Fallingwater: American Architecture

Photographs of Billingsgate, originally designed and built as a private home are, without question, breathtaking. Even so, photos do this work of art no Justice. The only way one can truly appreciate Billingsgate is to see it for yourself. It is no exaggeration to say that design, structure and a genius artistic sense came together to create an architectural masterpiece. Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, Billingsgate is one of the most intriguing, inspired works of art in American architecture.Located in western Pennsylvania, building Egan in 1936 and the home was completed in 1939. In addition to Wright's distinct design features, any mention of Billingsgate would be incomplete without mentioning the notable geographical elements, none more well-known than the waterfall over which the home was built. At first glance, Billingsgate seems to be a modern work, and it is, in that it is considered to be in the style of American Modern architecture. However, one who is not familiar specifica lly with American architectural style might easily lay eyes onBillingsgate for the first time only to be surprised to learn that it was designed and built in the mid-sass. The fact that it is Just as plausible to believe Billingsgate was built closer to ten years ago as 80 years ago speaks to the timelessness of Wright's work. Stone is a predictable, likely choice for a building material which would add both beauty and strength to a structure, especially one on a scale such as that of Billingsgate. Concrete might be a less likely choice, and probably would not be considered by many as a building material used for aesthetic purposes.However, Frank Lloyd Wright used concrete not only to reinforce the cantilevers he used so prominently in his design of Billingsgate but to add beauty to the home as well. Concrete became part of the aesthetic of the building as much as the sandstone he used so beautifully in his design. To ensure the stability of the structure, Wright incorporated severa l reinforcement techniques which were considered state of the art at the time. However, the high humidity levels in the area led to eventual structural compromises, including mildew mage and weakening, shifting balconies.Eventually, the Kauffman family, for whom the home was originally designed and built, turned the home and over 1,000 surrounding acres of land over to the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy. The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy completed major structural repairs to Billingsgate in 2002 after studies showed the extent of the structural compromise. Edgar Kauffman, Jar. Said of his families home, â€Å"Such a place cannot be possessed. It is a work of man for man; not by a man for a man.Over the years since it was built, Billingsgate has grown ever more famous and admired, a textbook example of modern architecture at its best. By its very intensity it is a public resource, not a private indulgence. † The American Institute of Architects voted Billingsgate the most important building of the 20th century; in 1966, Billingsgate was designated a National Historic Landmark. And it is the only home designed by Frank Lloyd Wright to be opened to the public complete with the original interior, including furnishings ND artwork.A solid architectural work in structure and design Juxtaposed with the serenity of the waterfall underneath and the gently sloping topography, this example of Wright's work demonstrates the level of intricacy and comprehensive forethought which was integrated into his design process. Wright's design, coupled with his vision, resulted in a structure with such an ethereal essence it seemed to float in air, suspended in nature's beauty, yet so strong, solid and sound, built to stand every test of time.

Effects of Guilt in Crime and Punishment Essay

Guilt is a force in all that has the ability to bring people to insanity. When guilt becomes great enough, the effects it has on people go much deeper than the surface. People’s minds and body’s are overpowered by the guilt that consumes them every second they live with their burden. The devastating effects of guilt are portrayed vividly in Dostoevsky’s fictional but all to real novel Crime and Punishment. In the story, the main character Raskolnikov commits a murder and suffers with the guilt throughout. Eventually his own guilt destroys himself and he is forced to confess. Through Raskolnikov, Dostoevsky bestows on the reader how guilt destroys Raskolnikov’s physical and mental well being, which, in time, leads to complete alienation from society. When one suffers with a great deal of guilt, their physical health quickly deteriorates. Raskolnikov’s physical suffering begins shortly after the murder with delusions and nonsense ravings while constantly drifting in and out of reality. He often goes into a state of â€Å"not completely unconscious† but is in a â€Å"feverish state, sometimes delirious, sometimes half conscious†(98) while blaming it on his previous sickness. Raskolnikov is being destroyed by his guilt. He is unable to physically live in society while he has such a burden constantly looming over him. When in the police station, Raskolnikov hears talk of the murders and with just a reminder of his crime, he quickly becomes weak. When he â€Å"recovered consciousness†(88) the men at the station undoubtedly notice his illness and point out that â€Å"he can barely stand upright.†(89) His guilt has driven him to a serious state of sickness. He can no longer function normally or even keep consciousness when he is reminded of his crime. Raskolnikov can no longer function normally because his guilt has destroyed is physical capabilities so drastically. The mental abilities of a person are stifled when they are suffering with a great deal of guilt. Along with his physical health, Raskolnikov’s mental health quickly deteriorates following the murder. He is in a constant state of mental delirium and has constant ravings that are very irrational.  However, Raskolnikov’s true state is shown when Razumihin tells him â€Å"You are delirious you know!† and Raskolnikov’s response is a bold â€Å"No I am not!†(93) Even though Raskolnikov is in a state of delirium, his problem is so serious because he is totally oblivious to his state and completely denies it when wise, rational men tell him that he is. Raskolnikov’s guilt has taken him from a wise, educated, scholar to being incapable of rational thought. As the story progresses, the guilt becomes increasingly heavier on Raskolnikov’s mind. Others begin to notice this to including Petrovich who describes Raskolnikov as a â€Å"moth near a candle† who will keep â€Å"circling around [him], circling around [him]† all the time â€Å"narrowing the radius more and more, and-whop!†(352) Petrovich is aware of Raskolnikov’s state and he knows that Raskolnikov cannot live with his guilt. He knows like a moth around a candle that it is only a matter of time before the guilt is unbearable and Raskolnikov will have to confess everything. Raskolnikov’s guilt becomes his biggest enemy as it continues to break down his mind and leads him away from normal society. As Raskolnikov becomes torn apart by his guilt, he begins to separate himself from society which leads to complete alienation from everybody. He becomes a man that is so different from everyone around him that he no longer belongs. With â€Å"a sweep of his arm†(96), a drastic realization falls on Raskolnikov as he flings the coin into the water. â€Å"It seemed to him, he had cut himself off from everyone and everything at that moment.†(96) Raskolnikov no longer puts value on what his society values the highest. He is terribly poor and hungry, but throws twenty cockpeckcs into the river and thus destroying any ties he still had with society. Because of his alienation, Raskolnikov is no longer able to express his feelings and emotions with anybody. When Raskolnikov claims of hearing things, Natasha tells him that â€Å"it’s the blood crying in [his] ears.†(96) Unknowingly, she realizes his disconnection from society as she tells him â€Å"when there is no outlet for it and it gets clotted, [he] begins fancying things.†(96) The blood in his ears is a metaphor for his alienation and how when there is no outlet, meaning he has no one to talk to, it clots and he imagines things, which is his state of delirium. As Raskolnikov becomes detached from society, he begins to make his own world in his head where his ideals are  his deciding factors. He even has reason for murder. He convinces himself that â€Å"it wasn’t a human being [he] killed† but rather he believes â€Å"it was a principle!†(223) Raskolnikov believes he has become the world’s superman and truly done a good deed by riding the world of an â€Å"illness†(223) to society. By this point, Raskolnikov has no ties to society as he has created his own value system and believes he has a license to kill. Raskolnikov’s guilt changes him such that he breaks away from society, which snowballs into him being completely alienated with no one who thinks on an equal level. Guilt is the main factor that drives Raskolnikov to insanity which leads to his alienation. Guilt attacks his physical heath making him drift in and out of consciousness, which makes him no longer function normally in society. During this, his mind is being consistently deteriorated by the guilt causing irrational thought. Raskolnikov eventually becomes alienated from society as he no longer thinks or acts like the people around him. Raskolnikov does not improve until he confesses and takes the consequences does he return to normal. Through Raskolnikov, Dostoevsky brilliantly shows the power that guilt truly has on a person.

The Confession and Crime Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Confession and Crime - Assignment Example Han and his wife lived peacefully as described by the Chinese stagehand. Similarly, Kuzmich lived well with people even though they took advantage of him. He is a humble man who thinks everyone around him lives a good life until they start borrowing from him. Second Topic Sentence: Both Han and Kuzmich did not get along in their respective marriages. It seems that there was nothing so intimate between the two main characters and their wives. Threats of divorce were all over. Specific Support: Han feels that the child is not his and that he married his wife when she was already pregnant. On the other hand, Kuzmich is thought of being a thief simply because his friends and his wife think that he steals from his workplace. Specific Support: Han cannot take decisive action towards his wife and the overwhelming hatred towards her is the possible cause of her murder. Kuzmich too cannot openly tell his friends that he does not have the amount of money they think he has. He goes ahead to steal just to please his greedy friends. Specific Support: Han selfishly thinks that his wife is unfaithful and that he can live without him. Kuzmich also looks forward to living a good life just like his friends despite earning a little income. Conclusion with a Clincher: Han and Kuzmich have had a tragic ending because of the people around them and the circumstances around them. Han’s crime was provoked by his own feeling and attitude towards his wife. Also, Kuzmich’s friends seem to have influenced him in stealing the money from the cash box.  

Programmable Logic Controllers Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Programmable Logic Controllers - Assignment Example The RES instruction is used to cancel the SET instruction, hence putting the PLC off. In the contemporary society, electronic devices are used in variety of ways. Electronic devices which make use of microprocessors rely on signals to understand information. Signals are available in two forms, i.e. Digital and analogue. Electronic devices can only understand information that is in digital format, and hence the analogue signals are meaningless in such devices. For this reason, the conversion of analogue to digital signals is essential, especially considering that most real life situations lead to the production of analogue signals. The analogue to digital conversion of information, changes the format of the information, without altering its content. Microprocessors are used for the conversion of the analogue signal to digital. The principle used in the conversion of analogue signals to digital signals by the microprocessor is the voltage variation. The microprocessor used sensors, which detect the incoming analogue signals, and translate them into voltage levels. For instance, the translation of temperature of 0 – 1000c, leads to the assignment of 0 volts to 00c, and 5volts to 1000c. Any value that is above 0volts represents an HIGH, and hence microprocessor can show the actual value, depending upon the number of levels the microprocessor can represent. The resolution of the A/D converter refers to the number of intervals which can be divided from a certain analog input range. Since the interpretation of the analogue input (e.g. temperature) requires assigning of voltage levels, the number of levels which can be represented is determined by the resolution. Resolution of A/D converter is represented in bits, for instance, an n-bit A/D converter has a resolution of 1/2n. The word length, as used in the microprocessors refers to the

Fruitful occasions.Project Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Fruitful occasions.Project Management - Essay Example The philosophy used in developing the project is based on the traditional (PMBOK Guide) A guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge. It also incorporates the benefits and pitfalls of different techniques uses to breakdown the work structure and tools used to plan and execute the project. The risk management structure is enforced and in place during the entire project cycle and different strategies are being used to mitigate and manage possible risk. The risk management structure monitors the progress of the project executed and develops strategies to reduce the impact of any future risk on the project as well. The project is based in Bahrain and further implications of productive prospective are included contained in the project scope. 1. Project Overview: Fruitful Occasions is a service that facilitates serving delicious fresh fruit and flowers nationwide for any occasion. It specialises in artistic flower making in combination with fresh fruits, which not only looks pleasan t to eyes but also taste delicious. Customer satisfaction is the key element therefore fresh gourmet chocolate and fruits are utilised in bouquets and gift sets so that it could create a lasting impression for special occasions. Orders can either be customised or placed from catalogue through the website. Customers can select order according to the occasion or random and add to their shopping cart. Payments are accepted through PayPal, Credit and Debit Cards only. Customer’s details are saved in the order form in order to maintain confidentiality of the order. Once the order has been placed, the invoice will be sent to the customer for acknowledgement. With the acceptance of order, a contract will be established between the client and the company. In case of changes in price, first it will be communicated to the customer, if agreed then the order will be preceded (Fruitful Occasions, 2012). This report illustrates the entire project life cycle from execution, planning, schedu ling and controlling the process by usage of resources in finite time to achieve a suitable goal. It will facilitate towards provision of exclusive services in Bahrain, which includes gifts delivery, flowers and fruits bouquets nationwide. The project is time specified and within qualitative and cost constraints (Kerzner, 2009). 2. Characteristics of the Project: It is implemented under the Project Charter, which encompasses the needs and specification of the project within its defined scope. The characteristics of the project are further illustrated below (Kerzner, 2009, pp. 23-27). 2.1 Aims and Objectives: The aim of this project is the execution of flower and fruits gift services in Bahrain, which shall be par excellence of the customers’ demands. The objectives are finite as it aims to reach household and corporate sector. It works on demand and premium delivery services to ordinary delivery services that is attainable and can be measurable in terms of profit and happy cu stomers. 2.2 Scope and Constraints: The scope of the project facilitates to provide premium or excellent quality flowers and fresh delicious fruits to the new market. It will also focus on high customer satisfaction and PR reviews. The funds for the project are within the project scope as executed by the company’s management and board. Lastly, the time is critical and important for the project life cycle therefore it is essential for the project to be completed with the prescribed time limit. 2.3 Stakeholders: The main stakeholder of the project is the company

The Ethical Issues and Social Responsibility of Corporate Management Research Paper

The Ethical Issues and Social Responsibility of Corporate Management at Ford - Research Paper Example Since its production, people have been curious and apprehensive about this Ford Pinto model as it has low capacity and safety measures, catching fire, particularly after a rear-end collision. The specific case of the three teenagers received media attention primarily because the company was charged with criminal conduct and murder, not simply negligence. Connected to this case were the several other pending civil cases against Ford for this particular problem. Larger of the problems that Ford faced was that of corporate social responsibility where ethical concerns included conducting successful and people-oriented business in today’s time (Ethics and the Individual, n.d). The paper talks about this ethical concern that Ford faced and the ethical decisions it took to cater to this issue at hand. Furthermore, the paper also discusses the various alternative actions that the company could have taken to cater to this ethical dilemma at hand. The Ethical Issues in the Case and the Approach used by Coordinator The various ethical concerns at hand that this case identifies include the launch of Ford Pinto with complete knowledge that the product was faulty and prone to problems such as the fuel tank catching fire after a slow rear-end collision with any other car. This ethical concern is magnified by the forty or so civil and one criminal case against Ford Motor Company based on this problem identified in the car. The cars had specifically been tested to evaluate whether the fuel tank was faulty and it was discovered that out of eleven cars, eight cars had ruptured fuel tanks which caught fire. This problem is complicated further by the fact that Ford decided to launch its Ford Pinto in two years, which is one year and six months earlier than the regular time span it took for the product to be put in the market, from a conception of the product. The product was out in the market and it implies that the coordinator had a clear idea on the failures of the product and yet launched it in the market with this explicit knowledge (The Revised Trevino & Nelson 8-step model, n.d). In the ethical case elucidated above, the philosophical approach that the coordinator used in this case was the justice or fairness approach. This approach implies the principal taught by Aristotle that equals are to be treated equally while unequal should be treated unequally. In this respect, the moral question is that whether the actions taken by the coordinator were fair and whether these actions treated everyone similarly or in a similar manner or not. The case indicates that the coordinator launched the product despite knowing its faults and problems, thus showing discriminatory behavior towards the other stakeholders of the product (Andre, Meyer, Shanks & Velasquez, 1996). The Stakeholders for the Dilemma It is pertinent to study the various stakeholders and their relationship to the case as it will help us in evaluating which stakeholders had the most negative ef fect from the launch and running of Ford Pintos in the market. The first and foremost were the users of Ford Pinto who either drove the Ford Pinto or were passengers in the car. The negative effect for them was that any small accident particularly involving the rear end of the Ford Pinto, would result in a ruptured fuel tank and possibly a fire which could be dangerous to these stakeholders.

Google Analytic and Business Intelligence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Google Analytic and Business Intelligence - Essay Example Content group enables the company maximize on its search engine optimization. Monitoring goal conversions enables the company to measure how well the site contributes to its business objectives. Lastly, the e-commerce section contains reports on merchandising and revenue. However, these entire groups only provide the company with data. For actual business intelligence, Google Analytics enables the company cross-reference data from these categories, compare timelines or even compare two metric against each other to help to make sense out of the data (Clicksharpmarketing, 2008). Moreover the derived summaries could be presented in diagrammatic representations and even be shared Google shared with colleagues through email in different formats such as PDF or XML. The extent to which real estate financial organizations could learn from Google Analytics shall only be restricted by their own imagination. That is to say that they could cross-reference data from the five categories: visitors, traffic sources, ecommerce, content and goals to give them a wide breath of information. For example cross-referencing visitors with content real estate financial organization will be able to tell which properties are attracting the most attention as such they could adjust their costing accordingly. Also, traffic sources can inform them of localities having more demand for their services than others which may lead them to open outlets there or vice

Life Now As a College Student and Life Before the College Essay

Life Now As a College Student and Life Before the College - Essay Example This essay discusses that many young people find that there is a huge disconnect between what is expected of college life and what it actually turns out to be. This dissonance may sometimes be traumatic. Loneliness, disappointment, and the absence of the usual familial support can make some people react in unpredictable ways. It could heighten homesickness; make you give into numerous temptations or prompt you to just dropout. â€Å"National statistics tell us that less than half of all college students finish their four-year college degrees. Slightly more than half of those who don't finish leave school before the start of their second year†. Colleges across the country are aware of this problem. And more and more colleges are focusing on helping students who are finding it difficult to make the change. Just as different people adjust to a situation differently, so too is the case in college. You will find some classmates making the change faster and adjusting better. This is no reason to feel frustrated. You are new to handling situations independently. Giving yourself more time helps. Consulting on-campus counselors also make a big difference. Life before college was a piece of cake. College, on the other hand, is a challenge in many ways. It brings new expectations, new sacrifices and a whole new load of adjustments. It is the final frontier before we set out to face the world. But the upside of this is that this is an opportunity to be an adult; to take charge of a totally new situation and eventually come out on top.

Critique of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Essay Example for Free

Critique of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Essay The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, came as a reaction to the dreadful damages of the Second World War. This declaration was built according to the fundamentals of equality. It lists us all of our rights, all of our freedoms and how we can express them freely. It was constructed on the basic fact of it being just, equal to all, and right. However, are all articles applicable on all of mankind? Or can some of these be questioned? Generally, all of these articles should be applicable for the majority of humans, but not all of them. There is always an exception to the rule. There is always an outlier that doesn’t follow the rules. Many countries have rejected or not signed this declaration, therefore this declaration isn’t pertinent everywhere. One can find a lot of exceptions for many articles. Article 1 states that all human beings are free and equal in dignity and rights, that they are endowed with reason and conscience and should act toward one another in a spirit of brotherhood. Nonetheless, not all human beings are reasonable and conscious of everything they do. Take serial killers for example. Their acts prove of inhumanity. A man with reason and/or conscience would never do such a thing. Also, should we give unreasonable people the same rights as the ones reasonable people have? Should they have the same privilege as others even if they have no sense of reason or conscience? The United Nations General Assembly also mentioned the fact that people should act in a spirit of brotherhood. Look around you, what brotherhood? Is killing each other brotherhood? Is fighting and starting wars brotherhood? Is forgetting every moral and correct way of acting just to get to power brotherhood? A definite no is the correct answer to these questions. There are no signs of brotherhood around us. On the contrary, if one takes a close look to our surroundings and everything around us, humans, one will only notice nothing but signs of rivalry and opposition. Article 2 raises the issue of the fact that we’re all equal in terms of rights and freedoms without distinction of any kind, such as race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Despite that, distinctions according to race, color, sex, religion, etc still exist in our modern society. Movements of racism, sexism, and religions distinctions still exist, but of course, lesser than before. People are still fighting and battling to erase these distinctions completely. This is a process every person looking for an equal and just world should follow. Article 5 states that no one shall be subjected to torture or to be cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment. What about those who commit inhuman acts, those who torture other humans for the fun of it, don’t they deserve to have a taste of their own medicine? One should be treated the way one treats others. So if one tortures one another, that one shall be tortured or punished. Part 2 of article 15 articulates the fact that no one shall be deprived of his nationality. Well, what if that individual was involved in acts of high treason? What if that person turned his back on his country and denied his own nationality. That person definitely does not deserve to hold his nationality and shall be deprived from it immediately. Articles 18 and 19 talk about the fact that everyone is free to express their thoughts, opinions, religions. Some thoughts and opinions might actually harm others. Physically or mentally. In that way, it will refrain article 1. An example of such opinions/thoughts/religion would be Satanism and the Ku Klux Klan. These associations actions can damage others and hurt them. Therefore, these associations do not have the right to fully express themselves, but partially. They can only express the opinions/thoughts that do no harm to others. To sum things up, The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is inconsistent; its articles are not always suitable. This declaration is not functional in all countries as some countries did not sign it. This declaration fails in its goal of it being universal; Exceptions can be found to some articles. Pieces of this declaration can be questioned for some precise individuals. It is not always applicable and it is not always a reliable document.

Aims And Objectives Essay Example for Free

Aims And Objectives Essay Aim:To create a marketing plan to acquire new customers; primarily students and increase market share. Pamper Me has a large client base but is lacking student consumers. This marketing plan will offer marketing objectives and strategies in order to increase this market share. Pamper Me is not situated on a ‘regular walk to university’ so innovative and strategic recommendations will be required for successful delivery. Objectives: Research and analyse the current customer base to determine the student : non-student ratio Research will be carried out via interviews with current employees and questionnaires to potential customers Discover student salon-usage trends, with regards to amount of students as a percentage of the whole, and their salon preferences Once the questionnaires have been completed the data will be collated and analysed. This acquired primary data will give us an insight student trends and insight into the most effective marketing strategy Research/Discover from students, what their wants/needs are from a salon Pamper Me may not currently be meeting the needs of the desired student consumers. Collated data from primary and secondary research will advise us on how to increase the number of students using this salon Define main competitors to the business and map out their market physical positioning Primary and Secondary research will be carried out in the area surrounding Pamper Me in order to locate the competition. The marketing plan may suggest to mirror competitor strategies if these seem to increasing the student percentage of consumers. Analyse current marketing strategies with a view to creating a new and improved strategy Current marketing strategies in place by Amara may not be sufficent or beneficial to Pamper Me. A new approach may be needed and it is vital that  all employees understand the new strategies once they are in place. To create or identify a Unique Selling Point (USP) for the business based on their expertise and specialties Currently Pamper Me’s USP is that it provides private and noninvasive treatment rooms for religious women. This isnt widely know by the community so a recommendation must be suggesting in order to increase the awareness of this. Religious students may not know that there is a salon the adheres to their faithful rules. Implement a marketing strategy that can inform and attract students to the salon We must research and analyses what inspires students to spend money on beauty treatments. As students dont have a high level of disposable income it is important to implement a marketing plan that is constructive and beneficial for students.

SWOT Analysis Social Work

SWOT Analysis Social Work Life is a learning process and this involves a lot of interactions and interpretations to evaluate one and evolve as a better person. The observations made by the superiors, colleagues and self have enabled me to identify my strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Below is a brief discussion on the same. (S)trengths Strengths just do not mean the obvious job skills one has. It means the resources a person has, to tackle a situation. These could be things like knowledge gained through a hobby, ideas absorbed from sports, family background, and sense of humor and much more. Developing a list of a persons strengths is a time killing process as inherent skills may not be recognized as strengths until specific situation brings them on action. Similarly, strengths in dealing with a situation may not be so when a person faces other issues. My strengths are best derived while at work. I could identify my strengths, whenever a task was assigned to me. My immediate response would be to step forward and ask the requester for his / her objective behind this task and his / her expectations out of this particular task. This has always helped me enhance my ability to focus on structuring my tasks and giving optimized output. This reminds me of a past instance at my work place where, there was difference of opinion emerging within the team, under the supervision of a colleague of mine who was nominated as the Acting Team Lead (ATL) of the month. ATL was a concept brought in to enable the team with team leading experience. The differences emerging had led the team into a cold war. This is a situation that no supervisor or any superior would desire his/her team to be in which might cripple the performance and relationship of the team. When this started to be visible, I was asked by my General Manger to handle the team until the issues were resolved. This task was critical for me, as this responsibility was given to me by my GM. He set his expectation and told why he chose me and I had to live up to his expectations. Since I had been with the team for more than two years, I was confident that I would be able to crack the puzzle. I had to be cautious in approaching the team. A wrong move or decision could turn things around for the worst. Hence, I decided to break ice by meeting every individual of the team to get a better perspective of the issue. This way, I was able to analysis the core issue and come up with a resolution to resolve the particular issue. I initiated a fish on table activity for the team, where everyone from the team was allowed to speak their mind out and discuss their issues. This activity helped them understand each other and sort their differences. Post this activity, the bonding of the team was further strengthened. There was a visible change amongst the members of the teams approach toward tackling any issue. They wouldnt wait for a third person to come and resolve their issues; rather they started walking up to each other and sort the issues themselves. With this particular incident, I was able to identify my strengths. When my GM looked up to me to handle the situation, it showed his faith and confidence in my problem solving techniques. A one to one session with my GM made me realize that I possessed a greater level of patience. I realized some of my strengths through this particular incident, which were my approachability, decision making, ability to negotiate and solve problem. (W)eaknesses ÂÂ  It may be very easy to identify a persons weakness, but it takes far more objectivity. For example, showing sympathy on a persons problem is a very good human characteristic, but if it exceeds, it may cause problems in leading a team. As in the case of STRENGTHS, it is important to be aware of all your weaknesses while dealing with an issue and also to know which weaknesses could be related to a particular situation. Some of my weaknesses that I would like to work towards is to improve my area of expertise i.e. my knowledge on MS office applications. This was necessary for me to understand and put to ease the complexities involved in my work. I also would like to bring about improvement in attaining best possible control over my emotions, to incorporate the skills attained to improve my social networking and to put to best possible use, my creativity. The main culprit to be blamed for this absolutely is the lack of time. Due to which, I am most of the time unable enhance my knowledge as mentioned above. Once, I planned to dig to the roots of my weakness, and approached my supervisor to give me a feedback. Thats when I realized that I couldnt say No when I had to say it. Let me quote an incident which is fresh in memory. One fact that was brought to my notice during a feedback session was, I had the habit of going out of my way to help others even when I was piled up with so much of work for the day. I would land up myself doing the extra work not oblivious of the fact that if I took even a smallest of extra work, I would miss my deadlines. This began to affect my regular deliverables. Knowing the fact that an adjoin on work would affect my regular deliverables, neither did I say No nor did I seek help. Though I had an opportunity to say no or to get the time lines extended, I did not do so. Instead I ended up extending my shift. After this feedback from my superior, I knew I had to change myself by working towards this issue to overcome this particular weakness of mine. (O)pportunities It is important to examine a problem in its entirety and also to identify the opportunities that may exist in it. A simple example is that of a production manager who has to lay off workers in order to reduce the production due to a fall in demand for the product of the company which he works. This is a problem. However, if he is updated of the happenings of his industry and the economy, he can use this problem as an opportunity to optimize the operations and prepare for product enhancements for the future which the market will require at that point of time. Similarly, I believe that my strengths could be my gateway for opportunities. I consider every challenge that I come across as an opportunity to learn. This would enable me to tackle different situations, undauntedly. I always try to learn from my own mistakes, as well as from others mistakes too. This has helped me narrow down my mistakes and even to correct the mistakes which I have already done. To me, approaching people to understand their requirements and providing them with the desired output is one of the strengths. According to me, this is a quality which can be put to use for the advantage of the others as well me. This trend not only creates a great visibility but also enables me to understand things better and look at things from a wider perspective and from different angles. This reminds me of an instance where in all the managers from different departments were asked by the SDL (Service Delivery Lead) to work on analyzing the attrition trend for their respective spans. The SDL also informed the managers that they could approach me for any kind of help with regard to data or for any details required for the analysis. At this moment I realized that I was noticed by my SDL and my capability to work efficiently was made transparent, by him to others. I also realized my way of working turned my strength into an opportunity of getting to know more people from the hierarchy, to widen my network and provide me the opportunity to work with all LOBs (Line of Business). (T)hreats ÂÂ  Every circumstance has its own threats. The one who faces it has to recognize it and gather his strengths to tackle those. Similarly, threats are easy to identify. But differentiating the impossible and the unlikely among them may be a difficult task. The unlikely is the one that often turns around to make you mad. It is the unexpected threats which could be the greatest danger than the obvious ones. Knowing the fact that the unexpected may suddenly occur and a pre-existing knowledge of ones strengths allow for most effective response to these situations. According to me, everything is a threat My strengths, weaknesses and opportunities My way of approaching people to understand their requirements creates visibility, which my competitors could find threatening and try to persuade others to go against me. This is a potential threat that I experience. I recall an instance when I was recognized for my hard work and dedication in many occasions. I was rewarded point and vouchers as gift as an appreciation for my hard work. My competitors started envying me for getting recognized. They started stretching their shifts and began to work on weekends as well to gain attention. For which they succeeded to some extent. When I noticed their behavior and actions, I realized that I had become a threat to them and that was a threat for me. In another instance, I had to take calls of our clients. Since I had no experience in taking calls, I found it difficult to understand their accent. This was a threat as the other were either well trained or had prior experience in taking call before they joined. Knowing the client and understanding them was the most important part of our job. Since I lacked such an understanding with the client, I was given the least importance when it came to attending client calls. Emotions are one of the weaknesses that can be exposing me to a threat of being misused. As I very easily get carried away emotionally, people could take advantage of me and get me to do things for their selfish motives. STAGE 2 Improvement Plan It is important for one to identify his/her strengths and opportunities, and work towards enhancing them at the same time; it becomes equally important to work towards improving the same to overcome threats and weakness. One of the strengths if feel is important and would add value or become an added advantage is to gain my supervisors reliability / confidence in me. As an individual, I was successful enough in gain my supervisors and co-workers confidence on any kind of work given to me. However at a supervisor level it was still verified. This could be due to the importance of the report or data or else it could be that I couldnt gain his/her complete confidence. I had to work on this and had to overcome by improvising an improvement plan or a strategy and reach the point of confidence where my supervisor would give me complete authority to send report without he / she cross checking. I intend to approach my supervisor and talk to him about the same. ask him to observe my work for a week and only once he is confident in me would send the reports directly to the concern departments or people. To achieve this I plan to adopt a strategic way of doing my work. This can be achieved by looking into each and every details of the given task, identifying the areas of modifications or areas which have some scope of improvement or areas of interest of the requestor and the purpose of the report. This way I would be working towards perfecting my skills, understanding the requestors requirements, improving on visualizing the minute details and gaining confidence of my supervisor to be confident in me. I also had work towards improving my knowledge on MS Excel. Due to my limitation on MS Excel knowledge, most of the time, I depend on the experts for complex formulas which had become one of the core areas of improvement. Improving the knowledge on Excel would widen my areas or expertise, help me improve or modify complex formulas and enable me to create new templates to ease the work for everyone. If I excelled on this, it would enable me to perform critical and complex tasks. Hence I intend to overcome this weakness of mine by attending some classroom trainings or online trainings on MS Excel and by reaching out the experts. I also intend to seek for help from my supervisor to help me understand complex formulas. The second weakness I thing I would like to improve is to say No when required. As I feel, I might offend a person by saying No or might give an impression that I am not willing or I do not possess the ability to perform that particular task. One way to do so is by gathering courage to say No, by sympathizing myself and not allowing others to take advantage. A sincere effort would help me overcome this challenge. Probably by saying No in different way rather than being curt. Probably addressing the same to my supervisor or by delegating / sharing the work with my colleagues would help me solve this problem. As mentioned above, my threats, my hard work and recognitions for the same could become a threat. This could lead to a bad relationship or unhealthy competition within the team. I would try to overcome the same by changing my approach to such situations. By getting others from the team involved in all my activities and cross training everyone on each others work can ease the pressure off. This approach wouldnt be a strategy to overtake others but a step or opportunity to work together as a team for good. This way both parties would get an opportunity to improve their skill and thoughts; and plan better for the best results. The lack of experience in taking calls as mentioned earlier was one of the most important drawbacks in my career. As this could set me back or leave me behind when it come to my assessments or performance review and would become a road block in my career growth. Hence I decided to approach my superiors and colleagues to help me over come on the same. At the same time I decided to side barge with my colleagues to learn how to take client calls and speed up my learning curve. This way would be back on track for the race and wouldnt allow this weakness to affect my performance or growth. STAGE 3 Summary of progress When I implemented the plan to improve my SWOT, I began to realize that my quality of work had improved. I was more confident in terms of structuring my daily activities related to work. I knew exactly how I had to achieve my goals. When I joined the team I lacked confidence in attending client calls. I did not want this deficiency to set me back or leave me behind in the race. As planned I addressed this issue to my supervisor. He then advised me to enroll myself for a voice and accent training. As I enrolled myself to the advised training I realized that it would take longer time than expected to learn. Hence I decided to attend the training every day and post that came to the work place and side barged with my colleagues to understand and learn quickly. This strategic move helped me finish my voice and accent training in two weeks which normally takes six to seven weeks. Post this training I was back on track to compete at power with the other team members. Post my training on voice and accent I start with my plan to gain confidence of my supervisor, I realized that this actually was working out. I approached my supervisor to seek for his help in observing my work, he was happy to do so. He in fact began giving me feedbacks regularly and gave me tips on how to overcome certain issues. And soon I got an opportunity to prove myself this was when my supervisor had to take his personal time off. This was an opportunity that helped supervisor gain confidence on me. I also received rewards from my GM for taking care of my supervisors work in his absence. This particular incident helped me to take more responsibilities and relieved my supervisor of his regular jobs allowing him to take new jobs from his supervisor. Because of this action plan it helped my supervisor and me to move ahead take up additional roles and responsibilities. During my improvisation of improvement plan, I had enrolled myself for class room trainings and online trainings on MS Excel. This was one of the tips by my supervisor to me. Since my supervisor was also good at MS Excel, I approached him for help when ever required. He helped me to read and understand complex formulas and worked with me in creating few. This way I began to gain confidence in myself and was able develop my own templates to make our jobs easier. As I began to improve on my MS Excel knowledge, I was being observed by everyone around me and was ask to help them in creating templates for their reports. Looking at my knowledge on Excel my supervisor appointed me to set test papers on MS Excel for interviews and was asked to train the team as well on the same. This was one of the important milestones I had achieved. As started to improve and began to receive rewards for my hard work, I was getting piled up with work. It so happened that the expectations were rising and I couldnt do anything about it to stop it. I had reached a point where I was only accepting more and more work, and could not put a stop to it. My health began to deteriorate, as I began to stretch my shift, pushed myself to complete the assigned tasks. My co-works realized this and advised me not to accept anything and everything. When I approached my supervisor to address him of the issue, he said that he knew about the pressure I was in but could not do much about as the profile demanded for it. He then told that he would look into the issue and look for an alternative. He then decided to appoint an additional person to help me. But it was a lengthy procedure to appoint a person to assist me, as it would take at least a month to appoint one. Hence I decided to delegate some of my work to my colleagues who were well equipped wit h the tools I used. As I began to get my work done by colleagues, my supervisor observed this and appointed one of my colleagues to help me. A process of appointing that took at least a month now was reduced to two weeks. This approach in fact led to more opportunity within the team and helped everyone get cross trained so as to work as a team to ease the pressure off. This way I was getting everyone in the team involved in different activities and shared my work. This approach was eliminating possibilities of threat in the team. The team no more felt threatened by anyone, as everybody was receiving an opportunity to learn, explore and expand their area of knowledge. I was a no more a war but a healthy competition, a race to learn more and not to pull down one another. There were rewards and recognitions delegated for the most helpful person of the team, knowledge priest award, most improved person award and the best performer award. The objective of these award titles was to create more opportunities, enhance skills, direct most of the people in the team towards a healthy competition and most importantly to work as a team to achieve organizational goals. STAGE 4 Future plan After the completion of my SWOT analysis, I was able to identify my SWOT in the initial stage of assessment, planned to improve by setting some milestones in the second stage and implemented the action plan to see the outcome of the same in the third stage. Post the successful implementation it is time for me to work on future plans to further improve my SWOTs. My future plans are to: Organize a forum where the best practices can be shared and implemented and look for new opportunities or scope for developing new strategies. I look forward to implement this in all the places where I would work. This would help the people around and me to work together towards creating a better place to learn and work. This forum can also be termed as Focus Group. As mentioned above, this group would concentrate on people development. Further it would focus on improvising corrective action plans, new idea generation in terms of reducing cost and time for a cost effective high performance and fun activities for stress busting in the work place. Organize an observation forum to identify the successful and potential areas of improvement. The forum would allow every individual to share their experiences. If a strategy they implement is successful, then, the forum would discuss how it can be utilized by others and how it can be improved and if the strategy fails, then this forum would look at what went wrong and how can it be corrected. We would then be able to list down all the dos and donts. Also look for new and innovative ideas to enhance our skills and work. The observation forums will observe all the implementations and give out a general feedback or individual feedback on the implementation methods. This forum would help to avoid or correct mistakes committed.

Riverbend Telephone Company :: Case Study, solution

Riverbend Telephone Company The Riverbend Telephone Company is experiencing growth and had previously tried outsourcing some of its installation work to handle the overflow above its capacity. This was unsatisfactory, and so to accommodate the new customers, RTC needs to obtain a new maintenance truck and crew. It is considering whether leasing or buying the new truck necessary to their operations is the preferable method of investment. Question 1& 2 Without considering financing the purchase through debt, the cash costs for buying the truck for years 0- 4 are: The cash costs for leasing the truck are: The cash flows discounted by the risk-free rate of 9% allows us to compare the present values. This comparison illustrates a net advantage to buying the truck: There are not many advantages to leasing the vehicle, since Reliable does not cover the cost of maintenance or registration and taxes. They only cover the cost of tires, a minimal expense, which does not offset the cost advantages of buying the vehicle. The company does not seem concerned with their debt ratios or the threat of default. The main advantage to buying the vehicle, aside from the better price is the depreciation tax shield, which subtracts annual $1800 from the costs of ownership. There are tax advantages to leasing, as the lease payments are a tax deductible expense, but that tax savings amounts to $2,880/ year. However, this calculation is incomplete because the company needs to take on debt to finance the purchase of the car. These payments add an additional expense and cash outflow but purchasing still remains a more attractive option. The cost of the lease is still greater than the cost of debt. The NAL still favors buying over leasing by $1216. The only other consideration would be that lease may raise the earnings on asset ratio above 12%. But since the PV of the lease payments is greater than 90% of the FMV (assuming the purchase prices is FMV), then it would be considered a capital lease and the asset would go on the Balance Sheet. Therefore there are no earning over asset ratio advantages to leasing. Case Question 2 Using MACRS, the tax benefit realized in the early years, still does not significantly affect the NAL. Overall the tax benefits at the end of the five years are still equal. Case Question 3 If the truck is leased, how should Mr. Freeman report investment and annual income for the RTC to the state public service commission?

Sexual Harassment in the Workplace :: Workplace Harassment Essays

Sexual harassment in the work place is one of the most troubling matters for an employer. If it is left unattended, claims of sexual harassment could place the business at serious risk for costly financial damages and ruined reputations. Employers must open their eyes to the possibility that sexual harassment could happen in their work place and must take all possible steps to prevent its occurrence. In legal terms, sexual harassment is any unwelcome sexual advance or conduct on the job that creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment. Sexual harassment is any offensive conduct related to an employee's gender that a reasonable woman or man should not have to endure. Sexual harassment covers a wide range of conduct that is all illegal. An employee who has been led to believe she must sleep with her boss to keep her job has been sexually harassed, as has one whose co-workers regularly tells offensive, sex-related jokes and plaster their walls with pictures of nude women. An employee who is pinched or fondled against his or her will by a co-worker has been sexually harassed, as has one whose colleagues smirk at her, block her path or act like they're going to grab her. An employee who is constantly belittled and referred to by sexist or demeaning names has been sexually harassed, as has on who is subjected to repeated rude or pornographic remarks. Sexual harassment occurs when a supervisor acts as if the women working under him owe him sexual favors, and it also occurs when a co-worker attacks or intimidates a woman because he doesn't think she should be doing what he considers man's work. It occasionally drives from an excess of sexual desi re by the harasser, but most often it is motivated by fear, power or hate. Most cases of sexual harassment are never reported, because the harassed women are too degraded, too uncertain of their rights or too fearful of retaliation to do anything about it. Thousands of harassment claims have been filed through government agencies and company complaint procedures. There are many misconceptions about sexual harassment that many men fear. Sexual harassment laws have prevented men from complimenting a woman or asking her out for a date, which is acceptable. Nothing in the law prevents dating, as long as it is done in a reasonable manner that respects a co-worker?

The Fluidity of the Kite Runner

The Kite Runner is a novel by Khaled Hosseini. Published in 2003 by Riverhead Books, it is Hosseini's first novel, and was adapted into a film of the same name in 2007. The Kite Runner tells the story of Amir, a young boy from the Wazir Akbar Khan district of Kabul, whose closest friend is Hassan, his father's young Hazara servant. The story is set against a backdrop of tumultuous events, from the fall of Afghanistan's monarchy through the Soviet invasion, the exodus of refugees to Pakistan and the United States, and the rise of the Taliban regime. Plot summary Part IAmir, a well-to-do Pashtun boy, and Hassan, a Hazara who is the son of Ali, Amir's father's servant, spend their days in the hitherto peaceful city of Kabul, kite fighting. Amir's father, a wealthy merchant, whom Amir affectionately refers to as Baba, loves both boys, but is often more harshly critical of Amir, considering him weak and lacking in courage. Amir finds a kinder fatherly figure in Rahim Khan, Baba's closest friend. Khan understands Amir and supports his interest in writing. Amir explains that his first word was ‘Baba' and Hassan's ‘Amir', suggesting that Amir looks up most to Baba, while Hassan looks up to Amir.Assef, a notorious sociopath and violent older boy, mocks Amir for socializing with a Hazara, which is, according to Assef, an inferior race whose members belong only in Hazarajat. One day, he prepares to attack Amir with stainless-steel brass knuckles, but Hassan bravely stands up to him, threatening to shoot out Assef's eye out with his slingshot. Assef and his posse back off, but Assef threatens revenge. Hassan is a successful â€Å"kite runner† for Amir, knowing where the kite will land without watching it. One triumphant day, Amir wins the local tournament, and finally Baba's praise.Hassan runs for the last cut kite, a great trophy, saying to Amir, â€Å"For you, a thousand times over. † Unfortunately, Hassan encounters Assef in an alleyway after f inding the kite. Hassan refuses to give up Amir's kite, and Assef decides to teach Hassan a lesson. He beats him severely and then anally rapes him. Amir witnesses the act but is too scared to intervene. Secretly, he also knows that if he intervenes, he might not be able to bring the kite home; therefore, Baba would be less proud of him. After witnessing this brutal act against his dearest friend, he feels incredibly guilty, but knows that his owardice would destroy any hopes for Baba's affections, so he tells no one what he saw. Afterward, Amir keeps a distance from Hassan, his guilt preventing him from interacting with the boy. Jealous of Baba's love for Hassan, Amir worries that if Baba found out about Hassan's bravery and his own cowardice, Baba's love for Hassan would grow even more. Amir, filled with guilt on his birthday, cannot enjoy his gifts. The only present that does not feel like â€Å"blood† money is the notebook to write his stories in given to him by Rahim Kha n, his father's friend and the only one Amir felt really understood him.Amir feels life would be easier if Hassan were not around, so he plants a watch and some money under Hassan's mattress in hopes that Baba will make him leave; Hassan falsely confesses when confronted by Baba. Baba forgives him, despite the fact that, as he explains earlier, he believes that â€Å"there is no act more wretched than stealing. † Hassan and Ali, to Baba's extreme sorrow, leave anyway. It is clear that Ali knows about Hassan's rape. Their leaving frees Amir of the daily reminder of his cowardice and betrayal, but he still lives in the shadow of these things. Part IIFive years later, the Soviet Union invades Afghanistan in 1979. Amir and Baba escape to Peshawar, Pakistan and then to Fremont, California, where Amir and Baba, who lived in luxury in an expensive mansion in Afghanistan, settle in a run-down apartment and Baba begins work at a gas station. Amir eventually takes classes at a local co mmunity college to develop his writing skills after graduating from high school at age twenty. Every Sunday, Baba and Amir make extra money selling used goods at a flea market in San Jose. There, Amir meets fellow refugee Soraya Taheri and her family.Soraya's father, General Taheri, once a high-ranking officer in Afghanistan, has contempt for Amir's literary aspiration. Baba is diagnosed with terminal small cell carcinoma but is still capable of granting Amir one last favor: he asks Soraya's father's permission for Amir to marry her. He agrees and the two marry. Shortly thereafter Baba dies. Amir and Soraya settle down in a happy marriage, but to their sorrow they learn that they cannot have children. Amir embarks on a successful career as a novelist. Fifteen years after his wedding, Amir receives a call from Rahim Khan, who is dying from an illness.Rahim Khan asks Amir to come to Peshawar, Pakistan. He enigmatically tells Amir, â€Å"There is a way to be good again. † Amir g oes. Part III From Rahim Khan, Amir learns the fates of Ali and Hassan. Ali was killed by a land mine. Hassan had a wife named Farzana and a son named Sohrab. He had lived in a village near Bamiyan, but returned to Baba's house as a caretaker at Rahim Khan's request, although he moved to a hut in the yard so as not to dishonor Amir by taking his place in the house. During his stay, his mother Sanaubar returned after a long search for him, and died after four years.One month after Rahim Khan left for Pakistan, the Taliban ordered Hassan to give up the house and leave, but he refused, and was executed, along with Farzana. Rahim Khan reveals that Ali was not really Hassan's father, that Ali was sterile, and that Hassan was actually Baba's son, and therefore Amir's half-brother. Finally, Rahim Khan tells Amir that the true reason he called Amir to Pakistan was to rescue Sohrab from an orphanage in Kabul. Rahim Khan asks Amir to bring Sohrab to Thomas and Betty Caldwell, who own an orpha nage.Amir becomes furious; he feels cheated because he had not known that Hassan was his half-brother. Amir finally relents and decides to go to Kabul to get Sohrab. He travels in a taxi with an Afghan driver named Farid, a veteran of the war with the Soviets, and stays as a guest at Farid's brother Wahid's house. Farid, initially hostile to Amir, is sympathetic when he hears of Amir's true reason for returning, and offers to accompany him on his journey. Amir searches for Sohrab at the orphanage. To enter Taliban territory, clean shaven Amir wears a fake beard and mustache.However, Sohrab is not at the orphanage; its director tells them that a Taliban official comes often, brings cash, and usually takes a girl away with him. Once in a while however, he takes a boy, recently Sohrab. The director tells Amir to go to a soccer match, where the procurer makes speeches at half-time. Farid secures an appointment with the speaker at his home, by claiming to have â€Å"personal businessâ⠂¬  with him. At the house, Amir meets the man, who turns out to be Assef. Assef recognizes Amir from the outset, but Amir does not recognise Assef until he asks about Ali, Baba, and Hassan.Sohrab is being kept at Assef's home where he is made to dance dressed in women's clothes, and it seems Assef may have raped him. Assef agrees to relinquish him, but only for a price;cruelly beating Amir. However, Amir is saved when Sohrab uses his slingshot to shoot out Assef's left eye, fulfilling Hassan's threat made many years before. While at a hospital treating his injuries, Amir asks Farid to find information about Thomas and Betty Caldwell. When Farid returns, he tells Amir that the American couple does not exist.Amir tells Sohrab of his plans to take him back to America and possibly adopt him, and promises that he will never be sent to an orphanage again. However, US authorities demand evidence of Sohrab's orphan status. After decades of war, this is all but impossible to get in Afghani stan. Amir tells Sohrab that he may have to temporarily break his promise until the paperwork is completed. Upon hearing this, Sohrab attempts suicide. Amir eventually takes him back to the United States without an orphanage, and introduces him to his wife. However, Sohrab is emotionally damaged and refuses to speak to or even glance at Soraya.His frozen emotions eventually thaw when Amir reminisces about Hassan and kites. Amir shows off some of Hassan's tricks, and Sohrab begins to interact with Amir again. In the end Sohrab only shows a lopsided smile, but Amir takes to it with all his heart as he runs the kite for Sohrab, saying, â€Å"For you, a thousand times over. † Characters Amir is the protagonist and narrator of the novel. He was born in 1963, and his mother died giving birth. He is a Pashtun. As a child, Amir delighted himself with storytelling and was encouraged by Rahim Khan to become an author.At age eighteen, he and his father fled to America following the Sovi et invasion in Afghanistan, where Amir pursues his dream of being a writer. Hassan is Amir's closest childhood friend. He is described as having a China doll face, green eyes, and a harelip. The reader eventually discovers that Hassan is actually the son of Baba and Sanaubar, although Hassan never knows this during his lifetime. Hassan was later shot by the Taliban led by Mohammed Omar for refusal to abandon Amir's property. Assef is the main antagonist of the novel.He is the son of an Afghan father and a German mother and ironically, given that he is of mixed origin, an advocate of Pashtun dominance over the Hazara. As a teenager, he is a neighborhood bully and is described as a â€Å"sociopath† by Amir. Many of his cruel actions as a child include raping Hassan as a means of revenge against Amir, and giving Amir a biography of Adolf Hitler as a birthday present. As an adult, he joins the Taliban and rapes and abuses Hassan's son Sohrab. Baba is Amir's father and a wealthy b usinessman who aids the community by creating businesses for others and building a new orphanage.He is also the biological father of Hassan, a secret he takes to the grave. Baba is born in 1933 . According to legend, he won in a fight with a black bear in his younger years. Believing that sin could be explained as a form of stealing from one's fellow man, he does not endorse the religiosity demanded by the clerics in the religion classes attended by Amir in school. Baba is disappointed in his son Amir, whom he wishes to be as manly as he is, and appears to favor Hassan. In his later years after fleeing to America, he works at a gas station.He dies from cancer in 1987, shortly after Amir and Soraya's wedding. Ali is Baba's servant, a Hazara believed to be Hassan's father. In his youth, Baba's father adopted him after his parents were killed by a drunk driver. Before the events of the novel, Ali had been struck with polio, rendering his right leg useless. Because of this, Ali was cons tantly tormented by children in the town. He was killed by a land mine in Hazarajat. Rahim Khan is Baba's loyal friend and business partner, as well as a mentor to Amir. Rahim convinces Amir to come to Pakistan by saying â€Å"there is a way to be good again. He eventually tells Amir that Hassan is his half brother, and that he should save Sohrab. He dies peacefully knowing he has successfully made Amir the man Baba wanted him to be. Soraya is a young Afghan woman whom Amir meets in America. She lives with her parents, Afghan general Taheri and his wife. She meets Amir at a flea market and later marries him. Soraya wants to become an English teacher. Before meeting Amir, she ran away with an Afghan boyfriend in Virginia, which, according to Afghan tradition, made her unsuitable for marriage. Because Amir also had his own regrets, he loved and married her anyway.Soraya wants to have children but cannot because of â€Å"unexplained infertility†. Sohrab is the son of Hassan. Af ter his parents are killed and he is sent to an orphanage, Assef buys him and physically abuses the child. Amir saves him, and then is saved by Sohrab in a pivotal confrontation. He is later adopted by Amir and Soraya, where he adapts to his new life. Sohrab greatly resembles a young version of his father Hassan. Sanaubar is Ali's wife and the mother of Hassan. Shortly after Hassan's birth, she runs away from home and becomes a gypsy. She later returns to Hassan in his adulthood.To make up for her neglect she provided a grandmother figure for Sohrab, Hassan's son. Farid is a taxi driver who is initially abrasive toward Amir, but later befriends him. Two daughters of Farid's seven children were killed by a land mine, a disaster which mutilated three fingers on his left hand and also took some of his toes. After spending a night with Farid's brother's impoverished family, Amir hides a bundle of money under the mattress to help them: the secretive act once committed to hurt his friend Hassan, he now does to help someone he barely knows.General Taheri is the father of Soraya. General Taheri lives mainly off welfare, considering himself too good for ordinary work. He is always waiting for a call to be restored to his former position as a high-ranking general in Kabul, which he eventually receives at the end of the novel, after the fall of the Taliban. Khala/Khanum Jamila is Soraya's mother, who lovingly accepts Amir into her family. She sees Amir as someone who could â€Å"do no wrong in her eyes. † Farzana is Hassan's wife and Sohrab's mother, a shy Hazara who is later shot to death by the Taliban.Reception The Kite Runner received the South African Boeke Prize in 2004. It was the first 2005 best seller in the United States, according to Nielsen BookScan. It was also voted the Reading Group Book of the Year for 2006 and 2007 and headed a list of 60 titles submitted by entrants to the Penguin/Orange Reading Group prize . Controversies The Kite Runner has bee n accused of hindering Western understanding of the Taliban by portraying Taliban members as representatives of various social and doctrinal evils not typically attributed to the Taliban .The American Library Association reports that The Kite Runner is one of its most-challenged books of 2008, with multiple attempts to remove it from libraries due to â€Å"offensive language, sexually explicit, and unsuited to age group. † Afghanistan's Ministry of Culture banned the film from distribution in cinemas or DVD stores, citing the possibility that the movie's ethnically charged rape scene could incite racial violence within Afghanistan. Adaptations The Kite Runner was published in 2003 and in 2007 adapted as a motion picture tarring Khalid Abdalla, Homayoun Ershadi, and Ahmad Khan Mahmoodzada . Directed by Marc Forster and with a screenplay by David Benioff, the movie won numerous awards and was nominated for an Oscar, the BAFTA Film Award and the Critics Choice Award . However, M anhola Dargis of the New York Times states that â€Å"The back of my paperback copy of this Khaled Hosseini novel is sprinkled with words like ‘powerful' and ‘haunting' and ‘riveting' and ‘unforgettable'. It's a good guess this film will be rolled around in a similarly large helping of lard. The novel was also adapted to the stage by Bay Area playwright Matthew Spangler. It was performed at San Jose State University in March 2007 and two years later at San Jose Repertory Theatre, where David Ira Goldstein directed a cast that included Barzin Akhavan, Demosthenes Chrysan, Gregor Paslawsky, James Saba, Thamos Fiscelle, Craig Piaget, Lowell Abellon, Rinabeth Apostol, Adam Yazbeck, Zarif Kabier Sadiqi, Wahab Shayek, and Lani Carissa Wong, with Salar Nader also onstage playing tabla.The play was subsequently produced at Arizona Theatre Company, Actor's Theatre of Louisville, Cleveland Play House, and The New Repertory Theatre of Watertown, Massachusetts . See als o A Thousand Splendid Suns Kite Runner The Kite Runner 16 Days in Afghanistan – referenced film. Bibliography Hosseini,Khaled. The Kite Runner. Anchor Canada: Toronto, 2004. ISBN 978-0-385-66007-5 References External links on the BBC World Book Club Excerpts: by The San Francisco Chronicle Bibliography: Wikipedia @baygross

Сhaucer’s Use Of Biblical Material In ‘The Miller’s Tale’

The biblical references and implications in ‘The Miller's Tale' mockingly inter-relate the tale's sexual and vulgar content and its religious elements. It is a parody on and critique of the Church, mocking all sacred: the stories from the Bible, the saints, even the Holy Family. The ‘dronken' miller commences his tale in ‘Pilates voys', implying that the story will be condemning Christianity, since Pilates, according to the Bible, has condemned Jesus with his words. As the scholar clerk Nicholas and parish clerk Absolon represent St. Nicholas and Absalom, Son of David, miller sinfully compares two saints with two lustful and immoral men, who are concerned more with secular than the spiritual matters. Since carpenter John metaphorically represents Joseph and Noah, and his young wife Alison therefore represents Virgin Mary and Noah's wife, the miller this time immorally correlates Joseph/Noah and Virgin Mary/Noah's wife with a madman and a promiscuous, sly wife, when the Church forbids promiscuous behavior and implies that mad behavior is associated with the Satan. Further religious mocking is portrayed by the actions of Nicholas in the tale, as he does exact the opposite of what St. Nicholas did. While St. Nicholas was very zealous in his efforts to maintain ecclesiastical discipline and honor, especially in relation to the marriage laws, Nicholas the clerk has no concern for honor and respect toward marriage, as he is successfully pursuing a married woman. When one Countess left her husband for a paramour, St. Nicholas commanded that she should be excommunicated unless she returned to her husband. Nicholas in ‘The Miller's Tale', however, is even using religion to break the sanctity of marriage and influencing Alison to commit adultery, a sin. Nicholas, the clerk, invokes and manipulates the biblical story of Noah and the flood to convince the ignorant carpenter John of the impending flood, and further advance his own plan to sleep with Alison. By using his knowledge and religious references to invoke authority, Nicholas is successful in his deception, since the carpenter does not doubt the teaching of the Church. Furthermore, Nicholas hypocritically tells John that he and Alison must abstain from sleeping together because they will be awaiting God's grace. John believes everything Nicholas says; even that Nicholas is so knowledgeable that he knows God's business. John's knowledge, on the other hand, is limited, as he does not know there was no mention of Second Flood in the Bible, or that Noah built only one boat, not an additional one for his wife, nor does he know much about Noah's Arc, as his confusion of ‘Noees flood' and ‘Noweles flood' (line 710) shows. Carpenter John then agrees to make three boats, so that his wife Alison, Nicholas and John himself can be saved from the flood. Although Nicholas presents the story of Noah's flood as very similar to the story in the Bible, frequently calling upon ‘Goddes privetee' and ‘Goddess grace' to validate his reasoning, the story he tells contrasts greatly the story in the Bible. The original story helps to explain the power and compassion of God, since God sent Noah the flood because man had become corrupt and lecherous. These same sins are causing this fake ‘flood', thus strengthening Satan, and this time the plan is Nicholas'. In this way, Nicholas uses the sacredness of religion to pursue his private erotic-aesthetic sensual pleasures, with no sacredness attached; therefore he almost embodies Satan. Bible is degraded, in this way, being portrayed as only a tale book, one of many texts which can be played with and rewritten. Although the carpenter shows genuine fear of the flood and says it's not men's business to know about God's secret affairs, suggesting he respects and fears the power of God, by placing his complete trust in Nicholas, embodiment of Satan, he destroys his own piety. Like a joke on God, Nicholas does know God's secret affairs and what the future will bring. Nicholas further states that his plan will work because a clerk can fool a carpenter any day – a class distinction and condescension in contrast with the teachings of the Church. The entire scene encompasses several sins. First, the whole story is a lie and thus a sin. Lust, another sin, serves as the driving force behind this lie. Finally, Nicholas and Alison's intercourse out-of-wedlock for pleasure serves as the sinful result of the story. The miller therefore contorts the most holy image of Noah into a dreadful satanic scene of the tale. The fact that a man such as Nicholas sings ‘Angelus ad Virgenum' is itself mocking of the Church. Carpenter John's wife Alison portrays promiscuous behavior almost continuously throughout the tale; from the sinful encounter with Nicholas, agreement to deceit her husband to her indulge in adultery. When Nicholas tells her to sleep with him immediately, or he will ‘spille' (l. 170) so ‘God [him] save', it is another pun on religion as this ‘spille' could perhaps mean ‘waste the seed', God forbid, as opposed to depositing it with Alison's ‘mercy' (180). Right after she and Nicholas made a plan how to arrange their next adulterous encounter, Alison goes to church, juxtaposing the profane and the sacred in the same way. She is further sarcastically characterized by her name, as in Old English and German it means ‘honest', ‘noble' and most, or least, of all ‘holy'. After her husband tells her of the evacuation plan, Alison tells John she is his faithful wife – something he accepts and believes as a word of God, and John follows Nicholas' instructions just as Noah obeyed God even though everyone laughed at him. While John sleeps in the boat, Alison and Nicholas are in the bedroom until the morning church bells ring. The reference to the couple's intercourse in the same breath as the church bells is meant to perhaps show that man's plans sometimes unintentionally mirror God's order, or that their time in the bedroom ‘is up'. Their ‘doings' in the bedroom are even compared to ‘revel and melodye', music in God's praise, further mocking the Church. Absolon, who represents Absalom, Son of David, is a parish clerk who spends much time in taverns and looking at and flirting with other women, especially Alison. The miller suggests that this irreverent priest only performs his duties to engage in other secular, sinful practices. As a religious pun, Absolon in the tale has a ‘natural attraction' to women and all things secular, while Absalom, Son of David, was known for his ‘unnatural revolt'. By pursuing Alison, Absolon clearly shows that he has no intention of keeping his vow of chastity. It is emphasized that Absolon is combing his hair before going out, which is an added joke to confirm whom he represents, since Absalom, the Son of David, was also famous for his luxurious hair. Absolon knows that Alison has a husband, for she wears a head covering typical of married women, but he ignores this fact and lusts after her anyway, making his pursuit even more sinful. The head-coverings of the married women were designed to protect their hair, which St. Paul had deemed as holy. However, even this holy image is twisted into that of Satan later on in the tale. Absolon them goes to Alison's house, believing she is alone, and performs a parody of a morning prayer, asking for Alison's grace and mercy instead of God's. When he asks for her kiss, he kisses ‘beard' and realizes it was her pubic hair. In this way, Alison's pubic hair corrupts the holy hair image, because she uses it to conduct a dirty, sexual joke to combat the lustful longings of Absolon. Her ‘beard' is also perpetrated against, so it presents another pun on the holy hair image. Having vowed revenge, Absolon comes back to Alison's house with a hot ‘colter' (plowshare), which is a backward use of the Biblical adage turning swords into plowshares. Nicholas gets his punishment, and as he screams, word ‘water' triggers the double action of John cutting the rope that suspends his tub as he thinks the flood came, and Nicholas acting to soothe his pain. While the Church (Catholic Church, Jewish synagogue, etc. ) teaches respect for authority, ultimately invested in God, the Father, to whom the Jesus, the Son, submits, it regards adultery as a mortal sin, and teaches prudence and severe restraint in sexual matters. ‘The Miller's Tale' is the opposite, as the father figure, John, is overthrown by youth, Nicholas, and ironically, by the invocation of God's authority. From a pious point of view, this story laughs at the belief that Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit. Perhaps the miller is insinuating that Jesus was conceived by Mary's unfaithfulness to Joseph, not by any Holy Spirit. As an added pun, if Absolon also symbolizes the worshippers, as he worships Alison, then the wind Nicholas passes in Absolon's face is the award for any pilgrim, worshipping ‘true' beliefs in the Holy Tale of Conception and Sanctity. The miller further implies that Church's preaching against greed, blasphemy, gluttony, adultery and all things related to the Satan is hypocritical, as he parodies the sacred discipline and Church by showing characters representing the Church, behaving in all the forbidden and blasphemous manners.

Dynamic and formal equivalence Essay

Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. Semantic Translation: Semantic translation takes advantage of semantics that associate meaning with individual data elements in one dictionary to create an equivalent meaning in a second system. Literal Translation: Literal translation, or directed translation, is the rendering of text from one language to another â€Å"word-for-word† (Latin: â€Å"verbum pro verbo†) with or without conveying the sense of the original. Functional Translation: Functional approach to translation values the context and desist from treating language merely as a code. Official translation: A complete and accurate translation into English from the issuing language. DYNAMIC EQUIVALENCE: Dynamic equivalence (or functional equivalence) conveys the essential thoughts expressed in a source text. In this, translator focuses more on the culture and linguistics expression. FORMAL EQUIVALENCE: Formal equivalence focuses attention on the message itself, in both form and content. While the translator is trying to find formal equivalence, he or she is closely following the form, content and structure. LEGAL TRANSLATION Legal translation is the translation of texts within the field of law. As law is a culture-dependent subject field, the work of legal translation and its products are not necessarily linguistically transparent. It is important to note almost all the original drafts at the centre and states level are usually prepared in English and then got translated into Hindi. But the original’ text (i. e. the English version) is called the ‘translated text’, whereas the translated text (i. e. the Hindi version) is known as the ‘original one. Points to be taken care at time of translation Only professional translators specializing in legal translation should translate legal documents The translator should be aware of the legal system of the source text (ST) as it is structured in a way that suits that culture Similarly, the target text (TT) is to be read by someone who is familiar with the other legal system and its language. It should not have any defect which would result in misinterpretation, misunderstanding and misconstruction. It should convey the same meaning as the original text gives. The translator should neither add nor subtract anything from his side. He should not give a word for word translations but grasp the original meaning. The intention of the legislator should also be kept in mind while translating the enactment. REGULATION NO. 1 OF 1803 The rule of translation from English into Hindi, provided under section 18 of the Regulation No 1of 1803, â€Å"The translator shall translate the regulations into plain and easy language and in all possible cases, shall reject words not in common use. So far as may be consistent with the preservation of the true meaning and spirit of regulations, he shall adopt the idiom of the native languages, instead of giving a close verbal translation of the English drafts which must necessarily render the translation obscure and often unintelligible to natives. † The Gazette of India (: Bharat kaa Rajpatra) is a public journal and an authorized legal document of the Government of India published weekly by the Department of Publication, Ministry of Urban Development. (1) (2) (3) Common PROBLEMS FACED DURING TRANSLATION The translator sometimes brings in his own beliefs and experiences in interpreting a document. This could potentially harm the document’s accuracy, intent and effect. The translator could have a problem in comprehending the language too. There are some rare words whose meanings escape, not only the general public but also the dictionaries. Reading the original language poses a problem to inexperienced or unskilled translators. Language can be misused unintentionally.

Explore Walkers Portrayal of Female Identity †The Color Purple Essay

â€Å"Teach only the boys. â€Å"1 (Page 146) In many cases this term would be considered sexist: However, when reading The Color Purple it becomes evident that the men as well as the boys are the ones who are in need of education. This education is not confined to the academic sense, but Walker rather emphasises their need to acquire the understanding of equal rights. The women may not receive any academic education but they were still equal to men in their ability to work, as Walker shows through several strong female role models throughout The Color Purple. The things that the women have experienced have taught them things about life that no man would ever understand: The gift of tolerance, understanding and a positive mind. Celie has to undergo a lot of traumatic experiences throughout The Color Purple. Walker uses this to mould her into the â€Å"stereotypical† submissive woman. Walker then continues to develop Celie’s stereotypical role of mother and wife by forcing her into another destructive relationship, both emotionally and physically. This relationship affected her attitude towards men but also her self-confidence towards women and children who possess the confidence she does not. Although Walker has portrayed Celie as a weak individual, Mr calls her â€Å"You black, you pore, you ugly, youa woman. † Quotations like this show just what level of racism and sexism Celie and maybe Walker herself had to compete with. Walker may have portrayed Celie in this way to exaggerate the fact that she is also filled with courage. She tries to stand up to Mr ____ , and claims she will † curse him† until â€Å"you[ he] do right by me†. Mr ___, claims Celie is â€Å"nothing at all†. Despite this abuse Celie has the courage to carry on and live her life despite its restrictions. Walker uses each character to reflect all the different elements of female identity. Celie is portrayed as weak, Sophia is portrayed as powerful, Nettie educated and Shug leads the glamorous life every women dreams of. Walker seems to use a variety of different characters to provide comparison and influence in all of the female characters lives. The ongoing influence is the typical 1930s society. Society is responsible for imposing the status quo, which heaven forbid Celie would ever rebel against. â€Å"I don’t fight; I stay where I’m told. But I’m alive. â€Å"(Page 22)She has lost her sister, her freedom and her self respect; she can’t lose her life as well. Sophia however is an excellent example of a powerful woman in society. Not only powerful in body, but also in mind. In the beginning of the book she seems to show no fear and determination no to be moulded by society. Unfortunately this is a short lived dream. Even though Sophia is a powerful woman, she is still victim to discrimination due to her sex and race which results in hr being moulded into the typical stereotypical woman. After being thrown out of Celie’s house by Mr ____, Nettie finds refuge in the home of a missionary couple, who teach her the importance of god and educating others. She abandons the role of housewife and takes on a role more favourable which benefits others and not just her self. Shug Avery abandons all traces of the female stereotype. Her life revolves around the finer things. Her music offers the passion and yearning for the glamorous life, especially for Celie, whose life is made up of orders and abuse, whereas Shug is a woman who doesn’t take orders and on many occasions’ is the one who makes them. Parts of the prejudice society of the 1930’s were the men. In Celie’s mind, men have a kind of meanness that women don’t possess. Women, though they may scream and swear, are not harmful in the way men like Pa are Mr_____ When she was younger the only male she knew was Alphonso, who she then believed to be her father. Although she was treated poorly by her â€Å"father†, she listens to the bible and â€Å"Honor[s] father and mother no matter what. † (page 43-44). This even included forgiving him for the constant sexual abuse. By obeying the Bible she had to obey her father, no matter what the consequence was. The dramatic betrayal of someone she could trust had been destroyed and therefore jeopardised her relationship with any other man, instead of feeling love or respect, she only felt fear. â€Å"That’s the truth. I look at women, tho, cause I’m not scared of them. † Although Mr_____ is her husband,their relationship appears to be one of convenience. When he first approached Alphonso it was to marry Celie’s sister, Nettie. Alphonso however refused. Claiming that Nettie was too pretty and that he should have Celie instead. Compared to Nettie, Celie was hardly the trophy wife that Mr___ desired. â€Å"She ugly. †¦.. But she can work like a man. † (pg. 18. ) Mr ____ only wanted a wife to look after his kid and to satisfy his own selfish needs. Walker portrays Celie as an object only to be used and abused by men. Walker shows a very dysfunctional relationship between Sophia and her husband Harpo; however it is not abusive as all of Celie’s relationships have been. It is a true relationship that was built on a love and not on necessity. Another factor that Walker has used to create the couple is the reversal of personas. So Walker has created her to be the â€Å"man† of the house, as she is stronger than Harpo in more ways than one. This is alien to Celie and she advises Harpo that Sophia needs to be â€Å"taken down a peg† (Page 35) so he can become head of the house again. Nevertheless Sophia refuses to accept this treatment and fights back. Although Sophia managed to defeat one member of society, it was her second and final confrontation that would finally destroy the confidence that Celie so desperately wanted.

Ancient Near East Essays - Civilizations, Western Asia, Free Essays

Ancient Near East Millions of years ago the procreant low lands in the river basins of Euphrates and Tigris was probably the home of some animal life, but no great civilizations. However, things change over time, and just a few thousand years ago the same fertile low lands in the river basins of Euphrates and Tigris became the home of a very rich and complex society. This first high society of man was located in what some still call ?Mesopotamia?. The word ?Mesopotamia? is in origin a Greek name meaning ?land between the rivers.? The name is used for the area watered by the Euphrates and Tigris and its tributaries, roughly comprising modern Iraq and part of Syria. South of modern Bagdad, this alluvial plain was called the land of Sumer and Akkad. Sumer is the most southern part, while the land of Akkad is the area around modern Bagdad, where the Euphrates and Tigris are closest to each other. This first high, Mesopotamian society arose as a combined result of various historical, institutional, and rel igious factors. The reality of these factors occurring at a specific place within the fabric of space / time indeed established the basis for this first high civilization. Items like irrigation, topography, and bronze-age technical innovations played a big part along with the advent of writing and the practice of social conditioning (through the use of organized religion) in this relatively early achievement of man. The factors of irrigation, inherent topography, and useful bronze-age technical innovations paved the way for the agricultural revolution to occur in the land of Sumer and Akkad. The people of the Tigris and the Euphrates basin, the ancient Sumerians, using the fertile land and the abundant water supply of the area, developed sophisticated irrigation systems and created what was probably the first cereal agriculture. This historical factor resulted in an excess of production of cereals, dates, and other commodities. The consequence of excess is the emergence of a productive peasant agricultural system and a redistributive economy that fuels the progress of civilization. Without a doubt, the Sumerians were highly innovative people who responded creatively to the challenges of the both the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Not just any spot on the planet is a good prospect for irrigation, and it is the topography of the land and the intelligence of the people that allowed efficient irrigation systems to develop. The precipitation in the mountains to the north is large and rainfall-agriculture is possible, but in the low lands, precipitation is slight and rain is concentrated in shortly lasting showers in the winter period of December-February. Without irrigation, agriculture in this area is not possible. The gentle sloping topography of the California- like valley affords numerous irrigation possibilities. The topology is not perfect, and because the riverbeds are actually raised as a result of sedimentary precipitation, the river can change its course as the result of a flood. Attesting to this fact are the ruins of many famous ancient cities, like Eridu, Ur, Nippur and Kish that are now far from the river, but were in the past situated at the banks. Successful irrigation can not be underestimated. Bronze-age technical innovations played a big part in the advancement of civilization. The metallurgical qualities of malleability and hardness made bronze a good choice for construction tools. The bronze tools expedited the construction of public buildings necessary for evolving civilization and government. Furthermore, tools of bronze aided in the erection of fortifications surrounding the cities, like security walls. Tools and related mechanical innovations like the wheel fueled the progress of early civilization, but metallurgy and tools were just part of the formula. In looking at the ?big picture? of possible historical factors, one must not forget the effects of climatic determinism. Many attempts have been made to explain the course of history because of large-scale climatic change. These theories are called climatic determinism, but again this is just part of the picture. In the name of determinism let the record show that the climate of this era was at least conducive to irrigation of a desert valley because of snow and rain in the northern and eastern mountains. Furthermore, as far as determinism goes, the term ?economic

REASONING AND ANALYSIS Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

REASONING AND ANALYSIS - Research Paper Example The income transfer does not necessary need to be worked for but is issued on free terms regardless of merit. Consumption can be depicted by what a person eats, what person dresses, the house he or she lives in and the luxuries in which that person can afford. The price of a good can be considered the cost of buying a set good; on the other hand, value can be described as the satisfaction one derives from consuming a particular commodity. Therefore, value is the most important aspect to a consumer. The main argument that constitutes the claim is that income affects inherent consumption. It is guaranteed that as income increases, consumption also increases. Thus, the two are directly proportional. However, it can be noted that income affects consumption but not the other way round. Consumption cannot affect income since it is consumption that is dependent on income. In another perspective, it is noted that income also affects a person’s relations. As income increases, the relationship of a person with other people tends to be directed to people of the same caliber. A person who is rich can be noted to have more friends who are related to his or her status. Also, it is noted that rich people are less superstitious and noted to be les s religious. Therefore, income affects relations of the individual (Miller, 1998). In life, as someone increases his wealth, his surroundings tend to change. An instance is the theory put forward by Keynes. The theory is justified by different research papers. The Keynesian theory, the consumption of a person is directly affected by the income. The income tends to trigger other tastes and preferences that were not significant to a person in a former status. Therefore, a person tends to develop a taste for luxurious commodities depending on the level of income. In addition, as the price of luxurious goods increases, the value of the good also increases. Income also affects the consumption of alcohol

Comparing Policies of UK and Germany Research Proposal

Comparing Policies of UK and Germany - Research Proposal Example (Hofmann 78) For short term visits to engage in non work business activities, U.S. citizens do not need a visa to enter Germany. For longer term work assignments on the other hand, Germany offers a broad selection of employment authorization visa categories. (Gunlicks 67) As is the case with Germany, U.S, citizens do not currently need to have a visa to travel to the United Kingdom (UK) for short business visits. The individual may remain in the UK for up to six months. However, the UK government recently announced that it is considering the introduction of a new business visa that would reduce a permission to remain from six months to three months. (Schulte- Peevers 92) The UK has a number of specialized programs available for various types of work such as; training and work experience, business entrepreneurs, highly skilled migrants; however, the workhorse option for most companies sending U. S. citizens to the UK is the work permit Scheme. Under this system, a work permit may be issued for up to five years. Work permits are generally issued only where the job requires relatively advanced skills and or experience, or where resident labor is unavailable. The work permit Scheme is divided into two tiers; Tier One and Tier Two. (Szarka 83) Tier One work permit applications are exempt from any requirement to recruit for the position within the European Economic Area (EEA), which consists of the 27 EU member states plus Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein. (Boehmar- Christiansen 84) Tier Two applications do not fall within the various Tier One categories automatically come within Tier Two. For Two workers, the employer must document that it conducted a recruitment search for the position and was unable to find a suitable employee from either the UK or EEA labor market. (Chick 100) With both Tier One and Tier Two applications, once the work permit has been issued, in most cases an individual will apply for entry clearance to the UK at the British Embassy in his home country. The individual may then come to the UK to take up the contemplated employment. (Goodman 87) Under Germany, good option for multinational corporations allows transfer of personnel to Germany if it can be shown that the German company has employees working abroad; allows for a replacement of these employees, so that if five German employees are working abroad, five employees can be brought into Germany; valid for one year; extensions available for up to three years; no labor market opinion required. (Hofmann 82) Short term assignments on the other hand allows persons to enter Germany for up to three months in any 12 month period for specific purposes; a good choice for persons responsible for software installation, machine delivery or equipment repair; no labor market opinion required. (Szarka 90) Moreover, U.S. citizens enjoy a privileged status in Germany; in special cases, a work permit may be issued regardless of the requirements above; a labor opinion is required. (Chick 105) b) Why different/ Similar Different since UK's work permit is divided into two tiers and once the work permit has been issued, the individual is required to apply for entry clearance to the UK at the British Embassy in his home country and thereafter he or she may come to UK to take up the contemplated employment thus inconvenient. (Schulte- Peevers 96) c) Which better, and