The view that The Merchant of Venice is a comedy with tragic possibilities Essay Example

The view that The Merchant of Venice is a comedy with tragic possibilities Essay Example The view that The Merchant of Venice is a comedy with tragic possibilities Paper The view that The Merchant of Venice is a comedy with tragic possibilities Paper Essay Topic: Merchant Of Venice Play I consider The Merchant of Venice as a comedy with tragic possibilities mostly due to the melancholy ending which leaves the reader thinking whether what happened during the play could be considered morally good or not. Aristotle produced the first ideas about what a tragic and comic play were. Shakespeare altered this slightly but the Shakespearean model is still pretty much identical. I would define a comedy as everything a tragedy is not. In a tragedy all of the main action happens in one day and in that day there must be a revolution. Most of the time, the main character, or the tragic hero, is of noble birth or of high status so that when they die, which they most likely will, they fall far. This makes us feel sympathetic to the character. This happens as we let ourselves go through a, willing suspension of belief during the play, which makes us basically get emotionally involved in the play even though we know that the play is not real. A tragic play, because of this willing suspension of belief, excites the emotions of pity and fear. Pity is a synonym of sympathy and fear is felt due to the fact that we wonder what it would be like for us to be in that position and we are fearful of it. Catharsis, an idea of Aristotle which the audience feel they are watching the play. It is like a cleansing process as it teaches you not to become a murderer and so forth. It makes you into a better person. Whilst reading the merchant of Venice I felt Sympathy for Shylock and fear arose when Antonio was about to die. The play told me not to be criticising of others because of there beliefs. The Merchant of Venice consequently has the characteristics of a tragedy. A comedy is therefore is a play in which the main character, the comic hero, prospers. The evil character therefore gets what is coming to him and usually dies. This was seen as a waste of time by Aristotle and I agree as in the end everyone is happy and there is no revolution. Pity and fear are not felt, and in its place is happiness. This means that there is not as much point in the play as things work out. When things dont work out we feel sympathy and we learn a lesson. This is the Catharsis which makes us a better person. Even though you may have Catharsis experienced in a comedy due to the fact that it tells you not to be the like the bad character, the catharsis from watching a tragic play is much greater. This is because we feel more intense emotions and it gets the audience thinking more about the issues in the play, whether they are social, cultural, legal, moral etc. The play has the basic layout of a comedy because you could say there is a comic villain, and a comic hero throughout the play but tragedy also comes into it as if you feel sympathy for Shylock he is the tragic hero. The comic characters in this play are Launcelot Gobbo and Old Gobbo. The Prince of Morocco and the Prince of Arragon can be seen as comic characters also for their extravagance and arrogance. The Prince of Morocco says he would Outbrave the heart most daring on the earth which is a very overconfident thing to say. In Act 2, Scene 2, Launcelot, referred to as the clown and Old Gobbo, his father, interact in a comic way. Due to the fact that Old Gobbo is blind and easy to fool Launcelot plays around with him and tricks him into thinking his son is dead even though he is talking about himself and is obviously not. Then when he tries to convince his father he is not dead, being the dim old man he is he says to Launcelot that he is sure you are not Launcelot my boy. This comic interaction continues but these characters are very minor, especially Old Gobbo as he does not appear at any other time unlike Launcelot who appears several times. However these are the most clearly comic characters as one is called a clown and one is very old and gullible. They may have been placed in the story to give the other characters some time to change, but mainly they are there to provide the audience with some comic relief. Launcelot would have been used to show that Shylock is a dull and unkind man as he leaves Shylock without a servant and becomes the servant of Bassanio who is portrayed as much kinder and interesting person. These comic characters would be used in a comedy. With these characters the play becomes much more light hearted and comic for the audience, creating a happy feeling of the play. The Prince of Morocco and the Prince of Arragon are also minor roles in the play. There are comic as they are seen as big-headed and very flamboyant as they say things like did I deserve no more than a fools head. This is when Arragon is trying to seem incredibly intelligent above others as he mocks a man who would go for the golden casket and comically for the audience it was Morocco who would went for the Golden casket. Morocco is very proud and believes he is very worthy of Portia because of how noble and rich he is. Arragon is slightly wiser yet still quite proud and also tries to impress Portia, but with words, not his reputation. These characters are comic but still have a role to play. They have to be the characters who try the casket game and fail. This leaves the reader or audience with the knowledge of which casket is the right one and makes it more exciting when Bassanio chooses the right casket. A comedy would include these characters as they bring a comic feel to the play due to their comically high opinions of themselves. To me there is only one clearly comic scene in the play as there are others which are partially comic but have serious issues displayed as well. For instance, the scenes with Morocco and Arragon fit this description as they are comic because of the way in which the Princes are very exaggerated, ostentatious and adoring of themselves. Morocco says that his reputation hath feared the valiant. However they also talk about important issues like racial issues when Morocco says to Portia not to immediately dislike him because of his complexion. They both talk in a very passionate and heartfelt way showing that they are there not purely for comic reasons. The clearly comic scene in the play is Act 2 Scene 2 as this is the scene with Launcelot Gobbo and Old Gobbo. As I said before Launcelot jokes with his father and tricks him as he is very easy to fool. Launcelot fools Old Gobbo into thinking that he is not Launcelot and that the Launcelot he speaks of has gone to heaven. Launcelot then tries to convince his father that he is really his son but Old Gobbo is not convinced until Launcelot mentions Margaret which is his mothers name. This interaction is all very light hearted and insignificant to the play but its function is to provide some comic relief for the audience and maybe give some time to the other actors to get changed and practice their lines and so forth. Also this kind of scene would be used in a comedy as I said before to make the play more light hearted, happy, and enjoyable. Shylock is a Jew and is therefore a minority in Venice. He is criticised for this and prejudices are formed against him about him being a bad man for being a Jew. He is put down by always being referred to as the Jew which would be very angering. During the play we feel mixed emotions towards Shylock. With the knowledge of what has happened to the Jews during the centuries we feel sympathetic to a greater extent towards him. However does he deserve this sympathy? Does he have the right to feel unhappy because he has been mistreated for being a Jew or is he really just a bad man who is deserving of these prejudices? When Antonio first meets Shylock we dont know whether or not to feel sympathetic towards him as he passionately speaks about how he is mistreated but he also backs up the reason for this treatment as he gives us a reason to believe he is tricking Antonio due to his incredibly kind jester of lending money to him without any interest at all, just the right to his flesh if he fails to pay him back in time. We are backed up about this view as Bassanio says that Shylock has a villains mind. When it comes to the court case, Shylock has had his daughter and his money taken away from him by a Christian, and his servant taken away from him by another Christian. He feels as if everyone he knows has turned on him and out of emotion he is desperate to kill Antonio by taking his flesh. Is he right to do such an awful deed because of how badly he feels, or is it unthinkable of a man who has had everything taken from him by Christians to take a Christians life. This has even signed a contract, and agreed to his own death if he does not pay it back, and then he doesnt? We are not sure whether or not he is a comic villain or a tragic hero which makes the classification of the Merchant of Venice as a comedy or tragedy harder. This helps the view that the Merchant of Venice is a comedy with tragic possibilities. It is up to the reader whether or not Shylock is a comic villain or a tragic hero. Most would portray him as a comic villain and there is a lot of evidence to agree with that. When considering Shylock as the comic villain, the comic hero must be Bassanio. People leave Shylock for Bassanio or other Christians including his servant, Launcelot, and his daughter, Jessica. Shylock must be an evil man if people despise him enough to leave him and call his house a house of hell, like Jessica did in Act 2 Scene 3. Ever since the start we have seen him as a cunning and devious person. We thought that somehow he must have an ulterior motive if he is lending Antonio a large sum of money without any interest, and taking a pound of mans flesh if it is not paid back. Even though his gesture this time is one interest free, Shylock is a very money greedy man. He makes money from others misfortunes as he is a money lender and he hates Antonio because he lends money interest free. His reason for this is a greedy one as he feels that he loses money if people lend money from Antonio and not from him. He values his money more than his daughter after she runs away with his Ducats. He cries My Daughter, O my Ducats, My Daughter which shows that he loves them both equally until he says he I would have her at my feet with the Ducats and Jewels in her ears. This tells us that he would have his own daughter dead if he could have his money back. He is not a merciful man as when asked to show mercy he doesnt and he uses Justice as a loophole for the right to kill Antonio legally. Shylocks evil, devious, greedy, sinister and merciless characteristics cause the reader to believe that he is a comic villain. Being a comic villain would make the play more a comedy than a tragedy and there would then need to be a comic hero, Bassanio. Maybe the reason why everyone hates Shylock is not because he is an awful man, but because he is a Jew. I believe that it is a spiral of hatred as Shylock feels he must be mean to others as he has been a victim of anti-Semitic behaviour, and more anti-Semitic become the Christians when Shylock is mean to them. Being fair to Shylock, in those days, being a money lender was all Jews could do at the time. This is because Jews were not allowed to do more respectful jobs and money lending is all that they could do to earn money. Shylock also is ganged up upon by most of the characters in the play and has everything of value taken from him. These include his Daughter, who leaves him for a Christian, and his money, which he has rightfully earned as he doesnt force people to lend from him. Also Launcelot has left Shylock to be the servant of Bassanio instead and Shylock is left with no one as his wife is deceased. You could call the Christians the evil ones as they are prejudice against Shylock and steal all things of value from him. If people have taken all of value from you, do you not deserve to feel hatred for them? Shylock does feel hatred towards the people who are against him and uses Antonio as a way to exact his revenge. No matter how sinister it is, he is made to feel like this by the people who in the courtroom case beg for his mercy. Could we see him therefore as a tragic hero? If he was a tragic hero then there would need to be a tragic villain, but who would this be? It would be a tragedy if there was a tragic hero and villain but as there is not, the Merchant of Venice can only have tragic possibilities. The end of the play is very melancholy. The resolution that should happen in the play for a comedy is that Shylock, the evil man in the play gets his just deserts when he is deserted by his daughter and loses the court case and with it all his remaining money. Also Jessica is now happy with Lorenzo, Portia is happy with Bassanio, Gratiano is happy with Nerissa, Launcelot is happy serving his new master and Antonio lives and becomes amazingly rich. Then again is this really the case? Shylock is a beaten, devastated man who even though he wanted to kill Antonio had a motive that the Jewish people would be happy for this revenge to take place. He ends up losing all his money, his daughter, his pride, his house and any friends he might have had because of this and there is still prejudice against him. Being a Christian person the others must feel some form of guilt towards Shylock for him being such a broken man. Jessica must feel sad for stealing Shylocks money and deserting him and her faith and siding with the Christians against him. Lorenzo doesnt understand why she might feel like this and that couple end up unhappy. Portia knows that Bassanio has given his ring away for Antonio, and that Antonio loves Bassanio. Consequently that relationship is quite awkward and unhappy. Nerrisa is also unhappy with Gratiano as he has given the ring away, and Antonio, even though he is rich again, is lonely, still loves Bassanio and is jealous of Portia. Thus nobody in the end is really happy. The Jews are still put down by the Christians and the other characters are unhappy with each other and unhappy about what they have done to Shylock. What should have been a comedy has turned out to be a comedy with tragic possibilities. So in conclusion is the merchant of Venice a tragedy or a comedy? I would agree with the view that the merchant of Venice is a comedy with tragic possibilities. It depends on whether or not you think of Shylock as a comic villain or a tragic hero. I would see Shylock as a comic villain in the play as he hates the Christians and in the end tries to kill one. Then again there is more to this as Shylocks hateful emotions towards the Christians has been a result of immense prejudice against him. The Christians stole his servant, his daughter, and with her his money and pride. After the court case, and his harsh punishment we cannot help but feel sympathetic towards Shylock. Even the characters that had hated him throughout the play now feel guilt and sympathy. Most of which comes from Jessica, who has deserted her father, stolen his money and sided against him. Therefore we could see Shylock as a tragic hero in some respects. The main feel of the play however is a comic one even if there are blatant elements of a tragedy involved in the play. For that reason I will conclude by saying that The Merchant of Venice in my eyes is indeed a comedy with tragic possibilities.

Dialogue Guide Definition and Examples

Dialogue Guide Definition and Examples In reported speech, a dialogue guide serves to identify the speaker of directly quoted words. Also known as a dialogue tag.  In this sense, a dialogue guide is essentially the same as a signal phrase or a quotative frame. Dialogue guides are usually expressed in the simple past tense, and they are customarily set off from the quoted material by commas. In the context of small-group communication, the term dialogue guide is sometimes used to refer to a facilitator of group discussions, or to a booklet that provides advice on fostering communication between individuals. See Examples and Observations below. Also see: DialogueDirect SpeechQuotationTom Swifty Examples and Observations Its a polite Chinese custom to show you are satisfied, explained my father to our astonished guests.(Amy Tan, Fish Cheeks. Seventeen magazine, 1987)Im here, she said, because Im a taxpayer, and I thought it was about time that my boys have a look at those animals.(Ralph Ellison, On Being the Target of Discrimination. The New York Times, April 16, 1989)Look at these, the man from Kentucky said, holding up a rib. You could take these home and use them to make a skeleton.(Susan Orlean, Lifelike. The New Yorker, June 9, 2003) â€Å"He doesnt want Dijon, he  insisted, waving the waitress off. Here- he shoved a yellow bottle of Frenchs mustard in my direction- heres some mustard right here.(Barack Obama,  The Audacity of Hope.  Crown/Three Rivers Press, 2006)Never, said Elie Wiesel, never shall I forget that night, the first night in the camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed.We gotta call the newspaper, a doctor said.No, Werner said. He looked straight ahead, not at any of them. I just want you to sew me up.(Jo Ann Beard, Werner. Tin House, Fall 2006) Once Steinbrenner  said to me  before an Old-Timers Game, Get your ass down there and manage the team.†(Robert Merrill, quoted by Curt Smith in  What Baseball Means to Me. Hachette, 2002) The Function of Dialogue GuidesWe use quotation marks to identify certain material as an accurate, word-for-word report of someone elses speech or writing.  A representation of speech usually has two parts, a  dialogue guide  identifying the speaker and the quote itself: I got it down from five to three minutes, Mr. Brennan said later of his feat.(Scott Rice, From Reading to Revision. Wadsworth, 1996)   Elmore Leonards Advice on Reporting Dialogue3. Never use a verb other than said to carry dialogue.The line of dialogue belongs to the character; the verb is the writer sticking his nose in. But said is far less intrusive than grumbled, gasped, cautioned, lied. I once noticed Mary McCarthy ending a line of dialogue with â€Å"she asseverated,† and had to stop reading to ge t the dictionary.4. Never use an adverb to modify the verb said† . . .. . . he admonished gravely. To use an adverb this way (or almost any way) is a mortal sin. The writer is now exposing himself in earnest, using a word that distracts and can interrupt the rhythm of the exchange. I have a character in one of my books tell how she used to write historical romances full of rape and adverbs.(Elmore Leonard, Easy on the Adverbs, Exclamation Points and Especially Hooptedoodle. The New York Times, July 16, 2001) Alternate Spelling: dialog guide

Unit 3 Taxation and Representation Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Unit 3 Taxation and Representation - Assignment Example ight by a considerable extent, which was evident by having a close look on their respective approaches towards fulfilling such rights effectively (Ward, â€Å"History in the Making: An Absorbing Look at How American History Has Changed in the Telling over the Last 200 Years†). According to Patrick Henry and Samuel Adams, the right of taxation was referred to an option, which has been provided to the willing Englishmen by the British government. However, this provision changed with time. The political rights belonged exclusively to the colonists included the right to vote, order or proceed whereas, the power and authority over the British parliament remained confined to the concerning authorities. The above stated rights regarding the power to vote, order and proceed were only agreed upon by the legislation and the Parliament in terms of sharing with the colonists (Hanover, â€Å"Samuel Adams, and The Rights of the Colonists†). The existence of unrealistic expectations about the relationship prevailed between the mother country and its colonies can be duly considered as a major cause for the revolt brought upon by the colonists over Great Britain. For instance, the unrealistic and the ineffective mandates set up by the Parliament gradually resulted in raising several debates about taxation in the 1700s (GMW, â€Å"Soame Jenyns the Objections to the taxation considerd

Bolsa Chica Wetlands Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Bolsa Chica Wetlands - Essay Example It is assumed that the wetlands of Bolsa Chica provide shelter to a number of endangered species of flora and fauna. Recently the nature reserve of Bolsa China is also being used as a tourist-spot for nature-lovers. Since it is an important stop on the Pacific flyway of migratory birds, outbound travelers often grab the opportunity to come into the close contact of natural sceneries of the marshlands of Bolsa Chica. Apart from Bolsa Chica’s ecological importance, it has become a popular tourist spot, which provides the nature-lovers with a significant number of recreation activities such surf fishing for â€Å"perch, corbina, croaker, cabezon and sand shark†, bare-handed fishing for â€Å"California grunion, a species that only spawns on sandy southern California beaches†, bird-watching, etc. To the north and the South of Bolsa Chica Nature Reserve, there are the Warner Avenue and Seapoint Avenue, whereas there are residential areas on along border. Moreover, one can enjoy both the natural sceneries of Bolsa Chica and the oceanic beauty along the Pacific Coast Highway on the western border of Bolsa Chica. Though docent-led tour is available on the first, the second and the third Saturdays of each month, one can take a tour personal tour in these areas at any time of the year. The tours on the first Saturday and the third Saturday of each month are arranged by the â€Å"Amigos de Bolsa Chica† and the â€Å"Bolsa Chica Land Trust† from the South parking lots. Inbound nature-lovers can get a substantial knowledge about the areas’ weather, climate and geography from the Interpretive Center at Warner Ave. Bolsa Chica is endowed with some unique geographical features because of its more or less direct connection to the sea along its southern border. When we visited the area, the weather was somewhat cloudy. Though we guessed that it might rain, it did not happened finally. Before we reached there, we researched the weather st atus of Bolsa Chica by consulting the Bolsa Weather pages online. We learnt that the Bolsa Chica area has a typical weather which is applicable to any coastal area along the Tropic of Cancer. â€Å"A warm, dry Mediterranean climate,†, as it is said in Bolsa Chica page on Weather.com, â€Å"prevails over Southern California - inland it is hot in the summer, mild in the winter† (â€Å"Profile for Bolsa† pars. 3). August in Huntington is the warmest month, when the average temperature fluctuates between 900 F and 1050 F. In December, which is the coolest month, the average temperature oscillates from 200 F to 300 F. During the summer, frequent fogs prevail over the region and â€Å"most of the precipitation comes as rain† during the winter in December (â€Å"Profile for Bolsa† pars. 5). Since we visited Bolsa Chica at the end of July, the weather on our visiting day was neither foggy and nor rainy. Since Bolsa Chica stands very close to the coast of t he Pacific, the local climate remains almost moderate without much demarcation between the summer and the winters. Such moderate weather makes Bolsa Chica’s weather and climate different from the overall climatic pattern of California. Bolsa Chica, having all the characteristics of a wetland, is a rich habitat of a wide range of flora and fauna. A wetland is, indeed, a natural home of different species of birds, animals and plants. The â€Å"

Sales and Inventory Systems Essay Example for Free

Sales and Inventory Systems Essay Yakult was introduced to the Philippines in 1978. Its popularity among Filipinos has significantly grown in the past 33 years. There are two main companies in the Philippines, the Yakult Philippines Incorporated (YPI) and Yakult Marketing Corporation (YMC). Yakult Philippines Incorporated (YPI), an independent company, is a manufacturer and wholesale retailer of Yakult products from Yakult Honsha Co. LTD Japan with a joint venture and shares of investment of 60% for Filipinos and 40% for the Japanese investors. The factory is located in Barrio Makiling, Calamba, Laguna. They have twenty-five distributors from Luzon to Mindanao, supplying the whole country especially wholesale clients. The Yakult Marketing Corporation (YMC) retails their products and incorporates the Yakult Lady System that started in Metro Manila and NCR, then adapted by distributors all over the country. The Prohealth Sales Distributor Corporation which is the exclusive Yakult distributor in La Union started its operation in March 15, 2004. The Company orders its stocks from the Yakult Philippines Incorporated (YPI) and also adapted the Yakult Lady system of the Yakult Marketing Corporation (YMC). There are three branches in La Union and the Main Office is located in Bauang, La Union. The other branches are in Agoo which started in 2005 and Bangar that recently opened last 2011. The Main office receives the stocks ordered from YPI, and then distributes it to the other two branches. For the wholesale, the main office sells the product to all establishments that intend to resell the product. They deliver the products depending on the order or demand of the client. Every day, the main office deliver stocks to the Yakult Ladies, some just go directly to the main office to pay the stocks unpaid so that they can order again. There is an official receipt issued by the main office to the Yakult Ladies that is being manually recorded in order to make the daily sales and collection report at the end of the day. Making the sales report for the Yakult Ladies is a part of the motivational factor, for them to know how much they profit or loss of income and why their sales are going down. It will also become the basis of the company for how much promotional support they will give on the month of December in terms of gifts and other benefits. All the three branches make the daily sales report, the branch in Agoo and Bangar upload and send its reports in the main office in order to be compiled in the Main office. The sales report is made by the company’s secretary, and then thoroughly checked y the supervisor. The computation of the sales report is made in order to compute the sales and profit of the company. The inventory count of stocks must tally onto the sales report in order for the company to monitor the number of stocks distributed day by day. If the sales report and inventory count did not tally, then the processes must be repeated until they meet tally. Hence, the study was propose d to help the processes in Prohealth Distributor Sales Corporation easier, faster and to refrain from human error. Due to growing number of employees, the sale monitoring system if done manually was a lot to handle and time consuming. They need a computerized sales monitoring and inventory system that will make the computation tasks faster. Aside from its accuracy, the proposed system also aims to enhance and provide a better way to store information in a secured manner. The study will be implemented first in the Main Office of the Prohealth Sales Distributor Corporation La Union in order to pilot test the system software being proposed.

The Symbolism of Hester Prynnes Appearance in The Scarlet Letter :: Essays Papers

The Symbolism of Hester Prynnes Appearance in The Scarlet Letter Throughout The Scarlet Letter, the author Nathaniel Hawthorne uses many literal and figurative items to illustrate the significance of various characters or themes. Coupled with the tangible evidence given, the reader can make many miscellaneous assumptions of the importance of these items to directly and indirectly contribute to the issues of the novel. One cryptic item that symbolizes more than it seems to is the appearance of one of the main characters, Hester Prynne. Hester Prynne's appearance and hair signify the levels of will and determination she possesses at the moment. The first example of this implication occurs at the beginning of the novel, during and before the first scaffold scene. Hester's hair is let down, shining and "so glossy that it threw off the sunshine with a gleam." This hair compliments an elegant, beautiful woman standing tall and proud. During this time, Hester's emotions, at full integrity, mirroring her appearance. When Hester is being questioned upon the scaffold, her virtue shines through when she refuses to name the partner of her sin. In the next example, Hester's pride and stature both seem to dwindle in accordance to her appearance. Within the next seven years, Hester has gone through a change both physically and emotionally. The book describes the scarlet letter to have absorbed all the rebellious and fiery qualities of Hester, leaving a cold and lonely woman, her tenderness "crushed so deeply into her heart that it can never show itself more." At the same time, Hester started "hiding" her beautiful rich hair in a cap, therefore practically eliminating her beauty and femininity. As Hester becomes less passionate internally, she becomes less passionate externally as well. The last example takes place during Hester's talk with Arthur Dimmesdale in the forest. During their emotional conversation, Hester regains her previous composure, and tries to prove to Arthur that the past can be erased. With the literal simple gestures of pulling off her scarlet letter and taking off her cap, she figuratively obliterated all that had happened before she was forced to wear the scarlet letter. Her womanliness and pride came rushing back as her hair fell back to her shoulders, becoming as she was before the scarlet letter took over her life. The Symbolism of Hester Prynnes Appearance in The Scarlet Letter :: Essays Papers The Symbolism of Hester Prynnes Appearance in The Scarlet Letter Throughout The Scarlet Letter, the author Nathaniel Hawthorne uses many literal and figurative items to illustrate the significance of various characters or themes. Coupled with the tangible evidence given, the reader can make many miscellaneous assumptions of the importance of these items to directly and indirectly contribute to the issues of the novel. One cryptic item that symbolizes more than it seems to is the appearance of one of the main characters, Hester Prynne. Hester Prynne's appearance and hair signify the levels of will and determination she possesses at the moment. The first example of this implication occurs at the beginning of the novel, during and before the first scaffold scene. Hester's hair is let down, shining and "so glossy that it threw off the sunshine with a gleam." This hair compliments an elegant, beautiful woman standing tall and proud. During this time, Hester's emotions, at full integrity, mirroring her appearance. When Hester is being questioned upon the scaffold, her virtue shines through when she refuses to name the partner of her sin. In the next example, Hester's pride and stature both seem to dwindle in accordance to her appearance. Within the next seven years, Hester has gone through a change both physically and emotionally. The book describes the scarlet letter to have absorbed all the rebellious and fiery qualities of Hester, leaving a cold and lonely woman, her tenderness "crushed so deeply into her heart that it can never show itself more." At the same time, Hester started "hiding" her beautiful rich hair in a cap, therefore practically eliminating her beauty and femininity. As Hester becomes less passionate internally, she becomes less passionate externally as well. The last example takes place during Hester's talk with Arthur Dimmesdale in the forest. During their emotional conversation, Hester regains her previous composure, and tries to prove to Arthur that the past can be erased. With the literal simple gestures of pulling off her scarlet letter and taking off her cap, she figuratively obliterated all that had happened before she was forced to wear the scarlet letter. Her womanliness and pride came rushing back as her hair fell back to her shoulders, becoming as she was before the scarlet letter took over her life.

Malaysian Ethics: The Bad, The Ugly and The Worst Essay

We have compiled a short video of different ethics and personalities. Malaysia is definitely a unique country in terms of culture, religion and ethics. Its diversity is the main reason for its colorful ethics which are also unpredictable at times. Malaysian ethics are not all good or wonderful but rather scary in truth. The idiom ‘Do not judge a book by its cover’ clearly explains the ethics in Malaysia as its diversity is just an appearance to mask the ugly truth about Malaysians. It is very difficult to predict whether Malaysian ethics will become better or worst in the near future. Malaysia is already a well-known country for its traffic jams, especially in Kuala Lumpur. The traffic in the city of Kuala Lumpur is congested but still not as bad as in Jakarta, Indonesia or Bangkok, Thailand. It is already a norm for Malaysian drivers to complain, scold and throw insults due to the terrible traffic jams. These typical drivers are also no strangers in violating traffic rules by driving recklessly or double parking. Some drivers are even disrespectful as they look down on people by seeing the type of car owned and their gender. In the video, an elder Malaysian driver is bad-mouthing about the small car parked in front of a row of shops. She purposely blamed the small car because she is unable to find a suitable parking space. She even set a bad example for her grandchild by double parking and giving unreasonable excuses for doing so. It is also normal for Malaysian male drives to underestimate the driving skills possessed by women. The worst thing in Malaysia is definitely road rage. Malaysian drivers tend to show little care for new and probationary drivers. It is already common for Malaysian drivers to bully and scold these new drivers for hogging the road. The work productivity in Malaysia is still at a low level due to the work ethics in the country. Malaysian workers are prone to giving unreasonable and unnecessary excuses, just for a day off. Some even skip work and fail to meet the deadline for their projects. It is definitely an unacceptable behavior in the working industry as careers, jobs and work should be prioritized. The behavioral ethics in Malaysia is at a critical point as Malaysians are getting lazier day after day. It is also very common for Malaysians to come late for meetings as punctuality is not important to them. Moreover, Malaysians are not honest in terms of money as they like to avoid paying for something. It is an unethical idea to owe  someone money by asking them to pay for you after telling them petty lies and excuses. Even the young generation is affected by the bad ethics in Malaysia. Young children are getting more dishonest as they start to tell white lies so as to escape punishment from their parents. They do not think of the consequences ahead as these lies cover them from their mistakes but causes a guilty feeling in them due to their innocent conscience. To show you a more in-depth view on the video, we will explain it scene by scene. The first scene was a woman driver goes against traffic rules and double-parked the car behind another car. It is irresponsible for a driver because it will cause traffic congestions or may be an accident. The woman driver son was there warned her do not double-parked behind a vehicle but she insist on her decision. The woman do not shows a good example for her son. In future, he will learn from this bad example to do the same incident as his mom did in the past. The second scene of the typical Malaysian driver was not to look down on woman driver. We know that almost all man usually have a good driving skill but woman too have the same skills as man. The scene shows 2 men were betting on her whether she will park her car nicely in the space provided. Its shows that people does not see woman as good as man in driving purposes. The third scene with a person driving the car reckless should not happen. It makes the road more dangerous for motorists to drive and it will cause a bad accident. The last scene of the typical Malaysian driver is driver do not respect the probation in driving that just got their license. Everyone will have this situation in life that you have to go through driving under probation. The last video of our moral film is about the excuses which is also a lie to avoid any arguments. The first scene is the boss of the employee asking him why he did not turn my yesterday in the office. The employee give excuses avoiding any warning letter or worst is getting fire from the company. When it comes to money, almost everyone will have an issue about money. The person uses excuses to avoid paying and asking their friends to pay the meal. But it will eventually not paying back the friend money. The person shows that he is a dishonest person when it comes about money. Every parent will want to know their children marks after an exam. But this child gives  excuses to avoid telling his mother about the marks he had. This shows he will hid the marks from the parents until some point parents need to go to school to find out about what their children is doing in school that have that kind of marks. Malaysia is a beautiful country to live in with a unique base of different cultures. The only downfall is the country’s bad ethics as local citizens are changing drastically in terms of behavior and manners. Malaysians should take an initiative in improving their ethics in work, public areas and even at home for the sake of their own pride and outlook by others. It is also essential for the government to intervene in creating the perfect and friendliest multi-cultured citizens through campaigns, advertisements and creative activities. Lastly, ethics are important as they not only reflect on the country’s image but also on its citizens.

A Critique: “My Boys Like Shootouts, What’s Wrong With That?”

â€Å"My Boys Like Shootouts. What's Wrong With That?† by Jonathan Turley (The Washington Post, 25 February 2007) discusses how parents are becoming increasingly against the play of toy-guns, and how such gun-paranoia will inhibit children's development. Turley, a professor at George Washington University, speaks against those negative attitudes and hopes to educate parents and fellow activists with regards to how toy weaponry contributes to children's development and emotional progress. In general, Turley portrays the image of a concerned father seemingly disgruntled at attitudes encountered from his personal experiences. The tone adopted is casual and the author's use of examples serve to reinforce his ideas and arguments. Turley claims that the allowance of gun play is not an idea which should be condemned and its impact exaggerated. He supports this claim by citing references concerning this topic giving toy guns credit for â€Å"channeling of aggression† (2007, Para 7) and amplifies the requisite to â€Å"distinguish between the two† with reference to â€Å"play† and â€Å"violence† (2007, Para 8). While Turley's sentiments do reflect some truth, this truth is belittled by the one-dimensionality of his discussion and lack of consideration of other concerns such as â€Å"encouraging aggressive behavior and violent attitudes† and â€Å"reinforcing gender stereotypes† (2007, Para 4). Part Two: Turley's arguments are logical but are discredited by their one-dimensionality as he does not accord sufficient discussion to other pertinent issues identified. There seems to be a lack of impartiality in the discussion as Turley is inclined to his own ideas. For instance, Turley used an example from his personal experience relating to his efforts to â€Å"avoid any gender stereotypes† (2007, Para 5) which did not strengthen his argument as he did not give depth to the point raised. Furthermore, the informal tone Turley used undermined the seriousness of the issue, and the example used was lacking as its scope cannot be reflective of an entire societal issue. Hence, Turley's ideas, though valid, are weakened as he fails to present a just, two-sided argument. The examples cited in the article succeed in substantiating Turley's arguments as they are quoted from several published sources with experience and the necessary expertise. These examples exemplify important ideas such as the use of toy weaponry as a form of catharsis for children â€Å"to make meaning of what they have experienced in life† (2007, Para 9) and â€Å"to be able to discharge their anger through symbolic play† (2007, Para 10). They also demonstrate the existing need for a certain degree of change in mindset with regards to allowing gun play. In that sense, Turley has succeeded in delivering his message pertaining to the necessity of such play in children's development. However, the impact may be contracted by his use of a casual tone in a matter of significance to his target audience. Turley clearly describes the importance of gun play in children's development and explains that such play is acceptable as long as â€Å"strict guidelines† (2007, Para 5) are imposed. He is considered to have achieved his intention as he cites useful and credible examples in substantiating his ideas. However, the casual tone adopted undermines the seriousness of the issue as despite it being a topic about play, it is one which parents and relevant groups view with significance. The lack of a balanced argument also weakens the ideas presented. Therefore, for an issue of societal scale, the scope covered by Turley may be too narrow.

Innovations and Inventions for the Hearing Impaired

Innovations and Inventions for the Hearing Impaired No one person invented sign language; it evolved worldwide in a natural fashion, much the way any language evolved. We can name a few people as the innovators of specific signing manuals. Each language (English, French, German, etc) developed their own respective sign languages at different times. American sign language (ASL) is closely related to French sign language. In 1620, the first book on sign language that contained the manual alphabet was published by Juan Pablo de Bonet.In 1755, Abbe Charles Michel de L’Epee of Paris founded the first free school for deaf people, he used a system of gestures, hand signs, and fingerspelling.In 1778, Samuel Heinicke of Leipzig, Germany founded a public school for deaf people, where he taught speech and speechreading.In 1817, Laurent Clerc and Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet founded Americas first school for deaf people, in Hartford, Connecticut.In 1864, Gallaudet College, in Washington, D.C was founded, the only liberal arts college for deaf people in the world. TTY or TDD Telecommunications TDD stands for Telecommunications Device for the Deaf.  It is a method of coupling Tele-Typewriters to telephones. Deaf orthodontist Doctor James C Marsters of Pasadena, California shipped a teletype machine to deaf physicist Robert Weitbrecht in Redwood City, California and requested a way to attach it to the telephone system so that phone communication could take place. The TTY was first developed by Robert Weitbrecht, a deaf physicist. He was also a ham radio operator, familiar with the way hams used teleprinters to communicate over the air. Hearing Aids Hearing aids in their various forms have provided needed amplification of sound for many persons experiencing hearing loss. Since hearing loss is one of the oldest of the known disabilities, attempts to amplify sound go back several centuries. It is unclear who invented the first electric hearing aid, it may have been the Akoulathon, invented in 1898 by Miller Reese Hutchinson and made and sold (1901) by the Akouphone Company of Alabama for $400. A device called the carbon transmitter was needed in both the early telephone and the early electric hearing aid. This transmitter was first commercially available in 1898 and was used to electrically amplify sound. In the 1920s, the carbon transmitter was replaced by the vacuum tube, and later by a transistor. Transistors allowed electric hearing aids to become small and efficient. Cochlear Implants The cochlear implant is a prosthetic replacement for the inner ear or cochlea. The cochlear implant is surgically implanted in the skull behind the ear and electronically stimulates the nerve of hearing with small wires touching the cochlea. External parts of the device include a microphone, a speech processor (for converting sounds into electrical impulses), connecting cables, and a battery. Unlike a hearing aid, which just makes sounds louder, this invention selects information in the speech signal and then produces a pattern of electrical pulses in the patients ear. It is impossible to make sounds completely natural because a limited amount of electrodes are replacing the function of tens of thousands of hair cells in a normally hearing ear. The implant has evolved over the years and many different teams and individual researchers have contributed to its invention and improvement. In 1957, Djourno and Eyries of France, William House of the House Ear Institute in Los Angeles, Blair Simmons of Stanford University, and Robin Michelson of the University of California, San Francisco, all created and implanted single-channel cochlear devices in human volunteers. In the early 1970s, research teams led by William House of the House Ear Institute in Los Angeles; Graeme Clark of the University of Melbourne, Australia; Blair Simmons and Robert White of Stanford University; Donald Eddington of the University of Utah; and Michael Merzenich of the University of California, San Francisco, begin work on developing multi-electrode cochlear implants with 24 channels. In 1977, Adam Kissiah a NASA engineer with no medical background designed a cochlear implant that is widely used today. In 1991, Blake Wilson greatly improved the implants by sending signals to the electrodes sequentially instead of simultaneously - this increased clarity of sound.

Educational Article A Better Way to Understand Teams and Roles

Educational Article A Better Way to Understand Teams and Roles Read about what a team is, what Belbin team roles are and how to make the work in a team effective. Team interaction and management is a core discipline in HRM studies and is a critical area of competence for any manager. The success or failure of the entire organization is dependent on how effectively the people within it  can work together. Of course, any management task involving people can be a little confusing, even messy; people do not neatly fit â€Å"models† and prescribed solutions, and the challenges only grow as people are brought together into purposeful groups. In this article, some of the well-known important concepts of teams and the roles people play in them are presented to show how popular academic ideas are reflected in real life, and what approaches can be taken when people in teams – as they inevitably will, pretty much all the time – do not behave in quite the way our textbooks and lectures lead us to believe they should. Assigned to write a management essay? Learn what a management essay is: MANAGEMENT ESSAY What Is a Team? That sounds like a simple question with an answer that everyone should understand without a lot of mental exercises, but the â€Å"team† in â€Å"team management† is more often than not treated casually, or overlooked entirely. An effective team is not merely â€Å"a group of people working towards a common objective but a community of practice, which has three â€Å"crucial† characteristics domain, community, and practice. Dr. Etienne Wenger Domain.  The shared domain of interest – in a work team setting, this would usually be the â€Å"purpose† of the team – gives the group a distinct identity, which may or may not mean anything to anyone else. As an example, Wenger describes how a street gang’s identity as a unit is formed by the shared domain of its individual members, even though that is ultimately probably not in their best interests or those of civilization as a whole. The key to the idea of â€Å"domain† is learning: what starts out as just a common interest among individuals is refined and increased by learning through interaction. Community.  A community is characterized by joint activities and shared information, which contributes to the shared learning. The distinction between â€Å"community† in common sense – such as a neighborhood, or a group sharing a common topic of interest on a Facebook page – and community in the sense meant by Dr. Wenger is subtle and perhaps difficult to understand. It is easier to think of it in terms of where the intended benefits of the team interactions are focused by the team members; if the intention is an individual benefit, then the team is probably not a true community. For example, a neighborhood might not be a true â€Å"community† (although we may call it that), if whatever â€Å"neighborliness† practiced by the residents is primarily motivated out of self-interest for their own security and comfort. Practice.  What differentiates a â€Å"community† from a mere â€Å"group† is shared practice, or as Dr. Wenger describes it, a shared pool of intellectual resources – stories, tools, experiences, and ways to solve recurring problems. A group of truck drivers trading stories over coffee in a truck stop are not simply being friendly and entertaining themselves, but are actually building a knowledge base and learning from one another. See also:  Managing Problems in Groups Dr. Wenger, who is a social learning theorist with a background in Artificial Intelligence, implies that a â€Å"community of practice† is the most effective when it forms organically. This actually makes sense, because the motivation both in having an interest in the first place and then in pursuing it is largely intrinsic. Talk to any random truck driver, for instance – it’s nearly impossible to find one who doesn’t actually like being a â€Å"trucker†, in spite of whatever day-to-day annoyances might be encountered. But knowing how effective team works as a â€Å"community of practice† does make it possible to form the team purposefully, so long as the team members chosen individually have two basic traits: Commitment to a common interest or aspiration, as long as it is a specific interest or aspiration. If the goal for the team is to develop a world-beating software application, then the people chosen for the team should be passionate about developing software; enthusiasm for the vague aspirations expressed in the company’s Mission Statement or enjoying â€Å"working with others† is not enough, nor particularly relevant. Good communication skills, or specifically, the ability to coherently communicate the passion for the common interest in practical terms. This also applies to being able to interpret others’ ideas. Naturally, finding the passionate, communicative people to build a team is only part of the puzzle; they still won’t be able to accomplish anything if they do not have clear roles to play. Roles in Teams. Belbin Team Roles A popular – and to be fair, not altogether useless – theory that one will encounter at some point in management studies is the Team Role Theory of Dr. Meredith Belbin. Dr. Belbin’s research led him to develop a description of nine roles in teams, which should be represented in a balanced way for the team to be effective: According to Belbin’s website (the theory has become, not surprisingly, the basis for a multi-million dollar consulting business), the behavioral analysis that determines what individuals’ team roles should be â€Å"Can be used to build productive working relationships, select and develop high-performing teams, raise self-awareness and personal effectiveness, build mutual trust and understanding, and aid recruitment processes.† The theory is backed up by empirical research, and does, in fact, give insights into how people work in teams, but only after the team has been formed and interacts for a period of time  when roles and attitudes begin to emerge because Team Role Theory has two big flaws: 1. GENERALIZATION   some people are predictable, but most are not. The context of the team and the actual objectives the team is trying to achieve have a much greater part in determining how team members will act than the theory allows, because the roles themselves were developed from statistical results; results that furthermore did not allow for people to have aspects of more than one â€Å"role† in their personalities, which most people do. 2. OVER-THINKING   in any team, as a practical matter, there are only four roles that need to be filled: The Team Leader (organizes the team and keeps communication flowing smoothly) The Record-Keeper (keeps track of what the team is doing) The Worker (accomplishes the tasks the team needs to complete) The Progress-Chaser (conducts follow-up, testing, and monitors progress against the expected schedule) What Team Role Theory can do to help – and why it is important to study and understand it, though it is not as practically useful as advertised – is to give some insights into what roles, and to what degree of those roles, prospective team members are best suited to fill. At we have a team of professional writers and a friendly support team always ready to help you with any writing assignment. Place an order to inform the details of your assignment.

Criminal law problem question Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Criminal law problem question - Case Study Example . . so as the party wounded, or hurt, et cetera, die of the wound or hurt, et cetera, within a year and a day after the same." In order for Eve to have the actus reus required for murder or manslaughter in the events in question, she must have voluntarily and unlawfully committed an act or omission that caused, with no intervening act or event, the death of Brian, Fred and/or Ginger. Firstly, the act or omission of the accused must have been voluntary (Hill v Baxter). This means that the accused must be 'of sound memory'. For example, if the accused drives their car off the road and hits a pedestrian, killing them, during an epileptic fit, this would make the act involuntary, as the accused was not 'of sound memory'. An involuntary act is also one that is being forced upon the accused. For instance, if a loaded gun is being held to the head of the accused and the person wielding the gun threatens to shoot the accused if he or she does not perform the act, this act is involuntary. The voluntary act committed by the accused must also be unlawful. In the case of murder or manslaughter, justifiable homicide is one committed in self-defence or in the defence of another. Other justifiable homicides exist when the killing was committed in war or in the prevention of the commission of a crime (eg: a police officer shooting a bank robber). Therefore, the voluntary act must have been committed under none of the aforementioned justifiable situations. It needs to be done unlawfully. Most importantly, an act must have been committed. An act is a bodily movement, such as the exertion of energy or force that produces an effect. An act includes an omission in the case of manslaughter. However, an omission can only be considered as part of the actus reus if the accused owed a duty of care to the victim and breached that duty by failing to act. A duty of care may arise in the following cases - when the accused is the carer of a child or dependant; when the accused is the cause of the danger; when the accused has already assumed a responsibility of a duty of care; and, when the accused fails to get medical help. The voluntary, unlawful act must have caused the death of the victim. Causation is a necessary condition for any form of homicide. The element of causation can be deduced using the 'but for test' - 'But for' not having acted, the death would not have occurred (Smith v Hogan). However, the action or omission must not only have contributed to the death but must be a sufficiently substantial and operating cause and have not been interrupted by an intervening act by a third party or event (novus actus interveniens). A novus actus interveniens breaks the chain of causation. When the chain of causation is broken, the accused cannot be held accountable for the death of the victim. However, this novus actus interveniens must not be a reasonably foreseeable consequence of the initial act or omission of the accused. Any act or event which is a reasonably foreseeable consequence of the initial act or omission of the accused does not break the chain of causation. When the above mentioned elements of a crime are satisfied, this constitutes the actus reus for murder (except in the case of omission, when it can only be manslaughter). In the following cases, the victims Brian, Fred and Ginger, are all fatally injured in the course of events that implicate Eve for murder or manslaughter. Brian In order for Eve to have the