The Media Bias And Stereotypes - 1782 Words

Throughout this class I did not know what to expect or what I could gain from it, after the groups we have had I walked out of class each day more informed than when I came in. I absolutely feel that I have changed my entire outlook on the media bias and stereotypes. I felt that before this class I was unaware of how negative these stereotypes and portrayals really were. Almost if I was being selfish for being unaware, because I felt some of these stereotypes or media bias did not affect me. Now that I reflect on what I was thinking at the time, I know better, I especially know that as a woman and person of color, the media and stereotypes equally target us, maybe women more. In this paper, I will reflect on three past groups such as†¦show more content†¦Another shocking issue that changed my thinking was Native American mascots, such as controversial team the Washington Redskins. Previously I never thought Native American mascots meant any harm or that they were negative. I believe I felt this way because my high school mascot was the Cowboys, and our rival school was the Indians, It never seemed to be a problem to me or my school. I am thankful for this class and our discussions because I know now to think for both sides of the argument and see that there was always a problem with it. King quotes Danielle N’Dhighes reaction to Native American mascots, â€Å"Using Native Americans as mascots is racist and should be stopped immediately. After all we don’t see teams like the Washington Blackskins.. or the San Francisco Slant Eyes. Almost everyone would agree that such things would be racist and denigrating. Why then do we allow Redskins and Chief Wahoo?† (73). I also asked myself Why? I believe this further brings to the argument that Americans forget that Native Americans actually exist and are an ethnicity. The last issue I learned from the Native Americans group was the major lack of diversity in the media specifically Native Ame rican actors. I was unaware of how serious this was, there are no major actors who identify as Native American. When being casted, producers do not seek Native Americans they rather seek for either a white actor or someone of a different ethnicity.Show MoreRelatedMedia Bias And Stereotypes : A Long Way Of Justify The Truth1534 Words   |  7 PagesMedia Bias and Stereotypes: a long way to justify the truth In the twenty-first century, China accomplishes great achievements in its economy, technology and diplomacy. As it becomes a country that has the fastest increasing rate in economy, masters spacecraft-building technics, and actively participates in International meetings and competitions, it draws the foreign media’s attention on exploring the country itself and presenting how its society and people are to their people who may not know muchRead MoreDoes Racial Bias Affect The Lives Of Americans? Essay1593 Words   |  7 Pagescauses of this racial bias and the effects. We cannot ignore the obvious disadvantages minorities face in America. When examining the ways that systemic racial bias affects the lives of Americans, it is important to first define what systemic racial bias actually is. For the purposes of this research paper, it is the tendency of racism to exist in a specified process. Throughout the past centuries, the presence of this bias changed significantly but not disappeared. In an age of media at every turn, theRead MoreStereotypes Of Minority Groups During Media1733 Words   |  7 PagesAlejandra Guerrero Mrs. Wong AP English Language and Composition Period 4 2 June 2015 Stereotypes of Minority Groups in Media Harmeen Jones, a former Fox Technician, was fired after filing a complaint to Human Resources of the unfair treatment he was receiving by his colleagues at Fox for being African-American. Jones claims ‘he was subjected to a steady stream of racist, sexist, and extremely offensive comments,’ against blacks, Muslims, Jews, women and Hispanics† (Shifrel). Unfortunately, notRead MoreInfluence Of Cognitive Biases On Decisions1142 Words   |  5 PagesThe influence of cognitive biases on decisions Society once had a conjecture that only discriminatory people used stereotypes, however, studies in unconscious bias now reveal that we all are guilty of using stereotypes, all the time, without knowing it. Finally, the antagonist of equality has been found, and it is us. With a limited perspective, we all have a bias view of the world, this is because we are only capable of hearing, seeing, and reading what is around us. A definitive version of realityRead MoreStereotypes And Stereotypes Of African Americans Essay1468 Words   |  6 Pagesbeen represented in the media with harmful stereotypes which were founded in the slavery era (Cartier, 2014)(Carpenter, 2012). This negative representation invites bias from those who accept the images, the distortion of which is accentuated by both sexism and racism. Black women are the least represented group in cinema, making it easier to rely on stereotypes which encourage societal bias. From these stereotypes, like the Jezebel and Sapphire, s tem the â€Å"real world† stereotypes of the welfare queenRead MoreStereotypes And Stereotypes Of Stereotypes771 Words   |  4 PagesStereotypes: â€Å"...a fixed, over generalized belief about a particular group or class of people.† (Cardwell, 1996). Stereotypes create an unconscious perception on a group of people. Generalization ignores differences between individuals; therefore we pass assumptions towards others that may not be accurate. Stereotypes enables us to respond quickly to situations because we may have had similar experiences before. The use of stereotypes is an involuntary way we simplify our social world; they reduceRead MoreRacial Bias And Racial Stereotypes Essay1127 Words   |  5 Pagesracial bias and racial stereotypes. Well development of the media is one of the significant factors which influences the issue, especially in the medium of news reporting, for example, the newspaper, network and television news, etc. News contributes to transmitti ng incident information, but the appearance of news misrepresentation and the language in the news will affect the objectivity and the authenticity of the news, which the cause of intensification of the racial stereotypes and bias issuesRead MoreWhy Stereotypes Are Bad And What You Can Do About Them957 Words   |  4 Pages In today’s mainstream society, the media creates various of negative thoughts and stereotypes in different forms. These forms include class, gender, and sexuality. Day by day images or videos go viral creating these negative issues spreading like wildfire throughout the web. For instance, if an image or meme is created and posted online of someone who is identifies themselves as something other than straight, or someone from a low-class people go and share these images just for their entertainmentRead MoreGender Stereotyping Standards For Men And Women Across America909 Words   |  4 Pagesits mentality as a whole. Some stereotypes have been more diff icult to break than others, those stereotypes are still present today. It is not fair that women are found limited in the work place and men are becoming so protective of their masculinity. Gender stereotyping is a problem in America today because it creates gender-bias boundaries and early gender schema development, but these relevant struggles have led to recent accomplishments, especially in the media, through highlighting genders asRead MoreAnalysis Of The Movie Breakfast At Tiffany s 1502 Words   |  7 Pagessocial media sites after the 2016 Academy Awards announce their nominees for Best Actor and Best Actress, it was predominately white for a second year in a row. The movie industry is no stranger to controversy and since its inception it’s constantly been guilty of underrepresenting ethnic people. It’s evident that film is a type of mass media that has a certifiable amount of power to influence audience’s views, yet this platform constantly disregards the need for diversity in favor of stereotypes. Movies

Relationship Between The Live Event And The Document...

This paper will explore a range of perspectives on the relationship between the live event and the document within performance practice, specifically focus on in relation to body, time and space. Performance art is commonly known as a performance presented to a viewer within a fine art context. Through performance artists emphasize the body’s role in artistic production. Historically, performance archive has been characterized as an unfaithful representation of the momentary art experience. Yet, in contemporary art the relationship between live performance practices and documentation has progressed towards reconciliation. Whether, the performance is scripted or unscripted, the performer’s body is present or absent. Performance art can happen in any type of venue and for any length of time. Documentation of performance practice documents the actions of an individual or a group at a particular place and in a particular time. A fascination with the human body, body were an experience that could somehow be held in common. The ways in which we might experience the body as connected or represent it as disconnected in a live performance. Shifting attention from traditional art object to the artist’s physical action further proposed that art existed in real space and real time. Marina Abramovic, a pioneer of performance art began using her own body as the subject, object, and medium in the early 1970s as she said, ‘In performance my body is object and subject.’ For the exhibitionShow MoreRelatedRelationship Between The Live Event And The Document Within Performance Practice1692 Words   |  7 PagesDiscuss the relationship between the live event and the document within performance practice This paper will explore a range of perspectives on the relationship between the live event and the document within performance practice, specifically focus on in relation to body, time and space. Performance art is commonly known as a performance presented to a viewer within a fine art context. Through performance artists emphasize the body’s role in artistic production. Performance archive has been characterizedRead MoreCreating A Sustainable Ethical Climate At Paradigm1425 Words   |  6 Pagesmembers share in the enterprise performance through profit sharing. Paradigm has been fortunate to avoid negative press due in part to the commitment of its team members that until now have brought issues to the table voluntarily. The toy industry has transformed and turned highly commoditized which puts intense pressure on cost control and containment. Our largest publicly traded competitor Smile Toys Inc (STI). has suffered from a recent ethical challenge within their organizatio n and saw theirRead MoreOrganizational Goals955 Words   |  4 Pagesresponsibility. This document will look at trends within mission statements and goals. â€Æ' Organizational Goals According to dictionary.com, a goal is defined as the result or achievement toward which the effort is directed. For each goal that an organization sets, it also sets objectives. Objectives are short-term targets with measurable results. Without clearly-defined goals and objectives, organizations will have trouble coordinating activities and forecasting future events (Marler, 2013). VirtuallyRead More Extracurricular Activities Essay1492 Words   |  6 Pagesspend the money efficiently. Consequently, funding for extracurricular activities may be decreased. This report examines the correlation between extracurricular activities and academic performance. Scope The scope of the investigation only includes high school students and the relationship between their involvement in activities and their academic performance. Some collegiate level studies were used since the benefits of extracurricular activities in high school and college are the same. Methods Read MoreAlfred Gell And The Art Nexus1442 Words   |  6 PagesArt Nexus This relationship between creator and consumer, and how the consumer’s involvement is responsible for authenticating social identities is best understood in terms of what Alfred Gell calls the art nexus. In his book Art and Agency, Gell’s theory of the art nexus considers the living presence response where viewers, or recipients, react to works of art as if they are living beings or even persons, that in turn act back upon the viewer, entering into a personal relationship with them thatRead MoreFeminism : The Killing Joke By Alan Moore Brian Bolland And Batm A Serious House On Serious1229 Words   |  5 Pagescommunity, and popular culture. While the narrow definition of acceptable masculinity has expanded in the last three decades, there is still a great amount of anxiety and pressure over being the right kind of â€Å"man.† Like many of my generation, gender performance and masculinity were formed by reading and watching superhero narratives as a youth. What were the deeper messages in those stories that engrossed our weekends and evening hours and what do they say about us as a society? A perfect microcosmRead MoreEvolution Of Health Care Info Systems. Physician’S Offices1514 Words   |  7 Pagesit s influenced the means info is unbroken, stored, shared and analyzed. within the future, we will expect technology to still modification and improve the means health care is delivered. it s the expectation that technology can improve the general public health and reduce the overwhelming price of health supply. Over the past twenty years info technology has been slowly introduced to the health care business. Documents inside home facilities were either through with a character-at-a-time printerRead MoreRunning Head: The Wisdom Of Capital1. The Wisdom Of Capital10.1671 Words   |  7 Pagesform of a secured note, similar to a consumer loan; whereby, the monthly payment includes interest and a fixed payment (Mikic et al., 2016). The institution can require that the entrepreneur maintain up to fifteen percent of the loan disbursement within the institution to provide security (Kuratko, 2014). Additionally, debt financing can come in the form of a convertible note, which affords the lender the option to convert the involved money from a loan to an investment (Rajan, 2012). Leasing providesRead MoreNurse Leader Interview : Nursing1401 Words   |  6 PagesNursing Leadership and Management Instructor: Pat Howell February14, 2016 â€Æ' Nurse Leader Interview 1. Obtain a copy of the nursing organization chart. What is the position of this role within the institution s/agencies administrative hierarchy? What is the relationship of this position with other departments/areas within the institution/agency? Director of Nursing 2. What are the responsibilities of this individual/role? As a DON I’m responsible for quality of care the organization deliver to our patientsRead MoreTeaching As A Profession? Essay1153 Words   |  5 Pagessociological approach to professionalism is one that views a profession as an organized group which is constantly interacting with the society that forms its matrix, which performs its social functions through a netywork of formal and informal relationships and which creates its own subculture requiring adjustments to it as a prerequisite for career success. ATTRIBUTES OF A PROFESSION Professionals occupy a position of great importance. In this society which is characterized by minute division of Relationship Between The Live Event And The Document... Discuss the relationship between the live event and the document within performance practice This paper will explore a range of perspectives on the relationship between the live event and the document within performance practice, specifically focus on in relation to body, time and space. Performance art is commonly known as a performance presented to a viewer within a fine art context. Through performance artists emphasize the body’s role in artistic production. Performance archive has been characterized as a false representation of the art performance in the past. Yet, in contemporary art the relationship between live performance practices and documentation has overcome to reconciliation. Whether, the performance is scripted or unscripted, the performer’s body is present or absent. Performance art can happen in any type of venue and for any length of time. Documentation of performance practices documents the actions of an individual or a group at a particular place and in a particular time. A fascination with the human body, body were an experience that could somehow be held in common. The ways in which we might experience the body as connected or represent it as disconnected from a live performance. Shifting attention from traditional art object to the artist’s physical act further proposed that art existed in real space and real time. Marina Abramovic, a pioneer of performance art explored further on this concept began by using her own body as the subject, object, andShow MoreRelatedRelationship Between The Live Event And The Document Within Performance Practice1588 Words   |  7 Pageson the relationship between the live event and the document within performance practice, specifically focus on in relation to body, time and space. Performance art is commonly known as a performance presented to a viewer within a fine art context. Through performance artists emphasize the body’s role in artistic production. Historically, performance archive has been char acterized as an unfaithful representation of the momentary art experience. Yet, in contemporary art the relationship between liveRead MoreCreating A Sustainable Ethical Climate At Paradigm1425 Words   |  6 Pagesmembers share in the enterprise performance through profit sharing. Paradigm has been fortunate to avoid negative press due in part to the commitment of its team members that until now have brought issues to the table voluntarily. The toy industry has transformed and turned highly commoditized which puts intense pressure on cost control and containment. Our largest publicly traded competitor Smile Toys Inc (STI). has suffered from a recent ethical challenge within their organization and saw theirRead MoreOrganizational Goals955 Words   |  4 Pagesresponsibility. This document will look at trends within mission statements and goals. â€Æ' Organizational Goals According to dictionary.com, a goal is defined as the result or achievement toward which the effort is directed. For each goal that an organization sets, it also sets objectives. Objectives are short-term targets with measurable results. Without clearly-defined goals and objectives, organizations will have trouble coordinating activities and forecasting future events (Marler, 2013). VirtuallyRead More Extracurricular Activities Essay1492 Words   |  6 Pagesspend the money efficiently. Consequently, funding for extracurricular activities may be decreased. This report examines the correlation between extracurricular activities and academic performance. Scope The scope of the investigation only includes high school students and the relationship between their involvement in activities and their academic performance. Some collegiate level studies were used since the benefits of extracurricular activities in high school and college are the same. Methods Read MoreAlfred Gell And The Art Nexus1442 Words   |  6 PagesArt Nexus This relationship between creator and consumer, and how the consumer’s involvement is responsible for authenticating social identities is best understood in terms of what Alfred Gell calls the art nexus. In his book Art and Agency, Gell’s theory of the art nexus considers the living presence response where viewers, or recipients, react to works of art as if they are living beings or even persons, that in turn act back upon the viewer, entering into a personal relationship with them thatRead MoreFeminism : The Killing Joke By Alan Moore Brian Bolland And Batm A Serious House On Serious1229 Words   |  5 Pagescommunity, and popular culture. While the narrow definition of acceptable masculinity has expanded in the last three decades, there is still a great amount of anxiety and pressure over being the right kind of â€Å"man.† Like many of my generation, gender performance and masculinity were formed by reading and watching superhero narratives as a youth. What were the deeper messages in those stories that engrossed our weekends and evening hours and what do they say about us as a society? A perfect microcosmRead MoreEvolution Of Health Care Info Systems. Physician’S Offices1514 Words   |  7 Pagesit s influenced the means info is unbroken, stored, shared and analyzed. within the future, we will expect technology to still modification and improve the means health care is delivered. it s the expectation that technology can improve the general public health and reduce the overwhelming price of health supply. Over the past twenty years info technology has been slowly introduced to the health care business. Documents inside home facilities were either through with a character-at-a-time printerRead MoreRunning Head: The Wisdom Of Capital1. The Wisdom Of Capital10.1671 Words   |  7 Pagesform of a secured note, similar to a consumer loan; whereby, the monthly payment includes interest and a fixed payment (Mikic et al., 2016). The institution can require that the entrepreneur maintain up to fifteen percent of the loan disbursement within the institution to provide security (Kuratko, 2014). Additionally, debt financing can come in the form of a convertible note, which affords the lender the option to convert the involved money from a loan to an investment (Rajan, 2012). Leasing providesRead MoreNurse Leader Interview : Nursing1401 Words   |  6 PagesNursing Leadership and Management Instructor: Pat Howell February14, 2016 â€Æ' Nurse Leader Interview 1. Obtain a copy of the nursing organization chart. What is the position of this role within the institution s/agencies administrative hierarchy? What is the relationship of this position with other departments/areas within the institution/agency? Director of Nursing 2. What are the responsibilities of this individual/role? As a DON I’m responsible for quality of care the organization deliver to our patientsRead MoreTeaching As A Profession? Essay1153 Words   |  5 Pagessociological approach to professionalism is one that views a profession as an organized group which is constantly interacting with the society that forms its matrix, which performs its social functions through a netywork of formal and informal relationships and which creates its own subculture requiring adjustments to it as a prerequisite for career success. ATTRIBUTES OF A PROFESSION Professionals occupy a position of great importance. In this society which is characterized by minute division of

Family in Dead Poet’s Society’s Neil Perry Free Essays

Neal Perry is one of the major characters in the Peter Weir 1989 film Dead Poet’s Society which starred Robin Williams as Professor John Keating who inspired the lives of his students at Welton Academy. Actor Robert Sean Leonard portrays Neal Perry and plays as a pressured student who is passionate about theatre. In this film, family plays a large role in the development of the plot and the characters in the film most especially Neil Perry’s family who later can be assumed as the reason for Neil’s suicide. We will write a custom essay sample on Family in Dead Poet’s Society’s Neil Perry or any similar topic only for you Order Now His parents are presented in the film as the typical aristocrats who hold themselves responsible for their child’s future career. Mr. Perry is a father who dictates what he and his wife think is the best for Neil without considering his interests. Clearly, this puts Neil in a very frustrating situation as he struggles to pursue his dreams and please his parents. Her mother who at some point can be regarded as softer than his father, she also contributes to the pressure being put upon Neil. They want him to become a doctor someday which reveals that they want him to be in a profession where there is a stable income. Being an actor clearly does not appeal to them as the profession does not always provide stability. Also, it can be assumed that Neil’s parents are also dictated by the society around. They are also victims of conformity who want to establish their reputation in the higher class of their society. John Keating, the English professor of Neil Perry has definitely influenced his way of thinking. Mr. Keating inspired him to â€Å"Seize the day† and pursue his dreams despite the dictates of his family or society. Neil responds to this by pursuing a role in William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. He does so without the consent of his parents. However, the move just worsens his situation as he is instructed to leave Welton to enter a military school. Apparently, Neil believes he had had enough of his parents’ dictates in his life that he finally resorts to suicide. In Neil’s situation, it is quite hard to determine whether it is Mr. Keating’s teachings that led him to taking his life. What Mr. Keating intends to teach is non-conformity—for students to practice freedom and pursue their dreams for their own fulfillment. For this matter, it can be assumed that Neil would not have taken suicide if he had not met Mr. Keating. It is Mr. Keating who taught him to pursue his dreams no matter what and his act of taking the role of Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream led his parents to have him quit school for military. Before Mr. Keating, Neil has always been the obedient child who always followed his parent’s orders. Without Mr. Keating, he would not have auditioned for the character role for it would be disobedience to his parents. Without Mr. Keating, he would probably be still stuck in the medicine field too weak to stand up for his own and defend himself to his parents. He would not have known freedom and would still have conformed to the rules of his family and society. His passion in acting would not have been ignited by Mr. Keating’s teachings. Clearly, Mr. Keating has influenced his way of thinking that led him to become more frustrated in life. However, suicide is not acceptabl e as the only way out. With Mr. Keating’s teachings of non-conformity, Neil could have pursued his dreams by himself and detach himself from his tyrannical parents. He could have made a living of his own by accepting acting roles. In addition, he could have asked Mr. Keating for help. Mr. Keating could have talked to his parents and convinced them that their son is not a machine that they could run by themselves. He needs to have a life of his won. There are a lot of other ways to solve his predicament without him taking his life. Clearly, his parents have become too much of a burden for him emotionally that a boy of his intelligence was unable to think straight in such a hard time. In this film, the purpose of one’s family is given emphasis as the major supporter of one’s life. Neil Perry has lost all the support that he needs when his parents forced him into things that he does not want to do. His family is unable to understand his passion which creates a discrepancy in his way of living that he resorts to suicide. One’s family is as important as the air that we breathe. Living without their support can clearly make life miserable in ways that it makes life feel unworthy. How to cite Family in Dead Poet’s Society’s Neil Perry, Essays

Gandhi Essay Research Paper GandhiGandhi lived from free essay sample

Gandhi Essay, Research Paper Gandhi Gandhi, lived from 1869-1948 and was besides known as Mahatma Gandhi, was born in Porbandar, in the modern province of Gujarat, on October 2, 1869, into a Hindu household, Both his male parent and gramps holding been premier curates of two next and bantam provinces. After a modest calling at school, he went to London in 1888 to develop as a attorney, go forthing behind his immature married woman, whom he had married when she was in her teens. In London, Gandhi encountered theosophists, vegetarians, and others who were disenchanted non merely with industrialism, but with the bequest of Enlightenment idea. They themselves represented the periphery elements of English society. Gandhi was strongly attracted to them, as he was to the texts of the major spiritual traditions ; and ironically it is in London that he was introduced to the Bhagavad Gita. Here, excessively, Gandhi showed finding and resolved chase of his intent, and accomplished his aim of completing his grade from the Inner Temple. He was called to the saloon in 1891, and even enrolled in the High Court of London, but subsequently that twelvemonth he left for India. After one twelvemonth of a none excessively successful jurisprudence pattern, Gandhi decided to accept an offer from an Indian man of affairs in South Africa, Dada Abdulla, to fall in him as a legal advisor. Unbeknown to him, this was to go an extremely drawn-out stay, and wholly Gandhi was to remain in South Africa for over 20 old ages. The Indians who had been populating in South Africa were without political rights, and were by and large known by the derogatory name of # 8216 ; coolies # 8217 ; . Gandhi himself came to an consciousness of the terrorization force and rage of European racism, and how far Indians were from being considered full human existences, when he when thrown out of a excellent railroad compartment auto, though he held a first-class ticket, at Pietermaritzburg. From this political waking up Gandhi was to emerge as the leader of the Indian community, and it is in South Africa that he foremost coined the term Satyagraha to mean his theory and pattern of non-vio lent opposition. Gandhi was to depict himself pre-eminently as a votary or searcher of satya ( truth ) , which could non be attained other than through ahimsa ( non-violence, love ) and brahmacharya ( celibacy, endeavoring towards God ) . Gandhi conceived of his ain life as a series of experiments to hammer the usage of Satyagraha in such a mode as to do the oppressor and the oppressed likewise acknowledge their common bonding and humanity: as he recognized, freedom is merely freedom when it is indivisible. In his book, Satyagraha in South Africa he was to detail the battles of the Indians to claim their rights, and their opposition to oppressive statute law and executive steps, such as the infliction of a canvass revenue enhancement on them, or the declaration by the authorities that all non-Christian matrimonies were to be construed as invalid. In 1909, on a trip back to India, Gandhi authored a short treatise entitled Hind Swaraj or Indian Home Rule, where he all but initiated th e review, non merely of industrial civilisation, but of modernness in all its facets. Early on Career After an insignificant public presentation in a legal pattern in India, Gandhi left for South Africa in 1893 to function as legal advisor to an Indian house. The 21 old ages that he spent at that place marked a turning point in his life. The racial indignities to which he and his countrymen were subjected to turned the antecedently diffident and diffident attorney into a courageous political militant. Gaining that force was evil and rational persuasion frequently worthless, he developed a new method of non-violent opposition, which he called Satyagraha and which he used with some success to procure racial justness for his people. Gandhi besides reflected profoundly on his Hindu faith, interacted with Judaic and Christian friends, and evolved a distinguishable position of life based on what he found valuable in his ain and other faiths. He commanded a Red Cross unit in the Boer War, and organised a commune near Durban based on the thoughts of Leo Tolstoy. Gandhi eventually returned to India in 1915, after the authorities of the Union of South Africa had made of import grants to his demands, including acknowledgment of Indian matrimonies and abolishment of the canvass revenue enhancement for them. After going all over India to familiarize himself with the state of which he had merely a limited apprehension, he moved into political relations, and shortly became the undisputed leader of the Indian nationalist motion. Almost single-handedly he transformed the middle- and upper-class Indian National Congress into a powerful national administration, conveying in big subdivisions of such antecedently excluded groups ( Harijans ) as adult females, bargainers, merchandisers, the upper and in-between peasantry, and young person, and giving it a truly national footing. Following the Amritsar Massacre in 1919, Gandhi led a nation-wide run of inactive non-cooperation with the authorities of British India, including the boycott of British goods. He was neer to go forth the state once more except for a short trip that took him to Europe in 1931. Though he was non wholly unknown in India, Gandhi followed the advice of his political wise man, Gokhale, and took it upon himself to get a acquaintance with Indian conditions. He traveled widely for one twelvemonth. Over the following few old ages, he was to go involved in legion local battles, such as at Champaran in Bihar, where workers on indigo plantations complained of oppressive on the job conditions, and at Ahmedabad, where a difference had broken out between direction and workers at fabric Millss. His intercessions earned Gandhi a considerable repute, and his rapid dominance to the helm of nationalist political relations is signified by his leading of the resistance to repressive statute law ( known as the # 8220 ; Rowlatt Acts # 8221 ; ) in 1919. His saintliness was non uncommon, except in person like him who immersed himself in political relations, and by this clip he had earned from no less a individual than Rabindranath Tagore, India # 8217 ; s most well-known author, the rubric of Mahatma, or # 8216 ; Great Soul # 8217 ; . When # 8216 ; perturbations # 8217 ; broke out in the Punjab, taking to the slaughter of a big crowd of unarmed Indians at the Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar and other atrociousnesss, Gandhi wrote the study of the Punjab Congress Inquiry Committee. Over the following two old ages, Gandhi initiated the non-cooperation motion, which called upon Indians to retreat from British establishments, to return awards conferred by the British, and to larn the art of autonomy ; though the British disposal was at topographic points paralyzed, the motion was suspended in February 1922 when a mark of Indian police officers were viciously killed by a big crowd at Chauri Chaura, a little market town in the United Provinces. Gandhi himself was arrested shortly thenceforth, tried on charges of sedition, and sentenced to imprisonment for six old ages. At The Great Trial, as his biographers know it, Gandhi delivered a consummate indictment of British regulation. Development of Gandhi # 8217 ; s Thought and Practice Convinced that independency had no significance without a moral and societal transmutation, Gandhi launched a comprehensive programme of national regeneration. This involved combat biass against manual labor, get the better ofing the urban-rural divide, developing a love of linguistic communications, and eliminating the prejudiced pattern of Untouchability. Gandhi besides fostered among his countrymen national self-respect and assurance in their ability to subvert British regulation. He gave Hinduism an militant and societal orientation, liberally borrowed from other spiritual and cultural traditions, and became an inspiring illustration of a echt inter-faith and community duologue. He perfected the method of Satyagraha that he had discovered in South Africa, added new signifiers of action to its repertory, and developed what he called the? new scientific discipline of non-violence? affecting moral transition of the opposition by a delicate? surgery of the psyche? . His actions inspi red the great poet Rabindranath Tagore to name him Mahatma ( Sanskrit, ? great psyche? ) . While contending at the same time on the societal, economic, spiritual, and political foreparts, Gandhi carried on an even ferocious conflict at the personal degree. Determined to go every bit perfect as any human being could be, he set about get the hanging all his senses and desires. From 1901 onward he embarked on make bolding experiments in sexual self-denial. Rejecting the? cowardly? celibacy of traditional faiths, he lived among and subsequently slept naked with some of his adult females associates, both to examine the outermost bounds of gender and to demo that it was possible to achieve? absolute? and child-like artlessness. His moral bravery, candor, and experimental verve have few if any analogues in history. Gandhi # 8217 ; s moral and political idea was based on a comparatively simple rule. For him the existence was regulated by a Supreme Intelligence or Principle, which he called satya ( Truth ) and, as a grant to convention, God. It was embodied in all living things, above all in human existences, in the signifier of self-aware psyche or spirit. Since all human existences were portion of the Godhead kernel, they were? finally one? . They were non simply equal but? indistinguishable? . As such, love was the lone proper signifier of relation between them ; it was? the jurisprudence of our being? , of? our species? . Positively, love implied attention and concern for others and entire dedication to the cause of? pass overing off every tear from every oculus? . Negatively, it implied ahimsa, or? non-violence? . Gandhi # 8217 ; s full societal and political idea, including his theory of Satyagraha, was an effort to work out the deductions of the rule of love in all countries of life. For Gandhi, the province? represented? force in a concentrated signifier. It spoke in the linguistic communication of irresistible impulse and uniformity, sapped its topics # 8217 ; spirit of inaugural and self-help, and? unmanned? them. Since human existences were non to the full developed and capable of moving in a socially responsible mode, the province was necessary. However, if it was non to impede their growing, it had to be organised so that it used every bit small coercion as possible and left as big an country of human life as possible to voluntary attempts. As Gandhi imagined it, a genuinely non-violent society was federally constituted and composed of little, autonomous, and comparatively self-sufficing small town communities trusting mostly on moral and societal force per unit area. The constabulary were fundamentally societal workers, basking the assurance and support of the local community and trusting on moral persuasion and public sentiment to implement the jurisprudence. Crime was treated as a disease, necessitating non penalty but apprehension and aid. The standing ground forces was non necessary either, for a determined people could be relied upon to mount non-violent opposition against an encroacher. Since the bulk regulation violated the moral unity of the minority and? savoured of force? , and since unanimity was frequently impossible, all determinations in a non-violent society were based on consensus, arrived at by rational treatment in which each strove to look at the topic in inquiry from the point of view of others. For Gandhi, rational treatment was non merely an exchange of statements but a procedure of intensifying and spread outing the consciousness of the participants. When it was conducted in a proper spirit, those involved reconstituted each other # 8217 ; s being and were reborn as a consequence of the brush. In utmost instances, when no consensus was possible, the bulk decided the affair, non because it was more likely to be right but for administrative and matter-of-fact grounds. If a citizen felt morally troubled by a bulk determination, that individual was entitled to claim freedom from and even to disobey it. Civil noncompliance was a? moral? right. To give u p it was to give up one # 8217 ; s? self-respect? and unity. A non-violent society was committed to sarvodaya, the growing or upheaval of all its citizens. Private belongings denied the? individuality? or? oneness? of all work forces, and was immoral. In Gandhi # 8217 ; s view it was a? wickedness against humanity? to possess otiose wealth when others could non even run into their basic demands. Since the establishment of private belongings already existed, and work forces were attached to it, he suggested that the rich should take only what they needed and keep the remainder in trust for the community. Increasingly he came to appreciate that the thought of trust territory was excessively of import to be left to the unstable good will of the rich, and suggested that it could be enforced by organized societal force per unit area and even by jurisprudence. Gandhi advocated heavy revenue enhancements, limited rights of heritage, province ownership of land and heavy industry, and nationalization without compensation as a manner of making a merely and equal society. Leadership to Independence In 1930 he proclaimed a new run of civil noncompliance, naming upon the Indian population to decline to pay revenue enhancements, peculiarly the revenue enhancement on salt. The run involved a March to the sea, in which 1000s of Indians followed Gandhi from Ahmadabad to the Arabian Sea, where they made salt by vaporizing sea H2O. This extremely symbolic and noncompliant gesture proved really effectual. Once more the Indian leader was arrested, but he was released in 1931, holding the run after the British made grants to his demands. In the same twelvemonth Gandhi represented the Indian National Congress at a conference in London. In 1932, Gandhi began new civil noncompliance runs against the British. Two old ages subsequently he officially resigned from political relations, being replaced as leader of the Congress Party by Jawaharlal Nehru, and travelled through India, learning and advancing societal reform. A few old ages subsequently, in 1939, Gandhi once more returned to active political life, assailing colonial policy over the federation of Indian princedoms with the remainder of India. When World War II broke out, the Congress Party and Gandhi decided non to back up Britain unless India was granted complete and immediate independency. Even when Japan entered the war, Gandhi refused to hold to Indian engagement. He was interned in 1942, but was released two old ages subsequently because of neglecting wellness. By 1944 the British authorities had agreed to independence, on status that the Congress Party and the Muslim League resolve their differences. Despite Gandhi # 8217 ; s opposition to the rule of divider, India and Pakistan became separate provinces when the British granted India its independency in 1947. Bloody sectarian force ensued. Though Gandhi was born a dedicated Hindu, there was a powerful and endearing run of the gambler and the criminal in him. When Hindus and Muslims were engaged in ferocious intercommunal discord in 1946 and 1947, he moved among them entirely and unprotected, dared them to make their worst, and by absolute force of personality consoled the disconsolate, dissolved hatred, and restored a clime of humanity. When a bomb was dropped at one of his supplication meetings a few hebdomads subsequently, he chided his scared audience for being scared of a? mere bomb? . Through fasts, he quelled force in Calcutta and New Delhi. When the authorities of independent India decided, with popular support, to renegue on on its promise to reassign to Pakistan its portion of assets, he took on the full state, and successfully fasted to rouse its sense of honor and moral duty. This deeply angered a subdivision of Hindu patriots, one of whom, after respectfully bowing to him, shot him dead at a supplication me eting on January 30,1948 The last few months of Gandhi # 8217 ; s life were to be spent chiefly in the capital metropolis of Delhi. There he divided his clip between the # 8216 ; Bhangi settlement # 8217 ; , where the sweepers and the lowest of the low stayed, and Birla House, the abode of one of the wealthiest work forces in India and one of the helpers of Gandhi # 8217 ; s ashrams. Hindu and Sikh refugees had streamed into the capital from what had become Pakistan, and at that place was much bitterness, which easy translated into force, against Muslims. It was partially in an effort to set an terminal to the violent deaths in Delhi, and more by and large to the bloodshed following the divider, which may hold taken the lives of every bit many as 1 million people, besides doing the disruption of no fewer than 11 million, that Gandhi was to get down the last fast unto decease of his life. The fast was terminated when representatives of all the communities signed a statement that they were prepared to popu late in # 8220 ; perfect cordiality # 8221 ; , and that the lives, belongings, and religion of the Muslims would be safeguarded. A few yearss subsequently, a bomb exploded in Birla House where Gandhi was keeping his eventide supplications, but it caused no hurts. However, his bravo, a Marathi Chitpavan Brahmin by the name of Nathuram Godse, was non so easy deterred. Gandhi, rather characteristically, refused extra security, and no 1 could withstand his want to be allowed to travel about unhampered. In the early eventide hours of 30 January 1948, Gandhi met with India # 8217 ; s Deputy Prime Minister and his close associate in the freedom battle, Vallabhai Patel, and so proceeded to his supplications. That eventide, as Gandhi # 8217 ; s time-piece, which hung from one of the creases of his dhoti [ loin-cloth ] , was to uncover to him, he was uncharacteristically late to his supplications, and he fretted about his inability to be punctual. At 10 proceedingss past 5 O # 8217 ; clock, with one manus each on the shoulders of Abha and Manu, who were known as his # 8216 ; walking sticks # 8217 ; , Gandhi commenced his walk towards the garden where the supplication meeting was held. As he was about to mount the stairss of the dais, Gandhi folded his custodies and greeted his audience with a namaskar ; at that minute, a immature adult male came up to him and approximately pushed aside Manu. Nathuram Godse bent down in the gesture of an bow, took a six-gun out of his pocket, and shooting Gandhi three times in his thorax. Bloodstains appeared over Gandhi # 8217 ; s white woollen shawl ; his custodies still folded in a salutation, Gandhi blessed his bravo: He Ram! He Ram! As Gandhi fell, his faithful timepiece struck the land, and the custodies of the ticker came to a deadlock. They showed, as they had done earlier, the precise clip: 5:12 P.M. Posthumous Bequest Gandhi # 8217 ; s rational influence on his countrymen was considerable. Though merely a few accepted all his thoughts, none rejected them all either. Some were attracted by his accent on political and economic decentralization ; others by his insisting on single freedom, moral unity, the integrity of agencies and terminals, and societal service ; still others by his Satyagraha and political activism. Not even such Marxists as Manabendra Nath Roy could defy the entreaty of some of his thoughts. For some pupils of India, Gandhi # 8217 ; s influence is responsible for its failure to throw up any truly extremist political motion. For others it successfully inoculated India against the virus of Hindu communalism, cultivated a spirit of non-violence, encouraged the wonts of corporate self-help, and helped put the foundations of a stable, morally committed, and democratic authorities. Gandhi # 8217 ; s thoughts have besides had a profound influence outside India, where they inspired non -violent activism and motions in favor of small-scale, self-sufficing communities populating closer to nature and with greater sensitiveness to their environment.

Primarks Entry into the Brazilian Market

American Complexity Professor Ramos Blog

American Complexity The American identity is subjective. It differs for each individual and though it may be similar between people it is not one hundred percent the same for any two people. One of the key factors of someone’s American identity is race. The American identity and life of a white person differs greatly from that of a Black person’s. Historically it has been shown that Black Americans have had to fight systematic oppression and unethical treatment for hundreds of years which lead to their fight for equal rights. To understand the difference of American identities it is important to look at these struggles they had to overcome and how their race and race specific struggles affected their life as Americans and their American identities. The life of a Black American and the American identity of a Black person are very unique to their race. It is no secret that throughout America’s history Black people have had a disadvantage placed on them at birth. To specify this to the time period of the pieces of work it’s important to focus on the fact that the main legal and social disadvantages Black people have faced. Around the times W.E.B. Du Bois and Langston Hughes released their works racism and Jim Crow laws (laws that enforced segregation in schools, railroads, public places and also the outlawing of miscegenation)were the main issues Black Americans had to deal with. While they were free from slavery they were anything but free from the systematic oppression they endured for so long and were not seen as equal until the civil rights movement. It is also important to focus on the effect the memory of slavery also had effects on Black Americans. For those around closer to Du Bois’s younger years a lot of them were slaves or had family that were so for them it was very real and even for those around when he was older it was their parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts all who had stories to tell about the pain they had gone through during slavery. The way in which Black Americans lived and continue to do so has been with a double consciousness as written about in The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B. Du Bois. He described it as â€Å"sense of always looking at one’s self through the eyes of the others, of measuring one’s soul by the tape of a world that looks on in amused contempt and pity†. By bringing up this double consciousness and explaining it in the way he does he shows how for Black Americans they were never allowed to just naturally feel American because they were always seen as other. He went on to write it was twoness, an American and a Black man with two souls all trapped into one body. In this same work Du Bois uses the symbolism of a veil which represented the color line which is what determined peopled access to opportunities based on their race. He first brought it up with the line â€Å"I was different from the others; or like, mayhap, in heart and life and longing, but shut out from their world by a vast veil.† This pinpoints the exact moment he felt a division from white people since before this he had never seen himself as different. The veil is a veil that exists only in people’s minds and white people, whether they realize it or not, use it to structure society in a racist way. Du Bois saw it as what stopped white people from seeing Black people as Americans or treating them as equals. This veil in that sense can be seen as the cause of most, if not all, racial tensions in this country because it is what has prevented equality and freedom of Black Americans. He also claims that the veil is always present even though it is not felt at all times. It even takes time to even be realized such as the case of du bois who did not realize it until a classmate treated him differently because of his race. Both these ideas of double consciousness and a veil are what help contribute to the complexity of what an American identity is and how it can be defined and lead to its uniqueness for each individual. The concept of double consciousness can also be felt in some of the works of Langston Hughes. In Theme for English B Hughes wrote â€Å"You are white-, yet a part of me, as I am a part of you. That’s America.† This line shows the division felt by making the races of both the author and teacher known so the reader is aware but shows that though there is that difference that both people are a part of America. This is also present in the line â€Å"I guess you learn from me-, although you’re older- and white-, and somewhat more free† from the same poem. Again Hughes is showing the divide and difference between him and the teacher but also ties in legal issues of the time by hinting at them with the mention of the teacher being free. The theme of being different but also similar is also present in Hughes’s poem I, Too in the line â€Å"They’ll see how beautiful I am, and be ashamed-, I, too, am American† this line follows lines from the perspective of a slave describing always being sent to eat in the kitchen alone but knowing one day he will be invited to the table and shows how even though he is being sent away and treated like an outsider he knows he is an American and feels the connection despite it all and shows a hope that change will come and unity will outweigh the division. It was these ideas presented in both and sense of hope in the ending of I, Too were what helped push the civil rights movement. Black Americans felt this division but wanted equality so that the division could be lessened because they knew that though they were not treated as such they were also Americans and knew they deserved the same freedom white people already had. Though freedom was give and Black people no longer have to use their own restrooms the feeling of double consciousness and division were not so easily diminished. These ideas of double consciousness and a veil re still present today in ways such as Black people, men especially, have had to come to the realization that though they are American they are seen as an outsider by many. They have issues such as being killed unarmed and innocent by police officers like how Black Americans in the past had to struggle with Jim Crow laws. It is also extremely dangerous for Black Trans women because their life expectancy is only thirty five. They are also present in the fact many Black parents have to give their kids a special talk about race and how they have to work twice as hard as white people do to even get a foot in the door. That talk ties in to the poem Mother to Son by Langston Hughes because it’s a poem of a mother telling her son that her life has been hard and that she has worked extremely hard to get to where she is and is encouraging him to work hard and not give up and while the poem doesn’t specify whether her race affected her come up it can be assumed it did life wasn’t easy for Black people especially Black women during her time. The idea of the veil is also still present in ways such as black people being fired or kept from getting jobs for having corn rows or locks but so many white people are praised in fashion and online for doing their hair like that despite it having a deep important background to the Black community. It is also seen in many white people having no issue with the police and getting angry or defensive when a Black person voices their opinion about the police force as if they haven’t had to watch their community die innocent at the hands of the police for centuries while they continue to have protest and have activist be vocal and seen despite nothing ever changing or being handled in a way that actually helps them. In conclusion, race is an important factor in how people live their lives in America. It has been that way since the beginning of our country and continues today. Double consciousness causes people, Black people especially in context to this essay, to be hyper aware of how they are perceived and judged by society and how to act to avoid danger while the veil aids oppression. It is an ongoing issue that has continued for centuries in American culture. These themes have been evident in the works of Black people for centuries depicting the struggle and fight and they had to endure in this country from its beginning and still to this day. Works cited BOIS, WEB DU. SOULS OF BLACK FOLK. BLURB, 2019. Hughes, Langston. â€Å"Langston Hughes.† The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Vol. 2: 1865 to the Present, W.W. Norton Company, 2013, pp. 1037–1045.

Discussion 7 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Discussion 7 - Essay Example A number of books and movies have been written and made on how the war affected the lives of people as well as modern societies around the world. The major power countries lost millions of soldiers; these brave men fought hard and sacrificed their lives ultimately. However, the war also affected civilians and people from everyday walks of life that had no hand in it. The face of politics, economies around the world, as well as public opinion underwent a strong change because of the First World War. Germany was at large made to pay for the reparation of the damages that it had caused all around the globe, and most other countries tried to adopt a more liberal path of government in order to serve the people better and establish democracies. There was widespread inflation all around as people were forced to pay high sums of money for the basic necessities of life. Industrialization had not yet taken a strong hold over many countries, however, it began to, because people were in vast nee d of jobs. Pay cuts were rampant as more and more people began to die early and were not able to afford food for their families. The use of human labour also declined a great deal as more and more machines came into use. The effect of the War on civilians thus was such that it had a long term impact on their lives. Entire families were affected in a bad way due to the down sloped economy.

Does management have responsibility to provide job satisfaction to its Research Paper

Does management have responsibility to provide job satisfaction to its employees - Research Paper Example Maslows theory further explains that the low need level of needs need to be satisfied in order to avoid unpleasant consequences (Aziri, 2011). Some of these needs are food, sleep, warmth and other basic needs. For employers to meet these needs, they might probably provide food in the office to avoid unnecessary movement around the work area and probably install air conditioning to cater for the extremely hot or cold seasons. As these basic needs are met, they also start upgrading. At this point, they also feel that social and psychological needs need to be met. They start: believing in themselves and therefore, their self-esteem becomes distinct, wanting to be accepted socially, shown appreciation in the work place and they start feeling a strong sense of self-actualization to be able to develop as an employee (Luvisangra, 2012). This entire process brings about job satisfaction and increases production for the company. Incentives are also crucial for job satisfaction. Any employee who works tremendously hard in their workplace deserves to be appreciated. Incentives can be in the form of gifts, shopping vouchers, trips or the title of employee of the month (University of Alberta, 2012). Evaluations of whether or not the employees are satisfied should be conducted often. These evaluations are audits. There are many audits from financial; operational to follow up audits, but the best is the type that ensures that the emotions going round in the work place are unveiled, without necessarily identifying the names of the employees who feel a certain way. Confidentiality should be of the essence when conducting these evaluations. Audits are also supremely pertinent to examine whether security measures are effectual in the work place. The different forms of management can also affect job satisfaction considerably. There are two types of viewpoints that stand out; the classical and behavioral viewpoints. While classical management is divided into

Week 11 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Week 11 - Essay Example 2.) Caputo admits to joining the Marines for two reasons: he was incredibly bored in the suburbs where he had grown up; and he was swept up in the romanticism of John F. Kennedy’s Camelot. Caputo’s basic training experience was, like all Marines, even today, one of character and physical strength building. Creating a sense of camaraderie and loyalty and, most importantly, a willingness to sacrifice one’s own life for the virtues of America (God, Corp, Country). By the time Caputo did his second tour and was reassigned to headquarters, he had already begun to have an â€Å"affected† take on the war and the government and society. Once assigned to headquarters, his job was to make sure that there was a â€Å"body count.† A count that was fact or fiction in the favor of the American victory and success in Vietnam. Caputo was completely disillusioned. 3.) Caputo had a loyalty to his men, his corp, because that was what had been drilled into him during his basic training experience. Even when his feelings about the military and government began to sour, as a leader in the Marines, Caputo was concerned about the men with whom he was charged to lead; and developed the bonds of men together in a war environment. 4.) Caputo’s experience as an inexperienced young lieutenant was one rooted in fear; fear of losing control, fear of losing a man, fear of losing his own life. He was completely – and admits to it – unprepared for the reality of the environment and the experience of war. It was nothing, he wrote, like the way they rehearsed it in the woods of Virginia or North Carolina. In this way, his experience was somewhat like that of Frederic in A Farewell to Arms. 5.) From Caputo’s book it was possible to gain a sense of what the mood in America was before, during, and after the war – and from a hindsight is 20/20

Analysis of the telecommunications industry in China

Analysis of the telecommunications industry in China Vodafone is a London-based major telecommunication firm employing over 84,000 employees worldwide as of 2010. They are in more than 20 countries and have partnership in another 40 more for total revenue in 2010 of  £44 billion.  [1]  There focus is on RD and license management which make Vodafone a leader in new technology and product development. With this reputation, a lot of local companies can be interested in partnership with Vodafone in order to gain a technological boost which can help them overtake on the local competition. In 2000, Vodafone added CMHK (China Mobile Hong Kong) to his partner list by buying 2.19% of the company shares at a price of $2.5 billion. Two years later a second purchase of $750 million increased their share to 3.2%. By creating this partnership, Vodafone gained access to over 477 million subscribers in Hong Kong and China. From CMHK side, the alliance with the British firm set the table for a technological innovation campaign. The first remarkable output of this collaboration was JIL (Joint Innovation Lab), with the goal of accelerating the innovation process.  [2]   China and the WTO -How has Chinas entry into the WTO affected Vodafones development in China and Hong Kong? -How has it affected foreign telecommunications in general? C:UsersMYDocuments2011-1à ­Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢Ãƒ ªÃ‚ ¸Ã‚ °Ãƒ ªÃ‚ µÃ‚ ­Ãƒ ¬Ã‚  Ã…“à ªÃ‚ ²Ã‚ ½Ãƒ ¬Ã‹Å" Ãƒ «Ã‚ ¡Ã‚  china telecom statistics.jpg After almost 15 years of negotiation, China joined WTO as of 11 December 2001. Before the adhesion, Chinas policy protected the national emerging telecom industries  [3]  while allowing only foreign equipment vendors to invest in Chinas economy.  [4]  The new contract gave entry to foreign investment for up to 49% of one of the local companys share in the 17 largest cities in China.  [5]   As well as other markets, Chinas telecommunication market is expected to grow very rapidly especially if open to foreign service suppliers. The whole market generated over $130 billion in 2010 and is expected to grow by an average rate of 8.8% in for the next five years. Thus overtaking Japan and becoming the leader in the Asian market.  [6]  For foreign investors, those odds were quite attracting. The Reality -Why has Vodafone still held a minority stake in CMHK? -What factors do you think have inhibited Vodafones investment in the Chinese telecommunications market? Still, even after the entry in the WTO, Chinas telecommunication market stayed under the large influence of the Ministry of Information Industry (MII). The maximum level of stake ownership was set up to 49% under WTO agreement but no foreign telecommunication companies got close to that number. Vodafone, for example, was planning to increase its share up to 20% by 2005; in 2009 the 3.2% was still the reality. The main problem in the Chinese market is a multitude of complex and multi-layered political, economic and cultural factors.  [7]  China is still operated with ancient art of Guanxi (network of contacts)  [8]  and MII is considered to be both regulator and party in Chinese telecommunication market. So even if the contract allows some expansion for foreign companies, the huge bureaucracy makes investing in China a long and laborious process. China Unicom and SK Telecom -What has China Unicom done in its attempt to remain competitive? What are the advantages and challenges of such a strategy, and how effective do you think it will be? In 2006, a few years after the entry of Vodafone in the Chinese market, SK Telecom of South Korea invested $1 billion in China Unicom. In total the South Korean firm received about 7% of the company shares in return of this investment. The great advantage for the Chinese giant was a possibility for a technological advancement. The two firms would now work together on handset development and IP sharing. China Unicom could then have a glance at foreign technology, just like their main competitor did 6 years ago with Vodafone. For SK Telecom, the transaction was also a great advancement. It allowed them to gain entry in the protected Chinese market and escape the South Korean saturated market. On the other hand, as part of the contract, China Telecom had to accept SK Telecom as the sole partner until the end of 2007.  [9]  In technology business, one year and a half tied to only one partner could hold you backward. Another foreign company could release a great new technological advancement and it would be impossible for China Unicom to get their hands on it. The Third Giant: China Telecom -What actions do you think China Telecom should take, given the competitive position of the CMHK-Vodafone and China Unicom-SK Telecom partnership? The telecommunication market in China has been quite homogeneous so far. Looking for foreign partnership could be a way to get a hand on advanced technology or management system that would give the firm a competitive advantage over their competitors, especially since the two other leading companies already stepped forward by accepting foreign investment. With that in mind, China Telecom should get into a serious search for a foreign partner in order to keep up with the competition. But what if those foreign partnerships were not as successful as planned? In fact, in September 2010, Vodafone sold their 3.2% stakes in China Mobile, pocketing $6.5 billion which is nearly twice the original investment4. After the sale, CMHK and Vodafone will continue to cooperate in areas such as roaming, network roadmap development, multinational customers, and green technology and so on  [10]  . Vodafone left with a profit and the alliance stayed but most of the cooperation died in the separation process. What about China Unicom and SK Telecom? Well in November 2009, the Korean firm sold the whole 3.8% stake of China Unicom to unknown buyer(s). SKT also earned more than 50% of their initial investment but abandoned their business plans in China. China Unicom dropped CDMA business, which was SKTs main strength, and absorbed China Netcoms GSM part and decided to focus on GSM. However, SKT is continuing cooperation in technology and conversion service area.  [11]   Accepting foreign investment is not a definite key to success. As said before, China used to be a quite closed and homogeneous market, so as the customers. Outsiders may have a hard time to understand how to conduct business in China and how to understand the needs of its people. In brief, the most important is for the host company to analyze how foreign firm could help them in their actual market and if the fusion can be done efficiently. Surely in a few years there will be a lot of success story in the telecommunication firm in China, but for now China Telecom is better not to jump on the first offering.

Comparison Between the Play and Movie Versions of Death and the Maiden :: English Literature

Comparison Between the Play and Movie Versions of Death and the Maiden There is a significant difference between the play and movie versions of Death and the Maiden. The movie version emphasizes visual and sound effects, while the play highlights the importance of language. The movie version starts by playing a section from Schubert’s quartet Death and the Maiden. After the melodious music, viewers immediately see and hear lightening outside a small house as well as ocean waves clash against rocks. This contrast not only shocks the viewers, it also prepares them for the upcoming â€Å"action† in the movie. However, the play presents a different perspective. There are only two sentences that cover the above scene, â€Å"Sound of the sea. After midnight.† This simple language will generate imaginations inside readers’ mind and let them create their own movies. The movie version adds more stage directions to create an additional dramatic situation. We first saw Paulina cooking in the kitchen while listening to the radio. She then hears from the radio that Gerardo Escobar has been selected to be the head of the commission. She immediately drops the knife and walks out of the kitchen furiously. However, the above situation does not actually exist in the play Death and the Maiden. The play states that Paulina was sitting in a chair drinking before she heard a car stopped in front of her beach house. The movie version gives viewers evidences that Paulina knew Gerardo Escobar and was not happy about him being the head of the commission. The movie also adds a dialogue between Gerardo Escobar and Roberto Miranda. The main focus in the dialogue is the same as the â€Å"monologue† by Gerardo in the play. However, we can learn from the dialogue that a guy named Roberto Miranda helped Gerardo to get home. We can also tell from Paulina’s facial expression that she was shocked to hear Miranda’s voice. I like the added stage directions in the movie because it made me became very curious about what is going to happen next. The play’s beginning was no as interesting as the movie’s. I also liked the acting in the movie.

Tiger Mom Essay

In reading â€Å"Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mom† by Amy Chua, I was surprised how Chua shared in detail about her life journey as a parent and raising two children. This is a book about Amy Chua’s experiences in raising her two daughters, Sophia and Luisa (Lulu), in what she believes is the â€Å"Chinese mother† style of parenting. She is quick to point out in the first chapter, entitled â€Å"The Chinese Mother,† that she uses the term â€Å"loosely† as it would be ridiculous to try to assume that every mother from China is a like a tiger mom.Just as â€Å"Western parents† would not be an appropriate label to place on every parent from Western countries. In this same chapter she references a study where â€Å"50 Western American mothers and 48 Chinese immigrant mothers† were polled on the role of parents in children’s academic success; with â€Å"70% of Western mothers believed ‘stressing academic success is not good for t he children’ or ‘parents need to foster the idea that learning is fun’† versus nearly â€Å"0% of the Chinese mothers felt the same way.† Although she states there are several studies that support this theory, I would not put too much credence in this particular study since the pool is too small and there are a lot of â€Å"Western American mothers† with different style of parenting. A â€Å"Western American mother† can be from as far west as Hawaii or from as northeast as Maine; then there is everyone in between.She also gives us a list of what a Chinese mother’s belief system entails: â€Å"schoolwork always comes first; an A-minus is a bad grade; your children must be two years ahead of their classmates in math; you must never compliment your children in public; if your child ever disagrees with a teacher or coach, you must always take the side of the teacher or coach; (6) the only activities your children should be permitted to do are those in which they can eventually medal; and that medal must be gold. † This list seems a little extreme to me, but I guess it just depends on what you are brought up to believe is the norm.When you do not know anything different, this is normal, expected and accepted. As I began to read the book, I quickly realized Amy Chua is very pro â€Å"Chinese† parenting style. In chapter four, â€Å"The Chuas,† she described how her and her sisters were to speak only in Chinese in the home; â€Å"drilled math and piano everyday;† and they were not allowed to attend sleepovers at friends’ homes. Yet, she also tells of the time when she forged her father signature in order to apply to a school in the East Coast after her father had already said she was going to attend the University of California at Berkeley, where he was a professor.Here I saw a bit of a rebellion, which she will come to see later in the book with her daughter Lulu. Throughout the book, I saw many examples of how Chua compared â€Å"Chinese† parenting to â€Å"Western† parenting. This is especially true in chapter 10, â€Å"Teeth Marks and Bubbles. † She tells the story of how she had called her eldest daughter, Sophia, garbage for something Chua believed to be â€Å"extremely disrespectful†, although she never mentioned the offense. She says her father had called her the same thing when she was disrespectful to her mother. However, according to her, it did not damage her self-esteem.However, when she retold this story at friend’s dinner party, she was immediately looked upon with disdain and felt shunned by those around her. She goes on stating the three big differences between the mindsets of Chinese and Western parents. First, Western parents worry about a child’s self-esteem and are more concerned with the child’s psyche, whereas Chinese parents don’t. Chinese parents â€Å"assume strength, not fra gility, and as a result they behave very differently. † Second, Chinese parents feel their children should be indebted to them for the sacrifices the parents made on their children’s behalf.Therefore, they â€Å"must spend their lives repaying their parents by obeying them and making them proud. † Most Western parents do not feel the need to apply that same pressure on their children. Third, Chua claims Chinese parents believe they know what is best for their children and feel entitled to supersede all of their children’s choices and/or decisions. In this particular instance, I believe a most parents, not only Chinese parents, believe they know what is best for their children. Chinese parents take it a step further and do not allow choices for their children, whereas Western parents do allow their child to have choices.Although Chua argues in favor of the Chinese parenting style, she is merely stating the differences between the two approaches and the one she prefers. She lets us into her world and walks us through her trials and tribulations with the â€Å"Chinese mother† approach she elected to follow. Where this style of parenting had worked with her and her sisters and to some extent her eldest daughter, Sophia, however Lulu was not so accepting. Near the end of the book, specifically in Chapter 31 â€Å"Red Square,† everything comes to a boil as she has, yet, another fight with Lulu at the GUM cafe.After the fight, Chua runs away into the Red Square to be with her thoughts, then has an epiphany and realizes that Lulu was rebelling against her and her â€Å"Chinese mother† style of parenting. When she returns to the cafe, she informs Lulu that she had won and she would be allowed to make her own choices and quit the violin. Do I favor this type of parenting? The style of parenting Chua describes in her memoir is that of an authoritarian parenting style, which â€Å"emphasizes high standards and a tendency to control kids through shaming, the withdrawal of love, or punishments† (http://www.parentingscience. com/chinese-parenting. html).This style I do not agree with. In fact, according to Dr. Gwen Dewar, â€Å"authoritarian parenting is linked with lower levels of self-control, more emotional problems, and lower academic performance. † Dr. Dewar is more in favor of an authoritative parenting that involves the same emphasizes of high standards, but also involves â€Å"parental warmth and a commitment to reason with children† (http://www. parentingscience. com/chinese-parenting. html).There is nothing wrong with wanting the best for your children, wanting them to succeed and instilling a hard-work ethic and providing guidance, however it should not be at the expense of the child’s psychological well being. Even though it looks like Chua’s daughter, Sophia, had benefited from this style of parenting, they may just begin to realize they could have possibly achieved the same results without the extreme harassment. Only time will tell if Chua’s daughters will end up resenting her as her father ended up resenting and detaching himself from his family after disagreeing with his authoritarian mother.Especially Lulu, who was the most difficult one. As stated in the beginning, this is a book on how a â€Å"Chinese mother† style of parenting was used by Amy Chua and the results she had with this style. Although, I may not agree with all of the aspects of this style, it does have its pros; such as wanting your child to the best that they can be and its cons; such as the belittling of a child can never be good. This was never intended to be a â€Å"How to Guide† to parent your children, as Chua stated in an interview after the book was released (http://abcnews. go.com/US/tiger-mother-amy-chua-death-threats-parenting-essay/story? id=12628830).Chua has received a lot criticism from many people, but I agree with her, this is n ot a guide to parent a child. The reason being is that each child is unique in its own way. What may be a good approach for one, it not necessarily good for another. As she acknowledged in her book, â€Å"When Chinese parenting succeeds, there’s nothing like it. But it doesn’t always succeed. † However, at the end of the day you make the decision you feel is right for you and your family and adjust, as needed, as you go along.

Katherine Stocked, The Help Analysis Essays

Katherine Stocked, The Help Analysis Essays Katherine Stocked, The Help Analysis Essay Katherine Stocked, The Help Analysis Essay My thoughts on this book was that I thought It could have been more interesting, but it felt very realistic. Another thought on this book was it was very dramatic in its own ways. With Miss Hilly getting everybody to turn on Skitter and Skitter having to deal with all the cold shoulders. What this book says about people in general (theme) is that everyone has there own problems and will react deferent ways to every situation. The way the white women In the book react to the help using their toilets, acting Like they have a disease. 99% of all colored diseases are carried In the urine. Compared throughout the story it seems like they start to somewhat respect the help, except the nest who helped write the book. Today we respect catheter a lot more than we did back then. Over all I would say that what this book says about people in general is that the way people react to one thing will differ from the other. The main characters In this book are Skitter, Albanian, and Mainly. The way Skitter changes Is a good change. She starts to look at the world around her and see all the problems In it. Its Like she Isnt blinded from the fake reality that everything Is fine and sees all the problems that are happening. Kind of like she had a reality check and found out that her maid had died, her best friend is a diva, that her mother is going to die from cancer, and the people she can only really turn to is the help which is basically against their laws. Abilene doesnt change at all. If anything she opens up more after writing the book with Skitter. Other than that she has not changed. Mainly has become strong enough to actually leave her husband. If she was strong before she just might be invincible now. Ninny hasnt changed much she just as even more courage than before. The author, Katherine Stocked, has been somewhat successful in creating a good piece of literature. I feel like she was trying to target the Juniors when in reality it targeted the adults. This was a slow read so it was very hard for me to keep interest In this book. Other than that she has produced an excellent book. It has very realistic scenes that may have happened In 1962-1964. For routines added to make this a good point of view type book. I feel like the author has done an outstanding Job on making this book a success.

Pollution in Bangladesh essays

Pollution in Bangladesh essays Bangladesh is apparently now in the grip of all sorts of pollution, like air pollution, soil pollution, water pollution and what not. Dwellers of the urban areas are the worst sufferers. The indiscriminate industrialization process in Bangladesh over the past decades has created significant environmental problems. Among the most significant is the enormous volume of solid waste which is being produced every day but not be disposed properly. The mismanagement of the solid wasted, particularly the polythene shopping bag has caused serious threat to the soil, public health, and drainage system in the cities. The drainage system is about to collapse, About five to six feet of polythene layers have developed at places at the bottom of many rivers and other water bodies. As a non-biodegradable environmental hazard it has already wreaked havoc in public sanitation, not to speak of the irreparable damage its further use could inevitably bring to our life system. Environmental Engineering deals with the study of the technical processes, which can be used for minimizing pollution and environmental impact. Environmental engineering creates the capability of practical application of environmental studies in the real life. The Environmental engineers must play unique rolls to identify the aspects of various environmental issues, emphasize on studying the problem and create public awareness to conserve the environment. The protection of the environment from the potentially deterious effects of human activity, the protection of human populations from the effects of adverse environmental factors, and the improvement of environmental quality for human health and well being are the major concerns of environmental engineering. Hence the polythene plight also must be a distinct cause of action for environmental engineering and its various sides should be dealt from the socio-economic point of view. On the 1st of March 2002 The Govt. banned the ...

Managing Personal and Organisational Changes Essay

Managing Personal and Organisational Changes - Essay Example This means that management and change skills will determine the nature of actions taken by a manager in dynamic situations. From a theoretical perspective, change management needs substantial utilisation of appropriate planning and implementation tools. According to Dobson and Woodward (2012), failure to employ appropriate techniques in managing change results in underachievement, and shortcomings resulting from missed objectives. Therefore, leaders and individuals involved in change management should be thoroughly equipped with relevant knowledge or experience. Relevant knowledge is usually available in college and university course works involving change management. In this regard, change management theories find significant application even in practical situations. Change management takes into consideration numerous aspects of organisational structure and typical cultures. Organisations comprise employees, stakeholders and consumers of either products or services. These parties ar e usually sensitive to changes that may affect their part in the organisation. On the other hand, organisations need to adjust and adapt to changing business environments in order to cope with new developments. ... In such cases, a leader should possess relevant professional skills coupled with intuitive personal skills in order to manage change. Change processes are systematic and sensitive situations that require thorough analysis of underlying problems. Careful analysis ensures that managers can objectively identify the need for change, and the processes meant to achieve desired changes. In this context, any objective change should be rational, measurable and achievable. Analysis of Case Study After planning change steps, organisational managers will have to depend on employees to implement desired adjustments. In this regard, managers need to objectively analyse imminent situations and communicate findings to the subordinates and stakeholders. Cameron (2004) states that thorough analysis will enable people to understand the need for change; hence they can participate in creating new structures. At this juncture, this essay seeks to demonstrate the application of change management theories a nd models within practical situations. In September 2012, universities in England had plans to raise tuition fees to approximately ?9,000 annually. These plans raged amid tremendous budget slices by the government to institutions of higher learning. The UK government is encouraging universities across the nation including Scottish, Welch and Irish institutions to consider raising their tuition fees. This plan is in line with the government’s strategy of striving to reduce utilisation of taxpayer’s money in learning practices, and in turn leave the burden with the student population. In the past, government allowed English universities to charge approximately ?3,300 per year. In this context, it is evident that new charges of ?9,000 amount to a major change

Facilities Management Programmes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Facilities Management Programmes - Essay Example At the same time, the government has also been committed to the provision of better services in the health, transport, education and other key sectors. In addition, the economies of scale have forced many companies to outsource the services of other companies, and have been observed across the board, for both the private and the public sectors (Wood 2007). The emphasis here of course, has been a need to have growth in such sectors as education, healthcare and utilities. The government too has largely been credited for the outsourcing programmes in the public sector, in a quest to improve and upgrade accommodation, housing and other related services. To this end, the design, finance, build and operate contracting has especially found use in hospitals and schools (CFM 2002). The upgrading and support services provision of outmoded facilities has also not been left out. Given the needs as well as the projected growth of the facilities market in the united kingdom, it is only in order that there be qualified and well trained property managers who will comfortably handle such issue as space design and management, the procurement of facilities, the computation and analysis of facilities costs, as well as the handling of taxation of the same (Chapman 2008). With the rapid rise in technology, and the bar in the ma... rs, it is also important that those managers receives the latest training on computer-aided management of facilities, so as to keep abreast with the dynamic changes in the sector. The onus is on the administrators of the institutions of higher learning in the United Kingdom that offers course if facilities or property management to ensure that their graduates receive training that in s in line with the market requirements (CFM 2002). Otherwise, there is every possibility that they will not only be overtaken by technological changes, but also that they may not impact positively as future property managers. 2. Problem statement The prevailing global credit crunch has especially handed the property market a serious blow. Owing to the numerous losses that these clients may have suffered, there is every need for the industry to ensure that they win back the confidence of the consumers. At the same time, the housing market and the real estate businesses are progressing fast against a backdrop of reducing building space (CFM 2002). This has thus ensured that the property procurement protocols have become more compels by the day. Globalization has also ensured that investors put their money in diversified locations whose property rules differ, and this means that a property managers has to keep abreast with the advances in development of the industry. For this reason, there is a need that the institutions of learning are able to tailor their programmes to suit the need of the market (Nutt & McLennan 2000). Furthermore, clients are becoming sophisticated by the day, while competition in the facilities management demands astute management skills, prompting the industry to seek out shrewd property managers who cab be able to wither the storm (Graham & Price 2000). The

Development of the motorways and its impact on the society Essay

Development of the motorways and its impact on the society - Essay Example otorways were constructed to fit into a maze of road networks that link major parts of Britain by road and aid high speed transportation throughout the country. Roads are important components of the development of any nation. The Romans and Chinese Empires relied on roads, which became the bases for motorways almost two millenia after they were started (Needham & Gwei-Djen, 1962). Roads were really vital for each empire in history. In comparative studies, Needham & Gwei-Djen identified that the Aztec empire of Mexico collapsed rapidly because they did not have a network of roads. However, the longevity of the Chinese Empire and the development of European nations is strongly linked to the development of a sophisticated network of roads. 3. It enabled the trading activities of the empire to go on smoothly because it ensured that goods were moved from different points of the Roman empire with ease. This enabled the exchange of goods and ensured the fair development of different parts of the Roman empire over a sustained period of time. Although the Roman roads are quite archaic, it formed the basis for the development of motorways as we have them today. The roads in the Roman Empire started as primitive unpaved roads however, with the increase of traffic on certain roads, there was the need for the infrastructure to be improved to enable the easy movement of persons and goods (Van Tilburg, 2002). This gave way for the development of the paved road-system which is replicated in the construction of motorways (Van Tilburg, 2002). The paved road-system effectively increased the width of roads, supported the integration of engineering constructions like bridges, dams and tunnels into roads and laid the foundation for the development of infrastructure in the Middle Ages (Van Tilburg, 2002). These roads were used by individuals and animal-drawn carts. When cars became popular in the 1900s, there was the need to modify the old road systems to ensure that they could be

“Complete, trusting surrender to God” Essay Example for Free

â€Å"Complete, trusting surrender to God† Essay Although the Qur’an, its sacred text, was only revealed to their Prophet Muhammad more than five centuries after the death of Christ, Muslims trace the beginnings of Islam to the time of Abraham. According to them, the series of revelations of the Qur’an which started in 610 CE in a cave in Mount Hira, Mecca, Saudi Arabia, marked only the renaissance of a religion which sank into insignificance when the people of Mecca rejected the monotheism preached by Abraham. The Islamic claim further states that being the original religion, it provided the foundations for the development of Judaism and Christianity. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Since the time of the first revelation in Mount Hira, Islam has rapidly grown to become the second-largest religious denomination in the world, next only to Christianity, claiming a following of almost twenty percent of the world’s population. However, its growth has been temporarily slowed down, particularly in the United States, by the effects of the American war against terrorism which is evidently directed against Muslims. This U. S. -orchestrated anti-terrorism war, coupled with the dearth of knowledge about Islam, has severely alienated the Muslims from the rest of the non-Muslim world. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Yusuf (n. d. ) said that majority of the Muslims are convinced that while the U. S. government has been blaming terrorism on Islam for years, it was the 9/11 incident which dealt the most telling blow on the credibility and reputation of their religion. This was because the international media was able to depict that many Muslims around the world rejoiced after that incident. The truth is, however, that majority of the Muslim world was saddened by that incident and the repercussions it caused. They would like to tell the world that terrorism is not an official policy of Islam and that, in fact, Muslims also consider terrorists as enemies of their religion. He laments the fact that When a crazy Christian does something terrible, everyone in the West knows it is the actions of a mad man because they have some knowledge of the core beliefs and ethics of Christianity. When a mad Muslim does something evil or foolish they assume it is from the religion of Islam, not because they hate us but because they have never been told by a Muslim what the teachings of Islam are all about. Muslims are also complaining about the way non-Muslims always confuse them with Arabs. According to them, while most Arabs are Muslims, less than 20% of Muslims have Arab blood. (Almuslimin. org) Allah is the only authority of this religion. Muhammad was only the messenger and prophet with whom he entrusted the sacred texts called the Qur’an in a series of revelations and who, three years after the first revelation occurred, preached them to the people according to his instruction and his will. However, Muhammad was the role model for all Muslims. His life story and his sayings were saved in the Hadith for every Muslim to learn from and emulate. The central teachings of Islam are oneness of God and of humanity; prophethood and the compass of Islam; human relationship to the divine; belief in the unseen life; and belief in the Last Judgment. (Fisher, 2005. Islam) Islam teaches that there is only one God. This is why the first words spoken to a Muslim infant are the words of the Shahadah – â€Å"la ilaha ill-Allah Muhammad-un Rasulu-llah† (â€Å"There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God†). God may be called by many names, but all the attributes assigned to those different names make up the totality of the One God. They contend that there must be absolute unity among all men of all races because they are all brothers under the one God, and no one race should consider itself the chosen race. Islam teaches that the individual should be one with God, therefore his or her thoughts and deeds should always be inspired by God. This oneness of God and of humanity was very emphatically expressed by Abu Hashim Madami, an Indian Sufi sage, when he said that â€Å"There is only one thing to be gained in life, and that is to remember God with each breath; and there is only one loss in life, and that is the breath drawn without the remembrance of God. † (Fisher. 2005. Islam, p. 373) All the prophets from Abraham to Jesus Christ are honored, but they maintain that Muhammad was the last prophet sent by God with the final message. This means, therefore, that the Qur’an sums up all the messages from God so Islam should include all religions, including Christianity and Judaism which also trace their roots to Abraham. They believe that God created the universe for a purpose and set down laws to govern everything. For this reason, man could live in peace only if he recognizes these laws and abide by them. They accept the existence of the angels, especially Gabriel, whom they credit with bringing the messages of God. They believe that Satan exists just as they believe that there are saints. For them, the Last Judgment means that dead Muslims are allowed some rest before being raised from the grave for the final reckoning, after which the sinners and the unbelievers are sent to hell. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Their basic practices consist of what they call the Five Pillars of Islam, namely: Beliefs and witness; Daily prayers; Zakat; Fasting; and Hajj. Every Muslim, without resorting to the use of force or intimidation, are obliged to spread the words of Islam so that other people may know about it, understand it, and use the knowledge to guide them in choosing their faith. Prayers should be recited five times a day while facing the direction of Mecca. It is believed that requiring every Muslim to face Mecca symbolizes unity among the devotees of Islam around the world, while the daily prayer emphasizes Islam’s teaching that every Muslim should remember God everyday of his or her life. Zakat, the third pillar, means â€Å"spiritual tithing and almsgiving. † Muslims are enjoined to help the poor by donating part of their annual income to charities of their choice. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, for example, channels its contribution through the Islamic Relief Organization which aids people around the world regardless of their religion. Every year, the first Qur’anic revelation is celebrated with a month-long fasting called Ramadan. All able Muslims are required to abstain from â€Å"food, drink, sexual intercourse, and smoking† from dawn to dusk. Although fasting during Ramadan is an obligation, fasting, per se, is advised from time to time because it provides an individual with â€Å"a Transparent Soul to Transcend, a Clear Mind to think and a Light Body to move and act. † The last Pillar – the hajj – is a pilgrimage which is expected of every Muslim who is financially and physically capable even only once during their lifetime. Their pilgrimage destination is Mecca, where their holiest sanctuary, the Ka’bah, is located. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Muhammad, whose name was taken from the Arabic word hamada which means â€Å"to praise, to glorify,† was born in Mecca, Western Arabia, in 570 CE to Abd bin Al-Muttalib and Amina bint Wahb. (Kikim Media. n. d. ) His parents were believed to be descendants of Abraham and Hagar, the Egyptian slave who mothered Abraham’s son, Ishmael. The story goes that Abraham fled to Mecca with Hagar and Ishmael after his wife, Sarah, also gave birth to a baby boy (Isaac) and became extremely jealous of Hagar and Ishmael. Abraham later built the Ka’bah, Islam’s holiest sanctuary and now the destination of pilgrims during the hajj, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, with the assistance of his son, Ishmael. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) The birth, life, and death of Muhammad impacted the world of Islam differently. His birth in 570 CE also signaled the rebirth of Islam which sank into obscurity for centuries when the people of Mecca rejected Abraham’s monotheistic Qur’an religion. His life as a preacher which began three years after the start of the revelations resulted to a rejuvenated Muslim world. The flight of the Muslims to Medina (or the hijrah) which he orchestrated in order for them to escape persecution from the hands of the Qurayshites of Mecca was what strengthened Islam as soon as they had settled in Medina. This later enabled them to raise a strong army to capture Mecca from the Qurayshites. However, while he re-established Mecca as the holy sanctuary of Islam, Muhammad himself chose to live in Medina. While his birth signaled the rebirth of Islam and his life rejuvenated their religion, his death in 632 CE in Medina caused a split in the Muslim world between what we now call the Shi’a and Sunni Muslims because of the issue of succession. Most of the surviving Muslims believed that although Muhammad was able to tell his followers what to do after his death, he failed to appoint his successor. Thus, the majority decided to settle the issue of succession by election. However, there was a minority group who insisted that it was not true that Muhammad did not name his successor because of a report that some weeks before he died, Muhammad held his son-in-law ‘Ali’s hand and uttered the following words: â€Å"Whoever I protect, ‘Ali is also his protector. O God, be a friend to whoever is his friend and an enemy to whoever is his enemy. † (Fisher. 2005. Islam, p. 380) The issue of succession was ultimately decided according to the wishes of the majority – by election – but the two factions have never reconciled up to this day. The Shi’a Muslims now form the majority faction in Iran, while the Sunnis are the majority in â€Å"Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, northern African countries, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Central Asian countries of the former Soviet Union, and Indonesia. † (page 378) Their place of worship is called a mosque. When I interviewed Bonsan Go, a student from Indonesia, he described a basic mosque as A square building with a small box-type space in front which serves as an extension. It has a dome on the center-top of the main building and a turret or a small ornamented tower or a tower-shaped projection on another building. Inside, you will fine a division (usually a length of fabric) which separates men from the women. There are no tables, chairs, or figurines inside the mosque. I thought, maybe, Mr. Go described a traditional mosque which used to be an Islamic architecture with a dome and one or two minarets. However, the more recent ones especially those constructed in the United States have chosen to go without the dome and the minarets. The more modern mosques have also done away with the curtain-like division which separates the men from the women. I have located one such mosque in Urbana, Illinois. A photo of this mosque is shown below: This is the Central Illinois Mosque and Islamic Center at 106 S. Lincoln, Urbana, Illinois. It is unmistakably an Islamic architecture with the arches found in front, but without the dome and minarets of olden mosques. Their website (http://www. prairienet. org/cimic/) announces that the mosque holds congregational prayers five times during the day, the first session being at 5:45 in the morning and the last at 7:30 in the evening. The center also offers Arabic classes and is open to visitors any day. CIMIC Newsletter is published bimonthly. In my interview with Bonsan Go, I was able to gain some insights on how a lay Muslim understands and practices Islam. About the hajj, Mr. Go describes it as the â€Å"symbol of unity between the Muslim Ummah and the Oneness of Mankind. † According to him, this has to be done at least once in a lifetime and is very important because it is one of the five pillars of Islam. He said that the hajj is obligatory for all Muslims who can afford it financially and physically. It is also important that the money spent for the hajj comes from hard work and not from corruption. He also talked about the Sunnis and Shi’ites. He described the Sunnis as following the teachings of Muhammad, imitating his every actions and words while the Shi’ites believe that Hadhrat Ali was the real successor to Muhammad because he belonged to the family of Muhammad. He further said that the Shi’ites call their leader an imam while the Sunnis call their leader a caliph, just like they do in Indonesia where the great majority of the Muslims are Sunnis. On the question of marriage, he said that a Muslim is not obliged to have several wives. However, once a man decides to do so, he can only marry as much as four times and he is required to treat all of them equally and see to it that all his wives maintain harmonious relationships all around. The Muslims, according Mr. Go, have never worshipped Muhammad. It is Allah that they give praise to. He considers it very disturbing that most people tend to equate the position of Muhammad with the one who created him. He said that to worship Muhammad instead of Allah is considered a great sin in Islam. On jihad, this was what he said: â€Å"Jihad is not a declaration of war against the enemies of Islam but a striving and a struggle in the path of God. Commitment to God involves commitment to sacrifice one’s time, energy and wealth to promote the right cause. It may be necessary at times to give one’s life in order to preserve TRUTH. † Before we parted ways, he told me that he is deeply saddened by the war on terror being waged by the United States and is targeted at Muslims. He said that the U. S. government has categorized all Muslims as terrorists and as such, must not be trusted. He said that the claim that Islam, as a religion, supports the activities of terrorists is definitely not true because even a Muslim like him hates terrorists. In the study of the beliefs and teachings of Islam and Christianity, Fisher (2005) has shown us the similarities between the two religions. They are both monotheistic, they have their own prophets (Jesus and Muhammad), and both religions trace their roots to Abraham. Islam and Christianity teach their followers to treat their fellowmen with fairness and both religions profess anti-violence sentiments. The Muslims are making this especially clear at every opportunity, enough reason for them to feel very badly towards the U. S. -led anti-terror war. The central beliefs of Islam are also very identical to the central beliefs of Christianity: they both believe in the brotherhood of men, in the angels, saints, even in Satan, and in the Last Judgment. If a split occurred between the Shi’a and Sunni Muslims after the death of Muhammad, a great schism likewise rocked the Christian world when the Roman Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox Church parted ways in 1054. Sadly, however, Fisher has also shown us that both Islam and Christianity have chosen the options of wars of aggression and occupations during the early days for the purpose of spreading their doctrines and widen their spheres of influence. (Fisher. 2005. Christianity; Islam) However, if Fisher (2005) has shown that Islam and Christianity have many similarities, they also differ in some aspects. The first difference is rather basic. While Islam revolves around Allah as its God and only authority, Christianity, as a faith, is based â€Å"on the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of Jesus. † Muslims disagree with Christians in this regard. They do not believe that Jesus is a son of God. To them, Jesus, like Muhammad, was only a prophet and messenger of God. Another glaring difference between the two religions occurred in connection with the death of Jesus and Muhammad. While Muhammad died peacefully in his bed because of some illness, his death divided the Muslim world into the Shi’a and the Sunni Muslims. Jesus, on the other hand, died a violent death (he was tortured and crucified), but his death strengthened and unified his people. (Fisher. 2005. Christianity; Islam). References Almuslimin. org. (n. d. ). Who Is Muhammad? (Retrieved March 9, 2007 from:http://drupalmalaysia. org/Islam/Muhammad) CIMIC. (n. d. ). Central Illinois Mosque and Islamic Center. (Retrieved March 5, 2007 from: http://www. prairienet. org/cimic/) Fisher, M. P. (2005). Christianity. Living Religions, Sixth Edition (pp. 284-361). Prentice-Hall. Fisher, M. P. (2005). Islam. Living Religions, Sixth Edition (pp, 362-416). Prentice-Hall. Kikim Media. (n. d. ). The Life of Muhammad. (Retrieved March 5, 2007 from: http://www. pbs. org/muhammad/timeline. html. shtml) Yusuf, S. H. (n. d. ). A Time for Introspection. (Retrieved March 9, 2007 from: http://www. masud. co. uk/ISLAM/misc/shhamza_sep11. htm) .