiful. He believes that when a piece of art is given purpose it corrupts the art and it can turn the artwork into some disfigured picture of reality. Oscar Wilde believes that today people have attempted to expand the boundaries of art and he believes that in doing so people lost the beauty in art. He says that art is only meant to inspire and if any other emotions or thoughts arise then that art is ultimately useless.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Critically analyse the Media’s Focus on young people and Violent Crime The WritePass Journal

Critically analyse the Media’s Focus on young people and Violent Crime Introduction Critically analyse the Media’s Focus on young people and Violent Crime IntroductionBIBLIOGRAPHYRelated Introduction Western society is fascinated with crime and justice.   From films, newspapers, everyday conversation, books and magazines, there is a continual rhetoric regarding crime.   The mass media plays a crucial part in the construction of criminality and the criminal justice system.   The way the public perceive victims, criminals and the members of law enforcement is very much determined by the influences of the mass media (Roberts, Doob, 1990; Surette, 1998).   It is therefore essential to take into account the effects that the mass media have on attitudes toward violent crimes, especially those concerning young people. If we start with television programmes we find that there is a link between viewing crime shows on the television is in fact linked to a fear of crime.   Fear of crime may be a natural reaction by viewers to the brutality, violence and sometimes even injustices that are portrayed within these programmes.   Crimes on television shows reveal certain patterns; there is an overemphasis on violent crimes and offenders are often sensationalised or stereotyped.   Murder and robbery are common themes also yet crimes such as burgurlary are less often seen (Surette, 1998).   Offenders are portrayed as psychopaths that target vulnerable and weak victims or as business people and professionals that are highly intelligent and violent, with victims being portrayed as helpless and weak (Surette, 1998).   Many viewers may not understand the justice system and its process and are even less likely to understand (with some exceptions) the causes and motivations of criminal behaviour.   The criminal justice system is portrayed largely as ineffective with the exception of selected heroes that provide justice or in some cases vengeance towards offenders (Surette, 1998).   These programmes rarely focus on any mitigating circumstances of criminal behaviour and are unlikely to portray offenders in not only a sympathetic light but even a realistic fashion. On television crime is freely chosen and based on the individual problems of the offender.   Analysis of crime drama reveals that greed, revenge and mental illness are the basic motivations for crime and offenders are often portrayed as ‘different’ from the general population (Lichter and Lichter, 1983: Maguire, 1998).   This leads to a possible belief by viewers that all offenders are ‘monsters’ to be feared.   Consequently heavy viewers may perceive crime as threatening, offenders as violent, brutal or ruthless and victims as helpless.   These inaccurate presentations, as well as the portrayal of crime as inevitable or non preventable may lead to an increase in the fear of crime. The news media focus on violent crime is highly selective.   Ferrell (2005:150) points out that news media representations highlight ‘the criminal victimization of strangers rather than the dangerous intimacies of domestic of family conflict’.   Stanko and Lee (2003:10) note that ‘the violence in the media is constructed ‘as random’, wanton and the intentional acts of evil folk’.   News reporting of crime and furthermore of the particular types of crime on which newspaper journalists disproportionately focus on, is selective and unrepresentative.   News reporting of crime victims is equally so.   Reiner et al stated that the foregrounding of crime victims in the media is one of the most significant qualitative changes in media representations of crime and control since the Second World War (Reiner et al. 2000a,b, 2003). Not all crime victims receive equal attention in the news media.   Ocassionally intense media coverage may be devoted to victims who can be discredited on the basis of criminal promiscuous or otherwise questionable past.   More often, however media resources are dedicated to the representation of those victims who can be portrayed as ideal.   Christie (1986:18) describes the ideal victim as ‘a person or category of individuals who-when hit by crime-most readily are given the complete and legitimate status of being a victim’.   This group includes young people.   These young people attract massive levels of media attention, generate collective mourning on a near global scale, and drive significant change to a social and criminal justice policy and practice (Greer, 2004; Valier, 2004). In the summer of 2002, two 10 year old girls, Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman went missing from their home in Soham.   Their disappearance attracted the biggest ever manhunt in Britain and international media attention.   In 1996 two boys of similar age, Patrick Warren and David Spencer, went missing from their homes.   Their disappearance failed to register much outside the local press.   Shortly after 13 year old Milly Dowler went missing in 2002, the body of a teenage girl was recovered from a disused cement works in Tilbury Docks (Jewkes, 2004).   Amongst media speculation that it was another missing teenager, Danielle Jones, who had disappeared almost a year earlier, the body was identified as Hannah Williams, however it was Milly’s story that continued to receive attention whilst Hannah received only a few sentences n the inside pages. Holly and Jessica were clearly seen as ideal victims.   They were described using adjectives such as young, bright and energetic.   They were from stable and loving middle class family backgrounds and had both achieved well at school.   David and Patrick were working class, they were boys, brought up on a West Midlands council estate, in trouble at school and one of them had previously been caught shoplifting.   While Holly and Jessica captured the hearts and minds of the nation, Patrick and David did not gain anywhere near as much interest and few people knew about their disappearance, much in the same way Hannah Williams was unknown.   Hannah’s murder generated just over 60 articles in the British national press, mostly after she was found.   In its first two weeks alone, the hunt for Holly and Jessica produced nearly 900 (Fracassini, 2002). Whilst on one hand the media sensationalise when young people are the victims of violent crimes, it also sensationalises when there is a belief that these young people are in fact the perpetrators of violent crimes.   A study carried out by Young People Now, (a publication for people working with children and young people) through research firm Mori, looked at tabloids, local papers and broadsheets over the course of a week.   Seventy-one percent of articles concerning young people had a negative tone, while 14 percent were positive and 15 percent were neutral.   In addition, 48 percent of articles about crime and violence depicted a young person as the perpetrator, whereas only 26 percent of young people admit to committing a crime, and of those only seven percent involved the police and only a minority were violent-the most common committed crime was petty theft.   The picture being painted in the media is one of violent young men with nearly 70 percent of violent stories i nvolving boys describing them as the perpetrator and 32 percent as the victim, while girls are described as the victim in 91 percent of cases and the offender in 10 percent (Ipsos Mori).   In reality 31 percent of boys in mainstream schools admit to having committed a crime compared with 20 percent of girls and boys are more likely to be victims of violent crime than girls (Young people and the Media, 2004). Peter McIntyre, a journalist whose 30 year career has included work on the Oxford Times and editing a Unicef book of guidelines for interviewing children states that children in trouble with the law have some legal protection, but in some cases, because journalists are not allowed to name young people, they feel free to misrepresent them, contributing to the monsterisation of young people (2004).   If images of violent yobs predominate, there is a risk that policy makers will respond to stereotypes rather than the true diversity of young people’s needs. The rise of the antisocial behaviour order (ASBO) was seized upon by local and national newspapers as a chance to name and shame young people.   From the Sun newspaper’s proposal to hand out ‘SASBO’s (Sun Antisocial Behaviour Orders), to south London paper News’s Shopper’s Shop a Yob Bingo, papers were able to show pictures of these young people, because there were no automatic reporting restrictions on young people sentenced by civil courts, unlike youth courts.   All of these reporting’s serve to further fuel media hype and moral panic surrounding young people as violent offenders. BIBLIOGRAPHY Barille, L. (1984) Television Attitudes about Crime: Do Heavy Views Distort Criminality and Support Retributive Justice? In Ray Surette (ed.) Justice and the Media Issues and Research Springfield, Illinois: Charles C Thomas Bryant, J. Garreth, R.A, Brown, D. (1981). Television viewing and anxiety: An Experimental Examination. Journal of Communication 31: 106-119 Christie,N. (1986) The Ideal Victim in Fattah, E. (ed), from Crime Policy to Victim Policy. Basingstoke: Macmillan. Doob, A. MacDonald, G. (1979) Television Viewing and Fear of Victimization: Is The Relationship Casual? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology Ferrell, J. (2005). Crime and Culture in Hale, C. Hayward, K. Wahidin, A. And Wincup, E. (eds), Criminology. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Fracassini, C. (2002) Missing, Scotland on Sunday. 18 August 2002 Greer, C. (2004). Crime, Media and Community: grief and virtual engagement in late modernity. In Ferrell, J. Hayward, K. Morrison, W. And Presdee (eds). Cultural Criminology Unleashed. London: Cavendish Jewkes, Y. (2004) Media and Crime. London: Sage Lichter, L. Lichter, S. (1983) Prime Time Crime Washington DC: Media Institute Livingstone, S. (1996). On the Continuing Problem of Media Effects. In Curran, J. Gurevitch, M (eds), Mass Media and Society. London: Arnold. Maguire, B. (1988). Image Versus Reality: An Analysis of Prime-Time Television and Police Programs. Crime and Justice II (1): 165-188 Reiner, R. (2002). Media Made Criminality: the representation of crime in the mass media. In Maguire, M. Morgan, R. Reiner, R (eds) The Oxford Handbook of Criminology. 3rd edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Surrette, R. (1990). The Media and Criminal Justice Policy: Recent Research and Social Effects. Springfield, Illinois: Charles C Thomas Valier, C. (2005). Making Sense of the Information Age: Sociology and Cultural Studies, Information, Communications and Society, 8 (4): 439-58

Monday, October 21, 2019

Economy of Malaysia Essay Example

Economy of Malaysia Essay Example Economy of Malaysia Essay Economy of Malaysia Essay But subsidies are essential, and has always been so to ensure the survival of all persons in Malaysia especially those from the lower-incomes groups including the middle class. The plan of removing subsidies and using the money saved to channel financial assistance directly to the poor is being now thrown around. But alas, this really will not work given the rise of corruption and discrimination in Malaysia. Even today, there are many complaints that the NOUN-led BAN government discriminates against persons belonging to (or alleged to be supporters of) other Opposition parties/persons. Connections are important in Malaysia when it comes to receiving benefits and opportunities, and that is why it is best to Just maintain subsidies for all essential items that affect survival and normal day living of all Malaysian. Remember, subsidies are only for the basic needs. With the opening of markets, and the entry of foreign companies this will mean that the Malaysian government money may have to be given to these foreign companies as subsidies to maintain the low prices that people In Malaysia pays. Why pay the foreign companies? Because there Is no choice for Just paying local rent service/material providers as this would be a violation of the free trade equal competition requirement. Today, subsidies with regard to electricity Is paid to Teenage but when another foreign utilities company comes In, then that company too will have to be paid subsidies. Whose fault? The NOUN-led BAN government but we have to pay for Its mistakes In the past today and tomorrow. Subsidy, at best, Is a poor mechanism to make food/fuel/services affordable to the less fortunate. Because of the nature of goods and services being subsidized, preventing subsidy reaching the wrong hands Is difficult. Put It another way, getting subsidy to be enjoyed by the target people Is tough because these goods and services are consumed widely. Besides, subsidy often create distortions In a market- driven economy giving the false Impression that the cost of production Is low. Hence, subsidy should be given out to specific deserving Individuals through a concession system on selected goods and services (such as medicine, public services). A better form of assistance to deserving citizens Is through financial assistance paid according to needs. The people of a country must learn how to live according to oral prices and this will make It more In tune with global competition. Economics By Yakima as subsidies to maintain the low prices that people in Malaysia pays. Why pay the foreign companies? Because there is no choice for Just paying local equal competition requirement. Today, subsidies with regard to electricity is paid to Teenage but when another foreign utilities company comes in, then that company we have to pay for its mistakes in the past today and tomorrow. *Subsidy, at best, is a poor mechanism to make food/fuel/services affordable to the preventing subsidy reaching the wrong hands is difficult. Put it another way, getting subsidy to be enjoyed by the target people is tough because these goods and services are consumed widely. Besides, subsidy often create distortions in a market- driven economy giving the false impression that the cost of production is low. Hence, subsidy should be given out to specific deserving individuals through a concession system on selected goods and services (such as medicine, public services). A better form of assistance to deserving citizens is through financial assistance paid world prices and this will make it more in tune with global competition.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Understanding Sender Parameter in Delphi Event Handlers

Understanding Sender Parameter in Delphi Event Handlers Event handlers and the Sender procedure TForm1.Button1Click(Sender: TObject) ; begin    ... end; Button1Click OnClick event The parameter Sender references the control that was used to call the method. If you click on the Button1 control, causing the Button1Click method to be called, a reference or pointer to the Button1 object is passed to Button1Click in the parameter called Sender. Lets Share Some Code For example, suppose we want to have a button and a menu item do the same thing. It would be silly to have to write the same event handler twice. To share an event handler in Delphi, do the following: Write the event handler for the first object (e.g. button on the SpeedBar) Select the new object or objects - yes, more than two can share (e.g. MenuItem1) Go to the Event page on the Object Inspector. Click the down arrow next to the event to open a list of previously written event handlers. (Delphi will give you a list of all the compatible event handlers that exist on the form) Select the event from the drop-down list. (e.g. Button1Click) OnClick procedure TForm1.Button1Click(Sender: TObject) ; begin    {code for both a button and a menu item}    ...    {some specific code:}    if Sender Button1 then   Ã‚   ShowMessage(Button1 clicked!)    else if Sender MenuItem1 then   Ã‚   ShowMessage(MenuItem1 clicked!)    else   Ã‚   ShowMessage( clicked!) ; end; Note: the second else in the if-then-else statement handles the situation when neither the Button1 nor the MenuItem1 have caused the event. But, who else might call the handler, you could ask. Try this (youll need a second button: Button2) : procedure TForm1.Button2Click(Sender: TObject) ; begin   Ã‚   Button1Click(Button2) ;   Ã‚   {this will result in: clicked!} end; IS and AS if Sender is TButton then   Ã‚   DoSomething else   Ã‚   DoSomethingElse; Edit box procedure TForm1.Edit1Exit(Sender: TObject) ; begin    Button1Click(Edit1) ; end; {... else} begin    if Sender is TButton then   Ã‚  Ã‚   ShowMessage(Some other button triggered this event!)    else if Sender is TEdit then   Ã‚  Ã‚   with Sender as TEdit do   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   begin   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Text : Edit1Exit has happened;   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Width : Width * 2;   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Height : Height * 2;   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   end {begin with} end; Conclusion As we can see, the Sender parameter can be very useful when used properly. Suppose we have a bunch of Edit boxes and Labels that share the same event handler. If we want to find out who triggered the event and act, well have to deal with Object variables. But, lets leave this for some other occasion.

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Journal Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 17

Journal - Assignment Example The article went on further to describe that George Romney had grown up on a Mormon compound established by his grandfather who had four wives. Asked to comment, Obama’s reelection campaign spokeswoman Lis Smith replied that they will not engage in attacking a candidate’s religion and that the practice was beyond what is appropriate. I think that this aspect of the presidential candidate’s family history, especially if it will not affect the candidate’s performance should he become the president, is of no relevance. I think Americans are more concerned with a presidential candidate’s capability to govern them than if where the candidate’s parents grew up. As the article mentioned, it was only Romney’s great grandfather who did not practice monogamy. It just shows that even if it was against their beliefs to have more than one wife, Romney’s grandfather and father stuck to their own principles of having just one family as is what presidential candidate Romney has done. At the end of the day, I think what matters is Romney’s personal conviction. This is what makes him the kind of person and presidential candidate that he is. If this kind of person is who America wants as a ruler then what his great grandfather had done should be of no

Friday, October 18, 2019

Legal Issues in Reduction of Workforce Simulation Essay

Legal Issues in Reduction of Workforce Simulation - Essay Example If terminated, the Age Discrimination and Employment Act (ADEA) could be called out, as well as Employment at Will (Reed, O.L., Shedd, P.J., Morehead, J.W., & Corley, R.N.). Female, Age 28 Contractor, Good Attendance, Below Average Production, Rescued Two Major Accounts, College Dropout, Public Relations Skills, Customer Service, Telemarketing, Sales, Good Listener (2007, University of Phoenix). If terminated, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Chapter 14 could be called out (2005, Reed, O.L., Shedd, P.J., Morehead, J.W., & Corley, R.N.). Female, Age 30 Pregnant, Contractor, Poor Attendance, Average Production, Contractor, No Special Achievements, Bachelor of Science in Public Relations, Troubleshooting, (2007, University of Phoenix). If terminated, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act could be called out (2005, Reed, O.L., Shedd, P.J., Morehead, J.W., & Corley, R.N.). There are certain extenuating regulatory circumstances (e.g., exceptions to employment at will, or a collective bargaining agreement) that would affect the decision to terminate these people. Simulations such as these help business managers and those with a vested interest in an organization or in learning the trade a good perspective on a real-world situation. Each of these is represented in the above table in the form of a law or act as listed. Under the agency principle, it is your obligation that you act in the best interest of the organization as opposed to self interest. Therefore, your decision on which three people to lay off must align with the best interests of the organization. The above table shows both flaws and strengths of certain individuals that are being considered for termination. The final decisions were determined based upon the best interest of Fast... The author of this essay constructs a fictional company and fictional case to understand how to make a right decision regarding the termination of employees. The author is considering downsizing due to their recent decision to leave the online distribution market. In order to downsize, the company has decided to terminate three of its employees based on their work evaluations. The observer in this case is a senior manager from the Human Resources Department at Fast Serve. His objective is to determine which three out of five potential employees are to be terminated. This may sound easy enough, but it gets tricky due to certain laws that protect employees from unfair treatment, including termination, in the workplace. The observer has two weeks to make a decision that is in the best interest of Fast Serve and that does not violate any laws. Through understanding the decisions that were made in this exercise, the viewer gains a better understanding of regulatory requirements that govern the termination of employees. The laws that were considered in this case were those that protect a company’s employees against unfair treatment or wrongful termination. As was learned in the case with Manson, sometimes it is in a company’s best interest to assist an employee rather than terminate him or her (University of Phoenix, 2007) In conclusion, decisions of this nature must be made in light of what is legal and what is ethical. A company must make decisions that are in their own best interest without losing valuable talent or risking a lawsuit.

Legal Methods and Legal Structures Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Legal Methods and Legal Structures - Essay Example The issue of whether wearing religious apparel can be prohibited or restricted has been appeared as an important topic of discussion in several jurisdictions. Unfortunately, no clear or uniform response to this particular issue or claims has been recognised so far. In certain circumstances, courts are involved in justifying the ban on religious attire, while in other circumstances, courts are often seen to lack in making proper jurisdictions concerning the aforesaid issue. A comparison of two religious apparel cases that predominately arise in the context of school has been depicted in the following discussion. In R. (on the application of Playfoot) v Governing Body of Millais School [2007] H.R.L.R. 34, a 16 year old minor named Lydia Playfoot was the claimant. Lydia was pursuing her education from a non-denominational girl’s school in Horsham West Sussex. The Governing Body of Millias School was the defendant, which prohibited Lydia to wear a chastity ring (purity ring) as an insignia of her commitment made towards her religious beliefs. Nevertheless, the school has defined a clear set of dress code, which restricted the wearing of apparel other than plain ear studs. Notably, Lydia’s father disagreed with such dress code formulated by the school. Subsequently, she filed a lawsuit claiming for judicial investigation of the defendant’s decision. Her claim was grounded on the fact that the decision of the school prohibiting her from wearing purity ring was against her right to freedom.

Thursday, October 17, 2019

What are the key characteristics of a social movement Use examples to Essay

What are the key characteristics of a social movement Use examples to explain any theoretical concepts you use - Essay Example Various social movements have different motivation for their actions, depending on their surrounding social, economic, and political environments. However, there are some key features that are common or at least applicable to most of them. My essay seeks to identify these key features as well as cite a few examples to explain the various theoretical concepts within the dynamics of a social movement. There are different types of social movements which have been identified by sociologists all over the world. These types are categorized depending on their scope; the type of change they advocate for or bring; their target groups; and how they operate. Considering scope, we can classify social movement as a reform or radical. A radical social movement aims to change certain value systems in a fundamental way. A good example of such a movement is the American Civil Rights Movement whose main aim was to fight for maximum civil rights for all Americans irrespective of the race they belonged to. There is also South Africa’s Shack Dwellers Movement, popularly known as ‘Abahali baseMjondolo,’ which fights for shack dwellers’ place in the city life. Reform social movement, on the other hand, works to change some norms and laws. Trade unions and green belt movements fall under this category (Ballard, et al., 2005, p622, Kendall, 2011, p. 540). A social movement may also be categorized depending on the type of change it intends to make. Under this we have innovation movement which aims to introduce or amend a given value. For instance, we have singularitarianism movement which fights for safety of technological singularity. We also have the conservative movement concerned with the preservation of current values and norms. A good example is the current movement against the introduction of genetically modified organisms. In addition, social movement may

Government regulations in business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Government regulations in business - Essay Example This paper illustrates that the government has the mandate to overlook all business activities, and also have the power to control certain businesses. The government has the responsibility to impose various regulations to ascertain that the customers are not exploited, and there is a fair competition among the firms in any given industry. Government regulations in marketing are crucial towards customer protection as well as maintain fairness in competition. The number of government regulations in marketing is sufficient to ensure that there is a reasonable business environment. The government imposes laws on marketing regarding product safety and warranties. Such laws ensure that the advertisers are limited to advertising only true information. Warranties ensure that the manufacturer produces high-quality goods. The limits obtruded on freedom of speech are beneficial to controlling what one organization says about the other and hence fairness is maintained in the market. Government r egulations on validation of advertising claims ensure that the customers are only fed with true information. Therefore, it is evident that government regulation on marketing activities plays three main roles. It ensures that producers of the advertised good or service produce goods of similar quality to what they claim while advertising. It regulates the relationship between competitors. They ensure that the customers receive the best services or goods and are not misguided by the advertisement.

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

What are the key characteristics of a social movement Use examples to Essay

What are the key characteristics of a social movement Use examples to explain any theoretical concepts you use - Essay Example Various social movements have different motivation for their actions, depending on their surrounding social, economic, and political environments. However, there are some key features that are common or at least applicable to most of them. My essay seeks to identify these key features as well as cite a few examples to explain the various theoretical concepts within the dynamics of a social movement. There are different types of social movements which have been identified by sociologists all over the world. These types are categorized depending on their scope; the type of change they advocate for or bring; their target groups; and how they operate. Considering scope, we can classify social movement as a reform or radical. A radical social movement aims to change certain value systems in a fundamental way. A good example of such a movement is the American Civil Rights Movement whose main aim was to fight for maximum civil rights for all Americans irrespective of the race they belonged to. There is also South Africa’s Shack Dwellers Movement, popularly known as ‘Abahali baseMjondolo,’ which fights for shack dwellers’ place in the city life. Reform social movement, on the other hand, works to change some norms and laws. Trade unions and green belt movements fall under this category (Ballard, et al., 2005, p622, Kendall, 2011, p. 540). A social movement may also be categorized depending on the type of change it intends to make. Under this we have innovation movement which aims to introduce or amend a given value. For instance, we have singularitarianism movement which fights for safety of technological singularity. We also have the conservative movement concerned with the preservation of current values and norms. A good example is the current movement against the introduction of genetically modified organisms. In addition, social movement may

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Discuss how branding adds value with reference to the cases namely 3M, Essay

Discuss how branding adds value with reference to the cases namely 3M, Singapore Airiness, AMEX, Club Med, Haagen Daaz - Essay Example concepts were adopted by its management in order to innovate, reorient, strategically position and redefine its then existing strategic branding techniques. An articulate strategy of brand value creation along with a customer loyalty management approach was adopted in the 1980’s in response to competitors’ threat to its core business, viz. the American Express card. Indeed almost 900,000 federal employees use the American Express card to settle bills to the tune of $250 billion annually though the company has had to do everything under its power to avoid being pushed into the red. The 1980’s were marked by stiffer competition from its parallel rivals like the Visa card, MasterCard and so on. In fact while the total expenditure on credit cards increased from a mere $250 billion in 1985 to $1,000 billion in 1993, the market share of American Express was either stagnant or actually falling. It was around this time that the management of the company realized the relative significance of a strategic shift in its brand management and value creation approaches. Coupled with a mammoth advertising campaign, the company sought convincingly to introduce innovation, value for money, smartness and classlessness as the new dynamic concepts in a customer-oriented promotion campaign. This strategic shift in company’s brand equity policy approach worked to such an extent that soon its rivals began to copy some of its fundamental principles (Neal & Strauss, 2008). The loyalty management program of American Express was probably the best strategic tactic that paid handsome dividends later on. Unlike its rivals, American Express began to innovate with both adverting and loyalty management. For instance its â€Å"Quality People† advertising slogan appealed to people across class and social barriers because it focused on the dynamic value proposition. Every individual person who had some success in their business or profession was chosen to underline and drive home the message

Monday, October 14, 2019

Refugee Convention and the United Kingdom Essay Example for Free

Refugee Convention and the United Kingdom Essay A person who escapes tyrannical or perilous circumstances is termed as a refugee. Some of the reasons for the creation of refugees are civil disturbances, environmental disasters or war. Around three hundred thousand people obtain this status per month and comprise of women and children in the main. The United Nations requires its member states to protect such people (What are refugees? , 2005). On the 14th of December, 1950, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees of UNHCR was established by the United Nations General Assembly. Its principal objective is to afford protection to refugees and find a viable solution to their problems. Fundamentally, the UNHCR makes strenuous efforts to enable the persecuted of the world to obtain asylum and â€Å"safe refuge in another State, with the option to return home voluntarily, integrate locally or to resettle in a third country. † (Basic Facts). Article 1A(2) of the Refugee Convention states that refugees are individuals who leave their country on account of legitimate danger of persecution due to their political opinions, nationality, race or religion and who are not in a position to obtain the protection of their country (Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. Adopted on 28 July 1951 by the United Nations Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Status of Refugees and Stateless Persons convened under General Assembly resolution 429 (V) of 14 December 1950). The Member States of the European Union exhibited quite some differences in the interpretation of this definition of refugees. It became mandatory to establish the same guidelines within the Union, in order to implement a common asylum system in the EU. Accordingly, the European Commission made a proposal in the year 2001 to the European Council, whereby the requirements for deeming a person to be a refugee were clearly described and this was in accordance with the UNHCR Refugee Convention of 1951, Article 1 of the Geneva Convention on the Status of Refugees, discussions of the EC with its Member States and specialized institutions dealing with refugees like the European Council on Refugees and Exiles or ECRE and the UNHCR (The European Union clarifies what it means by refugee and subsidiary protection). This proposal comprised of several goals, some of them were to ensue the existence of basic protection, in all the Member States, for persons who required international protection. Initially, the concentration was to be on reducing the differences extant in the legislation and procedures of the various Member States. After this the aim was to restrict subsequent measures adopted by persons who were taking advantage of the variance in the laws relating to the recognition of refugees in the Member States in order to obtain subsidiary protection status. Moreover, it was a major objective of this proposal to assure adequate protection for those whose needs in this regard were genuine. Furthermore, the proposal aimed to ensure that no person could take undue advantage of the process of obtaining asylum (The European Union clarifies what it means by refugee and subsidiary protection). Consequently, in April 2004 Directive 2004/83/EC was adopted and this directive prescribes the requirements for according refugee status to stateless persons or people who do not belong to Member States of the EU. In addition, this directive describes the nature and extent of the protection to be granted to all such eligible persons (The European Union clarifies what it means by refugee and subsidiary protection). The immigration rules in the United Kingdom permit the grant of asylum to a refugee, only if it is possible for that person to establish that they face certain persecution due to their ethnicity, nationality, religion or due to the political opinions that they subscribe to if they return to their country of origin. These rules are in conformity with the United Nations convention relating to the status of refugees and Article 3 of the ECHR or European Convention on Human Rights. The result of these rules is that there is an exclusion of most of the refugees who have been permitted to reside in the UK under exceptional leave (asylum, political, 2005). In the year 1999 seventy one thousand persons sought political asylum in the United Kingdom and most of these persons were Kosovar refugees from the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. A few of these applicants were from Somalia, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Turkey, Iraq, Albania and China. These numbers increased to a little over a hundred thousand by January 2000 indicating a massive increase in the influx of refugees to the United Kingdom (asylum, political, 2005). The data available with the Home Office has revealed that thirty six percent of those seeking refuge in 1999 were genuine and that an additional eleven percent had been granted asylum on compassionate grounds. However, statistics from other sources have revealed that less than ten percent of persons whose application for refuge had been refused had been deported and that the remainder continued to stay as illegal immigrants (asylum, political, 2005). On the 1st of April, 2000 the United Kingdom enacted legislation, which expeditiously dealt with straightforward cases by adopting fast track processing of their applications, substituted a food voucher system for the extant welfare benefits and made provisions for the forced occupation of accommodation around the UK. These initiatives were successful in reducing the number of pending applications to ninety thousand by May 2000. However, the United Kingdom had to incur an exorbitant expenditure of nine hundred million pounds sterling, in order to support asylum seekers during the financial year 1999 to 2000 (asylum, political, 2005). The UNHCR, which was established in 1951, has provided succour to approximately thirty million refugees. The number of persons whose status has been of grave concern to the UNHCR has increased from seventeen to twenty seven million between 1991 and 1995. These numbers stood at twenty two million at the end of the year 1999 and comprises of eleven million refugees and five million persons who had been displaced within their own countries (asylum, political, 2005). The United Kingdom received three hundred and ninety thousand applications seeking asylum in the year 2000. Out of these ninety seven thousand, seven hundred were granted the status of refugees or provided with exceptional leave to remain in the UK. This amounted to thirty one percent of total asylum applications made all over Europe. Most of the applicants belonged to countries where human rights were being infringed with impunity. Many of these refugees hailed from Iraq, Iran, Sri Lanka, Somalia, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and Afghanistan. The number of refugees accepted by the UK was less than the number permitted in Belgium and the Netherlands as a ratio to the population, these observations were made by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (Immigration and emigration, 2005). In order to compensate for the ageing population of the EU, it has to allow an influx of nearly 1. 4 million immigrants per year. The UK Home Office had undertaken reforms to its work permit system so as to allow foreign nationals to apply for such work permits in order to fill in job vacancies. The objective of these new reform proposals is to encourage legitimate immigration and thereby discourage illegal immigration. In October 2001 the Home Office had announced that the present scheme of issuing food vouchers to asylum applicants would be restructured by implementing a combined cash and identity card system (Immigration and emigration, 2005). The Ministerial Meeting on the Refugee Convention held in Geneva, provided an opportunity for the participating nations to adopt new policies to strengthen international refugee protection. Although, more than fifty years had elapsed, since the adoption of new policies in the Refugee Convention, yet nations were lagging behind in addressing the fundamental cause for refugee exodus. The cause for this situation was violation of human rights, especially during internal conflicts in the nations. Many countries were failing in their duty to respect the right to seek asylum from oppression. They were ignoring the non – refoulement principle, which held that refugees should not be deported to a place of conflict where the risk of serious breaches of human rights were prevalent (Refugee Convention a Convention for the 21st century. 2001). It is indeed deplorable to note that several countries had failed to initiate appropriate action against such infringement, as necessitated by the treaty obligations. According to Amnesty International, subsequent to the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Centre, national governments should be required to reiterate their commitment to the Refugee Convention (Refugee Convention a Convention for the 21st century. 2001). By instituting stringent security measures, subsequent to the September 11 attacks, many countries ignored the human rights of refugees and asylum applicants. These measures targeted non – citizens of the nations. Specifically, countries with powerful economies have treated refugees and illegal immigrants alike and implemented several measures to isolate refugees. Instances have been reported where nations have unnecessarily indulged in imposing tighter security measures. One instance of this was reported in July 2001 to the Amnesty International, wherein the immigration authorities of the United Kingdom stationed at Prague airport detained travellers from the Roma ethnic minority, questioned them, did not permit them to enter the UK and prevented them from boarding flights (Refugee Convention a Convention for the 21st century. 2001). It has become essential to implement measures that provide adequate protection in situations involving mass flight of the populace of a nation. Moreover, the UN refugee institution has to be provided with sufficient funds to carry out its work. The Amnesty International has demanded of the nations that had participated in the meeting in Geneva to resolve issues involving refugee protection in conformity with the spirit of the Refugee Convention (Refugee Convention a Convention for the 21st century. 2001). In R v. Special Adjudicator, Ullah a Pakistani national claimed asylum in the UK, as he feared persecution on account of his religious beliefs; the UK authorities did not accept his petition under the Refugee Convention. The House of Lords held that in the absence of a flagrant denial or gross abuse of an individual’s rights, there could be no compromise on maintain immigration controls in the larger public interest (R v Special Adjudicator, ex parte Ullah , 2004). Several instances exist, wherein the United Kingdom and its agents were unsuccessful in providing adequate protection to refugees, who had been deployed in special camps. In Kenya, a nineteen year old girl’s modesty was outraged in the vicinity of the offices of the refugee camp authorities and similarly, two Rwandan children were killed and their mother was stabbed in a secure residence. Moreover, a number of incidents involving the gross violations of the right to life, the right not to be subjected to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and violation of the non refoulement principle were reported in these centres (New Approaches to the Asylum Process. Human Rights Watch Submission to the House of Lords, Select Committee on the European Union, Sub-Committee F (Social Affairs, Education and Home Affairs), 2003). As such the responsibility of protecting refugees is vested with the United Kingdom and the latter has to ensure that such violations do not occur in the refugee centres. In case of failure to protect refugees in the camps, the U. N. General Assembly can authorize the UNHCR to provide sufficient protection to the refugees and help the UK Government to find permanent solutions for the problem of refugees (New Approaches to the Asylum Process. Human Rights Watch Submission to the House of Lords, Select Committee on the European Union, Sub-Committee F (Social Affairs, Education and Home Affairs), 2003). The Chief Executive of the Refugee Council, Nick Hardwick, opined that, the policy being implemented by the UK Government was insufficient, and that it was endangering the lives of a number of asylum seekers. He further stated that the UK’s record of granting asylum status to Sri Lankan Tamils was dismal. France had granted asylum to around seventy three percent of the applicants and Canada had allowed eighty percent, in comparison to the woefully meagre two percent by the UK Government. Many felt that such rejection would pose grave danger for these immigrants, who could expect torture and incarceration in dehumanized prisons in Sri Lanka (New Refugee Council report warns UK not to put refugees lives at risk, 2002). From the above it becomes very clear that the UK has not been very friendly towards immigrants. In particular, after the attacks made by terrorists owing allegiance to Osama bin laden, there has been a reluctance to admit foreign nationals into the country. Several instances have come to light, wherein the UK Government had failed to take into consideration the principle of proportionality, while assessing the status of asylum seekers. There is a marked reluctance to permit persons hailing from Asia, the Middle East and Africa into the United Kingdom. This is in gross violation of the Refugee Convention of 1951. Bibliography asylum, political. (2005).In The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia including Atlas . Basic Facts. (n. d. ). Retrieved May 22, 2007, from UNHCR: http://www. unhcr. org/basics. html Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. Adopted on 28 July 1951 by the United Nations Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Status of Refugees and Stateless Persons convened under General Assembly resolution 429 (V) of 14 December 1950. (n. d. ). Retrieved May 22, 2007, from Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights: http://www. unhchr. ch/html/menu3/b/o_c_ref. htm Immigration and emigration. (2005). Retrieved May 22, 2007, from In The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia including Atlas: http://www. xreferplus. com/entry/6435900immigration and emigration New Approaches to the Asylum Process. Human Rights Watch Submission to the House of Lords, Select Committee on the European Union, Sub-Committee F (Social Affairs, Education and Home Affairs). (2003, September). Retrieved May 22, 2007, from http://hrw. org/backgrounder/eca/asylum-process. htm New Refugee Council report warns UK not to put refugees lives at risk. (2002, February 11). Retrieved May 22, 2007, from Refugee Council Online: http://www. refugeecouncil. org. uk/news/press/2002/february/20020211newr. htm R v Special Adjudicator, ex parte Ullah , UKHL 26 (2004). Refugee Convention a Convention for the 21st century. 2001. M2 Presswire. M2 Communications, Ltd. The European Union clarifies what it means by refugee and subsidiary protection. (n. d. ). Retrieved May 22, 2007, from European Commission. Justice and Home Affairs. Refugee subsidiary protection: http://ec. europa. eu/justice_home/fsj/asylum/subsidiary/fsj_asylum_subsidiary_en. htm What are refugees? (2005). The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia i

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels

Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels The 1998 film Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels was directed and written by Guy Ritchie who would eventually create the reboot of the solid blockbuster series, Sherlock Holmes. His earlier movie is about four criminal friends who are roped into three dramatic events in their life that are going on at the same time. This film is very unique because of the simultaneous structure of the plot tied together with parallel editing. It has so many things to enjoy about it: the atmospheric East London locations, the lush visuals, and the distinctive camera angles employed by Ritchie. Everything in this film catches the eye. Ritchie’s movie is a thrill to watch because he keeps you constantly on edge. The theme of the film is about karma and the way fate plays its fickle finger on the characters’ lives. If the characters in the film have a certain set of moral standards, then their future fates are left to decide whether or not they live or die. If a person is of an â€Å"honorable† background (at least within the code of thieves) or has moral beliefs in loyalty to his friends, in the end they will triumph over the darker elements of the criminal underworld. As you watch the film, you start to understand that some of the characters in this film aren’t exactly great people but they are decent enough to do the right thing for themselves and for their friends in the end. The film starts off with four close friends: Eddy (Nick Moran), Tom (Jason Flemyng), Bacon (Jason Stathom), and Soap (Dexter Fletcher). They are getting 100,000 euro notes so that Eddy can get into one of the many sleazy card games put on by porn mogul Harry â€Å"the Hatchet† Lonsdale (played by P. H. Moriarty.) Harry botches the game so that Eddy losses the 100,000 that he handed them to enter. Now he has to pay an additional amount of 400,000 euros. Harry tells Eddy that he wants the money to be given to him at the end of a full week or else he’ll have to deal with his East End enforcers. This is the inciting action that triggers the entire plot. How are these friends going to raise that huge amount of money? This inspires a great mix of dark comedy and violence for the rest of the film. After several days with no luck acquiring the funds, Eddy comes home and overhears his neighbors, a gang of crooks led by a man named Dog played by Frank Harper. The gang is planning a robbery on some pot growers who may be loaded not only with drugs but the needed money to solve the debt problem. Eddy sends this information to his long-time pals. He is intending for them to rob the shady neighbors as they come back from the theft of the marijuana dealers. The gang of four installs taping equipment to monitor the neighbors. Tom obtains a pair of antique shotguns from a black market dealer, known as Nick the Greek (Steven Marcus) who also strikes a deal with Rory Breaker (Vas Blackwood), a sociopathic gangster, to buy the stolen drugs. Nick had purchased the guns from a pair of foolish small time criminals, Gary and Dean, who in turn had stolen them from a bankrupt British lord as part of a job for Harry â€Å"the Hatchet.† None of the characters realize that, of the entire stolen firearms collection, Harry’s only desire was those two extremely valuable antique shotguns now in the hands of Tom. After learning the guns had been sold, an enraged Barry â€Å"the Baptist,† Harry’s personal bodyguard, threatens the two idiots into getting them back. The plot thickens, pointing towards future mayhem. As a sad trivia aside, the film was dedicated to Lenny McLean who performed Barry â€Å"the Baptist.† Mr. McLean had died of cancer only one month before the film’s premie re. The neighbors robbery gets underway according to schedule. Despite the death of a gang member stupidly by his own gun and a shaky chance encounter with a traffic cop, the job against the pot dealers is a success. Thinking they’re finally safe when the crooks arrive back at their London apartment, that neighbor gang is ambushed by our four friends. They take the neighbor’s looted money and return later that night to stash the goods next door. It is now time for a crazy night of celebratory drinking. Socio Rory discovers that the drugs he was going to buy were actually stolen from him. The marijuana growers were in his employees. Rory interrogates/tortures Nick into telling where the four friends live. Meanwhile, furious about their loss, Dog throws one of his men through the wall of their apartment. They discover the taping equipment on the other side and eventually all the stolen money and drugs. As Dog counts the money, the crooked neighbors prepare an ambush. Meanwhile Gary and Dean, trying to recover the antique shotguns, call on a traumatized Nick, who directs them to the same apartment address. Big Chris, Harrys debt collector, leaves with his son to the same destination as the four friends drive home from their bar crawl. Fate has played all the cards on the fortunes of all the characters. This will be the climax of the plot. Rory and his gang assault the apartment and have a shootout with the neighbors, resulting in the deaths of all but Dog and Winston, Rory’s chemist. Winston makes off with the marijuana. Dog is robbed by Big Chris of the shotguns and money during his escape. Gary and Dean spot Big Chris with the guns and hastily follow him, while the four friends return to find their loot missing. Big Chris gives the guns and cash to Harry, but on his return to the car he finds Dog threatening to kill his son if he doesnt retrieve the money. Desperate to get the guns, Gary and Dean attack Harry and Barry at their office, not knowing what Harry looks like and not noticing Barry until after he retaliates. Within seconds all four men are dead. The four friends are arrested, but confirmed to be innocent after the traffic cop identified Dogs dead gang as the primary suspects. When they retreat back to the bar, they discover Tom is out on a mission to throw the priceless shotguns off a bridge into the River Thames. In looking at a catalog of antiques, the friends learn the guns are worth thousands of dollars. As they try to call, Tom puts the phone in his mouth and the film ends with him trying to throw the shotguns off the bridge that he failed throwing the first time. Now, with the guns are on a ledge and the phone is in Tom’s mouth, the film concludes with Tom not knowing what to do next. The movie fades to black in a hilarious cliffhanger making for a perfect ending The emotional tone of the film is that of fear, remorsefulness, and giddy happiness. Another emotional quality felt is ironic surprise. The irony that the characters have to face in nearly every scene is hilarious. The film has a delightfully quirky dark comedic quality. It always puts these characters that you sometimes feel sorry and sympathize, in uneasy situations that they have to pry their way out some manner. Similar and comparable films that share this unique gallows humor include Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs. The structure of the film is fairly straightforward following a chronological development of the plot. There was one scene where Ritchie uses flash-forward in his story telling. The sequence involves a car crash. Then the next scene was about the same car crash only it details how it happened and who it happened too. It is a clever use of time manipulation. The musical soundtrack is mostly previously released music that wasn’t originally orchestrated for the film. The score contains a wide variety of music from rock to reggae with songs including â€Å"The Boss† and â€Å"The Payback† by James Brown, â€Å"Spooky† by Dusty Springfield, â€Å"Liar, Liar† by The Castaways, â€Å"I Wanna Be Your Dog† by The Stooges, and â€Å"Walk This Land (Remix)† by Ez Rollers. The use of these musical hits from the 1960s and 1970s is diverse and brilliant. The cinematography by director of photography, Tim Maurice-Jones, is excellent. The most memorable parts include the POV (point of view) camera sequence on Eddie when he is in disarray having just lost all of the money. When Harry dramatically dies, the production team slows things down. You can see the brutal action unfold while time is now going at a much slower intense pace using Slo Mo, a signature Ritchie technique later used in his successful Sherlock Holmes series. Also there is a sequence where a chunk of one of the robber’s hair is completely blown off. The way Maurice-Jones and Ritchie used smoke and lighting in that â€Å"hair-raising† moment was pretty charming. It was reminiscent of those old slap stick cartoons where something ungodly happens to a character. You think the cartoon character is badly damaged but they just have a slight burn or minor scratch. This film has to be one of the best films I’ve seen recently. It is an exciting take on the crime world and how most criminals get the barrel in the end. The film is stunningly balanced between being humorous and serious at the same time. Its use as a â€Å"hyperlink cinema† piece is one for the books. Ritchie does an excellent job in connecting all the different stories, playing with time, and interweaving surprising plot twists. He makes you feel joy when you like a certain character from a different part of the story. Then you see them interact with a dangerous character, you had no idea would ever see him or her again. He creates a feeling of immense tension. The film is a tightly constructed masterpiece. Ritchie’s movie just does not stop for a second. It is full of refreshingly dark humor and filmed with real style and flair. Like a great book, I didn’t want it to end. That is how much I enjoyed this film. You feel such a connection with the story and with the characters. In the paltry 107 minutes this movie is played, you want to watch these characters lives played out even more. Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels has a certain message or moral: to never be too greedy and always try to stick to an ethical path otherwise you might get the heat of life in the end. There are not moral choices being made in this movie. But nevertheless, there are moral people in this story. Even though they do bad things and sometimes pay dearly for it, their hearts are in the right place. Sometimes. Let’s just pray they won’t get into any trouble next time.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Lives on the Boundary :: essays research papers

The Giver Jonas, an eleven year old boy , was very intellegent and outstanding. In fact he surpassed the other kid’s intelligence. He grew up with her sister Lily and a special visitor named Gabriel very well educated by his parents . He was almost a perfect son, he was friendly and good hearted. In fact he fell in love with a girl named Fiona.. He learned very quickly all about his community, a community where all the people lived happy and peaceful lives. Jonas life was perfect, even the community were he was living seemed to be perfect. But one day when he became twelve, according to the community rules, it was time to receive his life’s assignment just like all the other kids that became twelve. Jonas was given a special assignment. To his astonishment he was given the most respected job of all. The assignment designated for Jonas was called â€Å"The Receiver†. Jonas, being the Receiver, was obligated to receive all the memories from the actual Giver and past Givers w hether they were nice or horrible. He learned many things about the past that no one else knew. At first Jonas was living peacefully in his community. He used to do all the things that a eleven year old kid does, like play, ride bicycles and go to school every day. There was no pain or fear or things to worry about. Jonas had many friends, some of his best friends were Asher and Fiona. They used to work voluntarily, helping and taking care of the old people. The elderly were lovingly cared for as were the newest members of that place. In that community every single person was given a certain job for which he or she was suited emotionally, physically and mentally at a certain age, in annual Ceremonies. Every family in this community had a mother, father, and two children, one of each sex. Jonas had two parents, a mother who was happily employed at the Department of Justice, and a father who was happily employed as a Nurturer. There was much laughter and obvious joy. There was no rudeness, no crime and no disease. When people did get hurt they took a pill and the pain went right away. No one ever broke bones or anything. There were no criminals, and there were no locks on any homes or buildings. The only bad thing about The Giver’s community was Release. Lives on the Boundary :: essays research papers The Giver Jonas, an eleven year old boy , was very intellegent and outstanding. In fact he surpassed the other kid’s intelligence. He grew up with her sister Lily and a special visitor named Gabriel very well educated by his parents . He was almost a perfect son, he was friendly and good hearted. In fact he fell in love with a girl named Fiona.. He learned very quickly all about his community, a community where all the people lived happy and peaceful lives. Jonas life was perfect, even the community were he was living seemed to be perfect. But one day when he became twelve, according to the community rules, it was time to receive his life’s assignment just like all the other kids that became twelve. Jonas was given a special assignment. To his astonishment he was given the most respected job of all. The assignment designated for Jonas was called â€Å"The Receiver†. Jonas, being the Receiver, was obligated to receive all the memories from the actual Giver and past Givers w hether they were nice or horrible. He learned many things about the past that no one else knew. At first Jonas was living peacefully in his community. He used to do all the things that a eleven year old kid does, like play, ride bicycles and go to school every day. There was no pain or fear or things to worry about. Jonas had many friends, some of his best friends were Asher and Fiona. They used to work voluntarily, helping and taking care of the old people. The elderly were lovingly cared for as were the newest members of that place. In that community every single person was given a certain job for which he or she was suited emotionally, physically and mentally at a certain age, in annual Ceremonies. Every family in this community had a mother, father, and two children, one of each sex. Jonas had two parents, a mother who was happily employed at the Department of Justice, and a father who was happily employed as a Nurturer. There was much laughter and obvious joy. There was no rudeness, no crime and no disease. When people did get hurt they took a pill and the pain went right away. No one ever broke bones or anything. There were no criminals, and there were no locks on any homes or buildings. The only bad thing about The Giver’s community was Release.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Eragon The Movie vs. Eragon The Novel Essay

People have different views in life. Some would opt to wallow with the beauty of words and the power of the imagination, while others would opt for movies and witness the wonders of visual effects. Some of the stories made turn out to be inspirations for many, while others become a driving force for people to go on and continue with life. One of the most interesting stories in Literature is Eragon. Due to the story and the lessons that both children and adults would learn, the novel was adapted as a movie into the big screen. However, I believe that the novel version of Eragon is still better than the movie version. THE STORY The story revolves around a young boy, named Eragon, who grew up in a small farm in Carvahall together with his uncle and cousin. During one of his hunting trips in the mountains, he found a big blue stone. The stone attracted him greatly, and Eragon thought that if sold in the city, the stone would be enough to suffice for their winter needs. Unknown to Eragon, the blue stone was actually a dragon egg, ready to hatch. Since care for dragons was prohibited by the king, Eragon had no choice but to secretly raise the poor animal, naming her Saphira. Eventually, they were haunted down by the king’s men and had no choice but to flee the village. Eragon’s uncle, Garrow, died due to his injuries, making him furious and hungry for revenge. Eragon’s journey towards survival with Saphira led to more secrets. In the course of their adventures, Brom proposed that he would do whatever it takes to help Eragon. The symbol in Eragon’s hand shows that he is indeed one of the dragon riders, like how Brom used to be. Towards the course of the journey, he was transformed from an ordinary teenager to a sword-fighting rider knowledgeable in magic and the ways of Dragon Riders. Eragon meets more people and encounters more life-threatening situations towards the course of the journey, which allows him to learn more about himself. His quest for revenge allowed him to learn more about himself, and how his search for answers would lead him to protect a whole Empire. SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES Books always have their own identity as compared to the film adaptations. This may be attributed to the fact that readers are given the opportunity to view the novel in their own way, and see things according to what their imagination has to offer. The book and film version of Eragon had the same dilemma. Both media had the opportunity to share with people the wonders that Eragon’s life had to offer, and at the same time bring them to a world unknown to many. However, the 2 media used also had their own differences. The film version was intricately made in such a way that the viewers would become curious of what the story has to offer. The special effects used in the film version would definitely come as an impressive work of art. The descriptions set in the book, such as Saphira’s appearance were perfectly executed in the film. One who has read the book with agree with me, especially in the details set for the other locations in the film. The language used in both versions were also similar with each other. The book on the other hand, made us of too many words. Some of the dialogues and scenes were cut in the film version, somehow giving the viewers a different impression of how the story would go. Take for example Eragon’s journey. Some of the places were deleted, and even Eragon’s reactions towards Katrina were deleted in the film version. In this manner, the plot of the story was somewhat changed deviating from the original context of the novel. PERSONAL ANALYSIS The film version of Eragon was something to be considered. Those who have read the novel would have different impressions about the adaptation, especially when some of the important scenes and dialogues have been deleted. Although the aim of the producers was to fit the whole book in one film, this should have been done using a different approach. In the same manner, I also admire how the visual effects were executed. Saphira was one of the wonders of the whole story, and this was very well presented in the film adaptation. Arya herself was a wonder to marvel at. As the book would have it, she was a beautiful elf, and was supposed to look mysterious at some point in the story. This was done perfectly, and I believe the actress who played her should also be given credit. Unfortunately, the film and the book had so many differences. The film version would look as if it was another story formed from the original novel, and not an adaptation. Although both had considered to keep the plot as the center of the film, the choice of words made the story difficult to absorb. Both readers and viewers would have difficulty in trying to keep in tune with the story because of the many names and places it included. For someone who has seen both media, disappointment would not come as a surprise. However, for those who have not read the book, the film adaptation is impressive, especially with how Saphira was manipulated. Works Cited Eragon. Dir. Stefan Fanmeier. Perf. Jeremy Irons, John Malkovich, Sienna Guillory, Edward Speleers, and Rachel Weisz. 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, 20 March 2007. Paolini, Christopher. Eragon. Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2003. â€Å"Eragon. † 2006. Eragon the Movie. 22 January 2009 . â€Å"Eragon. † The Internet Movie Database. 22 January 2009 . â€Å"Eragon. † Book Browse. 22 Janury 2009 . â€Å"Eragon (Inheritance, Book I). † 2003. Kids Turn Central. 22 January 2009 . â€Å"Eragon DVD Review. † 22 January 2009 .