Difference Between Management Skills and Entrepreneurship Essay

What do you think is the difference between management skills and entrepreneurship?. How do they contribute to the economic success of a business? Management skills is about making an existing business work effectively and efficiently, organizing and coordinating the activities according to certain policies and achieving clearly defined objectives (i. e. vision, mission). Usually, the foundation of the business has been laid and established. It involves planning, controlling, leading and directing and the managers are usually focused on managing and growing the business Entrepreneurship is someone who transforms innovation into a business process especially for market which never exists, often associated with uncertainties. An entrepreneur will look for changes, respond to it and seize it as an opportunity. The next step is to assemble a team, locate resources, raise the needed capital and start the new business idea. An entrepreneur is flexible in adapting to the rapid changing to the market conditions and ideas which are important factors in developing strategies for a company’s growth. The economy has become more competitive and more demanding, thus the pressure of having the best management skills and entrepreneurship skills are becoming more important. Management skills will ensure that an established organization is managed effectively and efficiently towards achieving clearly defined objectives.

Academic Autobiography Essay

Thinking about college and your future career can be very overwhelming at the beginning. There’s so much to consider when it comes to getting ready for college: where to go and what to study. I’ve heard it said that sometimes a student will enter college fully aware of what they want to do in life, and doggedly reach their undergraduate goal after four years of diligent study. My college career didn’t start off on the best footing. I was a dreadful student in high school, chronically absent, and not doing homework even when I could be bothered to attend class. My Arlington, Virginia high school was competitive, and my mother relentlessly referred to my performance as â€Å"not living up to my potential. † However, there was one class I never missed, and that was Madrigals, my high school’s elite choir group. There was nothing I enjoyed more than signing old songs in a tightly knit group. When it came time to apply to colleges, I was in a quandary. My SAT scores were high enough to get in just about anywhere, but my grade point average was so low that I did not expect any school to be interested in having me as a student. Then I saw a poster for Shepherd College in the choir room. It was in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, which was near enough to be convenient, but far enough away that I would definitively be on my own. Shepherd also had a very early date for notifying approved applicants, and it turned out that my guidance counselor knew their director of admissions and was willing to put in a good word for me. I applied to them early, and to my surprise and relief they sent me the Thick Envelope of Acceptance. Having gotten in somewhere, I didn’t bother to apply anywhere else, and after attending summer school one last time to make up yet another class for which I hadn’t shown up during the regular year, I was on my way to historic Shepherdstown to start my higher education career. I spent a year at Shepherd, and it was the same story all over again – I attended my music classes and did well, but dropped almost all of my academic courses. After a year of this mediocre performance, the worst possible thing happened from the perspective of academic success: I fell in love with a graduating senior. She was returning to her native Delaware on graduation, and with the finely honed reasoning that only eighteen year olds can display, I decided the obvious response on my part was to drop out and go with her. Rather than bore the faithful reader with the details, suffice it to say that over the course of the next ten years, while moving around the East Coast, I amassed piecemeal credit from Shepherd College, Virginia Commonwealth University, Northern Virginia Community College, North Carolina Wesleyan College, and Strayer University. Meanwhile, I had changed majors from Music Composition to Music Education to Communications before finally becoming involved with information technology. The ‘90s were a great time for technical people. No one cared about college degrees, as demand for competent labor was too high for employers to care about anything other than ability. After the burst of the dot-com bubble, however, things changed completely. One of those changes was my attitude toward completing my degree. Since the ads for jobs in my field had gone from saying â€Å"Associate degree preferred† to â€Å"Bachelor’s degree required, Master’s preferred,† it seemed that the time had come to finish what I had started. There was a higher motivation, however, in that my years as a professional had changed me; I had become serious about setting goals and reaching them. I initially considered returning to Strayer University. However, I was dismayed by how long it would take me to finish there, as I only had about seventy credits all told. Strayer would give me some advanced standing for having earned the Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer technical certification, but I knew that the expense of their courses would mean that I could only take a few in a year. The time had come for research. After scouring the Internet looking for the best option for me I found and decided on Charter Oak State College. I looked at my transcripts and the requirements for their Bachelor of Science, general education, and Information Systems Studies concentration, and was pleased to be able to map all of what I had done to meeting requirements. Moreover, after looking at earning credit by standardized examination, I realized that it would be the most efficient way for me to demonstrate what I had already learned. I was very thorough in my preparation for applying to Charter Oak. While getting ready to submit my materials, however, there was one more interesting plot twist to my story. A friend of mine discovered that I was evaluating colleges for degree completion, and on seeing how well I had navigated all of the available materials, suggested I apply for a position at Keiser College in Florida, where he was chair of the business department for the online campus. I remember thinking that if only I could finish my degree and be done with it, I could wash my hands of academia forever. Now, however, I finally appreciate the benefits my undergraduate experience has given me, from both general education and my concentration. Most important of all, I am ready and eager to experience the next chapter of my academic autobiography.

A Critique of Aristotle Politics

Introduction This paper aims to discuss the thoughts of Aristotle as the philosopher of his time. The paper will examine the applicability of his ideas in the world today. It will analyze the ethics of Aristotle against the way today’s governance. This paper will offer an informed critique of Aristotle’s politics. The paper will discuss the prepositions of Aristotle and the merits and demerits associated with each leadership. Discussion Aristotle politics looks at the world scientifically and can differentiate the ideal and the practical.In his book one of politics, Aristotle outlines the different types of governments that he perceives. In each of these types of governance, he gives the sound and the bad. According to Aristotle, the philosopher king is the ideal governance. In this form, the kings’ interest is in the welfare of his people (Tacitus & Benario 18). The highest form of governance is the monarchy. It is hereditary in nature, and people can associate freely with the royal family. In a monarchy, the interests of the nation take priority above all other matters. When the respectable leadership of a monarchy becomes rogue, Aristotle terms it as tyranny.When leadership becomes self seeking the citizens of this state, suffers thus; cannot achieve happiness (Chuska 277). Aristotle considers aristocracy of philosophers to be the second best leadership. When this form of leadership gets crooked, it becomes oligarchy. Further, he views democracy as the worst form of leadership. In his opinion, the third best form of leadership is one whose polity would combine all the noble forms of leadership. According to Aristotle, a polity is a constitution. Aristotle is of the opinion that, for a polity to be viable, it has to consider the stability and security of its people.The aristocracy as Aristotle puts it is the rule of several. When a virtuous rule of law prevails the society enjoys solidity. In this rule, the needs of the wealthy get priori ty while the rest of the population gets neglected. This brings about class division, and discrimination on the basis of riches. The elite in the society protect and guard their status making it difficult to join the elite group from low class people. According to Aristotle, who was advocating for fairness, elitism in the society is wrong (Chuska 278). Polity is the rule of the majority. This is what Aristotle refers to as the rule of many.In the better form, it concerns with the needy. The leaders take office through an election. It is the citizens of the state who decide the person to rule over them. When this form of leadership becomes fraudulent, Aristotle refers to it as democracy. As Aristotle puts it when the mob rules the minority group suffers. However, in the opinion of Aristotle this corrupt form of polity is the best form of governance in the long run (Aristotle et al 297). In Aristotle’s analysis of the best form of a leader, he says it is that person who pursues virtue. To him virtues are decent habits acquired through legislation and moral education.According to Aristotle, leaders should not work; it is the state to provide for their needs. They should have property and sufficient time for leisure. This will enable them to pursue virtues. This practice is only possible in a monarchy. The views of Aristotle about a monarchy are noble. In the history of Roman Empire, there is a short duration when there was monarchy. The leaders commonly known as the five good empires operated a monarchy with success. The rule was successful without turning to dictatorship. Their interest was in the subjects. They resisted the allure of abusing the unlimited power of their rule.The emperor who took over from the last of the five was Commodus. He started out well following the ideals of a monarch. However, he gradually became corrupt. He started to make laws that were not pleasing to the people. The rules he made were not logical, and the people of the empir e were unhappy. He disregarded the virtues of a leader and started barking orders at a whim. He died by assassination by strangulation in his bath (Aristotle et al 300). This classic example gives reality to the opinions of Aristotle. Monarchy is a worthy form of leadership; however, when corrupt it is the worst form.According to Aristotle the second best form of government is aristocracy. Before the formation of the Roman Empire, there was the Roman republic. There was the rule of law in the republic; it lasted for four hundred years, an unusually long duration. Aristocracy may have succeeded within this duration, but it has the weakness that people do not choose the person to lead them. However, it finally failed when power became centralized. Aristotle advocates for balance between the one, few and many. This is a form of mixed government where the virtues of all the six forms of government combined.According to him this would bring stability and avoid the dangers that a monarchy poses to the society. In the world, today this form of government can be seen in the United Kingdom and the United States. There is a power balance among the three basic components stated by Aristotle. This brings about stability in the society (Chuska 278). Aristotle, in his politics, discusses how a state associates with it members. He maintains that the legitimacy of a government remains through serving it people and offering them a healthy life. According to Aristotle the happiness of the citizens is state is crucial.In his discourse, Aristotle talks of the contentment of the entire state, not just a segment of the state. The perfect society is one whose citizens show moral virtues this is achievable through an ideal government (Chuska 279). Aristotle puts emphasis on the human beings achieving their potentiality. According to him the successful government has to have citizens to choose the needs for their lives. A critical evaluation of the politics of Aristotle shows an incli nation towards communism and authoritarianism. However, in today's world the most successful forms of government are the representative democracies.This is because they include all the groups within the state without leaving out of the minority. The form of government that Aristotle proposes is practical. His concern is in the stability and security of the citizens. The members of a state need security in order to run their day to day activities. Thus, if there is a lack of order in the leadership the citizens suffer. Aristotle proposes a constitution which he calls a polity. He sees it as a long lasting solution to leadership problems as it offers a concrete form of governance. In the contemporary world, we have all forms of governments as discussed by Aristotle.The most successful ones are the democracy. Though they have their short falls, they are more practical compared with other forms of governments. The state has a duty towards the people; however, the people also have a resp onsibility for themselves. The world is competitive, and people cannot wait for the state to take care of them (Tacitus ; Benario 19). In conclusion, Aristotle's politics have an influence on political philosophy up to the present time. They contain thought provoking concerns about politics that governments should consider the quality of the life of their subject. He questions who should be the ruler of the people.Aristotle is keen to emphasize on the moral expectation and obligation of the state and their citizens. A state has to have citizens and the citizens have to have a state. The two must exist together and for that to be, there must be rulers. Works cited Chuska, J. (2000). Aristotle's best regime: A reading of Aristotle's Politics, VII. 1-10. Lanham, Md: University Press of America. Tacitus, C. , & Benario, H. W. (2006). Agricola, Germany, and Dialogue on orators. Indianapolis: Hackett Pub. Aristotle, . , Bekker, I. , Bolland, W. E. , Lang, A. , & Aristotle, . (1877). Arist otle's Politics: Books I. III. IV. (VII. ). London: Longmans, Green.

Scandinavian Airlines System 1998 Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Scandinavian Airlines System 1998 - Case Study Example Jan Carlzon has undoubtedly initialized changes, which caused a dramatic turnaround in the overall business operation of the airline system. These changes were carried out in response to the problems that beset SAS and the entire airline industry as a whole. These changes were also geared to adapt to the rapidly changing external environment and trends in the transportation sector. Among the new strategies implemented by SAS during the presidency of Jan Carlzon was focusing on the business traveler. The airline has evolved as the "businessman's airline, " offering an excellent service to full-paying business traveler through the introduction of "EuroClass" that provides more amenities than the other business class airlines at the level of the old economy fare. This was further strengthened by the improvement of flight schedules and punctuality. To provide a more attractive schedule, Eurolink was also created for short distance routes. Scanorama which feature lounges for the exclusive use of full-paying class were also introduced by the company in order to further different and highlight the luxury offered to the business traveler. In order to completely execute the new strategies, SAS has undergone a corporate cultural revolution, which was a deviation from the company's focus on resources and technology. There had been a restructuring which involved decentralization, education, and empowerment. A second wave of strategies were c... SAS has banked on its aim of being "a full service, door-to-door, travel service company," and "offer a unique product which we could control from A-Z." These have lead to the introduction of SAS International Hotels, SAS Reservation System, Credit Cards, SAS Service Partner, other related activities such as publishing and advertising, and a new group structure. We can see that in SAS major reforms, Jan Carlzon made use of both prescriptive and emergent strategies. According to Richard Lynch (2000), prescriptive strategies are those whose objectives have been defined in advance while emergent strategies refer to those strategies which has unclear objectives and whose components are developed during its course of life. As the case presented, the company has tailored its strategies to suit the changing needs of its market (Lynch, 2000). Prescriptive strategy was used in order to take into account the rapidly altering socio-cultural trends in the airline industry, thus the utilization of the socio-cultural theories of strategy. According to the case, the focus on business travelers was due to the fact that full-paying business travelers comprise the largest chunk of the airline's revenue yet the total number of passengers serviced was declining. This was prompted by the change in preferences of travelers as they seek more value for their money and change in lifestyle, which necessitated them avail service when their need arises. We can trace these changes to the transformation in the socio-cultural aspect of the European community. As the economy was facing a recession, maximization of customer's purchasing power was a priority. Also, the demands of being an executive left a busier

Critically evaluate the legal options and administrative processes Essay

Critically evaluate the legal options and administrative processes that could be used to reduce the impact that environmental noise can have on the health and - Essay Example Burns (1973) affirmed this viewpoint. He believed that an individual’s performance in their workplace is reduced drastically because they have an inability to concentrate. Consequently, such persons develop psychological stress which is manifested by frequent outbursts and dissatisfaction. The Department of Environment (1994) explain how sleep disturbances are mainly felt at night rather than during the day. Porter et al (2000) demonstrated the relationship between awakenings and noise from aircrafts. Berglund et al (2000) deduced that frequent use of sleeping pills and higher mental hospital admissions could originate from high levels of noise. Research by Meister and Donatelle (2000) explained how people who are exposed to aircraft noise have higher chances of heart disease and other physical health conditions. The Dutch Environmental Consultants (2007) did a survey in Europe and found that 50% of European residents are subjected to noise from the transport sector. The group provided links between traffic noise and residents’ health. Over 200,000 cases of heart diseases are as a result of exposure to transport noise and a quarter of these cases result in death. (The Dutch Environmental Consultants, 2007) There is also a lot of money spent on health services due to transport noise. It reached the tune of 40 Billion euros per year. (The Dutch Environmental Consultants, 2007) HUD (2004) realised that the type of construction equipment adversely affect the level of annoyance felt by nearby residents; some equipments and appliances were too noisy. At the same time, it is also possible to cause noise through the type of techniques used in design of buildings. Neighbours get affected by noise from their counterparts when construction material used for the house has low acoustic designs. MORI (2003) found that approximately thirty percent of all residents in London consider noise emitted by their neighbours a nuisance. Furthermore, houses with poor

U.s. jails today Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

U.s. jails today - Essay Example Figure 1 illustrates how far the US-prisoner rate than those of other developed countries.   PEW estimated that in 2008 2,319,258 of the US population are incarcerated (7). These statistics are very far from those of China, one of the most populated countries in the world. China’s incarcerated rate is estimated to be at 1.5 million of their population only (Hutchins 1).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the ratio of prisoners per 100,000 individuals of the US population grew from 193 in 1995 to 259 in 2007. Based on the study of the Bureau of Justice Statistics, on average, 15,502 sleeping beds were added in jails during the past 12 months in 2007. The additional beds summed up a total rated capacity of 813,502 beds and in the middle of 2007, 96% of these beds were already used and inhabited by inmates (Bureau of Justice Statistics, http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/jails.htm). To maintain such overwhelming number of prisoners, correctional facilities, polices, and support groups should also be at par with the number of prisoners. With the rapid growing population of inmates in the US, expenditure in jails, correction, support facilities, and others are also increasing dramatically.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  According to the figure above, there has been a humungous increase in the expenditure of the criminal-justice functions. In the police function there had been an increased of 396% from the average expenditure of 1982 to the average expenditure in 2005. With regards to correctional and judicial expenses, the same trend occurred with the police functions. Both correctional and judicial expenses in 2005 had an increase of 619% and 474%, respectively, from its values in 1982.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To accommodate a common inmate, an average of $23,876 per year is needed (PEW, 11). This figure is based on 2005 statistics. Moreover, states expenditure per prisoner varies with Rhode Island with $44, 860 spending on the top of

International Transport Companies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

International Transport Companies - Essay Example Transport is one of the primary requirements of the modern age since the ability to move from one point on the planet to another gives human beings the chance to engage in many activities that make our way of life possible. In fact, international trade, humanitarian assistance, global commerce and even the process of globalization itself could be completely stalled if the present means of international transport were not there. The IRU (2002) reports that: â€Å"Issues in transport directly concern the whole functioning of international trade system. In fact, any transport network failures may be assimilated to "blood clots" obstructing free movement of people, goods and services, and hindering sustainable development of world economy. (IRU, 2002, Pg. 1)† With the existence of international transport, international laws also prohibit the transport of certain goods from one nation to another and wherever there are laws to prohibit something there is money to be made in breaking the law. This means that there is a thriving underground network of transporters who knowingly or unknowingly are busy transporting humans, drugs, weapons, chemicals and even animals that have certain restrictions placed on them (Wikipedia, 2006). The transport of such goods creates several problems for international transport companies, therefore, the company themselves, as well as the governments they deal with, have to work towards minimizing the associated problems. Fundamentally, if an international transport company of repute plays by the book, then the company knows fully that engaging in the transport of illegal/unwanted goods will have negative effects on the operations of the company. For example, productivity would be hurt because the ratio of goods and services which are provided by the company might need more inputs from the labor and the management to prevent the presence of stowaways or smuggled goods.

Crml Reseach Assistment 1 Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Crml Reseach Assistment 1 - Article Example Kidnapping is an offence, which according to law, has been categorized into degrees in relation to its magnitude (Kaplan, 2004). The best type of research that will be applied when approaching the problem of kidnapping is descriptive. Through descriptive research, the important variables; dependent and independent will be established, which will aid in conducting the research. The descriptive research will start by exemplifying the problem, conducting a literature review, developing a research tool, identifying the population and sampling, data collection, and thereafter analyzing the data. This research will take on quantitative method, which will aid in testing the hypothesis scientifically. Qualitative data will be derived from a reliable source, which is the population, and this will be through conducting a sample survey. The data will be analyzed with the aim of establishing whether they correlate or associate with one another. For instance, through quantitative research, the study will try to prove the hypothesis, â€Å"Individuals from richer families tend to be victims of kidnappings while individuals from less privileged backgrounds tend to be the instigators of kidnappings†, to be true (Kaplan,

FOUNDATIONS OF OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT Coursework

FOUNDATIONS OF OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT - Coursework Example The office is small as it was the starting point of the business. The company had been trying to find a way to explore the potential clients at the sea side, but had been reluctant to work on a business plan or business strategy due to the presence of a huge number and variety of competitors already operating in that set up. Instead they have been focusing on building a brand name and customer loyalty through exceptional customer care. Due to this strategy the company had been fast in reaching their annual profit goal, in fact they have exceeded it. So, the board has decided that it is time to step in this potential market. The company’s resorts are already present there and are flourishing but research has shown that a small restaurant will attract a lot of foreign tourists and who could say no to a side profit. A business plan has already been made and approved, this plan includes financial planning, restaurant market research, cash flow forecast, competitor’s analysi s, human resource planning and a marketing plan. More than 70% of our surveyed foreigners focus group deduced having a liking to eat their homelands native food rather than trying new things even in foreign land. Due to already being able to deal with a lot of tourists our chefs are already specialized in foreign cuisine. This is a strength as compare to the potential competitors. Client satisfaction with services and the main menu has been and keeps on being of most extreme significance, yet our discoveries demonstrate that the lighting, bar, decor, and different alternatives to enhance the feasting experience are additionally figures in client choices and tourists are mainly attracted to such places. Cash flow for the next two year has been prepared starting from a huge outflow in the first three months in the preparation and setting up of the restaurant. Starting from cleaning of the already present

Inclusion in Early Childhood Education Personal Statement

Inclusion in Early Childhood Education - Personal Statement Example Programs, lobbies, and organizations have increased regarding inclusion over the years. More and more people have been getting involved. Likewise, the number of schools affected by inclusion has multiplied. The education system has been changing towards equality for all students. Increasingly, many individuals have realized the benefits of this movement. As humans, freedom has always been one of our strongest passions. It brings us joy to know that we are all being refined in the culture of equality. Educating all children to the utmost extent possible in a regular classroom is one of the noblest movements of mankind. We must then say yes to inclusive education since it fights for the rights of all children to be full members of the society. Some people think that inclusion is not the best option for all cases. Several think that it is unfair for the other students to be compromised. â€Å"†¦for example, children with hearing impairments may be in segregated classrooms or at ho me to concentrate on learning sign language† (Deiner, 1999, p. 31). ... A number of individuals still have misconceptions about inclusion. Others just define it with their own understanding. Furthermore, definitions have evolved and influenced by a country’s legislation. Some teachers who have to face the challenges are ill-equipped on how to handle the situation. In reality, there are educators who have to accept the â€Å"inclusive classroom setting† without appropriate knowledge and experience. Traditionally, children with special needs are not included in assessment standards. This makes it hard for several systems to evaluate their respective performances. In actual settings, teachers, including volunteers, are not enough to manage the learning process inside the classroom. According to the U.S. Department of Education (2007), 53.6% of children with disabilities are served in regular classrooms. With this population, more educators are undeniably needed to be thoroughly trained concerning teaching children with disabilities. Clearly, i nclusion brings about a change in the education system that everyone needs to be prepared of since the special education, as well as the regular system, are affected in this alteration. To address the other teachers’ qualms regarding inclusion, a collaborative approach can be helpful in communicating the necessary information. It is understandable that many professionals are still in the denial stage regarding inclusion. In due time, they will be able to have acceptance, understanding, and eventually knowledge about the process of inclusion. Almost all schools are already pushing for this undertaking to succeed. Sooner or later, more compelling regulations are likely to be endorsed.  

Delta Air Lines Essay Example for Free

Delta Air Lines Essay The Delta Airlines boasts of an affluent history that tells the story of how it came to be the successful airline company that it is at present. It all started when the Huff Daland Dusters got involved with crop-dusting in Macon, state of Georgia. In 1925, Huff Daland Dusters relocated to Monroe in the state of Louisiana where it was known for being a successful private company, owning eighteen planes. Due to the growing success of Huff Daland Dusters, C. E. Woolman who established Delta Air Lines purchased the private dusting company. The company was then named Delta Air Service. (Delta, 2008a) In 1930, Delta Air Service begins to operate in Atlanta, Georgia where it discontinued services for passengers, and became Delta Air Corporation. When the company was approved to provide mail services again, which was unsuccessful in 1930, it continued to provide services for passengers. In 1942, Delta became involved with the war, with its active involvement in transforming and refurbishing over one thousand aircrafts to be utilized during the war, and in providing instruction for pilots belonging to the army and aircraft technicians. After three years, the company was renamed as Delta Air Lines, Inc. (Delta, 2008a) In 1961, Delta launched the first direct flight from its base to Los Angeles. In 1972, Delta became a much bigger company through the Northeast Airlines merger, the Western Airlines merger in 1987, and the company’s purchase of Pan Am. The Pan Am purchase allowed Delta to become a global carrier. (Delta 2008a) The current CEO of Delta Air Lines is Richard H. Anderson in September last year, although being just a new member five months prior to that. Anderson acquired a wide ranged of airline experiences during his twenty years in the business. Prior to his membership to the Delta Air Line Board of Directors, he served for Continental Airlines, and jumped from one post to another higher position in the Northwest Airlines. Moreover, he worked for UnitedHealth Group where he was a president of the Markets group. After his three-year service with the company, he joined Delta Air Lines. (Delta, 2008b) At present, the Delta Air Lines is based still in Atlanta Georgia where it provides their customers 310 flight destinations for all over 54 countries in the world. In 2007, Delta just announced the addition of 50 routes all over the world. (Delta, 2008c)This just proves how successful they are in what they do that they are able to cater to thousands of people who have the luxury of choosing where to go from numerous destinations locally or abroad. Delta Air Lines became successful because of its innovativeness and openness to mergers that made it one of the largest company airlines in the history of the United States. Moreover, Delta Air Lines is linked to several other airline companies and are allied with other foreign airlines. In the past, Delta was able to do mergers with several airlines and from then on continued to expand by targeting international destinations and partnership. Its success may also be attributed to the wide range of services that they can provide to their customers. Perhaps, the company fosters good relationships with its employees, primarily because of the concern that Delta exhibits to them. In September 2005, Delta was awarded as one of America’s Safest Companies as it implemented strict rules and policies on health and safety for employees in the workplace. (Delta, 2008d) Currently, Delta has expanded its target market to include even the lower classes of society with its launching of Song ®. The air service offers low prices on flights and lessens the time for aircrafts to continue services. This means that Song ® is able to provide as many flights as possible to the people in order to make up for their time. (List, 2003) Moreover, Delta is in partnership with SkyMiles, which enables their customers to earn free tree miles, which is gained by the number of flights one purchases. They also support several foundations and organizations, such as The Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Habitat for Humanity, etc. that helps to build their image and reputation, and gain more followers for the expansion of the airline. These changes have References Delta Air Lines â€Å"Delta Through the Decades.† Delta Air Lines, Inc. 2008a: http://www.delta.com/about_delta/corporate_information/delta_stats_facts/delta_through_decades/index.jsp 15 April 2008. Delta Air Lines â€Å"Richard H. Anderson.† Delta Air Lines, Inc. 2008b: http://www.delta.com/about_delta/corporate_information/corporate_biographies/anderson/ 15 April 15, 2008. Delta Air Lines. â€Å"New Routes Mean More Sources.† Delta Air Lines, Inc. 2008c: http://www.delta.com/planning_reservations/plan_flight/destinations/new_routes/index.jsp April 15, 2008. Delta Air Lines. â€Å"Awards Recognition.† Delta Air Lines, Inc. 2008d: http://www.delta.com/about_delta/corporate_information/awards_recognition/index.jsp April 15, 2008. List. B. â€Å"Operations researchers say Delta Air Lines’ Song has cut turnaround time of aircraft by 25%.† Innovations Report 2003: http://www.innovations-report.de/html/berichte/verkehr_logistik/bericht-22601.html April 15, 2008.

Feminist Reading Essay Example for Free

Feminist Reading Essay Latina women have been dealing with the ideals of machismo for centuries. In todays society women have begun to make great strides in developing a position in the sun where their ideas and opinions are deemed worthy of examination. Many women have been striving to show their wisdom and insights. This paper will be discussing one instrumental writer who has begun paving the way for change in societys conception of female gender roles. Achy Obejas is creating female character in Days of Awe who have internalized behaviors and ideals normally exhibited by males. This paper focuses on how this specific Latina writer show the Latinas, more specifically the Cuban females, journey into finding a voice through the use of her sexuality. The dynamics of gender roles both in Cuba and the exile community is a complicated issue. For years men have played the dominant role both in and out of the bedroom. Women both in the real world and in the world created by author have been faced with a conundrum when attempting to navigate the turbulent waters of sexual relationships. The standard is set and if any woman dares break away from the male domination that is often prescribed in society she will certainly gain herself a reputation. This commonplace notion is what Obejas is trying to dispel by showing what sexual freedom gains and how it strengthens a womans position in a patriarchal society. Achy Obejas creates female character who learn by embodying the role of the sexual aggressor that she can become free from male-dominance. One of the many facets of patriarchy is that being sexually aggressive is deemed a male gender role. In Obejas Days of Awe there is evidence of a longing to be free from having to depend on the opposite sex for pleasure and approval. Alejandra is set free by their complete acceptance of becoming the dominating sexual partner. This freedom allows her to be in charge of her sexual experiences and no longer be in the submissive dependent role. This women travel the road of discovery. This quest leads one from the U. S. to Cuba. She finds a secure identity through traveling from their home to a place that tests their self-worth. Alejandra, a young exile looking for a connection to Cuba and her feminine identity, finds the sexual fever dormant within her. This woman realize that learning to harness their sexual potency gives them control over a world normally out of reach due to gender discrimination. By using her sexuality she is privy to a position usually reserved for the male. She becomes empowered by the control and strength asserting her allure provides. This paper will critically examine how Obejass character construction and experiences allow for the often-slighted Latina woman to hold her own in her class, community and culture through the suppression of the values of patriarchy via the suppression of the men in the novel. The main focus will be the dynamic between male and female interaction that ultimately leads to the shutting off of the male voice in a series of different and diverse empowering actions by the female protagonist. The text will allow a look at the process of how these Cuban-American authors show that these women characters obtain and solidify their empowerment through the removal of the males power and position. The interaction between male and female characters allows the author to showcase a womans importance and strength while lessening the males role in society through his diminished role in the novel. Through a feminine narration, women are represented in a true fashion, not as a sidebar to a male-dominated existence. Overview Achy Obejas has not been the object of popular critical study. She is often written about in terms of her sexuality and the ramifications of this existence. The label lesbian is frequently tagged with her name often overshadowing other important issues. She is often quoted in critical texts only due to her use of lesbian themes: The immigrants ruminations about what could have been are paralleled by lesbians concerns about past events that are seen in a new light The Cuban-American lesbian writer Achy Obejas illustrates these concerns in a recent story (Espin 106). As a lesbian Cuban-American writer, she is often written about in this context and how these terms fit into her fiction. Her typical protagonist is a lesbian allowing critics to focus on this aspect of the novel leaving a gap in the discussion of the male characters. (McCullough 578). Critics arent discussing how the male characters affect womans narrative voice. This paper focuses on the gaining of voice through the suppression of the male and few critics discuss the male-counterparts in Obejas fiction in these terms. Her examination of the exiles life in Days of Awe is discussed but not enough focus is centered on Alejandras sexual relationships with men, for example, in the article by Alice Sparberg Alexiou, who writes: she wrestles with all of her identities—sexual, religious, national (38). Critics will briefly pass over the topic of Alejandras sexuality not delving deep into the Alejandras relationships with men. The focus will shift to more common ideals such as political issues involving the exile condition and/or the religious aspects of Days of Awe: While the narrative relates the circumstances of Cuban-American immigration easily enough, it has more difficulty describing the impact of crypto-Judaism on Ales family (Socolovsky 236). Socolovsky goes on to say: The first part of the book consists of the narrators memories of leaving Cuba, always over determined by the discomfort stemming from her fathers secrecy (227). This criticism is missing one of the key elements of why Ale travels to Cuba; to discover who she is as a Cuban-American woman. Obejas is also widely discussed for her inclusion of Judaism in her topics of Cuban History. I found many articles written about her delving into the Cubas Jewish past: Obejass linkage of being Jewish with being Cuban is intriguing.. .The equivalence is borne out in language as well, Miami Cubans are often referred to as Jews of the Caribbean (Solwitz 123). Achy Obejas use her fiction to undermine the ideal that men have a more powerful voice and should be at the forefront of a narration by intentionally giving their male characters lesser roles in their novels. Author creates characters that show how powerful a woman can become once her voice is validated by some element of society, whether it is in the private or public world. Carmen Luke examines the role of women in society and discusses how vital the establishment of a womans opinions through her voice can be to self-worth and how key this expression is to determining a womans value: The concept of voice as a means of empowerment for women has been a key element in feminist theory and practice since the beginning of the womens movement in the 1960s. Voice, womens speech and language, has been fundamental to feminist practices of consciousness raising and to theory building based on women speaking of their experience (211). Luke is saying that women need to express their opinions and beliefs in order to solidify their position in society. The author does just this, use a strong feminine voice to narrate a womans experience. Theoretical Background Achy Obejas take on the development of the female exiles existence in a significant way that incorporates gender issues as well as the cultural. Often throughout literary history men have held the role of the powerful in several societies, both as authors and as characters: It is well documented that all societies recognize some sort of gender differentiation and that most or all exhibit some level of gender stratification-a rank ordering of men and women that signifies the unequal distribution of power and the distribution of resources (Xu 376). Literature throughout the centuries shows the patriarch is the master of the domain. Traditionally when the Latino culture is represented in fiction the women in these representations are forced into the submissive role allowing the culturally accepted machismo to prevail. There is a tremendous amount of literature that represents its women characters as one dimension and nonessential to the plot of the piece. Women, who often hold only one role such as, caretaker, object of desire, or mixer of remedies. When we examine Obejas fiction as example of the feminine writing practice, we find that this work becomes an example of French feminisms theories on lecriture feminine: a practice of writing in the feminine which undermines the linguistic, syntactical, and metaphysical conventions of Western narrative (Showalter 9). Obejas recognition of how the feminine disrupts the symbolic structures of language, meaning, and writing significantly prefigures French feminist Helene Cixous. Plurality, which is a significant part of theory of lecriture feminine, can be seen in the in The Days of Awe. Cast as a woman doomed to drown, Obejas is set outside Cixouss conception of lecriture feminine in relation to modernism. For Cixous, the flesh of the female body becomes the site where the dissection of symbolic language begins; she believes that a woman writer, must write her self, because this is the invention of a new insurgent writing which will allow her to carry out the indispensable ruptures and transformations By writing her self, women will return to the body which has been more than confiscated from her Censor the body and you censor breath and speech at the same time of language and meaning. (250) The Obejas illuminates the central component of sexual difference in relation to lecriture feminine which Cixous explore. Kristeva writes, all speaking subjects have within themselves a certain bisexuality which is precisely the possibility to explore all the sources of signification, that which posits a meaning as well as that which multiplies, pulverizes, and finally revives it (298) This vision of bisexuality, in relation to womens writing, is also explored by Cixous: writing is precisely working (in) the in-between, inspecting the process of the same and of the other. .. not fixed in sequences of struggle and expulsion but infinitely dynamized by an incessent process of exchange from one subject to another a multiple and inexhaustible course with millions of encounters and transformations of the same into the other and into the in-between, from which woman takes her forms (and man, in his turn ). (254) Obejas, however, fights against these commonly accepted identity roles by producing fiction that eats away at the man as ruler mentality of so many cultures. Author invents female character that creates a world where she is the one in a position of power and the male characters take a back seat therefore suppressing the ideal that the male has a more significant voice and more important things to say. This female novelist allows women to create their own secure space where they have the ability to be forceful and intimidating. The author gives the characters this safe space that enables these characters to use these traditional male characteristics to their advantage. This allows the woman character to fight against the marginalization they are often forced into by the men in their society. Days of Awe: Feminist Reading In Days of Awe, Achy Obejas shows her female protagonist gaining agency through removing the males will to control and subjugate the female. Through heroines sexual prowess men are diminished allowing her voice to gain momentum. She is the counterpart to every man in Cuba who puffs out his chest catcalling women as they walk by. Alejandra San Jose is a classically alluring Cuban-American woman who is afraid of her own possibilities. She has never explored the deeper side of her sexuality. She has only experienced love and sex in a surface sense, never delving into the areas of herself she is unwilling to expose for fear of appearing unfeminine. She has a yearning to discover herself and assert her true potential as a sexually viable being. Alejandras desires are manifested in her desire to understand her Cuban self and all this exotic desire holds for her. She feels that if she figures out how to embrace her Cuban identity she will become stronger and more in control of her direction. She feels a loss living as an exiled woman unable to fully understand her self and what she needs to feel whole. Once Alejandra has observed the men of Cuba and felt their energy, she begins to feel how reversing her role would be beneficial. She is finally able to express herself: being a translator has allowed Alejandra the luxury of hiding behind the words and opinions of others, Theses are not my words. I have no words of my own here (76). Until she discovers a way to present her true identity without fear she has no voice. She has to gain if, self-confidence in her individuality before she is ready to fight for the right to have her voice heard. The turning point for Alejandra is the provocative sexual encounter she witnesses between a Cuban man, Orlando and his teenager neighbor. The young girl has complete control over the sensual situation taking place between the two showing Alejandra how beneficial this role can be for the woman. Orlando, Alejandras host in Cuba is completely captivated by the girls sexual allure and her aggressive seduction. Alejandra is aroused and empowered by the girls dominance in the interaction, I smiled back, strangely calm, as I watched her caress her lovers stubbly cheek and play with the nappy hair on his head. He continued lapping until she wrapped her legs around him and trapped him there, immobile (86). At this moment, Alejandra sees firsthand what she has been missing from her own sexual experience, control. Orlando is immobilized by the young girls will and sexual strength: Orlando knelt in front of her like a supplicant as she dipped again and again. She arched her body, grinding her pubic bone into him (86). She will determine when their lovemaking session is over. She pushes into him forcing him into submission giving her the dominant role in the interaction. Alejandra learns through witnessing this encounter that women can voice their desires and express their needs. Her will to express her own true identity is strengthened by her voyeurism. She now understands the power of being the dominant or the traditionally male partner in a sex act. Alejandra takes what she has learned about the value of being the aggressive partner back to the United States. Her trip to Cuba has empowered her with the understanding of the exotic. She begins to assert herself with her current boyfriend, Seth. She becomes the man in the relationship going as far as grinding into Seth as if she was penetrating him with her sexual being, I kissed his chest, his ribs, his hips, then slowly turned him on his tummy and pushed him down, my hand still on his member. I crushed my pubic bone into him from behind (160). Alejandra pushes him down into submission and climbs on top of him taking the position of power. She controls the amount of pleasure each will receive and she controls Seth. She gains her independence from Seth by turning the relationship around on him. She takes on the male characteristics in the bedroom silencing Seth and suppressing his desires for her own. Her voice gains agency through her implementing what she has learned from watching the teen seductress. Alejandra continues to empower her new identity as well. After she has finished with Seth she begins her first lesbian affair. In this relationship she plays the masculine role. She becomes the jealous boyfriend who doesnt trust his sweet little girl and questions and accuses her constantly of being unfaithful. She rules the relationship through physical and sexual dominance, I trembled and imagined that I would always want her as much as that time when, in a state of uncontrolled rage about all the lovers she might have had, I pushed her against the wall and knelt before her in a urine-soaked subway stairwell. Pining her hips with my hands, I used my mouth, my teeth, to get at those pungent lips, at the soft core of her where I stalked all my unsteady claims of conquest. (178) She exhibits the classic behavior of the male machismo. Richard Basham defines the famous Spanish term in his article Machismo describing why the term fits Alejandra perfectly here, Machismo, itself, can be loosely translated as the cult of the male. In its essentials it is characterized by a display of sexual prowess, zest for action; including verbal action, daring and above all, absolute self- confidence (127). The Latin Lover who dominates his female conquest through his sexual prowess and his perpetual insistence is ever present in Alejandras behavior with her new lover. She has now fully embraced the power of her sexuality. She understands now how to use it to her benefit without worry about her lover. She continues to sleep with both men and women, but now she always plays the role of the dominant lover. She learns how to succeed both in her private life adding many conquests to her ego and her public life succeeding to be a successful translator who is widely respected by both men and women. One of her conquests turns out to be a bad lover, but Alejandra refuses to accept his inadequacies. He believes their lovemaking session is over because he has been quickly satisfied. She immediately regains control of the situation by grabbing his member and informing him his job is not finished, No, I didnt like it, I said, climbing on top and guiding him, so now youre going to make sure I do (230). Before she internalized the ways of the male she would have accepted his weak attempts at satisfying her never allowing her frustrations to have a voice. Now she will not be silenced or unsatisfied at the hands of a man. Alejandra dictates when the sexual encounter is over and certainly not before she has been satisfactorily pleasured. Her agency takes away the males desires and opinions. She will no longer allow the control to be in any of her lovers hands. Through these examples Alejandra shows the strength and sexual dominance. Alejandra discovers the potency and rewards of being sexually expressive. Alejandra takes quite long to understand the potential she has in herself. At the beginning of the novel she has yet to truly comprehend the power she has over the opposite sex if she chooses to use it. When she first returns to Cuba she is still intimidated by the power she realizes she has over men. Alejandra sees the way the women of the island flaunt their sexuality and how they use it to their personal advantage. It is frightening to Ale how easily some women can manipulate men to do as they wish by showing a little skin and a little attitude, All that week I dreaded the moment when some Cuban man would fix his sights on me, my heart in my throat as he decided whether I was due the complicated mix of flattery and possession that came with being island-born, or the courtesy of silence afforded foreigners (59). In the beginning of the novel Alejandra relishes being treated with silence until she realizes the power she can harness from taking her attributes and using them to her advantage. She begins to learn from the men of Cuba just as Reina has before her. She sees their openly seductive behavior allowing her to loosen her grip on her own sexuality. Alejandra is also slow to accept the beauty of being sexually secure. She is intimidated by her Cuban side and the history it holds for her. She is frightened by the exotic side of her personality and has reservations about setting it free: Havana is where I was supposed to have lived, where I should have emerged like Aphrodite from the foam—where my destiny had been denied (55). Alejandra feels her exotic nature stayed behind when she left Cuba as a child. She is slow to realize her destiny is within herself not on the island. She is more timid in her attempts to become empowered hesitating after her first realization of how to obtain her strength. She gingerly wades into the waters of sexual freedom with hesitation and a fear reminiscent of her expression of her female identity. After she witnesses Orlando and Celina, his young neighborhood fling, she attempts to experience and emulate the strength Celina exhibited by allowing Orlando to touch her and give her pleasure. The two are driving to a deserted location on the outskirts of Havana when Alejandra allows Orlando to bring her to climax with his fingers: When Orlando parted my legs and tried to lower his head, I resisted: I licked the stubble on his chin, bit at his lips (88). She takes control of the situation by not allowing him to do what he wants to her, but she is still unsure of how to lead the encounter herself. This is her first step in using her sexuality to gain a voice. Alejandra remains completely clothed in this interaction afraid of unleashing her desire and exposing her body. She is still afraid to take this knowledge and use it to its full power. She doesnt end up seducing Orlando until many years later. Alejandra San Jose is a classically exotic Cuban-American woman who is afraid of her own possibilities. She has never explored the deeper side of her sexuality. She has only experienced love and sex in a surface sense, never delving into the areas of herself she is unwilling to expose for fear of appearing unfeminine. She has a yearning to discover herself and assert her true potential as a sexually viable being. Though Alejandra is quite advanced in her acceptance of the male role, she gains strength through her Cuban journey. The women learns to embrace the exotic nature found within, allowing for a stronger fuller voice. She silences the men in her live through sexual dominance, just as a male would normally in society. Richard Balsam looks at the womans traditional role, From the machos viewpoint the natural place of the woman is in the home. She is mother first, a wife second, and a sexual being almost never. At marriage she must be a virgin. Sex must be incidental to her, its primary purpose to produce children. She must recognize and accept her role, always remembering to show deference to her husband and brothers (128). She has spurned the normal stereotype for Latina women and created a new space for herself where her voice is heard loud and clear. Alejandra is not married because she does not need a man to guide her way. She has taken it upon herself to find an avenue to strengthen her position in society. Instead of leaning on the male for support this woman has taken on common male characteristics in order to be free from traditional gender identities allowing her to create her own persona where her voice has value and depth. This empowered woman has seen the last days where she is the submissive slave to a mans desire. She has discovered the place in the sun and made it her own through expressing her sexual needs and desires. Conclusion In todays modern society there still is a common struggle for the worlds many women. Even in this era women are still striving to be deemed equal to men in all aspects of everyday life. Many different authors from all over the world create female characters that are fighting against stereotypes and prejudices building a foundation of empowerment for women through writing. This paper has set out to show how one Cuban-American author is in this type of female-centered telling in Latino Literature. This type of narration used by Achy Obejas invites the reader to understand firsthand the trials of Latina woman through this expressive telling that finally presents her story with her own individual voice. Achy Obejas successfully creates female character that strives for and achieves control in a normally patriarchal society. She tells of proud Cuban woman who have scratched and clawed for the opportunity to have their voices heard. This women writer turns the tables on socially accepted norms involving long outdated gender roles in the Latino community. Through her acclaimed fiction Obejas creates female character that is able to achieve freedom from a submissive existence by establishing her own voice and value in society. The Caribbean has long been a place of exotic beauties and luxuries. Obejas uses a womans natural seductive wiles to empower the woman of Days of Awe. Author creates character who learns that by taking away the males dominant role in the bedroom, his control in other areas will be diminished therefore strengthening the power of the new dominant sex partner, the female. Alejandra San Jose realizes the value of being the sexual initiator. In this novel the male characters fall into the background after they have been seduced leaving Alejandra with the only voices to be heard. One would agree being the sexual aggressor achieves power, but nothing achieves control like violence. In her next arena of control, Obejas shows several aspects of machismo, including the violent behavior often shown to women at the hands of their lovers and husbands. However, the things in the Cuban community are changing to meet the modern days version of an independent Latina woman and the fiction this paper examined in certainly reflects this growth. With determined character and strong representation of a Latina woman author is opening a space where the Cuban female can be sure to be respected and heard without being degraded or discounted. Obejas creates women in her fiction who refuse to bow her head in shame instead proudly showcasing what it is to be a Woman. Due to this prominent Latina writer depiction of real life struggles we are able to examine traditional patriarchal rules found within our society and move beyond her restrictions to foster real woman who will no longer swallow the lines she forces fed that require her to be submissive and afraid to speak her opinions. Achy Obejas has effectively created a realm in society where the female is the dominant figure allowing her to be successful in a multitude of arenas found throughout her life. No longer does this woman have to go to extreme lengths in order to be heard. Through strong representations in contemporary fiction the Latina woman is beginning to realize she deserves to be accepted as a viable participant in society with a competent exceptional voice that should be valued and voiced. Works Cited Alexiou, Alice Sparberg. Jewish Women, Many Voices. Lilith 28. 4 (2003): 38. Basham, Richard. Machismo. Frontiers: A Journal of Women Studies 1. 2 (1976): 126-143. Espin, Oliva M. Leaving the Nation and Joining the Tribe: Lesbian Immigrants Crossing Geographical and Identity Borders. Women and Therapy 19. 4 (1996): 99-107. Cixous, Helen. â€Å"The Laugh of Medusa†. 1975. †Feminisms† An Anthology of Literary Theory and Criticism. Eds. Robyn R. Warhol and Diane Price Herndl. New Brunswick: Rutgers UP, 1997. Kristeva, J. Language – The Unknown : An Initiation Into Linguistics (transl. by A. M. Menke). New York: Columbia University Press, 1989. Luke, Carmen. Women in the academy: The politics of speech and silence. British Journal of Sociology of Education 15. 2 (1994): 211–230 McCullough, Kate. Marked by Genetics and Exile: Narrativizing Transcultural Sexualities in Memory Mambo. A Journal of Gay and Lesbian Studies 6. 4 (2000): 577-607. Obejas, Achy. Days of Awe. New York: Ballantine Books, 2001. Showalter, Elaine, ed. The New Feminist Criticism. New York: Pantheon Books, 1985. Socolovsky, Maya. Unnatural Violence: Counter-Memory and Preservations in Cristinas Garcias Dreaming in Cuban and The Aguero Sisters. Literature Interpretation Theory 11. 2 (2000): 143-167. Solwitz, Sharon. Days of Awe Review. Shofar 22. 1 (2003): 123. Xu, Wu, and Ann Leffler. Gender and Race Effects on Occupational Prestige, Segregation, and Earnings. Gender and Society 6. 3 (1992): 376-392.

Understanding The Sociological Analysis Of Divorce Sociology Essay

Understanding The Sociological Analysis Of Divorce Sociology Essay Divorce is considered a major social problem in the United States of America (USA). Divorce impacts the lives of many people outside of the divorcing family including many aspects of society. Divorce is playing an active role in reshaping the culture of the USA by changing the definition of the family (Schaefer, 2008). Because divorce is a problem in the eyes of Americans it merits sociological analysis using the Sociological Imagination and the three sociological perspectives: Functionalism, Conflict Theory and Interactionism. The definition and concepts of Sociological Imagination will be outlined first. The social issue of divorce will be viewed from this set of concepts to see how divorce affects individuals and society as a group. A description of the major ideas and concepts in each of the three major sociological perspectives will be followed by an analysis of divorce by each perspective. Using each of the perspectives will uncover useful insights and information concerning th is issue. Finally, concluding ideas will be presented and supported. To be able to see the interaction between the person and their community, for example, is crucial to developing a Sociological Imagination. However, Sociological Imagination is much more complex than Mills definition. When a sociologist uses his or her Sociological Imagination it is the imagination part that is most interesting and enlightening. For example, you walk into a room filled with people talking and engaging in normal social behavior. Without intending to you begin to observe those people and their actions in a very biased way. You bring cultural, gender and economic biases with you as a normal part of your consciousness. Observing objectively, thus scientifically, would be out of the question in this situation. Now, imagine you are an alien observing the same group of people interacting in the room. Because you are not a human you do not have human biases such as viewing a male doing the dishes with disdain. It is easy for the alien observer to truly see interactions in a scientific manner. The alien observer would not think that any action or behavior is unusual or wrong, the action or behavior simply is. Sociological Imagination is an amazing way of observing human social behavior and human groups because it encourages the observer to see objectively and then ask the most important question in sociology: why? Divorce must be considered using microsociology and macrosociology when using the Sociological Imagination. Divorce affects the family, a microsociological group, immediately and sometimes drastically. Divorce affects the entire country, a macrosociological group, sometimes long after the divorce and in many small ways that add up to bigger problems. It can be argued that divorce is only a personal problem. Take, for example, a young married woman without children. Divorce would impact her economic status and economic future. For a young woman going through a divorce negatively affects her ability to provide basic housing and nourishment needed to be a productive citizen. She might even need to file bankruptcy to be able to move on with her life in a meaningful way. This can be seen as only her problem. She will have to deal with bad credit scores for years to come and may have to take lower paying jobs or live in undesirable apartments as a result. She may become depressed and perform poorly at her job as well. These personal hardships carry over into her family and workplace groups quickly and with detrimental effects. However, using the Sociological Imagination provides insight into how divorce influences much more than her and her family. Divorce impacts the society she lives in several ways. The bankruptcy she filed would negatively affect the already unhealthy economy. Because of her low credit scores she might not be able to earn as much as she is actually capable of thus, she will spend less on essentials than she might otherwise. As she is pushed deeper into a lower socioeconomic status her spending will also fall which slows economic growth. Because she has become poor she probably cannot afford private healthcare, so she relies on public healthcare to provide her with medication to combat her depression. Her divorce had become a public problem. The Sociological Imagination encourages observations such as this to better understand the implications of personal issues on a societal scale. There is another way to look at the young divorcees personal problem when using the Sociological Imagination from a macrosociological view point. It can be argued that her divorce is rooted in a deeper social issue within the culture that she lives. For example, the social issue of poverty could have caused her divorce. Many marriages end because of financial hardships. If the divorcee and her then spouse were living on wages that placed them under the poverty level the stresses of providing adequate housing and nourishment would have been great. There are many other social issues that could contribute negatively to a marriage such as domestic violence causing divorce to occur. The Functionalism perspective in sociology states that society is structured the way it is in order to maintain its stability thus, its survival (Schaefer, 2008). The key concepts are balance, harmony and evolutionary, not revolutionary, change within the current scheme. The way the society functions now is the way it should be because everything serves a purpose. This perspective sees society as a complex system that promotes stability by guiding individuals with a social structure that provides certain social functions. Anything that disrupts the current social structure or functions is seen as dysfunction. If some part of a society does not contribute to the current architecture of stability it will not remain. Manifest and latent functions of institutions are of particular interest to this perspective because they illuminate facets of societys structure. The Functionalism perspective overlaps with conservative political views and deals with macrosociological groups such as an ent ire country. Conflict Theory is a perspective that views society as groups that are struggling over power or resources (Schaefer, 2008). The key concepts are tension, inequality and revolutionary change. Society is the way it is because of inequality, and this inequality should be actively opposed. This perspective views society as an arena of disparity that generates conflict and change. Change is seen as a positive force for a society. Conflict theorists are interested in why some people have so many resources while others have so few and how this is either being maintained or changed. The Feminist view is closely related to the Conflict perspective because both deal with inequality (Schaefer, 2008). Feminist view looks at disparity between the genders in terms of womens lower statuses in most societies. It asserts that gender inequity is the force that is at the center of behavior and the status quo. Both the Feminist view and the Conflict perspective overlap with liberal political views and f ocus on macrosociological groups such as American women. The Interactionist perspective, also known as symbolic Interactionism, generalizes about individual social interactions as a way to see society as a whole (Schaefer, 2008). The key concepts are interactions, relations and symbolic meanings. This perspective views society as a product of everyday interactions. Humans are viewed as living in a world of meaningful objects with an emphasis on the importance of symbols. This perspective is closely related to social psychology. The dramaturgical approach and nonverbal communication are of particular interest to this perspective because they help to clarify how personal interactions are accomplished. The Interactionist perspective overlaps with libertarian political views and deals with microsociology such as a symbolic exchange between coworkers. Divorce when viewed from the Functionalism perspective contributes to the stability of the society as a whole. Fewer divorces would actually be dysfunctional because divorce serves a purpose. For example, as a result of divorce many lawyers, judges and court officials are employed. The public system of healthcare employs doctors, nurses and social workers that treat and care for the poorer people in society including those that have lost so much because of divorce. Without the current rates of divorce many people would be unemployed. Unemployment would destabilize societal structure therefore divorce rates must remain where they are to ensure survival of the social scheme. The status quo must remain in place. Divorce when viewed from the Conflict perspective must be analyzed as a microcosm of society. Conflict theorists would describe the divorce as the competition for resources and power within the marriage where both parties cannot come to an agreement. The struggle over resources generates tension that results in a change in the marital status. Looking at divorce from the Feminist view can be seen as conflict between a woman that is addressing the inequality stemming from her gender role and a man that does not want to relinquish power or resources to her. For example, she may have wanted her own checking account with private access to funds while her husband saw this as an unacceptable amount of power for her to have. The resulting tension caused a revolutionary change in their social structure. Divorce is seen in this light as a positive force because it is changing an inequality. Divorce when viewed from the Interactionist perspective examines the choices that each individual has made, the interactions between husband and wife, and the symbolic meaning of marriage and divorce. Nothing is right or wrong is it simply a way of looking at society from a very small scale while determining how these interactions shape the larger group. A symbolic Interactionist would ask the divorcee what she thought about the meaning of marriage and divorce. Her information taken with thousands of other interviews would form a picture of the current meaning of divorce. For example, the institution of marriage as a symbolic contract between a pair of people and the community has changed. Marriage was at once a status symbol and rite of passage. It used to mean you were on the right track in life and providing stability to your community. Conversely, divorce was seen as a great shame and something to be hidden if at all possible. Today multiple divorces are not uncommon. The stigma attached with divorce has declined just as the necessity of marriage has declined. Using the Interactionist perspective uncovers the changing meaning of divorce as a symbol in society. Of the three sociological perspectives the Conflict perspective and Feminist view offers a more convincing and applicable view of divorce. It answers why divorce happens in the most logical way. Americans are the most self-centered and arrogant people in the world. American culture upholds money, beauty and power as the most important goals one should work towards attaining in life. These values do not promote long term relationships. They promote conflict. For example, tensions arise in a marriage because of the struggle over money, property and power in a relationship. When one person in the marriage becomes unable to handle the disproportion of resources a disagreement occurs. Womens historical gender roles are still in effect. Because women are still expected to manage a household while working a full time job frustrations arise. These issues as well as countless others contribute to the current divorce rates. The Feminist view supports this idea by saying that the center of the problem is gender inequality while examining the ways in which it is still occurring. Conflict perspective explains how these problems arise and how they cause divorce by uncovering the perceptions, attitudes and values within the culture that give rise to the conflict.

Bill Clinton - Redefines Democratic-republican :: William Jefferson Clinton Essays

Bill Clinton - Redefines Democratic-Republican In the early 1800's, the United States was but a promising seedling in search of viable political direction. The initial parties were known as the federalists and the Democratic-Republicans, the first of which soon diminished and the later eventually bisected. The result is the two party Democrat and GOP system which the majority of politicians of current day subscribe. However, many political and economic analysts find themselves perplexed by an incredible new phenomenon radiating from the white house - the economic policies of President Bill Clinton. This dilemma has left many wondering, did we elect a democrat or a republican? Has Clinton unintentionally begun a campaign to reunite the two rivals? The telltale signs of Clinton's political ambiguity include reminiscently republican techniques of reducing the budget, creating jobs, lowered productivity, and shaping the tax code. During Clinton's 1992 campaign, balancing the budget was not among the countries main economic objectives (Miller 4). However, after close scrutiny, the economic woes of the approaching millennium were projected as "higher then we thought it would be" (Miller 4). In fact, "in the twelve years before Clinton took office, the deficit quadrupled in size" (deficit 1). As a result, Clinton must engage in creative cost cutting techniques to keep the budget under control. Money afforded to state and local governments for development programs, such as those which relieve "urban blight," will eventually be cut by two-thirds, a third more then Gingrich's last congress proposed (Rauch 2). In addition, cuts to transportation aid will prove fifty percent greater then republican propositions (Rauch 2). According to Clinton, all of these maneuvers will result in the lowering of the deficit by $600 billion, or almost one-third by the year 1998 (progress 1). Economists speculate that these reforms may produce the desired effect (Rauch 2). However, putting these measures into action may contradict one of Clinton's main election tenets - to preserve the status quo as it relates to government programs. The final budget will include one-seventh for interest on the national debt. A whopping two thirds will go toward entitlement, one sixth for defense programs and another one-sixth for "non- defense discretionary spending" (Rauch 2). Perhaps the most touted aspect of the initial Clinton administration was its ability to "create" jobs. According to the White House, almost six million jobs have been created in the past four years, and the unemployment rate in Texas has dropped from 7.5% to 5.8% (Progress 1). This is a level well below the 6% rate which many economists regard as full employment. However, there may be a great deal more then meets the eye when it comes to these "promising" statistics.

Free Merchant of Venice Essays: Injustice :: free essay writer

The Merchant of Venice is horrid, cruel, and one of the most popular plays of Shakespeare. After a close reading of the play, I find it impossible to think of Shylock negatively; he is just better quality stuff than any of the Christians in the play. The Christians are truly vile, heartless, money-grabbing monsters, and when Shylock makes his final exit, destroyed by defeat, one should sense that our Christian brothers are at last completely ashamed of themselves. I was hesitant to have anything to do with The Merchant of Venice after I first read it; all possible intrigue had dissolved as I read passages such as the following: "He hath disgraced me and hindered me half a million, laughed at my losses, mocked my gains, scorned my nation, thwarted my bargains, cooled my friends, heated mine enemies, and what's his reason? I am a Jew. Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions? ...If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die?" (III.1.49-55, 58-60) This passage tears at my very soul!!! This play was to me a biting farce written to satisfy a bloody crowd. While researching for this paper, I found two seemingly opposing facts about The Merchant of Venice - the Shakespearean play which have sparked the most controversy. This play is the most controversial and the most studied play in Israel. It is difficult to understand how this play could be beloved by the very people who are struck down. Apparently there are various readings of The Merchant of Venice which I had not considered. Perhaps the play is neither pro-Jewish, nor pro-Christian. Sure, Shylock is painted as a money-hungry Jew throughout the Merchant, "My daughter, O my ducats! My ducats, O my daughter!" Shylock is enraged his daughter has eloped with a Christian, but perhaps he is more concerned with the fate of his money. Antonio, a Christian, has borrowed money from Shylock and refuses to pay it back. Here the reader may find a Jew-hating man who publicly spits on Shylock, and suffers from the grief of an unfullfilled homo-erotic relationship.

Neuropathology of AIDS :: Health Medicine Medical Diseases Essays

Neuropathology of AIDS Since its discovery in 1981, AIDS has mainly been characterized as a disease effecting the bodying immune system. It has been recognized, however, that there are distinct neurological pathologies associated with the disease. AIDS neuropathology can be characterized by the existence of subcortical dementia, motor difficulties, and affective disorders. Most AIDS patients experience dementia of one form or another. It has been observed that approximately 95% of AIDS patients brain’s show signs of damage, and 60% of patients develop dementia of one degree or another. The AIDS virus is an RNA retrovirus which attaches to and infects T helper cells and other cells of the immune system. The virus normally goes through a typical lytic life cycle which is seen in the pathology of most viruses. Originally the HIV virus was associated wilt the CD4 receptor found on the immune cells, but it has been discovered that the OKT4 receptor is also a site of entry for the virus. This receptor is not only present in macrophages, but it is also found in glial cells of the CNS. There are basically three sites of entry where the HIV virus and infected macrophages can invade the CNS. The first is the blood brain barrier. If there is damage to the integrity of this barrier, the virus can easily pass into the brain tissue and proliferate. The second barrier is the blood CSF barrier. The choroid plexus males up this particular barrier, and the barrier is maintained by the existence of tight junctions. If there is a breakdown of these tight junctions, infected macrophages can pass from the blood into the CSF where they can pass to nearly any area of the CNS. The final site of entry, and perhaps the most likely' are the cicumventricular organs. This is the only site in the CNS where there is an absence of a barrier, and the macrophages carrying the virus are free to pass through these. From here the virus can spread almost anywhere in the CNS, but they intend to infect areas near their site of entry. The most common initial symptom seen in neurological disorders related to AIDS is subcortical dementia. The cardinal feature of subcortical dementia include slowing of mental processes, progressive impairment of memory, and deficits in manipulating or using spontaneously acquired information (i.e., poor problem solving). However, unlike the cortical dementias, higher-order associative function is preserved' and intellectual impairment is milder in the subcortical dementias.

Medication vs. Natural Treatment for ADHD Essay

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (also known as ADHD) is an increasing struggle among children in today’s society that affects them at home, in their social lives and academically. Many people think that all-natural treatments are the only way to help children who struggle with ADHD; however, despite the controversy over using medication with possible side effects, Adderall can be a helpful tool in the battle against ADHD. ADHD is a chronic neurological condition that affects millions of children and can often carry into adulthood. Signs and symptoms of ADHD may include trouble staying focused, trouble listening, difficulty completing tasks, fidgets and squirms and tends to be forgetful. Clearly, having these symptoms can make it difficult for a child to succeed in school and in other activities as well. (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2011) Many people believe that medication will affect a child negatively but medications are used every day to help with medical issues. For instance, if your child had diabetes would you hesitate to treat the disease with medication? Obviously, parents would do what was needed to help their child overcome this disease. In the same way, we need to be open to the idea of using medication to treat ADHD. There are many treatments available to help in the battle against ADHD. Medication is a controversial subject when it comes to treating any disorder; however, when medicine is used under a doctor’s supervision and distributed correctly, it can have a positive effect on the problem. When medication is taken, it enters the bloodstream and the key ingredients begin to stimulate the brains production of norepinephrine and dopamine which improves a person’s concentration and alertness. People with ADHD also tend to suffer from high blood pressure and rapid heartbeat but when medication is taken, it can help to get these problems under control and return the person’s system back to a normal state. (Nall) Another method of treatment that is widely used is natural treatment such as dieting and counseling. Some people may see positive results with Natural Treatments but for some children, medication is the only way to get their symptoms under control. Some experts believe that ADHD can be caused by food allergies and that by using the elimination diet, you can locate the allergy and treat the symptoms. In an elimination diet, you remove foods one at a time that your doctor believes may be causing the symptoms. Gradually, you begin re-introducing these foods back into your diet and when your symptoms return, then a diagnosis can be confirmed. (â€Å"Elimination diet and,† 2011) There has also been much thought put into the effect that processed sugar has on ADHD and research shows that it can have an effect on children’s activity levels. Nutritionists suggest that adding high fiber foods such as berries and other fruits, whole grains and oatmeal to your child’s diet that it can help manage their glucose levels and aid in the treatment of ADHD. These diets may be useful in the battle against ADHD but you can’t guarantee that this will help with the symptoms. There are so many processed foods available in the market today that it is very hard to keep sugar and other processed ingredients out of your diet. In order to follow through on the diet, one must make their child’s food and snacks and keep up on a very strict regime to make sure that they do not consume the â€Å"culprit† foods. Not every person can keep up on a diet to this extreme and that is when medication is available to help keep the symptoms under control. Counseling such as behavioral training can be an effective treatment for ADHD. Also available is learning behavior management that can be an essential part of any ADHD treatment. There are three levels of ADHD behavioral training that they focus on: * Parent training * Classroom behavior modification * Special education placement Although behavioral training management can be effective, according to WebMD, most experts agree that combining behavior management along with medication treatment can be the most effective treatment plan. One medication that has been used to treat ADHD is Adderall (Dextroamphetamine-amphetamine). Adderall was approved for treatment by the FDA in 1996 and has become a very popular choice in treatment. Adderall is considered a stimulant medication and according to The Mayo Clinic it appears to boost and balance levels of brain chemicals called neurotransmitters. Adderall helps to improve symptoms such as attention problems, impulsivity and hyperactivity. (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2011) Adderall has many possible side effects that can cause concern, but if under a doctor’s supervision it is considered a safe treatment. (Monson & Schoenstadt, 2008) When taking treatments into consideration, one must figure out if the side effects of the medicine are a small price to pay to conquer the annoying and life interrupting symptoms of ADHD. There are many benefits to both methods of treatment. When using the natural methods such as diet and counseling, you do not have the possibility of side effects like you do with the medication but for more severe forms of ADHD, you do not see as high of an improvement rate. Although there are the chances of side effects when taking Adderall, it does have more of a calming effect on the patient. The benefits of using Adderall include being able to focus, sit still, complete schoolwork and help in many other areas that ADHD affects. I know that with my own personal experience as we have walked through the battle of ADHD with my son, it is difficult to find the correct treatment plan that needs to be followed. We tried diets and counseling but could not seem to get a grasp on his symptoms. After being against medication for such a long time, we finally sat down with our pediatrician and explored all options available to us. Our pediatrician explained to us that when people have cancer, they need treatments of chemotherapy and or radiation to kill the disease. In my opinion, Adderall is the â€Å"chemotherapy and radiation† for ADHD. We tried for many years to help our son succeed in school and it wasn’t until we started his treatment of Adderall twice a day that we started to see improvement. Adderall is not an â€Å"instant† fix but given time, it is effective. Our son is now going into high school and not only does he have passing grades, but we no longer get calls from the teachers because he is unable to sit still and pay attention. Anytime medications are used in treatment plans, there is always a possibility of side effects. By going about treatment with medication in the proper manner and following your doctor’s advice, Adderall and other medications can be a very useful tool in gaining control of your child’s ADHD. I do believe that natural treatments are always the best option and should be considered first, but when these treatments do not help solve the issue then you need to consider other options. When your child suffers from ADHD and it affects all areas of their lives, you need to be open to whatever options are available to help you get the situation under control. By using Adderall and natural treatments such as diet and counseling together, you can get control back of your child’s behavior and see many benefits in the home, social setting and school settings. References (2011). amphetamine and dextroamphetamine, adderall. Retrieved from http://www.medicinenet.com/amphetamine_and_dextroamphetamine/article.htm Elimination diet and food challenge test for diagnosing allergies. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.webmd.com/allergies/allergies-elimination-diet Mayo Clinic Staff. (2011, Feburary 10). Mayo clinic. Retrieved from http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/adhd/DS00275 Monson, K., & Schoenstadt, A. (2008, July 10). emedtv.com. Retrieved from http://adhd.emedtv.com/adderall/adderall.html Nall, R. (n.d.). ehow.com. Retrieved from http://www.ehow.com/how-does_5406378_adderall-work-add_.html

Othello William Shakespeare Essay

* William Shakespeare created one of his most famous plays Othello to investigate in an influential manner the unrelenting issues of racial discrimination and gender equility. Based on the tale ‘Un Capitano Moro’ (The Moorish Captain) by Giovanni Cinthio, Othello was written during the epoch of 1603. Due to the actions of Othello, in the midst of a small cast, there is an exploration of sexual jealousy, and thus this play has earned a title of a domestic tragedy. * In this, the final scene depicts how the tragic hero Othello acquiesces to his incurable blemish and reaches his cessation. The foreseeable ending is cathartic for the audience to experience catharsis, as they experience a passionate feeling of trepidation and pity. Shakespeare shows how he is able to differentiate an individual’s personality in the unchanging hierarchy of his society. * This was achieved through the Turkish invasion in Cyprus where the Venetians fought purely for national identity. Intertwined in the play, the Machiavellian character of Iago brings a certain rise to chaos and blurs out all the lines between appearance and reality. Saying this, by Shakespeare’s intense use of language, the emotional engaging final scene, brings back a certain order; giving light to issues of truth, race and female insubordination and defining the central protagonist. Context: * Written between 1601 and 1604, Othello’s context is based around the eras of the Elizabethan and Jacobean epochs of English history. Between the two different periods, the Renaissance ideologies are greatly encompassed. These ideologies are that of a cultural movement occurring throughout Europe in the 14th to the 17th centuries. In the crux of this era, a deep understanding of characters and issues in Othello may perhaps be attained from the initial actions of the play, being set in one of the foremost cities of the Italian Renaissance. Moreover, this period also brought with it the Protestant Reformation which was commenced by Martin Luther which viewed the refusal of medieval Christian values. The Protestant theology believed that God’s divine plan of rational and moral logic was constant throughout society; one which developed in the unchallengeable hierarchy. * The Chain of Being was the reason for such order whereby it relegate all beings to ones rightful place and purpose in the universe. To preserve such a harmony, people had to develop reason and intellect to rule their emotions. In difference to such strict array, the Renaissance also gave rise to Humanism. Pico Della Mirandola here declared that â€Å"one could become as low as an animal or through intellect and imagination become equivalent to God, at least in understanding†1, which I believe may have shaped Shakespeare’s traditional thinking in Othello. * The selection of using a black tragic hero was indeed controversial, and furthermore those â€Å"Blackamoors† in Shakespeare’s previous dramas were without a doubt wicked. This is exemplified through Aaron in Titus Andronicus where this drama exclaimed ‘If one good deed in all my life I did, I do repent it to my very soul’(Act 5, Scene 3). Due to the conflict with Spain during the Elizabethan period, Blackamoors arrived in England and were reduced to servants or slaves. Therefore it is obvious that the audience of the era would have seen Othello’s superior military position as a serve rebellion to natural order. * Nevertheless, although the importance of race in Othello, it is essential that the audience recognises that the play is created primarily for the concern with class and subordination rather than forceful racism. The historical and geographical setting also plays a major influence in bringing various amounts of symbolism to the play. Venice was seen as a locus of Christian civilisation, rational order, culture and prosperity. It was also linked with poisoning as it was the birthplace of Niccolo Machiavelli. Moreover, the city was at the forefront of the battle, between the Christians and the Turks; who were seen as malicious, barbaric infidels. * The conflict was move to the island of Cyprus in 1570 which was a place isolated from civilisation and allied with Aphrodite, the goddess of love- and thus deemed a place of wild infatuation. Therefore we can see how this setting is able to show Othello’s inner conflict and dichotomy of identities; between the civilised and the barbaric, the Christian and the Pagan, the good and the evil within himself. Theme 1: Women * According to the time that the play was written in and the general hierarchy within Venetian society men hold all the power and women are considered to be of low intellect. Yet it is the women that speak the most sense throughout the play and it is also the women that are able to trust other characters in the play. Each woman represents a different social level, Desdemona being the highest and Bianca being of the lowest. Each sexual relationship in the play provokes some jealousy between the couple. * Bianca does not appear in the play as much as the other female characters yet her presence is key to the death of Desdemona as well as other play themes. Iago often refers to her as a prostitute, â€Å"A house wife that by selling her desires, Buys herself bread and clothes†. She has fallen in love with Cassio, yet he does not speak of his returned affection for her due to his desire for status, and her social standing would affect this dramatically. She is the jealous partner in this relationship and expresses this when Cassio produces Desdemona’s handkerchief, which Iago has planted in Cassio’s room. * As Iago’s wife and Desdemona’s lady in waiting Emilia helps link Iago’s plan. It was she whom supplied the Desdemona’s handkerchief for Iago. This helps Iago distort Othello’s views about Desdemona’s fidelity. It is interesting that she does not question Iago too much when she gives him the handkerchief, it could be considered that this illustrates female ability to trust in the play. However she also remains ignorant of the entire plot until the end, when her life comes to an abrupt ending, at the hands of her husband, Iago. She often failed to think before saying and performing some action. This, without much thought, uncovers her husband’s plan, but she fails to consider the consequences for herself. This is very different to her husband, who seems to plan out every word in order to get the right response. It is apparent that this is quite an unhappy marriage, made clearer through their dissimilar personalities. She has many honorable qualities such as her honesty in addition to her loyalty towards Desdemona. Iago does not treat her like his wife until he requires something; this shows this marriage was purely one in order to gain status among piers. * Throughout the play Desdemona is a symbol of innocence and helplessness. However on first encounter with her she appears to be mature and quite perceptive of events around her. Iago often tells Othello that she is unfaithful. It seems that she refuses to accept what is happening. Her views are impartial. She has a tendency to be sympathetic towards other people’s situations, like Cassio. This also further inspired Othello’s jealousy when Iago pointed out they were speaking in privacy. She often pays attention to other peoples thoughts yet remains cynical if they differ to her own. She has a loyalty to her husbands in all aspects of life, whether it is mental or physical. If Desdemona had been an emotional void then Iago would not have succeeded in his plan. This would have meant that she would not have lied to Othello about losing the handkerchief, which she did so as not to hurt his feelings. However Othello sees this as an attempt to deceive him and conceal the alleged truth about her affair with Cassio. Even her final words, indicate that she blames her death on herself, and not her jealous husband. * Othello was indeed a tragedy, in which out of the three women that are introduced, only one survived. Although the women were all rational in thought and trusting, their trust was often misplaced, in gentlemen like Iago. As well as this regardless of their intellect and contemplation of events around them (in some cases) this was not enough for them to rise up in society, as women had no opinion in the time of the play. Although Shakespeare undertook many modern day ideas, he did not do this for a modern day society, as it would not have allowed so many events to occur, and it would not have been considered realistic by the viewing public. Theme 2: Appearance vs Reality. * When we are able to see the hidden truth in the closing scene of Othello, the distinct battle between appearance and reality is concluded, giving a clear exposure to the understanding of all the characters and issues of the play. Notably, productions of Othello during the Elizabethan epoch would have used a white actor as the protagonist, and masked their skin with black makeup. * This ultimately emphasises the immense difference between external appearances and the internal reality, whereby the obvious dishonesty of the white Iago is juxtaposed with a fundamentally dignified black Othello. This is further promoted by the lines of the Duke in Act 1, who confirms that ‘If virtue no delighted beauty lack/ Your son-in-law is far more fair than black’. * Iago has the ability to clearly identity the fraud of appearances; as also he is the most likely to lie, he gains a trust from all characters in the play which concludes as being fatal to Othello. Iago further says ‘I am not what I am’, as he is able to put on a fake honesty in society and only tells of his wickedness in soliloquy with the audience. * Thus wickedness allows Iago to affect the thinking of Othello and moreover creating a crude image that ‘Cassio did top  her’, hence believing his obscure reasoning and logic and making Othello take this as the truth leading to his disastrous endings. The soubriquet of â€Å"Honest Iago† is continually reiterated by Othello, Cassio and Desdemona; hence it is cynically mocking those he wanted to deceive. Moreover, in the closing scene, the truth is slowly revealed as Iago is finally revealed as the villain who he is seen by the audience throughout the whole play. * Although, in the final resolution to ‘never speak word’, Shakespeare is able to penetrate the message of the very mysterious and inevitable human nature which Iago represents. Actions made by Othello are depended on the characters ability to not see things. He is able to blame and prosecute Desdemona even though he never witnessed her so called unlawful act against him, and Emilia- although she does witness Othello’s extreme anger and sadness over the loss of the handkerchief- she does not properly see what her husband has done to cause this. * Thus it is obvious to see how the importance of the ‘eye’ imagery in the final scene as it helps to demonstrate a material realisation of the actual fatal truth. Once Othello has committed his own suicide, Iago is invited by Lodovico to ‘Look on the tragic loading of this bed/ This is thy work. The object poisons sight, let it be hid’. * Formerly, Iago poisoned Othello by pouring ‘this pestilence into his ear’. Conversely, it is as though Shakespeare is parodying the heroes need for ‘ocular proof, as it ends as the eye which receives the poison; with the man himself Othello being a part of the typical ending for a Shakespearean play, a horrific massacre. We then gain an understanding from the conclusiveness of death a certain reality and moral implication on issues of truth within the final scene. * Furthermore, it is only a given that Emilia protects Desdemona as ‘the sweetest thing that ere did lift up eye’, followed by Othello confirming his own wife’s truthful innocence by declaring of her look that ‘This look of thine will hurl my soul from heaven’. Hence in the closing scene of the play, Shakespeare uses both visual and auditory imagery to show the difference between appearance and reality and deepen our understanding of the character Othello. Theme 3: Order and Chaos * The final scene, due to Elizabethan context, brings to place the restitution of order; which helps to reunite the characters with concerns they have detained throughout the play. All Shakespearean plays depict a hierarchic society to maintain the cosmic laws of God. * A great amount of torment in the 17th century came from this Great Chain of Being, as a disturbance of this order possibly would force the world into great chaos, one which out does any of the kind. Othello is given two roles in this, one as the creator of chaos, and the other, the protector of order. Being held at high regard as the military general gave him the label of a hero and defender of Venetian civilisation. * However, due to his race and colour, Othello also was seen to be threatening the white authority of the state. Much the same of the island of Cyprus, Othello was colonised by Venice, and used, however never fully becomes a Venetian. * With social fears of miscegenation, Othello’s position as an outsider was forced upon him, and hence by Brabantio’s repulsion at the harsh image of a ‘black ram tupping your white ewe’. Yet, like all Shakespearean plays, order is restored in the final scene. In this scene, Othello is able to re-establish himself as a heroic soldier through his suicide, by getting rid of the barbaric Turkish enemy. Through the uses of chaos and order, it represents the battle between Christians and Infidels. In the closing scene of Othello, Emilia reiterates ‘play the swan/ and die in music’. * This natural imagery says that it is possible that the laws of nature or religion are extremely powerful in society. This belief is further exemplified through the religious turmoil of the previous century, as Protestants were harshly persecuted under the rulings of Queen Mary I. * Thus, it is obvious how religious devotion kept world order. We can further link Othello’s character to black magic and a pagan history through items such as the handkerchief, illustrating the disorder of the unknown to the Venetians. This is further linked with Christopher Marlowe’s, Doctor Faustus who is able to create a sense of disorder through his associations with the devil. Saying this, at the ending of Othello, Shakespeare verifies that chaos and disorder can occupy the microcosm of an individual. * As Othello states ‘Perdition catch my soul/ But I do love thee; and when I love thee not/ Chaos is come again’, we can see how he foreshadows an expression of self chaos at the loss of Desdemona’s love. Next to the ‘temptation scene’ of Act 3, we see how Othello succumbs to the ‘green eyed monster’ of pure jealously brought on through Iago’s evil mind games. * This extremely powerful human emotion releases the beast hidden in Othello. This can greatly be seen in the breakdown of his language which has been his tool to command order throughout the whole play; typical of his contextual authority. He cries ‘Pish! Noses, ears,/and lips. Is’t possible? Confess-handkerchief! O/devil! ’, illustrating his confused mind and disorderly insecurity over Desdemona’s fidelity. However, as the play closes, Shakespeare leads Othello back to person order. * In ‘killing himself to die upon a kiss’, Othello is able to seal his bond with his sweet and innocent wife, Desdemona and eventually dies in an act of love. Ultimately, the final scene of Othello, illustrates to the audience the utmost importance of the restoration of order, in terms of both social structure and the individual. Conclusion: The final scene of Shakespeare’s Othello, offers us a sometimes erratic, emotion and foreseeable series of events. However this type of ending is extremely effective. It is in agreement with various traditional Aristotelian tragedies by the way it involves an intense feeling of pity and fear for the audience’s entertainment. Moreover, the exaggerated ending of the play brings intensity and incites the readers to look upon the nature of the characters in the various issues amongst the play. Mainly, in the final scene, we see the flaws of the tragic hero, the Machiavellian disposition of Iago, the way women are seen and positioned in Shakespearian context and lastly the necessity of order after the use of chaotic dimensions. Ultimately, the various emotions and thoughts put upon the audience in this final scene of the play Othello, helps promote and illustrate how it is one of Shakespeare’s most intriguing and controversial plays.