How to Pronounce the Name of Taiwanese Politician Tsai Ing-wen

In this article, we will look at how to pronounce the name of the president Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen (è” ¡Ã¨â€¹ ±Ã¦â€"‡), which in Hanyu Pinyin would be written Cà  i YÄ «ngwà ©n. Since most students use Hanyu Pinyin for pronunciation, we  will henceforth use that, although the notes about pronunciation are of course relevant regardless of system. Cà  i YÄ «ngwà ©n was elected president of Taiwan on Jan. 16, 2016. And yes, her personal name means English, as in the language this article is written in. Below are some easy instructions if you just want to have a rough idea how to pronounce the name. Then we’ll go through a more detailed description, including analysis of common learner errors. Pronouncing Names in Chinese Pronouncing can be very hard if you havent studied the language; sometimes its hard, even if you have.  Ignoring or mispronouncing tones will just add to the confusion. These mistakes add up and often become so serious that a native speaker would fail to understand. Read more about how to pronounce Chinese names. Easy Instructions for Pronouncing Cai Yingwen Chinese names usually consist of three syllables, with the first being the family name and the last two the personal name. There are exceptions to this rule, but it holds true in many cases. Thus, there are three syllables we need to deal with. Cai - Pronounce as ts in hats plus eyeYing - Pronounce as Eng in EnglishWen - Pronounce as when If you want to have a go at the tones, they are falling, high-flat and rising respectively. Note: This pronunciation is not correct pronunciation in Mandarin (though it is reasonably close). It represents an attempt to write the pronunciation using English words. To really get it right, you need to learn some new sounds (see below). How to Actually Pronounce Cai Yingwen If you study Mandarin, you should never ever rely on English approximations like those above. Those are meant for people who dont intend to learn the language! You have to understand the orthography, i.e. how the letters relate to the sounds. There are many traps and pitfalls in Pinyin you have to be familiar with. Now, lets look at the three syllables in more detail, including common learner errors: Cai  (fourth tone) - Her family name is by far the hardest part of the name. c in Pinyin is an affricate, which means that it is a stop sound (a t-sound) followed by a fricative (an s-sound). I used ts in hats above, which is sort of okay, but will lead to a sound that is not aspirated enough. To get that right, you should add a considerable puff of air afterward. If you hold your hand a few inches from your mouth, you should feel the air hitting your hand. The final is okay and is pretty close to eye.Ying  (first tone) - As you have probably guessed already, this syllable was chosen to represent England and thereby English because they do sound quite similar. The i (which is spelt yi here) in Mandarin is pronounced with the tongue closer to the upper teeth than in English. Its as far up and forward you can go, basically. It can almost sound like a soft j at times. The final can have an optional short schwa (as in English the). To get the right -ng, let your jaw drop and your ton gue withdraw.Wen (second tone) - This syllable seldom clauses problem for learners once they sort the spelling (its uen but since its the beginning of the word, its spelt wen). It is actually very close to English when.  Its worth pointing out that some English dialects have an audible h, which should not be present here. It should also be noted that some native speakers of Mandarin reduce the final to sound more like un than en, but this is not the standardized way of pronouncing it. English when is closer. The are some variations for these sounds, but Cai Yingwen/Tsai Ing-wen (è” ¡Ã¨â€¹ ±Ã¦â€"‡) can be written like this in IPA: tsÊ °ai jiÅ‹ wÉ™n Conclusion Now you know how to pronounce Tsai Ing-wen (è” ¡Ã¨â€¹ ±Ã¦â€"‡). Did you find it hard? If you’re learning Mandarin, dont worry; there arent that many sounds. Once you’ve learned the most common ones, learning to pronounce words (and names) will become much easier!

Ethical Relativism Moral Or Immoral - 1382 Words

Brittany Haskell Mr. Legge CLN 4U Due: December 19, 2014 Ethical Relativism Moral or Immoral Ethical relativism is the theory that holds that morality is relative to the norms of one s culture. That is, whether an action is right or wrong depends on the moral norms of the society in which it is practiced. Moral or ethical relativism is the idea that what is considered moral or immoral depends on the accepted behaviors within the society in which the determination is made. Therefore, what is considered moral or ethical in one society may be considered immoral or unethical in another, but each society is equally correct. For this reason the question remains, if and action is considered to be moral does that mean that the action is also normal? Although something may seem right to someone living in a different community, people living in a society like ours today may feel differently. Ethical Relativism can be looked at are moral or immoral in many different ways. Looking at the articles Guarding The Boundaries, A Defense of Ethical Relativis m and Butterflies and Wheels, it is clearly shown that although ethnical relativism may seem immoral, but really in many ways is moral. In the article Guarding The Boundaries, by Anthony Daniels. The philosopher states that men can no more avoid making moral and aesthetic judgments than they can avoid eating. In our society it is clearly shown that abuse is incorrect and immoral, but looking at in in a different perspective canShow MoreRelatedCultural Relativism Essay1475 Words   |  6 PagesMoral principles being determined by each culture can be described as conventional ethical relativism. Every culture is entitled to have their own moral laws, beliefs and values, and these will differ from culture to culture. What is moral in one culture could be considered immoral in another, which is something that we must accept. 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K12 Program free essay sample

There is also the dramatic framework set up by Northrop Frye, Hayden White and others: * Spring/Comedy/Conservative/Hero succeeds in reforming a corrupt society of some kind and in romance and/or other personal endeavorsthe story line is considered conservative because it suggests that our society is basically all right, at the core, although individual injustices must be met and defeated (and that this can be done through wit and the uncovering of hypocrisy and vanity rather than through action, particularly radical and violent action). Summer/Romance/Anarchistic/Hero abandons or fails to reform a corrupt society but succeeds in romance; the genre is considered anarchistic because it presumes that victory can only take place on the level of personal success or failure; often, the best way to deal with a corrupt society is to simply go away, to escape and create ones own society. * Autumn/Tragedy/Radical/Hero restores order but is destroyed or endures personal loss because of it; the genre is considered radical because it suggests that changes in society can be made, should be made, must be made with action, and must be made even at great personal cost. Winter/Satire/Liberal/Hero neither restores order nor succeeds in personal goals; often, the hero is as corrupt as the society he would, in other genres, be attempting to reform, or he becomes corrupt in his attempt to create reform; the genre is consider liberal because it suggests that political change is a myth, that no change in the system will produce fundamental changes in societyalthough perhaps we can achieve small victories by living wellbut we must accept an Im okay, youre okay attitude about things and accept that heroic plans to make big changes are doomed to failure. It is important, by the way, to keep the political aspect of literature in mind. Nothing is more political than literature, even when it does not overtly makes an argument about a particular political issue, because so much of literature is concerned with power and morality, about what is true, good, and possible, about what is just and beautiful, about who has power and who should have power in society and in the family, and how that power should be employed, and for what ends. It is hard to find a work of literature that does not ask us to join with or join against certain characters (or the narrator); in doing this, a work of literature becomes an argument for (or against) a particular political, ethical, social, and/or moral agenda. Another idea is that of the text as verbal object, as self-contained universe of verbal logic, whose artistic impact comes not so much from the ideas themselves but from how those ideas and characters operate as a self-contained system, in the way that a symphony is not so much about tone but about structures of tones, and the way a sculpture is not so much about image as about the cooperation of many images to create a single effect. 2. Questions of motifs and symbols Motifs are another important aspect of fictional form. Images or themes may e repeated or, as often occurs in music, employed as a series of variations on a central image or theme. As in cluster criticism, the use may not have to refer to any meaning outside the text, although in some cases this is of central importance to the meaning and impact of the text, but it is always true that they create a sense of connection between different aspects or moments in the text itself. For example, if we know that roses are import ant to the hero, any use of roses or rose imagery may be a sign of this kind of connection. Symbols are, of course, a central aspect of literature. Anything that is not literally what it is, that may have some hidden meaning or meanings, can be a symbol. Symbols, of course, can be used to create a resonance or connection of meaning(s) throughout the text through repetition and variation. 3. Questions of character One of the most important issues in literature is that of character. After all, one of the main reasons we enjoy and think about literature is because we are interested in the fictional people who inhabit the invented worlds we visit when we read or watch stories, plays, films, etc. It is not unusual to become emotionally invested in certain characters (and this often says as much about who we are as it does about the characters themselves). We often need to consider who the characters are and what kinds of characters they are: hero, anti-hero, protagonist, villain, antagonist, heroine, main character, secondary or minor or supporting character, etc. In short, we need to consider the role each character plays in the story. How do they affect the action of the story and what is the author trying to say with these characters? In addition, one can consider the depth of character development. Often you will have archetypal or stock characters: virginal heroine, innocent child, ambitious general, fallen woman who tempts the hero, etc. Some stock characters are tied to certain genres. More modern works usually try to develop characters in far greater psychological depth; it is seen as a sign of good writing that the characters are more than stock figures but fully realized individuals. (A heroine can still be virginal, and often is, but she should be a particular virginal heroine, an individual rather than a mere type. Of course, some stories deliberately draw upon stock characters and then do something different with them, such as a noble cowboy who is treated as a comic figure because he is also dumb as a rock. Another issue is the role of secondary characters and their relationship with the main characters. Often, secondary characters are used to complement the main characters or to contrast with them in s ome way. A system outlined by Northrop Fryesee  Anatomy of Criticism, pages 172-173has four basic character types The first is the  eiron  (the self-deprecator). There are several kinds of  eirons, including the neutral hero and/or heroine and the witty side-kick (originally in Roman drama, this was a tricky slaveif youve seen Marty Feldman in  Young Frankenstein  you get the idea) Other types of characters in Fryes discussion of drama (which can probably cross over to fiction some- what) are: * the  alazon  (the blocking force, often a hypocritical boaster, and sometimes a father figure in competition with the hero for the girl (Frye points out that comedies often combine both sexual and political triumphs: boy saves world  and  gets girl) * the  buffoon  (who increases the festivity of the mood rather than contributing to the story) * the  churl  (sometimes a straight man, often a naive rustic, sometimes simply someone who refuses to enter into the cheerful spirit of events) We should always consider how a character fits into a story, how they further the plot, what the author might be trying to teach us by including c ertain characters. We may also want to examine whether characters are fully developed and three dimensional, stock character types (the brash soldier, the stoic gunslinger, the sage, the virginal princess, etc. , or entirely symbolic or allegorical. Sometimes authors use deliberately complicated charactersthe character  who  suddenly does the reverse of what we expect to draw attention to the whole notion of stereotypes and stock characters (e. g. , the virginal princess who is also a better shot than the hero). In addition, one should consider how public or private a view we have of the charactersdo we only see what they do and say, or do we get a chance to see what they think and feel, too? 4. Questions of style Style is one of those fuzzy terms that can mean a lot of things. It is, however, worth considering the actual diction, syntax, and presentation of the text. This can cover an enormous range of textual features, including the length and complexity of sentences, the variation of sentence forms, the relative degree of abstract or concrete language employed by the text, the use of images, the length of paragraphs, pacing, the division of the text in chapters or sections, even the physical layout and production values of the text (the size and font of the typeface, the quality of paper used, etc. ), although this last may be outside the control of the author. All of these factors can influence how we experience the text, how realistic we find the story, how we view the characters and their actions, and so on. 5. Questions of genre  (definition) Genre literally means kind or class. Almost every text can be described as belonging to one or more genres; the few textsif any existthat are unclassifiable can still be approached based on the genres to which they may be responses (including rejections). Genres are useful to readers and critics because every genre establishes a set of guidelines, expectations, etc. , about the texts form, content, goal, people who are allowed to create such texts in the first place, people who are supposed to read the text once it is completed, how important the text is, what themes might be explored in the text, and so on. Some basic questions include the following: What makes this a novel, as opposed to some other form, like a novelette, an epic, a drama, a ballad poem (in prose form), and so on? What makes this a certain kind of novel, e. g. , historical, western, science fiction, fantasy, romance, mystery, etc.? Is the essential dramatic quality of the story comedic, tragic, romantic, or satiric? Another issue is whether the genre is one that uusally (although not always) treats the subject seriouslytragedy, drama, epic, horror, romantic tales, hard science fiction, some kinds of comedy, etc. or which is deliberately absurd, humorous, and/or unrealisticparody, some types of satire, etc. Of course, with genre, it is always important to remember that some stories fit perfectly into one genre or another, while others are not so easily categorized because they seem to fit into more than one genre or violate some of the expected conventions of their genre, and some deliberately blur the boundaries between genres, levels of realism, etc. because the author is trying to make a point of some kind. 6. Questions of universals One approach to literature is that it addresses universal questions of human experience. Some critics argue that what makes a text literature, the reason it stands the test of time, is that it addresses issues that are of common concern to all (or, at least, most) human beings. Some of these questions might be classified as considering What is the human experience? What does it really mean to be alive and to be human? What does it mean to grow from childhood into adulthood, and to grow old and face death? What does it mean to be in love? What are the uni versal experiences that are generally true for all people in all times? A related set of questions often explored in literature might come under the heading of What is the meaning of life? Why are we here? What does it all mean? What is a good life and how shall we live it? What does God (or the gods, nature, the universe, etc. ) ask of us? 7. Questions of morality (or ethics)  (Is it good art? ) Many critics believe that literature must have a moral or ethical component. Samuel Johnson was concerned about the new genre of the novel in the 18th century because he was concerned about it being a bad moral influence. He and other writers believed that true art instructs while pleasing. John Gardner believed that literature, real art, should present valid models for imitation, eternal verities worth keeping in mind, and a benevolent vision of the possible which can inspire and incite human beings toward virtue, towards life affirmation as opposed to destruction or indifference. (Three of the most common of these eternal verities, discussed by various critics as the central aims and subjects of art, are Goodness, Truth, and Beauty. What those terms mean are, of course, open to interpretation. Like Johnson, he says, and I believe both of these authors are right, that Art instructs. This is, I think a central issue. Books are not responsible for making us better people. We are responsible for making us better people. But authors, through their booksand so ngwriters through their songs and directors through their films and so onmight be considered responsible for giving good advice. One of the most important things the arts can do is to help us live a good life. Literature cannot force us to be something, we are ultimately responsible for who we are and what we do, but literature and other forms of art can guide us and advise us and steer us towards certain beliefs and certain choices. In fact, that might be a good definition of literature:  literature is good advice given in a compelling way. To what extent does the text teach, and what does it teach, and do you believe it is a good thing that the text is teaching these ideas? Why or why not? (Often, questions about what is erotic or pornographic are based on this notion. ) It is worth mentioning that art may be able to teach by accident. Often, a writer or a director has a message they want to send; they are trying to teach a specific idea or lesson. However, in some cases, the author or director is only trying to tell a good story. Their main goal is simply to enterain. Regardless of intent, storytellers frequently rely on standard characters (the stalwart hero, the femme fatale, the eccentric genius, the sleezy politicisan, etc. ) and plot elements (the great man with a secret, the pretty girl in danger, etc. ). These things are often used for no other reason than that they feel right to the storyteller and/or allow the storyteller to create tension, provide the hero with an obstacle, etc. However, in doing this, storytellers may still be teaching after all, through the reptition of common or stock story elements, they may be reinforcing existing beliefs (some valid, some not) about good and evil, gender roles, our rights and responsibilities as human beings or as members of a society, and so on. In short, even when the story was created only to entertain, the author, director, etc. retains some responsibility to make sure they are not giving bad advice. Literature can usually be examined in terms of good and evil. Each work of literature is usually an argument, explicit or implicit, in favor of certain kinds of thinking and certain kinds of behavior, and as an argument against other kinds of thinking and behavior. I suppose one way of thinking about this is that a work can be examined (and perhaps praised or condemned) not on the basis of whether or not it makes people better, but rather on the basis of what kind of advice it gives people and how well it gives that advice. It is, in my opinion, ridiculous to judge a work on whether or not it makes people better. Books are not responsible for making us better people;  we  are responsible for making ourselves better people. Authors may be able to help by giving good, life-affirming advice, but it is then the responsibility of the reader to first decide if that advice is appropriate to his or her situation (not all good advice is good for all people and/or good all the time) and, if it is, to then follow that advice. This is another question that has become more important for me as a teacher of literature over time. Edmund Burke is reputed to have said that All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. Sometimes the best way to fight evil is to simply tell people why they should not do something or how to make up for what they have done wrong. As an example, Rabbi Hillel is reputed to have said, when asked about the meaning of the Torah (the first five books of the Bible), What is hateful to yourself, do not do to your fellow man. That is the whole Torah; the rest is just commentary. Sometimes the best way to give good advice is to explore the nature of evil, to show us what not to do and what not to be. And examining how literature treats evil can be a rich area for discussion (or, as I like to tell my students, Evil is a many-splendored thing. ) What is evil? How is evil different from sinful or naughty or failing to be as good as one should be and so on? What kinds of evil exist in the world? What makes something or someone evil? What might cause an otherwise good person to behave in an evil manner? How should we respond when others do evil to us? Can some kinds of evil be excused or forgiven? If someone does evil, is it possible for them to redeem themselves, and, if so, what must they do? 8. Questions of heroism, villainy, and monstrosity Literature often asks questions like these: Who are the heroic figures and why? What is the author trying to say about the nature of humanity and heroism that these people are the heroic figures? How heroic is the protagonist? The antagonist? What is the author trying to say by using heroic and  unheroic  figures in these positions within the story? Who are the villainous figures and what makes them villainous? Who are the anti-heroic figures? What makes them anti-heroic? Is it simply a quality of being somehow ordinary, normal, etc.? Finally, literature examines questions of the normal and the abnormal, and asks: Who are the monstrous figures? What makes them monstrous or grotesque (as opposed to evil)? The monster is often used to address such questions as What does it mean to be human?   and  What makes something or someone a monster? Replace the term monster with foreigner or outsider and you have an entirely new set of questions. Often, of course, stories that involve monsters suggest that the monsters may be more human than they appear; some of them also suggest that someone who looks like a perfectly ordinary person (or a hero) might be far more monstrous than a creature or person who is simply strange or ugly. Fantasy, science fiction, and horror are often concerned with this last issue. Examining the other (monster,alien, immortal, ghost, etc. ) is often a way to address certain aspects of being human. In addition, horror as agenre is frequently concerned with examining the relationship between the normal and the abnormal, the wholesome and the taboo, etc. In fact, horror often frightens or disturbs us not only by putting certain characters in danger, but by blurring or violating the boundaries between the normal and the abnormal, etc. For more on this, see the works of critics like Marie-Helene Huet and Barbara Creed. ) 9. Questions of power In recent years, I have come to rely more and more on the issue s related to this question. Ciceros On Duties and On Friendship are important works for many reasons, but I think one of them is that they identify two of the critical issues explored in literature. The first is the issue of power.? Human relationships are often hierarchical; some people have power of some kind over other people. It may be because they are kings, or parents, or employers, or landowners, or teachers, or officers, or some other kind of political or community leader. What does it mean to be a leader? What makes a leader a good leader? What are the rights and the obligations of a leader? The other side of the question is what are the rights and obligations of someone who is ruled or commanded or guided or protected? What makes a good child, a good subject, a good soldier, a good community member, and so on? 10. Questions of relationship Another issue addressed by Cicero and other writers is one of friendship. Human societies are full of relationships where people are not connected by power, but by some kind of kinship or friendship. What is a good friend? A good brother? A good wife? A good husband? How should we treat those to whom we are related not by power, but by affection, by kinship, by friendship, or by marriage? 11. Questions of reality and depiction  (mimetic criticism and other issues) One approach to literature is the relationship between art and the real world, between art and truth. A great deal has been written about whether or not art should be truthful or not, whether realism is the real measure of art, or if art is more real than reality because it allows us to see the essence of things that we can only experience in terms of material or social aspects. Some critics have recommended that writers use nature as their guide, that the stories and characters they invented must be plausible or true to life. Many writers believe that literature should try to be as realistic as possible, to try to record and express (or perhaps to capture) real life in verbal form. Of course, some writers turn this question on its head and deliberately write stories or poems or plays that are not realistic. Sometimes they are doing this to explore some kind of symbolism or to explore what they think an experience like passionate love or drug addiction or dreaming might be like. Sometimes they do this to draw attention to the relationship between art and real life, to show that while they are related, they may not be exactly the same thing. Some questions that might be considered are as follows: What view of the world is being presented in the text? How realistic is the text and why do we believe it to be realistic? How does the style and arrangement of the text serve to create or destroy a sense of realism, surrealism, etc.? Another issue is to consider if and how the text calls attention to its existence as a text, rather than text that pretends to be a literal translation of reality into a linguistic structure. 12. Questions of narration and silence  (viewpoint) Every story is narrated. Someone, whether it is one of the characters in the story, or an unseen narrator, or the point of view provided by a films director, is relating the events of the tale to us, letting us experience those events in one particular way, while blocking out other viewpoints. This blocking out of alternatives is usually not malicious, although authors are frequently aware of the significance of having the story told from one point of view and not another. Ultimately, the choice of one narrator over another is unavoidable; there is no way for a single narrator or author to present the totality of everything that takes place in a story, but we need to be aware that every story can be told in an infinite number of ways. Some of the questions one can consider are as follows: Who is telling the story and how does that influence how the story gets told? What  kind of narrative techniques are  being used and how does that influence the way the story is told? Who is not getting to speak and how does that influence how we view the story and the ideas it contains? Whose point of view is being valorized? Whose point of view is being silenced? 13. Questions of change  (process, history, and relationship with text) Novels and dramas are dynamic forms of literature; almost always, the action described by a novel or a play takes place over a period of time and describes some kind of change. So we can look at the following: How does the plot develop? We are used to the traditional description of plot as one of introduction, crisis, climax, and anticlimax or conclusion (although in some non-Western societies we do not see this kind of development, suggesting a more spatial/static relationship with the world rather than the dynamic/process/progress/change-oriented relationship common in Western societies). How do things change in the  novel. In particular, how do people change? As I mentioned earlier, Orson Scott Card has said his main character s always the person in the most pain and implied that the story is not over until that pain is somehow resolved. (Gardner  talks about writing as a response to  woundedness. ) Who or what is responsible for the changes that take place? Another issue is that we are involved in a relationship with the text. Consider the very process of your reading of the text. How have you changed (in knowledge, attitude, etc. ), if you have changed, during the course of reading the text, and now, afterwards, having finished it? 14. Questions of rhetoric  (rhetorical criticism) Every text can be treated as an argument, explicit or implicit, for certain things. The author wants us to believe certain things or do certain things. The author wants us to feel certain things about certain characters. The author wants us to experience the ideas and themes of the story in a certain way. How does all this happen? How does the text operate as an explicit or implicit argument for a certain agenda? What is the author trying to prove and how does he or she go about proving it? How successful is the text as an explicit or implicit argument? Why does it succeed (or fail)? A related issue is  text as semiotichow does it go about communicating its meaning to the audience? How does it operate as or within a system of symbols? One can also adapt the classical treatment of rhetoric to literature, examining the text as a kind of persuasive speech and exploring the three types of Aristotelian arguments: A Ethos: Who is the narrator and why do we trust both the narrator and mode of presentation? What relationship is established between text/narrator and audience? Logos: What ideas are established and how are they established, implied, or proved? Pathos: How does the author (through the narrator and/or the events of the text) appeal to the audiences values or emotions? Why is this done? What does the author hope to accomplish by doing this? How does it help in her attempt to persuade the audience? Kenneths Burke pentad and notion of identification are also valuable for considering how a text might attempt to persuade or argue with an audience. What kind of dramatic structures are being set up in the text, what is being identified with what, and for what purpose? Finally, one can consider how a text might influence an audience in ways the author may not have originally intended (for example, do slasher films encourage violence towards women? if so, how? ) 15. Questions of race, gender, and class  (multicultural, feminist, and Marxist criticism) This is a cluster of questions related to the views of the author and the possible influence of the text on topics concerning power and relationships between different groups of people in society. What does the text say about masculine and feminine roles in society? What does the text say about the relationship between races and the concept of race? What does the text say about working class people, white collar workers, bosses and laborers, masters and slaves, the relationship between classes, and the very concept of class? 16. Questions of tradition, culture, and canon? Every text can be considered in relationship with a canon, a hierarchy of works that are considered the core of a genre, either because of their quality, or originality, or influence, or  representativeness. Those most central to the canon are those which represent the best in what that culture or discourse community considers best and most beautiful among a certain set of texts; they reflect ideological assumptions about a genre or a set of genres. What place does any specific text have within that hierarchy? Is it primary, secondary, minor, marginal, or outside the canon? A related question is how a text fits within a tradition or genealogy. One way of looking at this is to consider that texts are responses not only to the real world, but also to other texts which they imitate, draw upon, react to, refer to, and so on. In other words, texts have meaning to us because we have read other texts, so the relationship, implied or explicit between a text and other texts, in or out of its own genre, is worth exploring. For example, how does our concept of Frankensteins monster affect our reaction to the monster in  Grendel? In short, how does the writer refer to and draw upon (and perhaps even comment on) other stories, myths, etc. in his own stories? Another way of looking at this issue is to ask what literary or aesthetic or rhetorical traditions the text belongs to and how it fits into those traditions. What does it mean, for example, to say that a novelist has written an absurdist play or a picaresque novel? One can argue whether or not tradition is another name for genre, but it is sometimes useful to treat the two issues as separate 17. Questions of culture  (cultural criticism) What does the text tell us, either directly or by implication, about the society in which it was composed or the audiences for whom it was intended? Ideology here refers to the underlying assumptions about what is true, good, and possible (and the opposite: what is false, bad, and impossible) used by individuals or groups. All people and all groups have some kind of ideology, although certain ideologies are more flexible than others. In addition, ideologies are often invisible, the assumptions are so basic to our understanding of reality that we are not aware of them or, if we are aware of them, never think of questioning them. Regardless of what the text seems to say on the surface, what appear to be the ideological assumptions that the text is based upon? What can we say about the community in which the text was originally written? What can we say about the community for which the text was written? Authors who write for the universal audience still  have  some assumptions about what that audience is and what they expect, and will write in reaction to these assumptions. ) The image we might use here is the text as a window o nto the lives and minds of a particular culture. Finally, it is worth asking how a text relates to the culture in which and for which it was produced. How is a text typical (or atypical) not only of a genre, but of a historical period and locale. For example, to say that James Joyce is a modern Irish writer tells us something about him, just as to say that Joyce was an experimental novelist also tells us something. What exactly does it mean to say that a writer is typical of a certain period, geographical location, etc.? (The term community or culture can refer to any group of people who share a set of assumptions about the true, the good, and the possible. Many critics and philosophers use the term discourse community to discuss some of these issues.? This is based on two notions.? First, they believe that all communities are discourse communities since people can only operate as groups through the use of language and texts in the first placeas I recall,  Cicero  made this argument about two thousand years ago.? Second, the word ? community? sometimes implies a specific time and place.? However, as the Internet has shown, a community can bevirtual; it can consist entirely of words and ideas and feelings and arguments shared by and between people who might never physically meet. )? 18. Questions of Critical Approach There are a variety of specific critical approaches that provide ways of approaching literature. One of these is what is sometimes called  Burkean  approaches to literature, drawing upon the theories of Kenneth Burke.? This includes the notion of form as the arousal and fulfillment of expectations (from Kenneth Burke). What expectations does the text create and how does it ultimately fulfill them, if it does indeed do so? We can also employ a tool referred to as the  Pentad. Developed by  Kenneth Burke, the Pentad addresses any dramatic (or fictional) work in terms of looking at any action within the text as a combination of agent, agency, act, purpose, and scene (Who did it? By what means? What did he or she do? Why? Where and when? )  See  A Grammar of Motives  (and, also,  A Rhetoric of Motives) for more information. One important aspect of the pentad is that by breaking the fiction down into its  dramatistic  elements, we can see which ones are most important to an author (for example, if circumstances drive a character to certain actions, if scene and not agent or purpose determines the act, then this tells us something about the way the author views and is portraying reality. ) In addition, Burke talks about identification, by which he means how one thing is associated (or identified) with other things. This is useful in determining how the author creates certain effects or feelings in the audiencerepeated images of life are used to describe books in  Fahrenheit 451, for example,  identifying  books (and their ideas) with life and living things, a symbol that works on several levels (books and ideas are the life of a society, ideas are alive, books are not simply dead pieces of paper and cardboard but are living things because of the ideas contained within them). Related to all this is another form of criticism designed by Burke called  cluster criticism. Here, one looks for clusters of terms, themes, and images and attempts to outline the network of connections between them. They need not really refer to the meanings of these ideas outside of the text, what matters is that within the text they are creating their own interlocked system of meanings. Another approach is use the text as a way of understanding the author (usually because the author is seen as a kind of ? wisdom figure? or because he or she is seen as having a coherent philosophy about one or more issues or concepts).? What can we learn about the authors views by examining the text? What is the author trying to say about the nature of heroism, beauty, truth, reality, justice, etc. in this text? How is the text typical or atypical of a particular authors works, viewpoints,  etc. How does it show his or her growth or progress as an author? Finally, many critics are interested in the  metatextual  aspects of a piece of art. Modern linguistic theory argues that linguistic meaning takes place within the free play between signifiers, that words are meaningful not only because they refer to something in the world, but because of their place in the enormous network of meaning that is a language. In fact, words have meaning because of their difference from other meanings. But if this is true, if there is no center of language, no final anchor of meaning, texts can be approached by asking how the meaning of the text deconstructs itself through the internal contradictions created by assuming any final structure of language or meaning. 19. Questions of comparison and contrast This is one of the easiest and broadest of all the questions. Quite simply, one should consider how any one particular work is similar to or different from any other work. Often, it is by comparing one work with another that the unique features of both works will come into sharp focus. Because this is such a broad question, however, it is often useful to compare the work in question with another work that you are familiar with, and to combine it with other questions from this list, but only one question at a time. For example, one can explore how the Hero in Shakespeares  Henry V  differs from  Dorimant, the protagonist in the Restoration comedy,  The Man of Mode. Or, one can consider the treatment of evil in  Frankenstein, as compared to the treatment of evil in  To Kill a Mockingbird. 20. Questions of reaction  (reader response) One of the new theories of criticism is based on the very real factor that we do not simply passively absorb experiences; instead, what we experience as reality is mediated, the raw sensory experience goes through several filters (sensory, linguistic, cultural, etc. ) and our own personal desires, quirks, interests, memories, etc. , operate upon the information to construct what we think reality is. Reading  is, under this view, not a simple communication of data; we are as responsible for what we see in the text as the writer who originally transmitted the information. We are all translators. In other words, we not only receive the information, but participate in constructing our understanding of what we have read. For this reason, all individual reactions to the text are potentially valuable. And, although the affective fallacy (a term invented by W. K. Wimsatt and Monroe Beardsley) reminds us that our own emotional reactions to a text do not automatically prove anything about it, I would argue that these reactions (e. g. , enjoying a movie, hating a character, wanting a story to have a certain outcome, being shocked or confused by a certain method of storytelling, etc. ) can be a very good place to start. What do you personally think about the text? What do you find in it? Why do you feel this way? Your view is as important as any other critic; the only difference between you and the so-called professional critics is often nothing more than that they took a lot more English courses than you have and, as a result, have somewhat more experience (i. e. , they have developed their own system for looking at texts).

Let America Be America Again by Langston Hughes Essay Example

Let America Be America Again by Langston Hughes Paper â€Å"Let America Be America Again† by Langston Hughes His tone in the poem also contributes to the meaning. His tone seems almost confessional, like the poet is talking about his own experience in America. Hughes points out all the flaws in the ideas of equal opportunity and freedom in his poem. Then periodically he speaks to the reader outright with lines such as, O, yes, I say it plain, America never was America to me, And yet I swear this oath America will be! Speaking outright to the reader is very effective in communicating his ideas. These words really make the reader feel for the speaker and hear the idea that America has not been good to everyone equally. In fact, for some, America has never yet lived up to its reputation. Throughout the poem, Hughes uses rhetorical questions to cause the reader to pause and think. For example, The free? Who said free? (894 line 51) makes the reader question that exactly the free in this country are. With rhetorical questions, the reader is supposed to pause and think. But just as quickly, Hughes provides answers, Not me in an indirect method. He answers the question quickly for the reader. The most powerful aspect of the poem Let America Be America Again is the repeated use of anaphora. By using this repetition and parallel structure, Hughes gives the reader many ideas right in a row to think about. In the beginning of the poem the repeated phrase let it be tells the reader right away that America is not what it was supposed to be. We will write a custom essay sample on Let America Be America Again by Langston Hughes specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Let America Be America Again by Langston Hughes specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Let America Be America Again by Langston Hughes specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer In between, in parenthesis for emphasis, is the repeated idea of America never was America to me (893 line 5). And to answer the unspoken question of to whom America was unfair, Hughes uses the anaphora I am the.. and continues to list all of the people who were never able to reap the benefits of the American Dream. This he does in two different stanzas and in between these two stanzas is the repetition of of grab the in order to show that America has taken money and property from some in order to give it to others. Anaphora is used for emphasis, and Hughes uses it well to emphasize the idea of inequality. The poem Let America Be America Again by Langston Hughes is a powerful indictment of the idea of equal opportunity for all in America. He clearly shows the reader that there never was such an idea of equality for all through such rhetorical device as connotation, rhetorical questions, and anaphora. He emphasizes all the people who have not had access to the American Dream and gives each group of people a voice in this poem. However, Hughes ends this poem on a note that is truly American-the idea of hope. He hopes that America can be all the things it was supposed to be for all. He is not about to give up on the idea of the American Dream, and he wants America to be better. Work Cited Hughes, Langston. â€Å"Let America Be America Again. † Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. Ed. Edgar V. Roberts and Henry E. Jacobs. 8th ed. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2008. 893-895.

Congression Organization essays

Congression Organization essays Article 1 of the United States Constitution created a bicameral legislative branch known as the Congress. In this passage of the Constitution, two houses were created with seventeen enumerated rights including taxing, coining money, etc. The Constitution says the Congress is supposed to be set up in the following manner. The House of Representatives is to be made up of members selected every two years. There shall be at least one representative for each state. If there is ever a vacancy the executive authority of the state (i.e. state governor) will selected a person to fill said vacancy. The members of the House elect the Speaker and other officers. The Senate will be composed of two Senators per state for six years and each senator will have one vote each. One third of the Senate will be up for election every two years. The Vice President will be the head of this branch of Congress but doesnt have a vote unless there is a tie. When the Vice President is absent, the President pro tempore will run the Senate. So why then are there committees and whips and majority leaders when they arent mentioned in the Constitution? Because the Congressman couldnt perform the job to the standards prescribed by the Constitution without them. So heres the informal structure of the Congress. The House of Representatives has a maximum of 435 members. The Speaker of the House, which is selected by the majority leader for a two year term, presides over the House and acts as the official liaison to the Senate and the President. The Majority leader, which is the leader of the party that holds a majority of the seats in the House, helps the speaker with the legislation (a.k.a. bills, etc) on the floor. The minority leader represents the minority party in the House. Whips are elected by party members in their specific parties and keep close contact with its members. Their job is to keep members focused o...

Definition of Rhythm in the Visual Arts

Definition of Rhythm in the Visual Arts Rhythm is a principle of art that can be difficult to describe in words. We can easily recognize rhythm in music because it is the underlying beat that we hear. In art, we can try and translate that into something that we see in order to understand an artworks visual beat. Finding the Rhythm in Art A pattern has rhythm, but not all rhythm is patterned. For example, the colors of a piece can convey rhythm, by making your eyes travel from one component to another. Lines can produce a rhythm by implying movement. Forms, too, can cause rhythm by the ways in which theyre placed one next to the other. Really, its easier to see rhythm in just about anything other than the visual arts. This is particularly true for those of us who tend to take things literally. Yet, if we study art we can find a rhythm in the style, technique, brush strokes, colors, and patterns that artists use. Three Artists, Three Different Rhythms A great example of this is the work of Jackson Pollock. His work has a very bold rhythm, almost chaotic like what you might find in electronic dancehall music. The beat of his paintings come from the actions he made to create them. Slinging paint over the canvas in the way he did, he created a mad fury of motion that pops and he never gives the viewer a break from this. More traditional painting techniques also have rhythm. Vincent Van Goghs The Starry Night (1889) has a rhythm thanks to the swirling, well-defined brush strokes he used throughout. This creates a pattern without being what we typically think of as a pattern. Van Goghs piece has a more subtle rhythm than Pollock, but it still has a fantastic beat. On the other end of the spectrum, an artist like Grant Wood has a very soft rhythm in his work. His color palette tends to be very subtle and he uses patterns in almost every piece of work. In landscapes like Young Corn (1931), Wood uses a pattern to depict rows in a farm field and his trees have a fluffy quality that creates a pattern. Even the shapes of the rolling hills in the painting repeat to create a pattern. Translating these three artists into music will help you recognize their rhythm. While Pollock has that electronic vibe, Van Gogh has more of a jazzy rhythm and Wood is more like a soft concerto. Pattern, Repetition, and Rhythm When we think of rhythm, we think of pattern and repetition. They are very similar and interconnected, though each is also distinct from the others. A pattern is a recurring element in a particular arrangement. It may be a motif that repeats itself in a wood carving or piece of fiber art or it may be a predictable pattern such as a checkerboard or brickwork. Repetition refers to an element that repeats. It may be a shape, color, line, or even a subject that occurs over and over again. It may form a pattern and it may not. Rhythm is a little of both pattern and repetition, yet the rhythm can vary. The slight differences in a pattern create rhythm and the repetition of elements of art create rhythm. The rhythm of a piece of art can be controlled by everything from color and value to line and shape. Each piece of art has its own rhythm and it is often up to the viewer to interpret what that is.

Global Management of Cineworld Group Plc Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Global Management of Cineworld Group Plc - Essay Example This paper illustrates that Cineworld Group plc is among the leading cinema group originated in the United Kingdom. The founder Stephen Wiener established the company in the year 1995 and now it operates in 83 locations in the UK under the Cineworld Cinemas Brand. The report deals with the Global management system of the Cineworld Group Plc. It focuses on the learning and development programmes held by Cineworld for its employees as well as recognize the CSR activities of the company. The report would evaluate the performance of Cineworld Group in both the field and suggest viable recommendations based on it. The training and development strategies for the employees is the process of educating and guiding subordinates and management to enhance their knowledge, skills and behaviour to achieve the common organisational goal as well as utilise these learning in individual development for the long run so that they prove to be a valuable asset for the company and its growth. Learning and development process is a characteristic of the employee engagement as it bridges the gap between the employees and the organization and increases their long-term relationship. The term â€Å"engagement† is used in terms of motivation, passion, and assurance. The organization should ensure that the employee engagement programs which help in training and developing the employee to upgrade the quality of their performance must inspire the people, care about the staff as well as instill a sense of challenge and competition among them to perform better. These initiatives enable the organization to perform better as it correlates with the firm’s retention, turnover, loyalty, productivity and services in terms of employees as well as customers. Stuart Holdsworth, the national learning and development manager of the Cineworld Group plc has launched a training and development program for its managers to enhance their skills.

Business Strategy - Jobcentre Plus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Business Strategy - Jobcentre Plus - Essay Example Jobcentre's culture will be driven by the clear objective set by Ministers of "work for those who can, support for those who cannot." This clear work-focus will be apparent in everything Jobcentre do for Jobcentre's customers. Jobcentre plus will emphasize to them the link between benefits and work, with their associated rights and responsibilities. This will include a determination to reduce fraud and irregularity by ensuring that only those entitled to benefits receive them. But Jobcentre plus will also be about a much higher quality of customer service. Jobcentre plus will build on the existing successes of the Benefits Agency and the Employment Service by introducing more personal advisers with greater flexibility; more contact to keep people in touch with the labour market; more focus on meeting employers' needs and more emphasis on benefit integrity and accuracy. Jobcentre's service will treat each customer as an individual rather than as one of a group narrowly defined by benefit entitlement. Jobcentre's aim will be to tailor what Jobcentre can offer to what each individual needs. For instance, Jobcentre plus will take care to treat disabled people according to their individual circumstances. As a further example, parents who want to return to the workplace will be offered guidance to identify and relate the skills they have acquired as parents to those required by employers. For employers Jobcentre plus will provide a much more outcome-focused and professional service based on improved communications, dedicated vacancy service managers and local account managers, building on the foundations already laid in the New Deal and more widely. Jobcentre plus will deliver Jobcentre's services through the full range of channels offered by modern technology, including the internet, touch screen terminals and customer service centres. Jobcentre aim to offer employers in the Pathfinders a more effective service which responds to their requirements. Jobcentre plus will do this by working with them to understand their needs and the demands of the different industry sectors in which they operate. This means co-operating with employers, the local Learning and Skills Councils and other local training and education partners to customise training to meet industry and local employer needs. Jobcentre also aim to be better at matching the people without jobs to the jobs without people. This will involve us working with individuals to prepare them for the needs of employers and also working with employers to ensure they can make use of

Fire Protection Systems-Bachelor of Science Essay Example for Free

Fire Protection Systems-Bachelor of Science Essay 1. Specifications for a dry pipe sprinkler system in a cold storage warehouse The fire protection system to be supplied based on these specifications is dry pipe sprinkler Related works include electrical installations, walls penetrations sealing as well as the relevant drawings and calculations. To assure quality, all materials designs and works shall be supervised by qualified person (NICET level III certificate). Calculations are to be based on NFPA 13 and no detail shall be left or assumed. Sprinklers shall be availed in elevators and stairwells. The sprinkler performance shall be tested after installation. The new system of sprinkling design should meet all pre-set codes and standards for effective performance. The system components and devices shall be recommended by under writer Lab in ULFPE directory. Minimum experience of the contractor is 5 years. Layout must be supervised by experienced person and quality assurance done by a different qualified person. Submittals shall be done in one package, reviewed and then signed as required. The system drawings with all relevant required information by NFPA shall be provided. Calculations for the system’s remote areas with regard to one critical light hazard and ordinary hazard areas shall be done as requires by NFPA. Relevant compliance certificates shall be submitted. They include certificate of quality assurance, experience, test certificate for contractor and the various respective NICET III certificates. Again, all design and installation documents shall be required as issued by NFPA as well as the contract drawings. The dry pipe system sprinkler shall be piped in accordance with NFIA 13. All valves (control, drain, alarm and check valves) should meet the fine specifications as listed in UL. The sprinkler installed shall UL listed, its location strategic and its temperature appropriate for the room in is installed. Listing of each sprinkler shall be based on the classification of the room in which it is installed. The rooms are classified based on their occupancy. The dry systems switch and all tamper switches have to be linked to the fire alarm control panel as required by NFPA code 71 and 72 (Zalosh, 2003, pp. 166-168). 2. The reasons why a builder or architect might give a sprinkler contractor an incomplete set of contract drawings. There are a number of reasons that have been placed to explain why an architect may end up giving a contractor for sprinklers incomplete contract drawings. First, the builder or the architect may lack the competence in the engineering field. He may not the capacity to make workable designs for fire fighting equipment and for sprinklers in particular. Again, the architect may not have the relevant experience with respect to designing various systems for buildings that are of varying sizes and that may have varying needs for fire fighting systems. Through experience, a builder is capable of easily spotting an incomplete drawing. This is because most experienced architects have customized their expertise by developing check lists for the various requirements that make a contact drawing complete. In case they are in hurry, these check lists can fruitfully assist them in ensuring all important components in a contract drawn for a sprinkler contractor is complete. It is true to say that most architects specialize in designing houses and most leave minimum provisions for structures that are installed long after the house is competed. This is because most architects do not have an idea for what purpose the house they are designing shall be used. The fire fighting systems are installed as the need arise depending on the use for which the house shall be used. Sometimes, although rarely, some architects once they spot errors they had made in their designs, they may distort the designs to cover up their errors and this way, they evade possible blame for such errors (Gagnon, 1998, p. 107). This blame is avoided because it can cause serious impacts on the company contracted to design, given that they are in business and they need to keep their reputation. However, this action is against the requirements of the Code of Conduct for engineers. 3. The response time for the Californian fire department According to the Californian fire control and suppression department, the response time for this department vary considerably. This was evident from the various reports obtained from the department. The response time as discussed here denotes the period from the time when the department is informed about a fire incident through the preparation for take off until the time they reach the fire site. The major explanation given for this difference in response time was due to the various circumstances surrounding each fire break case. This could range from issues like distance, accessibility, appropriateness of the equipment available and the preparedness of the fire fighting crew in the given station. Response time Based on the principles of effective fire control, suppression and management, there is no specified time which can be termed as the ideal response time. The ideal response time is the best time possible within which a crew will get to the burning site and start acting upon the fire, in the given circumstances. For this ideal response time to be gotten there is need of strong spirit of team work from all parties concerned, starting with the commanders at the station to the fire fighters in action (Ammons, 2001, p. 157). Communication has to be most effective and the message about the incidence must be clearly and coherently communicated and information about what, where and when should be precisely given for response time to be as short as possible. Accessibility will be determined by the location of the burning property. Air crafts may be used where the fire is deep in the forests and land vehicles may be used where the site is accessible by road. Response time is usually prolonged in cases where fire is in a slum or where the estate planning was too poor as to allow accessibility in times of emergency. Some times, the planning could have provided for this but poor management of the available structures such as bridges could be the barrier. Generally, an exponential function is the result of correlating the damage caused by fire with the time it takes before suppression efforts begin. This means the more time you take, the little you should expect to rescue. Therefore, it is essentially basic to respond within the first few minutes from the time you receive the signal and the approach should of course avoid panic. The fire should be fought professionally. Although the response time for this department appear to be timely, it is advisable for companies relying on this facility for fire management to install their sprinkler fire fighting systems to avoid any loss that can result to delayed response from the fire department. Although this may not fully content the fire, it can substantially suppress the fire before the crew from the department arrives, therefore preventing total losses. 4. Measure the height of your house from ground level to the highest ceiling. What water supply must be available to supply 35 psi for a sprinkler at the highest ceiling? Pressure A= Pressure B+ Pressure C , Force ‘B’ must correspondingly increase to maintain the equilibrium balance of forces which in turn translates to an outlet pressure rise. Therefore a maximum water supply pressure of 100 psi is required. 5. Actions taken by the fire service when fighting flammable liquid storage tank fires with fixed water spray protection installed and without fixed water spray protection installed. The fire brigade commander professionally and quickly determines the kind of flammable liquid that is burning, its immediate properties such as density as compared to that of water. In cases where the water is denser, it is mostly avoided because it can potentially worsen the situation. The commander expertly and in no time determines the flash point of the burning fluid. If the liquid has the potential of burning when it mixes with air upon ignition, the commander may command the use of water to prevent reaching the flash point of that liquid. When the fire is detected in time, the spraying of water using the fixed apparatus will but not in large quantities will lower the temperature in the room and thus reduce the potential of the ambient room temperature to cause the ignition as this has been known to cause the ignition of most flammable liquids whose flash point is low. It is necessary to close the container from which the vapors are coming from as the ignited vapor can burn back to the liquid, thus resulting to a fatal explosion. In cases where there is no fixed water spray, the portable water sprayers can be used to spray water (but not to pour because the fluid will float on water and even burn more) to the atmosphere and even near the liquid containers to lower the temperature. It is important to assess the risk in both cases by referring to the flammability characteristics of the fluid in question. Again, both cases require a person to first wear personal protection gear such as eye protection equipment, gloves on hands to prevent burning in case you come in contact with the flammable liquid, and also additional protective clothing for the whole body. Safety shield is useful in cases where a potential explosion is most likely or an exothermic reaction is most likely. Generally, the actions done here include the transfer of the flammable liquid to a working fume board if possible. Any potential source of ignition should be completely eliminated (Fitzgerald, 2004, pp. 422-424). Then locate all the safety equipment. Use appropriate mode of alerting the nearby people. The use of water as a fire extinguisher in case the fire has been ignited should not be attempted but instead, the use of dry chemical extinguishers can be suitably used. Alternatively, the use of liquefied carbon dioxide can be effective on these flammable liquid fires. Ask for assistance from the nearby fire facility by calling the emergency numbers. 6. Fire alarm systems in a factory Fire alarms noted in the factory were of various kinds. First, the M-Fire Alarm system which had manual call points. They were placed mostly near escape routes and they largely lacked an automatic way of detecting fire. It mainly relied on a person raising alarm. In case of fire disaster L-Fire alarm system which was designed to preserve life. It could enable non affected people in a factory on fire to safely escape unhurt. It had automatic sensors of a possible fire disaster, beacons and sirens. The third kind is P fire alarm system which is designed such that it can simultaneously protect life of building occupants; protect the property inside and most importantly the building itself by having the ability to automatically dial out the emergency number of the fire brigade. The available fire alarm systems identified could also be classified either as single stage system or double stage system. The single stage system when activated could transmit a signal in the whole building such that all the occupants in the building become aware of the fire danger the soonest possible. The two stage system could first release a characteristic alert signal to all occupying staff. If the staffs confirm the existence of the fire, they activate the alarm signal. In case the component alert is false, the alarm can be silenced and the system reset. According to the fire protection engineer, the M fire alarm system was used because it could serve the whole chain of factory buildings. L fire alarm system was to ensure timely evacuation and that there was no loss of life as a result of inconveniences. The system requires use of fire resistant materials in the factory to avoid fast spread of fire in the factory which is common in most factories. On the other approach to identifying the alarm system in the factory, the two stage system was installed based on the fact that most industrial workers especially those in the offices may panic very easily if they abruptly learn about a fire in the building they are in. This system was seen a necessary measure to reduce the possible effects of false alarms. Finally, the installation of single stage alarm systems in the factory sites where most machines are in operation was based on the idea that the fuel for running the machines could easily catch fire and lead to a very rapid spread and therefore this form of alarm would avoid any form of delay (Gill, 1997, p. 97). The performance objectives of the company in using these systems is to attain fastest response to fire break in industry while keeping the panic associated with raising fire alarms as minimum as possible to the senior management and other support staff in the factory offices. 7. How the first Montreal Protocol agreement has been modified since 1987. The Montreal protocol meant to address the issues related to the production of substances that result to depletion of the critical ozone layer has been modified several times. Since its signing in 1987 by only 25 nations, the membership tally has rose up to one hundred and sixty eight nations as of now. Much of these changes are as a result of more awareness of the effects of the various halogen substances and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) on the ozone layer. This has been obtained through intensive scientific research. The major changes in this original protocol were noted in the year 1990 in London, 1992 in Copenhagen, 1995 in Vienna and the most recent was done in 1997 in the city of Montreal. The amendments were made to speed up the withdrawal and abstinence from the production of substances that deplete the ozone layer. First, the production and the use of halogen matter have a phase-out completely on the first day of January, 1994. Exactly two years later, the production and use of other ozone depleting substances was phased out. These substances include CFCs, tetra chlorides of carbon, methyl chloroform and others like complex compounds of hydrogen, bromine, fluorine and carbon (hydrobromofluorocarbons). It is important to note that some companies in certain nations were exempted from the above discussed bans while compounds of H, Cl, F and carbon are to be phased by the year 2020. As more knowledge continue to be obtained from scientific research, the current ozone depleting potentials of various substances shall continue to reviewed from time to time and the best standards shall be used. The Montreal Protocol has resulted to a decline of chlorinated hydrocarbons while the controlled use of hydrocarbons has resulted to leveled trend in emission levels. They have been predicted to begin declining by 2020 (Newton, 1995, p. 1). 8. Aqueous and non-aqueous agents are employed by the Californian fire service, Aqueous agents used First, the most commonly used aqueous substance in fire fighting is water itself. It can either be pure or salty but mostly pure water is rarely used. Ice has been sparingly used but it is effective in keeping room temperature low below the flash point of most flammable liquids. However, an array of hydrated chemicals has been developed for use in the fire fighting exercise. Most of the agents that are used in this chemical formulations include chlorinated metaxylenol, some forms of Urea, heteropolysaccharide-7 substance, aqueous solution of equal amount of sodium decylsulfate and sodium octylsulfate (both used in equal amounts in terms of their molar masses, other compounds like monobutyl ether made of diethylene glycol as well as the hydrated form of isopropyl mixture. Other chemicals used may vary narrowly from this typical composition to contain fewer compounds than these or include a few more compounds such as ammonia and magnesium sulfate. Non aqueous agents used The most commonly used non water agents in fighting fire in this fire service was Liquefied carbon dioxide which is packed in sturdy metallic cylinders and let out through some nozzles at the top of the cylinders. It is popularly known for its effectiveness in fighting and suppressing fires on flammable liquid tanks and containers. It acts by cutting off the oxygen supply from the atmosphere by forming a blanket like layer over the fire. In additions, these kinds of fires can also be handled by the use of dry chemical extinguishers. Fire beaters are commonly used in the grassland wildfires in California and they are used by trained fire beating crew who must wear appropriate garments and gears that are not only resistant to the fire itself but also protective from the painful burning characteristic of open-fire fighting. The criteria for determining the kind of agent to be used is based on the kind of fire (in the open or in a building), the kind of material burning (flammable liquid or wood or plastic or any other) and also on the resources available. Curbed fires can be suppressed by adequate water spray while fire from a fuel tank can be suppressed by used of liquid carbon dioxide. The agent selected should be the most appropriate under the prevailing conditions (Schwartz Perry, 2007, p. 334). 9. Gift from a client or other person with whom one has a professional relationship, which must be reported to an employer, those if accepted could create a conflict of interest and state the justification. a. A pen with promotional advertising on it. It should be reported because if kept as a secret, other parties with similar interest as this client may see this as a campaign for this particular client’s company. b. A promotional videotape- it should be reported but it has no potential for causing conflict of interest. Reporting will allow for analyzing of the message in the tape and whether it is acceptable or not. c. A book of engineering data – this should be reported because the information contained in this book has not been established to be in conformity with the applicable standards for engineering. If not reported, it can cause a conflict of interest because if an engineer beliefs in the data, he is likely to have conflicts with others who use the preset standards. d. An engraved briefcase – it should also be reported because the material used to make it may be unsafe. Since briefcases are carried at work, the engraved briefcase may act as a source of irradiations which can potentially form a source of ignition for liquids with low splash points. e. A car – This should be reported because if not reported, it may be perceived as a reward for favor done before which is not acceptable according to the engineering code of ethics. This client may also be malicious and implant explosive materials in the car, and set it to explode when parked near the factory. Reporting will give room for inspection to avoid such terrorism minded clients or persons. f. A calendar- This should not be reported and cannot be a source of conflict if reported because it does not feature any where within the codes of ethics. However, if it contains advertisements of a company with which you have business relations, it should be reported because it has the potential of influencing the decisions of the engineer and may be seen as unfair by other companies with which you have similar business ties. g. A sterling silver pen with your name engraved on it- it should not be accepted if the person is involved in fraudulent enterprise as stipulated in the Rules of Practice number 1d. The engraved material may be radioactive and thus form a hazard especially when working in factories with highly flammable liquid tanks. h. An encyclopedia. This should be accepted and never reported because it has general information and the information contained is usually standardized and can be believed to be true. In case it is not reliable, the publisher can be held responsible (NSPE, 2003, pp. 1-2). 10. About an article related to unethical conduct The article is about a company that was involved in corrupt tendering process. The way it obtained road construction tenders was questionable by its competitors. This unethical engineering conduct has led to several impacts. First, there has been pressure from the other registered road constructors to de-register this constructor and soon, this individual company may be out of business. The engineers directly involved in the scandal may as well be deregistered. Since this has been highlighted by the press, the whole society may lose the trust they had on the engineering society unless a stern action is taken. This is against the professionalism of engineering and it is ‘staining’ the profession. This act is against the code of conduct for engineers since they are required to execute their duties honestly. The law also requires them to conduct themselves honorably and ethically and always act within the law. This is meant to retain the reputation and most importantly the usefulness of the profession. The ethical actions that should be taken against the perpetrators of this act include appearing for questioning to prove the misconduct, and if found guilty, the perpetrators should be sentenced as per the law (NSPE, 2003, pp. 1-2). The engineers involved should also be de-registered from the society for engineers for ‘staining’ the society and violating the rules they know very well. References Ammons, D. (2001). Assessing Municipal Performance. US: Sage. Fitzgerald, W. (2004). Building Fire Performance Analysis. New York: J. Wiley and Sons. Gagnon, R. M. (1998). Special Hazard Design. New York: Thomson Delmar. Gill, P. (1997). Factory Management and Maintenance. Michigan: McGraw Hill. National humanity of skilled engineers (NSPE). (2003). Code of Ethics for Engineers. Alexandria: NSPE. Newton, D. C. (1995). ‘The Ozone Dilemma’, The Columbia Encyclopedia. Columbia: Columbia University press.

how to become a great baseball player Essay -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Being great at a particular sport, such as baseball, is actually quite simple. It takes a mix of talent and even more hard work. I have seen a very large number of athletes come through this high school with all the talent in the world, but had no work ethic. Talent is only a fraction of what is needed to be great.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The process of becoming a great baseball player takes talent, hard work, and a ton of practice. Baseball, being the second hardest sport in the world is a hard sport to stay discipline at. As a player, he must make sure he works at all the drills everyday, boring or not. Also, he must have the mental mind set that he definitely wants to make it to the big leagues, if he doesn’t, then its ...

Merger and Acquisition †Proposal Essay

Chapter -I Introduction Merger, corporate combination of two or more independent business corporations into a single enterprise, usually the absorption of one or more firms by a dominant one. A merger may be accomplished by one firm purchasing the other’s assets with cash or its securities or by purchasing the other’s shares or stock or by issuing its stock to the other firm’s stockholders in exchange for their shares in the acquired firm (thus acquiring the other company’s assets and liabilities). In a merger, institutions combine to form another different institution, which becomes a legal entity in its own right and therefore mergers are not instant events, they are processes .A merger cannot be considered as truly successful unless it also achieves employee satisfaction. This is vital to an organization as a whole. Employee satisfaction is very important and necessary in order to gauge the success of the company. Employee satisfaction reflects the degree to which individual‘s needs and desire are met and the extent to which this is perceived by other employees. Employee satisfaction is generally perceived as the scope of the work and all the positive attitudes regarding the work environment. In this, there are several words which have been describe the impact of merger in staff- †¢ Traumatic  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ Disruptive †¢ Distressing †¢ Painful †¢ Uncertainty †¢ Loss in commitment †¢ Dampening on work motivation †¢ Shock †¢ Anger †¢ Disbelief †¢ Depression †¢ Anxiety †¢ Disappointment †¢ Disillusionment †¢ Withdrawal Thus Mergers have become a key part of many corporate growth strategies, with diversification being the primary reason for merging. Banks seek to diversify in order to reduce risks and increase returns, and geographic diversification, that is expanding operations into multiple locations, is used to obtain greater market power. Banks merge with other banks that have branch locations in multiple states in order to reach a larger customer base. The anticipated benefits are less competition and increased profits for the resultant bank. The corporate diversification strategy has led to an increase in bank Merger. The mainly purpose to conduct this study on merger and acquisition of banks and its effect on employee job satisfaction because there has been seen a big change in shape of merger activities after the big financial crises that effects the whole world business strategies in different mode so many employees getting jobless. Every segment of work or business and individuals of the nation is affected by the financial crisis due to the cycle of collecting deposits and lending money chain broken. Peoples do not have the power to save the money in the banks because of less profitability and more expenses that reduced the profitability of the banks too and let them to merge and acquisition themselves with another well-established bank that bear their costs and their existence too. During merger and acquisition activities lots of employees victimize in different terms. They suffer from the stiffed phase of their job. Most of the employee’s job satisfaction level goes ultimate down as they think they will be getting fired or jobless as new management would be come up with new teams of professionals and new procedure of working conditions in this way their morale level affected. Statement of the Problem Whether the banks are public or private the main thing is the success of their business and that depends upon its employees. If the employees are not satisfied from their job, working conditions, work culture, management they can never make the customers satisfied with better quality services. The purpose of this research is to know the effects of Merger on employee satisfaction. Recently, Machhapuchhre Bank Limited merged with Standard Finance and Himchuli Bikas Bank merged with Birgunj Finance, I believe that these institutions are perfect to understand the effects of merger on employee’s satisfaction. Identified Problems * To what extent does change impact on employee movement? * How satisfied are employees of these two banks with their current working environment? * What are the factors that affect employee satisfaction level during a merger phase? Research Objective Based on the above identified problems, the goals of this study are * To identify factors that affect employee satisfaction during a merger phase. * To measure the satisfaction level of employee after merger of bank. * To establish the extent to which employees are satisfied with their current working conditions. Chapter II Literature Review A number of researchers and theorists have been paying attention to know the satisfaction level of employee after merger of bank and institution. Many higher and further education institutions in South Africa are struggling to survive in a context of financial stringency, declining student enrolments and increasing competition, therefore for some of these institutions merging with other institutions in the near future is becoming a strong likelihood (Hay, Fourie & Hay, 2001:100). In an attempt to survive, institutions are reducing costs by cutting down on the number of faculties, redeploying staff and placing a moratorium on overtime pay, conference attendance, new appointments and new capital projects (Bott, quoted by Hay, Fourie & Hay, 2001:100). Hay, Fourie and Hay (2001:100) state that perceptions of employees who will be directly affected by the merging process seem to be very important, as knowledge and understanding of those perceptions will empower decision– makers and ensure that effective management of the merging process can be accomplished; therefore careful consideration needs to be given to particularly personal factors, and employee fears will have to be addressed in the process to ensure effective merging. According to Smit & Cronje (1995:307) when an organisation employs people, it is the manager’s task to diagnose the needs of its employees and formulate strategies to promote personal goal attainment. If workers are able to achieve their personal goals in the work situation, they will be prepared to render outputs that lead to the attainment of the organisation’s goal; therefore it follows that if the individual’s outputs are satisfactory, the organisation will reward him and this, in turn, will satisfy him. Strydom (2005) (as quoted in the Centre for Quality Management journal, S.a.), states that the level of satisfaction that a staff member feels will directly affect his work performance and attitudes, impacting on the company’s success. Strydom (2005) believes that an organisation’s primary objective is to determine the needs of its employees and the ways in which these can be satisfied, therefore research emphasizes the importance of the role that employee satisfaction plays in the success of an organisation. Strydom (2005) further states that organisations need to provide good recruitment strategies and induction processes, strong leadership, personal development opportunities, a positive work environment, recognition of a job well done and good communication to ensure that employees’ needs are met. Phillips Consulting (2005) points out that tackling issues such as employee challenges, motivation, career advancement, performance management and cultural issues are key to the success of any transformation exercise. The employee drives the process and strategy, not the other way round. Researchers have attributed the less than stellar record of M&A outcomes, in part, to how the integration of the participating firms affected the employees of the acquired company (Range, 2006; Schreyogg, 2006; Van Dick, Wagner, & Lemmer, 2004). Furthermore, research has shown that M&As can be a traumatic event in the lives of the individuals and organizations involved in the change. Many employees experience feelings of loss, resentment, and a decline in job satisfaction, and their reactions can lead to the failure of the M&A (Appelbaum et al., 2007; Cartwright & Schoenberg, 2006; Sperduto, 2007). Appelbaum et al. concluded that such human resources (HR) difficulties may add costs to the integration process and undermine the ability of a firm to achieve synergy, and thereby offset the hoped-for benefits of merging. Hunt and Downing (2006) concluded that, in the majority of successful mergers, the purchasers predicted that personnel problems would arise and acted quickly when such problems surfaced. Thus, understanding the job facets that lead to positive job satisfaction may help other business leaders deploy strategies that could increase their chances for achieving successful mergers.

Logical Fallacy

One of the main problems with Michael Moore’s IDIOT NATION (and much of Moore’s work in general) is the fact that Moore begins with a conclusion and works backwards in an attempt to prove his argument. That is, he has already made up his mind on a subject and then â€Å"cherry picks† facts and arguments to prove his point. Unfortunately, his proof collapses upon careful examination of the logic flaws in his arguments. This will be proven by selecting several examples of flawed logic in the work and defining it. Consider the follow excerpt by Moore condemns private education and promotes public education by way of personal attacks: â€Å"Hunt these little pricks down like dogs and then cage them until we can break their will†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (138) Moore is referring to here is the elitist attitude of the clergy and he points it out in a thoroughly pandering manner. He presents a supremely sweeping generality of nuns as totalitarian dictators. This demonizes the nuns is done to disparage the educational system they represent so as to prop up the other institution. This method hopes to gain sympathy for a cause through the cheap use of personal attacks. Similarly, Moore attacks the military and lays the blame on defense spending as the reason why there is much failure in the public schools: â€Å"[political leaders and voters] have decided it is a bigger priority to build another bomber than to educate our children.† (135) In other words, because tax dollars are being funneled needlessly to the military our schools are in bad shape. Hence, cut military spending because there is no need for it and pump more money into schools and the schools will automatically improve. This is a thoroughly false analogy as it infers there are no security threats to the United States and that military build up is arbitrary and aggressive and that schools are under-funded, both of which are complete inaccuracies. First, the public education system in the United States is no where near as bad as alarmists like Moore contend. Public schools has produces many excellent students over the years, but let’s center on the worst case scenarios†¦after all, that is what Moore does. If millions of dollars were pumped into the school system, how would this alter the attitudes of areas of contention such as poor quality teachers who are not doing their jobs or students who cut class? What about the millions of dollars of already spent on public education that has produced little results? Why should it be increased? And why cut military spending? Why not cut agriculture subsidies? Because Moore personally doesn’t like the military and that is the bidget cut he is after. Moore is also opposed to measures of discipline in public schools and uses an argument rooted in pandering to gain support. Consider the following: â€Å"kids learn to submerge personal expression. They learn that it is better to go along so that you get along.† (147) Moore is referring to dress codes that have been instituted in some public schools. Moore’s statement panders to those who would sympathize with an anti-authoritarian statement and may be willing to align with his anarchist sentiment. The reality of this sentiment is that no one is trying to submerge personal expression as much as the schools are attempting to reduce violence. Many dress codes were designed as a way of reducing gang violence. Moore does not address this and opts to pander to those who see such actions by the school as an attack on rugged individualism. Pandering may draw support, but it can not make an untrue argument about conspiracies to subvert individualism. Moore is not an unintelligent man and has been known to make clear and intelligent points. Unfortunately, his desire to be a populist has led to such flawed logical treatises such as IDIOT NATION and this is unfortunate as he could do much better.                                 

Essay Sample on Business Ethics Program

Essay Sample on Business Ethics Program Business Ethics essay: The world is in the age of innovations, with an exponential free market growth in a world economy. Never than before, more and more people and countries are getting interwoven through technology, spreading freedom and democratic ideals, to enhance free markets; to protect personal property rights; and at the same time encouraging respect for human rights, conserving the environment and the respect for human rights. Electronic businesses in the modern society are expected to adhere to standards of responsible business practices that are more than what has been in place traditionally. The need to maximize profits in virtual business where the traditional buyer-seller direct interaction is lost is in no way a license to go against society norms, standards, values and respect, quality and integrity. Electronic business must set up ethics program that should be controlled by the host nation. A business ethics program should therefore not set up either its workers or its enterprise for failure. Rather a business ethics program, strives to put the correct people in correct position is an e-business enterprise to foster and address stakeholders expectations. Ethical considerations in e-business will cut costs drastically. By empowering employees with clear working guidelines in their day to day business compliance with ethics and laws through using a well-defined business ethical program, restores the confidence of the business to its customers. A business ethics program provides means to detect and avoid any form of violation of ethics and law. It also provided employees with profound guidelines to run and manage such businesses. A business ethics program enhances an e-business enterprise reputation for integrity. By giving employees and remote workers in e-commerce enterprise adequate guidelines, ensures that the business carries out responsible business. Such businesses that have integrity reputation and a physical location are therefore likely to survive in these competitive markets.