The Grapes of Wrath Connections to the Great Depression

The Grapes of Wrath: Connections to the Great Depression The decaying state of the American economy and the onset of the Great Depression in the 1930s brought about the necessity for the United States to reconsider its attitudes and examine the long term effects of its policies concerning wide-scale socioeconomic problems that were constantly growing bigger. The Great Depression led to the creation of many new and innovative government policies and programs, along with revisions to older economic systems. However, these cost the government billions of dollars in a country that had consistently been stretching the gap between the rich and poor. This continued as the Great Depression began to change everything people had grown old knowing,†¦show more content†¦Every moving thing lifted the dust into the air: a walking man lifted a thin layer as high as his waist, and a wagon lifted the dust as high as the fence tops, and an automobile boiled a cloud behind it. The dust was long and settling back again. (Steinbeck 4) Crops had indeed been ruined as well, and for a long while. It took many futile attempts from farmers at replanting their wheat to realize this; the earth-uprooting storms did not spare anymore crops a chance. After seeing that all efforts put into this region were proving to be in vain, farmers had decided to move out west (Mostly to California for its professed jobs and beautiful land and climate) in a struggling effort for survival. They began migrating using any jalopies or old cars that they could obtain and hopping on Route 66, which would take them where they needed to go. The people in flight streamed out on Route 66, sometimes a single car, sometimes a little caravan. All day they rolled slowly along the road and at night they stopped near water. (Steinbeck 152) A large amount of the migrants came from the heavily dust-infested Oklahoma. Many of these unfortunate folk were looked down upon and prejudiced against because they could only pray for jobs that could give them the wages they needed to purchase food and endure. The migrant Americans,Show MoreRelatedEssay about The Grapes Of Wrath: Connections To The Great Depression1572 Words   |  7 PagesThe Grapes of Wrath: Connections to the Great Depression The decaying state of the American economy and the onset of the Great Depression in the 1930s brought about the necessity for the United States to reconsider its attitudes and examine the long term effects of its policies concerning wide-scale socioeconomic problems that were constantly growing bigger. The Great Depression led to the creation of many new and innovative government policies and programs, along with revisions to older economicRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck1060 Words   |  5 PagesJohn Steinbeck wrote The Grapes of Wrath as a social commentary, looking to make reformations for the migrant workers that suffered throughout the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression. His novel was criticized for its portrayal of both migrant families and Californian farmers, but the condemnation and denunciation of it was excused as his goal was attained; Eleanor Roosevelt made strides toward the first reforms. The Grapes of Wrath might not have made such an impact on Americ an society if it hadRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck2739 Words   |  11 PagesHeavren 15 Christian Symbolism in The Grapes of Wrath Since the first civilizations, religion has greatly influenced the development of life. 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The similarities and differences within the book and the film are very controversial and being able to break down what all happened in each will help a rhetorical analysis to take place in this paper. Rhetorically speakingRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck2144 Words   |  9 PagesThe Grapes of Wrath is a well-known beloved novel of American Literature, written by John Steinbeck and published in 1939. Whoever said a road is just a road has not read The Grapes of Wrath. From the time we read when Tom Joad, novel’s protagonist, returns home after four years in prison; the meaning of roads changed. Route 66, also known as the mother road the road of flight, was a lifeline road, which allowed thousands of families to pursue thei r hopes and dreams. This road is also the road that

Social Media Impact On Social And Communication - 1231 Words

In today’s modern society, people — particularly young people — are discovering and adapting new approaches of communicating electronically to fit their needs continually. For the most part, conversations are predominantly dominated by social media interactions. You are probably more likely to speak to family and friends through electronic devices rather than face-to-face. But is modern technology and social media impairing our interpersonal communication and social skills? Recent research and studies suggest demonstrate that social media negatively impacts social and communication skills. However there are ways to combat these detrimental effects. Social media will continue to be the preferred form of communication among young people as more generations are born into the social age. However, this shift may begin to affect our capability to properly communicate in person as many rely on a screen to communicate. For example, Yazino founder, Hussein Chahine, said i n The Telegraph, â€Å" Some people are as used to seeing their friends’ online avatar as they are their face,† thus correlating online conversations as physical when in reality they are not (â€Å"One† 1). This could eventually lead to reality risks as people would be depend on online avatars to tell something about a person when in actually it could all be a lie as social media grants anyone the ability to be whoever they want to be. 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Moses Mendelsohn and the Religious Enlightenment Free Essays

â€Å"His life our standard, his teaching our light† Isaac Euchel wrote about Moses Mendelssohn. Moses was a model for Jews in Germany during the late 1770’s, and a dominant figure in the emergence of the Haskalah. The Haskalah borrowed many forms and categories from the already existing European Enlightenment, but its contents were largely derived from medieval Jewish philosophy and biblical exegesis. We will write a custom essay sample on Moses Mendelsohn and the Religious Enlightenment or any similar topic only for you Order Now Within the novel, Moses Mendelssohn and the Religious Enlightenment, David Sorkin conveys how Moses made the German Enlightenment compatible with Judaism, and shows Moses to be a more consistent thinker than previously believed; his views on Judaism, natural laws, and natural rights developed early and remained consistent throughout his lifetime. Sorkin accounts Moses’ contributions to Jewish thought in three successive phases: philosophical, exegetical, and political. First, in the philosophical phase, Sorkin reveals the foundations of Moses’ thought. At an early age, Moses read the bible, memorized passages, studied Hebrew grammar, and wrote biblical poetry. All of these activates later were key in the Haskalah. In 1743, at fourteen, Moses moved to Berlin, which was at the center of the German Enlightenment, and theorist Christian Wolff was a dominating influence. Wolff’s focus was to natural theology, where he accounted that God’s existence and attributes were the basis for theology and ethics. Influenced by Wolff, Moses sought to apply these Wolffian concepts to Judaism. Moses used his own version of Wolffian philosophy as a means to articulate his full belief in revealed religion. For example, he alluded that God was the source of all perfection and thus the source of metaphysics and natural theology. He thought that Enlightenment philosophy and Judaism complemented each other, and that philosophy served Judaism as an instrument of self-articulation. As a result, he began to write philosophical works in German, and Jewish works in Hebrew. Most important during the start of his career, he introduced a distinction between practical and theoretical in philosophy, which was also influenced by Wolff. Moses stressed a Jew’s primary obligation is â€Å"torah and good deeds†, not philosophical contemplation. To Moses, revelation set distinct limitation on theoretical knowledge, so he concentrated no practical knowledge, which was usually later seen in the form of commentary, since commentary was seen as the legitimate form through which truth is approached. Moses’ early Hebrew works were commentaries in which he attempted to renew the tradition of philosophy in Hebrew, again using ideas from Wolffian philosophy. His first work, The Kohelet Musar, was the first modern journal in Hebrew. Another subject he addresses is the concept of an ideal personality, which was in terms of ones individuals’ relationship to God and his fellowman. To Moses, the ideal is the â€Å"man of faith† who combines religious study, honest occupation, family, and trust in god. Also, in Moses’ early works, he argued the importance of the study of the Hebrew language and the bible. In a commentary on Maimonides’ Logical Terms, he insisted without Torah and tradition, we are â€Å"like a blind man in the dark†, and the true path to knowledge is the combination of torah and logic. Continuing the Wolffian beliefs, Moses asserted that although things might look accidental to man, to God they are all necessary. His early works such as The Kohelet Musar and Logical Terms were both commentaries that embodied Wolfian principles. However, The Book of the Soul, was different in the regard that it was a freestanding philosophical work that Moses withheld from publication. In Moses’ early works, Sorkin notes that the lack of any original content is significant. According to Sorkin, the conclusion of Moses’ philosophical career was with the Lavater affair in 1769-1770. By the end of the 1760’s, Moses’ philosophical position was established and would remain until the end of his life. He created a public dualism by publishing philosophical works in only German, and commentaries on Jewish subject in Hebrew. The Lavater affair contested Moses to support all of his fundamental ideas. Johann Caspar Lavater, a Swiss Protestant pastor infamously challenged Moses to refute the arguments of the theologian, Charles Bonnet, or convert to Christianity, which Lavater referred as a â€Å"Golden Bridge† to Christianity. However, this posed a public challenge to Moses as a philosopher and as a Jew. In response, Moses publically defended toleration on religious and philosophical grounds, but in private, he wrote counterattacks and criticized Christianity. This task was not simple, and he again used Wolffian principles help justify that Judaism was in perfect harmony with natural religion and reason. Sorkin interprets that Moses drove Lavater to end the affair, and made him isolate from the public, and Sorkin named this â€Å"the triumph of toleration†. Although Moses overcame Lavater, the affair also had grave consequences on Moses personally; the affair aggravated his physical and psychological condition. He was a hunchback, and developed a nervous debility, which was linked to his deformity, prevented abstract thinking and grew much worse during this Lavater affair. The next period of Moses’ career, Sorkin names Exegesis, where he focused on making the bible vital to the Haskalah. First, Moses created a commentary on Ecclesiastes that is part of â€Å"wisdom literature,† and thus was able to reiterate his preference of practical knowledge. He constructed a defense of Jewish exegesis on the basis of language, and strived to show how there are multiple meanings, which are reasonable. He said, â€Å"there are four methods of interpreting our holy torah-the literal, homiletical, allegorical, and esteric†, proving that words can bear multiple intentions. Also, in his commentary, Moses introduced divisions that did not follow the traditional chapters and verses in the bible, because he argued that traditional divisions were intended for the â€Å"convenience of the reader†. Another interesting aspect Moses brought up in Ecclesiastes, was that the idea that truth was universal and neutral, whatever its origins, meaning he deemed it permissible to use non-Jewish exegesis. Lastly, in this commentary, language was of importance because Moses used German translations in Hebrew characters, giving equivalents with entire sentence. Sorkin believes he did this to him, Hebrew was the ideal medium for the spread of the practical knowledge, in which laid the essence of Judaism. This Ecclesiastes commentary placed him at the head of the Haskalah’s efforts to revive biblical exegesis. Next, Moses worked for thirteen years on his translation on the Psalms, with the goal of producing an exegesis document of natural religion, translated in German, and would be source of practical knowledge for Jews and Christians. Sorkin brings attention to how Moses uses the term â€Å"edification† in reference to the Psalms, which emphasizes his desire for an exegesis that would encourage universal religiosity. In the Psalms, Moses asserts that the sublime is a form of art, and the highest form of beauty. Moses thus disagrees with the idea that God is â€Å"the most sublime being† because he believed that the sublime was not natural, but artistic, existing as a human creation. Furthermore, he affirms that the sublime’s aesthetic impact is admiration, and its spiritual impact is edification. Unfortunately, the translation of the Psalms was only a success among the Jews, and others stated that, â€Å"nothing could be further from the truth. † Sorkin viewed this as a confirmation that Moses’ best medium is commentary, not translation. During the same thirteen years that Moses translated the Psalms, he also translated, commented, and wrote an extensive introduction to the Pentateuch, titled Book of the Paths to Peace. This translation aimed to convey a literal meaning of the text through a fluent German translation. While Moses remained the key contributor, he had four Maskilim participate, and this made a shift in the Haskalah. This book is divided into three themes: practical knowledge, literal meaning, and the use of history. In the first part of the Book of Paths to Peace, Moses viewed the Pentateuch as the primary source of practical knowledge for the Jews. Sorkin noticed he repeatedly argues â€Å"virtue must be made into a â€Å"second nature† by the continual exercise of moral judgment. Moses asserted that compared to the rest of humanity Israel had a special role, because those who reside in there all â€Å"believe† and the bible is a handbook of practical knowledge. Also, in the Pentateuch, Moses wrote â€Å"man is by nature and social and will not achieve success without help from others of his kind†. Interesting, Moses stressed that God created everything, and he that he is beyond nature, and thus â€Å"science† had no place in a commentary on Creation, which further showed his resistance to theoretical knowledge. Sorkin again demonstrated how Moses kept consistent in his views, since practical knowledge already played in other works. The next portion emphasized the literal meaning as the focus of exegesis. Due to the bible being the primary source of practical knowledge, the need to make its literal meaning known was vital for Moses. His basic premise was that the Bible had a unique oral quality that made it the most effective means of transmitting practical knowledge. He stressed the importance of grammar, and believed only with knowledge of grammar, does Gods’ word both literal and homiletical make sense, because grammar is essential to the tradition of Jewish scriptural transmission. It is this tradition that prevents the Jews from being â€Å"like a blind man in the dark,† and Sorkin points out that Moses used the same metaphor here as he did with Logical Terms. Moses believed that due to the structure of biblical poetry, that it was the most successful method for teaching practical knowledge. The last portion of the Book of the Paths to Peace, Moses established and defended his belief in Judaism through history. History helped establish Moses’ faith. Sorkin alluded that Moses was historical without being historicist, because he recognized history in the Pentateuch rather than the Pentateuch as a product of history. Sorkin notes that viewing history in this fashion was integral to the Haskalah and typical of the religious enlightenment. The Book of the Paths to Peace eventually had wide acceptance, even though some attacked the book. The book was meant to instruct Jewish youth, but since Moses used complex German, it forced students to concentrate on that language instead of the contents. Lastly, The final phase Sorkin accounts for in Moses’ life is his political activism. Moses was politically involved almost his entire career as a thinker and writer. Now, he focused on the state and individual rights from the viewpoint of a Jew living in hardships. Continuing the Wolffian philosophy, he emphasized a politics based on ideas of natural rights to promote legal equality. Initially, Moses arrived in the political arena by being an intercessor. Sorkin found this unsurprising since Moses was a philosopher and writer. Communities sought Moses in times of conflict, and usually Moses’ intercession was successful. For example, the Duke in the community of Mecklenburg prohibited the Jewish practice of early burial. Moses was asked to help, so he served as an intercessor, and the duke granted the Jews the privilege of religious liberty. However, Moses took this matter further, by trying to renew the ritual practice, just as he tried to renew the traditions of philosophy and exegesis. In 1777, Moses transitioned from the politics of intercession to the politics of emancipation, when he responded to the community of Dresden’s problem of Jew’s facing high taxation or expulsion. Moses’ letter asserted that Jews were being excluded from society because of their religion. His work, The Ritual Laws of the Jews was seen as an integral part of his Jewish thought, and referred to as a handbook on practical knowledge. Later, Moses took on dealing with Jewish rights. Sorkin implies that Moses’ advocacy of rights was fundamentally new, yet there was also substantial continuity with his earlier thought. Moses demonstrated that history plays an even more important role in his political thinking than in his biblical exegesis since human liberties were the issue rather than divine work. In order to understand Jews’ situation in terms of rights, Moses translated Rousseau’s Discourse. Moses maintained a balance between individual rights and absolutist state, and asked Christian Wilhelm Dohm to write a tract advocating emancipation of the Jews, and it was widely influential. Moses wrote an elaborate preface to the translation of Rousseau’s Discourse, which was divided into three parts, and titled Vindiciae Judaeorum. In the preface, it was the first time he publicly advocated â€Å"civic acceptance† or equal rights. An occurring theme in the preface was Moses expressing what he did not agree with Dohm’s memorandum, specifically with Dohm’s ban of excommunication. Moses deemed that religious excommunication invaded on civil rights because it involved the political authorities. Since he denied religion’s right to excommunicate, he was set apart from the mainstream of that scholarship. A month after he published Vindiciae Judaeorum, he also published his translation of the Psalms. The Psalms received little attention, while Vindiciae had a huge impact. A pamphlet appeared criticizing Moses’ work, but it was published as a famous Austrian statesman in order to be taken seriously, but truly, a minor writer August Cranz wrote it. Cranz posed more of a challenge to Moses’ faith than the Lavater’s affair; Moses had to realize that Christianity was the true religion and prepare to convert or admit Judaism was imperfect and in need of fundamental reform. Moses reacted to Cranz’s pamphlet by creating Jerusalem, or On Religious Power and Judaism, which Sorkin views as Moses’ fullest elaboration of his views on rights and the nature of Judaism. Jerusalem is divided into two parts; part one addresses Cranz’ contention that in â€Å"repudiating the ban of excommunication, he had repudiated Judaism. Moses argues mainly on the basis of natural rights. Moses’ theory of church and state is rooted in his idea of benevolence. He thought the best state was one whose members were able to govern themselves through education, and the institution capable of providing such education was religion. Moses also went back to Wolffian principle of metaphysics by asserting that liberty of conscience was crucial for the achievement of man’s eternal vocation. In part two, Moses addressed Cranz’s view that Moses left Judaism, and abandoned religion altogether. Moses answered using philosophical views, and switched between his exposition of Judaism and a digression of a specific subject to advance his argument, and to continue his method of writing German philosophy in German, and Judaism in Hebrew. He argued on the basis of revealed legislation. He stated that Judaism is a religion of revealed legislation, not of revealed beliefs. He asserted that only through a second revelation, comparable to the one at Sinai, could God establish the authority necessary to introduce changes into the practice of the law. The two parts of Jerusalem, fit closely together, since many of the themes developed in part one are discussed in part two. To conclude Sorkin’s argument, Moses was a traditional Jewish figure who sought to renew traditional philosophy and Biblical exegesis in Hebrew. Sorkin successfully displayed how Moses made the German Enlightenment compatible with the Haskalah, and stayed constant with his philosophy throughout his life. It is only normal that after reading Sorkin’s Moses Mendelssohn and the Religious Enlightenment that certain parts were more striking than others. Not only are certain aspects of the book especially intriguing, but also, I do not agree with certain theories that Moses posed. Also, I cannot help but compare the Haskalah to the European Enlightenment that preceded it. First, it is miraculous how one person can make a difference in others lives. Moses lived during a time where Jewish communities were suffering from not having equal rights in society. Jews were denied education, certain occupations, citizen status, and were the first ones to be held responsible for problems or crimes. The fact that Moses, with his short stature and hunchback, still had the confidence and ability to make reforms in society is unbelievable. Sorkin only mentioned Moses’ deformity once, and it is of graver importance than that. People who are blessed without any deformities take for granted how easy their life is, and I believe that more acknowledgements should be given to Moses for enduring such a struggle. Also, in Sorkin’s reference to Moses’ deformity, he also mentioned a nervous debility that was linked to his abnormality, which prevented conceptual thinking, and grew worse after the Lavater affair. The fact that this was only mentioned once, and in one quick sentence gives the impression that this was not a serious issue. However, if such a physiological condition occurred in Moses, one would think that since all of his works entailed abstract thinking, since he was a philosopher, that this would have severe consequences on his career. Yet, Moses was able to produce numerous works after the Lavater affair and many of them were highly praised. It makes one speculate, if Sorkin’s information about Moses’ nervous disability is completely accurate. Another part of the book that caught my attention was the aftermath of Christian Wilhelm Dohm’s publication of On the Civic Amelioration of the Jews, even though he was doing Moses a favor by writing it, and it provoked a major debate that made the rights of Jews a public issue, which is what Moses wanted. However, Sorkin displayed many aspects that Moses did not agree with what Christian wrote. For instance, Moses took issue with the notion that artisanry and farming are the sole sources of wealth, and with the ban of excommunication. Moses affirmed that no one could legitimately claim to exercise authority over another’s belief. Sorkin’s writing gave the impression that Moses was angry with Christian for putting certain beliefs in writing. This caught me by surprise because I was under the impression that Christian and Moses were good friends. The fact that Christian agreed to write this document, even though Moses was asked to write it, implied that they were in agreement with what was to be written. The way that Sorkin addressed this conflict in the book further suggests that Christian went against what Moses asked of him, and used this as an opportunity to voice his own opinions on the issue of Jewish emancipation. Furthermore, in a way, one can view Christian as being a catalyst for Cranz’s challenge. The connection is that Christian published work that Moses felt the need to counter in Vindiciae Judaeorum, and thus gave rise to Cranz challenging Moses. Additionally, I discovered that certain areas in the book negated Moses’ entire goal of the Haskalah. First, it is important to recall that prior to the rise of the Haskalah, most Christian thinkers thought Judaism was an irrational dark religion that did not allow for the age of Enlightenment. Hence gave rise to the premise that Jews were incapable of reaching such intellectual levels. Interestingly, Sorkin and Moses both acted in ways that confirm this idea. First, Moses published philosophy in German and commentaries in Hebrew. This action can be seen as if he was making it harder for Jews to reach an enlightened state. By publishing philosophy in German, which most Jews could not read, he further separated them from society. Also, not only were his philosophical works in German, but also they were in such a high level of German, that was very rare for a Jew to be able to write at this level. This also made it harder for Jews to understand his German works. Another instance is seen when the translation of the Psalms was only a victory among the Jews, and while non-Jews stated, â€Å"nothing could be further from the truth. † Sorkin viewed this as a confirmation that Mendelssohn’s best medium is commentary, not translation. Two things are happening in this situation. First, the reaction from society demonstrates that indeed the Jews are not as intelligent as the non-Jews because they thought Moses’ commentary was brilliant, when the majority of the population thought it was not legitimate to be a valid translation. Second, Sorkin’s account that Moses’ best means is commentary, shows that Sorkin is agreeing with the statement that his translation did not contain enough truth, thus putting Moses in the category of not being able to obtain enlightened thought. Next, in comparison to the European Enlightenment, the Haskalah is very different, even though it emerged because of the Enlightenment. The European Enlightenment held faith in the power of human reason to illuminate the world, rather than divine revelation. It encouraged an attitude of critical reflection, rather than an acceptance of received wisdom. Also, the Enlightenment was in sync with the Scientific Revolution in the early 1770’s and created the concept that science is a form of knowledge (Western Civilizations). In contrast, Moses affirmed that the best state was one whose members were able to govern themselves through education, and it was through religious institutions that are most capable of providing such education. This thinking is completely opposite of the Enlightenment, because their goal was to forget about religious teachings, and only learn from science, and other forms of confirmed reason. Another example that is contrasted to the Enlightenment is when Moses pleaded that a general disquisition on â€Å"science† had no place in a commentary on Creation. Members of the Enlightenment used the theory of evolution to explain the creation of the universe, which is all based on science. Also, using Wolffian beliefs, Mendelssohn asserted that although things might look accidental to man, to God they are all necessary, implying that everything on Earth happens for a reason. Again, this is not in accord with the Enlightenment philosophy because they do not refer to a God creating the future of the world, instead they sought evidence and valid truths to prove their beliefs that all is created through science and man labor. Interestingly, there are similarities between Moses Mendelssohn and Immanuel Kant, who was a key figure of the European Enlightenment. Moses became a member of Wednesday Society, which was devoted to political subjects. He often gave lectures; his most common lecture was â€Å"What is enlightenment? Similarly, Immanuel Kant became known by answering the question: What is Enlightenment? † written as a response to the Reverend Zollner. Kant also proposed to eliminate certain church and state restrictions, just as Moses did in Jerusalem. Although a huge difference is Kant believed religion infringed on one’s ability to full reason, while Moses saw religion, specifically Judaism as an integral part of the Haskalah, it is important to notice the comparisons between the two, especially since they are regarded as holding such different ideologies (Perspectives on the Past). Overall, Moses Mendelssohn was a principal figure in the creation of the Haskalah. He was a model Jew, and made many contributions to Jewish life during the end of the eighteenth century. After reading the novel, Moses Mendelssohn and the Religious Enlightenment, I now have a better understanding and respect for Moses Mendelssohn and the Haskalah. David Sorkin succeeded in providing information that accurately describes Moses’ philosophical works and showed how Moses made the German Enlightenment compatible with Judaism. How to cite Moses Mendelsohn and the Religious Enlightenment, Essay examples

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Cyberspace Communication 215 Communication in Cyberspace what does it means and how do these works fit together. To begin I first looked up the definition of these two words. Communications: All means of symbolic or verbal communication (newspapers, mail, email, telephones, television, radio, etc. ) that people and machines use to make contact and share information. [i] Cyberspace: Imaginary, intangible, virtual-reality realm where (in general) computer-communications and simulations and (in particular) internet activity takes place. The electronic equivalent of human psyche (the mindspace where thinking and dreaming occur), cyberspace is the domain where objects are neither physical nor representations of the physical world, but are made up entirely of data manipulation and information [ii] After taking this course it appears the sum of these words are greater than their individual parts. The dynamics of this subject is overwhelming. I can why as an assignment we only had to address three of the topics explored otherwise you could wind up with writing something that approaches the size of War and Peace. The three subjects that interested me the most was the aspects of ethics and privacy, web site design and how it is culturally modified to meet the respective audiences and HTML programming Ethics and privacy, in one of our first lessons, we watched a video of Sir Tim Berners-Lee, who by most counts is responsible for the internet, as we know it today explained how he fell victim to fraud while buying a Christmas present via the internet. He continued to say how violated he felt after he found out that had happened, to him it was similar to discovering that one of your children has stolen money from you. The internet has also spawned an industry of dubious distinction identity theft. No one is safe from it as it cut across all culture and ethics divides. Interestingly most of the thieves are from so-called poor Eastern European counties. While other countries such as China has taking the high road and setting their sights on stealing intellectual property from high tech companies. In the past few months there have been attacks on Google and other United States companies’ computer systems, these coordinated attacks have originated from Chinese University’s and colleges. Their sole purpose is to steal echnology[iii] Privacy or the expectation of if has all but disappeared with increased usage of the internet. Anything you send electronically cannot be with all certainty be truly deleted. Just because you press, the delete key does not mean it gone. Mail servers or back servers can hold copies of correspondence for eternity. One of the ironies is that emails are now widely used as evidence in divorce cases. The second takeaway from this class is the study of international websites and how much thought, and investigation into the ethnic culture needs to be done in order to successfully tailor a site to a particular country. The McDonalds Company seems to have succeeded in this area. By visiting their websites for different countries, you can see how they have personalized each one based on the different cultures values that exist. There is clear evidence that they have investigated the five cultural values of their target markets. By evaluating these five values, which include individualism, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity, power distance and high low context value. They are able to insure the website will be well received by the target audience. The importance of being sensitive to a countries culture values and beliefs cannot be underestimated as failure to do so can result in consequences far greater than just lost hamburger sales. HTML, which stands for HyperText Markup Language, is the predominant markup language for web pages. It provides a means to create structured documents by denoting structural semantics for text such as headings, paragraphs, lists etc as well as for links, quotes, and other items. It allows images and objects to be embedded and can be used to create interactive forms. It is written in the form of HTML elements consisting of tags surrounded by angle brackets within the web page content. It can include or can load scripts in languages such as JavaScript which affect the behavior of HTML processors like Web browsers; and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) to define the appearance and layout of text and other material. The W3C, maintainer of both HTML and CSS standards, encourages the use of CSS over explicit presentational markup. [iv]] The definition as given above does not begin to describe he power that HTML actually has. In counties with high context values like the United States HTLM is like a fireworks display, as a well-designed web site can become truly mesmerizing. HTML is very powerful and somewhat easy to use in its simplest form as we discovered in this class. Any text file can be easily converted into HTML with just a simple â€Å"save as† command. Generating a web page can become an addictive pastime as you can continually try to improve the look and feel of the page by adding new features and colors. In web design, the only real limitation is your imagination and your desire for perfection As Voltaire quoted the â€Å"the better is the enemy of the good†[v] [i] http://www. businessdictionary. com/definition/communication. html [ii] http://www. businessdictionary. com/definition/cyberspace. html [iii] http://www. nytimes. com/2010/02/19/technology/19china. html [iv] http://www. w3. org/TR/html401/conform. html#deprecated [v] http://en. wikiquote. org/wiki/Voltaire

Edward Weston American Photographer Essays - Guggenheim Fellows

Edward Weston: American Photographer Edward Weston: American Photographer Daniel J Brophy History of Photography Term Paper ?Weston is, in the real sense, one of the few creative artists of today. He has recreated the matter-forms and forces of nature; he has made these forms eloquent of the fundamental unity of the work. His work illuminates man's inner journey toward perfection of the spirit.? --Ansel Adams, Date Unknown Edward Weston (1886-1958) may seem like he was a confused man in trying to find his photographic goal(s). Just like many other photographers, both of his time and now, he strove to find what truly satisfied his talent and the acceptance of himself. He generated something for all photographers. This was success and recognition as a ?grand master? of twentieth century photography. This was a legacy that tells an interesting tale; it tells a tale of a thousand plus successful and loved photographs, a daily journal, and a life with its ups and downs and broad dimensions. He was born in Highland Park, Illinois, and thus he was an American photographer. His mother died when he was five, possibly the reason for his skipping out of his schooling. At the age of sixteen (1902), his father bought him a Kodak box camera (Bull's-Eye No. 2). Soon he was saving money to buy a better 5x& camera with a tripod. Taking photographs interested and obsessed him. He wrote, ?I needed no friends now. . .Sundays my camera and I would take long car-rides into the country. . .? In 1906, two things happened. First, a submission of his was printed in the magazine Camera and Darkroom. This photograph was called simply ?Spring?. Secondly, he moved to California to work as a surveyor for San Pedro, Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad. From that time on, his interests lied in everything that was unorthodox (astrology, the occult, nudism, vegetarianism, etc.). Maybe he never was much of an orthodox type man or photographer. He went back to Illinois for several months to attend the Illinois College of Photography. The inspiration behind this was to show his girlfriend, a daughter of a wealthy land-owner that he'd make money for them. He then headed back to California for good. This lead to marriage in 1909 and to two sons soon afterwards. During this time, Weston also became the founding member of the Camera Pictorialists of Los Angeles. 1911: Began a portrait studio in Tropico, California. This studio would stay open until 1922. Also 1911: He started writing articles that were published in magazines. One of these magazines was called American Photographer. His third and fourth sons were born in 1916 and 1919. Weston had always enjoyed photography as an art, but, in 1915, his visit to the San Francisco Panama Pacific Exhibition began a series of events that would lead him to a renouncement of pictorialism. At the exhibition, he viewed abstract paintings. These caused him to vow to capture ?the physical quality of the objects he photographed with the sharpest truthfulness and exactitude?. Thus began a dissatisfaction with his own work. In 1922, he traveled to Ohio and took photographs of the Armco Steel Plant and then went to New York. There he met Alfred Stieglitz, Paul Strand, Charles Sheck and Georgia O'Keefe. After that, he renounced pictorialism all together. He often traveled to Mexico during the 1920s, and his photographs included nudes. One of these nudes, named Tina Modotti, would turn into his own personal love affair, breaking up his marriage. He made many photographs in Mexico. Some were published in the book Idols Behind Altars by Anita Brenner. During this time, he also began to photograph seashells, vegetables and nudes. In 1929, his first New York exhibit occurred at the Alma Reed's Delphic Studios Gallery and later showed at Harvard Society of Contemporary Arts. His photographs were shown along with the likes of Walker Evans, Eugene Atget, Charles Sheeler, Alfred Stieglitz, and many others. In 1932, he became a Charter member, along with Ansel Adams, of the ?Group f/64? Club. The club was also founded that same year. The goal of this club was to ?secure maximum image sharpness of both foreground and distance?. In 1934, Weston vowed to make only unretouched portraits. He strived to be as far away from pictorialism as he could. In 1935, he initiated the Edward Weston Print of the Month Club. He offered photographs for ten dollars each. In 1937, he was awarded the first Guggenheim fellowship. In 1940, a book called California and the West featured his photographs and the text of Charis Wilson his new

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Essay about Absolutism vs. Consitutionalism Essay about Absolutism vs. Consitutionalism World History I-III Louis XIV and Charles II: Comparable yet Diverse Both Louis XIV and Charles II created pivotal points in time by their rule. Likewise, both countries turned to similar directions during both of their reign. This is no surprise, as both Louis and Charles had been good friends and had a strong relationship. In more than one circumstance, Louis and Charles shared the same beliefs and made decisions together; whether these decisions were known by the public or not. Although their personalities differed slightly, both rulers had very evident similarities, the nations developed similar due to their close relationship, and both stubborn, power hungry personalities gave the same effect on the different government and nation. While Louis and Charles had the same ultimate motive, the government originally in place when both entered their reign differed. During Charles’s reign, ruling after Cromwell, there was to be no absolute monarch. This however did not last, as Charles’ disso lved the parliament in 1681. Louis began reigning when absolutism was not unfamiliar. In fact, Louis’ reign reached the zenith of absolutism, taking away all French culture. This selfish and self-seeking character was shared between both Louis and Charles, as they were very close in relationship and belief. The existence and idea of parliament was out of the question for both rulers, especially if the parliament disagreed with their needs and wants. Their religion was shared as well, as Charles made a secret agreement with Louis to make England Catholic again, in exchange for money. Charles looked up to Louis and admired his ways, thus making their similarity inevitable. The similarities between both Louis and Charles impacted the ultimate government during their reign and the way the nation would develop. Both governments ultimately ended up as absolutism. Louis came to rule as an absolute government by dominating all aspects of culture. He claims to have come to rule by God , as most absolute rulers had said during this time period. Louis strengthened his absolute rule by eliminating the Edict of Nantes; thus ridding religious freedom. Louis was also known to hold festivities in the Palace of Versailles, which was aimed to motive his people and forced them to praise him. Charles, while he entered during a time of attempted absolute elimination, his many disagreements with parliament caused the removal of parliament. These disagreements included what Charles income should be, as well as the nation’s religion. Charles as well as Louis, not unlike most rulers, did not like their beliefs being disagreed with and decided it to be best to rid of parliament affiliation. The personality of the rulers ultimately decided the outcome of the country. Louis while scared he would lose the throne if he was not liked, did not do much to try to please his people (besides festivities with ulterior motive) and keep his reign. Louis wanted attention and power; he a lso did not want his beliefs questioned. Louis being a catholic forced all of France to become

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Most Significant Events in American History - Essay Example Nevertheless, America has not been immune to pitfalls and struggle during its journey of success and it is by the dint of hard work, keen foresight and sharp business acumen of its citizens that it has come to occupy the enviable position it enjoys in the world today. American history is replete with events which marked the shaping of this massive nation into its present entity. Some of the prominent events which gave direction to the overall character of the nation involved social change as well as the individual contributions of some of the most colorful and characteristic personalities churned up by the American culture. World War II was an event which left no corner of the globe unscathed with almost every country being involved in one way or the other. It fuelled a struggle for survival in its aftermath and America was no exception to the dent this event made on world history. In the post war scenario most countries initiated specific plans to rebuild their social and economic infrastructure. The following decades after the end of World War II saw a variety of influences that shaped American history. In the 1950s, one of the most prominent issues addressed was that of segregation of the minority black population in society that had plagued America for long. The notion of black people being inferior had carried over from the colonial era and was still practiced in the American society. It was unusual for a black person to be seen in certain sections of society and blacks were denied admission to some of the top educational institutions in the country. This naturally evinced pain and resentment in the intellectuals within the black population who initiated a number of legal suits to challenge this discrimination. In the year 1950, the Supreme Court of the United States was besotted with a series of cases which challenged the legal

The goal of the critically reflective teacher

The goal of the critically reflective teacher Ben Miller, writing about Stephen Brookfield, said that for Brookfield, the goal of the critically reflective teacher is to garner an increased awareness of his or her teaching from as many different vantage points as possible ((Miller 2010). I have chosen Brookfield as a model for self evaluation, as I believe, like Brookfield, in the value of the many different vantage points. That is not to devalue other models which encourage self reflection, and particularly where self reflection leads to action, but I believe using Brookfields four lenses, the autobiographical or self lens, the student lens, the peer lens, and the theoretical lens, can provide teachers with a more balanced view of themselves and their role. This is apparent in the DTLLS course that I am following (University of Warwick 2009). I can see Brookfield in the way in which tutors are encouraged to use different lenses through which to view their teaching, reflect and act on reflection. When this is a continuous process, it provides a good model for continuing professional development. For example, being alert for trigger incidents, and reflecting on how these affect teaching uses the autobiographical lens, as does reflection on observed sessions, before and after feedback; engaging with student feedback to gain insight into their viewpoint uses the student lens; carrying out and reflecting on peer observations and discussions with a mentor relates to the peer lens; and reference throughout to underpinning theories provides a theoretical lens. Brookfield also states (Brookfield 1995), that we become critically reflective by hunting assumptions. Assumptions are the taken for granted beliefs about the world, and our place within it. Reflecting on trigger incidents can often provide a starting point for hunting assumptions (Brookfield 1995). One of my trigger incidents led me to question my assumption that all ESOL learners aspire to speaking English like native speakers. After spending time helping a learner with some writing, I began to appreciate that for some learners, it was important to know how native speakers use the language, but then to be able to make an informed choice, which might be a wish to keep a sense of cultural identity or individuality through use of accent, words or phrases which might not be what we would expect from a native English speaker. Brookfield distinguishes between three categories of assumptions paradigmatic, prescriptive, and causal. Paradigmatic are the structuring assumptions, the conceptual framework one uses to order the world into fundamental categories à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ The facts as we know them to be true. He goes on to say that paradigmatic assumptions are examined critically only after a great deal of resistance to doing this. (Brookfield 1995) Prescriptive assumptions are about what we think ought to happen in certain situations, how teachers should act, and what good teaching practice is. Causal assumptions include our understanding of causal relationships. An example of a paradigmatic assumption given by Brookfield is to assume that all adults are self-directed learners but as Brookfield says, students can only make informed choices about what they need to know, how they can know it, and how they can know that they know it, on the basis of as full as possible an understanding of the learning terrain they are being asked to explore (Brookfield 1995). In an ESOL classroom where learners may not have the language to express what they want, or even the concept of what they need, or as one learner put it everybody has different ideas, which are difficult to accommodate within a group teaching session, one might want to question this assumption, as Brookfield did. Following this train of thought, current practice places much emphasis on negotiated learning plans and measurable learning goals, which implies the same assumption. But how can it be assumed that this is the right approach for all learners in all situations unless, using an institutional lens, it is seen in the light of providing organizations with a tool with which to measure achievement, which can be passed on to funders and stakeholders. Reflection on this was one reason I chose to look further into meaningful individual learning goals for my Action Research project. The very different assumption that all learning should be learner centred I find more difficult to question. For example, many students are in the situation of having limited funding and therefore limited time to study ESOL because of the need to find work, and therefore learning strategies for learning which can help them to continue to learn once they have left the class might be important for them, but they might not be able to express that need. Meeting such a need would be learner centred, but would not assume that learners were self directed, and achievement of such a need would be difficult to measure. Again using Brookfields example, a prescriptive assumption might be that good teachers are those who encourage self directed learning, and a causal assumption that if learners have negotiated individual learning plans and learning goals they will become more self directed. This might, in light of the above, lead one to think about what Brookfield refers to as hegemonic assumptions or erroneous assumptions the assumptions that seem to make our teaching lives easier, but are counterproductive in the long run (Brookfield 1995). From my own experience in the classroom, I have made erroneous assumptions regarding the abilities of pre literate learners in areas other than literacy, such as numeracy, which have sent me searching for information as to how being pre literate affects all areas of life, and also to use the peer lens by observing a tutor who is very experienced in teaching pre entry, pre literate learners, in addition to the theoretical lens. To try to step into the shoes of pre literate learners I find extremely difficulty, and full of surprises. I observed one learner who is not literate in her first language in an informal knit and natter group, where learners of all levels meet, knit and talk together. This learner wanted to knit a babys jacket, and learned to do so by shadowing another person while she knitted. On completion of the jacket, she immediately pulled it out and started again while it was fresh in her mind so that she would remember how to do it. On reflection, this is how I learned to bake as a child, and how many people arrive in this country, skilled in trades but without qualifications to match their skills, or hope of achieving these in the short term, as qualifications demand a high level of literacy. I have also observed this same student, trying to understand what someone is saying to her in English. She unconsciously repeats key words out loud, which appears to help her understanding, shadowing with words as she does with knitting. If shadowing is a learning strategy used by pre literate learners, I should be thinking about how to nurture it in the ESOL classroom. It would perhaps provide a rationale for using methods such as language experience as well as phonetics for teaching basic literacy. I find this an interesting area, and as part of my action plan, would like to look at research on this subject, to learn more and also whether and how my observations fit in with the research. Once hunting assumptions becomes part of reflective practice, the questioning of these will lead teachers to see the need to provide themselves with a rationale for all aspects of their teaching, from setting goals, to learning objectives to decisions about methods and activities. Again this relates to our DTLLS course, which asks for a rationale to be provided for observed sessions. As this thinking becomes part of a teachers day to day practice, it forces the questioning of assumptions. To enable teachers to provide a rationale behind their practice and to increase the probability that teachers will take informed action are among Brookfields reasons for critical reflection, as is To enliven the classroom by making it challenging, interesting and stimulating for students(King and Hibbison 2000) The latter seems to imply that teachers must be responsive. Brookfield also uses the phrase democratic learning environment (King and Hibbison 2000) to refer to a classroom in which all learners have a voice. If responsiveness and democracy are looked at in the light of Donald Schons notion of reflection in action or thinking on your feet (Smith 2001, updated 2009), Schon and Brookfield are not unrelated. I gave an example in one of my trigger incidents of a session in a pre entry class where two learners had been very upset about circumstances outside the classroom, and their problems had been met with interest and empathy from the rest of the class, which led to a session on language to express feelings e.g. worried/worried about etc. This was reflection in action, relating to what was important for those learners at that time, but also looking through Brookfields student lens and helping them to express what they wanted to say. Further, it took account of the holistic nature of teaching, and I was able afterwards to relate my response to findings of NRDC research into effective teaching and learning (Baynham et al 2007) which cites examples of where learners have brought the outside in to learning and this has been used effectively. Thus using Brookfields theoretical lens to support my actions, but also relating back to Schons notion of reflection in action. However, I have also experienced a less successful example of bringing the outside in when I felt that a lesson was becoming unfocused because the topic that came up, planning a trip, needed more thought and some resources. I decided to abandon the outside in and bring the learners back to the original lesson plan. My reflection on action involved a recognition that I had not been able, at the time, to produce a clear way forward, and that in such a situation, a potentially interesting topic might be better postponed for another session to allow for more careful thought and planning in order to optimise learning opportunities. Donald Schon refers to reflection in action as what happens when faced with an uncertain or unique situation, and reflection on action as what happens afterwards, reflecting on why we did what we did. Reflection in action depends upon building up experiences and ideas that can be drawn upon. In the case of the two incidents mentioned above, in which one worked as a spontaneous change of direction, and one did not, this lead to reflection on action which in turn added to my repertoire of experience and will hopefully enable me to react more appropriately next time. The unfamiliar becomes familiar and can act as a precedent when reflection in action is linked to reflection on action (Smith 2001, updated 2009). Schons reflection on action would allow for the inclusion of different vantage points, for example, discussions with supervisors or peers, but does not explicitly state this, as I think Brookfield is helpful in doing. Also, Brookfields notion of questioning assumptions, which forces teachers not only to provide a rationale for their teaching, but also question the rationale behind institutional processes and decision making, does not come into Schons model. While acknowledging the value of Schons model of reflective practice, I found I preferred that of Stephen Brookfield, and I chose to carry out my self evaluation with reference to Brookfields four critical lenses, using this to develop my action plan (appendix 1). Using Brookfields autobiographical, or self, lens to reflect on the two incidents described above which relate to my own teaching, I have put in my action plan to be sensitive to opportunities for bringing the outside in, but also to recognise when this is better postponed to allow for more careful thought and planning Being sensitive to opportunities for bringing the outside into the classroom also involves the student lens and will allow for a more holistic approach, connecting learners lives with their learning, and providing meaningful contexts, as well as a supportive learning atmosphere. My observation feedback enabled me to use the self lens to reflect on some strengths, and also on areas for improvement. I had recognized a need to embed numeracy into ESOL, particularly for pre literate, pre numerate learners, but my inexperience in this area had led me to pitch the numeracy element too high. Reflection on what pre numeracy really meant for pre literate learners allowed me to take a step back and look at activities relating to language, which could also help numeracy skills. This would go into my action plan as introducing activities which involve skills which are transferable between language and numeracy such as sequencing, handling money, measuring, singular and plural etc. and a search for literature around the effects of no first language literacy and no previous formal education on all areas of life and learning. My observation feedback also picked up on the lack of a plenary at the end of my observed session, which led to reflection on how this could also be used as a way of developing organizational skills in students and highlighting organizing learning as a learning strategy. My action plan will include encouraging learners to keep a diary of what they have learnt, to complete at the end of each session and to observe the effect on learners of organization as a learning strategy. This diary will also form part of my Action Research as it will be linked to learning goals. Using Brookfields student lens, I have incorporated into the plenary diary a space for learners comments. Part of my action plan will be to reflect on, and if necessary, act on this feedback. Peer observations and discussions with peers brought in Brookfields peer lens. I carried out three peer observations during which I focussed on activities for pre literate learners, family learning numeracy fun with numbers, and, following a discussion with a tutor who I know to be very organized, organizational skills and the effect of these on learners. Following my observation and reflection I have included in my action plan a need to build up a bank of good quality resources for pre entry learners that can be used in different ways and in more than one session, for example, the tutor I observed had cards with pictures of symptoms and cards with matching words. She used these to play a team game of pelmanism using blu tack and the whiteboard. These same cards could be used as flashcards to introduce vocabulary, in games such as pelmanism to aid memory and word recognition, to practice alphabetical order, to stimulate role play, as a card game to practice Ive got.. and Have you go tà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ etc. From the family learning numeracy session I took away ideas to use with pre entry learners to help them both in class by creating activities, and outside class using these activities to play with their children. Extending this idea of taking the inside out, I have also organized a separate reading group session in the central library in collaboration with the librarian who, every three weeks, provides space, tea and coffee. This is for all levels, but for pre entry, encourages them to use the library, and look at picture books, which they can take home and read with their children. Also in my action plan will be to continue with peer observation after the course has finished as a useful way of continuing my own professional development both by learning from others and by getting feedback on my teaching. Finally, using Brookfields theoretical lens. I refer earlier in this assignment to NRDC Effective Teaching and Learning ESOL which reports on the findings of researchers working with ESOL tutors. These findings are very much about the effectiveness of using meaningful contexts for teaching, and also about a project involving learners bringing the outside into the classroom, which the tutor used as a context for further sessions. I find this piece of research has changed the way I teach in that I now enjoy using what learners bring into the classroom when it is of interest to others in the class. Sometimes this can change the direction of a whole session, as mentioned earlier, sometimes it can be just a few minutes of someone telling a story and others asking questions, sometimes it provides material for another session. Referring to this research has given me confidence to move away from a planned session if it seems appropriate and interesting. Another piece of writing I have found useful is Scott Thornburys book Uncovering Grammar (Thornbury 2005), particularly dealing with interlanguage, and referring to the idea that language is not learnt in a straight line, which has caused me again to question the value of setting measurable goals for ESOL learners. The activities in Scott Thornburys book for noticing grammar and making learners aware of the gaps between where they are and where they want, or need, to be, fit in well with the NRDC research findings on the effectiveness of providing a meaningful context (Baynham et al 2007). Using learners experience as a context is a good starting point for this awareness raising. I would like to continue to look for interesting ideas to try out in my teaching, and theories, which might support what I am doing, as I believe this will give me increased confidence in the classroom. In my action plan I have written that I will subscribe to a journal, which I find has useful articles and book reviews. I would also like to use the internet to look for articles on pre literate ESOL learners, and what effect this has on other areas such as numeracy, memory, interpreting pictures, learning strategies etc. to gain a better understanding which will help me in my teaching at this level. Before concluding this assignment, I would like to mention one more critical incident which I witnessed recently. The incident happened in a mixed class when a muslim woman, allowed her scarf to slip off her head as she was absorbed in her work. A young man from Afghanistan who had very recently arrived in the UK shouted at the woman in a language they both understood, and she reacted by tightening the scarf round her head to cover her hair. This made me think back to Brookfields idea of a democratic environment and to reflect on the difficulty of maintaining this when there are such culturally strong power relationships. I concluded that to Brookfields lenses, I would need to add a cultural lens in order to see the incident both through the eyes of the young man, and the women, and in order to reflect on my own reaction to the incident, and my own assumptions about gender relationships. I later had an interesting discussion with a higher level group who are mostly muslim on this inc ident. Culture comes into the ESOL classroom in many different ways, and used sensitively, can be a valuable resource. For this assignment I chose to use Stephen Brookfield as a model of reflective practice and self assessed using his four critically reflective lenses. However I also referred to Donald Schon and his idea of reflection in action and reflection on action. I found that, although there are differences between the two models, such as Brookfields use of four lenses which play an almost equally important role, while Schon uses the self first and foremost; and also Brookfields questioning of assumptions which do not come into Schons model, I found it useful to be aware of both. While Stephen Brookfields model of reflective practice is my preferred one, I can see that there are times when I will use Donald Schons model. Schon also includes the idea of a spiral of reflection, where reflection in action and reflection on action lead to change, and reflection on that change. As with teaching where the teacher will not use just one method, but pick and choose from many, so with reflective practice, there will be times when one model appeals more than another, or enhances another. As teachers are involved in continuous professional development, there will be opportunities to be eclectic. Wordcount 3,372

Multicultural Education Means Mediocre Education, Part II :: miscellaneous

Multicultural Education Means Mediocre Education, Part II I had taught high school and middle school English and social studies in a public school system for thirty-four years, retiring from the teaching profession in July of 1999. Any observations, opinions and conclusions I make about Multicultural Education are not theoretical: they are pragmatically based on experience and my interactions with over four thousand students. And I have been scrutinizing and studying Multicultural Education for four decades now and have heard too-many-times the lackluster educational jargon originating from college professors and from misguided advocates of M.E., and quite frankly those â€Å"elitist arguments† have become rather redundant, hackneyed and monotonous, and to think that I once wholeheartedly espoused those ethereal Multicultural Education principles as an idealistic teacher beginning my career back in September of 1965. Despite the â€Å"Happy Face† that supporters of Multicultural Education are attempting to promote and propagandize, one distinct adjective comes to mind whenever I think about Multicultural Education and that particular word is â€Å"insidious.† To the unsuspecting layman or college student â€Å"Diversity through M.E.† is a nifty catch phrase that sounds awfully noble and pleasant to the ears upon hearing its utterance, but the process known as Multicultural Education is actually quite detrimental to the implementation of effective American education. I deliberately describe the scourge as insidious because over the past forty years M.E. has imperceptibly and very cunningly been introduced, advanced and perpetuated by its militant proponents without the American public realizing exactly how harmful, how treacherous and how detrimental the seemingly benign terminology appears to be. First of all, Multicultural Education never clearly defines and identifies itself to the American public for what it really is. U.S, citizens automatically equate and associate M.E. with Bilingual Education and ESL (English as a Second Language), which the clever campaigners for M. E. never lucidly delineate and differentiate. Bilingual Education and ESL are indeed definite, positive, beneficial and necessary programs in our American public schools. Those two activities encourage and facilitate the cultural â€Å"Melting Pot† ideal whereby immigrant and certain minority students learn English and ESL and are hopefully successfully assimilated into American society after two-to-four years of exposure to a new language and a new culture. But Multicultural Education is the complete opposite and inverse of Bilingual Education and ESL. M.E. deceitfully and deliberately does not accurately distinguish itself from Bilingual Education and ESL to the unwary American public.

Clarke Case Study

CSR 3/13/13 Going Green The company Clarke is a family company that has grown, since 1946, and is now the largest Mosquito Abatement firm out of all the districts in the US. They have been involved in the industry since 1927 when John Clark Sr. wrote the legislation that established the Mosquito Abatement District in the state of Illinois. The main goal was to produce a full, high-quality selection of products for the Mosquito Abatement Districts, taxpayer-funded municipal regions; individual administered, and state government entities.Starting out with their mission to provide pesticide applications, they have grown to turnkey mosquito management systems, which include necessary personnel, chemical, and public education equipment. This case involves the company Clarke and their efforts to go green, and focus on environmental CSR, which seems to be what most companies are trying to do now-a-days. Consumers see going green as a company who is producing goods that are not harmful to th e environment. It projects an overall better image for the company, which in return pleases environmentalists and helps to generate a better customer database a larger profit.It also gives companies a way to be innovative with their products and differentiate themselves from all of their competitors in the market, and promotes a global initiative to provide a better overall living environment for the consumers. Their overall goal was to be able to shift their industry and bring in a new business model that would be able to change the industry in a positive way and give them an upper hand on their competition. They followed four core values, which are: 1. Extend the Reach: Responding to the growing interest in environmentalism. . Innovate: Helping their company grow with new products. 3. Sustainability 4. One Clark: Creating a culture of shared aspirations. Over the course of time, Clarke’s new developed product called â€Å"Natular†, was redeveloped and made environmen t friendly for multiple aquatic habitats such as lakes, ponds, retention ponds, and potable water containers. The main issue that the company faces is that they are having difficulty adding this product because it would potentially alter the overall consumers that they have.And with the company trying to go green, this product does not really promote the â€Å"going green’ initiative, mainly because the fact of the matter is that this product is still a pesticide. It seems a bit contradicting to go green when you are producing pesticide products. Question: How does a company become a pesticide leader, demonstrating environmental responsibility in everything it does, in a way that is both profitable and credible to its customers, employees and other stakeholders?The question stated above is what the main issue that was discussed in their recent meeting, and how they could go about solving this issue without sabotaging their business as a whole and losing their current custome rs. I believe that the bottom line is that they can go green but by what methods can you use to begin the process being that they are the industry that they are. The type of industry that they are in are already making products that have been know to harm the environment, not by choice to harm the environment, but that’s typically what they do when consumers use them for the things that they are used for.In this case killing mosquitos. Which also in the long run can be very costly for the companies because there are specific regulations that they are to follow that are enforced by the Environmental Protection Agency, and they can also shut down any operations that Clarke has going on if the suspect that they are in fact not following the regulations that they are to abide by, and that could make it more difficult to create new products that could help them promote going green.With their four goals that I mentioned earlier, they should really have no problem with trying to imp lement new CSR strategies that would eventually make them more environment friendly. They just have to be sure that they abide by regulations and continue working to develop their products to be more environment friendly until they achieve their overall goal.

The Vertical Fields Essays

The Vertical Fields Essays The Vertical Fields Essay The Vertical Fields Essay Essay Topic: Rear Window The Vertical fields the young boy starts out stating how his family and friends is a strong stand point of this text. The story begins saying, when I was a young boy, after having the traditional punch and cookies and after having sung around the fire, l, with my sister, my mother and my aunts, and Emma Jackson and her son. For me as a reader to read this up front In this story shows me how meaning his family is to him. The plot of the story goes on to show the Importance of being together as a family, especially around the holidays. Traditions come Into the story as they were almost real to me, I felt Like I was at home. The conflict of the story Is told by the mall Character, the young boy. The traditional family gathering, around the Plano to sing Christmas carols, clinching tight to one another, Christmas In a cold and damp Mollusk night. The young boy and his family go onto the midnight service. The main character is the young boy, the narrator explains this young man to be full of life at such an age. Many thoughts of love and care come from the boys mouth as he explains his mother, past and present times. He goes onto say how his mother has always put him first, far above anyone else. Next would be a minor character, his sister. His sister is a bit of the outcast, she seems to be distant to the family as she gets older and older. I think this is going to end up into some bad decisions and will hopefully she will realize how important family can be, what will see come to if there is no one else? Second there is the close family aunt who is there for the boy, his mother, and the sister. Treating them all, even the sister with equal love to them all. She is the one in the family I see being there for everyone at all times in such an important time as Christmas. Characters are not real people in this story, but they are constructed for a purpose, purpose of showing the reader of possibly placement. I put myself and my family into this story; it always seems to be so much more real from a readers eye. In this story the role of the main character performs importance of quality of life and family being together. The role of the setting in this story goes to show how the cold damp Missouri Christmas eve night is a heavy relation to almost any reader, here In Utah I could fit myself or anyone in so perfect. The character in this text definitely tells the story, partly the narrator. The story comes from such a strong point of view from the boys eye, going on telling how the Importance of his mother, the rest of his family, Christmas, and the midnight service, comes to my eyes as it would be straight from the boys mouth. The language of the story Is done very well, In a perfect understandable way, almost from someone I would know myself. The tone of the narrator Is also a strong stand point In the story; It Is a calm tone, which Is good with the Christmas theme. One of the Important Images I see In this story Is Christmas, one of the many reminders of family In this story. One of the sayings I recognized well in this story says My spine arched toward trees Ana streets walking slowly Treating deep I move clown teen sleepwalk, eyes crystallizing streets yards houses and all lives within. My perception forked upward through treetops into the Vertical Fields of space, a moment later, I breathed vapor on the rear window and with my finger, and I signed my name. A powerful ending to such a relating story.

The Feminized Retail Landscape essays

The Feminized Retail Landscape essays In this article, the author, Mona Domosh, argues that the relationship between gender ideology and the development of modern consumer culture develops the cultural landscape of retailing. She examined the development of the new retailing space in mid-nineteenth-century New York City, focusing on the major department stores, to demonstrate the significance between gender roles and consumption. In nineteenth century, shopping was the most frequent activity for middle-class women in New York City. Therefore women were targeted as the new consumers, and this became an important factor of reshaping American downtowns at that time. The introduction of ready-to-wear clothing had sweeping impacts on industrial growth and retailing trade, merchants had spent years using advertising and many sales techniques to convince women that factory-purchased clothing was better, cheaper and more modern than home-made clothing. By the end of the nineteenth century, food, clothing and home furnishing had all become commodities. The work of middle and upper-class women shifted from domestic production to public consumption. Fashion and constant consumption became important indicators of social status because the choice of styles represents ones taste and also reflect ones social status, and constant consumption served as reflections of womens role as mother and wife. The author also points out that the production and consumption are ideologically separated because the values of production are self-denial, hard work, utilitarianism, which are distinct from those of consumption, self-indulgence, leisure time, playfulness. These two value systems can be maintained without undermining each other because men work hard to support womens self-indulgence. The actual place of purchase is as important as the goods consumed, the first department store in New York in 1846, Stewarts, was constructed of brick and wood in Italianat...

Paper on your career or dream Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Paper on your career or dream - Essay Example In a similar way, I thought that the best career path I should follow was that of a nurse. Reading interesting stories about the way nurses saved lives made me want to become a nurse in my life. As I progressed through school, I realized that nurses only provided care to patients with doctors playing the most important role in saving lives. However, becoming a medical doctor did not attract me as the appropriate career choice. After joining college to undertake a marketing course, I still have not discovered my career choice although I have engaged in modeling with the view of traveling around the world next year. Nonetheless, travelling around the world will open my viewpoint about various perspectives that will make me identify the choice of career path that I will follow although I think the business world appears more appealing and the best choice for anyone traveling across the world. Consequently, my marketing course will help me market the future business that I will engage in with my traveling exploits creating contacts that will become crucial once I started practicing

Effect of Culture on Expatriates Work Performance in the Hospitality Research Paper

Effect of Culture on Expatriates Work Performance in the Hospitality Industry - Research Paper Example It is important to learn about the various cultures that are represented in the workplace and in the business environment before engaging in business in foreign countries as suggested by Cardy (2007). This is the case considering that it helps in reducing the risk of failure. Understanding other people’s and countries’ communication styles, social events, dress codes, greetings, and negotiation tactics are very important in fostering positive relationships with persons from foreign countries and cultures. In the hospitality industry like in any other economic sector, individuals and organizations are bound to encounter people from foreign environments. Foreigners come in the form of customers, suppliers and expatriates. Expatriates in the course of their work re expected to maintain high performance standards for the good of the companies for which they work and to warrant the high pay they receive. They are in effect expected to be role models and provide direction to local workers. As they work in foreign environments, expatriates encounter a number of challenges. One of the main challenges that they experience is dealing with people from various cultural backgrounds. In as much as they enjoy working in such environments, there is a possibility that the changes that they encounter and the unfamiliar environment may impact on their performance at work. Statement of the Problem In spite of the existence of literature related to the effects of cultural differences in the area of multicultural environments and work performance, very little study has been conducted with respect to the hotel industry. This is study is focused on finding out the effects of culture and cultural differences on expatriates’ work performance in the hospitality industry. Significance of the Study The results of this study will be very valuable to expatriates in their endeavor to succeed in the foreign environments in which they work. Based on the results of this stud y, management of hospitality industries and especially the human resource manager can come up with better ways ensuring that the expatriate fits in well in the company within the shortest duration and achieve high output as is always the desire of every business. Objectives Main Objective 1. To establish the effect of culture on expatriates’ work performance in the hospitality industry Specific objectives 1. To establish to the existence of expatriates in xxx city hotels and restaurants 2. To determine the challenges posed to expatriates at work as a result of cultural factors 3. To establish the performance of hotels and restaurants that are managed by expatriates 4. To establish the correlation between expatriate work performance and cultural differences with locals. Literature Review Expatriates and Work Performance An expatriate is an individual who resides in a foreign country and culture. However, in business terms, an expatriate is a professional sent by an organizatio n to work in a foreign country as opposed to staff who is locally employed. In many cases, expatriates are sent to work for subsidiaries of an organization or to work at it headquarters. Expatriates help businesses with a global presence to manage global structures and liaise with external partners and provide quality services to customers (Beaverstock, Derudder, Faulconbridge and Witlox (2009). According to Lee (2008), taking a foreign duty affects an individual’s professional and personal life. Such assignments subject expatriates to factors that prove stress such as ambiguity and uncertainty. Three main factors determine the success of expatriates in their work. These factors are communication ability, relation ability

Aspects of Policing Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Aspects of Policing - Research Paper Example In essence, the same words, "to serve and protect," might be on many police departments' patrol cars, but interpretation is left wide open to the many analysts engaged in the field. Body Traditionally, police officers have been viewed as soldiers engaged in a war on crime. This view has had the detrimental effect of focusing on ineffective strategies for crime control while resulting in a major cause of police violence and civil rights violations. The "war model" inaccurately portrays a ‘search and destroy’ mentality to banish crime, disorder, and the scourge of drugs (Byrne & Pease, 2008). According to DeParis (2000) it does not help that many police departments continue to use a bureaucratic, closed-system approach in an ever-changing and intrusive external environment. Such an environment results in an unstable situation (p. 108). Nevertheless, noteworthy changes in the policing philosophy have resulted in the movement towards community policing. Many feel that this m ovement is the result of police that have not been accountable to the community, but have served status quo interests. Researchers declare that the conversion from traditional policing to a community-oriented approach will be one of the most significant challenges affecting police organizations today (Gilling, 2007). With the help of responsible citizens and progressive police administrators there have been tremendous accomplishments in developing a form of policing that better meets the needs of the community. But Goldstein (2000) complains that the term "community policing" tends to be used indiscriminately to encompass the most ambitious project in policing to the most mundane, without regard for its true meaning. Politicians, administrators and police executives exacerbate the problem by misleading citizens into expectations that community policing will provide instant solutions not only for the problems of crime, disorder, and racial tension but for many of the other acute prob lems that plague the community as well. Of course, the failure of superficial programs with the community-policing label then adds to the frustration of not only the community, but also the police officers involved (Jean, 2007), One reaction in the law enforcement community has been to attempt definition and simplification of the community policing model. This presents a problem for such a complex process as policing. In fact, Goldstein (2000) argues, the field already suffers because so much in policing is oversimplified (p. 72). The criminal justice system has traditionally categorized and defined crime, violence, and disorder into simple convenient terms that act to disguise amorphous, complex problems. Oversimplification places a heavy burden on the police and complicates the police task. Goldstein (2000) explains that the police respond with such equally simplistic terms as "enforcement" and "patrol" in which the community is familiar but does not understand the methods they em brace or their value. Goldstein (2000) is concerned that if community policing is used as just another generic response or simplistic characterization of the police function this truly innovative approach will quickly lose credibility (p. 72) Another concern for police executives making the transition to community policin