Comparison Essay on “Dead Souls” and “Taras Bulba”

I. The great achievement of prose of the XIX century (from the 1840s to the 1890s) was Russian Realism, which is represented by many great Russian writers and Nikolai Gogol is not the last in this list. It is often mentioned that after 1830 Pushkin turned more and more to prose, although being the greatest poet of the time. However, the writer who established really innovating novelistic and narrative tradition in Russian literary culture was Gogol. Gogol's example, combined with the authoritative literary pronouncements of the greatest literary critic of the period, V. G. Belinsky, proved prose to be the literary medium of the future. Later, the great Russian novelist   (and not the worst philosopher of religious thought) Dostoevsky have said, referring to himself and his fellow Realists, â€Å"We have all come out from under Gogol's â€Å"Overcoat†Ã¢â‚¬  (meaning the famous story by Gogol, â€Å"Shynel† or Overcoat).Vladimir Nabokov highly esteemed Gogol as a grea t Russian (in no case Ukrainian, he is sure, in spite of the fact that Nikolaj Gogol-Ianovski originates from Ukraine, Mirgorod, and his world outlook is obviously marked by Ukrainian national tradition) novelist, dramatist, satirist, and founder of the so-called critical realism in Russian literature, best-known for his novel â€Å"Mertvye Dushy† (1842, Dead Souls). Praising the imaginative power and linguistic playfulness of the writer’s latest works (â€Å"Shynel† or Overcoat, â€Å"Mertvye Dushy† etc), Nabokov states that Gogol is everything but the romantic folklore novelist.Actually, there can be defined two main periods in Gogol’s writing: conservative romantic and vernacular idealism of the Ukrainian past (which we find in Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka and Taras Bulba) and the next evolutionary period of modernistic urban life reflection with all its psychological abnormality and deviations. If to believe Nabokov, in the mature age Gogol was ashamed of the playful artificialness of his early works; and as for the famous Russian critic, it is a dreadful nightmare even to imagine Gogol scribbling Ukrainian folkloristic novels volume by volume†¦ Had he chosen this path, the world would have never heard his name. So, let’s compare these two antagonistic periods of Gogol’s writing corresponding to the most vividly representative works of his: â€Å"Taras Bulba† and â€Å"Dead Souls†.II. Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka, the book of Ukrainian folklore stories, which appeared in 1831-32, was Gogol's breakthrough work (Gogol had greatly admired Pushkin, and he used in this work the same narrative device as Pushkin did in his Tales of Belkin). It showed his skill in mixing fantastic and demonic ideas of his people with macabre, and at the same time he said something crucial about the Russian and Ukrainian (ignoring Nabokov’s imperialistic snobbism, it is important to mark Gogol’s Ukrainian roots) character. After failure as an assistant lecturer of world history at the University of St. Petersburg (1834-35), Gogol became a full-time writer. Under the title Mirgorod (1835) Gogol published a new collection of his stories, also inspired by Ukrainian vernacular culture, beginning with â€Å"Old-World Landowners†, which described the decay of the old way of life.The book also included the famous historical tale (poem in prose) â€Å"Taras Bulba†, which according to many literary critics showed the influence of W.Scott and L.Stern. However, it is rather ignorant not to take into account the original Ukrainian novelistic tradition, which is widely based on folklore (Gulak-Artemovski, Kvitka-Osnovjanenko and many other writers of Ukrainian romanticism are evidently folkloristic). The protagonist of â€Å"Taras Bulba† is a strong, heroic character, absolutely non-typical for Gogol’s later cavalcade of bureaucrats, lunatics, swindlers, and losers, numerously represented on the pages of â€Å"Dead Souls†.In 1569, dominion over the right-coast Ukraine passed to Poland.   The Polish lords (lyahy) promptly tried stamping out Ukrainian culture by savagely exploiting the peasantry, outlawing the Ukrainian language and imposing Catholicism (Unia) and Papal supremacy on the Orthodox population.   In response, Ukrainian male peasants flocked to join the military groups known as the Cossacks. They founded the Zaporizhian Sitch on the Hortycya Island.The Cossacks, essentially a wild cross between mercenary crusaders and highwaymen,  became the focus of resistance to the Poles, the Turks and the Crimean Tatars. Gogol’s novel tells the story of the old and wise warrior Taras Bulba who, with his sons Ostap and Andrij, sallies forth to join the Sitch. Gogol's incontestably romantic adventure was as much a propaganda piece for his own time as an elegy for a way of life that had passed.   In â€Å"Taras Bulbaâ €  we meet conservative Gogol, who has just arrived to Petersburg and is not yet sophisticated in the city life. He is shocked by the corruption and moral decay of the city dwellers. He craves for the Golden Age of his people’s history and this age, he thinks, was the glorious times of the Zaporizhian Sitch.â€Å"Taras Bulba† is a remarkable example of the early romantic Gogol (if to call Gogol the writer’s texts). However, this novel works on both levels (historical and pshycological, more typical for the later Gogol’s works) and is surely one of the most exciting masterpieces in world literature.  Set sometime between the mid-sixteenth and early-seventeenth century, Gogol’s epic tale recounts both a bloody Cossack revolt against the Poles (led by the bold Taras Bulba of Ukrainian folk mythology) and the trials of Taras Bulba’s two sons. As Robert Kaplan (translator) writes, â€Å"[Taras Bulba] has a Kiplingesque gusto . . . that make s it a pleasure to read, but central to its theme is an unredemptive, darkly evil violence that is far beyond anything that Kipling ever touched on. We need more works like Taras Bulba to better understand the emotional wellsprings of the threat we face today in places like the Middle East and Central Asia.† (Jane Grayson and Faith Wigzell; p.18).And the critic John Cournos has noted, â€Å"A clue to all Russian realism may be found in a Russian critic’s observation about Gogol: ‘Seldom has nature created a man so romantic in bent, yet so masterly in portraying all that is unromantic in life.’(The Rise of Prose: Nikolai Gogol). But this statement does not cover the whole ground, for it is easy to see in almost all of Gogol’s work his â€Å"free Cossack soul† trying to break through the wall of gloomy and non-heroic ‘today’ like some ancient demon, essentially Dionysian. So, through the years, this novel sounds at once as a reproa ch, a protest, and a challenge, ever calling for joy, ancient joy, that is no more with us.This wide interpretation lies far beyond previously often-uttered accusation of vernacular populist romanticism. Nikolai Gogol searched for the joy and sadness in the Ukrainian songs he loved so much. Ukrainian was to Gogol the language of the soul, and it was in Ukrainian songs rather than in old chronicles, of which he was not a little contemptuous, that he read the history of his people. So, here in this novel the writer’s intention is not the historical but rather the psychological picture of his people. Hence no one (even Nabokov) has the right to accuse Gogol of Ukrainian culture profanation as if following the modern literary trend of his time.Indeed, so great was his enthusiasm for his own land that after collecting material for many years, the year 1833 finds him at work on a history of ‘poor Ukraine’, a work planned to take up six volumes; and writing to a friend at this time he promises to say much in it that has not been said before him. However, Gogol never wrote either his history of Little Russia (Malorosiya) or his universal history, he didn’t become Ukrainian Balzac but is often called Ukrainian Goffman or Poe.Apart from several brief studies not always reliable, the result of his many years application to his scholarly projects was this brief epic in prose, Homeric in mood (The Rise of Prose: Nikolai Gogol). The sense of intense living, ‘living dangerously† – to cite Nietzsche – the recognition of courage as the greatest virtue, the God in man, inspired Gogol, living in times which tended toward grey monotony, with admiration for his more fortunate forefathers, who lived in a poetic time, when everything was won with the sword, when every one in his turn strove to be an active being and not a spectator. In â€Å"Taras Bulba† we find the people of action, and â€Å"Dead Souls† gives us th e gallery of people of things.Russia! Russia! I see you now, from my wondrous, beautiful past I behold you! How wretched, dispersed and uncomfortable everything is about you†¦(Nikolai Gogol)III. Gogol began working on â€Å"Dead Souls† in 1835. The plot and the main idea of the story was suggested to Gogol by Pushkin who seemed to have understood Gogol as a writer quite well. Pushkin felt that the idea of a man travelling all over the Russian Impire buying up the ownership rights to serfs who had died (‘mertvye dushy’) would allow Gogol to make at once the literary success. In fact, it was an opportunity to introduce a multitude of characters, varied settings, mountains of detail, and the scope within which to be able to elaborate the anecdotal story of the work to his heart's content and to reveal all the sins of his contemporary. Gogol had big ideas of becoming a scriptor of his age a sort of Balzac†¦For the next six years, he devoted almost all of hi s creative energy to â€Å"Dead Souls†. His compulsive craftsmanship is evident in that the entire work was revised at least five times; the author stated that some passages had been rewritten as many as twenty times. He felt that this novel should be his best one.Unfortunately, only the first part of Dead Souls, twelve chapters in all, was completed by Gogol. The second part, as we know it, (some chapters of which are often published with the first part) is a recreation from various sources of what Gogol might have done with the continuation of his work. Influenced by the fanatical priest Father Konstantinovskii, he burned what he actually had already written for the second part of the novel just nine days before his death.The situation from which the novel develops is based upon a scheme which theoretically was possible in Gogol's day. The government had a policy of loaning money to landowners, feeling that this class was its strongest support. Lands owned, however, were me asured not in acres, but by the number of â€Å"souls† (serfs, or here, mertvye dushy) residing on them. De facto, landowners were serf owners†¦ The government was ready to accept the land (that is, the serfs) of an individual as collateral for a loan. Thus, a method was required by which the holdings of an individual landowner could be established at any given time.This method stated that an individual possessed the number of ‘souls’ recorded as such that belong to him/her in the most recent population census. The census was taken every ten years, which meant that near the end of the ten-year cycle almost every landowner would have some serfs who were not recorded in the preceding census because they had recently been born, and some serfs still recorded even though they had died long ago since the last census. In â€Å"Dead Souls†, the main character, Chichikov, schemes to buy from the serf holders a number of those â€Å"souls† who had died b ut were still counted as living until the next census. An absurd situation becomes possible: dead souls are sold as being alive people, which ar estil able to work. â€Å"It's cheap at the price.A rogue would cheat you, sell you some worthless rubbish instead of souls, but mine are as juicy as ripe nuts, all picked – they are all either craftsmen or sturdy peasants†, – Sobakievich boasts to his weird buyer (Gogol, Nikolai Vasilievich). Once Chichikov had a number of such souls, he would apply to the government bank for a loan, using the â€Å"souls† as his collateral. With this low-interest loan in hand he would then buy and work an actual country estate, eventually paying back the loan and purchasing living souls to work the land. Well, passing the whole plot, it is imporatnt to state Gogol’s idea of small marginal people actually decaying in their small towns and farms. The Russia of small towns is the country of odd and irreversibly narrow-minde d people. What Gogol proves is that these small landowners are actually dead†¦ They have burried themselves alive in their dirty stinking flea-bitten houses.Contrudicting the wide-sprea yet contested idea of Gogol’s evolution as a writer, it is possible to say that either completing histoical heroic plot or conveying contemporary decayed society, Gogol’s intention stays the same – to show the depth of a human soul and how this soul can be filled with live brightness of heroism or by dead wickedness and miserable oddity. Bibliography Gogol, Nikolai Vasilievich. Taras Bulba and Other Tales. Electronic Text Center, University of Virginia Library// http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/GogTara.htmlNikolay Gogol: Text and Context, ed. by Jane Grayson and Faith Wigzell (1989).N. V. Nabokov: Nicolai Gogol, 1944.The Rise of Prose: Nikolai Gogol// http://www1.umn.edu/lol-russ/hpgary/Russ3421/lesson6.htm

Morality Play Essay

* Popular from the early 1400s to the 1580s. * Morality plays were about the fate of a single individual’s soul. * The main character represented all men and often had a name such as Mankind or Everyman to demonstrate their allegorical function. * They include vice and temptation characters attempt to corrupt the Everyman figure. * Allegorical characters also represent virtues. The ‘Everyman’ character listens to them and takes note of warnings, often returning briefly to his ‘good’ lifestyle. * A reform/relapse pattern is repeated several times. * Through a series of blunders and moral lessons the hero is gradually educated into an understanding of the difference between right and wrong and the nature of god. * At the end, the main character settles his accounts with God and either lives or dies forgiven and Christian. He is wiser and better at the end of the play. * A chorus, such as the Messenger and Doctor characters in Everyman, is used to comment on and explain the action for the audience. Elements of Renaissance plays. * Contain soliloquies in which a highly distinct self reflects upon his own desires and actions. * Celebrate the scope of human powers while acknowledging their boundaries; there is a duality at work which praises man’s creative powers (by implication also those of the poet, or author) but concedes that man is not God and that ultimately all his powers derive from God. * They begin to refer to the new countries and things being discovered by explorers, mentioning exotic settings and transporting their audiences around the world. Renaissance ideas * The body and soul are separate and linked with different elements and humours. * Catholicism was banned in England and the Pope was considered the antichrist by some. * Renaissance scholars studied classical literature, including Roman and Greek philosophy. Discussion of what it meant to be human centred on reason, balance and dignity – much more individualistic than medieval scholastic thinking. * The humanist attitude to the world was anthropocentric: instead of regarding humanity as fallen and corrupt, their idea of truth and excellence was based on human values and experience; people openly questioned religious theology and teaching. * The world was dynamic, changing and exciting. Plays explored the many contrasts between how people should behave and how they actually do, and the questions and contradictions thrown up by a changing world.

Trial and Error

Trial and error is an experimental method of problem solving, repair, tuning, or obtaining knowledge. â€Å"Learning doesn't happen from failure itself but rather from analyzing the failure, making a change, and then trying again. † This approach can be seen as one of the two basic approaches to problem solving and is contrasted with an approach using insight and theory. However, there are intermediate methods which for example, use theory to guide the method, an approach known as guided empiricism.The nature of the response is molecular in trial-and-error learning and molar in insightful learning. Practice and repetition are extremely important in trial-and-error learning, while insightful solution is important for insightful learning. Of course, certain amount of trial- and-error occurs before insight takes place. But the trial-and-error form of learning primarily does not involve insight. The physical and motor skills are acquired mostly through trial-and-error.The insightf ul learning is of higher order, and is involved in cognitive and verbal learning. The cats in the key experiments conducted by Edward Thorndike were able to learn through operant conditioning. In Thorndike's experiment, cats were placed in a various boxes approximately 20 inches long, 15 inches wide, and 12 inches tall with a door opened by pulling a weight attached to it. The cats were observed to free themselves from the boxes by â€Å"trial and error with accidental success.In one test the cat was shown to have done worse in a later trial than in an earlier one, suggesting that no learning from the previous trials was retained in long-term memory. The scientist considered the cat to have the capacity for learning due to the law of effect, which states that responses followed by satisfaction (i. e. a reward) become more likely responses to the same stimulus in the future. An experiment was conducted in 2009 where cats could pull on a string to retrieve a treat under a plastic scr een. When presented with one string, cats had no trouble getting the treats.When presented with multiple strings, some of which were not connected to treats, the cats were unable to consistently choose the correct strings, leading to the conclusion that cats do not understand cause and effect in the same way that humans do Thorndike was skeptical of the presence of intelligence in cats, criticising sources of the contemporary writing of the sentience of animals as â€Å"partiality in deductions from facts and more especially in the choice of facts for investigation. Research was made to identify possible observational learning in kittens.Kittens that were able to observe their mothers performing an experimentally organised act were able to perform the same act sooner than kittens that had observed a non-related adult cat, and sooner than the ones who, being placed in trial and error conditions, observed no other cat performing the act. Experimental investigation of primates show th at the chimpanzee possess some limited insight in regard to observational learning (see Kà ¶hler), whereas this capacity is wholly absent in the domesticated cat Sultan, one of the brightest of the early chimpanzees used for psychological research, was tested by Gestalt psychologist Wolfgang Kà ¶hler.Sultan is particularly recognized for his insight in solving numerous problems, including stacking or manipulating boxes to reach a reward and use of two sticks as a unit to rake food to a reachable distance. While other Chimpanzees in Kà ¶hler's study were also quite adept at problemsolving—namely, obtaining an out-of-reach fruit suspended above a playground or perched just beyond arm's reach outside the bars of a cage—Sultan proved to be peculiarly advanced.He and his peers were also known to stack crates to reach the fruit, and even scramble up a hastily balanced stick to grab the banana before falling back down. Chimpanzees helped Kà ¶hler to prove that animals are capable of learning beyond simple trial and error, and that, given the right conditions, many species—particularly the more â€Å"human† species of primates—will demonstrate a deeper understanding of the constituents of a problem. For example, several chimpanzees who had proven capable of reaching the banana via a stack of crates found that in a crateless room, a table or chair worked to meet the same end.When nothing else was available, Kà ¶hler himself could even be used: â€Å"On one occasion, Sultan did something even more impressive: he came over to Kà ¶hler, pulled him by the arm until he was under the banana, and then showed that in a pinch even the director of the Prussian anthropoid station would do as a climb-upon-able. † (Gleitman 2004) difference insightful learning involves perception of the whole situation, as the organism has to see the relationship among various stimuli. The nature of the response is molecular in trial-and-error learnin g and molar in insightful learning.Practice and repetition are extremely important in trial-and-error learning, while insightful solution is important for insightful learning. Of course, certain amount of trial- and-error occurs before insight takes place. But the trial-and-error form of learning primarily does not involve insight. The physical and motor skills are acquired mostly through trial-and-error. The insightful learning is of higher order, and is involved in cognitive and verbal learning. The two forms of learning differ with respect to the role of the organism in the learning situation.Animals lower in the phylogenic scale acquire through trial and error. Their role in the learning situation is only mechanical and passive. The organism's approach in trial-and-error consists of random blind activities and the solution comes by chance. On other hand, the organism in insightful learning, surveys, inspects, observes, and examines various aspects of the problem situation, and t hereby takes an active role in learning. Higher- order animals including chimpanzees and human beings are capable of insightful learning.Both the trial-and-error and the insightful learning differ with respect to the strength of learning. The trial-and-error learning is more or less temporary, depends on continued practice, and weakens when practice is discontinued. The insightful solution, once acquired, stays for a long time and does not easily fade away when the practice is discontinued. Finally, in trial-and-error, the transfer of learning is poor; skills acquired in one situation are not easily transferred to another situation.On the other hand, learning by insight is easily transferred from one situation to other similar situations. The cat in Thorndike's puzzle box learns to connect a response with a stimulus, which is subsequently rewarded. The learning by trial-and-error is a matter of S-R connection. Kohler's chimpanzee learns to perceive the relationships between various aspects of the stimulus situation. Establishing the relationship between one stimulus and the others forms the core of the insightful learning.The insightful learning is of S-S type. The trial-and-error learning is gradual. The cat in Thorndike's puzzle box takes a number of trials and learns step-by-step to reach the correct response. The insightful learning occurs all on a sudden. The organism moves from a state of no solution to a state of solution very quickly. While pulling the string in Thorndike's puzzle box, the cat is showing responses to only some specific stimuli. It does not have to attend to the whole stimulus field.

Internet Sale (Consumer Law) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Internet Sale (Consumer Law) - Essay Example This means that in this particular situation, Mr. Sissoko will have to go after the delivery company in order to have his new strips replaces, which is a timely and costly venture for him. The reason why the law is like this is that â€Å"the decision as to whether a broad or narrow approach would be adopted, could be dictated by the degree of flexibility perceived in the meaning of s. 20. However this may be over-simplifying the task of the courts who may be concerned about the potential impact of the broad approach on the scope and function of default rules in general† (Taylor and Naidoo, 2002). Any time good are purchased by an individual, he or she will expect to have certain rights when the product is delivered. This means that they believe that the product will be delivered in a timely and efficient manner, without any damage being done to the product. This is generally taken to mean that the consumer is protected under section 14 of the SoGA, as this section makes the seller completely liable for any damage that is done before the product arrives at the consumer’s door. In these situations, the consumer will rely on the seller to get the product to him or her, without any problem. Since the seller is thought to be the business professional in these situations and, therefore, should be more knowledgeable than the consumer. Since the seller has more knowledge in these situations, the customer is automatically at a disadvantage when it comes to the legal side of this procedure, which is exactly what happened to Mr. Sissoko. The customer would not wish to take any r esponsibility for a product being damaged while in transit and consumer laws are in place to ensure that this does not happen. Where the problem lies is when a third-party delivery company takes on the job of delivering a product to a consumer. In these cases, the seller’s obligation to the customer is completely satisfied once the product is in the hands on the

The Interrelationship Between Music and Program in Vivaldis Violin Essay

The Interrelationship Between Music and Program in Vivaldis Violin Concerto in F minor, Op. 8, no. 3 Autumn (The Four Seasons) (1725) - Essay Example .The ritornello form used in the â€Å"Autumn† concerto is clear. The tutti section in the first movement outlines the theme and is repeated numerous times in variation throughout the movement. The solo sections embellish on the main theme as well as moving into more free-flowing segments. The Italian Concerto format of three movements (fast, slow, fast) is a basic standard for the period and Vivaldi adheres to that model. Key changes in the Baroque period, from minor to major are made more rapidly than examples of concerti from the latter 18th Century where composers took more time in both tutti and solo sections before shifting to alternate keys. Phrases are often played in forte and repeated in piano; this style is a signature of Vivaldi in many of his concerti. In the Baroque style, often the solo sections of a concerto are accompanied by a simple bass line, or ground bass, perhaps with incidental strings or other instruments and usually harpsichord. Vivaldi follows this convention. The solo violin is left with little background from the orchestra, leaving more room for free flowing play with the theme and variations upon it. The opening to Vivaldi’s concerto is lively and athletic. In four quarter time, it has a quality reminiscent of folk dance. There is a leaping feature to the subject with strongly accenting downbeats. The violin enters, strictly following the theme but turns a portion of the theme upside down. In the next solo section the violin takes a series of leaps and arpeggios as it moves toward a slightly slower and more chromatic subject. Slowing pace in the middle of an allegro movement deviates from the standard form of the day. Vivaldi’s style of composition varies from other composers in that there is less str ictness in the solo sections or adherence to the original theme. Instead, the violin is left to fly through arpeggios and runs adding to the strong rhythms and rich texture of the work. The second movement is slow and simple, using the harpsichord as the main instrument accompanied by quiet strings in chromatic lines and basso continuo. â€Å"Along with the emphasis on a single melody and bass line came the practice of basso continuo, a method of musical notation in which the melody and bass line are written out and the harmonic filler indicated in a type of shorthand.†1 The third movement opens with a vigorous theme, with a strong â€Å"leaping† rhythm in triple time. In the opening solo section, the violin turns the theme upside down in contrast to the tutti and with harshly struck bow work, which adds to the rustic flavour of the music. As in the first movement, ritornello is used to bring the theme back throughout the movement, embellished by the resolute solos of the violin. Again, there is a slowing of the music before one final and triumphant recapitulation of the theme. In context of the poem, Vivaldi’s â€Å"Autumn† accurately describes the verses. From the opening dance of the peasants to the slower paced section in the first movement that describes the â€Å"full liquor of Bacchus†, the music complements the words. As well, the rich texture of the theme and harmonics in major thirds reflects the colors of the season. However, the solo sections break from strict Baroque form by allowing the solo instrument to take more liberty with variation and free form phrasing, within the work. This shift away from the theme allows Vivaldi to â€Å"play† with the images in the poem invoking dance and even the movement of wind in the trees. The second movement reflects the sleeping peasants. The slow, chromatic strings and the quiet harpsichord invoke a clear sense of a calm night. The third movement, with its rousing open ing theme

Methodological issues with financial ratios Essay

Methodological issues with financial ratios - Essay Example The paper is an attempt to analyze the accuracy of the statement taking the evidence from the last 10 years from the research work published. Use of Financial Ratios Financial ratios are used by the company stakeholders as they have different kind of interest in the concerned company. The shareholders assess the ratios and take the decision whether the performance of the company would be profitable for them, thereby take the investment decisions. The company management analyzes the flaws of the performance of past years and tries to improve it in the future years using ratio analysis tool. The creditors of the company try to find that the company is creditworthy anymore or not (Moyer, McGuigan and Kretlow, 2008, p.58). By doing the comparable analysis of ratios an investor or a prospective investor take the decision that which firm is better to invest, from where they can get the best return when the company management has the interest that how their company is performing with respec t to the industry standard (Hitchner, 2011, p.103). When doing the ratio analysis for the above mentioned various purposes then the user should make sure that he has considered the various factors which affect the variables of the ratio. ... The two companies may be in same industry, but their size and their focus areas can be different, so it would not provide the accurate result by doing the ratio analysis without taking the factors associated with it (Brigham and Ehrhardt, 2010, p.109). Two companies may not follow the same accounting standards, or a company can change the accounting standards they are following in recent years. The taxation rules of different states or countries are different as well as the political condition also. A multinational company has to face different inflation, different taxation rules throughout the world. So whether doing the trend analysis or cross sectional analysis an analyst should consider these factors. There are also technical factors associated with this issue. The analysts use many statistical tools which take the assumption that the data is normally distributed but in reality it doesn’t happen, and the outcome of the analysis not become fruitful. A research study was per formed by taking the data of 66 listed Malaysian firms and the data was of the period 1980 to 1996. The sample firms were taken from 3 different industries. It is seen by the researchers while doing that research that only current asset percentage was conformed to normal distribution, which supports the fact that all data used in the statistical tool for performing ratio analysis is not normally distributed which is assumed by the analysts generally. For doing the ratio analysis effectively the researcher used three types of transformation techniques namely square, square root and natural log. The square and square root process proved as ineffective as they consider the data as normally distributed, which the natural log process don’t. The researchers

Occupy Movement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Occupy Movement - Essay Example This shift, according to the report, amounts to the movement waging a war against consumers, and therefore against the American masses (Lerman and Kachersky). In London, meanwhile, the movement is being portrayed as one that disrupts preparations for the Olympics by an online media outfit catering to London residents. On balance this coverage likewise portrays the movement as carrying the message of negative disruption of something that is good, namely, the Olympics. Moreover, the title of the news article clearly labels the movement as being â€Å"anticapitalist† (sic) (Bartholomew). Elsewhere, the influential The Washington Post portrays the movement in somewhat more positive terms. Going against popular media portraying the movement as without purpose, the article notes that in fact the movement has purpose, even if it is not well-articulated. Moreover, the movement has grassroots support from many sectors in society (Glantz). Moving over to TV coverage, as exemplified by CNN coverage of the movement, the overall impression one gets is that of a group that is militant and aggressive in going against established authority. Recent CNN coverage is about the movement and the police in violent confrontations (Kastenbaum; Verello). For the average citizen, of course media is a primary source of inputs on the movement, and of course as such the current media coverage shapes the message of the movement. As can be gleaned from the coverage examples above, the message seems to be lost in the more prominent portrayal of the movement as being violent, unruly, against ordinary consumers, and against such good things as the Olympics. Seemingly more intelligent coverage and opinion, meanwhile, is not as prominent, and reaches only an intelligent few. The overall impact of the media coverage seems to be a blurring of the movements real

Data Collection and Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Data Collection and Analysis - Essay Example Depending on the need, availability of information and expected outputs one or combination of more than one methods for data collection and analysis needs to be adopted. Following are some of the methods for data collection - 1. Primary Research - this method involves collecting information from first hand research done by other individuals / teams / groups and using it to draw inferences with due references to the original research work. 2. Secondary Research - this method involves collecting information which has been derived or inferred from some other primary research work. This may involve articles, secondary research reports, published opinions, etc. among others. 3. Survey - this is a widely known method of data collection by conducting a survey over a sample target population and analyzing the results in order to get first hand information on the research work. 5. Interviews - interviews are another form of collecting information from relevant target population and use the information captured to satisfy the research objectives. Interviews can be structured or unstructured and can be conducted in person or on phone or video conference. 6. Delphi Method - this is a method for collection of expert opinion in the area in which research is being conducted. Experts consulted should be credible and knowledgeable people in the area of the research. For each of the data collection met... However, the above list captures the most commonly used data collection methods. Pros and Cons For each of the data collection methods stated above, there are pros and cons of adopting them in a research project as well as appropriateness for specific type of research projects. Following is a brief discussion on the same - 1. Primary Research - this is a good method of data collection as it provides valuable data points for the research without actually conducting a firsthand research. This method is useful where there are constraints on either time or resources for conducting fully fledged research activities. However, this is still a substitute for actual research. Information available may not exactly match the conditions needed for the research. Hence, there may be compromises or assumptions to be made while using this form of research. This may lead to inaccuracies in research results. 2. Secondary Research - similar to primary research, secondary research may also used in cases of constraints on resources or time. Many times, this form of research is used as a literature review for first step in a research project to provide rough idea on the research topic. This provides important data points which may be useful for designing the actual research, tools used and analysis of data. Again, the disadvantages are that the secondary source information may have inherent inaccuracies introduced while drawing inferences and conclusions from the primary research sources. 3. Survey - this is a popular data collection tool used while conducting business research or market research. The survey results and their analysis provide first hand information directly from the main sources and are not dependent on inferences or

Choosing Path 3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Choosing Path 3 - Essay Example The current outlook by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, NACE (2014) indicates that employers seek to increase starting salaries so as woo applicants. Therefore, a career in finance would be considered as financially rewarding. The financial industry has a myriad of benefits to offer. Generally, financial services industry has been noted to offer compensation structures that are much more generous as compared to other sectors of the economy. Secondly, the lean nature of a majority of the players in this industry minimises bureaucracy in financial institutions. A majority of them do not follow a highly formalised structure, thus the ease of interaction between the junior and senior employees. Save for insurance and banking, Lombardi (2012) observes that investment management, investment banking, securities trading and financial advisory are less bureaucratic and more remunerative. Moreover, career advancement in the industry is highly regarded and based on performance. Thus, a career in business finance could particularly favour the ambitious people like me. Finally, the Association for Financial Professionals provides opportunities for those undertaking careers in finance to network, receive appropriate tr aining and get involved in research. This provides numerous opportunities for growth in the industry. Other benefits cited by NACE (2014) include medical insurance, dental insurance, life insurance, annual salary increments and employee assistance such as counselling. Employers in finance look for certain critical skills in a prospective employee. According to NACE (2014), these include communication skills, including the verbal and the written aspects, analytical or quantitative skills, leadership, cooperativeness, problem-solving skills, detailed orientation, computer skills and strong work ethic. They look for persevering people due to demands

The use of Isotopes in medicine Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The use of Isotopes in medicine - Essay Example Thus, isotopes are important in the diagnosis of medical conditions, treatment of certain diseases, and sterilization of equipment and products. The diagnosis of the medical conditions utilizes radioisotopes. Technetium-99 is the commonly used radioisotope, and the radiation from the element offers essential information regarding the functioning of specific organs in order to detect any malfunction. The information from the radiation enables the physicians to make accurate and quick diagnosis of the patients’ illness. Technetium-99 is the most abundant isotope of the radioactive technetium, and can penetrate into the body to provide vital information. Fundamentally, technetium-99 has important characteristics that make it useful in the diagnosis of the medical conditions. Notably, the isotope is metastable. This implies that technetium-99 has excited nucleus that emits the gamma rays to attain stability (Roat-Malone, 2003). Consequently, the emitted gamma rays are significant in medicine because they enable the medical practitioners to image the internal body parts for crucial diagnostic information. It is noteworthy that the gamma radiations are not harmful to the body. The emitted gamma rays contain ideal energy (140.5 KeV) for the detection with the gamma camera (World Nuclear Association, 2015). Similarly, the half-life of six hours makes the technetium-99 a useful element in the diagnosis of disease. In effect, the decay time is enough for the physicians to conduct any medical test. The use of the technetium-99 in the diagnosis of medical conditions has notable advantages, as well as, disadvantages. The property of technetium-99 as a pure gamma emitter is important in the analysis of the internal body parts. Gamma radiation produced by the isotope has energy levels that do not harm the human body (Roat-Malone, 2003). Hence, the radiations are safe and do not interfere with the normal

Balanced score card of puppy Luv Doggy day care Essay Example for Free

Balanced score card of puppy Luv Doggy day care Essay Robert Kaplan and David Norton first introduced the Balanced Scorecard in the early 1990’s as a strategic management system that forces managers to focus on the important performance metrics that lead to success. There are four perspectives of BSC as following: 1. Financial perspective This is the standard perspective that everyone uses even before the BSC. Even a non-profit organization uses this perspective in order to balance their books. It measures financial performances through financial ratios and other financial indicators. In the case of Puppy Luv Doggy Day Care, the financial perspective includes strategic objectives in following areas: ? Market share ? Revenues and costs ? Profitability ? Competitive position 2. Customer Perspective It is a measure of corporate value viewed from the value it delivers to customers. For instance, time taken to process a phone call, result of customers’ surveys, number of complaints, competitive rankings, etc. In the case of Puppy Luv Doggy Day Care, the Customer Value Perspective includes strategic objectives in following areas:? Customer retention or turnover ? Customer satisfaction ? Customer value 3. Business Process Perspective It measures corporate value from the enhancement of its business processes, like time spent prospecting, quality cost, product rework required, etc. In the case of Puppy Luv Doggy Day Care, Process or Internal Operations Perspective includes strategic objectives in following areas: ? Measure of process performance ? Productivity or productivity improvement ? Operations metrics 4. Learning and Growth Perspective. This perspective measures corporate value from its learning abilities or the progress of its learning processes. Example of activities measures are staff training, employee suggestion and improvement of certain processes as an outcome of the learning process (‘Balanced Scorecard’, 2006). In the case of Puppy Luv Doggy Day Care, the Learning and Growth (Employee) Perspective includes strategic objectives in following areas: ? Employee satisfaction ? Employee turnover or retention ? Level of organization capability ? Nature of organization culture or climate. ? Technological innovation These perspectives are then adaptable to various businesses by choosing different drivers for each perspective. The BSC can also detect and measure correlation between activities, in order to help decide which activities positively impacted others. For instance an online customer service can help reducing telephone calls and time to handle complaints, thus increasing effectiveness of business processes. According to Kaplan and Norton, there are various utilities of the Balance Scorecard. Some of them are: to clarify and update strategy, communicate strategy, align unit goals with corporate strategy, link strategic objectives to long term target, etc (‘Balanced Scorecard’, 2006). Table 2 KPI based on Balanced Scorecard of Puppy Luv Doggy Day Care. Reference: Balanced Scorecard Institute. (2009). Balanced Scorecard Basics. Retrieved August 5, 2009 from http://www. balancedscorecard. org/BSCResources/AbouttheBalancedScorecard/tabid/55/Default. aspx Hansen, Don R. And Mayanne M. Mowen. (2003). Management Accounting. Ohio: South-Western College Publishing Co Niven, Paul R. (2006). Adapting the Balanced Scorecard to Fit the Public Sector. Retrieved August 5, 2009 from http://www. bettermanagement. com/seminars/seminar. aspx? l=5545 Shaw, Greg L and John R. Harrald. (2004). Identification of the Core Competencies Required of Executive Level Business Crisis and Continuity Managers. Retrieved August 5, 2009 from http://www. gwu. edu/~dhs/pubs/identifycore_2004. pdf#search=businesslevel%20strategic%20control.

Boca Juniors Essay Example for Free

Boca Juniors Essay Trading players have become a profitable piece of business for soccer clubs globally especially in proven leagues in South American continents. Its had become an essential practice to ensure cash flows remain healthy from the export of home bred talents which is abundant in soccer crazy countries like Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay. In the case of Boca Juniors, the club president is faced with an enviable position where there is an option to sell players at the peak of their game for a nice profit. Both players, Gago and Palacio are key players in the team with a string of accolades in their short stint there. Their performances have generated a lot of excitement and have caught the eyes of Europes largest clubs such as Barcelona, Real Madrid etc In a business where the playing lives of soccer players are limited, it makes sense to trade them at their prime to the highest bidder. My recommendation to Macri is to offload the older Palacios to FC Barcelona while keeping the younger Gago and building on his experience (with more playing time, titles) and market value. While losing a key player may be disruptive, Macri can derive many benefits from the cash generated to the tune of USD4m. (17.5% ownership) Among the tangible benefits; 1. The proceeds from the sale will help close the gap on the loss and perhaps push Boca to profitability in fiscal 2007. Also, among the immediate benefit is the decrease in wage bill – Boca had to increase Palacio’s salary significantly if he had stayed. This is an important consideration as Macri will be leaving Boca to run for mayor of the city of Buenos Aires, he will like to leave a lasting legacy and his decision may prove to be essential to the impression that he leaves the club in a good state with the necessary support structure he developed and a team that is capable to challenge for honours. 2. Expand La Cantera – Boca Jrs has a good youth policy and are known to foster many of the world’s top players i.e. Tevez, Caniggia and Riquelme. The additional funds can be used to expand the existing facilities at the La Cantera Youth academy; expansion to cover branch academies in satellite cities or organize more coaching clinics across Argentina. 3. Staff additional scouts – casting the scouting net wider across all 18 cities in Argentina (incl Buenos Aires). This is critical to feed the academy with talent and nurturing them to become exceptional players. The excess can be used to fund scouting headcount. 4. Enhance La Bombonera – additional funds to be used to build a hospitality wing or upgrade facilities to include more VIP boxes and preferred seating. Expanding the stadium seating may be considered but the costs may exceed the contribution from the player sale. (it has already been enlarged previously in 1996 to 57,000 seats). Although not critical, the renovation could help generate more funds through ticketing or tours. 5. Investment fund track record – the sale will improve yield and performance of the fund. With the sale of Palacio, the private investors stand to earn up to 65% on the profits. This could amount to USD14.3m (65% of USD22m), the highest sale amount to be recorded by the fund. This could in turn be reinvested to purchase new players (outright purchase to replace the striker) to help compliment their efforts in churning new players through the youth academy. Moreover, there are also intangible benefits to this arrangement; such a sale could be aligned with their heritage of promoting players to the first team through their youth system. It is a chance for new and younger players to breakthrough. As for Gago, he can stay and build on his value; he is young and could spend another 2-3 years to build his credential (soccer players prime between 21-25 years old). His value will continue to grow if Boca is successful on the field during this period. Besides, Real Madrid has shown admiration and made their intentions known – a transfer down the road seems inevitable (player himself indicating interest) but Boca could use this to their advantage by pitting Real Madrid up against other clubs in a bid to price him up from their initial offer of USD26m. Gago’s contract is also without encumbrance and his ownership structure is not as complicated as Palacio. All proceeds from future sale could be booked as 100% profit for Boca. All these benefit could be captured without much impact to revenues. I anticipate that ticket sales, television rights, membership fees or marketing revenues will continue to grow evidenced by the strong following it has in Argentina. Boca fans are known to be dedicated and loyal to club due to the steep heritage – being one of the most successful clubs in history of soccer – 22 Argentine League championships, 16 international titles including 5 Copa Libertadores and 3 Intercontinental Cups. The Intergenerational following and folksy origin (Xeneize) appeals to the working class and has an affinity of close to 40% of soccer fans in Argentina.

Nietzsche And The Meaningful Life Philosophy Essay

Nietzsche And The Meaningful Life Philosophy Essay The advent of the Industrial Revolution during the 19th century Western World has engendered a new problem of individual existence in the world based on alienation and absurdity, as depicted in the sufferings of Gervaise and Etienne. These existential problems continue to plague the public in todays society as well, challenging people to question the purpose of their lives and to find an answer for the existence of human suffering. According one German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, the answer to human suffering resided in styling our lives to the way we want it to be via a process of becoming. In applying Nietzsches ideas to my own personal life, I have come to the realization that my life is a product of various elements that I embrace the most, influencing the decisions I make in my daily lives and shaping my ambition in wanting to become a professor. Nietzsche argued that the reason why people suffer is because they are under the delusion that there is an inherent meaning in themselves and in the world, when in fact life is based on nothingness. According his view, life is completely based on contingency, and only individuals themselves have the power to instill any meaning into their lives. He believed that people must stop following the herd and its standardized moral conduct. To find happiness in life, people have to take courage and free themselves from the indoctrination of societal values, pursuing after their own desires instead. Therefore, Nietzsche believed that the key to living life was to view life as an individual process. This process entails individuals to actively seek out and shape themselves into the person they want to be, to become the physical representation of the image they want to portray to others. Consequently, Nietzsche argued that the value of human life is created by the individual. There is not intri nsic value in society that is embedded in our lives, and we must create the meaning of life for ourselves. In order to test whether one has created a meaningful life, Nietzsche has created a theoretical notion of eternal recurrence, where humans are given a choice to live their life in the exact same manner over and over again, going through the same events and experiencing the same emotions. If the answer is yes, then according to Nietzsche, the person has created a truly meaningful life that they would do not mind living continuously. Creating such life requires an aesthetic approach to organizing ones experiences and desires in harmony. Kind of like a blank canvas, our life is initially in a state of nothingness, and it is the responsibility of each person, as the artist, to insert meaning and personal style into the canvas. However, for any styling to happen, people must first be content with themselves and build their identity from there. Nietzsche argues that people who are dissatisfied with themselves will never find happiness, for they will always resent who they are. Every experi ence and action, or element, in the work must be in harmony with one another, as the small elements mold together to shape the whole. There is no standardized or the way, as long it is their own way. Thus, life itself reflects the process of humans constantly shaping their image, with the final product epitomizing who we are. Applying the lessons of Nietzsches process of becoming, I have formed my own set of elements in my life that I embrace the most in my attempt to create my self. My first element is companionship, the ability to form relationships with other people and to interact with them. I would like to have a small group of people to spend time with in my life, such as my family and friends. I can envision myself having a family with three children: two girls and a boy named Charlotte, Juliet, and Cason respectively, hanging out at a nearby park in the neighborhood. During Superbowl weekend, I may invite some of my family friends and their families over, and have a good time together. In addition, I would like to form close relationships with my neighbors, to have some people I can talk about my struggles with, outside of my family and friends. Perhaps this explains my proclivity towards small cities or towns, where people know each other more closely as there are not that many people. Perhaps th is is why I would like to live somewhere in New England in the future, a region primarily occupied with towns and villages instead of cities or urban communities. Maintaining close companionship with others will also help me intellectually, for I like to engage in discussions and debates with other people about various topics. These dialogues with other people will help me to be in a thinking mode, always being eager to learn and share ideas with others. My second element is intellectualism because I want to always be aware of what is going on around the world in terms of politics and the economy. I definitely do not want to portray myself as an intellectually callous person, someone who does not care learning about new ideas and keeping up with events that are happening around the world. I want to learn about new ideas, especially about economic theories relating to human behaviors and their decision making mechanism. For some reason, growing up, I was always curious why people act the way they do in terms of their economic behavior. I recall being at a garage sale in 9th grade, when my father telling me that a perfectly fine Hewlett Packard (HP) printer for 5 dollars was too expensive so he passed on the deal, and I always wondered what triggers people to suddenly have different expectations of an objects value depending on the circumstance. Having a wide span of knowledge can bring together a group of people with common interest t o talk about, enabling me to form closer relationships with other people. Thus, intellectualism goes hand in hand with forming companionships, because knowledge can be a factor in magnetizing people to bond. Moreover, I would also like to have creativity in my life. No matter how interesting ones daily routines may be, we reach a point where the repetition becomes mundane. I feel that having a creative side will help brighten the monotonous schedule by being able to think of many new ways to shift the routines people go through. Creativity is also a very practical skill that has a myriad of applications to other things. In terms of companionship, creativity may come in handy when I am planning what kind of food I will prepare for a certain picnic, or when I am planning a surprise birthday party for a family or a friend. Not only will this make others happy, but it will also make me happy knowing that I have helped put a smile on other peoples faces with my ability to think outside the box. In addition, creativity will also be useful in my intellectual life by thinking of novel ways of learning or teaching ideas. As for learning, I may develop an innovative technique for taking notes or u nderstanding materials that will maximize my capacity to remember the things I learn and keep it in my memory. Or, I can also utilize my creativity for devising a new way of teaching materials that will be entertaining to engage the students attention and, at the same time, be informative to help get the idea into their brains. Lastly, the fourth element I would like to have in my life is independence. Here, I am not referring to the general definition of independence as some kind of freedom from oppression. I am specifically talking about independence as sort of a self autonomy in my life, the ability to do the things I want to without being told by other people how I should do it. The latter definition differs from the first, because I am talking about a personal leeway to do things the way I want to do it. For instance, I would not like to work at a big corporation in the future, because I would not enjoy trying to obey what my bosses tell me. Working in this strict bureaucratic environment where I am always constantly told what I ought to do, I feel like I would not be able to live a meaningful life. Instead, I would like to work in a smaller environment, where people are not telling me what to do or what not to do. They may provide their feedbacks that I can agree upon, but there is no coercion that fo rces me to take some kind of action. By being able to make my own choices, I will definitely be able to express my creativity in the field. Although I do believe that maintaining a systemized order of things is important, I would not want it as part my work environment that will hinder me from experimenting with different methods of approaching certain concepts or things. Harmonizing my elements into a one form, I see myself pursuing after a career in education, specifically as a professor teaching behavior economics at a small college in a rural part of town, hopefully in New England. Being a professor in a small town, I can focus a lot of attention to academics and my family because, unlike in an urban environment, I do not have to commute long distances to travel for work, saving valuable time I can spend with my family. Furthermore, the environment will be a small enough so that everyone will know each other, forming a close knit community. At the same time, the environment will be filled with intellectualism, with me sharing my knowledge to students and the student absorbing the information to form their own opinions about the subject matter. This may lead to debates and discussions, which I can utilize to enhance my own knowledge as well. On some days I may exercise my creative side by incorporating real life case studies where students have to observe their peers in the economic decisions that they make, which may turn into a little fun study that we can focus deeper into. Of course, unlike in a high school environment, I would have a lot more leeway and freedom to shift the curriculum focus to explore an unexpected phenomenon regarding human behaviors that has not been discovered before. All the elements form harmonize into a form, leading me to live the type of serene and academic life I want to live away from the large cities in rural parts of the country. Now that I have analyzed my elements and have become cognizant of what I want the most in my life, I am determined to pursue after this path. Perhaps others in the herd may see my path as being banal and boring, but for me this type of quite life is what I find meaning in. However, at the moment, I acknowledge that I am just part of the herd. But utilizing this introspection as a starting point, I will try to not be influenced by the standardized views of society, and pursue after what I truly want in my life, so that I can achieve my own happiness. This world has socialized people into believing that material wealth is the path to happiness, but for me, this is not my version of happiness. I will continue to study hard now that I found out what I truly want in life.

Shrinking Middle class Essay -- essays papers

Shrinking Middle class The Incredibly Shrinking Middle Class I never thought I would find so much information on the incredibly shrinking middle class until I searched around for it on the Internet. In the United States, the middle class is put into a strange socioeconomic category. Although it is not easily defined everyone believes they belong in that class. I guess what you can do is look at it in two different ways. First ask the question â€Å"What percent of all income is distributed to the middle class at any time,† then think about â€Å"How many families obtain enough income to achieve a middle class standard of living at any point of time.† Basically these are two ways of approaching the middle class called either the percentile approach or the class share approach. What comes into my mind when thinking on how to categorize those people that belong in the middle class, I look at such things as education, race, family, income, gender and how many people are in your household. I look at it as those people who are making between $40,000 and about $85,000 to be in the middle class while the next step would be the upper middle class and then to the upper class. Maybe I am wrong here, but like I said before, everyone wants to have that â€Å"I am middle class† attitude. The most recent Census Bureau survey data shows that the share of households with incomes of $75,000 or more has doubled in the past 24 years. Other studies, however, discover that more people who depart the middle class move down than up, at least temporarily. The most often cited cause of the decline of the middle class in the United States is stagnant wages. Between 1955 and 1970, real wages adjusted and inflation rose by an average of 2.5 percent per year. Between 1971 and 1994, the average growth of real wages was 0.3 percent a year. The stagnation of wages has been especially noticeable to middle-class people, who rely very much on the money they make at their jobs. Recessions seem to hit higher income households much harder, which sends them down to the middle class. Middle-income households may or may not be more likely than higher-income households to qualify for unemployment compensation when jobs are scarce. But those who do are more likely than high-income households to receive benefits that replace a greater share of their regular wages, which helps them maintai... ...ocess. Data generated by the Census Bureau, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Federal Reserve and other nonpartisan sources oppose claims commonly made. For example, data from such agencies show that differences in family income largely reflect differences in how many members of a family actually work and how hard they work. Americans in all income groups have prospered, or have failed to prosper, together. Gains by upper-income Americans have not come at the expense of middle or lower-income Americans. Nor has anyone else gained in those periods when higher-income families have lost ground. The best era in recent history for middle-income and lower-income American families was the Reagan era, which lasted from 1982 to 1989. During that period, middle-class families saw their real incomes grow by an average of 12.6 percent, while lower income families saw an average increase in real earnings of 12.9 percent. The wealth inequality debate should focus on what public policies will aid the accumulation of wealth by more, not fewer, American families. The first step American’s need to make toward transforming our consumer culture is to understand it better.

Attitudes of War in Ancient Civilizations Essay -- essays research pap

Chapter Eight War and Society reveals the attitudes about war in both ancient Rome and China. These attitudes prove that in these cases perhaps it is safe to say that wars are not inevitable or natural but were caused by warlike societies and social situations. After reading bits and pieces of both the ancient Roman and Chinese history, one can only gain a greater perspective on how these attitudes derived. In 391 nomads called the Gauls defeated a small army of Roman aristocrats and burnt down the town of Rome. After this attack, Rome rebuilt its town and changed it into an empire, which spread its laws, culture, and peace from the North. Rome was convinced that after this first invasion, it was necessary to change their military. Over time the Romans were able to conquer most of Italy. As the Romans began to gain power and land, they set their eyes on larger obstacles. This is when Roman attitude was perhaps revealed about the subject of war. Romans believed that their expansion had been inevitable so they were to believe that they were blameless, and that their ancestors had been more than a passive tool of destiny. They believed that other areas, posed as possible threats and that it was necessary â€Å"for defensive reasons† to attack first. Today, these can be viewed as possibly preventive wars. But during the time of the expansion of the Roman Empire, a preventive war wasn’t a concern. Other views were demonstrated in their actions, that although at first Romans were unable to take Carthage, they kept trying, and over time, and most likely many deaths, the Roman soldiers wore them down. Rome was like a bulldozer and used their skilled military to their advantage, to take over and destroy anything that it set its eyes on. Their actions, such as later completely destroying Carthage and massacring the majority of its population all because it posed as a potential economic threat to Roman land. These views or attitudes of war can be easily seen, war was not considered a preventive war, but a necessary war, although many times, it was clearly unnecessary and the fall of the Roman Empire, eventually gave the Roman commanders what they deserved. On the flipside, ancient Chinese attitude toward war was quite similar to that of the Romans. Warfare in this society was common and accepted, the idea of honor also coincides with their attitude toward war. â€Å"When ... ...e end. I believe that this closely relates to the early context of â€Å"Is the Glory of War a Boy Thing?† Because I believe one can easily glorify both the rise of the empires as a courageous and powerful movement, rather then closely looking at the true outcome of these wars. A Pericles type of funeral oration would have possibly been effective in ancient Rome or China, because at the time both were such powerful empires, people would have easily been convinced to believe practically anything. How can one find it just, to kill practically a whole society because they pose as a possible threat to economy because they too, are growing grapes? Pericles states in his oration that the people under his society are the best, and that it was perfectly acceptable to dominate other areas. He also mentions ancestors, and the pride in Athens, so its important to praise and glorify those who died. Isn’t it funny how history repeats itself? The Romans believed that because felt threatened it was okay to dominate other lands, and their ancestors faced hardships with the nomads it was acceptable to do so in return. Or the Chinese, who believed that war a proper, powerful, and masculine act of man.

Comparison of Hemingways Hills Like White Elephants and Cat In The Rai

Comparison of Hemingway's "Hills Like White Elephants" and "Cat In The Rain" "Cat In The Rain" is set in an Italian hotel where we meet an American couple. Outside a cat is trapped in the rain, and the wife wants to save it. When she goes to get it, it is gone but the maid later brings her one. The point of view in the story is a third person narrator, but the perspective changes going from the wife to the husband and an objective narrator who tells it like it is. The story is told retrospectively in the past tense. The narrator is omniscient - that is 'he' knows all but judges nothing. On the first page it seems it is the waiter objectively telling us what is going on whereas the second page is told by the wife and the last paragraphs of the third and fourth [and last] page in our story is told to us by George (the husband). In his composition of "Cat In The Rain", Hemingway frees the story from narrative interpretation and leaves it up to us, his readers, to interpret what is going on. The story seems strangely ambiguous in its narrative nature. This is apparently due to the objective narration and the no-judging attitude in it's style. The people we meet in this story are the couple (George and the nameless wife), the padrone, the waiter, the maid and the rain coat man. We are not supplied with any information about the waiter (who appears on the first page and seems to voice the first part of the story), nor are we supplied with information on the rain coat man. The padrone is attentive and seems to be everything her husband is not. Putting the couple up against each other reveals something quite interesting and gives us the impression that they are total opposites. The wife symbolizes natu... ... nameless and the man in "Hills" is nameless. I think the couples in the two stories are one and the same couple. Again the two stories are about having someone to care for - in "Cat" she wants to have a baby, and in "Hills" I think her wish is about to come true. Jig is pregnant, but the man (George?) does not seem at all excited and pleas with her in this story to have an abortion. He tells her "it's a simple operation" but that she should not do it if she does not want to. It is not hard to see that she does want to have the baby, and if you believe the two women are actually the same, you can surely understand why she wants her long-desired wish to come true. The themes in the two stories are also close to being the same - the lack of love and the lack of communication. So - are the two stories an 'evolutionary tale' about a couple? I do not doubt it.

Leaders in the Local Church Essay

Lay leaders can simply be defined as persons chosen from the congregation by ordained leaders to serve as helpers performing such duties as may be delegated or assigned to them in accordance to their church ordinances. More and more ministers are finding themselves weighed down by the demands of the ministry. They are thus unable to be effective in meeting the changing needs of their flock. This has created a need to have different other people taking off some of the less sensitive responsibilities from the ordained clergies’ hands. The concept of lay leadership is however not just a modern day phenomenon; it is deeply rooted in the Bible. Deuteronomy 1:9-13 gives an account in which Moses appoints leaders to take off from him some of the responsibilities that were threatening to overwhelm him. Similarly in the book of 1 kings 19:19, Elijah acquires an attendant in the person of Elisha to serve as a helper in his duties as a prophet. The Apostle Paul also surrounded himself with spiritual people like Timothy and Titus to mention a few to whom he delegated different duties in his mission to preach the good news to the gentiles. The clearest illustration of the significance of lay leadership is however to be found in the New Testament book of the Acts of the Apostles Chapter 6 form verse 1 onwards. In this account, the Apostles as well as the entire group found it wise to appoint seven Godly men to take over responsibilities that were important but did not warrant the attention of the Apostles. In this paper, different lessons will be gleaned from the above scriptures and many others to help in the understanding of the issue at hand. Church leaders are different from either organizational or political leaders and only leaders who seek God’s grace and lead by the grace of the Almighty will be able to maintain the Satan inflicted jolts that characterize today’s ministry of the word of God. 1 The church is undergoing enormous statistical growth but the same is not being experienced in discipleship. Leadership of the church requires individuals who are able to rise above their individual capacities and seek Gods guidance. Shallow leadership is the reason why the church today is struggling to meet the seemingly insurmountable challenges. 2 The church needs godly leaders who are able to fully submit to Jesus Christ and be in complete communion with the Creator. Leaders, who can be disciple makers, honor God and be able to fulfill His Will. There are times when Gods reassuring gift in leadership is obviated making the leadership journey long, arduous, bumpy and jerky akin to rides across rocky mountains. At times the leadership might seem long, dry and desolate often punctuated with seasons when we feel that our leadership is devoid of Gods assistance. It is these experiences that call for insistence on Gods reassuring grace and guidance. Developing leadership in the church is no mean treat as it not only requires leaders to develop a strong rapport with the creator for their own souls but also for the souls of the followers of Christ. God’s spirit reassures, inspires, instructs and guides leaders in the Church as they take that long arduous journey to sainthood and spiritual maturity as our creator commanded. However, it is not easy to develop leaders in the church without succinctly analyzing the philosophy of spiritual leadership. Through, spiritual instruction, God used criticism of leadership or trials to stimulate spiritual revival or to inspire fresh visionary leadership for the future ministry of the word of God. The Biblical desert trek under the leadership of Moses was such an instance when God used the desolate desert to create new frontiers in leadership. By working through the hands of servant leaders, a new vision is created to circumvent, surmount or wade through the challenges required in developing a spiritual oversight and even in building new teams in the church. 1 ii. Importance of Leadership Development Strategies for Training Leaders in the Local Church. Training leaders in the church is an ongoing process that cannot be done haphazardly. It requires a leadership development strategy that helps in identifying, recruiting and training potential lay leaders in any church. The health, the growth and the success of any church or its local branches is solely dependent on the availability of effective and efficient church leadership program that not only inspires the congregation to spiritual; maturity but also discovers and builds the innate potentials of leadership and service in others. Consistency in training of lay leaders may well determine the level of growth and spiritual well being of entire churches. Humanistic philosophies permeate from our culture and these in turn affect the strategies we use in developing leadership in churches. These humanistic philosophies spread a desire that we should be whoever we want to be. Contrarily, God disdains such attempts and instead calls upon humanity to be as his only begotten Son Christ was. This means that good leadership is not a result of a personal ambition but a Godly desire that can only be achieved when leaders are trained to act as our Creator instructed us to act. That is why good leaders can only be shepherds but not saviors; they can only be leaders but not lords and guides to the congregation but not gods of the people of God. 1 In the book of Acts of the Apostles chapter 6, the process of choosing the seven men was done prayerfully and the chosen men were dependable men filled with the spirit. It is important therefore that the process follow the biblical example. Otherwise, when leadership strategies in the church deviate from the Gods commands and instructions on good leadership and instead focus on improving on human efforts alone, spiritual leaders achieve positions of worldly power but not the grace of God. Strategies for leadership should only train leaders to carry out their spiritual obligations as a reflection of what Christ wanted. It is testament today guidelines for church leadership are being drawn from secular platforms without a succinct review of the Christian authoritative text for standard protocols for servant leadership. Because of this reason church leaders are being removed from a worldly instituted office and recycled in various capacities that are only temporary in nature while ideally spiritual leaders are lifetime learners who are obligated by the scriptures to offer lifetime guidance to the flock. It is only by the grace of the Lord that leaders can be able to learn and consequently act as leaders with a spiritual disposition that is created only by the Holy Spirit. In this stride, spiritual leaders should be confident in God but not exhibit self confidence, they should not only know men but also know God. In making decisions they should seek Gods will and not solely rely on their own human capability in making decisions. In Spiritual leadership by J. Oswald Sanders, spiritual leaders should be able to humble in leadership and not be overly ambitious, they should never seek personal rewards but they should love God and other with all their powers. One who enjoys command, treasures independent leadership and creates his own methods of leadership can only be said to be driven by fleshly ambitions. On the other hand, Godly leaders delight in their obedience to God and follow His instructions while shunning the lusts of the flesh. They do not treasure independence in leadership but tend to depend in God and follow His examples.

Drowned Out

Ivana Aleksich November 1, 2012 Film Review: â€Å"Drowned Out† The way this documentary was filmed shows the people who contributed to the film to living and working alongside the villagers and I found this helped capture the candid interviews and the honest and realistic impact of the way villagers of living in India due to the government dam project. Not only do people have to make a choice of whether they Move to the slums in the city, accept a place at a resettlement site or stay at home and drown. This place is not just a piece of land where they live but it is their home, their identity.This reminds me personally of my connection with Serbia. My family has to leave their homeland because of war and invasion. My family did not see this as moving to a better place, but saw it as their homeland being destroyed. Who they are as people dead in a place that no longer exists like it once had. This is how I see the people in the villagers, they are being forced to say goodbye t o a certain part of them, their family, and ancestors forever. In the student presentation relating to the world bank and dams refers to something very important to villagers. Non-material things are what are important to the villagers.After the dam is built, I will drown out the cultural traditions of the villagers, create development of affected communities in isolation, and cultural shift, new lifestyles and attitudes. The documentary follows the villagers of Jalsindhi. This village is in Madhya Pradesh on the banks of the Narmada River about ten miles upstream from the Sardar Sarovar project. The 76 villages struggle through a battle against the dam. The lead character is Luharia Sonkaria, who is the village’s medicine man, a role that was his father’s and grandfather’s before him. The government provides them no viable alternatives.The government offers unusable land a hundred miles away or a small sum of money in compensation for their river-side land. The film documents hunger strikes, rallies, and a six year Supreme Court case, and finally follows the villagers as the dam fills and the river starts to rise. The documentary features Arundhati Roy, who has been an outspoken activist bringing international attention to the controversy. Government aims to provide electricity, irrigation and drinking water to tens of millions of people. Government is confident in this claim. The government has a completely difference views of the impact of the dam.They believe the dam will help the people and make them happy. But the government has nothing to lose from this dam project because the people in government do not live in the area that the dam is supposed to floor. The villagers have everything to lose and millions of them did. This brings up the struggle between the rich and the poor/the powerful and the less powerful. The big question that is stated in this documentary is, â€Å"For whom is this development for? † The government trie s to convince the villagers that this is for them and their benefit, but in reality the villagers are not being taken into account for this dam project.This dam development is solely for the purpose the one thing that is universally valued: money and the power of government. Villagers and poor people are not at level in society where they can rely on money and power. They believe in things that the government and money could never find important. Villagers value their traditions and their old lifestyle. The government and the world bank is working to become more modern and to gain more money. For this reason alone, the government is aware of what will happen to the villagers but the government could not understand how hard this project will hurt the villagers and their lives.

Green Mountain

Running head: Turnover Problem Green Mountain Resort (Dis)solves the Turnover Problem Introduction The beautiful Green Mountain Resort was a doomed business from the beginning. As the developer failed, the investment bank took it over to fix it up and resell it to at least get their money from it. However, they fell in love with it and made the decision to create a first class operation. The manager and part owner Gunter had a vision of the first class resort. The one thing that was halting this vision was the problem he faced with turnover.The resort was located in the poorest area of the state. That being said, it is hard to find and keep good help when there is little to choose from. When he did find some great help they quickly moved on for better opportunities, because he just did not have much more than entry level positions being a small business. So the problem he faces is what the turnover creates. Gunter cannot expect to provide outstanding service as he seems to be constan tly in training mode.The great employees that he wants to have on staff end up leaving for more opportunity. Case Questions Change Images used by each Gunter’s change image was that of a coach. The image or reputation of Green Mountain became that of being an excellent place to obtain training to advance one’s career. Gunter mentors those that provide outstanding service and helps them to become even better. The hospitality literature’s change image was that of the navigator.It described the turnover as a chronic problem and that something needed to be done to stop the turnover or the resort would fail. The consultant’s change image was that of the interpreter. He helped Gunter to see the turnover issue as a possible positive instead of a negative. Now the resort attracts and helps develop further highly motivated people which is a win win for both Gunter and the recruits. Assumptions and prescriptions from each Each of the assumptions influenced the pres criptions for dealing with the turnover problem.Gunter started out as a nurturer and he looked at the turnover as a problem and tried several things to help stop it, but nothing he did worked. When he became the coach and started mentoring he viewed the problem differently and now he was known for jumpstarting careers. The hospitality literature was the navigator and saw the turnover as a problem that needed to be solved. Some ways to do that were to streamline training, simplify the job and don’t depend on any employees. There was a way to fix it and it was to make things easier.The consultant was the interpreter, a different view of the problem. How can the turnover be an asset, he helped Gunter to find the positive side of a problem. â€Å"if we only draw upon one particular frame† The conclusions we draw from the statement â€Å"if we only draw upon one particular frame, then this will take us away from thinking about what is going on from an alternative perspecti ve† are if we only a view a problem from one angle, another could be there but our minds are closed to any new possibilities.If we view a problem from different angles, like Gunter did after the consultant brought it up, then there may be alternatives to a problem and that problem could become an asset. References Palmer, I, Dunford, R. , & Akin, G. (2009). Managing Organizational Change: A Multiple Prospective Approach. New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. /Irwin.

Jane Austen’s use of coincidence in Pride and Prejudice Essay

  The plot of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice relies heavily on what we call chance and coincidence. Jane Austen’s prime objective seemed to be establishing circumstances, through â€Å"chance and coincidence† which enabled opportunities for Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth to get together. She used major characters such as Mr. Collins, Mr. Wickham and Mrs. Gardiner to appear at the exact moment they were needed to establish situations that brought Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth into close proximity with one another. Through this, Ms. Austin, linked all the characters in the book to one another in some form or another. Mr. Collins is a coincidence himself. He might be an obsequious, pompous fool, who lack’s common sense but he just so happens to be the heir to Longbourn and a clergyman for Lady Catherine de Bough who just so happens to be the aunt of Mr. Darcy. His existence creates opportunities for Elizabeth and Darcy to interact. For example, at Mr. Bingley’ s party in Netherfield, Mr. Collins brought the reluctant lovers together by unwillingly and unconsciously embarrassing himself. In Jane Austen’s time, social classes were treated with the highest respect. Those higher up the social ladder take great care in keeping their position. This requires years of lessons on the proper etiquette and manners on how to behave in public. Mr. Collins, at the time had not been introduced to the prideful Mr. Darcy. Trying to start a conversation with someone of higher stature was a grave offence. Jane Austen used Mr. Collins to create opportunities where Miss Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy were forced to interact, forcing them to get closer to each other. A couple of months after Charlotte had moved in with Mr. Collins, Elizabeth decided to visit her friend and check on how she was doing now that she was living with Mr. Collins.   This visit gave Jane Austen all the freedom to let her characters run free. However, the way Jane Austen went along to write this was all wrong. When Elizabeth visited Charlotte and Mr. Collins at their home in Roseings, Mr. Collins and his wife were invited to have dinner at Lady Catherine de Bourgh’s mansion. Elizabeth was allowed to come because she was a guest of Charlotte’s. At their arrival, the group discovers that just so happened that Mr. Darcy is visiting his aunt at the same time. The same time Elizabeth was visiting Charlotte, Darcy happened to  be there. This coincidence seemed to have happened because Jane Austen wanted, in my opinion, for Mr. Darcy to see how terribly his aunt used her class to bully Elizabeth about herself, her family flaws, and her lower class. This might have brought up some empathy from Darcy, and an ability to recognize how foolish and insulting using class would be. Perhaps this meeting also resulted in some affection towards Elizabeth. Mr. Darcy is an unusual man, he is already prideful, socially awkward and straight to the point. He also always seems to be wherever Elizabeth is. The man is either stalking her or Ms. Austen is bending the truth. On a trip to the countryside with her Aunt and Uncle, Elizabeth got to discover this man’s ways of (word). Being that that Mrs. Gardiner was from a village close to Mr. Darcy’s estate, Pemberley. She decided that it would be exciting to visit the property since they were so close. Elizabeth of course worried about running into Darcy in his own home, she was a bit paranoid. She mentioned that â€Å"She felt that she had no business at Pemberley, and was obliged to assume a disinclination for seeing it.† She tried to no prevail to change her stubborn aunt’s mind â€Å"She must own that she was tired of seeing great houses; after going over so many, she really had no pleasure in fine carpets or satin curtains.† It is at this point that the coincidences Jane Austen weaves seem to get a little out of control. Upon arriving at Pemberley, Elizabeth and her relatives were blown away by the size and grandeur of the estate. Mr. Darcy’s house was so big apparently, that visitors had the opportunity to take tours of the grounds. The Gardiner’s did not come for the house, but the land and forests that surrounded the mansion. Coincidence happens while Elizabeth wanders around Mr. Darcy’s estate. Mr. Darcy suddenly shows up seemingly out of nowhere, â€Å"Their eyes instantly met, and the cheeks of both were overspread with the deepest blush,† It was Jane Austen’s goal, from the start of the book, to get these two together and to start a flame of love between them. It was quite romantic but how Mr. Darcy just appeared, seems strange. Mr. Darcy was heading to London with Mr. Bingley when he left. Being that Darcy know knew that Elizabeth was in town, and that by now it’s clear Mr . Darcy has feelings for Elizabeth, he invites Elizabeth and her Aunt and Uncle to dinner. For the most part of the book, the general mood hasn’t really seen any problems between the characters.    It seems that Jane Austen thought she  had left the characters in Meryton alone for long enough. As Elizabeth received a letter from Jane describing their situation; Lydia had run off with Wickham endangering her and her family’s reputation. The fact that Elizabeth gets this letter when she ran into Darcy, and that Darcy is the only one who could fix the problem does seem suspicions. The arrival and help of Darcy further encourages Elizabeth’s change of heart, Jane Austen planned these coincidences perfectly, pushing Elizabeth’s feeling towards Darcy stronger than before. Mr. Wickham and Mr. Darcy have a history together, throughout the book we slowly get the whole story. These two also share a few coincidences which Jane Austen tried to hide. As a child, Wickham’s father was the steward of Mr. Darcy’s father’s house. However, when Wickham’s father passed away Wickham had nowhere to go. Darcy’s father felt bad for the boy so he was taken in and treated Wickham like his own son. For some time there was peace and happiness; the boys got older as did their father. By the time his adopted father had died, Wickham had turned into a different person. He was gambling, lying, and lowlife. Any inheritance he received from his father’s death was gambled and lost. Darcy on the other hand, who had received the bulk of the cash, was smart and invested most of his money. When Wickham came crawling back for more money, he was refused. This of course didn’t make Wickham a happy man. To get revenge, he tried to elope with the young Georgina Darcy. Before the young couple could leave Darcy ended up dragging his sister back and refusing to ever see Wickham again. Darcy and Wickham are two of the main male characters. Jane Austen has done an amazing job in creating these fictional charters. But, she creates situations and makes them take choices that no normal person would ever do. For example, both Darcy and Wickham, who are from Derbyshire, come to provincial Meryton. Darcy came with Bingley house hunting and Wickham had been moved there in his regiment. However, when they both show up within days of each other, one has to wonder if this really was pure chance. Was it pure coincidence? Would it really happen?   Mr. Wickham, as I explained before, hates Mr. Darcy for refuses to give him the money he thinks he so rightfully deserves. Itching for revenge, Mr. Wickham learns of Mr. Darcy’s plans to go to Meryton. I believe Mr. Wickham jumped at this opportunity. He switched (battalions) to go to Meryton. However, Mr. Darcy was far too powerful and influential for Mr. Wickham to hurt him physically or economically. As a crafty fellow, he went after something dearer to Mr. Darcy’s heart; Elizabeth! It makes sense! I wondered why Wickham would choose Elizabeth of all the Bennet sisters to favour his attentions. He seems to like women who are compliant and preferably with money, yet he picks Elizabeth, who is not as beautiful as Jane, nor as flirtatious as Lydia, and who has no money. He doesn’t seem the sort of fellow who would like a women who challenges and teases him, yet he still chooses Elizabeth. Why? Elizabeth, her sisters and Mr. Collins are walking down the street when they spot Denny and Wickham coming the other direction. Kitty and Lydia want to meet this new handsome fellow, so under the pretense of wanting something from a shop, they lead the others across the street. They have just reached the pavement where they encounter Denny and Wickham who have now chang ed directions and come back –an extraordinarily detailed and unnecessary stage direction, but when you play it out, it means Denny and Wickham are now facing in the direction that they will see someone riding from Netherfield in the direction of Longbourn. Darcy and Bingley ride down the street on their way to Longbourn and distinguish â€Å"the ladies of the group.† They come forward, Bingley converses with Jane, and Darcy proceeded to bow to the ladies. Darcy, who would have been missing Elizabeth’s presence at Netherfield, â€Å"was beginning to determine not to fix his eyes on Elizabeth,† so one can assume that until that point his eyes were in fact fixed on her. Presumably he’s paying no attention to the men in ordinary dress, but when he looks away from Elizabeth as part of his determination not to look at her, he notices Wickham.   Now let’s take the same scene from Wickham’s point of view. He is being introduced to some pretty ladies when Darcy and some other fellows ride up to the group. Darcy’s gaze is fixed on one of the ladies. Wickham would notice Darcy’s presence right away. The observant and enterprising fellow that he is, he would also notice who Darcy happens to be staring at in his love-struck way. Wickham knows Darcy very well, much better than Charlotte Lucas who is then able to recognize Darcy’s interest in Elizabeth. Would he not see it as well, and perceive both a danger and an opportunity there? The very next time Wickham sees Elizabeth, he singles her out and asks her â€Å"hesitatingly† about her acquaintance with Darcy. She  doesn’t mince words in her reply. What an opportunity for Wickham – he can pour his poison into the ear of the woman Darcy wants for himself, and then he’s going to charm her to boot. He’d derive a lot of pleasure from making Darcy’s love interest fall in love with him instead. After Elizabeth returns from Kent, she tells Wickham in late May that she and Darcy became better acquainted at Roseings and that she has changed her mind about him, and she is openly amused when he refers to Darcy’s supposed engagement to Anne de Bough. Wouldn’t Wickham, knowing of Darcy’s past interest in Elizabeth, assume that their relationship might now be romantic? Fast forward to Brighton, where Wickham out of the blue starts romancing Lydia, in whom he has never shown interest before. Is it because she’s easy or because he sees her as Darcy’s potential sister-in-law, and therefore a source of both revenge and money? Suppose, then, that Lydia happens to mention to him in late June the news that Lizzy, who was supposed to go to the Lakes, is going to Derbyshire instead. Why would Elizabeth unexpectedly be going to Derbyshire, and to a village not five m iles from Pemberley? Wickham sees an opportunity, and he elopes with Lydia just over a month later on August 1. It seems likely, broken down that way, that Wickham actively targeted Elizabeth and later Lydia as a means of revenge on Darcy. Pride and Prejudice follows the main character Elizabeth Bennet as she deals with issues of manners, upbringing, morality, education, and marriage in the society of the landed gentry of early 19th-century England. The author Jane Austen did a brilliant job in writing this book, we discover an exciting storyline full of suspense and romance, and a cast of characters that have kept this book alive throughout the ages. Mrs. Austen’s obvious objective was to establish circumstances, through â€Å"chance and coincidence† which enabled opportunities for Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth see past each other’s pride and prejudice to, in the end, get together. To establish situations that brought Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth into close proximity with one another, she used major characters such as Mr. Collins, Mr. Wickham and Mrs. Gardiner to appear at the exact moment they were needed. She was also able to connect all of these characters together in one way or another. Coincidences happ en in our world all the same as the ones in fictional works of art. However, we don’t seem to notice these connections until after we think and reflect. This is what I have done with this essay, I believe that I have uncovered some exciting coincidences Jane Austen wove into Pride and Prejudice, but I don’t believe I have covered them all. This is all the more reason that Jane Austen is an amazing author, she makes us have to go back and think about what we just read to discover the true meaning behind her words.