KFC in India Case Study Assignment (Ethical Issue) Essay

Abstract The case highlights the ethical issues involved in Kentucky Fried Chicken’s (KFC) business operations in India. KFC entered India in 1995 and has been in midst of controversies since then. The regulatory authorities found that KFC’s chickens did not adhere to the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954. Chickens contained nearly three times more monosodium glutamate (popularly known as MSG, a flavor enhancing ingredient) as allowed by the Act. Since the late 1990s, KFC faced severe protests by People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), an animal rights protection organization. PETA accused KFC of cruelty towards chickens and released a video tape showing the ill-treatment of birds in KFC’s poultry farms. However, undeterred by the protests by PETA and other animal rights organizations, KFC planned a massive expansion program in India. (see http://www.icmr.icfai.org/casestudies/catalogue/Business%20Ethics/BECG044.htm) Objectives Understand the significance of cultural, economic, regulatory and ecological issues while establishing business in a foreign country. Appreciate the need for protecting animal rights in developed and developing countries like India. Understand the importance of ethics in doing business. Examine the reasons for protests of PETA Identify solutions for KFC’s problems in India. Key Terms KFC, Business Ethics, International Business, People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), Food Adulteration, Selling Junk Food, Cruelty against Animals, Animal Welfare Legislation, KFC’s Poultry Welfare Guidelines. â€Å"Each bird whom KFC puts into a box or a bucket had a miserable life and a frightening death. People would be shocked to see our footage of a KFC supplier’s employee who walks through a barn, carelessly lighting lamps and letting flames fall on the terrified birds. The air inside these filthy barns reeks of ammonia fumes, making it difficult for the birds to breathe. No one with a grain of compassion should set foot in KFC.† Ingrid Newkirk, Director, PETA. â€Å"The chicken they serve is full of chemicals, and the birds are given hormones, antibiotics and arsenic chemicals to fatten them quickly.† Nanjundaswamy. PROTEST AGAINST KFC On August 20, 2003, a five-foot tall chicken complete with an ensemble of feathers and beak hobbled on a pair of crutches outside Kentucky Fried Chicken’s (KFC) Indian outlet in Bangalore. The chicken was brought by PETA (People for Ethical Treatment of Animals) activists, who carried placards reading, â€Å"Quit India† and â€Å"Stop Playing Fowl† (a pun on â€Å"Foul†). The chicken was placed at the centre and a peaceful protest was held against the alleged ill treatment of birds in KFC’s poultry farms. Media persons were called to give the demonstration a wide coverage. Explaining the rationale behind the protest, Bijal Vachcharajani, special projects coordinator of PETA, said, â€Å"Ours is the land of Gandhi. Just as 61 years back our leaders gave a call for colonizers to quit India, we too are saying we will not tolerate cruel multinationals.† On the 61st anniversary of the ‘Quit India’ movement, PETA India wrote a letter to the Managing Director of Tricon Restaurant International, the parent company of KFC, asking them to close their sole KFC outlet in India. They got no reply. PETA activists decided to protest against KFC by carrying crippled chicken, which represented the birds suffering in the KFC’s farms. PETA claimed that after two years of intensive campaigning to increase animal welfare standards in poultry farms, other foreign fast food restaurants operating in India like McDonald’s and Burger King had improved the treatment of animals specially raised and slaughtered for food. Only KFC had not acted. Though PETA had organized other protests earlier, the crippled chicken campaign became the precursor for more intensive protests. PETA’s was one of the many shows of protest against KFC’s Indian outlet. BACKGROUND NOTE KFC was founded by Harland Sanders (Sanders) in the early 1930s, when he started cooking and serving food for hungry travellers who stopped by his service station in Corbin, Kentucky, US. He did not own a restaurant then, but served people on his own dining table in the living quarters of his service station. His chicken delicacies became popular and people started coming just for food. Kentucky Fried Chicken was born. Soon, Sanders moved across the street to a motel-cum-restaurant, later named ‘Sanders Court & Cafe,’ that seated around 142 people. Over the next nine years, he perfected his secret blend of 11 herbs and spices and the basic cooking technique of chicken. Sanders’ fame grew and he was given the title Kentucky Colonel by the state Governor in 1935 for his contribution to the state’s cuisine. Sanders’ restaurant business witnessed an unexpected halt in the early 1950s, when a new interstate highway was planned bypassing the town of Corbin. His restaurant flourished mainly due to the patronage of highway travellers. The new development meant the end of this. Sanders sold his restaurant operations. After settling all his bills, he was reduced to living on a meager $105 social security cheque. But Sanders did not lose hope. Banking on the popularity of his product and confident of his unique recipe for fried chicken, Sanders started franchising his chicken business in 1952. He called it Kentucky Fried Chicken. He travelled the length and breadth of the country by car, visiting as many restaurants as possible and cooking batches of chicken. If the restaurant owners liked his chicken, he entered into a handshake agreement that stipulated payment of a nickel for each plate of chicken sold by the restaurant. By 1964, Sanders franchised more than 600 chicken outlets in the US and Canada. The same year, he sold his interest in his company in the US for $2 million to a group of investors. However, he remained the public spokesperson for the company. KFC grew rapidly under the new owners and issued shares to the public on March 17, 1966. In July 1971, KFC was acquired by Heublein Inc. for $285 million. By then, KFC had over 3,500 franchised and company-owned restaurants in the world†¦. Sources/Links/References Peta protest KFC – part 1 Peta protest KFC – part 2 NY Times Article http://www.ecomall.com/greenshopping/peta.htm http://www.japantoday.com/jp/news/245005 http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,115108,00.html http://multinationalmonitor.org/hyper/mm0196.03.html Analysis There are a number of issues relating to this incident that demonstrate the ethical and moral issues surrounding business. KFC’s business in India leads to a wide range of direct and indirect employment related to the business as a result of the investment by the company. KFC claims that it does not own chicken the farms. How honest are the claims that KFC is making? How reliable are the claims made by those who oppose KFC’s activities? What conflicts arise between the responsibilities that KFC has to the treatment of chickens and the local community, and to its shareholders, suppliers and employees, other external stakeholders? Your Assignment This is an independent assignment. Download and complete the KFC case analysis document. Save the document as named but by adding your last name then first to the end of the file name (separated by an underscore _ ) where indicated. In this document: Answer the above questions. You are to research this case using the above sources and others that you discover. Provide a work cited list only of those sources that you USE. . For full marks, use terminology and concepts from the course and its text. See the rubric at the end of the KFC case analysis document. Submit your completed copy of the KFC hard copy in class and electronic copy to the class email address by deadline date (see class website for due and deadline dates). NO EXTENSION WILL BE ALLOWED.

Vampirism in the Fall of the House of Usher

Bethany Risinger English 2341. 02 Dr. Watson September 20, 2011 Vampirism in â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† The theme of vampirism occurs several times throughout â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† written by Edgar Allen Poe. He shows this theme through many actions of the characters and his use of diction. The three main paths of discovering the vampire theme is to closely examine three important instruments within the story. The three instruments used include Roderick Usher, Madeline Usher, and the House that the two live in.Roderick Usher is used by Poe to demonstrate the vampire theme in two ways. In the launch of the short story, Roderick is described with both physical and mental strangeness. His physical being is characterized as â€Å"terribly altered† (152), having a Hebrew nose, and with a ghoulish color of skin. These descriptions do not give an array of a normal human being. Edgar Allen Poe even writes that the narrator â€Å"couldn’ t connect it’s arabesque expression with any idea of simple humanity† (152). There is obviously something wrong with Roderick physically to where he did not look like a human.These physical alterations are symbolisms for a vampire figure. Hebrew noses are known to be rather large and pointed downward, giving us the imagery of Dracula, a widely known vampire, who is described as ghoulish looking and with a long, pointed nose. This facial feature, along with the pale albino-like skin color can give us the mental image of a vampire. Although Roderick’s physical features are important examples of the vampire theme, his mental unstableness is of more importance to this theme.His thoughts and views of things that happen make the idea of vampirism more evident. Roderick mentions that there is an extreme sense of terror and superstition apparent in the house, in the events that were happening, and in ones soon to happen. He is filled with hysteria along with nervous agit ation and a mental disorder. When Roderick mentions that â€Å"sooner or later (he will) abandon life and reason all together† (153), he suggests that his life will soon come to an end.His life coming to an end could mean that he will die, but looking through the vampire lens, it could mean that he would soon become immortal (abandoning reason). Madeline Usher, Roderick’s sister, is a very important example of the vampire theme in this story as well. Although she is seldom seen, only 3 times, she is a very important part of the plot and of the vampire theme in â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher. † Throughout the story she is secretly referred to as the terror described by Roderick and the narrator.When the narrator watches Madeline disappear in her retreat, he is filled with a state of mental numbness, hinting that she was a terrorizing scene. Ironically, the period of the most vampiristic quality is when Madeline dies. When she dies, the two men, Roderick and the narrator, put her in a coffin and then in a locked away donjon (dungeon). The importance of this part, is that the two guys not only put her in the coffin, but they screw the lid on and lock the large door to the tomb as if to keep her from escaping.If she were dead, she wouldn’t try to escape, so why bolt everything up? Only if they were burying the undead (hint) would they feel the need to secure everything to where she could not get out. Another way that Madeline is an example of vampirism is when she comes back alive, which we later find out she was never dead, she escapes the coffin and tomb and comes forth to the two men and she â€Å"bore him (Roderick) to the floor a corpse, and a victim to the terrors he had anticipated† (161).In the vampiristic view of this particular scene, it could be suggested that the terrors Roderick spoke of were of Madeline being a vampire and of her hunt to make himself a vampire as well. This might be the reason that Roderick in vites his friend, the narrator, to come visit. Roderick probably thought that they two could defeat Madeline and overcome the terror that would ultimately consume Roderick. One last validation that makes â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† have a vampiristic theme is the fact that the house itself has a vampire feel to it as well.The structure is defined as gothic, large, and lofty. When images of a vampire-inhabited house, one thinks of a large, dark, spooky place. Not only does the house have an appearance of a vampire, it has the power to suck the life out of people as well (metaphorically speaking). At the very beginning when the author is first describing the house, he already has a sense of uneasiness about himself. He states that there is a â€Å"utter depression of the soul† (149) and does not feel at ease anymore.After entering the house and staying with Roderick for a few days, it becomes apparent that the narrator is getting more and more apprehension to t he house and its inhabitants. Staying in the house with Roderick affected his mental awareness to a lot of things. He begins to hear the same noises that Roderick has head and becomes very engulfed with terror, just as his friend Roderick is. The house is a symbol for vampirism because it sucks the normality of the narrator’s thoughts and feelings out and inserted those of Roderick’s.The vampiristic theme in â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† is a very easy one to pick out, one just has to read the story in a different way than before. To a person reading it plainly, they might not catch the little things that could hint to vampirism. For example, the blood-red moon described at the end could just be the color or the moon on a random night, but for a person reading the story in a vampiristic viewpoint, they can see that blood-red includes the word â€Å"blood† which is the main focuses in vampirism. Vampires suck blood.

Barriers to Critical Thinking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Barriers to Critical Thinking - Essay Example Meaning, it deprives individuals of an opportunity of making their own independent decisions. Instead, it compels them to conform to certain behaviors and standards accepted by the family. Unfortunately, this happens even if not the best approach to adopt is. For example, a family might require all its members to abide by certain traditions and practices that do not necessarily suit all its members (Elder & Richard, 2006). In this situation, everyone would have to behave and think in a certain manner regardless of its relevance, and objectivity thus ending up making decisions without critically thinking about them. So, family can be a great obstacle to critical thinking because it does not allow everyone to make their individual decisions based on their reflection, reason and understanding. As the saying goes, â€Å"When everyone thinks alike, no one thinks very much† (Cederblom & Paulsen, 2006). Group-centered thinking is not objective as it is promptly don e without creating enough time to think and deliberate over the issue of concern. To prevent such a problem, I would have to be autonomous in my thoughts and decisions. On the other hand, critical thinking can be harmed by emotions. Once a person is overwhelmed by emotional distress, one can not make a rational decision because it does not provide a conducive environment to do so. Emotional feelings such as stress can result into prejudice, stereotypes, arrogance and intolerance. All these can prevent a person from making a critical and objective decision as this needs to be done when one is in a sober and relaxed condition (Hendricks, 2005). For example, when a person is seriously distressed, he can not get an ample opportunity to sit down, reason, reflect and make proper decisions. Instead, they will be acting under pressure to hurriedly make a decision without thinking about it. Personally, when faced with such a situation, I

Comparing philosophy of nursing and education Essay

Comparing philosophy of nursing and education - Essay Example In any given community, education and nursing play a great role in promoting development. According to Carroll it means a certain kind of thinking or a certain kind of attitude to a certain problem (carrol, n.d). Edward reports that nursing philosophy is the assertiveness towards life and reality that circulates from individual nurses (Edward, 1997). For individuals to develop a certain philosophy of nursing one must consider the abilities to which a nurse obligates her heart and soul to. The main purpose of this article is to compare and contrast the philosophical statement of Richmond medical facility and that of Virginia Common wealth Medical College. The mission of Virginia Common wealth Medical College of Virginia School of Nursing Philosophy (V CU) is to improve health and the general human state. This shall be achieved through conducting nursing study under proper administrative leadership. The institution will provide aim to provide nursing education that will translate to quality nursing services. Thus in order to achieve all these, the facility has to maintain its excellence in education through preparing future scholars for nursing and health care services. The institution seeks to be essential in the change and growth needed in clinical research countrywide. Through caring out these practices it thus provides services that are beneficial to the community and also credit the profession. The facility will provide its expertise and novelty for best practices in education and practice so as to be a national model for clinical scholarship (Virginia Commonwealth University, 2013). They facility educates nurses so as to improve the services offered by the nurses for the benefit of the patient. However VA provides direction on what qualified nurses need to practice when caring for the veterans. They issue leadership on the therapeutic nursing role on care of patient.    On the other hand the mission of Veteran Affairs (VA) is to provide direction on all the issues related to nursing practice. The institution provides the much needed guidance in medical programs and in the various care delivery sites that impact the veterans. The facility has been obliged to fulfill the president Lincolns promise â€Å"To care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan†( Lincoln's 2nd Inaugural Address, 1865, p.1). the facility will do this by serving the men and women who are America`s veterans. The main difference between these two institutions is that VCU seeks to impact knowledge on scholars especially nurses so that they can be able to practice in future. In that they provide edu cation to the students who have no experience and also impact skills in them. The VCU since its birth in 1968, like the other facilities it wants to a firm its ground as a leading university among the nation’s pre-eminent public university. To achieve these levels the university has continually encouraged research. It has gone to the extent of giving back to the community by the students providing health care to its neighbor’s. This has improved the access to health care to the most vulnerable and underserved population. VCU next major step is to look for peculiarity as a public university centered on students triumph. It aims to do this bearing in mind that there are scarce resources and increasing call of accountability and demonstrable value for higher education (VCU, School of nursing 2013). Contrary, to the statements above VA is a diverse group of compassionate professionals whose main focus are veterans who served America. They ensure that the needs of the entir e veteran population are represented, this involves putting resources where veterans are and where resources are most needed (United States of Veteran Affairs, 2013). According to "United States Department of Veterans Affairs" (2013) there are some core values that guide the nurses as they practice. They are supposed to maintain

The Chinese Maze Murders, Feudalism, Chinese Universities in the Assignment

The Chinese Maze Murders, Feudalism, Chinese Universities in the Middle Ages - Assignment Example The implication of the statement is that a person might receive different treatment according to the family background that they come from. The death penalty is very common in this society, and it seems to be performed as a public spectacle. As it turns out, Yoo Kee is ultimately killed with a knife and then sliced to pieces in front of a watching crowd (Van Gulik 305). Another surprising aspect of life in the time of Judge Dee is that it is quite acceptable for men to have three or four wives, and these seem to be organized in a strict hierarchy, with a â€Å"First Lady† who is in charge, and the others following after with lower rank. There is clearly a lot of competition and resentment within families because of this, and it may be that many of the crimes committed out of love are caused by this situation. There must have been many younger men who could not find a legal partner because the women are all taken by older, richer and more powerful men. The marriages are also ar ranged for political or financial reasons, and this makes it very difficult, especially for the women, who have no choice in the matches made for them. I would not like to live in this society because of the high level of violence that existed, both from criminals, and from government officials, and because of the very strict separation between different gender roles. The contrast between Dark Orchid and her sister White Orchid illustrates this point perfectly: Dark Orchid is criticized because she is â€Å"headstrong† and â€Å"should have been born a boy† while her sister is praised for being â€Å"quiet and obedient† and having â€Å" a soft, pliable character† (Van Gulik 135). The ideal woman just does what she is told, while any girl with a mind of her own is seen as less attractive.  

Ara Pacis Auguste and Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus Essay

Ara Pacis Auguste and Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus - Essay Example The essay "Ara Pacis Auguste and Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus" focuses on the contrast of Ara Pacis Auguste and the Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus. The Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus is also constructed in marble and was used to encase the body of Junius Bassus. The figures on the sarcophagus are three dimensional and the figures wear draped clothing that does not show folds. In contrast the the Ara Pacis Auguste alter, the figures on the Sarcophagus have large heads but is not at all like the workmanship of that time period. While the Ara Pacis Auguste depicts gods, the Saracophagus of Junius Bassus instead depicts Christianity. When looking at the Arch of Constantine and the Synagogue Wall Paintings from Dura-Europos, Syria, the Arch is an enormous arch in Rome near the Colosseum and was used to recognize the victory of Constantine I in the Battle of Milvian Bridge. The arch is actually comprised of three architectural arches with the largest one in the middle. The pieces are from prev ious structures put together to make this one landmark. It is composed of columns that were detached while the bottom part of the arch is re-used from an older structure and the entire structure covers a huge part of area. The design on the Arch depicts Constantine next to other victorious good emperord as well as other people and symbols that represent victory in war. The Dura-Europos Synagogue was previously mistaken for a Greek temple. Instead of using the stone to use to portray characters through carving.... Some of the people in the paintings which are mostly dressed as Perisians have their eyes scratched out. Many think that the walls were used to educate others about the history of religion rather than a tribute like the Arch does. Looking at the wall paintings from the Villa at Boscoreale, Italy and the Catacomb Paintings of the Good Shepherd and Jonah from Rome, Italy, the paintings of the Villa are comprised of plaster. It shows a golden statue that pays tribute to Diana Lucina and other large golden vases. The coloring uses a lot of bright bold reds and gilded sections while other parts of the painting are more subtle and blend in which could represent its unimportance. The Catacomb Paintings of the Good Shepherd and Jonah is also a piece of Roman art were in common Christian burial places. The painting of Jonah is where he is thrown to sea. The lines are blurry as are the faces of the characters which is very different than the detail of the wall paintings at the Villa. While red is also a predominant color and the golden boat are similar to the works from the Villa, the paintings of both Jonah and The Good Shepherd both appear to be more weathered and less detailed. The Good Shepherd is blurry and faceless as well and the color tones are mostly earth tones with some bright casts of golden yellow. These paintings depict Christian stories so the common theme between the two works are of the importance of Christianity during these time frames. When looking at the Equestrian Sculpture of Marcus Aurelius and the Sculpture of the Tetrarchs, the one of Marcus Aurelius is completely made of bronze. The entire sculpture stands upon a large platform with the horse's legs slightly lifted and Marcus Aurelius looking like a person of grandeur. The appearance is

Website Review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Website Review - Essay Example through incorporating effective web design measures that form the main aim of the study to analyze the criteria foe effective web design and comparison of two corporate websites. There are certain characteristics that a business must have to be considered effective in terms of design to be a driving force in meeting advertising and information delivery needs of the business. These characteristics include: Professional brand driven design: a website has to have a professional look and convey the brand image ensuring clients have a very easy time understanding the business and the access to information should be easy and quick. Professional design  allows the client to have access to required information in an effective and efficient manner in the website. Usability: designing a website to ensure the presence of links that are easy to recognize, moderate visuals, and a clear structure allowing the client easy navigation on the website in the other effective web design criteria. Websites are more effective when users can easily find their way through the information and links provided than when the websites are difficult to use. Use of effective writing: the writing style on a website has to be adjusted to meet user’s browsing habits and preferences. This can be achieved through using concise and short phrases, plain and objective language to allow the users make their en decision on the purchase, and merging textual and visual elements on the website. Effective writing makes use of bullets, content categories, and multiple subheadings in a website. Simplicity: providing a simple rather than a complex website is effective in meeting the needs of the clients. Using a simple design with icons providing additional information, headers, footers, and content in a simple manner, and lack of advertising allows for a good web experience for the clients. Content: the other criteria for an effective website are provision of useful and valuable information to the users.

Formation and Implications of Gender Stereotypes Research Paper

Formation and Implications of Gender Stereotypes - Research Paper Example Information about appropriate gender roles and behaviors is conveyed through different channels from language usage, occupational and educational settings, family and media. A family is the first mediator of gender-appropriate roles. Parents are first role models and educators of gender-appropriate roles. Media further extends the knowledge of gender differences and promotes gender stereotypes. Education through certain toys meant for boys or girls makes an early differentiation between children of different sexes. Further education, where girls are discouraged from excelling in certain fields, increases the gender gap. In the society where male and female roles are strictly regulated and men are characterized as active, rational risk takers in contract to women who are passive and emotional caregivers, it is difficult to build an identity which is different from the stereotypes. Gender roles are so deeply embedded in occupational and behavioral roles of men and women that crossing the borders of social expectations results in severe punishments. Men are labeled as homosexual and women are considered as men-like when they do not meet the cultural expectation of masculinity or femininity. It has become a common practice in social sciences to differentiate between notions of â€Å"gender† and â€Å"sex.† While sex is a biological notion defining â€Å"genetic makeup and hormone profile,† gender is a social phenomenon which â€Å"varies with the roles, norms, and values of a given society or era.† (Phillips, 2005 p.4) So, sex refers to physicality while gender refers to the behavior of individuals, the roles and personality traits which correspond to their biological makeup.

'In the current economic climate, what are the biggest challenges and Essay

'In the current economic climate, what are the biggest challenges and biggest opportunities facing new managers entering indus - Essay Example Finding unique strategy There are many innovations, as upshots of reaching certain competitive advantage in order to be on top of the competition, especially now that the current economic climate demands key players to do the right move in order to survive the tough and challenging times. The challenge therefore is to think of a strategy that is something new or as a new way, one that is unique and hard to emulate in order to achieve a highly sustainable competitive advantage. According to Porter, the only way to ensure a sustainable competitive advantage on the part of an organization is to employ strategies that are unique or hard to outdo (Porter, 1990). The current economic climate for instance allows the mobile phone producers to initiate strategies that are far better than the other. However, common to their prevailing strategies is to come up with new innovations from time to time, leading to facing off the old product trends or models. This gives the opportunity for consumers to become more sophisticated and look for what could benefit them to the fullest, including the opportunity to find for the best price at their advantage resulting to a strong market power that is enough for them to have remarkable bargaining power. On the other hand, this may challenge the competing companies to look for a more feasible strategy that along the way will have the ability to meet both the needs of the target consumers and the company. Finding for the best resource Considering the point that the current economic climate would mean finding the available or best resources in order to guarantee continuous operation, the other challenge for most managers in various organizations is finding the relevant resources linked to their actual operation. This is evident to many outsourcing activities initiated by major international companies (Cornejo, 2009). The case of call centers for instance is a perfect manifestation that many companies are employing third parties in order t o minimize their cost and guarantee profitability on the process. Not only that. Outsourcing human resource is proven effective especially if organizations will have to employ human resource with associated low labour cost. This is evident how international companies like call centers outsourced or instituted their operation in developing countries like in Asia where they could save on their actual operational cost. China for instance is a remarkable country with available resources especially the human resource that could be tapped to guarantee higher profitability. The challenge on the other hand is that there is on-going competition for allocating the best resource, which means individual companies will have to compete in this aspect, the hard way, knowing that having limited resources is not far from the impossibility with the current economic climate. Opportunity for creativity Despite the associated challenge in finding a sustainable competitive advantage through having unique strategy that is hard to emulate or copy, managers will have the opportunity to be as creative as possible in this aspect so as to initiate their goals (Chaston, 2012). They will have the opportunity to go beyond the limit, and think of possibilities that are not yet realised in the current set up of the prevailing economic climate. Consider the point of the highly differentiated offerings for mobile communication gadgets and the remarkable upgrade from

Sullivan Ballous Letter to His Wife Before the Battle of Bull Run Essay Example for Free

Sullivan Ballous Letter to His Wife Before the Battle of Bull Run Essay Love of country is not unique to Americans, but in a democracy, sending citizens to war requires far more than a dictators fiat. In 1861, men on both sides of the conflict were willing to lay down their lives for what they believed to be right. Southerners fought for states rights and a society built upon human slavery, which many considered the natural order of the universe. When the war started, few volunteers in the northern army marched off to end slavery, but many were ready to fight and die to preserve the Union. One such soldier was Major Sullivan Ballou of the Second Regiment, Rhode Island Volunteers. Then thirty-two years old, Ballou had overcome his familys poverty to start a promising career as a lawyer. He and his wife Sarah wanted to build a better life for their two boys, Edgar and Willie. An ardent Republican and a devoted supporter of Abraham Lincoln, Ballou had volunteered in the spring of 1861, and on June 19 he and his men had left Providence for Washington, D.C. He wrote the following letter to his wife from a camp just outside the nations capital, and it is at once a passionate love letter as well as a profound meditation on the meaning of the Union. It caught national importance 129 years after he wrote it, when it was read on the widely watched television series, The Civil War, produced by Ken Burns. The beauty of the language as well as the passion of the sentiments touched the popular imagination, and brought home to Americans once again what defense of democracy entailed. Ballou wrote the letter July 14, while awaiting orders that would take him to Manassas, where he and twenty-seven of his men would die one week later at the Battle of Bull Run. LETTER TO HIS WIFE (1861) My very dear Sarah: The indications are very strong that we shall move in a few days perhaps tomorrow. Lest I should not be able to write you again, I feel impelled to write lines that may fall under your eye when I shall be no more. Our movement may be one of a few days duration and full of pleasure and it may be one of severe conflict and death to me. Not my will, but thine O God, be done. If it is necessary that I should fall on the battlefield for my country, I am ready. I have no misgivings about, or lack of confidence in, the cause in which I am engaged, and my courage does not halt or falter. I know how strongly American Civilization now leans upon the triumph of the Government, and how great a debt we owe to those who went before us through the blood and suffering of the Revolution. And I am willing perfectly willing to lay down all my joys in this life, to help maintain this Government, and to pay that debt. But, my dear wife, when I know that with my own joys I lay down nearly all of yours, and replace them in this life with cares and sorrows when, after having eaten for long years the bitter fruit of orphanage myself, I must offer it as their only sustenance to my dear little children is it weak or dishonorable, while the banner of my purpose floats calmly and proudly in the breeze, that my unbounded love for you, my darling wife and children, should struggle in fierce, though useless, contest with my love of country? I cannot describe to you my feelings on this calm summer night, when two thousand men are sleeping around me, many of them enjoying the last, perhaps, before that of death and I, suspicious that Death is creeping behind me with his fatal dart, am communing with God, my country, and thee. I have sought most closely and diligently, and often in my breast, for a wrong motive in thus hazarding the happiness of those I loved and I could not find one. A pure love of my country and of the principles I have often advocated before the people and the name of honor that I love more than I fear death have called upon me, and I have obeyed. Sarah, my love for you is deathless, it seems to bind me to you with mighty cables that nothing but Omnipotence could break; and yet my love of Country comes over me like a strong wind and bears me irresistibly on with all these chains to the battlefield. The memories of the blissful moments I have spent with you come creeping over me, and I feel most gratified to God and to you that I have enjoyed them so long. And hard it is for me to give them up and burn to ashes the hopes of future years, when God willing, we might still have lived and loved together, and seen our sons grow up to honorable manhood around us. I have, I know, but few and small claims upon Divine Providence, but something whispers to me perhaps it is the wafted prayer of my little Edgar that I shall return to my loved ones unharmed. If I do not, my dear Sarah, never forget how much I love you, and when my last breath escapes me on the battlefield, it will whisper your name. Forgive my many faults, and the many pains I have caused you. How thoughtless and foolish I have oftentimes been! How gladly would I wash out with my tears every little spot upon your happiness, and struggle with all the misfortune of this world, to shield you and my children from harm. But I cannot. I must watch you from the spirit land and hover near you, while you buffet the storms with your precious little freight, and wait with sad patience till we meet to part no more. But, O Sarah! If the dead can come back to this earth and flit unseen around those they loved, I shall always be near you; in the garish day and in the darkest night amidst your happiest scenes and gloomiest hours always, always; and if there be a soft breeze upon your cheek, it shall be my breath; or the cool air fans your throbbing temple, it shall be my spirit passing by. Sarah, do not mourn me dead; think I am gone and wait for thee, for we shall meet again. As for my little boys, they will grow as I have done, and never know a fathers love and care. Little Willie is too young to remember me long, and my blue-eyed Edgar will keep my frolics with him among the dimmest memories of his childhood. Sarah, I have unlimited confidence in your maternal care and your development of their characters. Tell my two mothers his and hers I call Gods blessing upon them. O Sarah, I wait for you there! Come to me, and lead thither my children.

Evolution of Computer Technology in Last 25 Years

Evolution of Computer Technology in Last 25 Years The advancement of the computing technology could commonly identify in 6 generations. The physical size of the computers significantly decreased from the first generation vacuum tube computers to third generation computers based on the integrated chip technology. Fourth and fifth generation computer technology increased computer chips efficiency by developing the very large scale integration (VLSI) and ultra large scale integration (ULSI) technology. (Halya, 1999) During the fifth generation computing, the idea of using multiple computer chips to solve the same problem flourished, which was based on the earlier design of parallel computing that was developed during the fourth generation. With the improvement of hardware, increased network bandwidth, and developing more efficient algorithms, massively parallel architectures allowed fifth generation computers to increase the efficiency of computing significantly. (Drako, 1994) This research paper is mainly going to discuss how the comp uter technology evolved from the end of the fifth generation to current day sixth generation computers. The improvement in microprocessor chips technology allowed millions of transistors to be placed on a single integrated chip, which opened the generation of computers based on ultra large scale integration, or ULSI. The 64-bit microprocessor was developed during this time and became the fifth generation chip we mostly use today. Even the older fourth-generation chip architecture concepts like Reduced Instruction Set Computers (RISC) and Complex Instruction Set Computers (CISC) derived the benefit of ULSI technology. During the fourth generation period, microprocessors were commonly classified into RISC or CISC type architectures. The difference between RISC and CISC were very clearly distinguishable. RISC has a very simple set of instructions which required a low number of transistors but needed a higher memory to do a task. CISC has more instructions set available compared to RISC which required more transistors but less memory space. (Hennessy, 1991) Due to the limited computing res ources, each programmer decided the specific chip type to deliver the endstate the application delivery. However, with the advancement of microprocessors, the 64-bit chip now has more transistors and memory address access available for computing. Today, the need of differentiating what used to be two main categories of the microprocessor is almost pointless because of the level of complexity in modern day 64-bit chips for both CISC and RISC. Many new CISC chips behave like RISC with the increased processor clock cycle while the new RISC has increased number of instructions available like CISC (Cole, 2015). Two of the most important hardware techniques used to improve performance during the fourth and fifth generation of computer development have been pipelining and caches. Both techniques rely on using more devices to achieve higher performance. Pipelining might have been available only to some mainframe computers and supercomputers during fourth generation computing; however, the technique became very common within computer architecture during the fifth generation computing which became the baseline for the sixth generation computer which uses decentralized computing process to perform as an artificial intelligence and neural network computing. Pipelining improves the throughput of a machine without changing the basic cycle time and increases performance by exploiting instruction-level parallelism. (Hennessey, 1991) Instruction-level parallelism is available when instructions in a sequence are independent and thus can be executed in parallel by overlapping. Unarguably, the pipelining technology led to faster speeds and better performances but the hardware performance couldnt keep up with the demand of even faster hardware that could facilitate applications that required processing a large amount of data or critical commercial transaction very fast. Addition to advances in pipelining, the advancement in cache memory technology also significantly enhanced performance of how computer access data. By creating a small pool of memory either in the actual processor or very close to it decreased the need of frequent access of data directly from the memory. This technique made cache memories one of the most important ideas in computer architecture. (Uri, 2010) Cache memories substantially improved performance by the use of memory. Cache memories were first used in the third-generation computers from the late 60s and early 70s, both in large machines and minicomputer. From the fourth-generation and on, virtually every microprocessor has included support for a cache. Although large caches can certainly improve performance, total cache size, associativity, and block size all directly impact the performance and have optimal values that depend on the details of a design. (Hennessey, 1991) Just like microprocessor and pipelining, the cache technology improved significantly last two decades. Traditional cache architectures are demand fetch, cache lines are only brought into the cache when they are explicitly required by the process. Prefetching increased the efficiency of this process by anticipating that some memory will be used near future, thus, proactively fetched into the cache. Earlier of prefetching was either done through software or hard ware prefetching. As the complexity of prefetching increases, some more recent research has looked at combining the imprecise future knowledge available to the compiler with the detailed run-time information available to hardware like programmable prefetching engine consisting of a run-ahead table that populates using explicit software instruction. (Srinivasan, 2011) With such advancement in core computer technologies, the ability to process data and store information truly became increasingly decentralized. From cloud to PC over IP technology, cheaper storage, faster processor, and higher bandwidth wide area network allowed the modern day computer to work in collaboration rather than isolation. If from the first generation to the fifth generation focused on improving the efficiency of the hardware to meet demands of software engineers, the current sixth generation is more about how human interacts with the computers to enrich human lives. Computers became smaller while still sufficient to process necessary application by itself or using servers through the internetwork. Everything has become smarter, faster, smaller, and connected. With the improved network and parallel computing, the sixth generation computers definitely getting closer to simulate how the human brain functions. Using basic algorithms, probability and statistic, and economic the ories, new computer technology could simulate human-like decision-making process to improve human lives and help to solve more complex issues. In the sixth generation, we are actually experiencing the true potential of commercial Artificial Intelligence. References Cole, Bernard, (2015). New CISC Architecture Takes on RISC. EE Times, Retrieved from http://www.eetimes.com Drako, Nikos, (1995) . An Overview Of Computational Science. The Computational Science Education Project Haldya, Micky, (1999). Computer Architecture. Biyanis Think Tanks; Chap 5, 26 27 Hennessy, John L. Jouppi,Norman P., (1991). Computer Technology and Architecture: An Evolving Interaction.Computer, vol. 24, no., 18 29 Srinivasan, James R., (2011). Improving Cache Utilization. Technical Report; no 800., 31 35 Uri, Cohen, (2010). From Caching to Space-based Architecture: The Evolution of Memory. Enterprise System Journal. Retrieved from https://esj.com/

“Answering Jewish Objections to Jesus: Theological Objections” :: Religion, Jewish Apologetics

In his second volume on Jewish apologetics, Michael Brown answers twenty eight Jewish theological objections. Brown summarizes this book in his preface: Theological objections, treated at length in the current volume, cut to the heart of the differences between traditional Judaism and the Messianic Jewish/Christian faith. They revolved around the nature of God (the Trinity, the deity of Jesus, the person of the Holy Spirit), the nature of man and the need for salvation, and sin and the means of atonement. In sum, these objections claim, â€Å"The religion of the New Testament is a completely foreign religion that is not only un-Jewish but is also unfaithful to the Hebrew Bible.† With regard to cutting â€Å"to the heart of the differences between traditional Judaism and Messianic Jewish/Christian faith,† I really appreciate the way Michael Brown demonstrated in a scholarly and balanced way that the Christian faith was perfectly compatible with the Jewish Tanakh. His discussion on the Trinity (the Tri-unity) was excellent. He demonstrated that the Hebrew word for one, ‘echad, does not necessarily refer to absolute unity and, in fact, could very well refer to compound unity (Page 4). He provides examples from the Hebrew Bible where ‘echad is used of a compound or complex unity as per the oneness of Adam and Eve, the many components of the tabernacle being one â€Å"unified† tabernacle, and the one nation of Israel which is made up of hundreds of thousands of people (5). I loved the way he backed up his discussion of the Shema as referring the concept of uniqueness (Deut. 6:4) by citing the New Jewish Publication Society Version: â€Å"Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone† (page 6) Brown demonstrated the deity of Christ by focusing on Him as the Son of God and Word of God, who shares in the divine nature, and who revealed Himself to His people in the Old Testament (15-37). I enjoyed Brown’s treatment of the apparent conflict between the passages which declare that no one has seen God with the other passages which clearly state that God was seen by Abraham, Moses, and Jacob (27-34). As he put it, â€Å"it is Jesus the Messiah—the divine Son, the image of the invisible God, the Word made flesh, the exact representation of the Father’s being—who solves the riddle and explains how someone could really see God, even though God cannot be seen.

Invisible Man :: Essays Papers

Invisible Man In the novel, The Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison, the narrator of the story, like Siddhartha and Antonius Blok, is on a journey, but he is searching to find himself. This is interesting because the narrator is looking for himself and is not given a name in the book. Like many black people, the narrator of the story faces persecution because of the color of his skin. The journey that the narrator takes has him as a college student as well as a part of the Brotherhood in Harlem. By the end of the book, the narrator decides to hide himself in a cellar, thinking of ways he can get back at the white people. However, in the novel, the man learns that education is very important, he realizes the meaning of his grandfather’s advice, and he sees the importance of his â€Å"invisibility.† Through this knowledge that he gains, the narrator gains more of an identity. The narrator of the story knows that education is important, however in the novel he learns just how important it is. The first thing his education brings him is a briefcase made of calfskin, which was given to him by the superintendent for the achievements he had accomplished. Because of this, the briefcase becomes very important to the narrator and he hangs on to it for the whole book, and it is the only thing that he brings with him when he retreats to the cellar to plot against the whites. In the briefcase is a scholarship which was awarded to the narrator to an all black college, which he attends. The scholarship made the narrator very happy because he now had the opportunity to continue his education in an institute of higher learning. Many of the blacks at the time were not well educated and he wanted to do all that he could to not be included in this bunch. Because of his furthered education, he can now be placed a bit higher in the pecking order of society, above the other stereotypical blacks who lacked education due to a small amount of funding, or because of anything else. The narrator knew the importance of education and wanted to do all that he could to get everything possible. Another realization that helps the narrator gain more of an identity is the realization of his grandfather’s advice.

Essay --

The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf is written by Mohja Kahf and is a coming of age story as the main character, Khadra tries to find her true identity. Khadra Shamy is the daughter of Syrian immigrants who moved to Indianapolis. Khadra grew up in a strict Muslim community and both of her parents were very involved with the Da’wah Center. In the strict Muslim community that Khadra was raised in, all children were brought up believing in one definition of Islam and rejecting all other definitions and practices. Throughout the book we learn how Khadra’s parents lied to her about some of the Islamic teachings she thought to be true during her childhood, which interferes with her search for her identity. There are several examples of social pressures and realities throughout the book that help shape Khadra’s identity, many of which girls of any religion or culture would struggle with in their own way, making this novel relatable across different cultures. The first life-changing event that Khadra encounters is the rape and death of her close friend Zuhura. Zuhura represented a hybridization, in the sense that she was a strong muslim woman, but also wasn’t afraid to interact with Americans, unlike most of the community. Zuhura was like a sister to Khadra as well as a mentor. Upon the rape and death of Zuhura, Khadra tightened her grip on her religion. She saw Zuhura’s death as what could happen if you try to interact with Americans and don’t abide by the community’s strict Islamic teachings. Khadra gets married to Jumu’ah al-Tashkenti upon returning from her trip to Saudia Arabia for the Hajj. Khadra marries him because she thinks he is an ideal, strong Muslim man, and that is what she thinks that she ... ... of a different religious background. She depicts Khadra’s journey not as her breaking free from the strict rules of the Muslim community she was raised in, but rather focused on situational experiences that Khadra had to overcome to find her religious identity. It is in a sense a coming of age story in which the Khadra experiences things that are realistic and relatable because they can happen on a daily basis to anyone. The novel depicts that how you react to the social pressures defines you as well, which is a concept that is often lost, yet Mohja Kahf depicts this clearly. The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf shows how social pressures and obstacles shape your identity and without them, you could be stuck just adopting the same identity as your parents. Ashley Fleetwood Word Count: 1,040 Kahf, Mohja. â€Å"The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf†. Public Affairs. New York. 2006.

Rekj

Additionally, if the slower receipt of payments impacts the organization's ability to quickly pay its own operational expenses then you might also see an increase in the accounts payable liability account. Conversely, on the Income Statement, one would expect to see an increase in the patient revenue account since the deal was that the NCO had longer to pay in trade for a HIGHER reimbursement rate. Also, on the Income Statement as the receivables account increases then you would also see an increase in the Provision for Doubtful Accounts.How might negotiating an NCO contract affect financial statements? The accounts that will be impacted on the Balance Sheet (which was the nature Of my question) are as follows. How does the Provision for Doubtful Accounts work? Posted by ROBERT ADAMS atlas 16, 2015, 8:09 PM If a hospital such as FCC renegotiated an NCO contract that allowed the NCO to take longer to pay in exchange for a higher reimbursement rate, this would increase patient revenue on the Income Statement because the NCO is paying at a higher rate.However, since the NCO has longer to pay then the Patient Accounts Receivable (A/R) on the Balance Sheet would also increase. As this A/R account increases, the amount booked as Provision for Doubtful Accounts would also increase since this expense is often simply a percentage of the A/R account. OR a more real world response: In the case of FCC, they treat the Provision of Doubtful Accounts as an expense account. This is an account that is used to ‘book† the projected losses associated with carrying a receivables account on the Balance Sheet for patient revenue.You might ask why an organization would need to do this. Well anytime you have a receivables account there is some likelihood that some of that account will go uncollected. Generally, an organization can use historical data to project what percentage of a receivable account might not be collected. Regarding this assignment, FCC renegotiated a prim ary managed care contract which allowed the NCO longer to pay in exchange for a higher reimbursement rate. The impact of the NCO having longer to pay means that the receivables account would grow.If FCC applies its historical percentage for uncorrectable to a growing receivables account then the Provision for Doubtful Accounts would naturally increase as well. How does purchasing extra inventory change financial statements? As FCC purchases inventory it is placed on the Balance Sheet as an asset. It is VERY important for you all to understand that the supplies expense will not increase on the Income Statement UNTIL the supplies are actually used by FCC. For instance, if FCC purchased $1 of extra inventory this loud be listed as an asset on the Balance Sheet.

Plot

In this article, Goldstein attempts to describe the aspect of AIDS in Newfoundland. In order to sufficiently do so, she illustrates three main elements which relate to the expansion of the legend in the province; Cultural variability, localization and contemporary legend. The idea of doing this is to give the reader a general understanding of what stories were told In order to enhance the generation of these legends. Throughout the article, Goldstein provides examples of deferent versions of the AIDS legend. There are significant motifs used In these versions that distinguish he versions generated.There Is the coffin version In which the man usually lures the woman Into getting involved with him, and when she leaves to return home he hands her a box which has a coffin Inside with the message â€Å"welcome to the world of AIDS†. The lipstick version generally suggests the opposite; the woman lures the man Into getting Involved with her and In the morning the man will go to the bathroom with a message wrote on the mirror In lipstick â€Å"welcome to the world of AIDS†. The version chosen will reflect cultural assumptions and values, which Is what Is described as ultra variability.Goldstein provides facts that the coffin version is more prominent in Newfoundland than the lipstick version; 74% of random sample knew about the coffin legend versus the 26% that were aware of the lipstick legend. The original version may not have made sense to Nefariousness's, so it was altered to be understandable and meaningful. They often use mainlanders, which are the outsiders, as scapegoats. The Newfoundland version suggests an innocent, hardworking woman goes away on a trip, meets a man, falls in love and engages in sexual intercourse.If they engaged in sexual activity in Newfoundland and retrieved AIDS, the mainlanders would be blamed for the disperse because they are strangers. Newfoundland are good, mainlanders are bad. Newfoundland is safe, mainland is a threat . In part II of the article is where Cider's main points start. This is where he beings to outline his main points on murmuring. He begins with a definition on what murmuring is, in case the reader is unaware. If the reader is completely unaware of the aspect of murmuring, they would read Cider's first description and probably be totally confused. Loud banging at the Victims' kitchen door. † When seeing the word â€Å"victim† they may think there is some kind of illegal activity going to happen when they enter the house. â€Å"Loud banging† may constitute for an aggressive person or group. They both relate. In trying to avoid this conclusion, Sided quickly exemplifies the fact mummers are always lifelong neighbors and are never strangers even though they would appear to be. What happens when mummers enter the house? Sided continues to illustrate huge points that unfamiliar readers need to be aware of.Mummers do not enter households and â€Å"trash† the pla ce. They enter and dance around, have sociable drinks, eat food and Walt for the household to guess their Identity. There Is no Illegal occurrence that takes place during this activity and Slider makes this point very clear. The second point Sided makes Is the aspect of Scoffing. Upon reading this article, I was unfamiliar with what scoffing was. Sided makes a mall point regarding scoffing when he describes the term â€Å"scoff'. A scoff Is formerly known as a meal, usually one that consists of a large amount of food.Another efferent families, for which all the food is stolen or â€Å"bucked† which in Newfoundland means something a little different than stealing. Sided makes another huge point when he says that food is only taken from another family living in the same community and who is the same â€Å"social class† as the person taking the food. An individual who comes from a poor fisher family would not take from a wealthy family, and a wealthy individual would mos t certainly not take from a poor family. Sided also acknowledges the connection between murmuring and scoffing which is another age point made in this article.He notes that they lie at the intersection of different forms of alliances within and between families. These alliances can include sentiment and emotion, but also kinship or work and production. These activities basically hindered or helped social relations. In order to further illustrate the alliances, Sided goes in to talk about the organization of the village inshore fishery during the period when the family was the unit of work for the fishery, which is Part Ill of the article. In Part IV of the article, Sided describes the truck system and the tall al system.Due to reading the first article â€Å"In Between History and Tomorrow: Making and Breaking Everyday Life in Newfoundland. â€Å", I am very familiar with both of these systems, but he describes it because not all of the readers would have read that previous articl e. He thoroughly describes each system which is important so that the reader will know what these systems are and what they were used for. In Part V of the article, Sided illustrates the diminishing of the two customs (murmuring and scoffing).This is a major point because readers may understand why they haven't en familiar with either of them and it would be due to the fact that hardly anyone participates in them anymore. For example, I knew what murmuring was because it still occurs in my area but not very often. I was completely unaware of scoffing upon reading this article because it was not something that I was introduced to. It did not happen in my area and if it did, it would not go over well. These customs are diminishing and if we ask people in generations from now, they probably will not know what either one of these customs are.The last main point that Sided presents n this article is answering â€Å"Why do outpost Nefariousness's mum and scoff? † He answers by illu strating that customs do things. They are connected to people who participate in them. It becomes their social root for some people. The second answer that he illustrates is the connected between customs and culture. It is important for Sided to illustrate this because reader's may often times wonder while interpreting this article why people do the things that are being described.They may not realize it, but it is a true statement when people say it is part of you inheritance. Aside from the main points outlined in this article, which are relevant in understanding the article, I have generated a few questions based on a couple aspects that were discussed. 1. ) Why doesn't Sided talk more about the women during that era? He did mention in Part I that the mothers, wives, sisters and young children salted and dried the fish, preparing them for fall delivery to the merchant. He also mentioned them again during the explanation of kinship organization.The women were part of the shore cro wd, there were usually three or four needed, and they were not paid erectly (it depended on their father or brother's catch) Sided continues to describe how men interact during the off season, but what about the women? What do they do knows back then the women did all the cooking and cleaning). In my opinion, there is too much focus on the men, although it is proven they worked extremely hard and it is important to put emphasis on that, but it almost feels like women were minor in this article. 2. )Len the context of scoffing, how would people actually steal the goods?Sided gives a thorough description of scoffing, but fails to mention anything about owe the goods would be stolen, or bucked. Why didn't Sided expand on this context and provide an in-depth example? Would people wait until early hours in the morning? Would they do it in broad daylight? Would they go back numerous times in one scoff? Would they get someone else to do it for them Just in case they get caught? What do the y bring with them? Does anyone get really hurt or angry buy having their food stolen? Sided mentions that the individual(s) buck enough for it to hurt, but how hurt do they get?Do they seek revenge other than stealing back from them? A lot of answered questions came to me when reading about scoffing and it may be because I am so unfamiliar with the custom. I will definitely do more research into it because it seems very interesting. Overall, I really enjoyed reading this article. I can relate to the murmuring where I am from. Although it is not a common thing, my family still sometimes go downstairs, dress up and come up dancing like mummers would. I really appreciated the point in the article when Sided referenced the â€Å"abundant Sunday dinner†. The traditional Sunday dinner is still a huge thing in my family.My grandmother faithfully cooks every Sunday, either for a small or big crowd. Cider's descriptions are very thorough and interesting to read, which is why this arti cle appealed to me more than the others. He covers most aspects that are needed in order for the reader to understand the points he is attempting to make. This is extremely important when trying to keep the reader interested and informed, and Sided productively does that. As a new reader of Cider's work I am impressed with his systematic descriptions and approach in his work and I look forward to reading more of his writing!

Functional Areas of Business Paper Essay

The role that one should play as a manager in the functional areas of human resource management is making sure within my organization that I focus on the recruitment of the best workers they need in our organization success. I want to make sure that each person can work comfortable and safe environment. Human resource management it gives you three reasons why it is important. â€Å"First, it can be a significant source of competitive advantages as various studies have concluded. Second, HRM is an important part of organizational strategies. Finally, the way organizations treat their people has been found to significantly impact organizational performance† (Robbins & Coulter, 2012, p. 312-313). A manager in the functional area of human resource management is my responsibility to ensure the organizational objectives are fulfilled. Strategic Planning is another functional area that I am interested in. As a manager my purpose is to achieve and clarify the results of an organization. As a manager I must ensure that we work together in achieving the same goals. Strategic planning â€Å"are plans that apply to the entire organization and establish the organization’s overall goals† (Robbins & Coulter, 2012, p. 207). Which I know that strategic planning is a process where I will have to make choices and decisions to help develop the necessary approaches to achieving the organizational goals. Human resource management is very important to an organization. To help me with my statement I read a peer reviewed article that had some interested things about human resource management and why it is important. According to the article â€Å"the modern role of human resources management is recognized in the following range: newly defined aims which this scientific discipline, and practice as well, appoint as direction of relevance, redesigned processes by which it implements its activities and of course, new demands in the â€Å" palette† of managerial competencies of its experts† (à urović, 2012, p. 87). As a manager it is my duty to ensure the best for and organization. To fulfill these objectives it cannot be done alone we have to work together so we can reach those goals. Strategic planning is very important as well to a manager. I read another peer-reviewed article that I could relate and  use for my own benefits. In this article, â€Å"So good strategic planning is not about predicting the future, it is about shaping the future and developing the intellectual agility and alertness to recognize the future as it goes by in order to respond in a agile and appropriate fashion† ( Blatstein, 2012, p. 33). I know as a manager that both human resource management and strategic planning are both helpful within an organization. I cannot see why any manager would not use these functional areas too their organization advantage. Reference Page Robbins S.P., and Coulter, M. (2012). Management (11th ed.). Boston, MA: Prentice Hall. à urović, M. (2012) Human Resources Management-Strategic Aspect. Management (1820-0222). Issue 62, p83-88. 6p. Blatstein, I. M. Summer (2012) Strategic Planning: Predicting or Shaping the Future. Organization Development Journal, Vol. 30 Issue 2, p31-38. 8p. 3 Graphs.

The Role of Money in a Relationship Among the Couples

Opinion essay The role of money in a relationship among the couples, who are going to marry Outline: I. Introduction Money is everything. Money represents power, love, joy, and much more. II. Main body: a) The relationship between couples is great because they have money b) Money sometimes can be a disaster, because of its lack c) Money influence on people’s power III. Conclusion Money is very important thing in people’s lives. Without money they are not able to live†¦ Money is everything in people’s life. Money is not simply money. Money represents power, love, joy, and much more.The Kazakhs believe that money plays an important role in their life. No one cannot achieve anything in life without money. The role of money in a relationship is very important to the success or failure of a relationship. There a few reasons of that. First, the relationship between couples is great because they have money. For example, two persons meet; both of them have money, jo bs, and apartments. They enjoy each other’s company, with places where they go, interests and etc. By the way, if one of them doesn’t havet money or job they will not pay attention to her or him.Then the couple establishes a life together, gets married, has children, enjoy with their lives. In short, they are happy, because they have money. Second, money sometimes can be a disaster, because of its lack. We always witness many endings of relationships with the reason of money. For example, one of the partners loses his or her job. After a few months the fighting starts. It starts with little arguments about bills and conflicts are every day. Then the fights grow and it is constant. They understand that all these problems are because of money’s lack. It can take a happy couple straight to divorce.Finally, money influences on people’s power. Usually, men earn more money, than women and they have more power in families. However, many women work as men and hav e good salaries today in Kazakhstan. And they feel freer to make decisions about what the couple does with money. One partner think that saving money for the future is most important, while the other partner think that they should spend money immediately. And the partner, who earns less money, feels humiliation from another. He or she thinks that it is beneath them. Therefore, the problems start again.To conclude, money is very important thing in people’s lives. Without money they are not able to live. If they would be able to live without the money, why do they work, what for? I don’t believe that some people work only for their pleasure. And I think that having a good financial standing is the only way to avoid the stress factors that can destroy people’s relationship. Also most couples, when they decide to marry they take no notice for money. But I think that the best time for couples to begin discussing money is before the wedding, so both know what the othe r expects and how they will spend their money.Without having an understanding about each other's attitude and emotions towards finances, saving, investment and spending, people might be setting themself up for failure in their relationship. Reference list: * Laura Frangipani (April 05, 2008) http://www. helium. com/items/975446-the-role-of-money-in-a-relationship. Helium . * Sissy R. Osteen, Ph. D. (Assistant Professor), Rachel A. Neal, Ph. D. (Visiting Assistant Professor) http://agecon. okstate. edu/annie/files/T-4201web. pdf. Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service. * Joanna Moorhead (September 7th 2008) http://moreintelligentlife. com/story/couples-money. More Intelligent Life.

Hitchcock Heroes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Hitchcock Heroes - Essay Example He goes ahead to suggest to Guy that they should commit murder to eliminate the ones vexing the others life. He then is seen explaining how difficult it will be for them to be traced since they would be total strangers, therefore, will be no implication of motive(Yanal, 228). A guy does not agree to any of these and calls Bruno crazy but he continues to stalk Guy insisting that Guy had agreed to that plan and that he could not bail out. He calls Guy one day and gives him the address to his house, the room of where he will find his father and how to commit the murder. Guy takes down the details and it seems like he has agreed to the plan. He goes to Bruno’s houseâ€Å" Mr. Anthony! Mr. Antony! Don't be alarmed -- but I must talk to you about your son, about Bruno. Mr. Antony!†. This shows that he is human. He informs Guy that this was all a set up because he sensed that he had a change of heart and that he was still going ahead with the plans of killing Miriam so that Gu y could settle his end of the bargain. Bruno kills Miriam and he now pesters Guy to meet his end of the bargain.In the movie, we can deduce that Guy is our true hero in the film as we can see him further going to the murder scene to confront Bruno and as they struggle on the merry go round. It gets out of control and the merry go round accelerates itself. He is concerned about the small child who is scared of what happening and he dives with the child as the machine falls apart while crushing Bruno. This shows us that he is caring. The police arrive and Bruno is found with the lighter and it frees Guy. In ‘Shadows of a Doubt’ Charlotte Newton is the hero. She is seen to be unhappy with her life and is whining about her father’slife and throughout the film he is always seen to be discussing about murderswith his friend. She is also unhappy because she feels that her mother is overworked. She is seeking for that person who would bring them happiness and thinks of her uncle Charlie. She is caring and seeks to see her family happy. Uncle Charlie coincidentally is also thinking of visiting Santa Rose. Charlotte is very happy when she hearsthis news. She goes to the extent of giving Uncle Charlie her bedroom so that he would be comfortable. Trouble starts when UncleCharlie gives everyone a present in the Dining room except Charlotte, he follows her to the kitchen and

Genetically Modified Organisms, U.S. and E.U. Trade Dispute Research Paper

Genetically Modified Organisms, U.S. and E.U. Trade Dispute - Research Paper Example , the EU argued that it has acted in good faith, stating that it has acted through the precautionary principle, in order to protect the interests of those who produced the non-GMO products for its markets. Despite this argument, the WTO ruled against the EU stating that it would have been necessary for the latter to provide credible scientific evidence concerning the potential harm of GMO before taking action against the authorization of American GMO into its markets (Viju, Yeung and Kerr 1207). As a response, the European Union has made amendments to its regulatory framework to ensure that its member states are given the power to ban any GMO products within their territories. However, there has been general agreement within the member states that the bans might not be effective in the current situation, with some arguing that the new proposed regulations might not be in line with the rules of the WTO. The complex nature of the EU’s decision making process has been blamed for the resulting trade dispute between the United States and the European Union. The fact that this dispute took place was due to the fact that the European Union is still extremely cautious concerning the importation of GMO into its territory. Most of the concern from the EU is based on the belief that some of the GMO that are imported, especially from the United States, may not be fit for human consumption and if consumed may end up having long term detrimental effects on the health of those who consume it. This is the reason why the EU chose to take on the precautionary principle, where it prevented any GMO products from the United States from entering any of the markets within its territory (Karlsson 51). During the case brought before the WTO, the argument that the EU was taking illegal action... This essay stresses that some political analysts have suggested that the best way to resolve this dispute would be for the United States to take the lead through the easing of restrictions against European beef products so that the EU can also see it fit to reciprocate in kind. In addition, there has been the suggestion that the creation of a free trade zone between the United States and the EU would create an avenue where there would be a reduction of trade disputes and an increase in cooperation between them. The fact that he enjoys the good will of the European public is likely to work in his favor not only in matters concerning the ending of the beef import stand off, but also those of the creation of the free trade zone. A free trade zone would be the ideal guarantee for the ending of most, if not all the disputes that involve these two entities. This report makes a conclusion that the existence of restrictions against American beef products in the European Union have also been created because of the need to ensure that these products are not in any way detrimental to the environment. The environmental impact of GMO products are yet to be fully analyzed and it is high time that research concerning it be conducted to ensure that better ways of managing these products are developed. The United States, on the other hand, has to adopt some of the concern about GMO effect on health and environment because very little research has been conducted on the subject. Through this adoption, there will be a better understanding of the reasons behind the European ban on some of its GMO products, and this will enable them to reach an amicable solution to their disputes.

Life of educated vs non educated women using Willy Russell's Educating Essay

Life of educated vs non educated women using Willy Russell's Educating Rita - Essay Example The perfect example of the poor life was of her mother’s. During one part of the play she says, â€Å"†¦when I looked round me mother had stopped singin’, an’ she was cryin’†¦I said, ‘Why are y’ cryin’, Mother?’ She said, ‘because- because we could sing better songs than those.’†¦And that’s why I came back. And that’s why I’m staying.† (Russell) Rita thinks that ignorance has ripped freedom from the women like her mother. The uneducated did not have freedom of choice and they were forced to do what is demanded of them. They could not live for themselves and since their vision and thinking was narrow they were easily pressurized into living the way others want them to live. Hence, according to the novel the life of the uneducated is miserable and without any freedom of choice. Rita was also an illiterate but she wanted to be different from the other uneducated women that surr ounded her. This is the reason she studied literature from Frank as she believed that only education could lead her to personal discovery. Education brought a lot of changes in Rita. It gave her confidence and the freedom to express. She felt independent and a void that was previously present in her life had been filled.

Pros and Cons of Legalizing Drugs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Pros and Cons of Legalizing Drugs - Essay Example The government starts experiencing constraints in sustaining its citizens and therefore is forced to result to heavy borrowing from other nations, non-governmental organizations, World Bank among other financial institutions. The resulting effect is a huge deficit in the balance of payments, which in turn leads to bad debts (Parks 2009). b) High costs incurred- The costs incurred by the government in following up and arresting drug traffickers are high. It involves the use of machines like vehicles and detectors, to track the criminals and this means expenditure has to be incurred. When these criminals have been arrested and prosecuted, they have to be retained in the cells and provided with the basic needs. If any of them falls sick, they have to be taken to the hospital by the government and it settles their medical bills. This all are extra costs incurred which should have otherwise been saved (Bean 2010). Many nations find it unreasonable nowadays to arrest and prosecute drug offenders as that is not helping in any way to reduce the vice and hence the urge to legalize drugs. The graph below compares the total number of people jailed for drug abusing in U.S.A and the total number of people arrested and jailed by the European Union for all offenses:Medical expenditure by the government increases since many fall vic tims of drug abuse. Many of them become addicted to the drugs to a point whereby they cannot do without them, and this means rehabilitation is the only solution to save their lives. The sensitization programs that the government may decide to organize to enlighten the people on the effects of drug abuse and ways of avoiding drug abuse are very costly. c) Increased mortality rate- Due to drug legalization, many drivers will be under the influence of drugs when driving. This increases road accidents hence leading to loss of lives of many civilians and traffic jams in the roads. In addition, since it is legal to use drugs, many people will result to abusing them. Drug abuse may lead to death of the victim at the end because the drugs have their side effects on human health. For example, many people have been abusing pharmaceutical products that are legal and this has resulted in the death of the individuals. These deaths reduce the population of a country, which should have provided the country with enough labor force to maximize output thus profits (Parks 2009). d) Increased war with other nations and terrorism- Many terrorists do abuse drugs so that they can stimulate their bodies for the plans ahead. Many of these drugs affect the reasoning capacity of an individual and

Biome(biogeography) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Biome(biogeography) - Essay Example The savanna includes a variety of soil types that include sands, loam and clay. Laterization is the dominant soil- forming process. Herbivory has important effects on soil nitrogen cycling. Grazer induced increases in N mineralization have generally been observed resulting in increased N availability to plants. Elephant population at high densities can have significant impact on the dynamics and functioning of savanna ecosystems. They have the capacity to transform habitats which results in consequences like reduced population of some species of mammals, birds and plants. Importance: They can sustain long periods of drought and grow in sandy places where there is only between 12 to 15 inches of rain a year. In addition these provide shade for animals, its leaves are edible and are consumed by the animals and its branches are used to make nests and are also used as perches. Importance: These are herbivores, and feed on grasses, fruits, tree leaves, bark, shrubs, and vines. They help to keep the savannas clear by eating shrubs and trees which helps the grass grow. This in turn helps in the survival of other grazing

Recruitment process Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Recruitment process - Essay Example Recruitment is the process of identifying and hiring qualified candidates for a job opening. However, recruitment process involves attracting, hiring, and interviewing new employees. On the other hand, selection process is the evaluation of candidate, through interview, for specific job. There is a difference between recruitment and selection process. Recruitment process mostly involves attracting candidates who are later hired for a job upon qualifications. The selection process involves identifying the qualities needed for a candidate to quality for a job. Internal methods of recruitment are usually done for the preparation of a recruitment process. There are a number of internal methods of recruitment. The first process in recruitment is job analysis. This entails reviewing the manpower plan of the company frequently so as to establish a gap. The Human Resource Manager liaises with the head of departments so as to see whether a job position in a given sector is necessary. Such a position should be ideal in that it should allow for future promotion and expansion. Once such a job position is confirmed, the concerned HR manager fills a requisition form which is sent to the Line Manager. The Line Manager then submits it to the Recruitment Manager upon its approval. The Recruitment Manager has the final say hence his approval leads to creation of a vacancy. (Lee, 2012:19).this new development comes with a myriad of details that include: job posting which involves the possibility of workers within the company applying for the created vacan cy; reference number of the vacancy, postal postal association and the academic qualifications, skills and experience required for the vacancy. The second stage involves writing the Job Description and PS. The departmental heads are vital components when it comes to giving the boundaries of the job in the form of a job description. This is simply because he or she is

Analyze Abbott Laboratory's strategic response to compulsory licensing Article

Analyze Abbott Laboratory's strategic response to compulsory licensing - Article Example Abbott laboratory strategically responded to compulsory licensing by publicly announcing that it is going to withdraw the pending applications for selling current medicines in Thailand. Applications for seven medicines were withdrawn by Abbott. The medicines which Abbott withdrew their applications were Aluvia, Brufen, Abbotic, Clivarine, Humira, Tarka and Zemplar. It decided not to introduce new drugs in Thailand since the actions displayed by Thailand’s government did not respect patents. Several advantages and disadvantages can be associated with abbot laboratory’s strategic response to compulsory licensing (Baron, 2008). Strategic response employed by Abbot Laboratory proved to be advantageous since it created room for negotiation. Abbott’s strategic response made Thailand government to realize how important the organization is in pharmaceutical industry. Its strategic response made Thailand government to raise several complaints. This therefore made world health organization to intervene and discussed with Abbott on how to market its products in developing countries, including Thailand. Abbott’s strategic response also had some weaknesses. The response had a serious effect on patients. It deprived innocent individuals who seriously required lifesaving drugs. The strategic response also showed that Abbott laboratory lacks social responsibility and only mind about maximizing its profits. From the discussion, it is clear that Thailand easily issued compulsory licensing for Abbott laboratory product, causing the organization to angrily react. Abbott angrily reacted to the action by stopping introducing new medicines in Thailand. This strategic response created room for negotiation and caused serious effects on patients and company’s

Environmental Depletion Essay Example for Free

Environmental Depletion Essay 1. Individuals are affected by the environment in different ways. The environment is an essential element in mans daily sustenance. The environment is the source of fresh air which humans breath in order to live, the source of fruits and vegetables that are necessary for the better functioning of the body, and the care taker of nature which provides man with a serene view of the world. The environment is also the source of trees and other raw materials that are used in the production of the basic needs of the modern world. The environment aids man in so many ways that living without it is totally indispensable for the survival of man. However, the many blessings and benefits which man derives from the environment have caused greed and abuse. The environment, as many theorize is very sick because of mans lack of concern for it. Instead of striving to preserve and/ or cultivate all that the environment has to offer, man continues to abuse and show lack of care for the environment. Thus, the world now is experiencing too many nature related tragedies. The tragedies that are happening and the climate changes as well as global warming are all the result of mans depletion of the earths natural resource. Everything which the environment has to offer has been continually abused by man and utilized commercially to satisfy their greed for profit. What man forgets is that whatever he does with the environment will be done to him two fold. Aside from the physical effects, changes in the environment can also have physiologic and psychological effects to man. If the temperature is hot and dry, man tends to be sweaty and thirsty while if the temperature is cold, the body of man tends to cling on to something that will provide him warmth. Psychologically, a hot temperature will most likely cause man to be easily irritated and annoyed. More often than not, the patience is man is shorter when it is hot as compared when the temperature is cold. In addition, if the environment to which man lives in is rowdy or in chaos or there is too much pollution, the tendency of man is also to feel and act in chaos whereas if the environment is serene, man, most often than not, will feel relaxed and relieved. A busy and crowded environment may lead to stress but a lax setting may temper the mind and feelings of man. Individuals, generally, act in accordance with what they see and feel from the environment. There are only a few people who do not feel affected with what is happening in their environment, these are the people who have high tolerance and have a high sense of discipline to detach themselves from the environment where they are. 2. In the past five years, there has been an increased awareness in the environment because man has been feeling the wrath of nature. The effects of the pollution of the water, the seas and rivers, the air and the noise pollution that are felt world wide are starting to cause serious trouble to mans daily existence. There has been too much pollution around that man can hardly enjoy the benefits which nature used to offer. The climate changes, global warming, extinction of plants, animals and fishes, melting of glaciers and scarcity of natural resources such as water, trees and animals have caused man difficulties. In some parts of the world, such as Africa, water scarcity is very prevalent (Arriens, 2007). The people there hardly have any water to drink, cook and bath. In the years to come, it has been predicted by several scientists and researchers that water scarcity will be felt in a greater degree. If there is water scarcity, almost all resources will be affected. Lack of water will also deprive man to cultivate the soil and plant fruits, vegetables and rich thus there will be food shortage. Cost of products bought in the market will also rise. The lesser products there are available, the higher is the cost. The fear of man to experience all of these adverse effects is the reason why there has been an increased awareness of the environment, which I believe is just right. Man needs to protect and preserve the blessings of nature in order to live longer and enjoy life better.

Sophocles’ Oedipus the King and Shakespeare’s Hamlet Essay Example for Free

Sophocles’ Oedipus the King and Shakespeare’s Hamlet Essay It is hard to divorce the subject of the gods in discussing Oedipus’ tragic flaw. In Sophocles’ time, the Greeks’ way of life was determined by the gods. They would not dream of calling practices such as consulting the Oracle or the procession as superstitious. Similarly, it is difficult to discuss Hamlet’s madness without relating it to the Ghost. Shakespeare’s England, fresh from experiencing the Reformation, also had its own sets of superstitions. In the same way that peoples’ lives in those times were powerfully affected by superstitions and the supernatural, the decisions of several characters in the plays mentioned above were also influenced by superstitions and the supernatural. Although it is often thought that the plots of Oedipus the King and Hamlet revolve around the manner in which Oedipus and Hamlet use human reasoning and rational thinking to fashion themselves as heroes, the purpose of this essay is to argue otherwise, since both heroes are fashioned by superstition and the supernatural that provide the heroic codes that they must follow, dictating them how to live their lives as heroes. The plots of both Hamlet and Oedipus the King revolve around solving the evils in Thebes and Denmark, respectively. The supernatural reveals the causes of these problems and the actions that the heroes must take in order to put balance back into their worlds. For the heroes to do this, they must complete a superstitious task. As one might see, the tasks of both heroes are strangely similar. For Oedipus, it is taking â€Å"the son’s part† (280) and punishing the murderer of Laios. For Hamlet, it is avenging his father’s murder.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In Oedipus the King, the cause of the plague is revealed through the Delphic Oracle. Due to the on-stage absence of the gods in the play, oracles and Teiresias function as their voices. Both of these are essential for truth and revelations. They represent the supernatural. In the play, the truth means power, as Teiresias affirms as he argues Oedipus, â€Å"[†¦] there is power in truth† (390). Teiresias knew that the truth itself can kill Oedipus. The drama evolves through revelations about Oedipus’ fate and his apparent blindness to it. Oedipus, as a tragic hero complete with characteristics such as hubris, hastiness and blindness, tries to shift the center to himself as a god-like problem-solver, declaring â€Å"I, Oedipus, who bear the famous name† (8). He follows the mystery to the end until his eventual fall, causing him to inflict the punishment upon himself in order to appease justice. Though Oedipus is no slave to fate, he was a victim of it since he could not avoid his fate. Though fate can be seen as the will of the gods, it is maintained that Oedipus alone is responsible for his actions, as the second messenger pointed out: â€Å"The greatest griefs are those we cause ourselves† (1283). The concept of fate is complicated, but it is very similar to the Protestant doctrine of predestination, where one is destined to be somebody or do something even when one has free will. In the first scene, the chorus asks why Oracle does not divulge the identity of the murderer. Strangely, Oedipus himself provides the explanation for this: â€Å"[†¦] no man in the world can make the gods do more than the gods’ will† (296-297). Teiresias also insisted that â€Å"[†¦] there’s no help in truth† (334), but Oedipus forces him into saying it. He insisted on knowing out of his own sense of piety and justice. That is his downfall. It is too late when Oedipus realizes this: â€Å"He [Apollo] brought my sick, sick fate upon me, but the blinding hand was mine own!† (1386-1387). Even in the end, superstition limits what he could do to himself. It prevents him from committing suicide, since in Hades, he does not know how to face both his father and mother (1419-1422). The modern reader would most probably wonder why Oedipus is subjected to such a fate. One may not answer that completely and accurately for the Greeks would argue that it is not any mortal’s business to ask that. In the play, moral characters’ lives are contrasted with the gods’ immortal lives. Through the gods, the Greeks are reminded of their mortality seeing â€Å"how our lives like birds take wing† (183). Oedipus’ story also reminds them of this lesson. The play concludes with that same thought: Let every man in mankind’s frailty Consider his last day; and let none Presume on his good fortune until he find Life, at his death, a memory without pain (1581-1884). In Hamlet, it is suggested that the superstitions and the supernatural have a real hold upon the characters. The appearance of the supernatural, in this case, the Ghost, tells the characters that â€Å"something is rotten in the state of Denmark† (1.4.90). Like in Oedipus the King, superstitions provide explanations for certain scientifically unexplainable events and occurrences. The Ghost first appears on the first scene of act one where Horatio, Marcellus and Barnardo were waiting for it. It doesn’t utter a word so one could only visualize the Ghost through what the trio says of it. From Horatio, the audience learns that it looks like the dead king and that he is wearing the armor that he wore when he â€Å"smote the sledded Polack on the ice† (1.1.59-63). As he tried to question the ghost, he referred to three more popular superstitions to explain the reason behind the Ghost’s appearance: it seeks someone whose action will enable it to rest in peace (1.1.130-131), it knows of a future disaster in store for Denmark (1.1.133-134) or it seeks buried treasure â€Å"extorted† when alive (1.1.136-137). The Ghost vanishes as the cock crows. Horatio is not the only superstitious character in the play. Hamlet meets the ghost on the fourth scene. Though he knew not whether the ghost is of heaven or hell, he calls it â€Å"Hamlet,† his father (1.1.44-45). As the Ghost beckons him to a remote place, Horatio and Marcellus urge Hamlet not to follow it for fear that it might â€Å"draw him into madness† (1.1.75). True enough, that is exactly what will happen in the next scenes and acts. The Ghost doesn’t speak to Hamlet until the next scene. It introduces itself as Hamlet’s father, hinting at the terrors of the afterlife (1.5.9-13).   It asks him to â€Å"revenge his foul and most unnatural murder† (1.5.25). Strangely enough, Hamlet is not completely surprised, even guessing the murderer as his uncle (1.5.40-41). In this scene, the Ghost acts and thinks like Hamlet who also condemns his â€Å"most seeming virtuous queen† (1.5.46). In its last words to Hamlet it cries â€Å"remember me† (1.1.91). Hamlet does remember him throughout the play. It is this rite of revenge that he will enact until the last act. He has to do it at the right moment, as superstition dictates. The scene where Claudius prays is not the right time for his death. The Ghost and its memory guide his actions and decisions, though invisible. In Hamlet’s confrontation with his mother, the Ghost appears again in a more domestic garb, preventing him from harming his mother. It is strange though that in that scene, Gertrude doesn’t see the ghost. One may never know if this is a sign of her moral blindness or if this is only a projection of Hamlet’s madness as Gertrude thinks. The Ghost causes Hamlet’s â€Å"dread of something after death† (3.1.78). This is exactly the subject of Hamlet’s most famous speech. Because of the terrifying vision of the Ghost, death becomes an â€Å"undiscovered country† (3.1.87). Hamlet doesn’t know where he will go after death, so he doesn’t commit suicide. Conscience, or the lack of it, makes a â€Å"coward† of him and therefore, â€Å"lose the name of action† (3.1.96). When finally Hamlet does avenge his father, all is set aright. As Hamlet dies, he elects Fortinbras as the new king of Denmark, who like him has also lot his father. It is through this deed that Hamlet becomes a fully fledged hero. Like his father in death, Hamlet also appeals to Horatio â€Å"draw thy breath in pain to tell my story† (5.2.183-184). Thus, he passes the call for remembrance. Superstitions and the supernatural indeed provide the heroic codes which shape the plots of these dramas. Although Oedipus and Hamlet both conform to their periods’ respective notions of heroes, the concept above runs the same for them. In the endings of both plays, the audiences come face to face with visions of mortality. These visions are intended for them, as well as the characters, to remember life itself.       Works Cited Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Ed. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. Folger Library Shakespeare. NY: Washington Square Press, 1992. Sophocles. â€Å"Oedipus Rex.† The Oedipus Cycle. Trans. Dudley Fitts and Robert Fitzgerald. San Diego and NY: Harvest/HBJ, 1977.