Economics Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Economics - Assignment Example When firms spend less money on expansion, they are infusing fewer funds into the economy which leads to slow economic growth. Stock market crash causes job losses and this highly impacts the economy. During recession firms tend to cut operation costs by firing workers. With less money to spend consumers will not afford durable and luxury items. Hence, unemployment in the long run negatively impact the consumer durable and real estate sectors of economy since it lead to fall in prices in commercial and real estate sectors. Additionally, when investor’s money is lost as result of stock market crash, they tend to spend less. This in essence leads to low consumer spending which negatively affects the economy. Immediately following the attack on the US on 11 Sept 2001, the stock markets plunged and many observers expected a recession in the US (and possibly elsewhere). Using the AD-AS model, explain their prediction. There are reasons that led many observers to predict a recession in the US when the stock markets plunged. Stocks are pieces of ownership in a firm and thus the stock markets are indicator of shareholders’ confidence in the future earnings of these firms. Corporate earnings depend on the stability of country’s economic standing and therefore stock markets reflect how a country is economically stable. Their crash reflects a loss of confidence in the economy and if not restored it leads to recession. This due to the fact that the stock markets crash lead to a fall in aggregate demand (AD) (demand side shock) as a result of less wealth for consumers. In addition, it implies less financing for new projects, since trading of stocks is one way that firms raise funds required to expand. They also predicted a recession in US economy because declining stock markets can kick-start a rise in oil prices which would increase the cost of manufacturing and this in

Difference between Mac and PC Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Difference between Mac and PC - Essay Example In this article, Rob delineates the differences between Mac and PC in detail to enable the potential buyers to decide upon the computer that satisfactorily fulfils their requirements. This free video available on the above-mentioned web page deals with the differences between PC and Mac computers. The anchorperson who explains the advantages that Mac has over PC is a certified computer technician who perfectly knows what he is talking about. My project was pertaining to the differences between PC and Mac computers. The given project introduced me to the intricacies of both the PC and Mac computers. Though, I was initially aware of some of the differences that existed in the two computers, pursuing this project made my knowledge more in-depth, elaborate and thorough. After accomplishing this project, I feel more confident and proud. It is a surprise that in today’s techno savvy world, though people freely use technology in their day- to-day life, there are only a few who actually know about the features inherent in a given technology. Such shallow approach towards technological understanding definitely has a negative impact on the proficiency with which a technology could be used. Before deciding between choosing a PC or a Mac computer, it is important for a user to understand one’s needs and requirements. Both the technologies have their unique strengths and weaknesses. People mostly do not know that if they are not interested in gaming, Mac decisively offers several advantages over PC. This project has not only refined my research skills, but has also made me more interested in special differences existing between two competing technologies. This newfound interest will go a long way in helping me make the best use of the available technologies under different

Cognitive- behavioural approaches to counselling Essay Example for Free

Cognitive- behavioural approaches to counselling Essay This essay is written to compare the counselling relationship in person-centred and cognitive-behavioural counselling by outlining both the theory and practice of the counselling relationship. This will be done by outlining the theory of the counselling relationships and the theory in practice. Both person-centred and cognitive-behavioural counselling are widely recognised, successful treatments. There are however many significant differences between the two. Cognitive-behavioural therapy is based on scientific study taking two therapies, cognitive therapy and behavioural therapy, and combining the two. Behavioural therapy is based on the fact that people can learn behaviours through classical conditioning, which was first recorded by Ivan Pavlov at the end of the nineteenth century, and operant conditioning (Skinner, 1953. ) Therapists believed what the behavioural therapists were helping their clients to do, such as encouraging self- assertion and self-understanding to help develop new approaches to dealing with life, incorporate a wide range of cognitive processes including decision-making and problem-solving. Beck (1976) founded cognitive-behavioural therapy after becoming disillusioned by psychoanalytic methods. (McLeod J. 008) Person-centred counselling is a non-scientific therapy developed by Carl Rogers in the 1940s and 1950s. It is a humanistic approach where it is believed that the client needs to feel valued and understood for them to be able to develop a self-awareness so they are able to deal with any difficult situation they feel they are in, giving them the power to change their own lives. Person-centred therapy is non-direct approach where the therapist and client develop an equal friendship to develop trust between the two, creating a safe therapeutic environment which enables the client to figure out what makes them the way they are. When the client begins to trust their feelings and become emotionally confident they can begin to find the answers to their own problems within themselves. For this to happen a core conditions model is in place. Without these conditions this type of therapy would not be effective (Rogers, C. 1957. ) Therapist-Client Psychological Contact- A relationship which two people have impact on each other and the therapist needs to be engaged by the client. Client incongruence, or Vulnerability- The client needs to be in a state of incongruence, feel that their real self is not how they would ideally like be. The client is also vulnerable to anxiousness which means they will be motivated stay in the relationship. (McLeod, J. 2008) Therapist Congruence or Genuineness- The therapist needs to be congruent within the therapeutic relationship- needs to be genuine in dealing with the client and use their own experience to enable the relationship. Unconditional Positive Regard- The therapist needs to have unconditional positive regard for the client. Acceptance, empathy and genuineness without judgement, is needed for the client to feel a higher sense of self-regard so they can realise that their self-worth was distorted by others. The therapist needs to accept the client for who they are now, not what they could become. Empathetic understanding- accurate empathy on behalf of the therapist can help the client believe that the therapist has unconditional love for them. Client Perception- If the therapist communicates to the client their unconditional regard and empathetic understanding to at least a minimal degree this is effective. In contrast cognitive-behavioural therapy is a direct approach where clients are taught how to think and behave in ways in which enables them to obtain their goals. They are not told what it is they want, but instead how to achieve the goals they may have this develops a student (client) and teacher (therapist) relationship. In order for this to be successful, intervention techniques are used to ensure that the goals agreed with the client is met. (Haaga and Davison1986, Meichenbaum 1986) These include; Systematic desensitization- a relaxation technique is taught to help the client to overcome anxiety to enable them to extinguish their phobias. Once this has been learnt the client must use this to enable them to overcome these by using a fear hierarchy. Homework assignments- practicing techniques learnt in therapy between sessions. Experimenting with different self- statements in everyday situations. Thought stopping- instead of letting anxious thought take over the client learns to use something to interrupt these thoughts such as flicking a rubber band on their wrist. Challenging irrational beliefs- the therapist tries to identify the clients’ irrational beliefs that are causing issues in their life and challenges it so that the client develops a less extreme way they view the problem. Reframing the issues getting the client to perceive a certain emotion as something different. An example of this is perceiving fear as excitement. In vivo exposure- going into highly fearful situations with the therapist whilst they are talking through cognitive-behavioural techniques to help you deal with the situation. Scaling feelings- placing present feeling of anxiety and rating them on a scale off 0-100 is an example of this. Rehearsing different self-statements in role-play in therapy sessions. Assertiveness or social skills training. Although a therapeutic relationship is important in both practices, cognitive -behavioural therapists believe this is not sufficient enough alone to help clients work through their problems, and while many therapists have different styles the main cognitive behavioural therapy programme have an outlined structure in place. (Kuehnel and Liberman 1986; Freeman and Simon 1989,) which is the main focus. Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy is more client action orientated to produce a change in the way they think which then will lead to a change in the way the client will behave. However in Person-centred therapy a therapeutic process is put in place as a series of stages. These stages help promote a therapeutic change in the client or a â€Å"process of greater openness to experience† (McLeod, J. 2008. ) (Rogers, C. 1951) considered the management of therapeutic growth as including the awareness of the clients of any experiences they have been denied. They stop seeing the world in a generalised view and begin to see it differently. This enables them to rely on their personal experience to create their own set of values. These personal developments lead to a â€Å"reorganization of self† (Rogers, C. 1951) and is vital to develop new behaviours. In conclusion although both approaches to counselling realise that a counselling relationship is important, person-centred therapists believe that the counselling experience and effectiveness of the therapy is determined solely on that of the relationship. Cognitive-behavioural therapists find, through past experiments other techniques, such as systematic desensitization and behavioural self-control, are equally important to the success of the therapy.

Hollywood in the global film market | Film Studies

Hollywood in the global film market | Film Studies When the average Friday night cinema-goer sits down to watch a film in this country they would most probably be waiting to see the latest Hollywood blockbuster projected onto the screen. This seems to have been the norm for decades now but it wasnt always the case. Cinema was born in France with the introduction of motion pictures from the Lumià ¨re brothers; Auguste and Louis. The first presentation of motion pictures and the Lumià ¨re Cinà ©matographe (a combined camera, printer and projector) was to the Society for the Promotion of Industry (Socià ©tà © dEncouragement a lindustrie Nationale) on March 22, 1895. Only one film was shown, Employees Leaving the Lumià ¨re Factory (La Sortie des usines Lumià ¨re), shot by Louis. It was projected, almost as an afterthought, following their lecture on advances in experimental colour photography. It was nine months later in the darkened rooms at the Grand Cafà © in Paris on December 28, 1895 that the first exhibition of moving image s was opened to a paying, European audience. Included on the playbill were The Arrival of the Train (LArrivà ©e dun train à   la Ciotat), Babys Meal (Repas de Bà ©bà ©) and The Sprayer Sprayed (LArroseur et arrosà ©e). However, it wasnt long before cinema became international when the Americans tried their hand at making movies. In the period between the Lumieres first private and public exhibitions, two brothers, Otway and Gray Latham, screened the very first film to the paying public; Young Griffo versus Battling Charles Barnett, an impressive eight minute reel of a boxing match between the titular Griffo and Barnett. Their small storefront theatre in Broadway, New York became the first dedicated cinema. Over the next twenty years the number of filmmakers and films being made increased. This period of frantic filmmaking became known as the Silent Era. All over the United States movies were being shown at ‘Nickelodeons; shops that had been transformed into exhibition areas where films were projected onto screens, walls or hanging sheets. This was not just an American phenomenon; here in the UK over 3000 cinemas had opened by 1917. The number of important films of this era included Georges Mà ©lià ¨s 1902 film A Trip to the Moon (Le Voyage dans la lune) based on Jules Vernes novel From the Earth to the Moon (De la Terre à   la Lune) that is recognised as being the first science fiction movie; Edwin S. Porters 1903 movie The Great Train Robbery that introduced complex narrative structure it its editing techniques; and D.W. Griffiths 1915 feature The Birth of a Nation which grossed $10 million at the box office. The next logical step for this new industry was to integrate sound with the images. In 1927 Warner Brothers released The Jazz Singer, the first ‘talkie feature film to be widely distributed. This invention practically caused the death of the Silent Era as audiences demanded sound with their films and heralded the ‘Golden Age of cinema. But once again it was not an industry completely dominated by Hollywood. The French idea of commercial movie houses became the international model, and entrepreneurs scurried to build impressive movie houses across North America and Europe including theatres to seat up to 5,000 people, rather than relying on the storefront Nickelodeons from the turn of the century. Birmingham born businessman Oscar Deutsch opened his first Odeon cinema in the UK in Perry Barr, Birmingham in 1920. By 1930 the Odeon was a household name and to this day there is still an Odeon in the prime location of British cinema exhibition, Leicester Square. Since the Second World War (1939 1945) the dominance of Hollywood as the motion picture production capital of the world has been virtually unchallenged. With the exception of the Indian Film Industry, lovingly named ‘Bollywood, there has not been a notable challenger to Hollywoods crown. There have been moments when a possible contender to the throne has emerged from within Europe or the UK, bringing with it a new style of filmmaking, a new school of thought or an embarrassing outburst at an awards ceremony; â€Å"The British are coming!† In the last sixty years there have been several European film movements that have demonstrated that there is an alternative to the Hollywood system, however they have not managed to topple the system and in some cases have been neatly integrated and repackaged into the Hollywood blockbuster. In this essay I shall look at the stranglehold that Hollywood seems to possess over the global film market and contrast it to the state of the European film industries and in particular to the British film industry. I shall emphasis the importance of European and British films, filmmakers and movements and how they relate to the Hollywood system. Being that this is such a large topic area I shall focus on how Hollywood has figuratively grown into a dragon and that the sporadic attempts at slaying it by European ‘knights in shining armour more often than not end up feeding it and making it stronger. I shall try to determine how influential non-Hollywood films are on Hollywood, and vice versa. I also intend to examine how the British film industry has fared since the end of the Second World War against such stiff competition from the other side of the Atlantic; and what lies ahead in the not too distant future. For the purposes of this essay I shall refer to the mainstream American film industry as ‘Hollywood; I am not saying that Hollywood ‘is the American film industry as there are a number of independent filmmakers producing and releasing feature films that frequently make box office profits, most notably Miramax, but for this essay I shall be focusing purely on the Hollywood system. The Hollywood as we know it today began in earnest in the 1910s when major producers such as Carl Laemmle, William Fox, Adolph Zukor and Marcus Loew decided to disassociate from the Film Trust based in New York (a ‘trust of the ten leading American and European producers of movies and manufacturers of cameras and equipment set up in 1908 that would tax filmmakers into using their patents to allow the film to be officially ‘legal) and venture into a more independent, West coast filmmaking structure in the all-year sunshine of California. This departure from the Trust afforded the producers to shoot feature films instead of the normal short one or two ‘reelers (so named after the length of the reel of film used to shoot it). These independents introduced a vertically integrated system that eventually covered production, distribution and exhibition. The Hollywood studio system was born and names such as Paramount (formerly Adolph Zukors Famous Players-Lasky), Fox, Warn er Brothers, Universal (formerly Carl Laemmles Independent Motion Picture Company), Columbia, Universal Artists and Marcus Loews MGM blossomed. According to Douglas Gomery: â€Å"†¦the average cost for Hollywood features of the day rarely ranged beyond $500,000, expanding distribution across the globe meant revenues regularly topped $1,000,000.† (Nowell-Smith 48). This was a massive leap in the twenty years from a time when a film of a train approaching a railway station was shown to the general public. Hollywood understood that the needs and demands of the masses had become more sophisticated over the short period of time that was cinemas infancy. As such the producers looked towards popular pulp fiction novels, plays and in particular the newly invented genre of the Western to entertain their audiences. In 1922 the major Hollywood companies formed the Motion Picture Producers and Distribution Association of America (MPPDA) to assist in the promotion and distribution of films worldwide. This was run by a former Republican politician, William H. Hays. His work for the MPDDA was closely linked with the US State Department and allowed Hollywood to dominate the UK, Canada, Australia, Europe (except Germany and the Soviet Union), South America, Central America and the Caribbean. This world domination looked set to continue until the Wall Street Crash in 1929. Even though Hollywood had originally distanced itself from New York, financial backing from the East coast was needed to fund the studios. As such the Depression that followed the stock market crash proved a difficult time for Hollywood, though not immediately as the movie industry enjoyed its best year in 1930 as studio profits reached record levels. However, between 1930 and 1933 theatre admissions fell from 90 million per week to 60 million, gross industry revenues fell from $730 million to about $480 million, and combined studio profits of $52 million became net losses of some $55 million. (Nowell-Smith 220). However it wasnt all doom and gloom. As the ‘Big Five of Paramount, RKO, Warner Bros, Fox and MGM had to reorganise their financial structure (the integration of owning their own cinemas was almost bankrupting them), the ‘major minor studios of Columbia, Universal and United Artists were enjoying the freedom of only being production and distribution companies; therefore having the freedom to continue producing high quality films without the noose of the exhibition property around their necks. In fact it was in this period that the minor studios were producing ‘B-movies; factory-produced low cost, low risk genre films usually made up of cowboys, gangsters or horror (for example; South of the Rio Grande Columbia 1932, Afraid to Talk Universal 1932, and White Zombie United Artists 1932). This ability to adapt to the market is an early demonstration of why Hollywood is still the market leader in feature films. From these early years it was evident that the studio system was going to be at the forefront of film production. The 1930s and 1940s were to prove to be the beginning of the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema with the introduction of colour films and the release of such popular films as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Disney 1936), The Adventures of Robin Hood (Warner Bros 1938), Gone with the Wind (MGM 1939), The Wizard of Oz (MGM 1939), and Citizen Kane (RKO 1941). When the United States entered the Second World War in 1941 the Hollywood machine was utilised by the government to produce propaganda films for the American public. Within one year of the attack on Pearl Harbour, nearly one third of Hollywoods feature films were war related, as were the vast majority of its newsreels and documentaries (Nowell-Smith 234). Yet again Hollywood was flexible enough to mee t the demands of the public and due to the nature of the audiences at home and most notably abroad (the UK), Hollywoods foreign revenues reached record levels. Like the Depression before it, even the Second World War could not stop Hollywood. The next period of Hollywood cinema came in the 1960s and continues today. This is regularly referred to as Modern Cinema and saw the power of the studios sway towards the director (often regarded as the auteur). In his book Easy Riders, Raging Bulls author Peter Biskind highlights Arthur Penns Bonnie and Clyde (Warner Bros 1967) as the first of the new breed of films, â€Å"Bonnie and Clyde was a movement movie; like The Graduate, young audiences recognized that it was ‘theirs† (Biskind 49). This ‘new Hollywood saw new players attract new audiences. The new kids on the block included George Lucas (THX 1138, American Graffiti, Star Wars), Steven Spielberg (Jaws, ET, Jurassic Park), Martin Scorsese (Mean Streets, Raging Bull, The Aviator) and Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather, Apocalypse Now, Dracula). The power of the director was affirmed when George Lucass 1977 film Star Wars was released and confirmed that a single film could earn its studio huge profits and t urn a poor year into a very successful one. Star Wars had a production budget of around $13 million (imdb.com) and has (as of the end of June 2005) grossed nearly $798 million. (thenumbers.com) While the American film industry had always looked abroad for sources of revenue, the global focus of Hollywood was also amplified in this period. Overseas theatrical and video markets exploded during the second half of 1980s; between 1984 and 1986, Hollywoods European exports alone jumped 225 percent to reach $561 million annually. In some major European markets, Hollywood movies accounted for 45-65 percent of total box-office receipts. (Herman 39) In fact, according to The Numbers (a free resource for industry professionals to track business information on movies) out of the top 100 all-time highest grossing movies worldwide, only one movie was made before the period of Modern Hollywood Cinema (Gone with the Wind which has grossed $350 million dollars since its release in 1939). (thenumbers .com) With the top two films grossing $2,000 million having been released in 1997 (James Camerons Titanic) and 2003 (Peter Jacksons third instalment in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Return of the King) it is obvious that the Hollywood machine still manages to churn out money-making productions. So what is it that keeps Hollywood head and shoulders above other national film industries? In his essay Reconceptualizing National Cinema/s, Stephen Crofts points out that there are seven varieties of ‘national cinema as licensed by the political, economic and cultural rà ©gimes of different nation-states: â€Å"Cinemas which differ from Hollywood, but do not compete directly, by targeting a distinct, specialist market sector; Those which differ, do not compete directly but do directly critique Hollywood; European and Third World entertainment cinemas which struggle against Hollywood with limited or no success; Cinemas which ignore Hollywood, an accomplishment managed by a few; Anglophone cinemas which try to beat Hollywood at its own game; Cinemas which work within a wholly state-controlled and often state-subsidized industry; and Regional or national cinemas whose culture and/or language take their distance from the nation-states which enclose them.† Crofts 50) He ar gues that Hollywood can not be seen as a national cinema due to its trans-national appeal. Thomas Elsaesser adds that Hollywood is totally other to national cinema it is difficult to maintain because so much of any nations film culture is implicitly Hollywood. (Elsaesser 166). This is echoed in the words of Edward Buscombe who states that at times Hollywood appears to be†¦ no longer a national cinema but the cinema (Buscombe 141) These views propel the ideology that Hollywood is the word people use to describe popular cinema. As Crofts identified, there are a number of ways in which non-Hollywood cinema has tried to challenge (or indeed avoid confrontation) the American system. The fifth example; ‘Anglophone cinemas which try to beat Hollywood at its own game best represents how the British film industry tried to challenge the giant that is Hollywood (with varying results). The European film industries would fall into the third and seventh categories; ‘European and Third World entertainment cinemas which struggle against Hollywood with limited or no success; and ‘Regional or national cinemas whose culture and/or language take their distance from the nation-states which enclose them. Due to the many different European languages the latter example is perhaps the most relevant but at the same time admits defeat in attempting to export the film to the United States. However, this is not to say that Hollywood has not had to adapt to remain the world leader. The early 1980s saw a dramatic drop in box office receipts. The beginning of the decade saw a 9% drop in tickets sold nationwide in American cinemas when only 1,022 million were sold. This figure got worse in 1986 when just over 1,017 million tickets were sold (boxofficemojo.com) (compared to over 4,500 million ticket sales in 1930). The home video market had certainly dented theatrical sales but Hollywood would always recoup somehow. The immediate problem was the cost of keeping cinemas o pen; a similar situation to the post Depression period of the 1930s. Another financial reshuffle was in order. The six major Hollywood film studios were now part of conglomerates. Gulf Western (Paramounts parent company) also owned Madison Square Gardens, Desilu, Simon and Schuster, and Paramount Pictures Television. Yet, only 11% of Gulf Westerns revenues were derived from entertainment industry holdings and just 4% from Paramount Pictures in 1981. That same year, United Artists was bringing only 12% of the revenues in for Transamerica, Universal represented 22% of MCAs income, and Warner Bros. accounted for 24% of Warner Communications revenue. (Lewis 86). However, by 1989, the entertainment division of Gulf Western, led by Paramount Pictures, accounted for over 50% of Gulf Westerns yearly income during a year in which Paramount had only fourteen releases and a 13.8% share of the market thanks to the success of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ($197 million domestic box office), (the-numbers.com) demonstrating again just how important a single film had become by the end of the 1980s. These blockbusters were to save Hollywood and allow it to grow stronger, and in 2002 ticket sales were over the 1,523 million mark which was the highest figure for over twenty years. It is practically impossible to pinpoint a single film that best demonstrates how the Hollywood system works. I have chosen to examine three different movies from three different periods of its history to illustrate how Hollywood evolves; Intolerance (1916), Singin in the Rain (1952) and The Matrix (1999). D.W. Griffith directed over 500 films during his career, most of them were shorts produced between 1908 and 1914. In 1915 he directed Birth of a Nation, a film that â€Å"†¦established him as one of the first truly great film directors, able to balance scale with intimate, impassioned storytelling† (Falk 11) but the film also has its critics: â€Å"Hopefully the only film in movie history to project in its publicity the Ku Klux Klan as the heroic defenders of Christian civilization† (Shiach 12). Two years later he directed Intolerance. Intolerance is, in my opinion, a better example of a Hollywood film than the overtly racist Birth of a Nation. Its narrative structure is interwoven with four different stories from four different periods in history each telling their own stories of intolerance, be it through religion or society. This storytelling device of jumping from one story to another allowed Griffith to direct the film at a speed that would keep the audiences enthralled to the very last reel. Unfortunately it failed at the box office. The production budget was over three and half times than that of Birth of a Nation and the box office did not return this. The lavish sets and numerous extras that were brought in by Griffith to turn this into a spectacle ended up leading to its financial failure. This was an early lesson to the studios that throwing a lot of money at a production did not necessarily mean that it was going to be successful. In hindsight this film stands up well; the crowd scenes are epic, so to the Babylon sets and the innovative use of camera angles and cross-cut editing techniques. Griffith formed United Artists with Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, William S. Hart and Mary Pickford in 1919, cementing his position as a major player in the early Hollywood years. The year 1952 saw the highest grossing film in America to be the documentary This is Cinerama showcasing the possibilities of Cinerama; a widescreen system that employed stereophonic sound and used three cameras and three projectors to cover a huge curved screen. Further down the list was Stanley Donen and Gene Kellys musical Singin in the Rain (MGM 1952). Not only does the film include perhaps one of the most memorable scenes in Hollywood history (the song and dance of the title) but also one of the first big budget films to poke fun at its own industry. The story takes place during the transition from silent film into ‘talking pictures and highlights some of the problems that arose for all the major studios. Roger Ebert, film critic for the Chicago Sun-Times proudly states that â€Å"Singin in the Rain has been voted one of the greatest films of all time in international critics polls, and is routinely called the greatest of all the Hollywood musicals. I dont think theres an y doubt about that. There are other contenders†¦ but Singin in the Rain comes first because it is not only from Hollywood, it is about Hollywood.† (Ebert). The film was rushed through by MGM (the studio that produced most of the lavish musicals) after the success of 1951s An American in Paris and as such the film was an original screenplay and Donen and Kelly were freed from the constraints of adapting a stage musical, being able to develop something completely from scratch. This freedom is present on screen and, like the previous example Intolerance has won more fans in the years after its release than the audiences at the time. Today the musical is a rare sight to emerge from Hollywood. It is seen as an expensive genre that has served its time. There have been a few exceptions like Baz Luhrmanns Moulin Rouge (20th Century Fox 2001) and Rob Marshalls Chicago (Miramax 2002) but I cannot see any Hollywood studio spending money on this genre like MGM did in the Golden Age. Brothers Andy and Larry Wachowski directed the science fiction action movie The Matrix in 1999. Labeled by some as a â€Å"cult classic† (Gottlieb), I find it hard to agree that a film that has grossed over $450 million (thenumbers.com) worldwide should be called a ‘cult. Set sometime in the near future the film taps into a common paranoia that all is not as it seems. Hollywood released this film, with its $65 million (thenumbers.com) production budget knowing that the recent trend of Asian kung-fu movies were entertaining the young generation like Hark Tsuis 1991 film Once Upon a Time in China (Wong Fei-hung) or Woo-ping Yuens 1993 film Iron Monkey (Siunin Wong Fei-hung tsi titmalau). This film was also used in an extensive advertising campaign to promote the sales of DVDs; a figure of $20 million was spent on prints and advertising costs. With the combination of kung-fu, a storyline focusing on paranoia and special effects never seen before in a major blockbuster; it w ould not be cynical to believe that Hollywood thought of The Matrix as their ticket into the new millennium. The British film industry has historically always been the poorer cousin to Hollywood, or as Robert Murphy suggests, â€Å"British cinema has been despised and disparaged for much of its existence† (Murphy 5). While Hollywood was experimenting with and developing the dramatic narrative of feature films in the early 1910s, Britain did not realise the potential of the longer film format; and one of the only companys releasing fictional drama, albeit single reel films, was Hepworth who produced films such as Rescued by Rover (1905), Faust (1911) and A Fishermans Love Story (1912). As late as 1925 Joseph Schenck commented on the inferiority of British cinema saying that â€Å"You have no personalities to put on the screen. The stage actors and actresses are no good on the screen. Your effects are no good, and you do not spend nearly so much money.† (Schenck). This statement is eerily poignant eighty years after he said it. In fact as early as 1907 Hollywood was acting swift er than Britain in developing the cinematic world by exploiting British cultural heritage when the Selig Polyscope Company produced the one reel short A Tale of Two Cities based on Charles Dickens novel. Four years later Vitagraph remade the film as a thirty minute short in 1911. In fact Hollywood then remade the film six years after that when Fox produced A Tale of Two Cities in 1917. It wasnt until W. Courteney Rowden directed the one reel film of the same title that Britain finally had its own film version of the novel in 1922. And it wasnt until Ralph Thomas directed A Tale of Two Cities (Rank 1958) that Britain had its very own feature film of the novel; the sixth remake since the original 1907 film. Even though the British film industry was slow to accept the possibilities offered by the dramatic narrative of feature film there were some important figures to emerge. Alfred Hitchcock directed his first completed feature film in 1925 with the crime drama The Pleasure Garden, having already made a name for himself as a writer on Graham Cutts Woman to Woman (1923). He followed that up with a number of groundbreaking films including The Lodger (Gainsborough Pictures 1927), his first talking movie Blackmail (BIP 1929), and Jamaica Inn (Mayflower 1939); his final film in Britain before Hollywood producer David O. Selznick sent for him from Hollywood. At a time when Hollywood was going from strength to strength with the help of the MPPDA, Britain was finding that too many American imports were saturating the home industry; $165 million revenue was made for Hollywood by the overseas British market. (Nowell-Smith 58). The Films Act of 1927 set a quota on imported movies that â€Å"was pr ogressive, beginning at 5 percent and rising to 20 percent in ten years time.† (Balio 469). This should have been a period in which Britain could progress both in quality and quantity of film production as the Act was meant to â€Å"open up the market for ‘long (over 3,000 feet in length) British films by stipulating that 7.5 per cent of films acquired by film renters each year had to be British and 5 per cent of those shown by exhibitors also had to be of British origin, both percentages rising to 20 by 1935 and remaining at that level until 1938 when the Act expired.† (Street 10). In reality it allowed a number of cheap productions, or â€Å"quota quickies† (Balio 469) to be made that did more harm than good for the British film industry. However, the Act allowed Britain to emulate the American system of vertical integration with companies able to produce, distribute and exhibit its own films; this introduced The Associated British Picture Corporation and the Gaumont British Picture Corporation. The British film movement enjoyed a period of producing a number of fine films (most notably by Alfred Hitchcock) that included Alexander Kordas period drama The Private Life of Henry VIII (London Film Productions 1933), Marcel Varnels comedy starring Will Hay, Oh, Mr. Porter! (Gainsborough 1937), and Sam Woods drama Goodbye Mr. Chips (MGM 1939). When the Second World War broke out in 1939 Britain had to focus on the war effort; just as what was to happen in Hollywood, the films produced up to the end of the war were predominantly propaganda films. Some of the greatest filmmakers in British cinema were to come to the publics attention during the war; directors such as Michael Powell (The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp 1943), David Lean (In Which We Serve 1942), Thorold Dickinson (Next of Kin 1943) and Carol Reed (The Way Ahead 1944) exploded onto the scene. The 1940s were an exciting time for the British film industry with box office admissions peaking at 1,635 million in 1946 (Sparos 14) and companies such as the Rank Organisation began to expand, with a massive screen empire embracing the Gaumont British company; this included the Gainsborough Studios, the Odeon cinema circuit and Pinewood and Denham studios. The famous Ealing Studio, under Michael Balcon, secured its place in film history with the production of comedies such as Passport to Pimlico, Whisky Galore and Kind Hearts and Coronets, all made in 1949. Two years earlier Balcon founded the British Film Academy in a hotel suite at the Hyde Park Hotel on the 16 April 19 47. This was later to become BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts). Running parallel to the Ealing comedies was the movement of social reality films, commonly referred to as ‘kitchen sink dramas but often named the New Wave. At a time when the British public was feeling the burden of the aftermath of the war with rationing and high unemployment, there was a need for film to reflect the lives of the masses. One of the first major forays into this genre was produced by Filippo Del Giudice. Del Giudice was an Italian lawyer who left his native fascist Italy for London in 1932 and helped set up Two Cities Films in 1937. In the 1950 film Chance of a Lifetime directed by Bernard Miles, the story focuses on trade unionism and what stage the co-operative movement had reached in 1950, a few years after the reforming Labour government was elected but months before the re-election of Winston Churchill; showing that the country was oscillating between Socialism and Conservatism. Miless intelligent script was even-handed in its approach to these issues and also gave insights into the class system of the time yet did not go so far as to support the unions at the time. Alan Wood, biographer of Rank, charged the film with being â€Å"a crude form of anti-Socialist propaganda† (Wood 245). Even though critics felt the film did not go far enough into the class struggle it opened the doors for directors to comment on such issues as unemployment and the working classes. In earlier British films we had seen the working class as ‘good and decent supporting roles to the more noble upper classes (the most obvious analogy would be in the wartime Navy film where the working class would be below deck powering the ship and the upper classes above deck steering its course). Here we saw their lives at the centre of the action in great detail, told to the audience in an everyday household situation; hence the kitchen sink tag. We see events through the emotional journeys of these characters. Films like Jack Claytons Room at the Top (Remus 1 959) painted their protagonists to show that they had moved on from the hero at Normandy to an average, everyday person who wanted to make the most of their life and somehow try to improve their social position. This did not have to be solely represented in social realism, comedy crossed over as well. In John Boultings comedy Im Alright Jack (British Lion 1959) the class divide is made perfectly evident in the dispute between the workers and the owners of a factory; with the inclusion of Peter Sellers trouble-making union representative thrown in for good measure. At last the British film industry, as had the French and Italians, were producing films with a strong political and artistic background of their own that they would develop and progress into the 1960s. However, this particular notion of reality is much debated and is a problem when looking at whether film is â€Å"a product of society or that of an ideology of one director or author.† (Murphy 146) These New Wave films represented an â€Å"extremely dynamic, but short lived, period of film-making.† (Nowell-Smith 605). By 1963 London became the party capital of the world and the notoriety of ‘Swinging London and its Soho clubs and cinemas was in complete contrast to the gritty social dramas of the late 1950s. Suddenly British culture was internationally recognised. With the mass popularity of The Beatles in music, Mary Kwant in fashion and David Hockney in art people were looking towards Britain to produce films that captured the spirit of the moment: The 1960s witnessed a revitalisation of British Cinema and the emergence of a flourishing and diverse film culture after what was widely perceived to be the doldrums era of the 1950s.† (Moore-Gilbert 218). People demanded films that were not as ‘angry as the previous decade but celebrated the new possibility of social freedom. Unfortunately the money was not immediately available from British financiers and it was Hollywood that came to the rescue. The commercially successful Tom Jones, directed by Tony Richardson in 1963 was backed by United Artists and a number of American studios began investing heavily in British cinema. It is ironic that just as Hollywood saw the possibilities of exploiting British culture at the turn of the century, they were equally as deft to jump on the original ‘Cool Britannia bandwagon; leaving British investors to miss out all over again. United Artists also saw a lucrative business opportunity in Ian Flemings charismatic character James Bond. With the backing of United Artists, Terence Youngs 1963 film Dr. No, the first official What Is a GPS How Does It Work? What Is a GPS How Does It Work? Introduction to GPS The GPS also known as Global Positioning System is a global navigation system that runs on satellites that are active 24/7 (Library Of Congress, 2011). Development of the GPS was initially started by the US for military purposes; they would guide their troops and navigate them away from danger or would use this to launch missiles on a targeted area. Only recently during the early 2000s been the GPS released to the public by the US and made it free to access to anyone that owns a GPS receiver. Due to its various uses and availability the GPS started to gain popularity amongst people, in fact it has also helped in shaping the world into what it is today. The GPS system has become global and massive. It is used in most of our vehicles and smart phones to get us around its main purpose is to guide us to our location when we are lost, or for looking up a location. Like smart phones and email, this technology has become a key part of our modern day society. It has become a useful tool in our lives that we now have started to depend upon. GPS has replaced maps and has become the key tool of navigation. GPS is now also used in games and other application such as Facebook. GPS system works via detecting signals from GPS satellites located in space (Gray, 2012). The GPS system detects these signals via a GPS receiver (Bertagna, 2010). The GPS receiver detects the radio waves from satellites and then tries to find your location by calculating the time it took for the signal to reach the receiver. After calculating the time it took, it determines the location of the satellite and then determines how far it is from the satellite. By using trilateration it then calculates your location. Trilateration is a mathematical process which uses circles and triangles to calculate distance and area of a place. Common uses of GPS GPS has become a part of our daily lives ever since the US government released it to the public, our everyday devices have been equipped with GPS technology to assist us and enhance our experience (Saha, 2014) (Fortenberry, 2016). Everyday devices such as smartphones, tablets, vehicles and even packages we buy online have a small tracking device fitted in that constantly tracks its location, keeping the customer updated every minute. In fact, aeroplanes nowadays require a GPS tracker, which assists pilots in figuring out the route to their destination mid-air. This technology also helps control rooms in airports keep track of the aeroplanes current location. In fact, even passengers can view their current locations inflight through the entertainment system. Its not just aeroplanes that have inaugurated this technology but most of the vehicles being manufactured today come with a built in GPS system which helps drivers in setting a location and discovering the fastest way to reach it (Horban, 2009). This built in GPS technology also assists in tracking down stolen vehicles, which helps create a decline in car theft and gives a strong sense of security to the customer. The following graph taken from Rewire Security gives graphical evidence of a decline in car theft due to the implementation of a GPS system providing better and improved security. (Trading, 2014) Increase in GPS usage between teenagers Since GPS is now completely open for use to the public, many companies have started to develop softwares that utilize the GPS system. Most GPS softwares are found in mobile app stores these days since mobile phones are a common GPS using device. Moreover, since teenagers are often the age group that uses smartphones the most, quite a lot of the GPS apps are designed with the purpose of entertainment, which led to a huge rise of teenagers getting involved with such entertainment based apps. Entertainment apps which are booming between teenagers are mostly game or dating related (Collier, 2012) . Lets take the example of Pokà ©mon Go that came out quite recently, that game was a massive success due to the fact that it involved players leaving their house and going around different locations capturing Pokà ©mons. Pokà ©mon Gos main feature involved using a GPS tracker to track the players location as he would travel certain distances and to different areas. Pokà ©mon Go has also use d the GPS system to mark important landmarks as Pokà ©stops where players can buy items by using their points. This would not be possible without GPS technology. Whats important to consider here is how such a simple concept became very popular and addictive between teenagers, it is intriguing how a simple system that was used initially solely for the purpose of navigation has now turned into a means of entertainment. GPS systems are more often used by older teens in comparison to younger teens since parents do not give younger teens the freedom of roaming around the city since it is not safe for a child to roam around the city without parent supervision. Older teenagers however, tend to have a drivers license or some other means of transport and a lot of independence. Older teens tend to be given a lot more freedom in most parts of the world. Moreover, they often have to go to multiple places such as university, college, library and at times even their part time jobs. However, quite a lot of issues have appeared at the hands of GPS apps. Such as teens being addicted to the game Pokà ©mon Go and not caring about their own safety and walking around dangerous places. Moreover, GPS systems have also been adopted by dating apps now which has caused a lot of distress among parents. There has also been malpractice of the GPS apps at the hands of parents too. Some parents install apps which can allow them to track the location of their children via their childrens phone. This is an act of intruding a persons personal privacy. Due to how GPS trackers have various different uses, we have certain situations where we begin to question whether its really ethical to use such powerful technology in the way we have, which leads to social and ethical concerns being raised.

Luc Besson: One of the Best French Directors :: Movie Film Movies Films

Luc Besson: One of the Best French Directors Thesis: Luc Besson is one of the best French Directors of this century. His works can either be viewed as mere action packed thrillers or the viewer can go in depth and question society and morality. Besson wishes to make the viewer question the importance of individualism, the role of each individual in society and whether the individual should follow the norms of society or follow his heart. Besson’s humor, sense of pathos and his reflections on life deserve credit. Besson draws on his own life in some movies. Besson lacks presence of family and religion and in his movies the protagonist has to sacrifice one love so as to attain another, which he feels to be of greater importance to his life. Introduction Luc Besson was born in Paris on March 18, 1959, and spent most of his childhood living in the idyllic settings of various Mediterranean hideaways between Yugoslavia and Greece where his parents worked as diving instructors. A tragic diving accident when seventeen, put an end to his dreams of a career in marine biology and he diverted his interest to films and directing. He dropped out of school and moved to Hollywood at the age of nineteen where he spent three years working on and learning about American films. There was a time when he used to watch a dozen films a week so as to understand filmmaking. Considered the French equivalent of Steven Spielberg, Besson is popular for creating fast–paced stylish and hugely budgeted films. What are noticeable in Besson’s movies are the visual style, humor, pathos, and sense of direction, reflections on life and declination of modern society. (Susan Hayward, 1998) The Movies Luc Besson’s movies can all be viewed not just as movies but movies with a meaning. One of his major themes in all his movies is social existentialism - the decline of society and morality. The protagonist develops his own sense of morality and what is right and wrong in relation to their decline in society as a whole. What are noticeable in his movies are the absence of family and the demise of the community, which he brings out with great sophistication. His childhood spent near the sea and his passion for it and diving also had a profound effect even on his work as can be seen from his movie – The Big Blue.

Abortion is a Constitutional Issue :: Free Abortion Essays

Many people believe abortion is a moral issue, but it is also a constitutional issue. It is a woman's right to choose what she does with her body, and it should not be altered or influenced by anyone else. This right is guaranteed by the ninth amendment, which contains the right to privacy. The ninth amendment states: "The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people." This right guarantees the right to women, if they so choose to have an abortion, up to the end of the first trimester. Regardless of the fact of morals, a woman has the right to privacy and choice to abort her fetus. The people that hold a "pro-life" view argue that a woman who has an abortion is killing a child. The "pro-choice" perspective holds this is not the case. Before the 1973 landmark Supreme Court ruling in Roe v. Wage, whereby abortion was effectively legalized, women died by the thousands at the hands of back-alley butchers. S ince Roe, less than 1 woman in 100,000 will die from an abortion. In fact, the procedure results in fewer deaths than childbirth or even a shot of penicillin. Despite the official legality of the procedure, it is still largely under attack by opponents. The fight is far from over, and is important that anyone who champions a woman's right to choose understand the ongoing threats abortion faces. The New Civil War offers a clear, compelling explanation of the issues surrounding the procedure and the ways in which antiabortion activists attempt to criminalize it. Divided into five parts, The New Civil War does not leave one stone unturned. This collection of essays is well written, succinct, and concise. Indeed, such a book is a necessary resource for anyone interested not only in the abortion debate, but also in the overarching patriarchal structures that create and maintain women's subordination. Part I is entitled "The Sociopolitical Context of Abortion." The first chapter in this section reviews abortion's status in the courts since Roe. Wilcox, Robbernnolt, and O'Keefe highlight the necessity for psychologists to remain vocal in the debate, primarily by providing research supporting the findings that abortion does not promote ill effects in those women who have them. Antiabortionists continue successfully to push forth legislation designed to prevent women from willfully terminating their pregnancies.

Ethical and Legal Issues Essay

Nurses make legal and ethical decisions when caring for patients; decisions that need to be made carefully because the decisions could possibly change a patients’ life. There are theories to explain how to problem solve ethically and the theories are not based on emotion (Guido, 2006). This paper will discuss the relationship between legal and ethical issues and ethical theories, examples will be provided. Ethics can be described as principles and standards that are a guide to conduct used to elevate the standard of compliance (Judson & Harrison, 2010). Ethics is derived from the Greek word â€Å"ethos† ethics explains actions as right or wrong in respect to cultural principles and values. Moral values are personal beliefs that are intertwined with ethical actions and behaviors (Guido, 2006). Ethics, similar to values, are individualistic and they come from our experiences, culture and actions. While one’s values or moral ethics may be different, the nurse’s ability to conform to a patient’s ethical behavior is important (The VA leads change toward Integrated Ethics approach, 2008). The legal system was created to establish policies to protect the public (Judson & Harrison, 2010). The laws that are set can be changed when evidence suggests amendments are necessary. The relationship between law and ethics is apparent when discussing a patient’s healthcare decision that goes against the norms or beliefs of the healthcare provider. An example would be the patient exercising his or her right to refuse treatment for a disease process that will result in imminent death, such as a patient in renal failure refusing dialysis (Guido, 2008). Shannon (2008) discussed the differences of legal and ethical decisions as â€Å"morally ordinary† and â€Å"extraordinary† treatment related to the provision of assisted nutrition and hydration, particularly for patients in a â€Å"permanent vegetative state† (p.894). Metaethics is a nonnormative ethic that attempts to describe the implication between moral concepts or statements and the justification of why something is regarded good or ethically correct. Normative ethics understand standards of behavior and application of these behaviors in life. Normative ethicsbranch out into two broad categories called deontological and teleogical theories (Guido, 2006). Deontological theories focus on the intended action not the consequences of one’s actions (Guido, 2006). The theory focuses on the dignity and sense of duty of the individuals and finds the relationship between the person and the action. Deontological theories are divided into two subcategories; act deontology and rule deontology. Guido (2006) states that â€Å"act deontology is based on the personal moral values of the person making the ethical decision, whereas rule deontology is based on the belief that certain standards for ethical decisions transcend the individual’s moral values† (p. 4). Teleological theories are based on the simple concept, right actions have good consequences and bad actions have bad consequences. This theory suggests the act of right or wrong is directly related to the consequence of the action. Utilitarianism stems off of teleogical theories, explains that consequences count and acts are determined by the consequence. Some utilitarian’s believe that the moral rightness of a consequence is determined by the greatest number of good or the least harm and suffering (Guido, 2006). Considering the moral rightness is based on greatest number to benefit from the greatest good, actions based on the utilitarianism theory can often be unethical and illegal. Nurses in acute care settings are faced daily with ethical issues and concerns. Shannon (2008) examines the terms â€Å"morally ordinary† and â€Å"extraordinary† in respect to patients in a â€Å"permanent vegetative state† (p. 894). It is thought if we can keep the body alive we should, â€Å"capacity generated obligation† but there is a compromise in human dignity, making this both a legal and ethical dilemma (Shannon, 2008, p. 894). Euthanasia and end of life care often cause a lot of animosity, as they have been distorted by general public. Shannon (2008) states, â€Å"Discontinuing medical procedures that are burdensome, dangerous, extraordinary, or disproportionate to the expect outcome can be legitimate; it is the refusal  of over-zealous treatment† (p. 898). This statement defines euthanasia in its most accepted form withdrawal of treatment. This makes the act legal, but is it ethical to withdraw treatment that was started to sustain life, knowing that the result ends in death?Another example of an ethical issue in an acute care setting is preserving organs for donation in a patient who is pronounced dead following a cardiac event. Organ donation is a personal choice that can be expressed though written consent by the donor. Although, if there is no documentation of the patients wishes, family members have to make the decision in the event of unexpected death. Is it legal and ethical to maintain the body of a patient who has died in order to keep the organs viable while waiting for the family’s decision (Bonnie, Wright, & Dineen, 2008)?When a patient has been declared dead according to neurological criteria hospitals will maintain organ viability while awaiting family decision about donation. Procedures are started post-mortem by a transplant team to determine candidacy for donation. Medications are started and additional lines are inserted. All of which are done after the patient is declared dead. This is legal in many states, in fact there is a statute called the â€Å"immunity clause† to protect the health care workers from any liability, but is it ethical (Bonnie, Wright, & Dineen, 2008)? According to Bonnie, Wright, and Dineen (2008), â€Å"Organ preservation in cases of uncontrolled cardiac death violates no legally protected interest of the family members. It does not constitute â€Å"mutilation of the body† and falls comfortably within the general principle that hospitals have no duty to deliver corpses to families in their exact condition of death† (p.744). Consider this statement and place an ethical emphasis on your thought process. Healthcare workers are not legally bound to deliver the bodies of their loved ones in the exact condition of their death. In conclusion, through cultural norms, behaviors, beliefs, and attitudes the ethical behaviors of healthcare workers are analyzed. The governing bodies of healthcare such as the American Nurses Association and the American Medical Association mandate healthcare workers to uphold ethical values in his or her practice. The legal system maintains the right to investigate and examine decisions made by healthcare practitioners when decisions appear unethical or perhaps unlawful. The various ethical theories provide  direction for healthcare practitioners and ethics review boards with decision-making processes. References Bonnie, R., Wright, S. & Dineen, K. (2008). Legal authority to preserve organs in cases of uncontrolled cardiac death: preserving family choice. Retrieved April 29, 2009, from EbscoHost Database. Guido, G. W. (2006). Legal and ethical issues in nursing (4 ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. Judson, K. & Harrison, C. (2010). Law and ethics for medical careers (5th ed). New York,NY: McGraw-Hill. Shannon, T. (2008). Unbind him and let him go: Ethical issues in the determination of proportionate and disproportionate treatment. Theological Studies, 69, 894-917. Retrieved April 29, 2009, from MasterFILE Premier database. The VA leads change toward Integrated Ethics approach. (Cover story). (2008, December). Medical Ethics Advisor, Retrieved May 1, 2009, from Academic Search Complete database.

Sex and Gender in Twelfth Night

Sex and Desire The nexus of gender, desire and sexuality have long been a source of considerable interest, but no more so than in the plays of William Shakespeare. Specifically, in their original production and for some time afterwards, common practice dictated certain roles for women and men. Analysis of these roles yields interesting insights regarding the value of women and how the relative devaluing of women shaped sexual desire and normal gender roles. In this paper, I will attempt to illuminate several features of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night that have bearing on human desire.Before identifying significant features of Shakespeare’s plays in general and Twelfth Night in particular that have bearing on the question of gender roles and the shaping of desire, it will important to remind ourselves about the cultural limitations for women of sixteenth century England. Callaghan reminds us that woman had no public life. Even in the home, they could rarely manifest charact eristics that are not consistent with the virtues: obedience, silence, sexual chastity, piety, humility, constancy, and patience. Those virtues taught women to not think for their selves, to not be agents in their world.In fact, educationalists in this time said that women were too cognitively limited to get a full education and too likely to be led by their own emotions than to think rationally. Tears were called â€Å"women’s weapons†, yet, in the right situation, it was perfectly acceptable for men to cry. However, it is interesting to note that in a lot of Shakespeare’s plays explore men’s insecurities about women. It shows that men fear losing control. In most of the heroines of his comedies, while they might have turned to their feminine roles in the end, they achieved a type of empowerment.In general it seems clear that women’s roles were severely limited inside and outside the home. How is this domestication of women revealed in Shakespeari an theatre? In the Twelfth Night? First, what is the significance of Shakespearian practice of allowing men to play the roles of women? In her criticism, Callaghan argues that Shakespeare is mocking women in Twelfth Night. She argues that Shakespeare specifically inserted a transvestite role to show that no matter what women do, they will eventually submit to a man. However, in my view, Shakespeare had none of this in mind when he placed that role in his play.He uses plot of gender confusion to cause chaos for his characters through love triangles, homosexuality, and â€Å"role switching. †   Ã‚  Ã‚   Second, how are we to understand Shakespeare’s plot twists that problematize gender roles? For examples, Viola washes up in Illyria after a ship wreck that she thinks took her brother’s life. She discovers Orsino is the authority in the land. After this discovery, she says to the captain: Conceal me what I am, and be my aid. For such disguise as haply shall becom e the form of my intent. I’ll serve this duke. Thou shalt present me as an eunuch to him.It may be worth thy pains, for I can sing and speak to him in many sorts of music (1. 2, 51-56) She is saying that she wants the captain to help her pass as a man. However, she knows that she cannot fully pass as a man so she must at least pass as a eunuch. This sets off a series of events that throws the characters into multiple love triangles and gender switching. For a while Orsino has been wooing Olivia by sending her notes, tokens, and sonnets. His subjects see him as flighty, soft, and slightly feminine. However, it seems like Curio is trying to turn it into a manly game by referring to it as a â€Å"hunt† (1. , 16). This is relevant because usually the theatrics are reserved for the women and their â€Å"women weapons†. Some time after this, when Viola has been introduced as â€Å"Cesario,† Orsino sends him (her) to, yet again, try to woo Olivia. However, none of them saw Olivia falling in love with Viola’s masculine character. Olivia experiences a gender switch when she steps into the usually masculine role of wooer in attempt to win Cesario’s heart. Perhaps the biggest thing that would have upset a traditional structure is the fact that Olivia might actually be in love with a women.Of course, Shakespeare tries to make an excuse for this by having Olivia ignorant to Viola/Cesario’s real gender. However, in Olivia’s first encounter with Viola/Cesario she remarks upon the typical feminine qualities. In Act three, scene one Olivia says: O, what a deal of scorn looks beautiful in the contempt and anger of his lip! A murderous guilt shows not itself more soon than love that would seem hid. Love’s night is noon-† These words allow the audience to suspect but not assume that she knows of Viola’s true gender but chooses to love her anyway.In fact, her talk of guilt has the audience questioning whet her or not she is feeling guilty of her homosexual feelings for another woman. Even though Shakespeare does not openly express the plot as a homosexual scenario, there is much evidence to back up that it is the case. For example, Olivia says â€Å"I woo† when addressing Viola as Cesario. The way she speaks to Cesario mimics the contemporary traditions perfectly. The audience may see a man dressed as a girl that is pretending to be a man as Shakespeare mocking woman; However, this is not so.The fact that Viola can successfully pull off the switch is tribute to that. It can’t be simple to pretend to be a man, even one that is a eunuch. It shows that she is a strong female character. All of these examples show that the play is full of strong female characters who are able to successfully switch roles. Even though Olivia’s â€Å"role† is switched back with the appearance of Viola’s twin brother, Sebastian, she is still left with a feeling of empowermen t by the experience. Shakespeare never really solves any of these issues. Rather, he lets them open and ends the play with humor, rather than confusion. Mistal

Negotiation and Leadership Essay

The negotiation is a process where two parts make a deal to satisfy the interests or needs of each other. We are going to analyze how and when to negotiate. To guide ourselves with this topic, we are going to use the method of Harvard that consists in seven steps. Harvard method: 1) Interests 2) Alternatives 3) Options 4) Legitimacy 5) Communication 6) Relationship 7) Compromise We are going to analyze the seven steps and also we are going to show the importance of generating confidence space with the locator, understand other points of view, look for points in common and why the negotiation benefits both sides, we are also going to see examples of the characteristics of the personality of the negotiator. After we evaluate all this, we are going to see the importance of a leader to be able to negotiate. Development: We human beings unconsciously and consciously negotiate every day, an example of unconsciously if you are walking to a building and someone else is walking next to you, we unconsciously react depending on the situation to make the decision of who walks in first. As mentioned before the negotiation is to make a deal between each other to satisfy our interests, that’s why we can say that the negotiation rises when we or other want to satisfy needs. The method of Harvard consists in seven basic steps that leads you to affront situations during a negotiation with the objective of reaching a win win situation, we can say that this is the best style of negotiation because both parts are happy and if the compromises are completed, the relationship between each other is very good and this helps you to increase your image. The seven Harvard steps 1) Interests: this step means that you must know your needs and how to satisfy them, in a negotiation it is very important to know or find out the interests of the other part, this can be done by having an effective communication (open questions). In the Harvard method, they use the Maslow Theory about need, that consists in five steps of necessities; the first step is Physiologic, the second its Security, the third its Social, the fourth is Esteem, and the last Self Actualization. 2) Alternatives: This is very important because when you identify your needs to satisfy the first thing you have to do is to consider all the different options that you have to satisfy them. Example: if your need is to find shoes to walk comfortably, your alternative would be to go to a lot of shoe shops to decide which one is better. The meaning of this step in the negotiation is the opportunity costs that are the things you leave behind to do your negotiation. Here also we have the M.A.A.N: (Mejor Alternativa a un Acuerdo Negociado) (The Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement) When a negotiator has worked on his alternatives and those of his counterpart, he has identified the M.A.A.N of both and has done that his better alternative will be possible, that will be the moment that it will be in better conditions to negotiate. This is because it will have the Intention very clear in the negotiation, but in addition, because it will know really what to do if it does not reach an agreement. The level of the best of our alternatives satisfies our interests, will help us to determine when an agreement can or not be accepted. Definitively, the MAAN will be an effective guide to know if it convenes for us or not. On the contrary, if it was a question our MAAN as a poor option with relation, it doesn’t have sense accept it. Is there all the power of the negotiation. 3) Options: when you realize which was the shoe shop that satisfy your needs, this shoe shop will be your option, when you realize this you must go and establish a conversation, the idea of this is to generate better options to negotiate. You can also add to your option ideas of other alternatives that you have seen and you realize that can make your objectives better. Example: in one shoe shop they give you a pair of socks but I didn’t like the shoes, I went to a different shop and I liked the shoes so I asked the men if he could give me a pair of socks for free, this example is about generating more options inside your best Alternative (your option) The number of alternatives and options don’t create by themselves, it is very important to say that this are generated by your motivation and actions, if you don’t have a good motivation your number of alternatives and options will be very low, with this conformism you don’t maximize the possibilities of increasing your goals. After we talk about these steps, it is important to mention that by using them we are going to increase the benefits of the negotiation. 4) Legitimacy: The importance of this point is to accept or recognize the value of the issue at hand. The way of doing this is through the Judgment: the judgment consists on a feeling of being treated fairly in a negotiation. Often an interest in legitimacy and feeling fairly treated is the main driver in a dispute. However, parties with differing views on what is fair may fail to realize that beneath their conflicting positions is the same underlying interest. A few judgments that you can make at the time you buy a car are: -Price in the market – Review the car with a mechanic – Review a forum. 5) Communication: The form that is in use for reporting has a critical impact in the result of the negotiation, specially when both parts are not known † the benefit can be very much major for both when it is negotiated face to face because only of this form it is possible to share vital information. If the volume of the transactions to realizing is important, it is worth a sorrow being going to know personally the person with whom then we will have to negotiate for telephone or e-mail. We have verified that if both parts have jointly a personal positive, at the time knowledge the method of communication (telephone, e-mail, etc.) it must have importance for the good result. If the negotiators, on the contrary do not know them selves or are strange the way turns into critic and marks the difference. The confidence and the contribution establish much easier when the parts are known, which would be impossible to do for telephone or e-mail between strangers. If the contrapart don’t want to tell you what are their interest, a good way to discovered is Open Questions, the main idea of the open questions is to get information, this are not yes or no answers, the purpose of this is get the most information you can have. 6) Relationship: The most important negotiations are done by the persons or institutions with which we have negotiated before and we will negotiate again. For a good relation you must not mix problems of personal relation with essential problems of the negotiation. With a good communication, and confidence, the relationship will stay in time; and also will be able to do more negotiation in the future. 7) Commitments: The commitments are verbal or written expositions that specify what a part will do or do. We might be calling them the † draft of the contract â€Å". They can be done in the course of a negotiation. In general, an agreement will be better in the measure in which the promises have had: exposition, structure and they have been designed in order that they turn into lasting agreements, of easy comprehension and verifiable. The idea of the commitments is also being clear whit problems that could happens in future, for example if I made a deal with a japanes, in which I export Fruit to Japan; we must be clear in situations like bad time that could close the marine, so the fruits will no be able to get out of Chile, the idea of this when me made de commitments we must be clear who is going to be responsible for this, who is going to pay that fruit, or pay to get freezer to main the fruit. Negotiate by position, is not good, because the men in position don’t want to give up their expectative. Two examples of Negotiate by position are: – Hard Ones: they a are rude, strict, they don’t have good communication, don’t respect the other, he is only interested on complete their goal, he will never change her price; so we can said; he don’t care having a good negotiation. – Soft Ones: They don’t respect they self’s, they usually change the price to continues in the negotiation, the problem in this position is that the men in this position and de other part in the negotiation, don’t respect de soft man. The importance of negotiation in leadership First of all we agree with this statement and believe that only a very authoritarian leadership works without negotiation. To explain this very important issue we are going to compare two fundamental definitions, in this case â€Å"negotiation† and â€Å"leadership†. â€Å"Negotiation is a dialogue between two or more people or parties, intended to reach an understanding, etc.† Wikipedia â€Å"Leadership is organizing a group of people to achieve a common goal.† Wikipedia As you can notice both of the definitions have the same aim, which is to reach an agreement between people. This leaves clear that negotiation is essential for a good leadership. You can not be a leader without being a negotiator. As we learned in class, there are three different types of leaders (authoritharian, democratic and liberal). The last two are considered to be the best because they leave place to work on your own and most importantly to discuss. And that offers a place of confidence between the leader and the followers. That confidence is generated by the negotiations that take place and make both parties reach their common interests. Our second and fundamental hypothesis, besides the definitions, is that leadership and negotiation take place everywhere and at any time in our lives. For example there are different types of temperaments in our society, sanguine, choleric, melancholic and phlegmatic. In a job selection it is not possible to hire a perfect combination of these temperaments, so you have to negotiate your flaws and pros so both of you can reach the common goal. Another example is a situation in a team-work session, where we know that everyone is supposed to help to reach an objective. If the leader is not able to handle the different types of personalities the project is most likely to fail. And in this process he has to negotiate several terms with the different parts of the team. As you can see none of the two areas are more important than the other, they are intertwined. It is necessary to have negotiation skills as a leader, because without them you cannot lead properly. Both of them have the exact same objective, which is to reach a common goal. And negotiation as leadership take place in our daily live just we don’t often notice it. Conclusion: The negotiation is a very important aspect in ours lives, knowing the best way to do it is a great opportunity to increase our leader and personals abilities. In the future this will us to increase our utilities in a negotiation, in ours job, live, and others. Being a responsible man the opportunities of have more successful negotiations. In this work demonstrate the importance of negotiation in a leader.

Digital Fortress Chapter 38

Hale stopped halfway to the Node 3 pantry and stared at Susan. â€Å"What's wrong, Sue? You look terrible.† Susan fought her rising fear. Ten feet away, Hale's monitor glowed brightly. â€Å"I'm†¦ I'm okay,† she managed, her heart pounding. Hale eyed her with a puzzled look on his face. â€Å"You want some water?† Susan could not answer. She cursed herself. How could I forget to dim his damn monitor? Susan knew the moment Hale suspected her of searching his terminal, he'd suspect she knew his real identity, North Dakota. She feared Hale would do anything to keep that information inside Node 3. Susan wondered if she should make a dash for the door. But she never got the chance. Suddenly there was a pounding at the glass wall. Both Hale and Susan jumped. It was Chartrukian. He was banging his sweaty fists against the glass again. He looked like he'd seen Armageddon. Hale scowled at the crazed Sys-Sec outside the window, then turned back to Susan. â€Å"I'll be right back. Get yourself a drink. You look pale.† Hale turned and went outside. Susan steadied herself and moved quickly to Hale's terminal. She reached down and adjusted the brightness controls. The monitor went black. Her head was pounding. She turned and eyed the conversation now taking place on the Crypto floor. Apparently, Chartrukian had not gone home, after all. The young Sys-Sec was now in a panic, spilling his guts to Greg Hale. Susan knew it didn't matter-Hale knew everything there was to know. I've got to get to Strathmore, she thought. And fast.

Maestro-comparison essays

Maestro-comparison essays Through studying the texts My Father Began as a God, by Ian Mudie, and Franz Kafkas Metamorphosis, my perceptions on identity and the change in identity, over a period of time have been deeply affected. The feature article Pride of Place, appearing in a Good Weekend, also The Wogboy, (directed by Aleksi Vellius), gave me great insight into others perceptions of the stereotypical personas in todays society. Finally Maestro, written by Peter Gold worthy, this novel proves that identity is very dynamic, and accumulative. Also this novel shows the consequences of a clash of personalities, in a small community. The novel Maestro describes how identity is not static, but very much alive, and also accumulative. Through the use of contrast, between one part of Pauls life, to another, the responders of the text can observe this accumulation of happenings which shape the main protagonists character. This idea of an accumulative identity is also present in the poem My Father began as a God, as time goes on the more the composer sees himself as one more of all the little men, or similar to his father. The little man can be taken literally as height, or metaphorically as a man, who has shrunk in strength, and knowledge. There is a progression throughout the poem; it starts by talking about his father, as a God, this was when he was young. Through adolescence, he starts to see him shrink, finally close to the end; he discovers that he too, has now shrunk, perhaps to his own family. These texts have enforced my understanding of the affect incidences have on people, and how they deal with this. A change in both self, and community identity are closely related to this progression explored in Maestro, and My Father Began as a God. In the film, The Wogboy, Steves attitudes to politics, and life in general change completely. This is done through a contrast betwee...

German language Essay Example

German language Essay Example German language Essay German language Essay Learning a foreign linguistic communication calls for assorted considerations. The foreign linguistic communication Germanof pick to be learned is of premier importance. for if the chase of this linguistic communication does non give any concrete productive consequences save for personal satisfaction. the class would so be considered superficial. if non at all futile. Some people have admitted that they took a class or two in Gallic and Italian because they are considered the linguistic communications of love affair and. more so. they are the linguistic communications of the nouveau riche and the culturally refined. Take these non as an onslaught on the nature of the Gallic and Italian linguistic communications. but instead as an expounding of how people perceive certain foreign linguistic communications. By comparing. the German linguistic communication would be a less popular option for undergraduates. salvage for those who chose it as their major and for those who have been required to take it under their course of study. Most people would ab initio hold with Mark Twain’s contemplation: German is an atrocious linguistic communication. If a literary mastermind like him had a instead difficult clip learning German. what more an ordinary individual? : Not to oppugn Twain’s posturing. but the times have changed and the encephalon capacity of worlds have really evolved: the German linguistic communication has. over the old ages. earned its ain followers and people have really realized that it is an astonishing linguistic communication to prosecute. So. why learn German? That would be a tough inquiry to reply since it would be similar to inquiring why one would even trouble oneself larning a foreign linguistic communication. In the Philippines. people already have their fill of a foreign linguistic communication. what with English being so ingrained in our cultural subconscious. So. why fuss larning another foreign linguistic communication and why should it be German? Save for some really personal grounds. like desiring to understand a relation in Austria or to work in Germany after college. there are other varied grounds why one should be larning the German linguistic communication. some of which could really be socially. intellectually and economically fulfilling. For starting motors. contrary to what Mark Twain had been stating. German is an easy yet astonishing linguistic communication to larn. If one already knows English. so he already has an advantage. The two linguistic communications portion many similarities in both vocabulary and grammar. owed much to the fact that they portion common lineage with the Germanic linguistic communications. Plus. German is a phonetically interesting linguistic communication. Equally much as one finds it instead disputing to put to death. due to its varied pharynx sounds. German phonetics makes it easy to foretell how the spoken words are written and how the written words are pronounced. One might hold likely heard of the footings German precision and German efficiency . refering to the manner by which merchandises made in Germany have been conceived and constructed. Truly. linguistic communication is brooding of civilization. and. as such. one could safely state that the precise and efficient German linguistic communication is brooding of its precise and efficient people. And it is no admiration that Germans are known worldwide to be great pioneers and profound minds. Gutenberg’s construct of the printing imperativeness. Einstein’s theory of relativity and Brandenburg’s creative activity of the MP3 digital music format are all testaments to German preciseness and efficiency. Marx’s Manifesto. Nietzsche’s Hagiographas and Hegel’s doctrine are all testaments to the reconditeness of the German imaginativeness and mind. Knowledge. if non at all command. of the German linguistic communication allows one to entree the plants of these people in their original linguistic communication. therefore leting one to to the full understand the intrigues of their doctrine or engineering. Anyone interested in the same Fieldss could automatically spread out their cognition and accomplishment by cognizing the linguistic communication. If one wishes to be in the cringle of universe events. one can non be free from the shadow of Germany and its civilization. The influence of German civilization in the universe sphere can non be denied. and they instigate this influence more via the power of their engineering. With 4 of the world’s 10 most advanced companies located in Germany. they hold 12. 7 % of the world’s patent applications. Bing a state committed to research and development. Germany exports more high-technology merchandises than any other state except the United States. Companies like BMW. Daimler. Siemens. Bosch and many others enabled Germany to go the 3rd strongest economic system and the figure one export state in the universe. Surely. companies such as these need competent employees and international spouses. With all other things equal. the occupation campaigner with cognition of the German linguistic communication would already derive an employment advantage. And this would non be limited to Germany. If one is looking for employment in the United States. cognition of the German linguistic communication would be a great border since German companies account for approximately 700. 000 occupations in the state. Bing one of the economically strongest states in the universe. it would non be a surprise to cognize that Germany is besides one of its greater political powers. act uponing the international policies of the European Union and even the United States. Knowledge of the German linguistic communication would let one to understand how their policies are written and how it affects universe events. For rightly. the actions of these political powers affect each and every authorities and economic system in the universe. might every bit good understand where they are coming from and how they are influenced. Truly. cognition of the German linguistic communication brings about the personal satisfaction of cognizing that one speaks in the linguistic communication of great minds and pioneers. But. in this fast paced universe. cognition of the German linguistic communication finally gives one the chance to understand. if non at all participate in. universe events. may it be intellectually. politically or economically. Language has become the primary tool of linking states. therefore unifying the universe one linguistic communication at a clip. So hold your ain say. learn German today.

Free Essays on Plato And Black Elk

Plato’s â€Å"Allegory of the Cave† and Black Elk’s â€Å"The Great Vision† each make a case for a particular way of knowing through a vision or higher realm. Black Elk describes a far more detailed version of his own vision as a young child. His experience provides a way of knowing the spiritual world. Plato describes a man imprisoned in a cave who finds a way of knowing and understanding the world through an enlightening experience. Both authors share similar ideas of gaining knowledge at a higher level, but smaller details of their writings show the differences in their positions. In â€Å"Allegory of the Cave,† Plato created a metaphoric story beginning at the far end of a cave, a long way from the outside world where men had lived since childhood with their legs and necks tied up in a way that kept them in one place and only allowed them to look straight ahead. Further up the cave, a fire was burning which allowed minimal lighting. There was a wall between the fire and the men, behind which people carried all sorts of artifacts. The men were only able to see shadows of these artifacts. They did not have any knowledge of definite objects. One of the men was untied and dragged into the sunlight. After his eyes adjusted to the light, he feasted his eyes â€Å"on the heavenly bodies and the heavens themselves.† He was told he was now closer to reality and was seeing more accurately. When the man saw the sun, he deducted that it was â€Å"the source of the seasons and the yearly cycle that the whole of the visible realm is its domain.† Plato called the upward journey the mind’s ascent to the intelligible realm. â€Å"In the realm of knowledge is goodness† which is responsible for everything that is right and fine and â€Å"is the source and provider of truth.† Plato deducted that after visiting the higher realm, one would not want â€Å"to engage in human business† in the lower realm because his mind would rather be in the upper regi... Free Essays on Plato And Black Elk Free Essays on Plato And Black Elk Plato’s â€Å"Allegory of the Cave† and Black Elk’s â€Å"The Great Vision† each make a case for a particular way of knowing through a vision or higher realm. Black Elk describes a far more detailed version of his own vision as a young child. His experience provides a way of knowing the spiritual world. Plato describes a man imprisoned in a cave who finds a way of knowing and understanding the world through an enlightening experience. Both authors share similar ideas of gaining knowledge at a higher level, but smaller details of their writings show the differences in their positions. In â€Å"Allegory of the Cave,† Plato created a metaphoric story beginning at the far end of a cave, a long way from the outside world where men had lived since childhood with their legs and necks tied up in a way that kept them in one place and only allowed them to look straight ahead. Further up the cave, a fire was burning which allowed minimal lighting. There was a wall between the fire and the men, behind which people carried all sorts of artifacts. The men were only able to see shadows of these artifacts. They did not have any knowledge of definite objects. One of the men was untied and dragged into the sunlight. After his eyes adjusted to the light, he feasted his eyes â€Å"on the heavenly bodies and the heavens themselves.† He was told he was now closer to reality and was seeing more accurately. When the man saw the sun, he deducted that it was â€Å"the source of the seasons and the yearly cycle that the whole of the visible realm is its domain.† Plato called the upward journey the mind’s ascent to the intelligible realm. â€Å"In the realm of knowledge is goodness† which is responsible for everything that is right and fine and â€Å"is the source and provider of truth.† Plato deducted that after visiting the higher realm, one would not want â€Å"to engage in human business† in the lower realm because his mind would rather be in the upper regi...

Box Office Hits essays

Box Office Hits essays Box office hits are all the rage for the month of September. Its all about whats hot and whats not! The Forgotten, Sky Captain and The World of Tomorrow, Mr. 3000, First Daughter, and Resident Evil: Apocalypse is the top five movies for the week of September 10-24th. Youre likely to go see, The Forgotten, if you like science fiction movies. It stars Julianne Moore, a woman that grieves over the death of her eight-year old son. She starts seeing a therapist who tries to convince her that her son never existed, but after meeting a stranger with a similar story she sets out to prove her therapist wrong. Its a psychological thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat. The Second box office hit is an adventure movie, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow starring Gwyneth Paltrow. An evil mastermind is trying to destroy the earth and scientists have disappeared around the world. A reporter and aviator travel around the world to try and save the planet. If you would like to know if the planet still exists then go and see the movie. If youre stressed and need a little comedy relief then, Mr. 3000 is the movie to go and see. Starring the kings of comedy funny man Bernie Mac, its about an arrogant man who retirees from the sport of baseball with a 3000th base hit and gets into the Hall of Fame. Years later he learns that three of those hits were disqualified, so he has to return to the game and reclaim his fame. You can keep laughing with the fourth box office hit First Daughter starring Katie Holmes as the Presidents daughter. She just wants to be an ordinary girl at Redmond University, so she asks her father to remove the secret service agents and he agrees. Her father agrees, but sends an undercover agent to follow her around. Their fast friendship grows into romance, but when she discovers the truth the Presidents daughter wonders if its true love. Resident Evil: Apocalypse is the h...

Narrative Essay Topic Ideas

Narrative Essay Topic Ideas Even if writing academic papers has never been a problem to you, you may be puzzled when you are assigned to write a narrative essay. What is difficult about this assignment is creating effective narrative essay topic ideas. However, what makes it quite easy is that you do not need to conduct a research before you can start writing. If creative writing has never been your passion, and you want a professional writer do the work for you, contact our company to get qualified assistance. Our experts produce all kinds of academic papers, including stories. So, what you need to do is to give us your teacher’s requirements and specify the deadline. You will receive your story online, so your grade and your reputation will be safe. Where to look for good narrative essay topic ideas? It is more likely that you will find them in your memories. Just give yourself enough time to think. Your experience is unique, so if you have enough time to browse your memories, you will surely recollect some events from your past which you will be able to present in an interesting form. For example, you can tell a story from your early childhood years. Were there any interesting and memorable moments in class? Tell about the present you received for Christmas, which you have been dreaming about. Tell about the journey to a distant place which left a mark in your memory. Your family or even pets can give you inspiration you are looking for. Each of us has interesting stories to tell about our cats, dogs and other animals. Tell about your friends, with whom you have shared many bright moments of your life. Some ideas can be offered to you not only by your personal experience, but by some global events, too, such as September 11 or Japanese Earthquake of 2011. Which style to use? After you have invented narrative essay topic ideas, start writing. Many students are wondering, which style and tone are allowable for this assignment. In fact, you can use any style you like. You can fill your paper with humor, or, on the contrary, sound serious and solemn. Just check that you are consistent and do not shock the reader with unexpected transitions from cheerful mood to sadness and back. It is important to remember that no matter what tone of narration you would choose, your work is still an academic paper. That means correct word usage, grammar and punctuation are crucial for your success. After your paper is ready, check it at least a couple of times to eliminate the errors.

The Top 7 SAT Writing Tips to Boost Your Score

The Top 7 SAT Writing Tips to Boost Your Score SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Having taught SAT Writing to hundreds of students, I understand that this section of the SAT can be confusing and complicated. You have to remember all the grammar rules you were able to avoid learning throughout your schooling. You have to identify subtle grammatical errors that are often committed by gifted writers. Through my experience teaching, I have identified some general rules for the SAT Writing section that have helped students of all levels improve their scores. In this article, I’m going to give you my top 7 tips for success on SAT Writing. These are things to keep in mind that should simplify the material and make selecting correct answers a little bit easier: Focus onUsing Grammar Rules to Answer the Questions Use Process of Elimination to Rule Out Answers Given Two Grammatically Correct Answers, Pick the More Concise One Watch for Consistency Issues Know that "Being" Is Almost Always Wrong Read the Passage First for Improving Paragraphs Questions Don't Be Afraid to Pick "No Error," But Don't Pick It Every Time #1: Rely on Your Knowledge of Grammar Rules to Answer Questions Don't rely on what sounds right to answer SAT Writing questions, except on idiom questions. Many of the SAT Writing sentences are lengthy or use uncommon phrases. The sentences might sound odd to your ear, but that doesn't necessarily mean they're wrong. Similarly, some of the sentences contain grammar errors that are so common that these sentences are likely to sound fine to you. Check out this real SAT Writing example: If you rely on what sounds right to answer this question, you may very well miss the error. However, if you know your grammar rules and apply them here, this question shouldn't pose too much of a challenge. In this sentence, many students will assume that the "I" in answer choice C is correct because "Sandhya and I" sounds proper; the compound object makes the error more difficult to spot with the "what sounds right" method. However, those students who have mastered their SAT grammar rules and use their knowledge of grammar will see an underlined pronoun and check for errors in pronoun case or agreement. They will know that "I" can only be used as a subject and "me" can only be used as an object. Because "I" is receiving the action, it should be in the object form. The answer is C. In this sentence, "I" should be changed to "me." Always focus on finding specific grammar errors. Some of the more common grammar issues on SAT Writing are wordiness, fragments/run-ons, parallelism, pronoun agreement, and subject verb agreement. #2: Eliminate Wrong Answer Choices For every SAT question, you should eliminate answer choices you know are wrong to help you pick the correct answer. For sentence improvement questions, try to identify the error(s) before looking at the answer choices. Eliminate any choice you know doesn't correct the grammatical error in the original sentence or creates an additional error. Here is an example to illustrate this point: Here we have a typical dangling modifier question. The sentence begins with the phrase "spread by rat fleas." Whatever was spread by rat fleas should come directly after the comma. After looking at the rest of the sentence, you should be able to determine that bubonic plague was spread by rat fleas. Therefore, any answer choice that doesn't start with "bubonic plague" is wrong. Immediately, you can get rid of answer choices A, B, and C. You have now given yourself a much better chance of getting this question right. You only have to look at two answer choices. Because answer choice E is more concise and clear than D, the correct answer is E. For identify the error questions, eliminate any choice you know is correct. Go through each underlined portion individually until you're able to locate the error or determine that there is no error. Say good-bye to wrong answers #3: The Most Concise Grammatically Correct Answer Choice Will Be Right This tip applies mostly to the improving sentences subsection. If more than one answer choice is grammatically correct, the more concise one will be right. The shortest answer will not always be right, but if you can narrow a question down to two choices that are both grammatically correct, typically the more concise answer will be the right one. Let'srevisit theprevious example question to demonstrate this: Because we identified the dangling modifier, we were immediately able to narrow down our choices to D and E. Both D and E are grammatically correct, but answer choice E expresses the same information in a more concise manner. Therefore, answer choice E is the correct answer. For a more thorough explanation of this rule, check out my article on wordiness. #4: Consistency is Key Many of the grammar rules on SAT Writing are related to consistency. Generally, verb tense, subject, and person should remain consistent in a sentence. Also, other grammar rules like parallelism and illogical comparisons relate to keeping things consistent. Take a look at this SAT Writing question: In the underlined portion, the verb "has been" is in the present perfect tense. However, in the first clause, the verb "was" is in the simple past tense. The shift from past to present perfect tense does not make sense in the sentence. The verb tenses should be consistent. To correct the sentence, "has been" should be changed to the simple past "was." After eliminating wrong choices, we’re left with C and D. Due to parallel structure rules, the infinitive â€Å"to conceive† should be used to be parallel with â€Å"to espouse† on the other side of the conjunction. The answer is D. And SAT Writing success #5: The Word "Being" Often Signals an Error While "being" can be used correctly, it is often an indication of a grammar error. The word "being" can signal wordiness, idiom, and fragment errors. Whenever you see the word "being" in a sentence improvement or identify the error question, you are likely to find a grammar error. Look at this real SAT example: If you encountered this question on your SAT, the word "being" should immediately raise a red flag. Check to see if it's signaling a grammar error. In this sentence, "plus being" is awkward and unnecessarily wordy. The sentence would be more clear and concise if you replaced "plus being" with "and." You should still check the other answer choices quickly to make sure you didn't miss an obvious error. In this sentence, all the other answer choices are correct. #6: Skim the Paragraph Improvement Passage Before Answering Questions In the paragraph improvement subsection, you should quickly read the paragraph improvement passage before answering the questions. While reading, note any obvious errors and identify the main idea. For a more thorough breakdown of answering paragraph improvement questions, read this article on how to approach paragraph improvement. #7: "No Error" is Less Common, But There Will Be Correct "No Error" Answers On the improving sentences and identify the error questions, the sentence will be correct about 10%-20% of the time. Do not fear the "No Error" answer, but if more than 30% of your answers are "No Error," you've definitely made mistakes and need to look at the sentences more closely. What's Next? Review these posts on the 8 most common mistakes on SAT Writing and the secret to SAT Writing. Additionally, you'll want to make sure you learn the strategies for improving sentences and identifying sentence errors. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points? Check out our best-in-class online SAT prep program. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your SAT score by 160 points or more. Our program is entirely online, and it customizes what you study to your strengths and weaknesses. If you liked this Writing and grammar lesson, you'll love our program.Along with more detailed lessons, you'll get thousands ofpractice problems organized by individual skills so you learn most effectively. We'll also give you a step-by-step program to follow so you'll never be confused about what to study next. 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